v-Src phosphorylation of connexin 43 on Tyr247 and Tyr265 disrupts gap junctional communication.

The mechanism by which v-Src disrupts connexin (Cx)43 intercellular gap junctional communication (GJC) is not clear. In this study, we determined that Tyr247 (Y247) and the previously identified Tyr265 (Y265) site of Cx43 were the primary phosphorylation targets for activated Src in vitro. We established an in vivo experimental system by stably expressing v-Src and wild-type (wt) Cx43, or Y247F, Y265F, or Y247F/Y265F Cx43 mutants in a Cx43 knockout mouse cell line. Wt and mutant Cx43 localized to the plasma membrane in the absence or presence of v-Src. When coexpressed with v-Src, the Y247F, Y265F, and Y247F/Y265F Cx43 mutants exhibited significantly reduced levels of tyrosine phosphorylation compared with wt Cx43, indicating that Y247 and Y265 were phosphorylation targets of v-Src in vivo. Most importantly, GJC established by the Y247F, Y265F, and Y247F/Y265F Cx43 mutants was resistant to disruption by v-Src. Furthermore, we did not find evidence for a role for mitogen-activated protein kinase in mediating the disruption of GJC by v-Src. We conclude that phosphorylation on Y247 and Y265 of Cx43 is responsible for disrupting GJC in these mammalian cells expressing v-Src.

v-Src-mediated phosphorylation of connexin43 on tyrosine disrupts gap junctional communication in mammalian cells.

It is not clear how the v-Src oncoprotein disrupts gap junctional communication (GJC) established by connexin43 (Cx43) in mammalian cells. In this study, an experimental system was established to stably express v-Src and wild type (wt) Cx43, or Y247F, Y265F, or Y247F/Y265F Cx43 mutants in a Cx43 knockout (KO) mouse cell line. When co-expressed with v-Src, the levels of phosphotyrosine (pTyr) from Y247F, Y265F, and Y247F/Y265F Cx43 mutants were reduced to approximately 57%, 10%, and 2% of the level of pTyr from wt Cx43, indicating that Y247 and Y265 were phosphorylation targets of v-Src in vivo. These data also implied that phosphorylation of Cx43 at Y265 was required for efficient phosphorylation of Cx43 at Y247. Most importantly, our measurements of GJC demonstrated that, in contrast to the wt Cx43 gap junction channels, the Y247F, Y265F, and Y247F/Y265F Cx43 channels were resistant to the disruption by v-Src. In conclusion, our studies support a model for processive phosphorylation of Cx43 on tyrosine, at the Y265 site followed by the Y247 site, in mediating the disruption of GJC induced by v-Src in mammalian cells.

Phosphorylation of connexin43 on serine368 by protein kinase C regulates gap junctional communication.

Phorbol esters (e.g., TPA) activate protein kinase C (PKC), increase connexin43 (Cx43) phosphorylation, and decrease cell-cell communication via gap junctions in many cell types. We asked whether PKC directly phosphorylates and regulates Cx43. Rat epithelial T51B cells metabolically labeled with (32)P(i) yielded two-dimensional phosphotryptic maps of Cx43 with several phosphopeptides that increased in intensity upon TPA treatment. One of these peptides comigrated with the major phosphopeptide observed after PKC phosphorylation of immunoaffinity-purified Cx43. Purification of this comigrating peptide and subsequent sequencing indicated that the phosphorylated serine was residue 368. To pursue the functional importance of phosphorylation at this site, fibroblasts from Cx43(-/-) mice were transfected with either wild-type (Cx43wt) or mutant Cx43 (Cx43-S368A). Intercellular dye transfer studies revealed different responses to TPA and were followed by single channel analyses. TPA stimulation of T51B cells or Cx43wt-transfected fibroblasts caused a large increase in the relative frequency of approximately 50-pS channel events and a concomitant loss of approximately 100-pS channel events. This change to approximately 50-pS events was absent when cells transfected with Cx43-S368A were treated with TPA. These data strongly suggest that PKC directly phosphorylates Cx43 on S368 in vivo, which results in a change in single channel behavior that contributes to a decrease in intercellular communication.

Formation of a distinct connexin43 phosphoisoform in mitotic cells is dependent upon p34cdc2 kinase.

The gap junction protein connexin43 is a phosphoprotein that typically migrates as three bands (nonphosphorylated, P1 and P2) during polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The electrophoretic mobility of connexin43 from mitotic cells was distinctly reduced to a form (P3) that migrated slower than P2 from Rat1 cells prepared by shakeoff of nocodazole-treated and untreated cultures. Mitotic FT210 cells, which contain a temperature-sensitive mutation in the p34(cdc2) kinase, showed abundant levels of the P3 connexin43 when maintained at the permissive temperature where p34(cdc2) is active. In contrast, nocodozole-treated FT210 cells grown at the nonpermissive temperature did not contain P3 connexin43. These results indicated that generation of the P3 connexin43 was dependent upon active p34(cdc2)/cyclin B kinase. Although the p34(cdc2)kinase phosphorylated connexin43 in vitro on peptides containing serine 255, the major phosphotryptic peptides in P3 connexin43 from mitotic cells appeared to be the consequence of another protein kinase(s), which may be activated by the p34(cdc2)/cyclin B kinase. The P3 connexin43 exhibited a marked redistribution from cell-cell plasma membrane interfaces to multiple, distinctly stained cytoplasmic structures. These events may be part of the dramatic structural changes observed in mitotic cells undergoing cell rounding and cytokinesis. Results of initial studies using inhibitors of protein degradative and synthetic pathways suggested the likelihood that protein degradation and synthesis participate in the disappearance of the P3 connexin43 and restoration of the pattern of connexin43 isoforms observed in nonmitotic cells.

Immortalized connexin43 knockout cell lines display a subset of biological properties associated with the transformed phenotype.

Immortalized cells from embryonic connexin43 knockout mice (Cx43-/-) and homozygous littermates (Cx43+/+) were cloned and characterized to determine whether the absence of Cx43 function would induce observable phenotypic changes. Cells of the Cx43+/+ clones expressed Cx43 and engaged in gap junctional communication with 10-12 neighboring cells. The Cx43-/- cells were devoid of Cx43 and communicated to less than 1 cell. Electrophysiological analysis indicated that the Cx43-/- cells communicated through Cx45 channels from 8-80-fold less than did the Cx43+/+ subclones, which seemed to communicate through Cx43 and Cx45 channels. The Cx43-/- clones grew at faster rates and to higher saturation densities, had a more spindly morphology, were more refractile, and adhered less well to the substratum than did the Cx43+/+ clones. Reintroducing the Cx43 gene into the Cx43-/- clones resulted in three subclones that communicated to 3-4 cells. Partial restoration of gap junctional communication in the three subclones was accompanied by reduced growth rates and saturation densities (2-fold compared to that of parental Cx43-/- clones) but no reversions in morphology or cell-substratum adhesion. The increased growth rates and saturation densities, altered morphology, and decreased cell adhesion displayed by the Cx43-/- clones reflect a subset of the properties of transformed cells. These studies advance the hypothesis that loss of Cx43 function during development may cause cells to acquire a preneoplastic condition.

The gap-junction protein connexin 56 is phosphorylated in the intracellular loop and the carboxy-terminal region.

The lens gap-junction protein, connexin 56, is modified by phosphorylation. Two-dimensional mapping of tryptic phosphopeptides of 32P-labeled connexin 56 from primary chicken-lens cultures showed that treatment with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA) induced an increase in phosphorylation of connexin 56 at specific constitutively phosphorylated sites. Treatment with 8-Br-cAMP or forskolin did not induce substantial changes in connexin 56 phosphorylation. Two phosphorylation sites within connexin 56, S493 and S118, were identified after HPLC purification and peptide sequencing of tryptic phosphopeptides from bacterially expressed connexin 56 fusion proteins phosphorylated by protein kinase C or protein kinase A in vitro. Comparisons of the two-dimensional maps of tryptic phosphopeptides from in vitro phosphorylated connexin 56 fusion proteins and in vivo phosphorylated connexin 56 showed that S493 and S118 were constitutively phosphorylated in lentoid-containing cultures, and that treatment with TPA induced an increase in phosphorylation of the peptides containing S118. It is suggested that phosphorylation of connexin 56 at S118 is involved in the TPA-induced decrease in intercellular communication and acceleration of connexin 56 degradation.

Regulation of connexin43 function by activated tyrosine protein kinases.

Gap junctions are specialized membrane structures that are involved in the normal functioning of numerous mammalian tissues and implicated in several human disease processes. This mini-review focuses on the regulation of gap junctions through phosphorylation of connexin43 induced by the v-Src or epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinases. These tyrosine kinases markedly disrupt gap junctional communication in mammalian cells. here, we describe work correlating the alteration of connexin43 function with the ability of the v-Src tyrosine kinase to phosphorylate connexin43 directly on two distinct tyrosine sites in mammalian cells (Y247 and Y265). We also present evidence that proline-rich regions and phosphotyrosine sites of connexin43 may mediate interactions with the SH3 and SH2 domains of v-Src. In contrast to v-Src, the activated epidermal growth factor receptor acts indirectly through activated MAP kinase which may stimulate phosphorylation of connexin43 exclusively on serine. This phosphorylation event is complex because MAP kinase phosphorylates three serine sites in connexin43 (S255, S279, and S282). These findings suggest novel interactions between connexin43, the v-Src tyrosine kinase, and activated MAP kinase that set the stage for future investigations into the regulation of gap junctions by protein phosphorylation.

Characterization of the mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphorylation sites on the connexin-43 gap junction protein.

We have previously demonstrated that epidermal growth factor induced a rapid, transient decrease in gap junctional communication and increase in serine phosphorylation on the connexin-43 gap junction protein in T51B rat liver epithelial cells. The kinase(s) responsible for phosphorylation and specific serine targets in connexin-43 have not been identified. There are three consensus mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase serine phosphorylation sequences in the carboxyl-terminal tail of connexin-43 and purified MAP kinase phosphorylated connexin-43 in vitro on tryptic peptides that comigrated with a subset of peptides from connexin-43 phosphorylated in vivo in cells treated with epidermal growth factor. These data suggested that MAP kinase may phosphorylate connexin-43 directly in vivo. We have utilized a glutathione S-transferase fusion protein containing the cytoplasmic tail of connexin-43 to characterize MAP kinase phosphorylation. Site-directed mutagenesis, phosphotryptic peptide analysis, and peptide sequencing have confirmed that MAP kinase can phosphorylate connexin-43 at Ser255, Ser279, and Ser282, which correspond to the consensus sites recognized earlier. Characterization of MAP kinase-mediated phosphorylation of connexin-43 has defined potential targets for phosphorylation in vivo following activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor and has provided the basis for studies of the effects of phosphorylation, at specific molecular sites, on the regulation of gap junctional communication.

p130gag-fps disrupts gap junctional communication and induces phosphorylation of connexin43 in a manner similar to that of pp60v-src.

The pp60v-src tyrosine kinase disrupts gap junctional communication in transformed fibroblasts and induces the phosphorylation of the gap junction protein, connexin43, on tyrosine. We report here that the p130gag-fps tyrosine kinase also profoundly disrupted gap junctional communication and markedly increased the phosphorylation of connexin43 which appeared to result from an accumulation of phosphotyrosine and phosphoserine. The disruption of gap junctional communication by pp60v-src and p130gag-fps did not appear to result from the gross alteration of gap junction plaques. Furthermore, two-dimensional phosphotryptic peptide mapping showed that the v-Src and V-Fps kinases stimulated the phosphorylation of multiple connexin43 peptides which contained phosphotyrosine and/or phosphoserine. Phosphotyrosine was detected in two connexin43 phosphotryptic peptides from v-src-tranformed cells which suggested that more than one connexin43 tyrosine site may be recognized by pp60v-src in fibroblasts. The apparent higher levels of phosphoserine-containing connexin43 peptides in the oncogene-transformed cells pointed to the possibility that pp60v-src and p130gag-fps may also modulate connexin43 function through mechanism(s) involving the activation of signaling serine kinases. Taken together, these results suggested that connexin43 is a common target of the v-Src and v-Fps tyrosine kinase oncoproteins.

Epidermal growth factor disrupts gap-junctional communication and induces phosphorylation of connexin43 on serine.

Growth factors regulate cellular proliferation and differentiation by activating plasma membrane tyrosine kinase receptors and triggering a cascade of events mediated by intracellular signaling proteins. The mechanism underlying growth factor modification of cellular functions, such as gap-junctional communication (gjc), has not been established clearly. Addition of epidermal growth factor (EGF) to T51B rat liver epithelial cells resulted in the rapid activation of EGF receptor tyrosine kinase activity followed by a transient dose-dependent disruption of gjc. This change did not result from the gross disturbance of membrane gap junction plaques as measured by immunofluorescence microscopy, but instead correlated with markedly elevated phosphorylation of the connexin43 (cx43) gap junction protein, a profound shift to predominantly phosphorylated forms of cx43, and the appearance of a novel phosphorylated cx43 protein. These changes in cx43 phosphorylation involved only serine residues. On restoration of gjc, these alterations in cx43 phosphorylation reverted to the pre-EGF treatment state. Both events were inhibited by the serine/threonine protein phosphatase inhibitor, okadaic acid. Therefore, unlike the case for pp60v-src, EGF-induced disruption of gjc is not associated with tyrosine phosphorylation of cx43, but instead may result from phosphorylation of cx43 by activated intracellular signaling serine protein kinase(s).

Phosphorylation of connexin43 in cells containing mutant src oncogenes.

Disruption of gap junctional communication (measured by intercellular dye transfer) in cultured fibroblasts by pp60v-src is correlated with phosphorylation of the gap junction protein, connexin43 (cx43), on tyrosine. In this report, we examine the functional relevance of these observations by studying cx43 phosphorylation in cells containing kinase-active, non-myristylated pp60(2A527F) or pp60v-src temperature sensitive (ts) for transformation. Non-transformed cells expressing pp60(2A527F) transferred fluorescent dye at high levels and contained cx43 that was phosphorylated predominately on serine. In contrast, cells transformed by kinase-active, myristylated pp60(527F) did not transfer dye and contained cx43 proteins which were phosphorylated on serine and tyrosine. Additionally, activation of ts pp60v-src tyrosine kinase activity upon shift of cells to the permissive temperature was correlated with a rapid increase in the phosphorylated tyrosine content of cx43 proteins and loss of gap junctional communication. These combined results suggested that cx43 is a substrate of pp60v-src whose phosphorylation on tyrosine may be involved in the disruption of gap junctional communication observed in Rous sarcoma virus (RSV)-transformed cells.