Involvement of two intracellular messenger systems, protein kinase C and cyclic AMP, in the regulation of c-fos gene expression in human promyelocytic leukemia (HL-60) cells

Incubation of human promyelocytic leukemia (HL-60) cells with 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA), a protein kinase C-activating phorbol ester, caused a marked increase in c-fos mRNA in a dose-dependent manner. Phorbol-12,13-dibutyrate and 1-oleoyl-2-acetyl-glycerol, other protein kinase C-activating agents, were also active in this capacity. 4 alpha-Phorbol-12,13-didecanoate, known to be inactive for protein kinase C, was ineffective. 8-Bromo-cyclic AMP (8-Br-cAMP) also increased c-fos mRNA in a dose-dependent manner. This action of 8-Br-cAMP was mimicked by prostaglandin E2, which is known to raise the cyclic AMP level in HL-60 cells. c-fos mRNA increased within 15 min and reached a maximal level 45 min after the stimulation of the cells by TPA or 8-Br-cAMP. The simultaneous stimulation of the cells by TPA and 8-Br-cAMP at the respective doses giving maximal elevation of c-fos mRNA increased this mRNA in an additive manner. These results suggest that in HL-60 cells expression of the c-fos gene is regulated independently by two different intracellular messenger systems, protein kinase C and cyclic AMP.     

Possible involvement of protein kinase C and calcium ion in growth factor-induced expression of c-myc oncogene in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts

The addition of platelet-derived growth factor and fibroblast growth factor to quiescent cultures of Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts rapidly induced protein kinase C activation and Ca2+ mobilization and afterwards markedly increased c-myc mRNA levels. 1-Oleoyl-2-acetylglycerol, a membrane-permeable synthetic diacylglycerol, and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate, a tumor-promoting phorbol ester, stimulated protein kinase C activation without Ca2+ mobilization. Inversely, Ca2+ ionophores, A23187 and ionomycin, elicited Ca2+ mobilization without protein kinase C activation. Both protein kinase C-activating and Ca2+-mobilizing agents were able to increase c-myc mRNA levels in an additive manner. Prolonged treatment of the cells with phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate, another protein kinase C-activating phorbol ester, led to the down-regulation and complete disappearance of protein kinase C. In these cells, 1-oleoyl-2-acetylglycerol and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate did not increase c-myc mRNA levels, but platelet-derived growth factor, fibroblast growth factor, and the Ca2+ ionophores, all of which still induced Ca2+ mobilization, stimulated the increase of c-myc mRNA levels. These results strongly suggest that both protein kinase C and Ca2+ may be involved in platelet-derived growth factor- as well as fibroblast growth factor-induced expression of the c-myc oncogene in Swiss 3T3 cells.     

Angiotensin II induces expression of the c-fos gene through protein kinase C activation and calcium ion mobilization in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells

Incubation of the serum-deprived cultures of rat vascular smooth muscle cells with angiotensin II, a potent vasoconstrictor, caused a rapid and transient increase in the c-fos mRNA level. The doses of this agonist necessary for the increase in the c-fos mRNA level coincided with those for the phospholipase C-mediated hydrolysis of phosphoinositides. Moreover, protein kinase C-activating 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate and Ca2+-ionophore A23187 increased the c-fos mRNA level in an additive manner. These results suggest that angiotensin II induces expression of the c-fos gene through the activation of protein kinase C and Ca2+ mobilization in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells.     

Mastoparan transiently permeabilizes Swiss 3T3 cells and induces c-fos proto-oncogene expression. Role of calcium and G protein activation

Mastoparan, a widely used tetradecapeptide activator of Gi/Go G proteins, has been reported to be a potent co-mitogen for Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts. However, we have previously shown that the peptide promotes the release of lactate dehydrogenase from Swiss 3T3 cells and evokes only a modest and delayed increase in DNA. We suggested that the ability of the peptide to permeabilise these cells may account for its mitogenic action. Here we show that mastoparan caused a rapid release of fluorescein from cells which had been pre-incubated with fluorescein diacetate, indicating that the peptide increases membrane permeability to small molecules. Furthermore, the release of lactate dehydrogenase evoked by mastoparan was lost after prolonged (24 h) incubation of cells with the peptide. Together, these data indicate that mastoparan-induced cell permeabilisation is both rapid and transient. We have also shown that mastoparan increased c-fos mRNA accumulation and that this response was not influenced by pertussis toxin or indomethacin. Although mastoparan increased the intracellular calcium concentration, the removal of extracellular calcium had no effect on mastoparan stimulated c-fos mRNA accumulation. These data show that mastoparan-induced c-fos mRNA accumulation is not mediated by activation of a G protein and subsequent activation of phospholipase D nor by a non-selective increase in calcium influx. The data have significance for the interpretation of studies in which mastoparan is, or has been, used as an activator of Gi/Go.     

Vasopressin rapidly stimulates protein kinase C in quiescent Swiss 3T3 cells

Addition of vasopressin to quiescent cultures of Swiss 3T3 cells caused a rapid increase in the phosphorylation of an acidic molecular weight 80,000 cellular protein (termed 80K). The effect was concentration- and time-dependent; enhancement in 80K phosphorylation could be detected as early as 30 sec after the addition of the hormone. Recently, a rapid increase in the phosphorylation of an 80K cellular protein following treatment with phorbol esters or diacylglycerol has been shown to reflect the activation of protein kinase C in intact Swiss 3T3 cells. Here we show that the 80K phosphoproteins generated in response to vasopressin and phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate (PBt2) were identical as judged by one- and two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and peptide mapping following partial proteolysis with Staphylococcus aureus V8 protease. In addition, prolonged pretreatment of 3T3 cells with PBt2 which leads to the disappearance of protein kinase C activity blocked the ability of vasopressin to stimulate the phosphorylation of 80K. The effect of vasopressin on 80K phosphorylation and mitogenesis was selectively blocked by the vasopressin antagonist (Pmp1-O-Me-Tyr2-Arg8) vasopressin suggesting that these responses are mediated by its specific receptor in these cells. The removal of vasopressin leads to dephosphorylation (within minutes) of the 80K phosphoprotein. We conclude that vasopressin rapidly stimulates protein kinase C activity in intact 3T3 cells.     

Rapid microassay for protein kinase C translocation in Swiss 3T3 cells

The Ca2+/phosphatidylserine-stimulated protein kinase C (PKC) appears to exist as interconvertible inactive, soluble and active, membrane-bound forms. Changes in the bimodal distribution of PKC induced by diacylglycerol or tumor-promoting phorbol esters have been proposed to regulate the activity of this kinase [Nishizuka, Y. (1984) Nature (London) 308, 693-698]. A rapid microassay for assessment of protein kinase C translocation between cytosol and membranes was developed. This procedure, which relied on the selective digitonin-mediated release of cytoplasmic proteins, eliminated potential homogenization and fractionation artifacts. PKC activity toward histone H1 was determined after limited trypsinolysis, which abolished the Ca2+/phospholipid requirement of the enzyme and prevented interference by inhibitory proteins. Complete translocation of PKC to the membrane fraction and subsequent down-regulation of the kinase in response to 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate treatment of Swiss 3T3 cells could be demonstrated by this method. Platelet-derived growth factor, insulin-like growth factor 1, vasopressin, and prostaglandin F2 alpha facilitated partial conversions of PKC to the membrane-bound form in quiescent 3T3 cells.     

Interleukin 1 stimulates prostaglandin synthesis and cyclic AMP accumulation in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts: interactions between two second messenger systems

Biochemical events elicited by interleukin 1 (IL-1) were studied in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts. One hour after its addition, IL-1 stimulated synthesis of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), which continued to accumulate for 4 days. IL-1 also stimulated cAMP accumulation. Indomethacin blocked cAMP accumulation in response to IL-1, suggesting that PGE2 was responsible for the increase. Addition of exogenous PGE2 to indomethacin-treated cells restored cAMP accumulation. IL-1 enhanced thymidine incorporation, and indomethacin attenuated responses to lower concentrations. Thus, PGE2 appeared to play a role in the ability of low concentrations of IL-1 to stimulate thymidine incorporation. PGE2 augmented thymidine incorporation by increasing cAMP accumulation because in the presence of indomethacin addition of exogenous cAMP enhanced thymidine incorporation in response to low concentrations of IL-1. Elevated cAMP further stimulated PGE2 synthesis. Thus, PGE2 and cAMP interacted to potentiate their mutual accumulation. In summary, IL-1 stimulates PGE2 synthesis. PGE2, in turn, stimulates cAMP accumulation which potentiates IL-1-stimulated PGE2 synthesis and thymidine incorporation.     

Regulation of protooncogenes c-fos and c-myc expressions by protein tyrosine kinase, protein kinase C, and cyclic AMP mitogenic pathways in dog primary thyrocytes: a positive and negative control by cyclic AMP on c-myc expression

The proliferation of dog thyrocytes in primary culture is stimulated by three distinct intracellular signaling pathways: (1) the thyrotropin or forskolin-cyclic AMP-mediated cascade which is compatible with the differentiated state of the cell; (2) the protein kinase C pathway activated by diacylglycerol and phorbol esters; and (3) a protein tyrosine kinase system activated by epidermal growth factor. The two latter pathways also induce dedifferentiation. The activation of the three cascades induced the expression of the protooncogenes c-fos and c-myc with dose-response curves similar to those for DNA synthesis. After TPA and EGF, the time courses of stimulation of c-fos and c-myc were the same as those for mitogenically stimulated fibroblasts. However, after the cyclic AMP stimulation, c-myc expression was biphasic with an enhancement at 1 h followed by a down-regulation. A similar inhibition by cyclic AMP was also observed on the increased c-myc expression induced by EGF. This down-regulation is suppressed by cycloheximide, which suggests the involvement of a neosynthesized or a labile protein intermediate. The action of cyclic AMP on c-myc mRNA levels could be related to the opposite requirements of the stimulation of both proliferation and differentiation expression by the cyclic AMP pathway in the differentiated thyrocytes.     

Possible involvement of cyclic AMP and calcium ion in prostaglandin E1-induced elevation of c-myc mRNA levels in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts

Prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) caused a rapid and dose-dependent increase in cAMP levels, followed by elevation of c-myc mRNA levels and then increased DNA synthesis in quiescent cultures of Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts. The dose-response curves of PGE1 were nearly the same for each of these three processes. Both 8-bromo-cAMP and forskolin increased c-myc mRNA levels to 40-50% and DNA synthesis to 70-80% of those caused by a maximally effective dose of PGE1. Under the comparable conditions, PGE1 did not stimulate diacylglycerol formation or activate protein kinase C. However, PGE1 did elevate cytoplasmic free Ca2+ concentration as measured with the fluorescent Ca2+ indicator quin 2. 8-Bromo-cAMP and forskolin were inactive in this capacity. The Ca2+ ionophore A23187 increased the level of c-myc mRNA. Diacylglycerol and Ca2+ mediate the elevation of c-myc mRNA levels which is caused by platelet-derived growth factor and fibroblast growth factor (Kaibuchi, K., Tsuda, T., Kikuchi, A., Tanimoto, T., Yamashita, T., and Takai, Y. (1986) J. Biol. Chem. 261, 1187-1192). In contrast, the present results suggest that both cAMP and Ca2+ are involved in this PGE1-induced response in Swiss 3T3 cells.     

Epidermal growth factor increases c-myc mRNA without eliciting phosphoinositide turnover, protein kinase C activation, or calcium ion mobilization in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts

Incubation of quiescent cultures of Swiss 3T3 cells with epidermal growth factor (EGF) caused an increase in c-myc mRNA. Under these conditions, EGF did not induce phosphoinositide turnover, formation of diacylglycerol, formation of inositol tris-, bis-, and monophosphates, protein kinase C activation, or Ca2+ mobilization. Although it has been reported that both protein kinase C and Ca2+ may be responsible for the platelet-derived growth factor- and fibroblast growth factor-induced increases in c-myc mRNA in Swiss 3T3 cells (Kaibuchi, K., Tsuda, T., Kikuchi, A., Tanimoto, T., Yamashita, T., & Takai, Y. (1986) J. Biol. Chem. 261, 1187-1192), these results indicate that neither protein kinase C nor Ca2+ is involved in the EGF-induced increase in c-myc mRNA, and that an unidentified system may be involved in this reaction.     

Bacterial lipopolysaccharide activates protein kinase C, but not intracellular calcium elevation, in human peripheral T cells

The increase of intracellular free calcium concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)) and protein kinase C (PKC) activity are two major early mitogenic signals to initiate proliferation of human peripheral T cells. Bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is nonmitogenic in human T cells. However, in the presence of monocytes, LPS becomes mitogenic to proliferate T cells. The aim of this study was to define the incompetency of LPS on two mitogenic signals in human peripheral T cells. T cells were isolated from human peripheral blood. [Ca(2+)](i) and pH(i) were determined by loading the cells with the fluorescent dyes, Fura-2 acetoxymethyl ester (Fura-2/AM) and 2',7'-bis(2-carboxyethyl)-5-(and 6)carboxyfluorescein acetoxymethyl ester (BCECF/AM). PKC activity was determined by protein kinase assay and cell proliferation was estimated from the incorporation of [(3)H]-thymidine. The results indicated that (1) LPS (10 microg/ml) stimulated PKC activity significantly within 5 min, reached a plateau at 30 min, and maintained that level for at least 2 h; and (2) LPS stimulated cytoplasmic alkalinization but did not affect the levels of [Ca(2+)](i) and [(3)H]-thymidine incorporation into T cells. Moreover, the combination of calcium ionophore A23187 with LPS significantly stimulated [(3)H]-thymidine incorporation into T cells. Thus, the results demonstrate that LPS failed to proliferate T cells, probably because of a lack of the machinery necessary to stimulate the mitogenic signal on [Ca(2+)](i) elevation.     

Heterogeneity of protein kinase C expression and regulation in T lymphocytes

The purpose of the present study was to examine protein kinase C (PKC) isotype expression in T lymphoblasts derived from peripheral blood and the T leukaemic cell Jurkat. Using antisera reactive with PKC alpha, beta 1, and beta 2 and gamma, it was observed that T cells expressed two PKC isotypes, PKC alpha and beta 1. No PKC gamma was detected in T lymphocytes. In lymphoblasts, high levels of PKC beta compared to PKC alpha were found whereas Jurkat cells expressed high levels of alpha compared to PKC beta. Differences in the calcium sensitivity of phorbol ester-induced phosphorylation were observed in Jurkat and T lymphoblasts which correlated with the relative levels of PKC alpha and beta isotypes expressed by the cells.     

Involvement of protein kinase A in the regulation of intracellular free calcium and phosphoinositide turnover in rat myometrium

Preincubation of Fura 2-loaded rat myometrial cells with H-8, an inhibitor of protein kinase A, for 1 h reversed the inhibitory effects of 8-(4-chlorophenylthio)-cAMP (CPTcAMP) on the oxytocin-stimulated increase in (Ca2+)i (intracellular free calcium), with an EC50 of 47 microM. H-8 also prevented the inhibition by relaxin and isoproterenol of the oxytocin-induced increase in (Ca2+)i. The EC50 of H-8 in reversing the relaxin effect was 42 microM. H-8 reversal of the effect of relaxin on (Ca2+)i was evident both in the absence of extracellular calcium and in cells pretreated with pertussis toxin. H-8 also reversed the inhibitory effects of relaxin and CPTcAMP on the oxytocin-induced increase in [3H]inositol phosphate formation and [3H]phosphoinositide hydrolysis. Preincubation of myometrial cells for 1 h with H-7, another protein kinase inhibitor, only partially attenuated the inhibition by relaxin and CPTcAMP of the oxytocin-induced increase in (Ca2+)i and [3H]inositol phosphate formation at concentrations 4-5 times greater than those of H-8. Acute (15-min) exposure to phorbol myristate acetate (1.0 microM) did not affect basal (Ca2+)i or the oxytocin-stimulated increases in (Ca2+)i or inositol phosphate formation. These results imply a regulatory role for protein kinase A in the inhibition of the oxytocin-induced increase in (Ca2+)i and inositol phosphate formation by relaxants.     

Activation of protein kinase C sensitizes the cyclic AMP signalling system of T51B rat liver cells

Activation of protein kinase C (PKC) bu phorbol esters (TPA) results in a modification of the cyclic AMP system leading to either attenuation or amplification of the cyclic AMP signal. In the non-neoplastic T51B rat live cell line, TPA, when added to intact cells, had no effect on the basal level of cyclic AMP synthesis but caused a 1.5 fold amplification of the stimulation induced by β-adrenergic agents, cholera toxin and forskolin. The effect appeared to be mediated by PKC since diacylglycerols caused the same amplification as did TPA while inactive phorbol esters were without effect. Phosphorylation of Gs or the catalytic subunit of adenylate cyclase by PKC is likely to be responsible for the enhancement of cyclic AMP synthesis. TPA also caused translocation of PKC; however, the time course of the translocation was loner than the time course of the enhancement of adenylate cyclase activity. Thus, the ability of TPA to amplify cyclic AMP synthesis is probably mediated by activation of PKC that is already present in the membrane.