Neuropeptide-stimulated cell migration in prostate cancer cells is mediated by RhoA kinase signaling and inhibited by neutral endopeptidase.

The neuropeptides bombesin and endothelin-1 stimulate prostate cancer (PC) cell migration and invasion (J Clin Invest, 2000; 106: 1399-1407). The intracellular signaling pathways that direct this cell movement are not well delineated. The monomeric GTPase RhoA is required for migration in several cell types including neutrophils, monocytes and fibroblasts. We demonstrate that bombesin-stimulated PC cell migration occurs via the heterotrimeric G-protein-coupled receptors (G-protein) G alpha 13 subunit leading to activation of RhoA, and Rho-associated coiled-coil forming protein kinase (ROCK). Using siRNA to suppress expression of the three known G-protein alpha-subunit-associated RhoA guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs), we also show that two of these RhoA GEFs, PDZ-RhoGEF and leukemia-associated RhoGEF (LARG), link bombesin receptors to RhoA in a non-redundant manner in PC cells. We next show that focal adhesion kinase, which activates PDZ-RhoGEF and LARG, is required for bombesin-stimulated RhoA activation. Neutral endopeptidase (NEP) is expressed on normal prostate epithelium whereas loss of NEP expression contributes to PC progression. We also demonstrate that NEP inhibits neuropeptide activation of RhoA. Together, these results establish a contiguous signaling pathway from the bombesin receptor to ROCK in PC cells, and they implicate NEP as a major regulator of neuropeptide-stimulated RhoA in these cells. This work also identifies members of this signaling pathway as potential targets for rational pharmacologic manipulation of neuropeptide-stimulated migration of PC cells.

Measurement of cytoplasmic free Ca2+ concentration in rabbit aorta using the photoprotein, aequorin. Effect of atrial natriuretic peptide on agonist-induced Ca2+ signal generation.

Addition of norepinephrine, angiotensin II, or histamine leads to a transient rise in the cytoplasmic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i), as measured with aequorin, in rabbit aortic strips. Each induces a [Ca2+]i transient which peaks in 2 min and then falls either back to baseline (angiotensin II) or to a plateau (norepinephrine and histamine). The [Ca2+]i transient is due to the mobilization of Ca2+ from a caffeine-sensitive, intracellular pool. An elevation of [K+] to 35 mM leads to a monotonic sustained rise in [Ca2+]i which depends entirely on extracellular Ca2+, but an increase to 100 mM leads to a [Ca2+]i transient from the mobilization of intracellular Ca2+. Atrial natriuretic peptide does not alter basal [Ca2+]i nor inhibit the [Ca2+]i transient induced by either histamine or angiotensin II, but blocks that induced by norepinephrine, and blocks the plateau phase induced by either histamine or norepinephrine. The peptide inhibits the contractile response to all three agonists and to K+.

Endothelin receptor is coupled to phospholipase C via a pertussis toxin-insensitive guanine nucleotide-binding regulatory protein in vascular smooth muscle cells.

The mechanisms of endothelin-1 (ET) actions were investigated in cultured rat aortic vascular smooth muscle A-10 cells. The A-10 cells have a single class of high affinity binding sites for ET with an apparent Mr of 65,000-75,000 on SDS-PAGE. Stimulation of cells with ET induces mobilization of Ca2+ from both intra- and extracellular pools to produce a biphasic increase in cytoplasmic free Ca2+ concentration. ET increases cellular levels of inositol trisphosphate and 1,2-diacylglycerol, indicating activation of phospholipase C by ET. ET stimulates production of inositol phosphates in membranes prepared from A-10 cells in the presence of guanosine 5'-O-(thiotriphosphate) (GTP gamma S), but not in its absence. Further, specific binding of 125I-labeled ET to A-10 cell membranes is shown to be inhibited by GTP gamma S in a dose-dependent manner. Treatment of A-10 cells with pertussis toxin induces ADP-ribosylation of a 41,000-D membrane protein but fails to block the ET-induced increases in inositol phosphate production and Ca2+ mobilization. These results indicate that the receptor for ET is coupled to phospholipase C via a guanine nucleotide-binding regulatory protein which is distinct from the pertussis toxin substrate in A-10 cells.

Inhibition of rat vascular smooth muscle proliferation in vitro and in vivo by bone morphogenetic protein-2.

Vascular proliferative disorders are characterized by the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs) and excessive extracellular matrix synthesis. We found that bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) inhibited serum-stimulated increases in DNA synthesis and cell number of cultured rat arterial SMCs in a fashion quite different from that in the case of transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1). In addition, TGF-beta1 stimulated collagen synthesis in SMCs, whereas BMP-2 did not. In an in vivo rat carotid artery balloon injury model, the adenovirus-mediated transfer of the BMP-2 gene inhibited injury-induced intimal hyperplasia. These results indicate that BMP-2 has the ability to inhibit SMC proliferation without stimulating extracellular matrix synthesis, and suggest the possibility of therapeutic application of BMP-2 for the prevention of vascular proliferative disorders.

Ras activity late in G1 phase required for p27kip1 downregulation, passage through the restriction point, and entry into S phase in growth factor-stimulated NIH 3T3 fibroblasts.

It is well documented that Ras functions as a molecular switch for reentry into the cell cycle at the border between G0 and G1 by transducing extracellular growth stimuli into early G1 mitogenic signals. In the present study, we investigated the role of Ras during the late stage of the G1 phase by using NIH 3T3 (M17) fibroblasts in which the expression of a dominant negative Ras mutant, p21(Ha-Ras[Asn17]), is induced in response to dexamethasone treatment. We found that delaying the expression of Ras(Asn17) until late in the G1 phase by introducing dexamethasone 3 h after the addition of epidermal growth factor (EGF) abolished the downregulation of the p27kip1 cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor which normally occurred during this period, with resultant suppression of cyclin Ds/CDK4 and cyclin E/CDK2 and G1 arrest. The immunodepletion of p27kip1 completely eliminated the CDK inhibitor activity from EGF-stimulated, dexamethasone-treated cell lysate. The failure of p27kip1 downregulation and G1 arrest was also observed in cells in which Ras(Asn17) was induced after growth stimulation with a phorbol ester or alpha-thrombin and was mimicked by the addition late in the G1 phase of inhibitors for phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase. Ras-mediated downregulation of p27kip1 involved both the suppression of synthesis and the stimulation of the degradation of the protein. Unlike the earlier expression of Ras(Asn17) at the border between G0 and G1, its delayed expression did not compromise the EGF-stimulated transient activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases or inhibit the stimulated expression of a principal D-type cyclin, cyclin D1, until close to the border between G1 and S. We conclude that Ras plays temporally distinct, phase-specific roles throughout the G1 phase and that Ras function late in G1 is required for p27kip1 downregulation and passage through the restriction point, a prerequisite for entry into the S phase.

Cyclin D1 expression mediated by phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase through mTOR-p70(S6K)-independent signaling in growth factor-stimulated NIH 3T3 fibroblasts.

Phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase is required for G1 to S phase cell cycle progression stimulated by a variety of growth factors and is implicated in the activation of several downstream effectors, including p70(S6K). However, the molecular mechanisms by which PI 3-kinase is engaged in activation of the cell cycle machinery are not well understood. Here we report that the expression of a dominant negative (DN) form of either the p110alpha catalytic or the p85 regulatory subunit of heterodimeric PI 3-kinase strongly inhibited epidermal growth factor (EGF)-induced upregulation of cyclin D1 protein in NIH 3T3(M17) fibroblasts. The PI 3-kinase inhibitors LY294002 and wortmannin completely abrogated increases in both mRNA and protein levels of cyclin D1 and phosphorylation of pRb, inducing G1 arrest in EGF-stimulated cells. By contrast, rapamycin, which potently suppressed p70(S6K) activity throughout the G1 phase, had little inhibitory effect, if any, on either of these events. PI 3-kinase, but not rapamycin-sensitive pathways, was also indispensable for upregulation of cyclin D1 mRNA and protein by other mitogens in NIH 3T3 (M17) cells and in wild-type NIH 3T3 cells as well. We also found that an enforced expression of wild-type p110 was sufficient to induce cyclin D1 protein expression in growth factor-deprived NIH 3T3(M17) cells. The p110 induction of cyclin D1 in quiescent cells was strongly inhibited by coexpression of either of the PI 3-kinase DN forms, and by LY294002, but was independent of the Ras-MEK-ERK pathway. Unlike mitogen stimulation, the p110 induction of cyclin D1 was sensitive to rapamycin. These results indicate that the catalytic activity of PI 3-kinase is necessary, and could also be sufficient, for upregulation of cyclin D1, with mTOR signaling being differentially required depending upon cellular conditions.

Inhibitory regulation of Rac activation, membrane ruffling, and cell migration by the G protein-coupled sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor EDG5 but not EDG1 or EDG3.

Sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) is a bioactive lysophospholipid that induces a variety of biological responses in diverse cell types. Many, if not all, of these responses are mediated by members of the EDG (endothelial differentiation gene) family G protein-coupled receptors EDG1, EDG3, and EDG5 (AGR16). Among prominent activities of S1P is the regulation of cell motility; S1P stimulates or inhibits cell motility depending on cell types. In the present study, we provide evidence for EDG subtype-specific, contrasting regulation of cell motility and cellular Rac activity. In CHO cells expressing EDG1 or EDG3 (EDG1 cells or EDG3 cells, respectively) S1P as well as insulin-like growth factor I (IGF I) induced chemotaxis and membrane ruffling in phosphoinositide (PI) 3-kinase- and Rac-dependent manners. Both S1P and IGF I induced a biphasic increase in the amount of the GTP-bound active form of Rac. In CHO cells expressing EDG5 (EDG5 cells), IGF I similarly stimulated cell migration; however, in contrast to what was found for EDG1 and EDG3 cells, S1P did not stimulate migration but totally abolished IGF I-directed chemotaxis and membrane ruffling, in a manner dependent on a concentration gradient of S1P. In EDG5 cells, S1P stimulated PI 3-kinase activity as it did in EDG1 cells but inhibited the basal Rac activity and totally abolished IGF I-induced Rac activation, which involved stimulation of Rac-GTPase-activating protein activity rather than inhibition of Rac-guanine nucleotide exchange activity. S1P induced comparable increases in the amounts of GTP-RhoA in EDG3 and EDG5 cells. Neither S1P nor IGF I increased the amount of GTP-bound Cdc42. However, expression of N(17)-Cdc42, but not N(19)-RhoA, suppressed S1P- and IGF I-directed chemotaxis, suggesting a requirement for basal Cdc42 activity for chemotaxis. Taken together, the present results demonstrate that EDG5 is the first example of a hitherto-unrecognized type of receptors that negatively regulate Rac activity, thereby inhibiting cell migration and membrane ruffling.

A fumagillin derivative angiogenesis inhibitor, AGM-1470, inhibits activation of cyclin-dependent kinases and phosphorylation of retinoblastoma gene product but not protein tyrosyl phosphorylation or protooncogene expression in vascular endothelial cells.

Fumagillin analogue AGM-1470 potently inhibits angiogenesis with a minimal toxicity in vivo and is expected to be of therapeutic use as a powerful antitumor agent (Ingber et al., Nature, 348:555-557, 1990). In the present study, we have investigated the effects and the mechanism of action of AGM-1470 on cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells. AGM-1470 acts directly on endothelial cells to inhibit growth factor-induced DNA synthesis, with half maximal and maximal effects obtained at approximately 2 x 10(-10) and 5 x 10(-9) M, respectively. AGM-1470 does not inhibit early G1 mitogenic events, such as cellular protein tyrosyl phosphorylation or the expression of immediate early genes c-fos and c-myc, but potently inhibits phosphorylation of RB protein, a tumor suppressor retinoblastoma gene product. The later addition of AGM-1470 up to 3 h after the growth factor stimulation still exerts full inhibitory effects on both DNA synthesis and RB phosphorylation, suggesting that the major site of action of AGM-1470 is located relatively late in the G1 phase. AGM-1470 inhibits growth factor-induced activation of candidate RB kinases cdc2 and cdk2 but fails to inhibit them directly in vitro. AGM-1470 completely abolishes the growth factor-induced mRNA expression of cdc2 and cyclin A and partially inhibits that of cyclin E but has little effect on the mRNA level of cdk2, cdk4, or cyclin D1. These results indicate that angioinhibitory action of AGM-1470 involves suppression of mRNA expression of specific members of cdks and cyclins and of activation of both cdc2 and cdk2 kinases in endothelial cells.

Stimulation of calcium mobilization but not proliferation by bombesin and tachykinin neuropeptides in human small cell lung cancer cells.

The tachykinin family of neuropeptides, including substance P and neurokinins A and B, induce a transient increase in intracellular free calcium concentration in human small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) cells, as measured with a calcium indicator fura-2. The effects are dose dependent and even greater than that of bombesin at equimolar concentrations in these cells. The tachykinins, like bombesin, induce calcium mobilization mainly from intracellular store(s). None of the peptides, however, shows a stimulatory effect on DNA synthesis. In addition, exogenously applied bombesin does not stimulate DNA synthesis at any concentration tested. We also examined the effects of a recently reported bombesin antagonist [D-Arg1, D-Phe5, D-Trp7,9, Leu11]substance P in SCLC cells, and compared them to those in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts in which the mitogenic effect of bombesin is well characterized. The antagonist at 10(-5) M completely abolishes the Ca2+-mobilizing effect of 10(-7) M bombesin in SCLC cells, and that of 10(-9) M but not 10(-7) M bombesin in Swiss 3T3 cells. The antagonist at this concentration effectively inhibits the mitogenic action of bombesin (10(-9) M) in Swiss 3T3 cells; however, much higher doses (approximately 10(-4) M) are needed to inhibit DNA synthesis in SCLC cells. Moreover, the antagonist inhibits DNA synthesis in bombesin/gastrin-releasing peptide-nonproducing cells with a similar dose dependency as in producing cells. These results indicate that bombesin/gastrin-releasing peptide and other calcium mobilizing peptides do not always act as a growth factor in SCLC cells, and that the bombesin antagonist could inhibit growth of SCLC cells through a mechanism other than bombesin antagonism.

Molecular cloning of a novel putative G protein-coupled receptor from rat aortic smooth muscle. Downregulation of the mRNA level by the cyclic AMP messenger pathway.

A cDNA clone encoding a novel putative G protein-coupled receptor was isolated from rat aortic vascular smooth muscle cell cDNA library by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using degenerate oligonucleotide primers and subsequent hybridization screening with a cloned PCR product. Sequence analysis of this clone (AGR9) shows that it encodes a 483 amino acid protein with seven streches of hydrophobic amino acids, which are presumed to represent transmembrane domains. In addition, AGR9 protein exhibits several structural features characteristic of the G protein-coupled receptor family, which include the existence of potential N-linked glycosylation sites in the amino-terminal region, phosphorylation sites by serine/threonine kinases in the intracellular regions, and a number of well-conserved residues among most of the G protein-coupled receptors. Northern blot analysis indicates abundant expression of a major 3.9 kb AGR9 mRNA in brain, lung, heart, stomach, intestine, cultured rat aortic smooth muscle cells and cardiac myocytes. Treatment of rat aortic smooth muscle cells with the adenylyl cyclase activator forskolin causes a marked and transient decrease in the steady-state level of AGR9 mRNA. Dibutyryl cyclic AMP and the beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol mimick the effect of forskolin. The ligand for AGR9 receptor has yet to be identified, however, these results suggest the existence of a novel G protein-coupled receptor expressed in the cardiovascular, central nervous and digestive systems.

Protein kinase C inhibits the CAK-CDK2 cyclin-dependent kinase cascade and G1/S cell cycle progression in human diploid fibroblasts.

Serum stimulation of human diploid fibroblast IMR-90 cells leads to phosphorylation of p33CDK2 at Thr160 and activation of CDK2 kinase, a necessary event for G1/S transition. We report that serum stimulation causes a gradual, sustained increase in the activity of CDK-activating kinase (CAK) that phosphorylates CDK2 at Thr160, which starts by 5 h after serum stimulation and reaches the maximal plateau level at around the G1/S boundary. In this cell type addition of phorbol-12, 13-dibutyrate 5 h but not 16 h after serum stimulation completely inhibits CDK2 kinase activation and DNA synthesis. Phorbol ester treatment does not reduce the protein level of p33CDK2, but does inhibit serum-stimulated increases in the CAK activity and CDK2 phosphorylation at Thr160. The suppression of the CAK activity by the phorbol ester is accompanied by decreases in the message levels of both CDK7 and cyclin H, the catalytic and the positive regulatory subunit of CAK, respectively. These results indicate that in IMR-90 cells activation of protein kinase C in the late G1 phase causes cell cycle arrest before the G1/S boundary at least in part through downregulation of CAK and CAK-mediated CDK2 phosphorylation and activation.

Interactions of cholecystokinin and glucose in rat pancreatic islets.

The effects of sulfated cholecystokinin (CCK-8S) and glucose on insulin secretion and polyphosphoinositide (PPI) metabolism were studied in isolated rat islets. Both agonists stimulate PPI hydrolysis, inositol phosphate accumulation, 3H efflux from [3H]inositol-prelabeled tissue, and 45Ca efflux from prelabeled cells. However, the effects of CCK-8S on PPI metabolism are considerably greater than those of glucose. Furthermore, the effects of CCK-8S on PPI and Ca2+ metabolism are observed whether islets are incubated in either 2.75 or 7 mM glucose, but CCK-8S only stimulates insulin secretion (a biphasic response) when the higher glucose concentration is present. Addition of 1 microM forskolin to islets incubated in media containing 2.75 mM glucose does not influence basal insulin secretion but sensitizes the islets to the action of CCK-8S. In the presence of forskolin, CCK-8S induces a very marked first phase but no second phase of insulin secretion. We postulate that CCK-8S acts in this tissue via receptor-linked PPI hydrolysis, leading to an inositol trisphosphate-induced Ca2+ efflux. These receptor-mediated effects of CCK-8S are not altered either by the ambient glucose concentration or the cAMP content of the islets, but these two factors determine the responsiveness of the islets (in terms of insulin secretion) to a given CCK-8S signal.

Calcium, calmodulin and cell cycle progression.

Proliferation of mammalian cells both in vivo and in vitro is dependent upon physiological concentrations of extracellular Ca2+. Growth factor stimulation of quiescent cells at the G0/G1 border usually results in a rapid mobilization of Ca2+ from both intra- and extracellular pools. However, Ca2+ influx is also required for later phases of cell cycle transition, especially in the late G1 phase for initiation of DNA synthesis. Available evidence indicates that calmodulin plays the major and essential roles in the Ca(2+)-dependent regulation of cell proliferation. Ca2+ and calmodulin act at multiple points in the cell cycle, including the initiation of the S phase and both initiation and completion of the M phase. Ca2+ and calmodulin stimulate the expression of genes involved in the cell cycle progression, leading to activation of cyclin-dependent kinases p33cdk2 and p34cdc2. Ca2+ and calmodulin are also involved in activation of enzymes participating in nucleotide metabolism and DNA replication, as well as nuclear envelope breakdown and cytokinesis. Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II and protein phosphatase calcineurin are both involved in the Ca2+ and calmodulin-mediated signalling of growth regulation. As compared to normal cells, growth of transformed cells is independent of extracellular Ca2+ and much less sensitive to calmodulin antagonists, suggesting the existence of derangements in the Ca2+ and calmodulin-mediated growth regulation mechanisms.

Ca(2+)-dependent stimulatory effect of pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide on catecholamine secretion from cultured porcine adrenal medullary chromaffin cells.

Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) stimulates catecholamine secretion from cultured porcine adrenal medullary chromaffin cells in a dose-dependent manner with the half-maximal and maximal doses of 30 nM and 1 microM, respectively. Either removal of extracellular Ca2+ or addition of Gd3+, an inorganic Ca2+ channel blocker, very potently inhibits PACAP-induced catecholamine secretion. Both nicardipine (1 microM) and methoxyverapamil (1 microM), blockers of voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels, are also effective in inhibiting PACAP-induced catecholamine secretion. When the intracellular free Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) is measured in a fura 2-loaded single chromaffin cell, PACAP is found to cause a sustained increase in [Ca2+]i by mobilizing Ca2+ from both extra- and intracellular pools. It is also found that PACAP stimulates the production of inositol phosphates in a dose-dependent manner, which is not abolished by removal of extracellular Ca2+ unlike the case of nicotine. PACAP increases cAMP content in chromaffin cells in a dose-dependent manner. Removal of extracellular Ca2+ enhances PACAP-induced cAMP production but strongly inhibits PACAP-induced catecholamine secretion. Pretreatment of cells with adenosine-3':5'-monophosphothioate, cyclic, Rp-isomer, a cAMP antagonist, does not block PACAP-induced catecholamine secretion. The addition of forskolin or 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine does not enhance the PACAP-induced catecholamine secretion. These results indicate that PACAP activates voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels and phospholipase C as well as adenylate cyclase in cultured porcine adrenal medullary cells and strongly suggest that PACAP-induced catecholamine secretion is mainly mediated by activation of voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels.

Effects of endogenous and exogenous parathyroid hormone on tubular reabsorption of calcium in pseudohypoparathyroidism.

Resistance to the proximal tubular actions of PTH is a well defined feature in patients with pseudohypoparathyroidism type I (PsH). However, it is less clear whether there also is resistance to the distal tubular effect of PTH on calcium reabsorption in these patients. Thus, we examined the effects of endogenous and exogenous PTH on calcium reabsorption in seven patients with PsH before and during treatment with 1 alpha-hydroxyvitamin D3 (1 alpha OHD3). Eleven patients with idiopathic hypoparathyroidism served as controls. Before treatment, urinary calcium excretion was comparable in the two groups and did not decrease significantly after PTH infusion in either group. During treatment with 1 alpha OHD3, in contrast, steady state urinary calcium excretion in patients with PsH was much lower than that in patients with idiopathic hypoparathyroidism at comparable serum calcium concentrations and did not exceed the upper limit of the normal range when PsH patients were normocalcemic. Infusion of PTH into 1 alpha OHD3-treated PsH patients led to a significant reduction in urinary calcium excretion, even though PTH had no effect on their urinary cAMP or phosphate excretion. These findings suggest that the renal resistance to PTH in patients with PsH is confined to its proximal tubular actions and does not include its distal tubular effect on calcium reabsorption, at least during treatment with active vitamin D metabolites.

Calcium in the regulation of aldosterone secretion and vascular smooth muscle contraction.

A model of angiotensin II action has been developed in which the flow of information from cell surface to cell interior proceeds by two temporally distinct branches: a calmodulin branch largely responsible for initiating the response; and a C-kinase branch for sustaining it. There are at least two initial events: a prompt and sustained increase in calcium influx rate, and prompt hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate. The latter leads to the generation of water-soluble inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate and lipid soluble diacylglycerol. The rise in inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate concentration causes the redistribution of intracellular calcium, a transient rise in the calcium concentration in the cytosol, and the activation of calmodulin-dependent enzymes, including protein kinase(s). As a result, several cellular proteins are rapidly phosphorylated and initiate the cellular response. The rise in calcium and these initial phosphorylation events are transient, however, so that an additional mechanism is necessary to sustain the response. The rise in diacylglycerol content, along with the transient rise in cytosolic calcium, leads to a shift of the C-kinase from a calcium-insensitive to a calcium-sensitive, plasma membrane-associated form. In this location, the activity of C-kinase is regulated by the rate of calcium flux across the plasma membrane. As a result of the activity of the C-kinase, a second set of cellular proteins becomes phosphorylated, and these control the sustained phase of the response.

Increased expression of parathyroid hormone-related peptide gene in blood vessels of spontaneously hypertensive rats.

We have shown recently that mechanical stretch of cultured rat aortic smooth muscle cells induces a marked increase in gene expression of the vasorelaxant parathyroid hormone-related peptide. In the present study, we investigated whether mechanical force affected the in vivo parathyroid hormone-related peptide gene expression in blood vessels. Northern blot analysis revealed that stretch of isolated rat aortic strips increased the expression level of parathyroid hormone-related peptide mRNA. The parathyroid hormone-related peptide transcript level in aorta and mesenteric vessels from 18-week-old spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) was 2.5- and 2.2-fold higher, respectively, compared with age-matched Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) controls, whereas the parathyroid hormone-related peptide mRNA level in aorta from normotensive 4-week-old SHR was similar to that of age-matched WKY controls. The aortic parathyroid hormone-related peptide content was higher in 18-week-old SHR than in age-matched WKY controls. Moreover, treatment of mature SHR with an angiotensin II type 1 receptor antagonist or hydralazine caused a concomitant decrease in the parathyroid hormone-related peptide transcript level in aorta with lowering of blood pressure. These results suggest that the in vivo parathyroid hormone-related peptide gene expression in blood vessels is under the control of mechanical force, pointing to a role of parathyroid hormone-related peptide in the regulation of vascular tone.

Hereditary adrenocortical unresponsiveness to adrenocorticotropin with a postreceptor defect.

We report two cases in one pedigree with hereditary adrenocortical unresponsiveness to ACTH (HACUA) where it is suggested that the pathogenic defect occurs after cAMP generation. Although the patients showed increased plasma ACTH, decreased plasma cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone, and no steroidogenic response to exogenous ACTH, they responded normally to both furosemide administration and to a low sodium diet by showing increases in plasma aldosterone. The peripheral blood mononuclear leukocytes (MNLs) from these patients possessed ACTH receptors similar to adrenocortical ones, which was in contrast to a previously reported case with a deficiency of ACTH receptors in the MNLs. Furthermore, ACTH receptors in the patients' MNLs were functionally coupled to adenylate cyclase. Dibutyryl cAMP infusion did not, however, increase plasma cortisol nor aldosterone in these patients in a sharp contrast to its remarkable increase in a normal control subject. These results suggest that these patients represent a new subtype of HACUA with a failure of intracellular reception of the cAMP message in adrenocortical cells. We propose to classify our patients with a postreceptor defect as HACUA type II using an analogy to pseudohypoparathyroidism type II.

Possible role of protein kinase C-dependent smooth muscle contraction in the pathogenesis of chronic cerebral vasospasm.

In the present study, we investigate the possible role of protein kinase C (PKC)-dependent smooth muscle contraction in cerebral vasospasm following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), employing the beagle "two-hemorrhage" model. The occurrence of chronic vasospasm was angiographically confirmed on day 7 in the basilar artery, which was exposed via the transclival approach. The artery was superfused with aerated Krebs-Henseleit solution containing various agents, and the subsequent changes in the basilar artery diameter were recorded by successive angiography. The preexisting spasm was not ameliorated by local application of neurotransmitter antagonists (atropine, methysergide, phentolamine, and diphenhydramine), calmodulin inhibitors (R24571 and W-7), or a calcium antagonist, nicardipine. However, the application of PKC inhibitors such as H-7 and staurosporine induced significant dilation of the artery. In another experiment, an intrinsic PKC activator, 1,2-diacylglycerol (DAG), in the basilar artery, the CSF, and the cisternal clot of beagles exposed to two hemorrhages was measured on days 1, 2, 4, 7, and 14 using the DAG kinase method. On days 2, 4, and 7, the DAG content of the basilar artery showed a significant and prolonged increase (150-190% of control), whereas it was unchanged on days 1 and 14. Throughout the experimental period, there was a significant linear correlation between the DAG content and the angiographical diameter of the basilar artery. The above results indicate that SAH leads to an increase in the DAG level within the cerebral artery through an as yet unknown mechanism and that subsequent activation of the PKC-dependent contractile system participates in the occurrence of chronic vasospasm.

Alterations in protein kinase C activity and membrane lipid metabolism in cerebral vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Changes in protein kinase C (PKC) activity, membrane lipid metabolism, and the extent of 20-kDa myosin light chain (MLC) phosphorylation in spastic cerebral basilar arteries were examined by using the beagle "two-hemorrhage" model of subarachnoid hemorrhage. In spastic arteries at days 4 and 7, cytosolic PKC activity showed a decrease of 40-45% with no significant changes in membrane PKC activity as compared with nonspastic control arteries. Cytosolic PKC activity of the day 14 arteries returned toward the normal control level with the remission of vasospasm. Western blot analysis of the PKC isoforms revealed that the amounts of PKC alpha and PKC epsilon but not PKC zeta were decreased in spastic arteries. As compared with nonspastic arteries, spastic arteries showed higher rates of incorporation of [3H]choline into phosphatidylcholine (PC) and [14C]ethanolamine into phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), but not of [3H]myoinositol into phosphoinositides, suggesting the stimulated turn-over of PC and PE. The extent of 20-kDa MLC phosphorylation was not increased in the spastic arteries at days 4 or 7 as compared with that in the nonspastic control arteries. These results demonstrate that PKC activity and related membrane lipid metabolism are altered in spastic basilar arteries after subarachnoid hemorrhage.