Differential effects of cholera toxin on guanine nucleotide regulation of beta-adrenergic agonist high affinity binding and adenylate cyclase activation in frog erythrocyte membranes

The guanine nucleotide regulatory protein(s) regulates both adenylate cyclase activity and the affinity of adenylate cyclase-coupled receptors for hormones or agonist drugs. Cholera toxin catalyzes the covalent modification of the nucleotide regulatory protein of adenylate cyclase systems. Incubation of frog erythrocyte membranes with cholera toxin and NAD+ did not substantially alter the dose dependency for guanine nucleotide activation of adenylate cyclase activity. In contrast, toxin treated membranes demonstrated a 10 fold increase in the concentrations of guanine nucleotide required for a half maximal effect in regulating beta-adrenergic receptor affinity for the agonist (+/-) [3H]hydroxybenzylisoproterenol. The data emphasize the bifunctional nature of the guanine nucleotide regulatory protein and suggest that distinct structural domains of the guanine nucleotide regulatory protein may mediate the distinct regulatory effects on adenylate cyclase and receptor affinity for agonists.     

Characteristics of the guanine nucleotide regulatory component of adenylate cyclase in human erythrocyte membranes

This study probes the structure and mutual interactions of the components of adenylate cyclase. We use a complementation assay which involves the addition of an adenylate cyclase-related guanine nucleotide-binding protein component to a membrane lacking this component to measure guanine nucleotide-stimulated-adenylate cyclase. Instead of using detergent extracts we were able to achieve full complementation by mixing intact membrane preparations in the presence of the nucleotide component. Of particular interest was the human erythrocyte membrane which contains very low amounts of catalytic activity and no measurable beta-adrenergic receptor but has normal amounts of the nucleotide component. This component appears to be the same, by several criteria, as components found in pigeon and turkey erythrocytes and in rat liver plasma membrane. The component confers Gpp(NH)p, fluoride, and GTP stimulation of adenylate cyclase along a single reconstitution curve. It is labeled with NAD by cholera toxin, and has an apparent molecular weight of 39 000 upon sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis. The presence of the nucleotide unit in the virtual absence of the active catalytic unit allowed us to determine those properties intrinsic to each unit and those conferred by the association of the units. The nucleotide component binds guanine nucleotides weakly in the human erythrocyte membrane, yet produces persistent activation of adenylate cyclase and tight binding (of Gpp(NH)p) upon combination with the catalytic unit. Treatment of the human erythrocyte membrane with N-ethylmaleimide causes a simultaneous diminution in both Gpp(NH)p and fluoride stimulation in reconstituted activities, suggesting that both activities are conferred by the same component.     

Invasive adenylate cyclase toxin of Bordetella pertussis

Bordetella pertussis produces an adenylate cyclase which is a toxin. The enzyme penetrates eukaryotic cells and, upon activation by host calmodulin, generates high levels of intracellular cAMP; as a result bactericidal functions of immune effector cells are considerably impaired. The toxin is composed of a single polypeptide that possesses both the catalytic and the toxic functions. It penetrates the host cell directly from the plasma membrane and is concomitantly inactivated by a proteolytic degradation.     

Studies on the mechanism of the decreased guanine nucleotide stimulatory effects on adenylate cyclase after adrenalectomy in rat adipocytes

In adipocyte membranes from adrenalectomized rats: (i) the defect in the stimulatory effects of guanine nucleotides on adenylate cyclase is greater with GTP than with GppNHp and appears to concern the GS-C complex and not the HR-GS-C ternary complex; (ii) the GTP-ase activity is enhanced; (iii) maximal alpha S-C interaction (tested by the responses to forskolin, cholera toxin or NaF) is unaltered and (iv) the alpha S affinity for guanine nucleotides and the GDP/GppNHp exchange reaction are both unimpaired. These data suggest that the enhanced GTP-ase activity together with a decrease in the catalytic activity of the alpha S-GTP-C complex are the likely mechanisms whereby adrenalectomy causes a defect in the fat cell adenylate cyclase response to guanine nucleotides.     

Loss of the inhibitory function of the guanine nucleotide regulatory component of adenylate cyclase due to its ADP ribosylation by islet-activating protein, pertussis toxin, in adipocyte membranes

Adenylate cyclase of rat adipocyte membranes exhibited dual responses in a strictly GTP-dependent manner; an activation took place in the presence of certain receptor agonists such as isoproterenol or secretin, whereas an inhibitory phase was observed with other agonists such as prostaglandin E1 or purine-modified adenosine as well as with the stimulatory agonists at higher GTP concentrations. Treatment of membrane donor cells with islet-activating protein (IAP), pertussis toxin, abolished the inhibitory phase while preserving the activatory phase. This unique action of IAP was associated with ADP-ribosylation of a membrane Mr = 41,000 protein. In contrast, the inhibitory phase was preserved in membranes from cholera toxin-treated cells. Monophasic and persistent activation of the cyclase was provoked by guanyl-5'-yl beta,gamma-imidodiphosphate. The time lag normally observed for the guanyl-5'-yl beta,gamma-imidodiphosphate activation was decreased by isoproterenol or cholera toxin but was not altered by IAP treatment. Our conclusion is that the sole site of IAP action is the guanine nucleotide regulatory protein (Ni) that is required for transmission of inhibitory signals from receptors to the catalytic unit of adenylate cyclase; the function of Ni is lost upon IAP-catalyzed ADP ribosylation of the Mr = 41,000 protein which appears to be an active subunit of Ni. A possibility is discussed that rather diverse effects of IAP so far reported with various cell types are accounted for in terms of such interference with the function of Ni.     

Human fat cell adenylate cyclase. Enzyme characterization and guanine nucleotide effects on epinephrine responsiveness in cell membranes.

Human adenylate cyclase (ATP pyrophosphate-lyase (cyclizing), EC 4.6.1.1) has been studied in preparations of fat cell membranes ("ghosts"). As reported earlier, under ordinary assay conditions (1.0 mM ATP, 5 mM Mg2+, 30 degrees C, 10 min incubation) the enzyme was activated 6-fold by epinephrine in the presence of the GTP analog, 5'-guanylyl-imidodiphosphate [GMP-P(NH)P] (Cooper, B. et al. (1975) J. Clin. Invest. 56, 1350-1353). Basal activity was highest during the first 2 min of incubation then slowed and was linear for at least the next 18 min. Epinephrine, added alone, was often without effect. but sometimes maintained the initial high rate of basal activity. GMP-P(NH)P alone produced inhibition ("lag") of basal enzyme early in the incubation periods. Augmentation of epinephrine effect by GMP-P(NH)P, which also proceeded after a brief (2 min) lag period, was noted over a wide range of substrate (ATP) concentrations. GTP inhibited basal levels of the enzyme by about 50%. GTP also allowed expression of an epinephrine effect, but only in the sense that the hormone abolished the inhibition by GTP. Occasionally a slight stimulatory effect on epinephrine action was seen with GTP. At high Mg2+ concentration (greater than 10 mM) or elevated temperatures (greater than 30 degrees C) GMP-P(NH)P alone activated the enzyme. Maximal activity of human fat cell adenylate cyclase was seen at 50 mM Mg2+, 1.0 mM ATP, pH 8.2, and 37 degrees C in the presence of 10(-4) M GMP-P(NH)P; under these conditions addition of epinephrine did not further enhance activity. Human fat cell adenylate cyclase of adults was insensitive to ACTH and glucagon even in the presence of GMP-P(NH)P.     

Oligomeric behavior of Bordetella pertussis adenylate cyclase toxin in solution

Adenylate cyclase (AC) toxin from Bordetella pertussis inserts into eukaryotic cells, producing intracellular cAMP, as well as hemolysis and cytotoxicity. Concentration dependence of hemolysis suggests oligomers as the functional unit and inactive deletion mutants permit partial restoration of intoxication and/or hemolysis, when added in pairs [M. Iwaki, A. Ullmann, P. Sebo, Mol. Microbiol. 17 (1995) 1015-1024], suggesting dimerization/oligomerization. Using affinity co-precipitation and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), we demonstrate specific self-association of AC toxin molecules in solution. Flag-tagged AC toxin mixed with biotinylated-AC toxin, followed by streptavidin beads, yields both forms of the toxin. FRET measurements of toxin, labeled with different fluorophores, demonstrate association in solution, requiring post-translational acylation, but not calcium. AC toxin mixed with DeltaR, an inactive mutant, results in enhancement of hemolysis over that with wild type alone, suggesting that oligomers are functional. Dimers and perhaps higher molecular mass forms of AC toxin occur in solution in a manner that is relevant to toxin action.     

Channel formation in model membranes by the adenylate cyclase toxin of Bordetella pertussis: effect of calcium

Calmodulin-dependent adenylate cyclase toxin (ACT or CyaA) of Bordetella pertussis requires calcium ions for target cell binding, formation of hemolytic channels, and delivery of its enzyme component into cells. We examined the effect of calcium and calmodulin on toxin interaction with planar lipid bilayers. While calmodulin binding did not affect the properties of CyaA channels, addition of calcium ions and toxin to the same side of the membrane caused a steep increase of the channel-forming capacity of CyaA. The calcium effect was highly specific, since among other divalent cations only strontium caused some CyaA activity enhancement. The minimal stimulatory concentration of calcium ions ranged from 0.6 to 0.8 mM, depending on the ionic strength of the aqueous phase. Half-maximal channel activity of CyaA was observed at 2-4 mM, and saturation was reached at 10 mM calcium concentration, respectively. The unit size of single CyaA channels, assessed as single-channel conductance, was not affected by calcium ions, while the frequency of CyaA channel formation strongly depended on calcium concentration. The calcium effect was abrogated upon deletion of the RTX repeats of the toxin, suggesting that binding of calcium ions to the repeats modulates the propensity of CyaA to form membrane channels.     

Calcium regulation of guanine nucleotide activation of hepatic adenylate cyclase

Pretreatment of isolated rat liver plasma membranes by washing with NaHCO₃ buffer or by exposure to the chelator ethyleneglycol bis(β-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid (EGTA) with or without the ionophore A23187, produced a decrease in the sensitivity of adenylate cyclase (ATP pyrophosphate-lyase (cyclizing) EC 4.6.1.1) to subsequent stimulation by NaF or guanosine 5′-(β-γ-imino)triphosphate (GPP(NH)P). Sensitivity to activation by the nucleotide could be restored by addition of the lyophilized and ashed wash or by addition of Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺ or Mn²⁺. The factor extracted from the membranes by these various treatments which was responsible for loss of stimulation was identified as Ca²⁺. Determination of the metal ion content of isolated membranes by atomic absorption spectrometry indicated that Ca²⁺ was the only divalent cation present in sufficient concentration to support persistent activation by either NaF or GPP(NH)P.Pretreatment of liver plasma membranes with trifluoperazine, which inhibits the action of Ca²⁺-dependent regulator protein in other enzyme systems, reduced GPP(NH)P activation of adenylate cyclase and caused marked depletion of membrane Ca²⁺. The effects of low concentrations (less than 100 μM) of the phenothiazine could be reversed totally by Ca²⁺ and partly by regulator protein. At higher concentrations of trifluoperazine, slight restoration of enzyme activation was seen with either agent. The hypothesis is presented that Ca⁺ interacts with the nucleotide (GTP or GDP) regulatory site(s) of the adenylate cyclase. This interaction may be regulator-protein-dependent and may be important in determining the sensitivity of the enzyme to nucleotide activation in vivo.     

Catecholamine and guanine nucleotide activation of skeletal muscle adenylate cyclase

Activation of adenylate cyclase by guanine nucleotide and catecholamines was examined in plasma membranes prepared from rabbit skeletal muscle. The GTP analog, 5′-guanylyl imidodiphosphate caused a time and temperature-dependent activation of the enzyme which was persistent, the K_a was 0.05 μM. 5′-Guanylyl imidodiphosphate binding to the membranes was time and temperature dependent, K_D 0.07 μM. Beta adrenergic amines accelerated the rate of 5′-guanylyl imidodiphosphate activation of the enzyme with an order of potency isoproterenol ≈ soterenol ≈ salbutamol > epinephrine ? norepinephrine. Catecholamine activation was antagonized by propranolol and the β₂ antagonist butoxamine; the β₁ antagonist practolol was inactive. [³H]Dihydroalprenolol bound to the membranes and binding was antagonized by β adrenergic agonists with an order of potency similar to the activation of adenylate cyclase and was antagonized by butoxamine but not by practolol. The data are consistent with the idea that adenylate cyclase in skeletal muscle plasma membranes is coupled to adrenergic receptors of the β₂ type.     

The interactions between the activatory guanine nucleotide binding protein and the catalytic subunit of adenylate cyclase in rat liver plasma membranes.

Three GTP-binding proteins of 50 kDa, 45 kDa and 28 kDa were identified by photoaffinity labelling with [gamma-32P]GTP-gamma-azidoanilide (A-GTP) in the rat liver plasma membrane. Pertussis toxin catalysed ADP-ribosylation of a single protein of 40 kDa. A-GTP had no effect on the basal labeling by pertussis toxin. After u.v. irradiation of the membrane in the presence of A-GTP, the GTP-dependent ADP-ribosylation by cholera toxin was increased, while the basal labelling was not affected. These results suggest that A-GTP interacts specifically with the activatory GTP-binding protein (Gs) and does not interact with the inhibitory GTP-binding protein (Gi). The effects of partial photoinactivation of Gs of the rat liver plasma membrane adenylate cyclase system by A-GTP were studied. U.v. irradiation in the presence of increasing concentrations of the analogue caused progressive decrease in the maximal extent of activation by guanosine 5'-[gamma-thio]triphosphate, but the Ka was not affected. The rate of activation of liver adenylate cyclase by guanosine 5'-[gamma-thio]triphosphate is temperature-dependent. The lag time increased from 0.5 min at 30 degrees C to 2.0-2.5 min at 15 degrees C in the presence of 10 microM-guanosine 5'-[gamma-thio]triphosphate. However, Ka remains unaffected by lowering the temperature. Photoinactivation by A-GTP or competitive inhibition by guanosine 5'-[beta-thio]diphosphate decreases the maximal extent of activation by guanosine 5'-[gamma-thio] triphosphate, but the lag time remains unaffected. The present results support the idea that Gs is tightly associated with the catalytic subunit under basal conditions. The present results also indicate that the transition of an inactive Gs to its active form is the rate-limiting step of the activation of adenylate cyclase by guanosine 5'-[gamma-thio]triphosphate in the intact rat liver plasma membranes.     

Bordatella pertussis adenylate cyclase: a toxin with multiple talents

Bordetella pertussis secretes a calmodulin-activated adenylate cyclase toxin (CyaA) that is able to deliver its amino-terminal catalytic domain into the cytosol of eukaryotic cells. The novelty of the structural organization and conformational flexibility of the CyaA catalytic domain has opened up the way for exploiting this protein as a tool for several biological applications, including epitope delivery, protein targeting and characterization of protein-protein interactions.     

Catecholamine and guanine nucleotide activation of skeletal muscle adenylate cyclase.

Activation of adenylate cyclase by guanine nucleotide and catecholamines was examined in plasma membranes prepared from rabbit skeletal muscle. The GTP analog, 5'-guanylyl imidodiphosphate caused a time and temperature-dependent activation of the enzyme which was persistent, the Ka was 0.05 microM. 5'-Guanylyl imidodiphosphate binding to the membranes was time and temperature dependent, KD 0.07 microM. Beta adrenergic amines accelerated the rate of 5'-guanylyl imidodiphosphate activation of the enzyme with an order of potency isoproterenol approximately soterenol approximately salbutamol greater than epinephrine greater than norephrine. Catecholamine activation was antagonized by propranolol and the beta2 antagonist butoxamine; the beta1 antagonist practolol was inactive. [3H]Dihydroalprenolol bound to the membranes and binding was antagonized by beta adrenergic agonists with an order of potency similar to the activation of adenylate cyclase and was antagonized by butoxamine but not by practolol. The data are consistent with the idea that adenylate cyclase in skeletal muscle plasma membranes is coupled to adrenergic receptors of the beta2 type.     

Multiple effects of guanine nucleotides on human platelet adenylate cyclase

We report that the adenylate cyclase system in human platelets is subject to multiple regulation by guanine nucleotides. Previously it has been reported that GTP is either required for or has little effect on the response of the enzyme to prostaglandin E₁. We have found that when platelet lysates were prepared in the presence of 5 mM EDTA, GTP lowered the basal and prostaglandin E₁-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity when the enzyme was assayed in the presence of Mg²⁺. The basal and prostaglandin E₁-stimulated adenylate cyclase activities were also increased by washing, which presumably removes endogenous GTP. The analog, guanyl-5′-yl-imidodiphosphate mimics the inhibitory effect of GTP on prostaglandin E₁-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity but it stimulates basal enzyme activity. The onset of the inhibitory effect of GTP on the adenylate cyclase system is rapid (1 min) and is maintained at a constant rate during incubation for 10 min. GTP and guanyl-5′-yl-imidodiphosphate were noncompetitive inhibitors of prostaglandin E₁. An increase in the concentration of Mg²⁺ gradually reduces the effect of GTP while having little influence on the effect of guanyl-5′-yl-imidodiphosphate. Neither the substrate concentration nor the pH (7.2–8.5) is related to the inhibitory effect of guanine nucleotides. The inhibition by nucleotides was found to show a specificity for purine nucleotides with the order of potency being guanyl-5′-yl-imidodiphosphate > dGTP > GTP > ITP > XTP > CTP > TTP. The inhibitory effect of GTP is reversible while the effect of guanyl-5′-yl-imidodiphosphate is irreversible. The GTP inhibitory effect was abolished by preparing the lysates in the presence of Ca²⁺. However, the inhibitory effect of guanyl-5′-yl-imidodiphosphate persisted. Substitution of Mn²⁺ for Mg²⁺ in the assay medium resulted in a diminution of the inhibitory effect of GTP on basal activity and converted the inhibitory effect of GTP on prostaglandin E₁-stimulated activity to a stimulatory effect. At a lower concentration of Mn²⁺ (less than 2 mM) guanyl-5′-yl-imidodiphosphate inhibited prostaglandin E₁-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity, but at a higher concentration of Mn²⁺, it caused an increase in enzyme activity exceeding that occuring in the presence of prostaglandin E₁. In the presence of Mn²⁺, dGTP mimics the effect of GTP and is 50% as effective as GTP. Our data suggest that the inhibitory effect of GTP on prostaglandin E₁-stimulated adenylate cyclase is mainly due to its direct effect on the enzyme itself, whereas the stimulatory effect of GTP on prostaglandin E₁-stimulated adenylate cyclase is due to enhancement of the coupling between the prostaglandin E₁ receptor and adenylate cyclase. These studies also indicate that the method of preparation of platelet lysates can profoundly alter the nature of guanine nucleotide regulation of adenylate cyclase.     

Pertussis toxin attenuates atrial natriuretic factor-mediated inhibition of adenylate cyclase. Involvement of inhibitory guanine nucleotide regulatory protein

The effect of pertussis toxin treatment was studied on the inhibitory effect of atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) on adenylate cyclase activity in rat aorta. The incubation of rat aorta washed particles with pertussis toxin and [alpha-32P]NAD resulted in the ADP-ribosylation of a single 40-kDa protein. In addition, pertussis toxin treatment enhanced guanosine 5'-O-(thiotriphosphate) and isoproterenol-stimulated adenylate cyclase activities and attenuated the ANF-mediated inhibition of basal, isoproterenol-, and forskolin-stimulated adenylate cyclase activities. These data suggest that ANF receptors are coupled to adenylate cyclase through inhibitory guanine nucleotide regulatory protein.     

Inhibition of monocyte oxidative responses by Bordetella pertussis adenylate cyclase toxin

Bordetella pertussis and the other Bordetella species produce a novel adenylate cyclase toxin which enters target cells to catalyze the production of supraphysiologic levels of intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). In these studies, dialyzed extracts from B. pertussis containing the adenylate cyclase toxin, a partially purified preparation of adenylate cyclase toxin, and extracts from transposon Tn5 mutants of B. pertussis lacking the adenylate cyclase toxin, were used to assess the effects of adenylate cyclase toxin on human peripheral blood monocyte activities. Luminol-enhanced chemiluminescence of monocytes stimulated with opsonized zymosan was inhibited greater than 96% by exposure to adenylate cyclase toxin-containing extract, but not by extracts from adenylate cyclase toxin-deficient mutants. The chemiluminescence responses to particulate (opsonized zymosan, Leishmania donovani, and Staphylococcus aureus) and soluble (phorbol myristate acetate) stimuli were inhibited equivalently. The superoxide anion generation elicited by opsonized zymosan was inhibited 92% whereas that produced by phorbol myristate acetate was inhibited only 32% by B. pertussis extract. Inhibition of oxidative activity was associated with a greater than 500-fold increase in monocyte cAMP levels, but treated monocytes remained viable as assessed by their ability to exclude trypan blue and continued to ingest particulate stimuli. The major role of the adenylate cyclase toxin in the inhibition of monocyte oxidative responses was demonstrated by: 1) little or no inhibition by extracts from B. pertussis mutants lacking adenylate cyclase toxin; 2) high level inhibition with extract from B. parapertussis, a related species lacking pertussis toxin; and 3) a reciprocal relationship between monocyte cAMP levels and inhibition of opsonized zymosan-induced chemiluminescence using both crude extract and partially purified adenylate cyclase toxin. Pertussis toxin, which has been shown to inhibit phagocyte responses to some stimuli by a cAMP-independent mechanism, had only a small (less than 20%) inhibitory effect when added at concentrations up to 100-fold in excess of those present in B. pertussis extract. These data provide strong support for the hypothesis that B. pertussis adenylate cyclase toxin can increase cAMP levels in monocytes without compromising target cell viability or impairing ingestion of particles and that the resultant accumulated cAMP is responsible for the inhibition of oxidative responses to a variety of stimuli.     

The regulation of adenylate cyclase by guanine nucleotides in Dictyostelium discoideum membranes

Extracellular cAMP induces the activation of adenylate cyclase in Dictyostelium discoideum cells. Conditions for both stimulation and inhibition of adenylate cyclase by guanine nucleotides in membranes are reported. Stimulation and inhibition were induced by GTP and non-hydrolysable guanosine triphosphates. GDP and non-hydrolysable guanosine diphosphates were antagonists. Stimulation was maximally twofold, required a cytosolic factor and was observed only at temperatures below 10 degrees C. An agonist of the cAMP-receptor-activated basal and GTP-stimulated adenylate cyclase 1.3-fold. Adenylate cyclase in mutant N7 could not be activated by cAMP in vivo; in vitro adenylate cyclase was activated by guanine nucleotides in the presence of the cytosolic factor of wild-type but of not mutant cells. Preincubation of membranes under phosphorylation conditions has been shown to alter the interaction between cAMP receptor and G protein [Van Haastert (1986) J. Biol. Chem. in the press]. These phosphorylation conditions converted stimulation to inhibition of adenylate cyclase by guanine nucleotides. Inhibition was maximally 30% and was not affected by the cytosolic factor involved in stimulation. In membranes obtained from cells that were treated with pertussis toxin, adenylate cyclase stimulation by guanine nucleotides was as in control cells, whereas inhibition by guanine nucleotides was lost. When cells were desensitized by exposure to cAMP agonists for 15 min, and adenylate cyclase was measured in isolated membranes, stimulation by guanine nucleotides was lost while inhibition was retained. These results suggest that Dictyostelium discoideum adenylate cyclase may be regulated by Gs-like and Gi-like activities, and that the action of Gs but not Gi is lost during desensitization in vivo and by phosphorylation conditions in vitro.