Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase expression during apoptosis and proliferation of rat ventral prostate.

Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) is a multifunctional enzyme known to play a critical role in neuronal apoptosis. We undertook the current studies to determine whether GAPDH also plays a role in prostate epithelial cell apoptosis in response to androgen deprivation. To do so, we analyzed GAPDH staining by immunohistochemistry during castration-induced involution and androgen-induced regeneration of rat ventral prostate. We found that GAPDH was undetectable in secretory epithelial cells at baseline and that staining did not increase in the epithelium during the period of peak apoptosis from 1 to 3 days after castration. However, GAPDH levels did increase within nuclei of some basal epithelial cells 5 days after castration and within the cytoplasm of all secretory epithelial cells 7 days after castration. GAPDH was also abundant within the cytoplasm of secretory epithelial cells during the period of maximal cell proliferation from 2 to 3 days after androgen replacement and was clearly apparent within nuclei of some epithelial cells 4 days after androgen replacement. Our studies suggest that GAPDH plays multiple roles during prostate epithelial cell apoptosis and proliferation.     

Mitochondrial and cytosolic NADPH systems and isocitrate dehydrogenase indicator metabolites during ureogensis from ammonia in isolated rat hepatocytes.

1. Citrate isocitrate and 2-oxoglutarate levels were determined in isolated rat hepatocytes and in particulate and soluble fractions, thereof, obtained by the digitonin and silicone oil fractionation technique. 2. Caculated from isocitrate/2-oxoglutarate ratios ("indicator metabolite method"), the redox potential of mitochondrial free NADPH is -402 mV, whereas that of the extramitochondrial (cytosolic) space is about 10 mV more positive, -392 mV. 3; Addition of ammonia (either as ammonium chloride or from urea plus urease) to isolated hepatocytes causes preferential oxidation of mitochondrial NADPH, is demonstrated by spectrophotometry of the dihydro band and by the changes in the isocitrate/2-oxoglutarate ratios. The redox potential difference of free NADPH between mitochondria and cytosol is abolished or even reserved. 4. It is concluded that during urogenesis from ammonia mitochondrial isocitrate oxidation is shifted largely in favor of the NADP-linked as opposed to the NAD-linked enzyme; isocitrate concentration under these conditions is less than 10 muM, below the Km (isocitrate) of the NAD-linked enzyme but in the range of that for the NADP-linked enzyme. 5. Both in the absence and in the presence of ammonia there is a concentration gradient across the mitochondrial inner membrane (from mitochondria to cytosol) for citrate, isocitrate, and also, to a smaller extent, for 2-oxoglutarate. 6. These results and data in the literature on enzyme activity are in agreement with the assumption of near-equilibrium of NADP-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenases in the mitochondrial matrix and cytosolic spaces in the absence of ammonia; accordingly, during urea formation from added ammonia the redox potential of mitochondrial free NADPH is increased to -391 mV or possibly even higher if there exists an indicator error under this condition.     

Mitochondrial NADP-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase knockdown inhibits tumorigenicity of melanoma cells

The potent cytotoxicity of reactive oxygen species (ROS) can cause various diseases but may also serve as a powerful weapon capable of destroying cancer cells. Although the balance between generation and elimination of ROS is maintained by the proper function of antioxidative systems, the severe disturbance of cellular redox status may cause various damages, leading to cell death. Mitochondrial NADP⁺-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH2), an NADPH-generating enzyme, is one of the major antioxidant and redox regulators in mitochondria. To assess the effect of IDH2 knockdown in the malignancy process, we generated B16F10 melanoma cells stably transfected either with the cDNA for mouse IDH2 cloned in antisense orientation or with a control vector. Mice injected with B16F10 cells harboring IDH2 downregulation showed a dramatic reduction in tumor progression in comparison to mice administered control cells. This effect might be secondary to a shift from a reducing to an oxidative state in tumor cells. The tumor tissue of mice administered B16F10 cells transfected with the IDH2 cDNA exhibited induction of apoptosis and downregulation of angiogenesis markers. These observations demonstrate that reduction of IDH2 levels in malignant cells has anti-tumorigenic effects and suggest that IDH2 is a potential target for cancer therapy.     

NADP-specific isocitrate dehydrogenase in regulation of urea synthesis in rat hepatocytes.

The effect of inhibition of NADP-specific isocitrate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.42) by DL-threo-alpha-methylisocitrate (3-hydroxy-1,2,3-butanetricarboxylase) on urea synthesis was studied in isolated rat hepatocytes. alpha-Methylisocitrate substantially inhibited the rate of urea synthesis (35--84%) with substrates requiring net reductive amination of 2-oxoglutarate to glutamate for aspartate synthesis (i.e., L-serine, D-alanine, or NH4Cl + L-lactate). alpha-Methylisocitrate did not inhibit synthesis of urea from substrates not requiring reductive formation of glutamate (i.e. L-alanine, L-glutamine, L-asparagine, or NH4Cl + L-ornithine). The rate-limiting role of NADPH in urea synthesis was correlated with the decrease in NADPH content that occurred upon addition of NH4Cl or of alpha-methylisocitrate to hepatocytes incubated with lactate and pyruvate, indicating utilization of NADPH for reductive amination of 2-oxoglutarate and inhibition of NADPH generation via NADP-isocitrate dehydrogenase, respectively. Similar results were obtained with D-alanine and L-serine; however, alpha-methylisocitrate or NH4Cl did not substantially decrease NADPH content when L-alanine was the substrate. Inhibitors or ornithine--2-oxo acid transaminase (L-canaline or gabaculine) decreased the uptake of ornithine by hepatocytes and inhibited the alpha-methylisocitrate insensitive urea synthesis from ornithine and NH4Cl. Canaline did not inhibit urea synthesis from lactate, ornithine, and NH4Cl but the inhibition by alpha-methylisocitrate of urea formation from this combination was appreciably larger with canaline (approx. 82%) than without canaline (approx. 48%). Inhibition of urea synthesis from NH4Cl + lactate by alpha-methylisocitrate was partially prevented by oleate, octanoate, or 3-hydroxybutyrate. When the NADH content of hepatocytes was increased by 3-hydroxybutyrate, the addition of NH4Cl and/or alpha-methylisocitrate caused a decline in NADH (and NADPH) content, suggesting that reducing equivalents from NADH as well as from NADPH can support net reductive amination of 2-oxoglutarate when required for urea synthesis.     

Bacillus subtilis isocitrate dehydrogenase. A substrate analogue for Escherichia coli isocitrate dehydrogenase kinase/phosphatase.

In Escherichia coli, the homodimeric Krebs cycle enzyme isocitrate dehydrogenase (EcIDH) is regulated by reversible phosphorylation of a sequestered active site serine. The phosphorylation cycle is catalyzed by a bifunctional protein, IDH kinase/phosphatase (IDH-K/P). To better understand the nature of the interaction between EcIDH and IDH-K/P, we have examined the ability of an IDH homologue from Bacillus subtilis (BsIDH) to serve as a substrate for the kinase and phosphatase activities. BsIDH exhibits extensive sequence and structural similarities with EcIDH, particularly around the phosphorylated serine. Our previous crystallographic analysis revealed that the active site architecture of these two proteins is almost completely conserved. We now expand the comparison to include a number of biochemical properties. Both IDHs display nearly equivalent steady-state kinetic parameters for the dehydrogenase reaction. Both proteins are also phosphorylated by IDH-K/P in the same ratio (1 mole of phosphate per mole of monomer), and this stoichiometric phosphorylation correlates with an equivalent inhibition of IDH activity. Furthermore, tandem electrospray mass spectrometry demonstrates that BsIDH, like EcIDH, is phosphorylated on the corresponding active site serine residue (Ser-104). Despite the high degree of sequence, functional, and structural congruence between these two proteins, BsIDH is surprisingly a much poorer substrate of IDH-K/P than is EcIDH, with Michaelis constants for the kinase and phosphatase activities elevated by 60- and 3,450-fold, respectively. These drastically disparate values might result from restricted access to the active site cavity and/or from the lack of a potential docking site for IDH-K/P.     

The control of isocitrate oxidation by rat liver mitochondria

1. The factors capable of affecting the rate of isocitrate oxidation in intact mitochondria include the rate of isocitrate penetration, the activity of the NAD-specific and NADP-specific isocitrate dehydrogenases, the activity of the transhydrogenase acting from NADPH to NAD(+), the rate of NADPH oxidation by the reductive synthesis of glutamate and the activity of the respiratory chain. A quantitative assessment of these factors was made in intact mitochondria. 2. The kinetic properties of the NAD-specific and NADP-specific isocitrate dehydrogenases extracted from rat liver mitochondria were examined. 3. The rate of isocitrate oxidation through the respiratory chain in mitochondria with coupled phosphorylation is approximately equal to the maximal of the NAD-specific isocitrate dehydrogenase but at least ten times as great as the transhydrogenase activity from NADPH to NAD(+). 4. It is concluded that the energy-dependent inhibition of isocitrate oxidation by palmitoylcarnitine oxidation is due to an inhibition of the NAD-specific isocitrate dehydrogenase. 5. Kinetic studies of NAD-specific isocitrate dehydrogenase demonstrated that its activity could be inhibited by one or more of the following: an increased reduction of mitochondrial NAD, an increased phosphorylation of mitochondrial adenine nucleotides or a fall in the mitochondrial isocitrate concentration. 6. Uncoupling agents stimulate isocitrate oxidation by an extent equal to the associated stimulation of transhydrogenation from NADPH to NAD(+). 7. A technique is described for continuously measuring with a carbon dioxide electrode the synthesis of glutamate from isocitrate and ammonia.     

Alpha-methylisocitrate. A selective inhibitor of TPN-linked isocitrate dehydrogenase from bovine heart and rat liver.

Alpha-Methylisocitrate (3-hydroxy-1,2,3-butanetricarboxylate) is a potent inhibitor, competitive with isocitrate (1-hydroxy-1,2,3-propanetricarboxylate), of the TPN-linked isocitrate dehydrogenase from bovine heart and rat liver; it does not inhibit the DPN-specific enzyme from these tissues. In the presence of magnesium ion, values of Kis for DL-alpha-methylisocitrate for purified bovine heart enzyme, rat liver cytosol, and rat liver mitochondrial extract were in the range of 0.1 muM to 0.3 muM. This compared to values of apparent Km for DL-isocitrate for the same tissue preparations of 14 muM to 20 muM. One of the DL isomer pairs of alpha-methylisocitrate was inactive; the observations suggest that it is threo-alpha-methylisocitrate which inhibits TPN-linked isocitrate dehydrogenase. A method of synthesis of DL-threo-alpha-methylisocitric lactone (2-methyl-5-oxo-2,3-furandicarboxylic acid) from dimethyl trans-epoxymethylsuccinate and dimethylmalonate is described.     

Pneumadin in the rat ventral prostate and its hormonal regulation.

Pneumadin (PNM) is a decapeptide originally isolated from mammalian lungs, and exerts a potent antidiuretic action by stimulating arginine-vasopressin release. We have recently developed a sensitive and specific radioimmunoassay (RIA) for rat PNM and detected high concentrations of PNM--not only in the rat lungs, but also in the prostate. Hence, we investigated whether prostate PNM content is regulated by sex hormones. Male adult rats were orchidectomized or sham-operated and given a subcutaneous injection of testosterone or estradiol (40 and 5 mg/kg), respectively. The animals were decapitated one week after surgery, and their ventral prostates were promptly removed and weighed. PNM concentration and localization in the prostate were investigated by RIA and immunocytochemistry (ICC). Orchidectomy resulted in significant decreases in the prostate weight and PNM concentration, and testosterone administration prevented these effects. Estradiol administration to sham-operated rats caused prostate atrophy without changing PNM concentration. ICC localized PNM immunoreactivity (IR) exclusively in the epithelial cells of the ventral prostate. Orchidectomy markedly reduced PNM-IR concentration, while testosterone abolished this effect. Estradiol did not modify PNM-IR concentration in the atrophic prostate of sham-operated rats. We conclude that PNM content of rat prostate is dependent on the presence of adequate levels of circulating testosterone. The possibility that PNM plays a key role in the maintenance of the prostate growth is unlikely since estradiol-induced gland atrophy is not associated with any decrease in PNM concentration. The localization of PNM in the epithelial cells could suggest that this peptide may be involved in the regulation of some testosterone-dependent secretory functions of the rat prostate.     

Space-time changes in isocitrate dehydrogenase activity in the rat liver

The author describes a quantitative histochemical test of NAD- and NADP-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase (ic-NAD and ic-NADP) activity changes in relation to the time of day and topographic locality in the hepatic lobule. It was established that activity of the enzymes was characterized by monophase circadian rhythms, with the phase of ic-NAD activity observed in the dark period and ic-NADP activity in the light period of day. Rhythmic fluctuations in ic-NAD activity in different regions of the lobule were more synchronized than those in ic-NADP activity. Spatial changes in the activity of both the enzymes were fairly similar, decreasing from the center to the periphery of the lobule up to the end of the median and peripheral area. The changes in ic-NADP activity were more uniform in nature as compared to those seen in ic-NAD. The most demonstrable differences in the activity of both enzymes among adjacent hepatocytes could not be localized to any particular area in the lobule, moving regularly through its areas during the day. Thus, the functional heterogeneity of hepatocytes should be studied, from the standpoint of the activity of the enzymes, in close relation with time and space changes in their metabolism.     

Effects of isoproterenol on cyclic-AMP metabolism in rat ventral prostate.

Beta-Adrenergic stimulation of the ventral prostate cyclic-AMP system was investigated by examining the influence of isoproterenol on endogenous cyclic-AMP levels as well as on the activities of adenylate cyclase CEC 4.6.1.1) and cyclic-AMP-dependent and independent protein kinases (EC 2.7.1.37). Administration of isoproterenol (1 mg/kg, ip) resulted in rapid elevation of adenylate cyclase activity (119%) and cyclic-AMP levels (593%). The observed isoproterenol-stimulated changes in cyclic-AMP metabolism of the ventral prostate were time-dependent and maximal stimulation was seen 5 min after treatment with this beta-adrenergic agonist. The increases in prostatic adenylate cyclase and cyclic-AMP also were related to the dose of isoproterenol administered and maximal enhancement of these parameters was seen with 1 mg/kg dose of the agonist. Whereas pretreatment of rats with propranolol (3mg/kg, ip) partially reversed these alterations, administration of an alpha-adrenergic antagonist, phentolamine, even at a dose of 5 mg/kg, failed to elicit any appreciable effect. Stimulation of prostatic soluble protein kinase by isoproterenol was associated with a decrease (33%) in the activity of the cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase with a concomitant increase (25%) in that of the independent enzyme. Whereas the ability of the enzyme to bind cyclic-(3H) AMP in vitro was decreased (54%) following isoproterenol treatment, the protein kinase activity ratio (-cyclic-AMP/+cyclic AMP) was significantly elevated from 0.51+/0.05 to 0.95+/0.08. Although propranolol alone had little or no effect on these parameters, it inhibited partially the isoproterenol-induced alterations in cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase and the cyclic-AMP binding capacity. Treatment with propranolol also blocked the increases in the kinase activity ratio and in the activity of cyclic-AMP-independent enzyme seen with isoproterenol. Data suggest that the concentration of ventral prostate cyclic-AMP as well as the activities of adenylate cyclase and cyclic-AMP-dependent and independent form of protein kinases are subject to modulation by beta-adrenergic stimulation.     

Aging in the rat prostate. Reduction in detectable ventral prostate androgen receptor content.

Aging in the rat is associated with a reduction in the detectable androgen receptor content of the ventral prostate. The reduction in cytoplasmic receptor content did not appear to be attributable to an aging-associated production of a receptor-inactivating factor or to an aging-associated change in the sedimentation properties of the androgen receptor of young and aged animals.Saturation analysis of cytoplasmic extracts prepared from two different breeds of similar albino rats and a genetically distinct strain of inbred brown rats demonstrated quantitative aging-associated reductions in the androgen-receptor content per cell of the ventral prostate. The reduction in receptor content per cell appeared to increase progressively in magnitude with increasing age. The mean value for the cytoplasmic androgen receptor sites per cell for the oldest animals (mean age 884 days) was only 14% of the mean value for the young mature animals (mean age 185 days) of the same breed. The binding affinities of the detectable androgen receptor of the young mature and aged animals were essentially identical. This observation does not eliminate the possibility that the observed reduction results from an aging-associated production of defective receptor. Evaluation of the total DNA content of the ventral prostate did not provide evidence for an aging-associated selective loss of receptor-containing cells. These data in toto were consistent with the interpretation that aging is associated with a mean reduction in the androgen-receptor content per receptor-containing cell.Both cytoplasmic and nuclear androgen retention were evaluated in vivo. These experiments provided qualitative confirmation of the in vitro saturation analyses as there was a highly significant aging-associated reduction in the amount of androgen specifically bound by these prostatic compartments. Total specific androgen retention by the ventral prostate of aging adults was reduced by 55% relative to young mature animals. This result was nearly identical to that obtained for the same breed and age category of animals when evaluated by in vitro saturation analysis.Preliminary in vitro experiments revealed a diminution in the uptake of androgen receptor by purified nuclei from aged animals relative to purified nuclei from young mature animals. The magnitude of the diminution in nuclear acceptor capacity was insufficient to account for the reduction in nuclear retention of androgen determined in vivo. The data were consistent with the interpretation that the cytoplasmic receptor is the major determinant of nuclear androgen retention in the ventral prostate.