Phosphorylation of Endogenous Proteins by Adenosine 3':5'-Monophosphate-Dependent Protein Kinase in Mouse Neuroblastoma Cells

Abstract: Increased intracellular adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate (cAMP) levels and activation of cAMP-dependent protein kinases (ATP:protein phosphotransferase, EC 2.7.1.37) in vivo were correlated in mouse neuroblastoma cells grown in the presence of 1 mM-⁶ N.O ²-dibutyryl 3':5'-monophosphate (Bt₂cAMP). The time course for activation showed that cAMP-dependent protein kinases were activated by 30 min. A heat-stable inhibitor protein inhibited a majority of activated cAMP-dependent protein kinase. Activation of cAMP—dependent protein kinase caused additional phosphorylation of proteins when compared with untreated control cells, as demonstrated by endogenous phosphorylation of proteins in vitro using [γ-³²P]ATP and analysis by two—dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The phosphorylation data show selective phosphorylation of specific proteins by cAMP-independent and cAMP-dependent protein kinase. Among the proteins in the postmitochondrial supernatant fraction phosphorylated by cAMP-dependent protein kinases, two proteins with a molecular weight of 43,000 were heavily phosphorylated. It is suggested that phosphorylation of cellular proteins by cAMP-dependent protein kinases might be involved in the cAMP-modulated biochemical changes in neuroblastoma cells.     

Detection of Protein Kinase A and C Target Proteins in Rat Brain Mitochondria

Phosphorylation of some membrane-bound proteins in the mitochondria of rat liver and brain is regulated by Ca²⁺ and cAMP acting as secondary messengers. These proteins are the main myelin components: 46 kDa 2′,3′-cyclic-nucleotide 3′-phosphodiesterase (CNP) and two isoforms of the myelin basic protein (MBP) with molecular weights of 17 and 21.5 kDa, which we have identified previously and found outside myelin in rat brain mitochondria. The phosphorylation level of CNP and both MBP isoforms increases when the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) is opened. It is known that protein kinases A and C in heart mitochondria are directly bound to mPTP regulator proteins and are able to modulate the pore function. It is shown in this study that the inhibitors of protein kinases A (H-89) and C (staurosporin, Go 6976, and GF 109203 X) decrease the phosphorylation level of CNP and two MBP isoforms allowing us to assume that they are the targets of the signaling protein kinases A and C.     

Role of calcineurin biosignaling in cell secretion and the possible regulatory mechanisms

Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and calcium ions (Ca²⁺) are two chemical molecules that play a central role in the stimulus-dependent secretion processes within cells. Ca²⁺ acts as the basal signaling molecule responsible to initiate cell secretion. cAMP primarily acts as an intracellular second messenger in a myriad of cellular processes by activating cAMP-dependent protein kinases through association with such kinases in order to mediate post-translational phosphorylation of those protein targets. Put succinctly, both Ca²⁺ and cAMP act by associating or activating other proteins to ensure successful secretion. Calcineurin is one such protein regulated by Ca²⁺; its action depends on the intracellular levels of Ca²⁺. Being a phosphatase, calcineurin dephosphorylate and other proteins, as is the case with most other phosphatases, such as protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), PP2C, and protein phosphatase-1 (PP1), will likely be activated by phosphorylation. Via this process, calcineurin is able to affect different intracellular signaling with clinical importance, some of which has been the basis for development of different calcineurin inhibitors. In this review, the cAMP-dependent calcineurin bio-signaling, protein-protein interactions and their physiological implications as well as regulatory signaling within the context of cellular secretion are explored.     

cAMP regulation of protein phosphatases PP1 and PP2A in brain

Normal functioning of the brain is dependent upon a complex web of communication between numerous cell types. Within neuronal networks, the faithful transmission of information between neurons relies on an equally complex organization of inter- and intra-cellular signaling systems that act to modulate protein activity. In particular, post-translational modifications (PTMs) are responsible for regulating protein activity in response to neurochemical signaling. The key second messenger, cyclic adenosine 3′,5′-monophosphate (cAMP), regulates one of the most ubiquitous and influential PTMs, phosphorylation. While cAMP is canonically viewed as regulating the addition of phosphate groups through its activation of cAMP-dependent protein kinases, it plays an equally critical role in regulating removal of phosphate through indirect control of protein phosphatase activity. This dichotomy of regulation by cAMP places it as one of the key regulators of protein activity in response to neuronal signal transduction throughout the brain. In this review we focus on the role of cAMP in regulation of the serine/threonine phosphatases protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) and protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) and the relevance of control of PP1 and PP2A to regulation of brain function and behavior.     

The cAMP cascade in the nervous system: molecular sites of action and possible relevance to neuronal plasticity

Many intercellular messages regulate the activity of their target cells by altering the intracellular level of cAMP and, as a consequence, the phosphorylation state of proteins which serve as substrates for cAMP-dependent protein kinase. Such regulation plays a crucial role in neuronal development, neuronal function, and neuronal plasticity (e.g., elementary learning mechanisms). Ample information has been accumulated in recent years on the enzymes that regulate the level of cAMP or respond to it, on the regulation of cAMP synthesis by neurohormones, neurotransmitters, ions, and toxins, on neuronal-specific substrate proteins that are phosphorylated by the cAMP-dependent kinase, and on the interaction of the cAMP-cascade with other second-messenger systems within neurons. Such data, obtained by a combination of molecular-biological, biochemical, and cellular approaches, shed light on the detailed mechanisms by which modulation of a ubiquitous molecular cascade leads to a great variety of short-term as well as long-term specific neuronal responses and alterations.     

Control of growth and differentiation by cyclic AMP in fungi

InSaccharomyces cerivisiae intracellular cAMP mediates environmental signals that regulate cellular metabolism and growth. The studies on the cAMP-requiring mutants and their suppressors in the yeast revealed that cAMP-dependent protein phosphorylation is involved in the G1 phase of the cell cycle, stimulation of the phosphoinositide pathway and the post-meiotic stage of spourlation, and that inhibition of cAMP-dependent protein phosphorylation is required to go into the GO stage of and to induce meiotic division. Growth of some filamentous fungi was observed with significantly reduced levels of cAMP, suggesting that cAMP may not be essential for growth in some species of fungi. Germination of fungal spores, yeast-mycelium dimorphism and hyphal morphogenesis of several species of fungi were affected by cAMP. cAMP was involved in extension of hyphae, formation of hyphal aggregates and fruit body formation. Phosphorylation of cellular proteins is required in these processes, and the nature of these proteins phosphorylated by cAMP-dependent protein kinase is important to the understanding of the role of cAMP for growth and differentistion in fungal cells.     

Protein Phosphorylation Induced by Phorbol Esters and Cyclic AMP in Anterior Pituitary Cells: Possible Role in Adrenocorticotropin Release and Synthesis

Forskolin, an activator of adenylate cyclase, stimulates adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) release and increases proopiomelanocortin mRNA levels in anterior pituitary cells by enhancing cyclic AMP (cAMP)-dependent protein kinase activity. The phorbol ester phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) evokes these same responses from anterior pituitary cells by activating protein kinase C. Both protein kinases most likely induce their cellular effects by catalyzing the phosphorylation of specific proteins. To elucidate the mechanisms by which cAMP-dependent protein kinase and protein kinase C promote ACTH secretion and synthesis, the phosphoproteins regulated by forskolin and PMA were identified in the cell line AtT-20, which consists of a homogeneous population of corticotrophs. Phosphoproteins were analyzed in different subcellular fractions by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and autoradiography. Forskolin increased phosphate incorporation into two proteins in the cytoplasmic fraction of 24 kilodaltons (kd) (pI 6.8) and 40 kd (pI 5.8), two proteins in the plasma membrane fraction of 32 kd (pI 8.3) and 60 kd (pI 8), and one protein in the nuclear fraction of 20 kd (pI 8.7). Insertion of the inhibitor of cAMP-dependent protein kinase into the AtT-20 cells, using a liposome technique, blocked the rise in phosphate incorporation induced by forskolin. PMA also stimulated phosphate incorporation into proteins in AtT-20 cells. PMA increased the phosphorylation of three cytoplasmic proteins of 25 kd (pI 7.6), 40 kd (pI 5.8), and 40 kd (pI 8.1) as well as two membrane proteins of 32 kd (pI 8.3) and 60 kd (pI 8) and one nuclear protein of 20 kd (pI 6.3).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

cAMP-dependent kinases in the algal flagellate Euglena gracilis.

Euglena cells grown in diurnal light-dark cycles exhibit circadian variations of their cAMP content, which we believe to be under the control of an endogenous timer because they persist in constant darkness in the absence of any environmental time cue. We think that these cAMP oscillations may play a role in the regulation of some of the numerous cellular activities that are known to display circadian rhythmicities in this organism. The role of cAMP in algal cells is still controversial, however, since the nature of the cAMP "receptor" is unknown. We show that extracts of the achlorophyllous ZC mutant of Euglena gracilis contain two cAMP-binding proteins, which bind cAMP with a high affinity (Kd values of 10 nM and 30 nM) and which can be separated by DEAE-cellulose chromatography. Protein kinase activity was assayed using Kemptide as a substrate. Stimulation of kinase activity by cAMP was observed after partial purification by DEAE-cellulose chromatography. Two peaks of activity were resolved, corresponding to distinct enzymes with different cAMP-analog specificities. Thus, cAMP signaling in plant cells may proceed by the phosphorylation of target proteins by cAMP-dependent kinases, in a manner similar to that of animal cells.     

Author index

The photoaffinity ligand 8-azidoadenosine 3′,5-monophosphate was employed to label cAMP binding proteins in both fractionated and freeze-thawed rabbit gastric glands. Fractionated glands incorporated the azido-cAMP label primarily into two cytosolic proteins with apparent molecular weights of 58 000 and 48 000. No enrichment of label was found in fractions containing basolateral or apical membranes. DEAE-cellulose chromatography of the cytosolic proteins resulted in the separation of two cAMP-dependent protein kinase peaks. Azido cAMP labelling of each peak suggested the initial peak contained type I cAMP-dependent protein kinase while the second peak contained the type II kinase. Labelling of ‘resting’ gastric glands resulted in radioactive proteins of apparent molecular weights of 58 000.and 48 000. When gastric glands were stimulated to produce acid by the addition of 10^?4 M histamine or 1 mM dibutyryl cAMP there was 32–44% dimunition of ligand incorporation compared to control glands. The results strongly suggest that histamine- mediated stimulus-secretion coupling in gastric glands involves activation of parietal cell cAMP-dependent protein kinases.     

Targeted quantitative phosphoproteomics approach for the detection of phospho-tyrosine signaling in plants

Tyrosine (Tyr) phosphorylation plays an essential role in signaling in animal systems. However, a few studies have also reported Tyr phosphorylation in plants, but the relative contribution of tyrosine phosphorylation to plant signal transduction has remained an open question. We present an approach to selectively measure and quantify Tyr phosphorylation in plant cells, which can also be applied to whole plants. We combined a (15)N stable isotope metabolic labeling strategy with an immuno-affinity purification using phospho-tyrosine (pY) specific antibodies. This single enrichment strategy was sufficient to reproducibly identify and quantify pY containing peptides from total plant cell extract in a single LC-MS/MS run. We succeeded in identifying 149 unique pY peptides originating from 135 proteins, including a large set of different protein kinases and several receptor-like kinases. We used flagellin perception by Arabidopsis cells, a model system for pathogen triggered immune (PTI) signaling, to test our approach. We reproducibly quantified 23 pY peptides in 2 inversely labeled biological replicates identifying 11 differentially phosphorylated proteins. These include a set of 3 well-characterized flagellin responsive MAP kinases and 4 novel MAP kinases. With this targeted approach, we elucidate a new level of complexity in flagellin-induced MAP kinase activation.     

Organizing signal transduction through A-kinase anchoring proteins (AKAPs)

A fundamental role for protein-protein interactions in the organization of signal transduction pathways is evident. Anchoring, scaffolding and adapter proteins function to enhance the precision and directionality of these signaling events by bringing enzymes together. The cAMP signaling pathway is organized by A-kinase anchoring proteins. This family of proteins assembles enzyme complexes containing the cAMP-dependent protein kinase, phosphoprotein phosphatases, phosphodiesterases and other signaling effectors to optimize cellular responses to cAMP and other second messengers. Selected A-kinase anchoring protein signaling complexes are highlighted in this minireview.     

Increased level of cAMP-dependent protein kinase in aging human lung fibroblasts

Regulation of the expression of cAMP-dependent protein kinase in cellular aging was studied using the IMR-90 diploid human lung fibroblasts. The level of cAMP-dependent protein kinase present in cell extracts was monitored by 1) photoactivated incorporation of 8-N3-[32P]cAMP into the 47,000- and 54,000-dalton regulatory subunits of the type I and type II cAMP-dependent protein kinases, respectively; 2) cAMP-dependent phosphorylation of histone II AS catalyzed by the catalytic subunit of the kinase; and 3) fractionation and analysis of the type I and type II cAMP-dependent protein kinase by DEAE-Sephacel column chromatography. Our results showed an approximately two- to threefold increase in the level of the type I cAMP-dependent protein kinase and a somewhat smaller increase in the type II kinase in extracts of the "old" IMR-90 cells (population doubling greater than 48) as compared to that of the "young" cells (PDL 22-27). The timing of the increase in cAMP-dependent protein kinase coincided with a significant decrease in the proliferative potential of the cells. This result together with previously demonstrated effects of cAMP in the control of cell growth and differentiation and the increased expression of cAMP-dependent protein kinase during terminal differentiation of the murine preadipocytes (3T3-L1) and myoblast (L-5, L-6, and C2C13) suggests that regulation of the levels of cAMP and cAMP-dependent protein kinase plays a significant role in the control of cell growth and differentiation.     

Switching the flip: protein phosphatase roles in signaling pathways

Protein phosphatases are the obligate partners of protein kinases in cellular control circuitry. Several specific roles of phosphatases have been revealed in plant systems through recent work capitalizing on functional genomics, interaction screens and activation-tagging approaches. Historically, the redundancy of genes that encode phosphatase functions has impeded genetic analysis in plant systems, and relatively few elucidated signaling pathways include protein phosphatases that have clearly defined substrates. Functional genomics, interaction and suppression screens, activation tagging and phosphoproteomics now hold great promise for identifying phosphatases that are active in signaling and regulation, and for revealing their in vivo substrates. This level of analysis will be essential for a full understanding of the effects of reversible protein phosphorylation in modulating and integrating cellular activities.     

Insulin-induced dephosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase. Correlation with lipolysis and cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity

The effect of insulin on the state of phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase, cellular cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity and lipolysis was investigated in isolated adipocytes. Increased phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase in response to isoproterenol stimulation was closely paralleled by increased lipolysis. Maximal phosphorylation and lipolysis was obtained when the cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity ratio was greater than or equal to 0.1, and this corresponded to a 50% increase in the state of phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase. Insulin (1 nM) reduced cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity and also reduced lipolysis with both cAMP-dependent and cAMP-independent antilipolytic effects up to an activity ratio of approximately 0.4, above which the antilipolytic effect was lost. Insulin caused a decrease in the state of phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase at all levels of cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity. Under basal conditions, with cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity at a minimum, this reflected a dephosphorylation of the basal phosphorylation site of hormone-sensitive lipase in a manner not mediated by cAMP. When the cAMP-dependent protein kinase was stimulated to phosphorylate the regulatory phosphorylation site of hormone-sensitive lipase, the insulin-induced dephosphorylation occurred both at the basal and regulatory sites. At low levels of cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity ratios (0.05-0.1), dephosphorylation of the regulatory site correlated with reduced cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity, but not at higher activity ratios (greater than 0.1). Stimulation of cells with isoproterenol produced a transient (1-5 min) peak of cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity and of phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase. The state of phosphorylation also showed a transient peak when the protein kinase was maximally and constantly activated. In the presence of raised levels of cellular cAMP, insulin (1 nM) caused a rapid (t1/2 approximately 1 min) dephosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase. In unstimulated cells the reduction in phosphorylation caused by insulin was distinctly slower (t1/2 approximately 5 min). These findings are interpreted to suggest that insulin affects the state of phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase and lipolysis through a cAMP-dependent pathway, involving reduction of cAMP, and through a cAMP-independent pathway, involving activation of a protein phosphatase activity that dephosphorylates both the regulatory and basal phosphorylation sites of hormone-sensitive lipase.     

Protein kinases of the human placental microvillous membrane. Their potential role in intrasyncytial communication

Protein phosphorylation has been shown to alter various plasma membrane functions. To investigate the role of phosphorylation in human placental trophoblast, microvillous membrane vesicles were incubated with [gamma-32-P]ATP and the phosphorylation of endogenous and exogenous protein substrates was measured. The microvillous membrane was shown to possess both adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP)-independent and cAMP-dependent kinases. Both endogenous proteins and exogenous proteins were phosphorylated and these processes were enhanced by the presence of Triton or the ionophore alamethicin. The phosphorylation of histone and of endogenous peptides of molecular weights (MW) 147 000, 97 000 and 53 000 was increased by the addition of cAMP. cAMP stimulation required the presence of Triton or alamethicin. The cAMP-dependent kinases are apparently located at the internal (cytoplasmic) surface of the membrane. This location would allow stimulation by cAMP produced by the basal (fetal-facing) plasma membrane. cAMP-stimulated protein phosphorylation may serve as a means of communication between the syncytial plasma membranes facing the fetal and maternal surfaces.