A chicken embryo-specific myosin light chain (L23) appears to be identical with one of brain myosin light chains

A novel embryo-specific myosin light chain of 23 kDa molecular weight (L23) was found previously in embryonic chicken skeletal, cardiac, and smooth muscles (Takano-Ohmuro et al. (1985) J. Cell Biol. 100, 2025-2030). When we examined myosin in embryonic and adult brain by two-dimensional electrophoresis, 23 kDa myosin light chain present in brain (Burridge & Bray (1975) J. Mol. Biol. 99, 1-14) comigrated with L23. Two monoclonal antibodies, EL-64 and MT-185d, were applied to clarify the identity of the brain 23 kDa myosin light chain and the chicken embryonic muscle L23. The two antibodies recognize different antigenic determinants in the L23 molecule; the former antibody is specific for L23, whereas the latter recognizes the sequence common to fast skeletal muscle myosin light chains 1 and 3, and also L23. The immunoblots combined with two-dimensional gel electrophoresis showed that both EL-64 and MT-185d can bind to the brain 23 kDa myosin light chain as well as the chicken embryonic muscle L23. These results indicate that chicken brain and chicken embryonic muscles contain a common myosin light chain of 23 kDa molecular weight.     

Embryonic chicken skeletal, cardiac, and smooth muscles express a common embryo-specific myosin light chain

It has been demonstrated that embryonic chicken gizzard smooth muscle contains a unique embryonic myosin light chain of 23,000 mol wt, called L23 (Katoh, N., and S. Kubo, 1978, Biochem. Biophys. Acta, 535:401-411; Takano-Ohmuro, H., T. Obinata, T. Mikawa, and T. Masaki, 1983, J. Biochem. (Tokyo), 93:903-908). When we examined myosins in developing chicken ventricular and pectoralis muscles by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, the myosin light chain (Le) that completely comigrates with L23 was detected in both striated muscles at early developmental stages. Two monoclonal antibodies, MT-53f and MT-185d, were applied to characterize the embryonic light chain Le of striated muscles. Both monoclonal antibodies were raised to fast skeletal muscle myosin light chains; the former antibody is specific to fast muscle myosin light chains 1 and 3, whereas the latter recognizes not only fast muscle myosin light chains but also the embryonic smooth muscle light chain L23. The immunoblots combined with both one- and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis showed that Le reacts with MT-185d but not with MT-53f. These results strongly indicate that Le is identical to L23 and that embryonic chicken skeletal, cardiac, and smooth muscles express a common embryo-specific myosin light chain.     

Phosphorylated and dephosphorylated myosin light chains of Drosophila fly and larva

1. The present study confirmed that light chains of Drosophila adult fibrillar (flight) muscle myosin consist of Lf1, Lf2, Lf2' and Lf3, and tubular muscle myosin light chains contain Lt1, Lt2, Lt2' and Lt3, as revealed by two-dimensional (isoelectric focusing and SDS-gel electrophoresis) gel electrophoresis. 2. Larva myosin light chains were of all the tubular type. However, it was found that Lt1 and Lt2' are produced by phosphorylation of Lt2, and Lf1 is produced by phosphorylation of Lf2'. 3. Injection of radioactive phosphate into Drosophila fly resulted in phosphorylations of Lf1 and Lt1. When larva or late pupa myosin was incubated with myosin light chain kinase from chicken gizzard or adult flies, phosphorylation of Lt1, Lf2' and Lt2' occurred. Drosophila myosin light chain kinase phosphorylated Lf1 in addition to Lt1 and L2' (Lf2' + Lt2') of adult myosin. 4. Dephosphorylation of adult myosin by potato acid and calf intestine alkaline phosphatases led to the shift of Lf1 (34,000), Lt1 (31,000) and L2' (Lf2' + Lt2') (30,000) to L2 (Lf2 + Lt2) positions (30,000). 5. Peptide mapping analyses revealed that larva Lt1, Lt2', Lt2 and adult Lt1 were all the same; therefore, it is thought that a single species of Lt2 specific to the tubular type of myosin and its phosphorylated isoforms (Lt1, Lt2') exist. 6. The peptide map of Lf1 was slightly different from that of Lt1, but very similar to that of L2' in adult myosin. L2 and L2' of adult myosin showed very similar peptide maps, but there were several different peptide fragments.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Changes in tropomyosin subunits and myosin light chains during development of chicken and rabbit striated muscles.

We have selected tropomyosin subunits and myosin light chains as representative markers of the myofibrillar proteins of the thin and thick filaments and have studied changes in the type of proteins present during development in chicken and rabbit striated muscles. The β subunit of tropomyosin is the major species found in all embryonic skeletal muscles studied. During development the proportion of the α subunit of tropomyosin gradually increases so that in adult skeletal muscles the α subunit is either the only or the major species present. In contrast, cardiac muscles of both chicken and rabbit contain only the α subunit which remains invariant with development. Two subspecies of the α subunit of tropomyosin which differ in charge only were found in adult and embryonic chicken skeletal muscles. Only one of these subspecies seems to be common to chicken cardiac tropomyosin. With respect to myosin light chains, embryonic skeletal fast muscle myosin of both species resembles the adult fast muscle myosin except that the LC₃ light chain characteristic of the adult skeletal fast muscle is present in smaller amounts. The significance of these isozymic changes in the two myofibrillar proteins is discussed in terms of a model of differential gene expression during development of chicken and rabbit skeletal muscles.     

Amino acid sequence of the phosphorylation site of bovine cardiac myosin light chain

Amino acid sequences of peptides containing the phosphorylation site of bovine cardiac myosin light chain (L2) were determined. The site was localized to a serine residue in the tentative amino terminus of the light chain and is homologous to phosphorylation sites in other myosin light chains. Phosphorylation of bovine cardiac light chain by chicken gizzard myosin light chain kinase was Ca2+-calmodulin dependent. Kinetic data gave a Km of 107; microM and a Vmax of 23.6 mumol min-1 mg-1. In contrast to what has been observed with smooth muscle light chains, neither the phosphorylation site fragment of the cardiac light chain nor a synthetic tetradecapeptide containing the phosphorylation site were effectively phosphorylated by the chicken gizzard kinase. Phosphorylation of cardiac myosin light chains by chicken gizzard myosin light chain kinase, therefore, requires other regions of the light chain in addition to a phosphate acceptor site.     

Monoclonal antibody assessment of tissue- and species-specific myosin light chain kinase isozymes

Monoclonal antibodies raised against chicken gizzard smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase were used for immunological and structural studies of this enzyme. Epitope mapping of trypsin-digested chicken gizzard enzyme showed that MM-1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 bind to 65 kDa (trypsin-digested) and 60 kDa (chymotrypsin-digested) fragments which contain the catalytic domain of the kinase. Kinetic analysis demonstrated that MM-7 inhibited kinase activity competitively with respect to ATP and noncompetitively with respect to myosin light chain, thereby indicating that MM-7 binds at or near the ATP binding site of the enzyme. Immunoblot analysis revealed that all these antibodies (MM-1 to 12) reacted with the enzyme (130 kDa) from intestinal and vascular smooth muscles, whereas 5 (MM-1, 3, 4, 6, and 9) or 3 (MM-1, 3, and 4) of 12 antibodies did not cross-react with chicken cardiac muscle or with blood platelet myosin light chain kinase (130 kDa), respectively. None of these antibodies showed cross-reactivity against skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase. As for mammalian species, MM-11 and 12 reacted with myosin light chain kinase of vascular smooth muscle (140 kDa) and MM-11 cross-reacted with the enzyme (140 kDa) from cardiac muscle of rat and rabbit. These data suggest the existence of at least 4 subspecies of myosin light chain kinase in chicken tissues and the heterogeneity of tissue- and species-specific isozyme forms.     

Characterization of chicken skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase. Evidence for muscle-specific isozymes

Myosin light chain kinase purified from chicken white skeletal muscle (Mr = 150,000) was significantly larger than both rabbit skeletal (Mr = 87,000) and chicken gizzard smooth (Mr = 130,000) muscle myosin light chain kinases, as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Km and Vmax values with rabbit or chicken skeletal, bovine cardiac, and chicken gizzard smooth muscle myosin P-light chains were very similar for the chicken and rabbit skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinases. In contrast, comparable Km and Vmax data for the chicken gizzard smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase showed that this enzyme was catalytically very different from the two skeletal muscle kinases. Affinity-purified antibodies to rabbit skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase cross-reacted with chicken skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase, but the titer of cross-reacting antibodies was approximately 20-fold less than the anti-rabbit skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase titer. There was no detectable antibody cross-reactivity against chicken gizzard myosin light chain kinase. Proteolytic digestion followed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis or high performance liquid chromatography showed that these enzymes are structurally very different with few, if any, overlapping peptides. These data suggest that, although chicken skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase is catalytically very similar to rabbit skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinase, the two enzymes have different primary sequences. The two skeletal muscle myosin light chain kinases appear to be more similar to each other than either is to chicken gizzard smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase.     

Regulation of protein synthesis and accumulation during oogenesis in Xenopus laevis

The tissue and developmental distribution of the various myosin subunits has been examined in bovine cardiac muscle. Electrophoretic analysis shows that a myosin light chain found in fetal but not in adult ventricular myosin is very similar and possibly identical to the light chain found in fetal or adult atrial and adult Purkinje fiber myosins. This light chain comigrates on two-dimensional gels with the bovine skeletal muscle embryonic light chain. Thus, this protein appears to be expressed only at early developmental stages in some tissues (cardiac ventricles, skeletal muscle) but at all stages in others (cardiac atria). The heavy chains of these myosins have been examined by one- and two-dimensional polypeptide mapping. The ventricular and Purkinje fiber heavy chains are indistinguishable. They are, however, different from the heavy chain found in cultured skeletal muscle myotubes, in contrast to the situation concerning the embryonic/atrial light chain.     

Smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase efficiently phosphorylates serine 15 of cardiac myosin regulatory light chain

Specific phosphorylation of the human ventricular cardiac myosin regulatory light chain (MYL2) modifies the protein at S15. This modification affects MYL2 secondary structure and modulates the Ca(2+) sensitivity of contraction in cardiac tissue. Smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase (smMLCK) is a ubiquitous kinase prevalent in uterus and present in other contracting tissues including cardiac muscle. The recombinant 130 kDa (short) smMLCK phosphorylated S15 in MYL2 in vitro. Specific modification of S15 was verified using the direct detection of the phospho group on S15 with mass spectrometry. SmMLCK also specifically phosphorylated myosin regulatory light chain S15 in porcine ventricular myosin and chicken gizzard smooth muscle myosin (S20 in smooth muscle) but failed to phosphorylate the myosin regulatory light chain in rabbit skeletal myosin. Phosphorylation kinetics, measured using a novel fluorescence method eliminating the use of radioactive isotopes, indicates similar Michaelis-Menten V(max) and K(M) for regulatory light chain S15 phosphorylation rates in MYL2, porcine ventricular myosin, and chicken gizzard myosin. These data demonstrate that smMLCK is a specific and efficient kinase for the in vitro phosphorylation of MYL2, cardiac, and smooth muscle myosin. Whether smMLCK plays a role in cardiac muscle regulation or response to a disease causing stimulus is unclear but it should be considered a potentially significant kinase in cardiac tissue on the basis of its specificity, kinetics, and tissue expression.     

Distribution and properties of myosin isozymes in developing avian and mammalian skeletal muscle fibers

Isozymes of myosin have been localized with respect to individual fibers in differentiating skeletal muscles of the rat and chicken using immunocytochemistry. The myosin light chain pattern has been analyzed in the same muscles by two-dimensional PAGE. In the muscles of both species, the response to antibodies against fast and slow adult myosin is consistent with the speed of contraction of the muscle. During early development, when speed of contraction is slow in future fast and slow muscles, all the fibers react strongly with anti-slow as well as with anti-fast myosin. As adult contractile properties are acquired, the fibers react with antibodies specific for either fast or slow myosin, but few fibers react with both antibodies. The myosin light chain pattern slow shows a change with development: the initial light chains (LC) are principally of the fast type, LC1(f), and LC2(f), independent of whether the embryonic muscle is destined to become a fast or a slow muscle in the adult. The LC3(f), light chain does not appear in significant amounts until after birth, in agreement with earlier reports. The predominance of fast light chains during early stages of development is especially evident in the rat soleus and chicken ALD, both slow muscles, in which LC1(f), is gradually replaced by the slow light chain, LC1(s), as development proceeds. Other features of the light chain pattern include an "embryonic" light chain in fetal and neonatal muscles of the rat, as originally demonstrated by R.G. Whalen, G.S. Butler- Browne, and F. Gros. (1978. J. Mol. Biol. 126:415-431.); and the presence of approximately 10 percent slow light chains in embryonic pectoralis, a fast white muscle in the adult chicken. The response of differentiating muscle fibers to anti-slow myosin antibody cannot, however, be ascribed solely to the presence of slow light chains, since antibody specific for the slow heavy chain continues to react with all the fibers. We conclude that during early development, the myosin consists of a population of molecules in which the heavy chain can be associated with a fast, slow, or embryonic light chain. Biochemical analysis has shown that this embryonic heavy chain (or chains) is distinct from adult fast or slow myosin (R.G. Whalen, K. Schwartz, P. Bouveret, S.M. Sell, and F. Gros. 1979. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 76:5197-5201. J.I. Rushbrook, and A. Stracher. 1979. Proc Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 76:4331-4334. P.A. Benfield, S. Lowey, and D.D. LeBlanc. 1981. Biophys. J. 33(2, Pt. 2):243a[Abstr.]). Embryonic myosin, therefore, constitutes a unique class of molecules, whose synthesis ceases before the muscle differentiates into an adult pattern of fiber types.     

Changes in myosin isozymes during development of chicken breast muscle

The patterns of myosin isozymes in embryonic and adult chicken pectoralis muscle were examined by electrophoresis in a non-denaturing gel system (pyrophosphate acrylamide gel electrophoresis), and both light chains and heavy chains of embryonic and adult myosin isozymes were compared. In pyrophosphate acrylamide gel electrophoresis, the predominant isozyme component in embryonic pectoralis myosin could be clearly distinguished from adult myosin isozymes. SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis indicated that the light chain composition of embryonic myosin was also different from that of adult myosin. The pattern of peptide fragments produced by myosin digestion with a-chymotrypsin differed significantly between embryonic and adult skeletal myosin. These results suggest that myosin in the embryonic pectoralis muscle is different in both light and heavy chain composition from myosin in the same adult tissue.     

Induction of zygote formation by ethylene during the sexual development of the cellular slime mold Dictyostelium mucoroides

Immunochemical studies have identified a distinct myosin heavy chain (MHC) in the chicken embryonic skeletal muscle that was undetectable in this muscle in the posthatch period by both immunocytochemical and the immunoblotting procedures. This embryonic isoform, identified by antibody 96J, which also recognises the cardiac and SM1 myosin heavy chains, differs from the embryonic myosin heavy chain belonging to the fast class described previously. Although the fast embryonic isoform is a major species present in the leg and pectoral embryonic muscles, slow embryonic isoform was present in significant amounts during early embryonic development. Immunocytochemical studies using another monoclonal antibody designated 9812, which is specific for SM1 MHC, showed this isoform to be restricted to only presumptive slow muscle cells. From these studies and those reported on the changes in SM2 MHC, it is proposed that as is the case for the fast class, there also exists a slow class of myosin heavy chains composed of slow embryonic, SM1 and SM2 isoforms. The differentiation of a muscle cell involves transitions in a series of myosin isozymes in both presumptive fast and slow skeletal muscle cells.     

Changes in myosin isozymes during development of chicken gizzard muscle

The distribution of myosin isozymes in embryonic and adult chicken gizzard muscle were examined by electrophoresis in a non-denaturing gel system (pyrophosphate acrylamide gel electrophoresis), and both light and heavy chains of embryonic and adult myosin isozymes were compared. In pyrophosphate acrylamide gel electrophoresis, there were three isozyme components in embryonic gizzard myosin, but only one isozyme in adult gizzard myosin. The mobility of the fastest migrating embryonic isozyme was similar to that of the adult isozyme. The three embryonic isozymes differ from each other in the light chain distribution. Two of them contain an embryo-specific myosin light chain, which is characterized by its molecular weight and isoelectric point, whereas the other embryonic myosin isozyme contained the same light chains as the adult myosin. The pattern of peptide fragments of embryonic heavy chain produced by digestion with alpha-chymotrypsin in the presence of SDS was not distinguishable from that of adult myosin heavy chain. Thus there are myosin isozymes specific to embryonic gizzard muscle which exhibit embryo-specific light chain compositions, but are similar to adult gizzard myosin in their heavy chain structure.     

Expression of proto-oncogenes and muscle specific genes during cardiac hypertrophy and development in rats and humans

A regulatory interdependence of expression of proto-oncogenes and muscle specific genes observed in smooth muscle was examined in cardiac muscle during normal development and hypertrophy both in rats and humans. During normal development in rats, myosin light chain 2 expression is very low at prenatal stages, while c-fos expression starts from the early stages of embryonic development. In aorta constricted rats c-fos induction occurs within 30 min whereas myosin light chain 2 expression is sufficiently high only after 3 or 4 days of post operative period. In the case of humans, the expression of myosin light chain 2 as well as c-fos occurs at high levels during embryonic development. Similar results were obtained with tissue samples obtained from patients with cardiac abnormalities. Induction of the c-fos gene in cultured myocytes by 12-O-tetradeeanoylphorbol 13-acetate has no influence on the expression of myosin light chain 2. These studies were extended with studies on c-myc and Β-myosin heavy chain gene expression which revealed a similar pattern of expression as that of c-fos and myosin light chain 2. These results have indicated that the expression of proto-oncogenes in cardiac muscle may be independently regulated from the expression of muscle specific genes.     

Myosin heavy chain composition of single cells from avian slow skeletal muscle is strongly correlated with velocity of shortening during development

We have determined the myosin heavy chain (MHC) composition (using a sensitive sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis system) and the maximal velocity of shortening (Vmax) of single cells from neonatal and adult chicken anterior latissimus dorsi (ALD) muscles. In addition, the MHC, myosin light chain, and regulatory protein (i.e., troponin and tropomyosin subunits) compositions of bundles of ALD fibers were determined at late embryonic, neonatal, and adult ages. At young ages, there are two MHCs in ALD muscle, SM1 and SM2, with SM1 decreasing in relative amount with increasing age, as shown previously by others. The mean Vmax of single fibers also decreases from neonatal to adult ages. A strong quantitative correlation is demonstrated between the specific MHC composition and Vmax among individual cells of the ALD muscle at several ages. Since virtually no changes occur in the regulatory protein and myosin light chain compositions of the ALD muscle between late embryonic and adult ages, it appears that the MHC composition of an individual cell in this muscle is the primary determinant of the maximal shortening velocity. These results are the first to illustrate the functional significance of the developmental transition in myosin heavy chain composition of an avian slow skeletal muscle, consistent with our previous findings on mammalian muscle.     

Regenerating adult chicken skeletal muscle and satellite cell cultures express embryonic patterns of myosin and tropomyosin isoforms

Regenerating areas of adult chicken fast muscle (pectoralis major) and slow muscle (anterior latissimus dorsi) were examined in order to determine synthesis patterns of myosin light chains, heavy chains and tropomyosin. In addition, these patterns were also examined in muscle cultures derived from satellite cells of adult fast and slow muscle. One week after cold-injury the regenerating fast muscle showed a pattern of synthesis that was predominately embryonic. These muscles synthesized the embryonic myosin heavy chain, beta-tropomyosin and reduced amounts of myosin fast light chain-3 which are characteristic of embryonic fast muscle but synthesized very little myosin slow light chains. The regenerating slow muscle, however, showed a nearly complete array of embryonic peptides including embryonic myosin heavy chain, fast and slow myosin light chains and both alpha-fast and slow tropomyosins. Peptide map analysis of the embryonic myosin heavy chains synthesized by regenerating fast and slow muscles showed them to be identical. Thus, in both muscles there is a return to embryonic patterns during regeneration but this return appears to be incomplete in the pectoralis major. By 4 weeks postinjury both regenerating fast and slow muscles had stopped synthesizing embryonic isoforms of myosin and tropomyosin and had returned to a normal adult pattern of synthesis. Adult fast and slow muscles yielded a satellite cell population that formed muscle fibers in culture. Fibers derived from either population synthesized the embryonic myosin heavy chain in addition to alpha-fast and beta-tropomyosin. Thus, muscle fibers derived in culture from satellite cells of fast and slow muscles synthesized a predominately embryonic pattern of myosin heavy chains and tropomyosin. In addition, however, the satellite cell-derived myotubes from fast muscle synthesized only fast myosin light chains while the myotubes derived from slow muscle satellite cells synthesized both fast and slow myosin light chains. Thus, while both kinds of satellite cells produced embryonic type myotubes in culture the overall patterns were not identical. Satellite cells of fast and slow muscle appear therefore to have diverged from each other in their commitment during maturation in vivo.