Effect of serum and growth factors on heat sensitivity in Swiss mouse 3T3 cells

Quiescent Swiss mouse 3T3 cells react to a heat treatment at 46°C for 20 min by changing their flat, well-extended morphology to a round appearance with retracted cytoplasmic processes during the subsequent 2 h at 37°C. The percentage of morphologically changed cells was used to quantify changes in heat sensitivity, or resistance, in response to mitogenic stimulation. Stimulating quiescent cells with serum or with the specific growth factors epidermal growth factor (EGF) and prostaglandin F_2α (PGF_2α) markedly increased the heat resistance to a 46°C treatment, but only when the heat treatment, but only when the heat treatment was applied within 2–3 h after the addition. When insulin (which is not mitogenic, but synergistic with EGF and PGF_2α in these cells) was added alone or in combination with either EGF or PGF_2α, it had no effect on the development of heat resistance. Neither did cycloheximide nor tunicamycin inhibit heat resistance induced by EGF, and cycloheximide even enhanced it after 2–4 h. However, adding colcemid before or at the beginning of the heat treatment abolished the increased heat resistance. The results indicate that the resistance to a single heat treatment at 46°C may be related to changes in the metabolic state after mitogenic stimulation, even though these changes need not be reflected in the rate of entry into S phase. Furthermore, the cytoskeletal organization appears to be a crucial component in heat resistance of Swiss 3T3 cells.     

Modulation of the epidermal growth factor receptor by brain-derived growth factor in Swiss mouse 3T3 cells

Incubation of Swiss mouse 3T3 cells at 37 degrees C with bovine brain-derived growth factor (BDGF) decrease the cell surface 125I-EGF binding activity of these cells by 70-80%. This down-modulation of the EGF receptor by BDGF was time, temperature, and dose dependent. Scatchard plot analysis indicated that BDGF binding led to a selective decrease in the number of high-affinity EGF receptors. The BDGF-induced down-modulation of the EGF receptor was completely blocked by protamine, a potent inhibitor of receptor binding and mitogenic activities of BDGF. BDGF down-modulated the EGF receptor in phorbol myristic acetate (PMA)-pretreated cells, as well as in control cells. Furthermore, PMA-pretreated cells responded mitogenically to BDGF, whereas PMA itself failed to stimulate the mitogenic response of PMA-pretreated cells. This BDGF-induced down-modulation of the EGF receptor in PMA-desensitized cells suggests that BDGF down-regulates the EGF receptor by a mechanism distinct from that of PMA. Incubation of cells with compounds which are known to inhibit pinocytosis blocked the down-modulation induced either by BDGF or by platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) but had no effect on the PMA-induced down-modulation. Incubation of cells with inhibitors of receptor recycling enhanced the BDGF-induced down-modulation of the EGF receptor. These results suggest that BDGF and PDGF induce down-modulation of the EGF receptor by increasing the internalization of cell surface high-affinity receptors and that the internalization process may not be required for down-modulation induced by PMA.     

Substance P-related antagonists inhibit vasopressin and bombesin but not 5′-3-O-(thio) triphosphate-stimulated inositol phosphate production in swiss 3T3 cells

The substance P (SP) analogues [DArg¹, DPhe⁵, DTrp^7,9, Leu¹¹] SP (AntD) and [Arg⁶, DTrp^7,9, MePhe⁸] SP (6–11) (AntG) inhibit the action of many different neuropeptides including SP. These analogues might be useful in the treatment of small cell lung cancer but their mechanism of action is unclear. Here, we analyzed the effect of AntD and AntG on neuropeptide vs. guanosine 5′-3-O-(thio) triphosphate (GTPγS) stimulated inositol phosphate generation in permeabilized Swiss 3T3 cells. AntD inhibited vasopressin and bombesin stimulated inositol phosphate formation (IC₅₀ of 0.75 μM and 2 μM, respectively). Similarly, AntG inhibited vasopressin-stimulated inositol phosphate generation with an IC₅₀ of 1 μM. Strikingly, neither AntD up to 10 μM nor AntG up to 20 μM was able to inhibit GTPγS-stimulated inositol phosphate generation. Dose-response curves of neuropeptide-induced inositol phosphate generation were dramatically displaced to the right by either 10 μM AntD or 20 μM AntG. However, neither antagonist affected the dose response of GTPγS-stimulated inositol phosphate generation. Furthermore, 20 μM AntD had no effect on AIF^?₄-induced inositol phosphates in COS-1 cells transfected with G_αq. AntD inhibited [³H]vasopressin binding competitively in intact Swiss 3T3 cells and both AntD and AntG inhibited [³H]vasopressin binding in Swiss 3T3 and rat liver membranes. Scatchard analysis revealed that AntD inhibited vasopressin binding by reducing receptor affinity without affecting receptor number in both intact and membrane preparations of Swiss 3T3 cells. The results strongly suggest that SP analogues AntD and AntG block the action of the Ca²⁺ mobilizing neuropeptides at the receptor level, rather than inhibiting G protein-stimulated inositol phosphate production. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

CCK(B)/gastrin receptor mediates synergistic stimulation of DNA synthesis and cyclin D1, D3, and E expression in Swiss 3T3 cells.

In order to develop a model system for identifying signaling pathways and cell cycle events involved in gastrin-mediated mitogenesis, we have used high efficiency retroviral-mediated transfection of cholecystokinin (CCK)(B)/gastrin receptor into Swiss 3T3 cells. The retrovirally-transfected CCK(B)/gastrin receptor binds 125I-CCK-8 with high affinity (Kd = 1.1 nM) and is functionally coupled to intracellular signaling pathways including rapid and transient increase in Ca2+ fluxes, protein kinase C-dependent protein kinase D activation, and MEK-dependent ERK1/2 activation. In the presence of insulin, CCK-8 or gastrin induced a 66.5 +/- 8.8-fold (mean +/- SEM, n = 24 in eight independent experiments) increase in cellular DNA synthesis, reaching a level similar to that achieved by stimulation with a saturating concentration of fresh serum, and much greater than the response to each agonist added alone. CCK-8 also induced a striking increase in the expression of cyclins D1, D3, and E and hyperphosphorylation of Rb acting synergistically with insulin. Similar effects were observed when CCK(B)/gastrin receptor was activated in the presence of EGF or bombesin. Our results demonstrate that activation of CCK(B)/gastrin receptor retrovirally-transfected into Swiss 3T3 induces a potent synergistic effect on DNA synthesis, accumulation of cyclins D1, D3, and E and hyperphosphorylation of Rb in combination with insulin, EGF, or bombesin. Thus, the CCK(B)/gastrin receptor transfected into Swiss 3T3 cells provides a novel model system to elucidate mitogenic signal transduction pathways and cell cycle events activated via this receptor.     

Purified plasma membranes inhibit polypeptide growth factor-induced DNA synthesis in subconfluent 3T3 cells

Plasma membranes derived from NR-6 cells, a variant line of Swiss mouse 3T3 cells that does not have cell surface receptors for epidermal growth factor (EGF), inhibited EGF-induced stimulation of DNA synthesis by 50% in serum-starved, subconfluent 3T3 cells. Membranes derived from SV3T3 cells were much less effective in inhibiting EGF-induced DNA synthesis. This inhibition on DNA synthesis by NR-6 membranes was not a direct effect of membranes on EGF, nor could it be overcome by high concentrations of EGF. NR-6 membranes were most effective when added 3 h before EGF addition and had little effect when added 2 h or more after EGF. NR-6 membranes also reduced the stimulation of DNA synthesis induced by platelet-derived growth factor or fibroblast growth factor in serum-starved 3T3 cells. These findings indicate that membrane- membrane interactions between nontransformed cells may diminish their ability to proliferate in response to serum polypeptide growth factors.     

Effect of amines on the binding, internalization and degradation of epidermal growth factor and the induction of DNA synthesis in a 3T3 cell culture

The role of intracellular processing of epidermal growth factor (EGF) in the induction of proliferation of quiescent Swiss 3T3 cells was studied using various inhibitors. The number of amines (dansylcadaverine, chloroquine, cystamine, 5-methoxytryptamine) dimethylurea and monensin were shown to block the mitogenic effect of EGF. The majority of these substances while used in concentrations sufficient to inhibit the proliferation do not significantly influence 125I-EGF binding and internalization. The level of EGF degradation was reduced only by chloroquine. The inhibitory effect of amines and monensin on the generation of proliferative signal was supposed to take place at the stages of EGF processing in "specialized" endosomes and in Golgi apparatus.     

Mevalonate dependency of the early cell cycle mitogenic response to epidermal growth factor and prostaglandin F2α in Swiss mouse 3T3 cells

Lovastatin (LOV), a hydroxy-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMGCoA) reductase competitive inhibitor, blocks epidermal growth factor (EGF)— or prostaglandin F_2α (PGF_2α)—induced mitogenesis in confluent resting Swiss 3T3 cells. This inhibition occurs even in the presence of insulin, which potentiates the action of these mitogens in such cells. LOV exerts its effect in a 2–80 μM concentration range, with both mitogens attaining 50% inhibition at 7.5 μM. LOV exerted its effect within 0–8 h following mitogenic induction. Mevanolactone (10–80 μM) in the presence of LOV could reverse LOV inhibition within a similar time period. LOV-induced blockage of PGF_2α response is reflected in a decrease in the rate of cell entry into S phase. Neither cholesterol, ubiquinone, nor dolichols of various lengths could revert LOV blockage. In EGF- or PGF_2α-stimulated cells, LOV did not inhibit [³H]leucine or [³H]mannose incorporation into proteins, while tunicamycin, an inhibitor of N′ glycosylation, prevented this last phenomenon. Thus, it appears that LOV exerts its action neither by inhibiting unspecific protein synthesis nor by impairing the N′ glycosylation process. These findings strongly suggest that either EGF or PGF_2α stimulations generate early cell cycle signals which induce mevalonate formation, N′ glycoprotein synthesis, and proliferation. The causal relationship of these events to various mechanisms controlling the onset of DNA synthesis is also discussed. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Effect of EGF on transmission of the proliferative signal in infusoria Tetrahymena pyriformis

It has been established that in infusoria Tetrahymena pyriformis, transmission of a proliferative signal induced by epidermal growth factor (EGF) is not associated with autophosphorylation of receptor tyrosine kinases. In these microorganisms, EGF triggers the mitogenic pathway that involves membrane proteins of the tyrosine kinase type (without phosphorylation at tyrosine), adenylyl cyclase, and tyrosine-and Ca²⁺-dependent ERK-like kinases.     

EGF Stimulates Growth by Enhancing Capacitative Calcium Entry in Corneal Epithelial Cells

In rabbit corneal epithelial cells (RCEC), we determined whether capacitative calcium entry (CCE) mediates the mitogenic response to epidermal growth factor, EGF. [Ca²⁺]_i was measured with single-cell fluorescence imaging of fura2-loaded RCEC. EGF (5 ng/ml) maximally increased [Ca²⁺]_i 4.4-fold. Following intracellular store (ICS) calcium depletion in calcium-free medium with 10 µM cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) (endoplasmic reticulum calcium ATPase inhibitor), calcium addback elicited plasma membrane Ca²⁺ influx as a result of activation of plasma membrane store operated channel (SOC) activity. Based on Mn²⁺ quench measurements of fura2 fluorescence, 5 ng/ml EGF enhanced such influx 2.3-fold, whereas with Rp-cAMPS (protein kinase A inhibitor) plus EGF it increased by 5.3-fold. In contrast, SOC activation was blocked with 100 µM 2-aminoethyldiphenylborate (2-APB, store-operated channel inhibitor). During exposure to either 50 µM UO126 (MEK-1/2 inhibitor) or 10 µM forskolin (adenylate cyclase activator), 5 ng/ml EGF failed to affect [Ca²⁺]_i. RT-PCR detected gene expression of: 1) transient receptor potential (TRP) protein isoforms 1, 3, 4, 6 and 7; 2) IP₃R isoforms 1–3. Immunocytochemistry, in conjunction with confocal and immunogold electron microscopy, detected plasma membrane localization of TRP4 expression. Inhibition of CCE with 2-APB and/or CPA, eliminated the 2.5-fold increase in intracellular [³H]-thymidine incorporation induced by EGF. Taken together, CCE in RCEC mediates the mitogenic response to EGF. EGF induces CCE through its stimulation of Erk1/2 activity, whereas PKA stimulation suppresses these effects of EGF. TRP4 may be a component of plasma membrane SOC activity, which is stimulated by ICS calcium depletion.     

Insulin potentiates EGFR activation and signaling in fibroblasts

Insulin is an essential hormone for cell growth and potentiates the mitogenic actions of multiple growth factors, including EGF. While potentiation has been shown to be mediated by the upregulation of the cyclin/CDK system, the upstream mechanisms of such synergy have not been elucidated. Our study has examined whether insulin could mediate synergy by enhancing early signaling events of the EGF receptor (EGFR). Tyrosine phosphorylation at the cell periphery of confluent Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts induced by EGF was potentiated by insulin within 2 min of stimulation. Insulin potentiation of EGF-mediated phosphorylation of the EGFR occurred 2 min after stimulation. EGFR transactivation by insulin was not observed. In addition, downstream mitogenic signaling events including ERK1/2 activation and Elk-1 phosphorylation were enhanced in response to insulin and EGF coadministration. This study shows mitogenic synergy between insulin and EGF can occur at the earliest signaling event, receptor phosphorylation, and independent of transactivation.     

Bombesin stimulates a high affinity GTPase activity in membranes of Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts

Peptides of the bombesin family are mitogenic for Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts and in these cells stimulate the turnover of polyphosphoinositides. Recent studies have suggested that G protein(s) may be involved in the signal transduction pathway triggered by bombesin. In this study we have found and characterized a high affinity GTPase activity stimulated by bombesin in membranes of Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts. Our results support the involvement of a G protein in the response of Swiss 3T3 cells to bombesin.     

Homologous and heterologous mitogenic desensitization of Swiss 3T3 cells to phorbol esters and vasopressin: role of receptor and postreceptor steps

Prolonged treatment of Swiss 3T3 cells with phorbol 12,13 dibutyrate (PDB) rendered the cells refractory to subsequent mitogenic stimulation by both PDB and vasopressin. In contrast, the cells retained full responsiveness to a wide variety of other mitogens. An early response to vasopressin and phorbol esters, inhibition of (125I)-labeled epidermal growth factor [(125I)-EGF] binding, was also substantially decreased in PDB pretreated cells. The cross desensitization was not produced by vasopressin; this ligand induced homologous but not heterologous desensitization. Exposure of Swiss 3T3 cells to PDB caused a down regulation of (3H)-PDB receptors but did not reduce the binding of vasopressin to refractory cells. The time-course (t1/2 = 7 h) and dependence on PDB concentration (half maximal at 20 nM) for this phorbol ester receptor loss paralleled the induction of the mitogenic desensitizations to both PDB and vasopressin. However, the time-course of recovery revealed an important dissociation between receptor presence and mitogenic response. When Swiss 3T3 cultures, which had been pretreated with PDB, were washed to remove this ligand and incubated in its absence for 24 h, both (3H)-PDB receptors and PDB or vasopressin inhibition of (125I)-EGF binding were almost completely restored to control levels. However the homologous and heterologous mitogenic desensitizations showed a very different reversal time. After a 24-h recovery period PDB-treated refractory cells were still unable to synthesize DNA in response to PDB or vasopressin. The mitogenic desensitizations were however completely reversible; after a 48-h incubation in the absence of PDB the cells responded fully to the mitogenic actions of PDB or vasopressin. This finding suggests that a further postreceptor step was also desensitized by prolonged PDB treatment. The presence of a low level of cycloheximide during the PDB pretreatment blocked induction of this postreceptor refractoriness. We propose that this refractory postreceptor step selectively blocks both PDB and vasopressin stimulation of DNA synthesis and may represent the point at which the mitogenic pathways of phorbol esters and vasopressin converge.     

Physiological Epidermal Growth Factor Concentrations Activate High Affinity Receptors to Elicit Calcium Oscillations

Signaling mediated by the epidermal growth factor (EGF) is crucial in tissue development, homeostasis and tumorigenesis. EGF is mitogenic at picomolar concentrations and is known to bind its receptor on high affinity binding sites depending of the oligomerization state of the receptor (monomer or dimer). In spite of these observations, the cellular response induced by EGF has been mainly characterized for nanomolar concentrations of the growth factor, and a clear definition of the cellular response to circulating (picomolar) concentrations is still lacking. We investigated Ca²⁺ signaling, an early event in EGF responses, in response to picomolar doses in COS-7 cells where the monomer/dimer equilibrium is unaltered by the synthesis of exogenous EGFR. Using the fluo5F Ca²⁺ indicator, we found that picomolar concentrations of EGF induced in 50% of the cells a robust oscillatory Ca²⁺ signal quantitatively similar to the Ca²⁺ signal induced by nanomolar concentrations. However, responses to nanomolar and picomolar concentrations differed in their underlying mechanisms as the picomolar EGF response involved essentially plasma membrane Ca²⁺ channels that are not activated by internal Ca²⁺ store depletion, while the nanomolar EGF response involved internal Ca²⁺ release. Moreover, while the picomolar EGF response was modulated by charybdotoxin-sensitive K⁺ channels, the nanomolar response was insensitive to the blockade of these ion channels.     

Primary amines do not prevent the endocytosis of epidermal growth factor into 3T3 fibroblasts

Various amines block the degradation of endocytosed epidermal growth factor (EGF) without affecting the binding of the hormone to its surface receptors. However, studies based on fluorescence microscopy demonstrate that amines block the internalization of alpha 2-macroglobulin and EGF by preventing it from clustering in clathrin coated pits. In order to resolve this controversy we have studied in detail the effect of various amines on the localization and processing of fluorescent and radiolabelled EGF. We have explored the effect of amines on EGF binding and localization, receptor mobility, membrane fluidity, receptor down regulation, hormone degradation and release of degradative products as a function of time and temperature. Our conclusions are as follows. 1. Primary amines prevent the formation of visible patches of fluorescent EGF and alpha 2-macroglobulin on the cell surface at least for 15 min, thus increasing the diffusion coefficients and the mobile fraction of EGF-receptor complexes on the cell surface. 2. Amines do not block the endocytosis of EGF and alpha 2-macroglobulin. On most cells fluorescent EGF and alpha 2-macroglobulin are clustered and endocytosed within 30-45 min at 37 degrees C. 3. Amines do not effect the internalization of 125I-labelled-EGF and the down regulation of EGF receptors. 4. Amines block the degradation of the endocytosed EGF.     

Protamine enhances epidermal growth factor (EGF)-stimulated mitogenesis by increasing cell surface EGF receptor number. Implications for existence of cryptic EGF receptors

Treatment of Swiss mouse 3T3 cells and human epidermoid carcinoma A431 cells with protamine at 37 degrees C increased the 125I-epidermal growth factor (EGF) binding activity at 4 degrees C. The effect of protamine on the increase of 125I-EGF binding activity appeared to be time, temperature, and dose dependent. This up-modulation of 125I-EGF binding by protamine correlated with protamine enhancement of EGF-stimulated mitogenesis, with respect to the magnitude of the effect and the dose response curves. Scatchard plot analyses indicated that protamine induced an increase in numbers of both high and low affinity EGF receptors without affecting their affinities. Protamine also increased functionally active EGF receptors in plasma membranes and solubilized membranes. This was evidenced by Scatchard plot analyses and by a protamine-induced increase of 125I-EGF-EGF receptor complex and an increase in EGF-stimulated phosphorylation of the EGF receptor. Combined with column chromatography of the solubilized EGF receptor on protamine-agarose gel, these results suggest that protamine may increase the EGF receptor number by directly activating cryptic EGF receptors in the plasma membrane.     

Cell surface-associated growth inhibitory proteins : Evidence for conservation between mouse and human cell lines

The ability of the normal human fibroblast line (IMR91) to exhibit density-dependent regulation of growth has been examined. The line exhibits density-dependent regulation of growth; saturation density in 15% fetal bovine serum is 2 × 10⁵ cells/cm². Membranes prepared from confluent monolayers of these cells contained growth inhibitory factors to both exponentially growing IMR91 and Swiss 3T3 cells. This factor(s) appears to be similar to a previously described factor found on the surface of Swiss 3T3 cells [14]. The inhibition of DNA synthesis in growing IMR91 cultures by membranes was both time- and concentration-dependent. The effect was reversible by high serum. Specificity experiments utilizing membranes prepared from Swiss 3T3 cells indicated some species specificity for inhibition by membranes, but this specificity was no longer exhibited by solubilized membrane preparations. These results are compatible with the suggestion that both the growth inhibitory factors and their receptors are conserved through evolution.     

Epidermal growth factor and bombesin differ strikingly in the induction of early responses in Swiss 3T3 cells

Swiss 3T3 cells express receptors for both the polypeptide epidermal growth factor (EGF) and the tetradecapeptide bombesin and respond mitogenically to these substances. These cells thus provide a system to analyze potential signal transduction pathways involved in mitogenic stimulation. Here we have determined and compared the early ionic responses elicited by EGF and bombesin and their relation to diacylglycerol (DG) and inositolphosphate (InsPn) production. Whereas EGF fails to cause any significant change in intracellular Ca2+, bombesin effectively induces prompt and transient Ca2+ mobilization from intracellular stores. Further support of the idea that these receptors utilize distinct signalling pathways comes from the measurements of cytoplasmic pH (pHi). As in most target cells, EGF induces a delayed (1 min) but sustained intracellular alkalinization that reaches a new steady state after approximately 10 min. Bombesin, in contrast, elicits a biphasic response; within seconds, a rapid but transient rise in pHi is observed, followed by a further slower sustained alkalinization. Inhibition of the Na+/H+ exchanger prevents both EGF as well as bombesin-induced alkalinization. However, under these conditions, bombesin evokes a rapid and sustained acidification related to the Ca2+ response. Apparently, bombesin initiates a Ca2(+)-dependent acidifying process immediately after binding of the hormone to its receptor. Furthermore, we could demonstrate that the bombesin-induced alkalinization depends on protein kinase C activation whereas the EGF response does not. Determination of the total DG and InsPn accumulation revealed that EGF is ineffective in stimulating phospholipase C-mediated production of these second messengers. In contrast, bombesin causes a rapid DG and InsPn production coinciding with the Ca2+ response and the first phase of the rise in pHi followed by a slower DG accumulation coinciding with the second alkalinization phase. Our results show that in Swiss 3T3 cells the bombesin receptor activates the hydrolysis of inositol lipids as a mechanism of signal transduction, which consequently causes changes in Ca2+i and pHi. Clearly, the EGF receptor utilizes different pathways to evoke mitogenesis and stimulates Na+/H+ exchange independently of DG production and protein kinase C activation.     

Amiloride directly inhibits growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase activity

Addition of amiloride to A431 human epidermoid carcinoma cell membranes inhibited autophosphorylation of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor. The tyrosine phosphorylation of histone H2B catalyzed by an affinity-purified preparation of EGF receptor was also inhibited by amiloride. The inhibition was noncompetitive with respect to histone but competitive with ATP, suggesting that amiloride may act as an ATP analogue which causes the formation of nonproductive enzyme-substrate complexes. The tyrosine phosphorylation of histone H2B catalyzed by the purified EGF receptor was inhibited by amiloride at concentrations identical to those previously reported to block EGF action on cell proliferation (Ki = 350 microM). Amiloride similarly inhibited the tyrosine phosphorylation of the human placental insulin receptor and the platelet-derived growth factor receptor of Swiss 3T3 cells. Immunoprecipitation of the EGF receptor from A431 cells labeled for 24 h with [32P]phosphate demonstrated that amiloride decreased the phosphorylation of the EGF receptor on serine and threonine residues and blocked the effect of EGF to cause phosphorylation of the receptor on tyrosine residues. Phosphoamino acid analysis of total cell proteins indicated that amiloride inhibited the increase in phosphotyrosine levels caused by EGF. We conclude that amiloride directly inhibits the tyrosine kinase activity of the receptors for EGF, insulin, and platelet-derived growth factor in in vitro and can mediate such actions in vivo. This effect of amiloride demonstrates that it is unsuitable as a drug to test the hypothesis that the stimulation of the Na+/H+ antiporter is essential for mitogenic signaling by growth factor receptors.     

Effect of a dominant inhibitory Ha-ras mutation on mitogenic signal transduction in NIH 3T3 cells.

We used a dominant inhibitory mutation of c-Ha-ras which changes Ser-17 to Asn-17 in the gene product p21 [p21(Asn-17)Ha-ras] to investigate ras function in mitogenic signal transduction. An NIH 3T3 cell line [NIH(M17)] was isolated that displayed inducible expression of the mutant Ha-ras gene (Ha-ras Asn-17) via the mouse mammary tumor virus long terminal repeat and was growth inhibited by dexamethasone. The effect of dexamethasone induction on response of quiescent NIH(M17) cells to mitogens was then analyzed. Stimulation of DNA synthesis by epidermal growth factor (EGF) and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) was completely blocked by p21(Asn-17) expression, and stimulation by serum, fibroblast growth factor, and platelet-derived growth factor was partially inhibited. However, the induction of fos, jun, and myc by EGF and TPA was not significantly inhibited in this cell line. An effect of p21(Asn-17) on fos induction was, however, demonstrated in transient expression assays in which quiescent NIH 3T3 cells were cotransfected with a fos-cat receptor plasmid plus a Ha-ras Asn-17 expression vector. In this assay, p21(Asn-17) inhibited chloramphenicol acetyltransferase expression induced by EGF and other growth factors. In contrast to its effect on DNA synthesis, however, Ha-ras Asn-17 expression did not inhibit fos-cat expression induced by TPA. Conversely, downregulation of protein kinase C did not inhibit fos-cat induction by activated ras or other oncogenes. These results suggest that ras proteins are involved in at least two parallel mitogenic signal transduction pathways, one of which is independent of protein kinase C. Although either pathway alone appears to be sufficient to induce fos, both appear to be necessary to induce the full mitogenic response.     

ErbB2 and EGFR are downmodulated during the differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes

The expression of receptors belonging to the epidermal growth factor receptor subfamily has been largely studied these last years in epithelial cells mainly as involved in cell proliferation and malignant progression. Although much work has focused on the role of these growth factor receptors in the differentiation of a variety of tissues, there is little information in regards to normal stromal cells. We investigated erbB2 expression in the murine fibroblast cell line Swiss 3T3L1, which naturally or hormonally induced undergoes adipocyte differentiation. We found that the Swiss 3T3-L1 fibroblasts express erbB2, in addition to EGFR, and in a quantity comparable to or even greater than the breast cancer cell line T47D. Proliferating cells increased erbB2 and EGFR levels when reaching confluence up to 4- and 10-fold, respectively. This expression showed a significant decrease when growth-arrested cells were stimulated to differentiate with dexamethasone and isobutyl-methylxanthine. Differentiated cells presented a decreased expression of both erbB2 and EGFR regardless of whether the cells were hormonally or spontaneously differentiated. EGF stimulation of serum-starved cells increased erbB2 tyrosine phosphorylation and retarded erbB2 migration in SDS-PAGE, suggesting receptor association and activation. Heregulin-alpha1 and -beta1, two EGF related factors, had no effect on erbB2 or EGFR phosphorylation. Although 3T3-L1 cells expressed heregulin, its specific receptors, erbB3 and erbB4, were not found. This is the first time in which erbB2 is reported to be expressed in an adipocytic cell line which does not depend on non EGF family growth factors (thyroid hormone, growth hormone, etc.) to accomplish adipose differentiation. Since erbB2 and EGFR expression were downmodulated as differentiation progressed it is conceivable that a mechanism of switching from a mitogenic to a differentiating signaling pathway may be involved, through regulation of the expression of these growth factor receptors.