Vasopressin transiently stimulates phospholipase C activity in cultured rat hepatocytes

Altered coupling of alpha 1-adrenergic receptor-G protein in rat parotid during aging

A possible role for altered signal transduction mechanisms in impaired alpha 1-adrenergic-stimulated secretory function during aging was investigated in parotid cells prepared from adult (6 mo) and old (24 mo) rats. Compared with adults, epinephrine-stimulated 45Ca2+ efflux and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate [Ins(1,4,5)P3] production were reduced 31 and 36% in cells of old rats, respectively. There was a highly significant correlation between 45Ca2+ efflux and Ins(1,4,5)P3 production. In saponin-permeabilized cells, no significant differences in Ins(1,4,5)P3-stimulated 45Ca2+ efflux in adult and old preparations were observed. When G proteins were stimulated by guanosine 5'-O-(3-thiotriphosphate) or NaF, no age differences in Ins(1,4,5)P3 production were detected. Stimulation of phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C (PLC) by CaCl2 in adult and old cells was also comparable. Moreover, no differences in immunolabeled common alpha (GTP binding site), Gi alpha, PLC-gamma, or PLC-delta could be detected in either cytosol or membranes of adult and old preparations. In the absence of 5'-guanylylimidodiphosphate [Gpp(NH)p], no age-related changes in epinephrine competition for [3H]prazosin binding sites were observed. Approximately 30% of the agonist binding sites existed in a high-affinity form at both ages. Gpp(NH)p caused large rightward shifts of epinephrine displacement curves in adult membranes (converting all binding sites to the low-affinity form), but not old. Moreover, epinephrine was much more effective in stimulating G protein low-Km GTPase in parotid membranes from adult than old rats. These data suggest that age-related impairments in alpha 1-adrenergic responsiveness are mediated, at least in part, by the functional alterations in the coupling of G proteins with alpha 1-adrenergic receptors.

Glucagon induces disaggregation of polymer-like structures of the alpha subunit of the stimulatory G protein in liver membranes

The hydrodynamic behavior of G alpha s, the alpha subunit of the stimulatory guanine nucleotide-binding regulatory protein (G protein), in octyl glucoside extracts of rat liver membranes was investigated. As was previously shown for G proteins similarly extracted from brain synaptoneurosomes, G alpha s behaved as polydisperse structures with S values higher than that of heterotrimeric G proteins. At concentrations of guanosine 5'-[gamma-thio]triphosphate (GTP[gamma S]) greater than 100 microM, incubation with membranes led to smaller structures having S values in the range of 4-5 S. Incubation of liver membranes with glucagon also caused a marked increase in structures having these S values; glucagon action required the presence of low concentrations of GTP[gamma S] (maximal, 10 microM), was rapid (within 10 sec), and was not observed with vasopressin, angiotensin II, or glucagon-(19-29). When G alpha s in its membrane-bound form was [32P]ADP-ribosylated by cholera toxin and the treated membranes were extracted with octyl glucoside, greater than 35% of the labeled G alpha s was found in material that sedimented through sucrose gradients and contained relatively low levels of immunoreactive G alpha s. Glucagon selectively converted the apparently large molecular weight structures to the 4-5 S structures in the presence of GTP[gamma S], even at 1 mM (the maximal effect of the nucleotide alone), when incubated with the toxin-treated membranes. These findings suggest that the glucagon receptor selectively interacts with polymer-like structures of G alpha s and that activation by GTP[gamma S] results in disaggregation. The role of the beta and gamma subunits of G proteins in the hormone-induced process is not clear since the polymer-like structures extracted with octyl glucoside are devoid of beta and gamma subunits.

Regulation of phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C

The receptors involved in the regulation of phospholipase C by hormones, neurotransmitters and other ligands have seven transmembrane-spanning hydrophobic regions (seven-helix motif) and no known enzymatic activity. Furthermore these receptors can be isolated as complexes with guanine nucleotide binding (G) proteins. Guanine nucleotides affect the binding of hormones that stimulate phospholipase C and it has been possible to see activation of GTPase activity in membranes upon addition of these ligands. Further indirect evidence for a Gp (p stands for phospholipase C activation) protein is the finding that in membranes agonist activation of phospholipase C requires the presence of GTP gamma S a non-hydrolyzable analog of GTP. Furthermore, fluoride is able to activate phospholipase C but its inhibition of phosphatidylinositol-4' kinase (PI-4' kinase) can interfere with efforts to demonstrate this in intact cells. There are four major isozymes of phospholipase C that have been cloned and sequenced. Recently it was found that phospholipase C-gamma as well as PI-3'-kinase are substrates for phosphorylation on tyrosine residues by the EGF and PDGF receptors. The PI-3' kinase is able to convert phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) to phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate (PIP3) but the function of this lipid is unknown since it is not a substrate for any known phospholipase C. While much has been learned about the structure and regulation of the phosphoinositide specific kinases and phosphodiesterase enzymes this is a relatively new field in which we can expect many advances during the next few years.

Effects of insulin on inositol phosphate production in cultured rat hepatocytes

Addition of vasopressin (100 nM) to rat hepatocytes prelabelled with [3H]inositol stimulated the production of inositol phosphates in the presence of 20 mM Li+. Preincubation of hepatocytes with insulin (50 nM) or glucagon (10 nM) had no significant effect alone but enhanced the effects of vasopressin after a lag period of at least 1 min. The effects of insulin and glucagon appeared additive in this respect. Insulin also enhanced the norepinephrine-mediated stimulation of inositol phosphate accumulation. The enhancement by insulin of the effects of vasopressin required at least 0.5-5 nM insulin and did not involve changes in [3H]inositol lipid labelling or IP3 phosphatase activity. The effect of insulin appeared insensitive to prior treatment of hepatocytes with pertussis toxin (200 ng/ml for 18-24 h) or cholera toxin (100 ng/ml for 3-4 h). The glucagon enhancement of the effects of vasopressin was not affected by pertussis toxin but was mimicked by cholera toxin. The response of hepatocytes to vasopressin in the absence of Li+ was smaller and more transient. Under these conditions a 5 min prior incubation with insulin inhibited the stimulation by vasopressin of inositol phosphate accumulation. A similar inhibitory effect of prior insulin exposure on the transient activation by vasopressin of exogenous phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate breakdown by hepatocyte homogenates was also seen. These data indicate that insulin, although having no effect on basal inositol phosphate accumulation, can either enhance or antagonise the effects of vasopressin in primary rat liver hepatocyte cultures depending on the experimental conditions.

Insulin does not activate a phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C in adipocytes

Phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC) activity was determined in homogenates of adipocytes treated with maximal concentrations of insulin. PI-PLC activity measured using exogenous [3H]phosphatidylinositol [( 3H]PI) and exogenous [3H]phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate [( 3H]PIP2) was not altered by prior exposure of adipocytes to insulin. It was possible to see oxytocin-induced breakdown of phosphoinositides but no effect of insulin was seen in intact adipocytes.