Effect of ATP on the Release of hsp 70 and hsp 40 from the Nucleus in Heat-Shocked HeLa Cells

We have recently found a novel 40-kDa heat-shock protein (hsp 40) in mammalian and avian cells and reported that the N-terminal amino acid sequence of mammalian hsp 40 has homology with the bacterial DnaJ heat-shock protein. Also, hsp 40 has been shown to be translocated from the cytoplasm into the nuclei/nucleoli by heat shock and colocalized with hsc 70 (p73) in the nucleoli of exactly the same cells. We here investigated the effect of ATP on the release of hsp 70 (both constitutive p73 and inducible p72) and hsp 40 from the nuclei/nucleoli of heat-shocked HeLa cells which were permeabilized with Nonidet-P40 using immunoflourescence and immunoblotting. Hsp 70 in the nucleoli was released by the addition of ATP but not by ADP, GTP, nonhydrolyzable ATP, nor high salt buffer. In contrast, hsp 40 was not released from the nucleoli with any of these treatments or any combination of these treatments. Thus, hsp 40 might dissociate spontaneously from the nucleoli after hsp 70 has been released in an ATP-dependent manner. Using cell fractionation methods, we showed that while the majority of hsp 40 is localized in the cytoplasm, a small portion of it is located in the microsome fraction in non-heat-shocked control cells and in cells which recovered from heat shock.     

Analysis of protein binding to heat shock protein 70 in pancreatic islet cells exposed to elevated temperatures or interleukin 1 beta

To elucidate a role for heat shock proteins in islet function, isolated pancreatic islets were labeled with [35S]methionine after control, heat shock, or interleukin 1 beta (IL-1 beta) treatment, extracted in the presence of detergent, and then passed over affinity columns with antibodies against heat shock protein 70 (hsp 70), hsp 70 itself, or ATP conjugated to the columns. In control or IL-1 beta-treated islets, the antibody column efficiently absorbed hsp 70 together with two other proteins of molecular masses 46 and 53 kDa. In extracts from heat-shocked cells, the binding of cellularly synthesized hsp 70 to the antibody column was inefficient but improved by the addition of unlabeled partially purified hsp 70 to the extracts. When assessing the binding of proteins in the extracts to the hsp 70 column, hsp 70 and the 46- and 53-kDa proteins among others all bound to the column. No differences in the patterns of binding to the hsp 70 column between extracts from the different islet exposures were noticed. The 46-kDa protein was identified as actin by immunoblot analysis. ATP-agarose column chromatography revealed a pattern of binding similar to that of the hsp 70 column. It is concluded that hsp 70 contains at least two functional domains, one adjacent to the epitope recognized by the antibody and active in restoring cellular function after heat shock, whereas the other has the ability to bind the 46- and 53-kDa and possibly other proteins. Furthermore, the stress induced by heat shock differs significantly from that after IL-1 beta treatment with respect to the functional behavior of hsp 70.     

Examining the function and regulation of hsp 70 in cells subjected to metabolic stress

Members of the heat-shock protein (hsp) 70 family, distributed within various cellular compartments, have been implicated in facilitating protein maturation events. In particular, related hsp 70 family members appear to bind nascent polypeptides which are in the course of synthesis and/or translocation into organelles. We previously reported that in normal, unstressed cells, cytosolic hsp 70 (hsp 72/73) interacted transiently with nascent polypeptides. We suspect that such interactions function to prevent or slow down the folding of the nascent polypeptide chain. Once synthesis is complete, and now with all of the information for folding present, the newly synthesized protein appears to commence along its folding pathway, accompanied by the ATP-dependent release of hsp 72/73. Herein, we examined how these events occur in cells subjected to different types of metabolic stress. In cells exposed to either an amino acid analog or sodium arsenite, two potent inducers of the stress response, newly synthesized proteins bind to but are not released from hsp 70. Under these conditions of metabolic stress, we suspect that the newly synthesized proteins are unable to commence proper folding and consequently remain bound to their hsp 70 chaperone. In cells subjected to heat shock, a large number of both newly synthesized as well as mature proteins are rendered insoluble. Within this insoluble material are appreciable amounts of hsp 72/73. Finally, we show that in cells depleted of ATP, the release of hsp 70 from maturing proteins is inhibited. Thus, in cells experiencing metabolic stress, newly synthesized proteins unable to properly fold, as will as mature proteins which begin to unfold become stably bound to hsp 72/73. As a consequence and over time, the free or available levels of pre-existing hsp 72/73 are reduced. We propose that this reduction in the available levels of hsp 72/73 is the trigger by which the stress response is initiated.     

The constitutive and stress inducible forms of hsp 70 exhibit functional similarities and interact with one another in an ATP- dependent fashion

Mammalian cells constitutively express a cytosolic and nuclear form of heat shock protein (hsp) 70, referred to here as hsp 73. In response to heat shock or other metabolic insults, increased expression of another cytosolic and nuclear form of hsp 70, hsp 72, is observed. The constitutively expressed hsp 73, and stress-inducible hsp 72, are highly related proteins. Still unclear, however, is exactly why most eukaryotic cells, in contrast to prokaryotic cells, express a novel form of hsp 70 (i.e., hsp 72) after experiencing stress. To address this question, we prepared antibodies specific to either hsp 72 or hsp 73 and have compared a number of biological properties of the two proteins, both in vivo and in vitro. Using metabolic pulse-chase labeling and immunoprecipitation analysis, both the hsp 72 and hsp 73 specific antibodies were found to coprecipitate a significant number of newly synthesized proteins. Such interactions appeared transient and sensitive to ATP. Consequently, we suspect that both hsp 72 and hsp 73 function as molecular chaperones, interacting transiently with nascent polypeptides. During the course of these studies, we routinely observed that antibodies specific to hsp 73 resulted in the coprecipitation of hsp 72. Similarly, antibodies specific to hsp 72 were capable of coprecipitating hsp 73. Using a number of different approaches, we show that the constitutively expressed, pre-existing hsp 73 rapidly forms a stable complex with the newly synthesized stress inducible hsp 72. As is demonstrated by double-label indirect immunofluorescence, both proteins exhibit a coincident locale within the cell. Moreover, injection of antibodies specific to hsp 73 into living cells effectively blocks the ability of both hsp 73 and hsp 72 to redistribute from the cytoplasm into the nucleus and nucleolus after heat shock. These results are discussed as they relate to the possible structure and function of the constitutive (hsp 73) and highly stress inducible (hsp 72) forms of hsp 70, both within the normal cell as well as in the cell experiencing stress.     

Hsp70 accelerates the recovery of nucleolar morphology after heat shock.

The major heat-shock protein, hsp70, is synthesized by cells of many organisms in response to stress. In the present study, Drosophila hsp70 was expressed from cloned genes in mouse L cells and monkey COS cells and detected by immunofluorescence using monoclonal antibodies. Hsp70 is found mostly but not exclusively in the nucleus of unstressed cells. For several hours after a short heat shock, however, it is strongly concentrated in nucleoli. Nucleoli are transiently damaged by such a heat shock: their morphology changes and assembly and export of ribosomes is blocked for several hours. This block can be visualized by addition of actinomycin D: under normal conditions pre-ribosomes are chased out of nucleoli, and the latter shrink dramatically, but no such shrinking is seen in heat-shocked cells. High levels of hsp70 can be produced in unstressed COS cells by transfecting them with an appropriate expression plasmid. Such cells show a more rapid recovery of nucleolar morphology following a heat shock than do untransfected cells. Furthermore, heat shock does not prevent shrinkage of their nucleoli in the presence of actinomycin, which indicates that ribosome export also recovers rapidly when pre-synthesized hsp70 is present. I suggest that an important function of hsp70 is to catalyze reassembly of damaged pre-ribosomes and other RNPs after heat shock.     

Stress inhibits nucleocytoplasmic shuttling of heat shock protein hsc70

Heat shock proteins of the hsp/hsc70 family are essential chaperones, implicated in the stress response, aging, and a growing number of human diseases. At the molecular level, hsc70s are required for the proper folding and intracellular targeting of polypeptides as well as the regulation of apoptosis. Cytoplasmic members of the hsp/hsc70 family are believed to shuttle between nuclei and cytoplasm; they are found in both compartments of unstressed cells. Our experiments demonstrate that actin filament-destabilizing drugs trigger the nuclear accumulation of hsc70s in unstressed and heat-shocked cells recovering from stress. Using human-mouse heterokaryons, we show that stress inhibits shuttling and sequesters the chaperone in nuclei. The inhibition of hsc70 shuttling upon heat shock is only transient, and transport is reestablished when cells recover from stress. Hsc70 shuttling is controlled by hsc70 retention in the nucleus, a process that is mediated by two distinct mechanisms, ATP-sensitive binding of hsc70s to chaperone substrates and, furthermore, the association with nucleoli. The nucleolar protein fibrillarin and ribosomal protein rpS6 were identified as components that show an increased association with hsc70s in the nucleus upon stress exposure. Together, our data suggest that stress abolishes the exit of hsc70s from the nucleus to the cytoplasm, thereby limiting their function to the nuclear compartment. We propose that during recovery from stress hsc70s are released from nuclear and nucleolar anchors, which is a prerequisite to restore shuttling. nuclear transport; chaperone; nuclear retention; nucleoli     

Effect of Sindbis virus infection on induction of heat shock proteins in Aedes albopictus cells.

When Aedes albopictus cells (clone C7) were infected with Sindbis virus, the production of cytopathic effect CPE depended largely on the conditions under which the cells were cultured. We observed marked inhibition of cellular RNA and protein synthesis, as well as a loss of the ability to induce heat shock proteins, e.g., hsp70, under conditions which led to cytopathic effect. Infected cells in which heat shock proteins could no longer be induced contained much lower amounts of hsp70 mRNA after heat shock than did mock-infected cells which were similarly treated. It is suggested that this decreased level of hsp70 mRNA is due to a failure of these cells to synthesize hsp70 mRNA after heat shock.     

Analysis of the expression of the two major proteins of the 70 kilodalton mammalian heat shock family

This study compares the expression after heat shock of the two major variants of the mammalian 70 kilodalton heat shock family in three separate systems. The ability of wild type and temperature sensitive mutant (ts85) FM3A cells to elicit a heat shock response following a 45 degrees C, 12 min exposure was examined. The ts85 cells were found to be both significantly more thermosensitive than parent FM3A cells and to induce a 66kDa heat shock protein (hsp66) not visibly synthesized in the parent line by this exposure. However, a constitutive (synthesized at 37 degrees C) 68kDa heat shock protein (hsp68) is comparably induced in both cell lines after heat. A relationship between the severity of the heat exposure as seen by the cell and hsp66 expression is suggested and tested in Chinese hamster ovary cells. In CHO cells a brief 45 degrees C heat shock induces the constitutive hsp68 (but not hsp66), while longer and more severe exposures are required for the expression of hsp66. The induction of these two proteins is also examined in situ in mouse skeletal muscle. In this case both hsp66 and hsp68 are induced following comparatively mild heat treatments, and the 'threshold' for hsp66 induction observed in cultured cells either does not occur or is greatly reduced. However, once again, hsp68 is naturally synthesized at 37 degrees C while hsp66 appears to be de novo synthesized after heat shock.     

The heat shock response in hydra: immunological relationship of hsp60, the major heat shock protein of Hydra vulgaris,to the ubiquitous hsp70 family

The major heat shock protein (hsp) of Hydra vulgaris has recently been found to be a 60 kDa protein. Since in all organisms studied so far, the major heat shock protein is a 70 kDa protein, we have analyzed the relationship of hydra hsp60 to the highly conserved 70 kDa heat shock protein family. Genes and proteins related to the 70 kDa class of stress proteins are present in hydra. However, antibodies known to cross-react with hsp70 proteins in several different organisms do not cross-react with hydra hsp60 suggesting that hsp60 is not related to the conserved hsp70 proteins.     

A novel hsp70-like protein (P70) is present in mouse spermatogenic cells.

Mouse spermatogenic cells contain relatively large amounts of a 70-kilodalton protein (P70) that is closely related to hsp70, the major inducible heat shock protein. When hsp70 from spermatogenic cells is heat induced, it migrates to the same location as does P70 on two-dimensional polyacrylamide gels, indicating that it has an apparently identical mass and isoelectric point. P70 reacts strongly and specifically with an anti-Drosophila hsp70 monoclonal antibody that is specific for products of the hsp70 gene family. Both P70 and hsp70 are also ATP-binding proteins and are purified by using ATP-affinity chromatography. However, P70 and hsp70 are unique proteins on the basis of peptide map analysis and are regulated differently in germ cells. P70 appears to be a novel heat shock protein of spermatogenic cells which is synthesized in association with germ cell differentiation.     

Binding of heat shock proteins to the avian progesterone receptor.

The protein composition of the avian progesterone receptor was analyzed by immune isolation of receptor complexes and gel electrophoresis of the isolated proteins. Nonactivated cytosol receptor was isolated in association with the 90-kilodalton (kDa) heat shock protein, hsp90, as has been described previously. A 70-kDa protein was also observed and was shown by Western immunoblotting to react with an antibody specific to the 70-kDa heat shock protein. Thus, two progesterone receptor-associated proteins are identical, or closely related, to heat shock proteins. When the two progesterone receptor species, A and B, were isolated separately in the absence of hormone, both were obtained in association with hsp90 and the 70-kDa protein. However, activated receptor isolated from oviduct nuclear extracts was associated with the 70-kDa protein, but not with hsp90. A hormone-dependent dissociation of hsp90 from the cytosolic form of the receptor complex was observed within the first hour of in vivo progesterone treatment, which could explain the lack of hsp90 in nuclear receptor complexes. In a cell-free system, hsp90 binding to receptor was stabilized by molybdate but disrupted by high salt. These treatments, however, did not alter the binding of the 70-kDa protein to receptor. Association of the 70-kDa protein with the receptor could be disrupted by the addition of ATP at elevated temperatures (23 degrees C). The receptor-associated 70-kDa protein is an ATP-binding protein, as demonstrated by its affinity labeling with azido[32P]ATP. These results indicate that the two receptor-associated proteins interact with the progesterone receptor by different mechanisms and that they are likely to affect the structure or function of the receptor in different ways.     

An Hsp70-like protein in the ER: identity with the 78 kd glucose-regulated protein and immunoglobulin heavy chain binding protein

We have characterized a cDNA clone that encodes a protein related to the 70 kd heat shock protein, but is expressed in normal rat liver. This protein has a hydrophobic leader and is secreted into the endoplasmic reticulum. We show that it is identical with two previously described proteins: GRP78, whose synthesis is induced by glucose starvation, and BiP, which is found bound to immunoglobulin heavy chains in pre-B cells. This protein, which is abundant in antibody-secreting cells, can be released from heavy chains by ATP, a reaction analogous to the release of hsp70 from heat shocked nuclear structures. We propose a specific role for this protein in the assembly of secreted and membrane-bound proteins.     

Synthesis of heat shock proteins in Cf124 cells: Effect of virus infection

The transient synthesis of a class of proteins known as heat shock or stress response proteins was induced when Cf124 cells were incubated at high temperature. When cells were infected with Chilo iridescent virus and simultaneously heat shocked, heat shock protein (hsp) synthesis was delayed, and the shut-off of hsp synthesis was suppressed. In previously heat shocked cells, inhibition of hsp synthesis was dependent upon the multiplicity of infection, however, when infection preceded heat shock, the synthesis of hsp started immediately after heat shock. In all cases, hsp synthesis was dependent upon newly synthesized messenger RNA.     

Interference between Proteins Hap46 and Hop/p60, Which Bind to Different Domains of the Molecular Chaperone hsp70/hsc70

Several structurally divergent proteins associate with molecular chaperones of the 70-kDa heat shock protein (hsp70) family and modulate their activities. We investigated the cofactors Hap46 and Hop/p60 and the effects of their binding to mammalian hsp70 and the cognate form hsc70. Hap46 associates with the amino-terminal ATP binding domain and stimulates ATP binding two- to threefold but inhibits binding of misfolded protein substrate to hsc70 and reactivation of thermally denatured luciferase in an hsc70-dependent refolding system. By contrast, Hop/p60 interacts with a portion of the carboxy-terminal domain of hsp70s, which is distinct from that involved in the binding of misfolded proteins. Thus, Hop/p60 and substrate proteins can form ternary complexes with hsc70. Hop/p60 exerts no effect on ATP and substrate binding but nevertheless interferes with protein refolding. Even though there is no direct interaction between these accessory proteins, Hap46 inhibits the binding of Hop/p60 to hsc70 but Hop/p60 does not inhibit the binding of Hap46 to hsc70. As judged from respective deletions, the amino-terminal portions of Hap46 and Hop/p60 are involved in this interference. These data suggest steric hindrance between Hap46 and Hop/p60 during interaction with distantly located binding sites on hsp70s. Thus, not only do the major domains of hsp70 chaperones communicate with each other, but cofactors interacting with these domains affect each other as well.