Control of low density lipoprotein receptor gene expression in steroidogenic cells

Low density lipoprotein (LDL)-carried cholesterol is a primary substrate for steroid hormone synthesis by luteinized human granulosa cells. Chorionic gonadotropin and 8-bromo-cAMP both increase LDL receptor levels in granulosa cells by stimulating accumulation of the receptor mRNA. LDL and 25-hydroxycholesterol reduce LDL receptor expression, but this suppressive effect is partially overcome by 8-bromo-cAMP. Using fusion gene constructs containing the LDL receptor gene promoter transfected into JEG-3 cells, a cyclic AMP responsive enhancer could not be identified in the LDL receptor gene upstream promoter in transfection studies. We suggest that the LDL receptor gene in human steroidogenic cells is under negative control by a sterol effector, but that a cyclic AMP triggered process overcomes, to some extent, the sterol-mediated suppression. The detailed mechanisms by which sterol and cyclic AMP modulate LDL receptor gene expression remain to be elucidated.     

Differential regulation of low density lipoprotein suppression of HMG-CoA reductase activity in cultured cells by inhibitors of cholesterol biosynthesis

Treatment of rat intestinal epithelial cells (IEC-6 cells) with lanosterol 14 alpha-demethylase inhibitors, ketoconazole and miconazole, had similar effects on 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase activity and cholesterol biosynthesis but the drugs differed in their ability to prevent the low density lipoprotein (LDL) suppression of reductase activity. Miconazole, at concentrations that inhibited the metabolism of lanosterol and epoxylanosterol to the same degree as ketoconazole, did not prevent low density lipoprotein action on reductase activity, whereas ketoconazole totally abolished the low density lipoprotein action on reductase activity. Both drugs caused: 1) a biphasic response in reductase activity such that at low concentrations (less than 2 microM) reductase activity was inhibited and at high concentrations (greater than 5 microM) the activity returned to control or higher than control levels; 2) an inhibition of metabolism of lanosterol to cholesterol, and 24(S), 25-epoxylanosterol to 24(S), 25-epoxycholesterol. Neither drug prevented suppression of reductase activity by 25-hydroxylanosterol, 25-hydroxycholesterol, or mevalonolactone added to the medium. Each drug increased the binding, uptake, and degradation of 125I-labeled LDL and inhibited the re-esterification of free cholesterol to cholesteryl oleate and cholesteryl palmitate. The release of free cholesterol from [3H]cholesteryl linoleate LDL could not account for the differential effect of ketoconazole and miconazole on the prevention of low density lipoprotein suppression of reductase activity. The differential effect of the drugs on low density lipoprotein suppression of reductase activity was not unique to IEC-6 cells, but was also observed in several cell lines of different tissue origin such as human skin fibroblast cells (GM-43), human hepatoblastoma cells (HepG2), and Chinese hamster ovary cells (wild type, K-1; 4 alpha-methyl sterol oxidase mutant, 215). These observations suggest that the suppressive action of low density lipoprotein on reductase activity 1) does not require the de novo synthesis of cholesterol, or 24(S), 25-epoxysterols; 2) is not mediated via the same mechanism as that of mevalonolactone; and 3) does not involve cholesteryl reesterification. Ketoconazole blocks a site in the process of LDL suppression of reductase activity that is not affected by miconazole.     

Regulation of the activity of the low density lipoprotein receptor in human fibroblasts.

A specific receptor on the surface of cultured human fibroblasts binds plasma low density lipoprotein (LDL) with high affinity, and thereby initiates a cellular process by which the LDL is internalized and degraded within lysosomes and its cholesterol component is made available for cellular membrane synthesis. Current studies demonstrate that the activity of this LDL receptor is under feedback regulation. Prior incubation of fibroblast monolayers with cholesterol, 25-hydroxycholesterol, or LDL progressively reduced the ability of the cells to bind 125I-labeled LDL at the high affinity site. A series of kinetic studies indicated that this reduction in binding was due to a decrease in the number of LDL receptors. From measurements of the rate of decline in 125I-LDL binding activity after administration of cycloheximide, the LDL receptor was calculated to have a half-life of about 25 hr. LDL appeared to reduce 125I-LDL-binding activity by suppressing the synthesis of receptor molecules. Thus cultured human fibroblasts regulate their intracellular cholesterol content by regulating the activity of the LDL receptor, which in turn controls the rate of cellular entry of cholesterol derived from plasma LDL contained within the culture medium.     

Effect of the monooxygenase activity inhibitor ketoconazole on cholesterol esterification in mouse peritoneal macrophages

In order to determine the feasible role of monooxygenases in regulation of the macrophage acyl-CoA: cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT) activity, the effects of ketoconazole on the activities of benz(a)pyrene hydroxylase and ACAT as well as on the [14C]oleate incorporation into cholesterol esters in cultured mouse peritoneal macrophages (MPM) were studied. Ketoconazole (0.5-50 M) inhibited the benz(a)pyrene hydroxylase activity but increased the free cholesterol (FC) level in MPM cultured with an acetylated low density lipoprotein (acetyl-LDL). An addition of ketoconazole (1-50 M) eliminated the increase in the rate of FC esterification after incubation of MPM with acetyl-LDL (but not with 25-hydroxycholesterol). In contrast, progesterone, an ACAT activity inhibitor, used at 5-30 M diminished the rate of FC esterification, when MPM were incubated with acetyl-LDL of 25-hydroxycholesterol. Ketoconazole provoked a dose-dependent decrease of the [3H]FC incorporation into macrophage polar oxysteroids. The data obtained suggest that the ketoconazole (1-30 M) effect on FC esterification in MPM cultured with acetyl-LDL is determined by its inhibiting monooxygenases, which produce oxidized forms of FC that are potential activators of ACAT.     

Intracellular mechanisms of gonadotropin-stimulated gene expression in granulosa cells.

Previous studies have shown that the gonadotropins follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone stimulate proopiomelanocortin (POMC) promoter activity and mRNA levels in ovarian granulosa cells. The objective of these studies was to determine the role of cAMP-dependent protein kinases (pKA) in gonadotropin-stimulated gene expression. Primary cultures of rat granulosa cells were transfected with a gene construct consisting of the POMC promoter (-150 to +63; designated pOMC-CAT) fused to the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) reporter gene either alone or cotransfected with an expression plasmid (designated mutant RI), which overexpresses a mutant form of the murine RI subunit incapable of binding cAMP and serving as an irreversible inhibitor of the catalytic subunit of pKA. Follicle-stimulating hormone or isoproterenol caused a significant stimulation of pOMC-CAT activity in transfected cells. Cotransfection of pOMC-CAT with mutant RI caused a significant inhibition of basal pOMC-CAT activity and abolished the gonadotropin stimulation. As a control, transfection of the SV-40 viral enhancer-promoter fused to CAT (pSV2-CAT) was unresponsive to follicle-stimulating hormone stimulation and cotransfection with mutant RI had no significant effect on pSV2-CAT activity. These studies suggest that gonadotropin regulation of the POMC promoter is mediated by pKA and that promoter activity is stringently controlled by pKA.     

Relation of growth- and sterol-related regulatory pathways for low density lipoprotein receptor gene expression

The relationship between growth- and sterol-related regulation of low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor gene expression was examined in human skin fibroblasts. Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and high density lipoprotein (HDL3) each produced increased cellular LDL protein and mRNA levels. However, HDL, when added with PDGF or insulin produced no additional effect. Coincubations with 25-hydroxycholesterol markedly attenuated fibroblast LDL receptor protein and mRNA response to growth activation. Acute transfection experiments using sterol-responsive elements of the LDL receptor gene indicated that these elements are also responsive to growth activation with PDGF. These data indicate that alteration of cellular sterol balance or metabolism leading to release of end product repression contributes to growth-related stimulation of LDL receptor gene expression.     

NPC1 and NPC2 regulate cellular cholesterol homeostasis through generation of low density lipoprotein cholesterol-derived oxysterols

Mutations in the Niemann-Pick disease genes cause lysosomal cholesterol accumulation and impaired low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol esterification. These findings have been attributed to a block in cholesterol movement from lysosomes to the site of the sterol regulatory machinery. In this study we show that Niemann-Pick type C1 (NPC1) and Niemann-Pick type C2 (NPC2) mutants have increased cellular cholesterol, yet they are unable to suppress LDL receptor activity and cholesterol biosynthesis. Cholesterol overload in both NPC1 and NPC2 mutants results from the failure of LDL cholesterol tobothsuppresssterolregulatoryelement-bindingprotein-dependent gene expression and promote liver X receptor-mediated responses. However, the severity of the defect in regulation of sterol homeostasis does not correlate with endoplasmic reticulum cholesterol levels, but rather with the degree to which NPC mutant fibroblasts fail to appropriately generate 25-hydroxycholesterol and 27-hydroxycholesterol in response to LDL cholesterol. Moreover, we demonstrate that treatment with oxysterols reduces cholesterol in NPC mutants and is able to correct the NPC1I1061T phenotype, the most prevalent NPC1 disease genotype. Our findings support a role for NPC1 and NPC2 in the regulation of sterol homeostasis through generation of LDL cholesterol-derived oxysterols and have important implications for the treatment of NPC disease.     

Characterization of the low density lipoprotein receptor in membranes prepared from human fibroblasts.

An ultracentrifugation assay has been developed to measure low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor activity in membranes prepared from cultured human fibroblasts. The binding site for 125I-labeled LDL in isolated membranes reflected the properties of the LDL receptor previously demonstrated in intact fibroblasts. It exhibited high affinity (Kd approximately 4 microgram of LDL protein/ml), specificity (LDL approximately 400-fold more effective than high density lipoprotein in competing with 125I-LDL for the binding site), dependence on calcium, and susceptibility to destruction by pronase. The number of LDL receptors detected in the in vitro membrane binding assay was similar to the number detected in intact cells. The number of receptors was reduced in membranes from fibroblasts that were grown in the presence of 25-hydroxycholesterol plus cholesterol and in fibroblast membranes from a subject with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia, two situations in which the number of LDL receptors in intact fibroblasts is known to be reduced. The availability of a membrane binding assay that faithfully reflects the properties of the physiologic LDL receptor of intact cells should permit the characterization of this receptor in organs from intact humans and animals.     

Bile acids enhance low density lipoprotein receptor gene expression via a MAPK cascade-mediated stabilization of mRNA

Recent studies have indicated that bile acids regulate the expression of several genes involved in bile acid and lipid metabolism as ligands for the farnesoid X receptor (FXR). We report here that bile acids are directly able to govern cholesterol metabolism by a novel mechanism. We show that chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA) enhances low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor gene expression in human cultured cell lines (HeLa, Hep G2, and Caco-2). The proteolytic activation of sterol regulatory element-binding protein-2 (SREBP-2), a major regulator for LDL receptor gene expression, is not affected by CDCA. Both deoxycholic acid and lithocholic acid as well as CDCA, but not ursodeoxycholic acid, increase the mRNA level for the LDL receptor, even when Hep G2 cells are cultured with 25-hydroxycholesterol, a potent suppressor of gene expression for the LDL receptor. Although it seems possible that FXR might be involved in genetic regulation, both reporter assays with a reporter gene containing the LDL receptor promoter as well as Northern blot analysis reveal that FXR is not involved in the process. On the other hand, inhibition of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase activities, which are found to be induced by CDCA, abolishes the CDCA-mediated up-regulation of LDL receptor gene expression. We further demonstrate that CDCA stabilizes LDL receptor mRNA and that the MAP kinase inhibitors accelerate its turnover. Taken together, these results indicate that bile acids increase LDL uptake and the intracellular cholesterol levels through the activation of MAP kinase cascades in conjunction with a down-regulation of bile acid biosynthesis by FXR. This work opens up a new avenue for developing pharmaceutical interventions that lower plasma LDL by stabilizing LDL receptor mRNA.     

Dissociated regulation of macrophage LDL receptor and apolipoprotein E gene expression by sterol

The control of apoE gene expression by sterols and the relationship between regulation of the apoE and low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor genes were investigated in a human macrophage line. Incubation of THP1 cells in either LDL or acetylated LDL increased apoE mRNA levels 4- to 15-fold. In addition, the cellular abundance of these two mRNA species (apoE and LDL receptor) was inversely regulated by cellular cholesterol content over an identical dose-response relationship. Regulation of the LDL receptor and apoE genes could, however, be temporally dissociated in response to the accumulation or removal of lipoprotein-derived (exogenous) cholesterol and in response to perturbation of endogenous cellular cholesterol biosynthesis. In addition, we observed that the apoE gene responded more promptly to 25-hydroxycholesterol than to exogenous cholesterol. These data support the concept that the apoE gene be considered among the family of genes sensitively regulated by cellular sterol balance but suggest that the molecular mechanism accounting for the modulation of the LDL receptor and apoE genes are distinct, with the relationship between cell sterol balance and apoE gene regulation being more complex.     

Regulation of low density lipoprotein receptor synthesis in cultured luteinized human granulosa cells by human chorionic gonadotropin and 8-bromo-cyclic AMP

We investigated the regulation of synthesis of low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor in cultured luteinized human granulosa cells using a monoclonal antibody recognizing the human LDL receptor (IgG-C7). Cells cultured under serum-free conditions were treated with human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) or 8-bromo-cAMP alone or in combination with aminoglutethimide (to block conversion of cholesterol to steroid hormones) and 5-cholesten-3 beta, 25-diol (25-hydroxycholesterol, a potent suppressor of LDL receptor expression in human fibroblasts) and pulse-labeled with [35S]methionine. A labeled protein immunoisolated with IgG-C7 was identified as the mature LDL receptor in 7.5% sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels on the basis of an apparent molecular mass of 160 kDa, absence of the protein from immunoisolates prepared with a monoclonal antibody against an irrelevant antigen, and an apparent decrease in molecular weight of the mature receptor upon treatment with neuraminidase or electrophoresis under nonreducing conditions. hCG and 8-bromo-cAMP consistently increased the incorporation of radioactivity into the mature LDL receptor by 2-6-fold. The effect of hCG on LDL receptor synthesis was observed with as little as 10 mIU of hCG/ml and was apparent within 2 h of addition of the hormone. A combination of 25-hydroxycholesterol and aminoglutethimide resulted in a 60% suppression of label incorporation into mature LDL receptor compared to untreated cells. This would suggest some regulation of LDL receptor synthesis by negative feedback of sterol. However, both hCG and 8-bromo-cAMP increased label incorporation into the LDL receptor in the face of these agents. We conclude that in human granulosa cells, hCG, through the intermediacy of cAMP, rapidly increases LDL receptor synthesis by a mechanism which is, at least in part, independent of alterations in cellular cholesterol balance.     

The Nb2 form of prolactin receptor is able to activate a milk protein gene promoter.

We have recently cloned a cDNA encoding a mutant form of PRL receptor (PRL-R) from Nb2 cells, a PRL-dependent T lymphocyte-derived cell line. This cDNA is identical to the long form of the rat PRL-R, except for a deletion of 594 base pairs in the cytoplasmic domain, resulting in a mature receptor protein of 393 amino acids. Although a segment containing three cytoplasmic regions of moderate to high amino acid sequence identity with members of the PRL/GH receptor family is missing in this receptor form, the region of highest (70%) identity is retained. In the following studies, a homologous functional assay was developed to test the activity of three forms of receptor with respect to their ability to transmit a lactogenic signal. In this system, CHO cells were transiently transfected with a construct containing 2300 base pairs of the 5'-flanking sequence of the rat beta-casein gene fused to the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) gene and an expression vector containing the various forms of rat PRL-R cDNA. The transfected cells were grown in serum-free medium in the absence or presence of PRL. In cells transfected with the long form of the PRL-R and beta-casein/CAT construct, a 7.2- +/- 0.9-fold induction (n = 3) of CAT activity was seen when cells were cultured in the presence of 400 ng/ml PRL and 1 micrograms/ml hydrocortisone. This level of stimulation was similar to that observed for the ovine beta-lactoglobulin/CAT construct in which a 5.7- +/- 1.2-fold (n = 3) effect was found.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Inhibition of acyl coenzyme A:cholesterol acyl transferase in J774 macrophages enhances down-regulation of the low density lipoprotein receptor and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase and prevents low density lipoprotein-induced cholesterol accumulation

Cholesteryl ester accumulation in arterial wall macrophages (foam cells) is a prominent feature of atherosclerotic lesions. We have previously shown that J774 macrophages accumulate large amounts of cholesteryl ester when incubated with unmodified low density lipoprotein (LDL) and that this is related to sluggish down-regulation of the J774 LDL receptor and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase. To further explore intracellular cholesterol metabolism and regulatory events in J774 macrophages, we studied the effect of inhibitors of acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyl transferase (ACAT) on the cells' ability to accumulate cholesterol and to down-regulate receptor and reductase. Treatment of J774 cells with LDL in the presence of ACAT inhibitor 58-035 (Sandoz) prevented both cholesteryl ester and total cholesterol accumulation. Furthermore, 58-035 markedly enhanced down-regulation of the J774 LDL receptor and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase in the presence of LDL. In dose-response studies, down-regulation of the receptor by 58-035 paralleled its inhibition of ACAT activity. Compound 58-035 also increased the down-regulation of the J774 LDL receptor in the presence of 25-hydroxycholesterol and acetyl-LDL but not in the presence of cholesteryl hemisuccinate, which is not an ACAT substrate. The ability of 58-035 to enhance LDL receptor down-regulation was negated when cells were simultaneously incubated with recombinant high density lipoprotein3 discs, which promote cellular cholesterol efflux. In contrast to the findings with J774 macrophages, down-regulation of the human fibroblast LDL receptor was not enhanced by 58-035. These data suggest that in J774 macrophages, but not in fibroblasts, ACAT competes for a regulatory pool of intracellular cholesterol, contributing to diminished receptor and reductase down-regulation, LDL-cholesterol accumulation, and foam cell formation.     

Regulation of low density lipoprotein receptor gene expression in cultured human granulosa cells: roles of human chorionic gonadotropin, 8-bromo-3',5'-cyclic adenosine monophosphate, and protein synthesis

Treatment of human granulosa cells with human CG (hCG) or an analog of its second messenger, cAMP, promotes a rapid increase in low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor mRNA content. After 1 h of treatment with 8-bromo-cAMP, an appreciable increase in hybridizable LDL receptor mRNA was found which increased to apparently maximal levels within 4-6 h. Treatment of the granulosa cells with 25-hydroxycholesterol, in the presence of aminoglutethimide, resulted in a reduction in LDL receptor mRNA content within 6 h of treatment. However, hCG or 8-bromo-cAMP were able to stimulate an increase in LDL receptor mRNA content in the presence of this inhibitory signal. We further investigated the mechanism by which tropic agents increased mRNA content. While inhibition of RNA synthesis with actinomycin D blocked the hCG or cAMP-induced rise in LDL receptor mRNA content, inhibition of protein synthesis with cycloheximide augmented basal or hCG- or cAMP-stimulated LDL receptor mRNA levels. We conclude that human steroidogenic cells possess a cAMP-mediated mechanism for rapid upregulation of LDL receptor mRNA which is distinct from, and supercedes, cholesterol negative feedback of LDL receptor gene expression. The actions of hCG and 8-bromo-cAMP do not require ongoing protein synthesis. Indeed, a cycloheximide-sensitive mechanism modulates receptor mRNA levels in these cells such that the effects of hCG and 8-bromo-cAMP are enhanced when cells are pretreated with this drug.     

Isolation of Chinese hamster cell mutants defective in the receptor-mediated endocytosis of low density lipoprotein

This paper describes a procedure for the isolation of mutant cells with defects in receptor-mediated endocytosis. The procedure takes advantage of the unique structure of low density lipoprotein, a plasma cholesterol transport protein that enters cells by receptor-mediated endocytosis. LDL contains a core of cholesteryl ester that can be extracted and reconstituted with hydrophobic molecules that convert the LDL into a toxic or fluorescent particle. Mutagenized Chinese hamster ovary cells were incubated with reconstituted LDL containing toxic 25-hydroxycholesteryl oleate. Wild-type cells take up this lipoprotein via the LDL receptor, liberate the 25-hydroxycholesterol in lysosomes, and die. To identify colonies of receptor-deficient cells from among the few survivors of the first selection step, we incubated the cells with LDL reconstituted with a fluorescent cholesteryl ester and picked colonies that failed to accumulate fluorescence. The two-step isolation procedure yielded receptor-deficient cells at a frequency of 1 in 10⁵. The mutant cells grew in the presence of LDL reconstituted with 25-hydroxycholesteryl oleate at concentrations 100-fold higher than those that killed parental cells. The altered phenotypes have remained stable for more than 200 population doublings under non-selective conditions. Inasmuch as LDL can be coupled to ligands that bind to receptors other than the LDL receptor, the above method may have general utility in isolating cells with mutations affecting other receptor systems.     

Low density lipoprotein receptor degradation is influenced by a mediator protein(s) with a rapid turnover rate, but is unaffected by receptor up- or down-regulation

Treatment of cultured human skin fibroblasts with cycloheximide retarded the down-regulation of low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor activity caused by 25-hydroxycholesterol. The rate of LDL receptor degradation, measured directly by means of [35S]methionine pulse-chase experiments, was also markedly inhibited by cycloheximide (or puromycin), suggesting that continuous synthesis of a short-lived mediator protein(s) was necessary for normal LDL receptor turnover. In the absence of cycloheximide, both the up- and down-regulation of LDL receptor activity took place with a half-time of approximately 12 hr. Pulse-chase measurements with [35S]methionine yielded a receptor half-life (t1/2) of 11.7 +/- 2.2 hr (n = 10) in up-regulated cells; the t1/2 in the partially down-regulated state was similar. The presence of LDL or 25-hydroxycholesterol did not alter this degradation rate. Regulation of LDL receptor activity under these various culture conditions therefore probably occurred solely as a result of changes in the rate of receptor synthesis. The cycloheximide-sensitive factor(s) that influences receptor turnover apparently did not play a regulatory role in the up- or down-regulation of the LDL receptor.