Glucocorticoids can activate the alpha-ENaC gene promoter independently of SGK1.

The role of SGK1 (serum- and glucocorticoid-induced protein kinase 1) in the glucocorticoid induction of alpha-ENaC (epithelial Na+ channel alpha subunit) gene transcription was explored by monitoring the transcriptional activity of a luciferase-linked, alpha-ENaC reporter gene construct (pGL3-KR1) expressed in H441 airway epithelial cells. Dexamethasone evoked a concentration-dependent (EC50 approximately 4 microM) increase in transcriptional activity dependent upon a glucocorticoid response element in the alpha-ENaC sequence. Although dexamethasone also activated endogenous SGK1, artificially increasing cellular SGK1 activity by expressing a constitutively active SGK1 mutant (SGK1-S422D) in hormone-deprived cells did not activate pGL3-KR1. Moreover, expression of catalytically inactive SGK1 (SGK1-K127A) suppressed the activation of endogenous SGK1 without affecting the transcriptional response to dexamethasone. Increasing cellular PI3K (phosphoinositide 3-kinase) activity by expressing a membrane-anchored form of the catalytic PI3K-P110alpha subunit [CD2 (cluster of differentiation 2)-P110alpha] also activated endogenous SGK1 without affecting pGL3-KR1activity. A catalytically inactive form of CD2-P110alpha (R1130P), on the other hand, prevented the dexamethasone-induced activation of SGK1, but did not inhibit the activation of pGL3-KR1. However, expression of SGK1-S422D or CD2-P110alpha enhanced the transcriptional responses to maximally effective concentrations of dexamethasone and this effect occurred with no change in EC50. Dexamethasone-induced (0.3-300 nM) activation of pGL3-KR1 was unaffected by inhibitors of PI3K (PI-103 and wortmanin) and by rapamycin, a selective inhibitor of the TORC1 (target of rapamycin complex 1) signalling complex. Dexamethasone-induced activation of the alpha-ENaC gene promoter can thus occur independently of SGK1/PI3K, although this pathway does provide a mechanism that allows this transcriptional response to dexamethasone to be enhanced.

Effects of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma agonists on Na+ transport and activity of the kinase SGK1 in epithelial cells from lung and kidney.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) agonists, such as rosiglitazone and pioglitazone, sensitize cells to insulin, and are therefore used to treat type 2 diabetes. However, in some patients, these drugs induce oedema, and the present study tests the hypothesis that this side effect reflects serum and glucocorticoid-inducible kinase 1 (SGK1)-dependent enhancement of epithelia Na(+) absorption. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: Na(+) absorbing epithelial cells (H441 cells, mpkCCD cells) on permeable membranes were mounted in Ussing chambers, and the effects of rosiglitazone (2 microM) and pioglitazone (10 microM) on transepithelial Na(+) absorption were quantified electrometrically. Changes in SGK1 activity were assessed by monitoring phosphorylation of residues within an endogenous protein. KEY RESULTS: Both cell types absorbed Na(+) via an electrogenic process that was enhanced by insulin. In mpkCCD cells, this stimulation of Na(+) transport was associated with increased activity of SGK1, whereas insulin regulated Na(+) transport in H441 cells through a mechanism that did not involve activation of this kinase. Rosiglitazone and pioglitazone had no discernible effect on transepithelial Na(+) absorption in unstimulated or insulin-stimulated cells and failed to alter cellular SGK1 activity. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Our results do not support the view that PPARgamma agonists stimulate epithelial Na(+) absorption or alter the control of cellular SGK1 activity. It is therefore likely that other mechanisms are involved in PPARgamma-mediated fluid retention, and a better understanding of these mechanisms may help with the identification of patients likely to develop oedema or heart failure when treated with these drugs.