Identification of tyrosine 706 in the kinase insert as the major colony-stimulating factor 1 (CSF-1)-stimulated autophosphorylation site in the CSF-1 receptor in a murine macrophage cell line.

The receptor for colony-stimulating factor 1 (CSF-1) is a ligand-activated protein-tyrosine kinase. It has been shown previously that the CSF-1 receptor is phosphorylated on serine in vivo and that phosphorylation on tyrosine can be induced by stimulation with CSF-1. We studied the phosphorylation of the CSF-1 receptor by using the BAC1.2F5 murine macrophage cell line, which naturally expresses CSF-1 receptors. Two-dimensional tryptic phosphopeptide mapping showed that the CSF-1 receptor is phosphorylated on several different serine residues in vivo. Stimulation with CSF-1 at 37 degrees C resulted in rapid phosphorylation on tyrosine at one major site and one or two minor sites. We identified the major site as Tyr-706. The identity of Tyr-706 was confirmed by mutagenesis. This residue is located within the kinase insert domain. There was no evidence that Tyr-973 (equivalent to Tyr-969 in the human CSF-1 receptor) was phosphorylated following CSF-1 stimulation. When cells were stimulated with CSF-1 at 4 degrees C, additional phosphotyrosine-containing phosphopeptides were detected and the level of phosphorylation of the individual phosphotyrosine-containing phosphopeptides was substantially increased. In addition, we show that CSF-1 receptors are capable of autophosphorylation at six to eight major sites in vitro.     

Sequence of the sites phosphorylated by protein kinase C in the smooth muscle myosin light chain

We have determined the sequence of the sites phosphorylated by protein kinase C in the turkey gizzard smooth muscle myosin light chain. In contrast to previous work (Nishikawa, M., Hidaka, H., and Adelstein, R. S. (1983) J. Biol. Chem. 258, 14069-14072), two-dimensional tryptic peptide maps of both heavy meromyosin and the isolated myosin light chain showed two major phosphopeptides, one containing phosphoserine and the other phosphothreonine. We have purified the succinylated tryptic phosphopeptides using reverse phase and DEAE high pressure liquid chromatography. The serine-containing peptide, residues 1-4 (Ac-SSKR), is the NH2-terminal peptide. The phosphorylated serine residue may be either serine 1 or serine 2. The threonine-containing peptide, residues 5-16, yielded the sequence AKAKTTKKRPQR. Analysis of the yields and radioactivity of the products from automated Edman degradation showed that threonine 9 is the phosphorylation site.     

Site-specific phosphorylation of tyrosine hydroxylase after KCl depolarization and nerve growth factor treatment of PC12 cells

The phosphorylation and activation of tyrosine hydroxylase was examined in PC12 cells following depolarization with KCl or treatment with nerve growth factor. Both treatments activate tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and increase enzyme phosphorylation. Site-specific analysis of the tryptic phosphopeptides of TH isolated from [32P]phosphate-labeled PC12 cells demonstrated that the major phosphorylated peptide (termed "H25") did not contain any of the previously reported phosphorylation sites. Phosphoamino acid analysis of this peptide demonstrated that the phosphorylated residue was a serine. Synthetic tryptic peptides containing putative phosphorylation sites were prepared, and subjected to high performance liquid chromatography analysis and isoelectric focusing. The tryptic phosphopeptide containing serine 31 comigrated with the H25 peptide during both of these analytical techniques. The tryptic phosphopeptide produced by the phosphorylation of tyrosine hydroxylase by the recently discovered proline-directed protein kinase and the phosphorylated synthetic phosphopeptide TH2-12 are clearly separated from H25 by this analysis. We conclude that serine 31 is phosphorylated during KCl depolarization and nerve growth factor treatment of PC12 cells and that this phosphorylation is responsible for the activation of tyrosine hydroxylase. Since this site is not located in a sequence selective for any of the "classical" protein kinases, we suggest that a novel protein kinase may be responsible for the phosphorylation of this site. Since serine 31 has a proline residue on the carboxyl-terminal side, the possibility that this kinase may be related to the recently reported proline-directed protein kinase is discussed. Other sites that are also phosphorylated on TH during KCl depolarization include serine 19, which is known to be phosphorylated by calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II. A schematic model for the regulation of tyrosine hydroxylase activity by phosphorylation of the NH2-terminal regulatory domain is presented.     

Thyrotropin-stimulated phosphorylation of high mobility group protein 14 in vivo at the site catalyzed by cyclic nucleotide-dependent protein kinases in vitro

Thyrotropin (TSH) treatment of bovine thyroid slices increased 32P-labeling of chromosomal high mobility group 14 (HMG) protein approximately 2-fold. Analogs of cAMP, but not cGMP, also enhanced phosphorylation of HMG 14. The sites of phosphorylation were analyzed by partial acid hydrolysis and by two-dimensional mapping of tryptic digests of 32P-labeled HMG 14 which was purified from control and TSH-treated thyroid tissue. TSH treatment enhanced phosphorylation at serine residues in four prominent tryptic phosphopeptides which were identical with those derived from HMG 14 phosphorylated in vitro with cAMP- and cGMP-dependent protein kinases. The four tryptic phosphopeptides contain serine 6, the major site of in vitro phosphorylation catalyzed by cyclic nucleotide-dependent protein kinases (Walton, G. M., Spiess, J., and Gill, G. N. (1982) J. Biol. Chem. 257, 4661-4668). TSH did not affect phosphorylation of serine 24, a minor site of phosphorylation in vitro. These studies suggest that TSH-stimulated phosphorylation of HMG 14 is catalyzed by cAMP-dependent protein kinase.     

Topoisomerase I phosphorylation in vitro and in rapidly growing Novikoff hepatoma cells.

Changes in phosphorylation modulate the activity of topoisomerase I in vitro. Specifically, enzymatic activity is stimulated by phosphorylation with a purified protein kinase (casein kinase type II). The purpose of this study was to compare the sites that are phosphorylated in vitro by casein kinase type II with the site(s) phosphorylated in vivo in rapidly growing Novikoff hepatoma cells. Topoisomerase I labeled in vitro was characterized by three major tryptic phosphopeptides (I-III). Separation of these peptides by a C18-reverse phase h.p.l.c. column resulted in their elution at fractions 18 (I), 27 (II) and 44 (III) with 17%, 22.5% and 33% acetonitrile, respectively. In contrast, only one major phosphopeptide was identified by h.p.l.c. in topoisomerase I labeled in vivo. This phosphopeptide eluted at fraction 18 corresponding to the elution properties of phosphopeptide I labeled in vitro. It also co-migrated with tryptic phosphopeptide I when subjected to high-voltage electrophoresis on thin-layer cellulose plates. Preliminary experiments suggest that phosphorylation occurs at a serine residue six amino acids from the N-terminus of the peptide. These data indicate that topoisomerase I is phosphorylated in vivo and in vitro within the same tryptic peptide and suggest that topoisomerase I is phosphorylated in vivo by casein kinase II.     

Antigen-induced secretion of histamine and the phosphorylation of myosin by protein kinase C in rat basophilic leukemia cells

IgE-mediated stimulation of rat basophilic leukemia (RBL-2H3) cells results in the secretion of histamine. Myosin immunoprecipitated from these cells shows an increase in the amount of radioactive phosphate incorporated into its heavy (200 kDa) and light (20 kDa) chains. In unstimulated cells two-dimensional mapping of tryptic peptides of the myosin light chain reveals one phosphopeptide containing the serine residue phosphorylated by myosin light chain kinase. Following stimulation a second phosphopeptide appears containing a serine residue phosphorylated by protein kinase C. Tryptic phosphopeptide maps derived from myosin heavy chains show that unstimulated cells contain three major phosphopeptides. Following stimulation a new tryptic phosphopeptide appears containing a serine site phosphorylated by protein kinase C. The stoichiometry of phosphorylation of the myosin light and heavy chains was determined before and after antigenic stimulation. Before stimulation, myosin light chains contained 0.4 mol of phosphate/mol of light chain all confined to a serine not phosphorylated by protein kinase C. Cells that secreted 44% of their total histamine in 10 min exhibited an increase in phosphate content at sites phosphorylated by protein kinase C from 0 mol of phosphate/mol of myosin subunit to 0.7 mol of phosphate/mol of light chain and to 1 mol of phosphate/mol of heavy chain. When RBL-2H3 cells were made permeable with streptolysin O they still showed a qualitatively similar pattern of secretion and phosphorylation. Our results show that the time course of histamine secretion from stimulated RBL-2H3 cells parallels that of myosin heavy and light chain phosphorylation by protein kinase C.     

Identification of the serine residue phosphorylated by protein kinase C in vertebrate nonmuscle myosin heavy chains

Two-dimensional mapping of the tryptic phosphopeptides generated following in vitro protein kinase C phosphorylation of the myosin heavy chain isolated from human platelets and chicken intestinal epithelial cells shows a single radioactive peptide. These peptides were found to comigrate, suggesting that they were identical, and amino acid sequence analysis of the human platelet tryptic peptide yielded the sequence -Glu-Val-Ser-Ser(PO4)-Leu-Lys-. Inspection of the amino acid sequence for the chicken intestinal epithelial cell myosin heavy chain (196 kDa) derived from cDNA cloning showed that this peptide was identical with a tryptic peptide present near the carboxyl terminal of the predicted alpha-helix of the myosin rod. Although other vertebrate nonmuscle myosin heavy chains retain neighboring amino acid sequences as well as the serine residue phosphorylated by protein kinase C, this residue is notably absent in all vertebrate smooth muscle myosin heavy chains (both 204 and 200 kDa) sequenced to date.     

Mapping of phosphorylation sites in polyomavirus large T antigen.

The phosphorylation sites of polyomavirus large T antigen from infected or transformed cells were investigated. Tryptic digestion of large T antigen from infected, 32Pi-labeled cells revealed seven major phosphopeptides. Five of these were phosphorylated only at serine residues, and two were phosphorylated at serine and threonine residues. The overall ratio of phosphoserine to phosphothreonine was 6:1. The transformed cell line B4 expressed two polyomavirus-specific phosphoproteins: large T antigen, which was only weakly phosphorylated, and a truncated form of large T antigen of 34,000 molecular weight which was heavily phosphorylated. Both showed phosphorylation patterns similar to that of large T antigen from infected cells. Peptide analyses of large T antigens encoded by the deletion mutants dl8 and dl23 or of specific fragments of wild-type large T antigen indicated that the phosphorylation sites are located in an amino-terminal region upstream of residue 194. The amino acid composition of the phosphopeptides as revealed by differential labeling with various amino acids indicated that several phosphopeptides contain overlapping sequences and that all phosphorylation sites are located in four tryptic peptides derived from a region between Met71 and Arg191. Two of the potential phosphorylation sites were identified as Ser81 and Thr187. The possible role of this modification of large T antigen is discussed.     

Identification of phosphorylation sites for adenosine 3',5'-cyclic phosphate dependent protein kinase on the voltage-sensitive sodium channel from Electrophorus electricus

The voltage-sensitive sodium channel from the electroplax of Electrophorus electricus is selectively phosphorylated by the catalytic subunit of cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase (protein kinase A) but not by protein kinase C. Under identical limiting conditions, the protein was phosphorylated 20% as rapidly as the synthetic model substrate kemptamide. A maximum of 1.7 +/- 0.6 equiv of phosphate is incorporated per mole. Phosphoamino acid analysis revealed labeled phosphoserine and phosphothreonine at a constant ratio of 3.3:1. Seven distinct phosphopeptides were identified among tryptic fragments prepared from radiolabeled, affinity-purified protein and resolved by HPLC. The three most rapidly labeled fragments were further purified and sequenced. Four phosphorylated amino acids were identified deriving from three consensus phosphorylation sites. These were serine 6, serine 7, and threonine 17 from the amino terminus and a residue within 47 amino acids of the carboxyl terminus, apparently serine 1776. The alpha-subunits of brain sodium channels, like the electroplax protein, are readily phosphorylated by protein kinase A. However, these are also phosphorylated by protein kinase C and exhibit a markedly different pattern of incorporation. Each of three brain alpha-subunits displays an approximately 200 amino acid segment between homologous repeat domains I and II, which is missing from the electroplax and skeletal muscle proteins [Noda et al. (1986) Nature (London) 320, 188; Kayano et al. (1988) FEBS Lett. 228, 1878; Trimmer et al. (1989) Neuron 3, 33]. Most of the phosphorylation of the brain proteins occurs on a cluster of consensus phosphorylation sites located in this segment. This contrasts with the pattern of highly active sites on the amino and carboxyl termini of the electroplax protein. The detection of seven labeled tryptic phosphopeptides compared to the maximal labeling stoichiometry of approximately 2 suggests that many of the acceptor sites on the protein may be blocked by endogenous phosphorylation.     

Proteolytic cleavage of phospholamban purified from canine cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles. Generation of a low resolution model of phospholamban structure

Purified phospholamban isolated from canine cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles was subjected to proteolysis and peptide mapping to localize the different sites of phosphorylation on the protein and to gain further information on its subunit structure. Five different proteases (trypsin, papain, chymotrypsin, elastase, and Pronase) degraded the oligomeric 27-kDa phosphoprotein into a major 21-22-kDa protease-resistant fragment. No 32P was retained by this protease-resistant fragment, regardless of whether phospholamban had been phosphorylated by cAMP-dependent protein kinase, Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase, or protein kinase C. Phosphoamino acid analysis and thin-layer electrophoresis of liberated phosphopeptides revealed that 1 threonine and 2 serine residues were phosphorylated in phospholamban and that 1 of these serine residues and the threonine residue were in close proximity. Only serine was phosphorylated by cAMP-dependent protein kinase, whereas Ca2+-calmodulin-dependent protein kinase phosphorylated exclusively threonine. The results demonstrate that phospholamban has a large protease-resistant domain and a smaller protease-sensitive domain, the latter of which contains all of the sites of phosphorylation. The 21-22-kDa protease-resistant domain, although devoid of incorporated 32P, was completely dissociated into identical lower molecular weight subunits by boiling in sodium dodecyl sulfate, suggesting that this region of the molecule promotes the relatively strong interactions that hold the subunits together. The data presented lend further support for a model of phospholamban structure in which several identical low molecular weight subunits are noncovalently bound to one another, each containing one site of phosphorylation for cAMP-dependent protein kinase and another site of phosphorylation for Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase.     

Phosphorylation and activation of phospholipase D1 by protein kinase C in vivo: determination of multiple phosphorylation sites.

Protein kinase C (PKC) is an important regulator of phospholipase D1 (PLD1). Currently there is some controversy about a phosphorylation-dependent or -independent mechanism of the activation of PLD1 by PKC. To solve this problem, we examined whether PLD1 is phosphorylated by PKC in vivo. For the first time, we have now identified multiple basal phophopeptides and multiple phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) induced phosphopeptides of endogenous PLD1 in 3Y1 cells as well as of transiently expressed PLD1 in COS-7 cells. Down regulation or inhibition of PKC greatly attenuated the PMA-induced phosphorylation as well as the activation of PLD1. In the presence of PMA, purified PLD1 from rat brain was also found to be phosphorylated by PKCalpha in vitro at multiple sites generating seven distinct tryptic phosphopeptides. Four phosphopeptides generated in vivo and in vitro correlated well with each other, suggesting direct phosphorylation of PLD1 by PKCalpha in the cells. Serine 2, threonine 147, and serine 561 were identified as phosphorylation sites, and by mutation of these residues to alanine these residues were proven to be specific phosphorylation sites in vivo. Interestingly, threonine 147 is located in the PX domain and serine 561 is in the negative regulatory "loop" region of PLD1. Mutation of serine 2, threonine 147, or serine 561 significantly reduced PMA-induced PLD1 activity. These results strongly suggest that phosphorylation plays a pivotal role in PLD1 regulation in vivo.     

Activated protein kinase C directly phosphorylates the CD34 antigen on hematopoietic cells.

The CD34 antigen is a human leukocyte membrane protein expressed specifically by lymphohematopoietic progenitor cells. We found that CD34 is a phosphoprotein and therefore examined the regulation of its phosphorylation. Activation of protein kinase C (PKC) enhanced CD34 phosphorylation. The PKC activators, 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate and bryostatin-1, induced rapid, stoichiometric hyperphosphorylation of CD34 protein in cells, resulting in a 5-fold increase in CD34 phosphorylation. In vitro kinase studies revealed that purified PKC could directly phosphorylate purified CD34. Only serine phosphorylation was detected in the CD34 molecule. Two-dimensional phosphopeptide mapping experiments indicated that PKC induces the phosphorylation of identical serine residue(s) in vitro and in vivo (in KG1 cells). These are newly phosphorylated serine residue(s), which are not detectably phosphorylated in CD34 from exponentially growing KG1 cells. These data indicate that the developmental stage-specific molecule, CD34, is a phosphorylation target for activated PKC. Furthermore, these findings raise the possibility that PKC activation and phosphorylation of the CD34 molecule may play a role in signal transduction during early lymphohematopoiesis.     

In vivo and in vitro phosphorylation studies of numatrin, a cell cycle regulated nuclear protein, in insulin-stimulated NIH 3T3 HIR cells

Numatrin, a nuclear matrix protein has been implicated to be involved in mitogenesis of normal and malignant cells (Feuerstein and Mond, J. Biol. Chem. 262, 11389, 1987) and was later found to be identical to the nuclear phosphoprotein, B23. To study whether phosphorylation of numatrin is regulated by mitogenic stimulation, we examined the effect of phosphorylation of numatrin in the insulin-responsive cells, NIH 3T3 HIR. We found that an increase in phosphorylation of numatrin was associated with stimulation of the cells with insulin for 4 h and that the level of phosphorylation remained elevated after 8 h. By this time there was no increase in numatrin abundance as shown by Coom-massie blue stain and Western blot analysis. The induction in phosphorylation of numatrin could not be detected after 30 min stimulation with insulin, thus, indicating that the increase in phosphorylation of numatrin is not a rapid event. Analysis of the phosphopeptides by thin layer chromatography indicated four peptides that were phosphorylated in numatrin (one major and three minor). Stimulation with insulin was associated primarily with an increase in phosphorylation of the minor phosphopeptides. The phosphopeptide map of numatrin was identical after 4, 8, 17, 24, and 32 h stimulation with insulin, indicating that identical sites are phosphorylated at different phases of the cell cycle. In a search for the protein kinase which is involved in phosphorylation of numatrin we found that numatrin is a most prominent substrate for the cell cycle regulated cdc2 (p 34) kinase. However, the major phosphopeptides which were phosphorylated by this kinase did not comigrate with either of the phosphopeptides phosphorylated in insulin-stimulated intact cells. This may indicate that it is unlikely that cdc2 kinase may account for the mechanism(s) associated with phosphorylation of numatrin by insulin under physiological conditions.     

Quantitative changes in the expression of histone H1 and H2B subtypes and their relationship to the differentiation of mouse embryonal carcinoma cells

The pattern of histones from several mouse embryonal carcinoma cell (ECC) lines, differentiated cell lines, and adult organs was analyzed using acid-urea gels containing Triton X-100 and long SDS-gel electrophoresis. All cell lines had comparable histone types except for a unique H2B-like component that was found only in the ECC line PCC4. The mouse histone H1 has four different subtypes (H1a, H1b, H1c, and H1d), as resolved in SDS-gel electrophoresis. The expression of the four subtypes was shown to be cell line specific. Subtypes H1a and H1d are present in approximately the same relative amounts in all cell lines investigated. Subtype H1b is found in higher relative amounts than subtype H1c in ECC lines and testis. The ratio of H1b and H1c is reversed in differentiated cell lines and in kidney, white blood cells, liver and spleen. All four subtypes of H1 are phosphorylated although to a different extent in different cell lines. In ECC lines, subtypes H1b and especially H1d incorporate most of a ³²P label, whereas H1c is predominately phosphorylated in differentiated parietal endoderm cell lines. These data indicate that H1 subtypes differ depending on the stage of cell differentiation. Difference in ratio between H1 subtypes and in phosphorylation might influence the chromatin configuration and thus gene expression in these cells.     

Phosphorylation of intracellular precursors of human IL-1

The human IL-1 molecules (IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta) are post-translationally cleaved from 31-kDa precursor to 18-kDa biologically active molecules. During the course of studies of post-translational modifications of human IL-1, we have observed that although LPS induced the production of both intracellular IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta in human monocytes, [32P]orthophosphate labeling of these cells revealed that intracellular precursor of IL-1 alpha (pre-IL-1 alpha) to be phosphorylated at least 10-fold more than intracellular pre-IL-1 beta. However, no 32P-incorporation could be detected in the 18-kDa processed IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta. Analysis by TLC revealed that the major phosphorylation site occurred at serine residue(s). The 32P was incorporated into multiply cleaved precursors of IL-1 alpha, which appeared in the absence of protease inhibitors. Since the smallest Mr pre-IL-1 alpha that was labeled with 32P was 22 kDa, the phosphorylated serine residue is presumably located adjacent to a sequence of four basic amino acids located in the 4-kDa region at the amino terminus of the 22-kDa precursor of IL-1 alpha. This serine residue might also be a major phosphorylation site for a cAMP-dependent protein kinase. This hypothesis was substantiated by the demonstration that a synthetic peptide analogue of this region (residue 84 to 112) could be similarly phosphorylated in vitro by a cAMP-dependent protein kinase. Furthermore, a truncated pre-IL-1 alpha (residue 64 to 271) and a "fusion" protein containing staphylococcal protein A and an amino-terminal half-portion of pre-IL-1 alpha (residue 1 to 112), but not mature IL-1 alpha (residue 113 to 271), could also be phosphorylated by cAMP-dependent protein kinase. There is no comparable amino acid sequence in IL-1 beta which could be expected to be phosphorylated by a cAMP-dependent protein kinase. The physiologic relevance of phosphorylation of pre-IL-1 alpha was investigated. The data showed that phosphorylation of truncated pre-IL-1 alpha greatly enhanced its susceptibility to digestion by trypsin and promoted the conversion of pre-IL-1 alpha to the more biologically active IL-1. Although the precise role of the rather selective phosphorylation of pre-IL-1 alpha is not known, our findings do suggest that the phosphorylation of serine close to dibasic/tetrabasic amino acid sequence functions to facilitate the processing and/or release of IL-1 alpha.     

Specific phosphorylation of a COOH-terminal site on the full-length form of the alpha 1 subunit of the skeletal muscle calcium channel by cAMP-dependent protein kinase.

The primary (alpha 1) subunit of purified skeletal muscle dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels is present in full-length (212 kDa) and truncated (190 kDa) forms which are both phosphorylated by cAMP-dependent protein kinase (cA-PK) in vitro. In the present study, phosphorylation of the purified calcium channel by cA-PK followed by immunoprecipitation, sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and two-dimensional phosphopeptide mapping revealed differential phosphorylation of the related 190- and 212-kDa forms. The 190-kDa form of the alpha 1 subunit was phosphorylated on three major and three minor tryptic phosphopeptides; the 212-kDa form was phosphorylated on all six of these phosphopeptides plus two that were unique. Time course experiments showed that a single site on the COOH-terminal portion of the full-length form of the alpha 1 subunit is most intensely and rapidly (within 10 s) phosphorylated. Phosphorylation occurs almost exclusively on this COOH-terminal site unless harsh conditions such as treatment with denaturing detergents are employed to expose phosphorylation sites within the 190-kDa segment of the molecule. Elution of phosphopeptides from the second dimension chromatograph followed by immunoprecipitation with an anti-peptide antibody (anti-CP1) directed against the COOH-terminal amino acid sequence enabled us to identify this major phosphorylation site as serine 1854. The nearby consensus sites for cA-PK phosphorylation at serines 1757 and 1772 were phosphorylated only after denaturation or proteolytic cleavage. Phosphorylation of serine 1854 may play a pivotal role in the regulation of calcium channel function by cA-PK.     

Partial displacement of histone H1 from chromatin is required before it can be phosphorylated by mitotic H1 kinase in vitro.

The massive nonselective and reversible phosphorylation of histone H1 during mitosis is a universal phenomenon among eukaryotes. The growth-associated kinase responsible for this phosphorylation is identical to the maturation promoting factor, a key regulator of the cell cycle. Here we showed that growth-associated kinase, isolated from mitotic HeLa cells which were capable of phosphorylating HeLa H1 in vitro with high activity and mostly at the same sites phosphorylated during mitosis in vivo (assayed by two-dimensional analysis of tryptic phosphopeptides), did not significantly phosphorylate chromatin-bound or nuclear H1 in vitro. Its inability to phosphorylate chromatin-bound H1 did not change when the amount of kinase was increased or the incubation was prolonged. The resistance of chromatin-bound H1 to phosphorylation did not result from chromatin aggregation. Rapid phosphorylation of H1 in vitro, as well as in a nuclear system, was restored when NaCl concentrations were raised above 200 mM where H1:DNA interactions are weakened. At 300 mM NaCl, chromatin-bound H1 was phosphorylated in a subset of the sites observed for free H1 phosphorylated in vitro. These results suggest that active displacement of H1 from chromatin DNA may take place before H1 can be fully phosphorylated during mitosis.     

Protein kinase A phosphorylates retinal phosducin on serine 73 in situ

Photoreceptors of vertebrate retinas contain a 33,000-dalton phosphoprotein, phosducin, which complexes with the beta, gamma subunits of the photoreceptor G-protein (guanine nucleotide-binding protein), transducin. In situ, the retinal content of phosphorylated phosducin is modulated by light in conjunction with light-triggered changes in intracellular cyclic nucleotide concentration. In vitro, phosducin is phosphorylated by either exogenous or endogenous protein kinase A. 32P-Labeled rat retina phosducin was isolated by immunoprecipitation either after phosphorylation by protein kinase A in the presence of [gamma-32P]ATP or after incubation of retinas in darkness with 32Pi. In either case, phosphoamino acid analysis showed that greater than 98% of 32P was linked to serine, with less than 2% to threonine. Two-dimensional peptide mapping showed that [32P]phosphoserine was associated with the same characteristic set of tryptic peptides. Furthermore, Cleveland peptide analysis using four different proteases showed that either sample exhibited identical patterns of phosphopeptides which were characteristic of the protease used. Identical phosphopeptide maps were also obtained from 32P-labeled bovine retina phosducin, indicating that the serine phosphorylation site for protein kinase A is conserved between rat and bovine. Edman degradation of phosphopeptides derived from 32P-labeled bovine phosducin showed that radioactive phosphate was incorporated into serine residue 73 which is located within a consensus phosphorylation sequence for protein kinase A (-R-K-M-S73(P)-). These observations are uniformly in agreement with protein kinase A being the endogenous kinase that phosphorylates phosducin in vivo.