Activation of Fyn tyrosine kinase upon secretagogue stimulation of bovine chromaffin cells.

Adrenal medullary chromaffin cells derive from the neural crest during embryogenesis and differentiate into dedicated secretory cells that release catecholamines in response to acetylcholine in vivo or nicotinic agonists in vitro. Previous studies have indicated that tyrosine kinases participate in early secretagogue-induced events in these cells and are required for exocytosis. Abundant levels of the cytoplasmic tyrosine kinases, c-Src and c-Yes, have been detected in chromaffin cells, thereby implicating them as kinases relevant to these events. However, c-Src has been found to undergo a decrease in activity following secretagogue-stimulation, and c-Yes appears to exist in a constituitively low activity state, suggesting that other tyrosine kinases are involved. Furthermore, other members of the Src family of tyrosine kinases have been implicated as playing roles in secretion in a variety of cell types. Therefore, we sought to determine if other Src family members were present in chromaffin cells, and if so, to examine them for subcellular localization and changes in activity following treatment with nicotinic agonists. To this end, antibodies for Fyn, Lck, Lyn, and Fgr were assembled and used in immunoprecipitation, in vitro autokinase, and Western immunoblotting assays. Of these four kinases, only Fyn was found to be expressed at detectable levels. Differential centrifugation studies revealed that Fyn resides predominantly (> 95%) in the crude plasma membrane fraction and undergoes nicotinic-and carbachol-induced activation. This activation is reduced by the nicotinic antagonist, mecamylamine, is not elicited by muscarine, and is dependent upon the presence of extracellular Ca2+. These results suggest that Fyn is involved in signalling through the nicotinic receptor and may be one of the relevant kinases responsible for at least some of the tyrosine phosphorylations detected after stimulation.

Tyrosine kinases are required for catecholamine secretion and mitogen-activated protein kinase activation in bovine adrenal chromaffin cells.

Nicotine-induced catecholamine secretion in bovine adrenomedullary chromaffin cells is accompanied by rapid tyrosine phosphorylation of multiple cellular proteins, most notably the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs). The requirement for activation of tyrosine kinases and MAPKs in chromaffin cell exocytosis was investigated using a panel of tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Genistein and tyrphostin 23, two compounds that inhibit tyrosine kinases by distinct mechanisms, were found to inhibit secretion by > 90% in cells stimulated by nicotine, 55 mM KCl, or the Ca2+ ionophore A23187. Inhibition of secretion induced by all three secretagogues correlated with a block in both protein tyrosine phosphorylation and activation of the MAPKs and their activators (MEKs) in situ. However, neither genistein nor tyrphostin 23 inhibited the activities of the MAPKs or MEKs in vitro. These results indicate that the target(s) of inhibition lie downstream of Ca2+ influx and upstream of MEK activation. This Ca(2+)-activated tyrosine kinase activity could not be accounted for entirely by c-Src or Fyn (two nonreceptor tyrosine kinases that are expressed abundantly in chromaffin cells), because their in vitro kinase activities were not inhibited by tyrphostin 23 and only partially inhibited by genistein. These results demonstrate that an unidentified Ca(2+)-activated tyrosine kinase(s) is required for MAPK activation and exocytosis in chromaffin cells and suggest that MAPK participates in the regulation of secretion.

pp60c-src enhances the acetylcholine receptor-dependent catecholamine release in vaccinia virus-infected bovine adrenal chromaffin cells.

Secretion of catecholamines by adrenal chromaffin cells is a highly regulated process that involves serine/threonine and tyrosine phosphorylations. The nonreceptor tyrosine kinase pp60c-src is expressed at high levels and localized to plasma membranes and secretory vesicle membranes in these cells, suggesting an interaction of this enzyme with components of the secretory process. To test the hypothesis that pp60c-src is involved in exocytosis, we transiently expressed exogenous c-src cDNA using a vaccinia virus vector in primary cultures of bovine adrenomedullary chromaffin cells. Chromaffin cells infected with a c-src recombinant virus restored the diminished secretory activity accompanying infection by wild type virus alone or a control recombinant virus. The level of enhanced catecholamine release correlated directly with the time and level of exogenous c-src expression. These results could not be attributed to differences in cytopathic effects of wild type versus recombinant viruses as assessed by cell viability assays, nor to differences in norepinephrine uptake or basal release, suggesting that pp60c-src is involved in stimulus-secretion coupling in infected cells. Surprisingly, exogenous expression of an enzymatically inactive mutant c-src also restored catecholamine release, indicating that regions of the introduced c-src protein other than the kinase domain may affect catecholamine release. Secretory activity was elevated by both forms of c-src in response to either nicotine or carbachol (which activate the nicotinic and the nicotinic/muscarinic receptors, respectively). In contrast, release of catecholamines upon membrane depolarization (as elicited by 55 mM K+) or by treatment with the calcium ionophore A23187 was unaffected by either vaccinia infection or increased levels of pp60c-src. These results suggest that pp60c-src affects secretory processes in vaccinia-infected cells that are activated through ligand-gated, but not voltage-gated, ion channels.

A 42-kD tyrosine kinase substrate linked to chromaffin cell secretion exhibits an associated MAP kinase activity and is highly related to a 42-kD mitogen-stimulated protein in fibroblasts.

The localization of the protein tyrosine kinase pp60c-src to the plasma membrane and to the membrane of secretory vesicles in neurally derived bovine chromaffin cells has suggested that tyrosine phosphorylations may be associated with the process of secretion. In the present study we have identified two cytosolic proteins of approximately 42 and 45 kD that become phosphorylated on tyrosine in response to secretagogue treatment. Phosphorylation of these proteins reached a maximum (3 min after stimulation) before maximum catecholamine release was observed (5-10 min after stimulation). Both secretion and tyrosine phosphorylation of p42 and p45 required extracellular Ca2+. Tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins of similar Mr have previously been identified in 3T3-L1 adipocytes stimulated with insulin (MAP kinase; Ray, L. B., and T. W. Sturgill. 1987. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 84:1502-1506) and in avian and rodent fibroblasts stimulated with a variety of mitogenic agents (Cooper, J. A., D. F. Bowen-Pope, E. Raines, R. Ross, and T. Hunter. 1982. Cell. 31:263-273; Nakamura, K. D., R. Martinez, and M. J. Weber. 1983. Mol. Cell. Biol. 3:380-390). Comparisons of the secretion-associated 42-kD protein of chromaffin cells with the 42-kD protein of Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts and 3T3-L1 adipocytes provide evidence that these three proteins are highly related. This evidence includes comigration during one-dimensional SDS-PAGE, cochromatography using ion exchange and hydrophobic matrices, similar isoelectric points, identical cyanogen-bromide peptide maps, and cochromatography of MAP kinase activity with the tyrosine-phosphorylated form of pp42. This protein(s), which appears to be activated in a variety of cell types, may serve a common function, perhaps in signal transduction involving a cascade of kinases.

Coordination and reversibility of signals for proliferative activation and interleukin-2 mRNA production in resting human T lymphocytes by phorbol ester and calcium ionophore.

Sequential stimulation and washout procedures were employed to examine the kinetics and reversibility of pharmacologically manipulated second messenger signals mediating phenotypic changes and proliferative activation of resting human T lymphocytes. Phorbol dibutyrate (PDBu) was used to stimulate protein kinase C (Ca2+/phospholipid-dependent enzyme) while ionomycin was used to manipulate intracellular Ca2+ levels. Stimulation by PDBu alone induced phosphorylation of several endogenous substrates and altered expression of phenotypic markers, downregulating expression of CD4 and CD3 while increasing expression of CD2 and the interleukin 2 (IL-2) receptor. Stimulation with ionomycin alone caused an increase in intracellular Ca2+ levels but did not induce proliferation or cause major changes in the expression of phenotypic markers (CD2, CD3, CD4, CD8, IL-2, and transferrin receptors). Analysis of endogenous PDBu stimulated phosphosubstrates indicated that some substrates (pp92, pp82, pp55) underwent dephosphorylation, returning to base-line levels following PDBu removal while others (pp61, pp65) showed only partial dephosphorylation, while one (pp28) remained phosphorylated. Washing ionomycin-stimulated cells resulted in an approximately 75% reduction of intracellular Ca2+. Ionomycin exposure did not alter the affinity (KD = 22.3 +/- 7.4 nM) or number of receptors (53,497 +/- 8,291 receptors/cell) for [3H]PDBu. These data suggest that signals induced by PDBu or ionomycin are reversible following removal of the stimulating agents with respect to proliferative activation of T lymphocytes. Furthermore, a transcriptional mechanism regulating the production of IL-2 mRNA requires simultaneous activation of protein kinase C and elevation of intracellular Ca2+.

Altered regulation of c-myc in an HL-60 differentiation resistant subclone, HL-60-1E3.

HL-60 cells treated with phorbol dibutyrate (PDBu) differentiate into cells which functionally and morphologically resemble macrophages (G. Rovera, D. Santoli, and D. Damskey, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 75: 2779-2783, 1979; E. Huberman and M.F. Callahan, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 76:1293-1298, 1979). This differentiation involves modulation of the expression of several cellular oncogenes. However, the significance of the temporal relationships between differentiation events and specific oncogene expression are not known. Others have reported that transcriptional down regulation of c-myc occurs early in the differentiation of HL-60 cells (R.D. Dalla-Favera et al., Haematol. Blood Transfusion, 28: 247-253, 1983; L.E. Grosso and H.C. Pitot, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 119: 473-480, 1984). To determine the significance of the regulation of c-myc during HL-60 maturation, we performed parallel PDBu induction studies analyzing the kinetics of expression of c-myc, cell cycle frequency distribution, cytotoxic effector activity, and clonogenic potential in HL-60 cells and in a partial-differentiation resistant HL-60 clone (HL-60-1E3) (J. A. Leftwich, P. Carlson, B. Adelman, and R. E. Hall, Cancer Res., 47: 1319-1324, 1987). We report that PDBu stimulation results in early c-myc transcriptional down regulation in the HL-60-1E3 clone cells with the same kinetics as has been previously reported for HL-60 parental cells (R. D. Dalla-Favera et al., Haematol. Blood Transfusion, 28: 247-253, 1983; L. E. Grosso and H. C. Pitot, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 119: 473-480, 1984). However, reexpression of c-myc occurs 15 hours postinduction in HL-60-1E3 but not parental cells. This reexpression is maintained through 30 h of stimulation and correlates with a lack of terminal commitment as assessed by an increase in clonogenic potential and the inability of these cells to acquire cytotoxic function. Sequential stimulation of HL-60-1E3 cells with DMSO and PDBu overcomes the block in macrophage differentiation (J. A. Leftwich, P. Carlson, B. Adelman, and R. E. Hall, Cancer Res., 47; 1319-1324, 1987). Such treatment results in a transient reexpression of c-myc at 15 h after PDBu treatment, and the complete downregulation of c-myc 24 h postinduction. These data suggest that the reported early decrease in c-myc transcripts following PDBu stimulus in HL-60 cells is not sufficient to commit these cells to macrophage-like terminal differentiation. Late regulation of c-myc gene expression may be an important additional component of the regulatory mechanisms which allow HL-60 cells to complete this program.

Monoclonal antibodies to Rous sarcoma virus pp60src react with enzymatically active cellular pp60src of avian and mammalian origin.

The derivation and characterization of 22 hybridoma clones producing monoclonal antibodies (Mabs) specific for the transforming protein of Rous sarcoma virus, pp60src, are described. All Mabs reacted with pp60v-src encoded by Prague, Schmidt-Ruppin, and Bratislava 77 strains of Rous sarcoma virus. Of these Mabs, 10 efficiently immunoprecipitated pp60c-src from chicken embryo cells. Of these 10 Mabs, 2 (GD11 and EB8) readily detected pp60c-src from a variety of rodent and human cultured cells and from rat brain tissue in an in vitro immune complex kinase assay. Mapping experiments have tentatively localized the determinant(s) recognized by GD11 and EB8 to a region of the src protein bounded by amino acid residues 82 to 169, whereas the remaining Mabs appeared to recognize determinants residing within residues 1 to 82 or 169 to 173. Most of the Mabs complexed denatured pp60v-src in a Western immunoblot, and several were used to localize pp60v-src in Rous sarcoma virus-transformed chicken embryo cells by indirect immunofluorescence microscopy.

Monoclonal antibodies specific for the virion polypeptide, p27, of avian retroviruses.

The major component of the core structure of avian sarcoma leukosis viruses is a 27 kD molecular weight polypeptide, p27. Spleen cells from mice immunized with the Schmidt-Ruppin strain of Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) were fused with mouse myeloma cells (SP2/0), and hybridoma cell lines producing monoclonal antibodies to p27 were isolated. The monoclonal antibodies were all of the IgG1 subclass with kappa light chains. These antibodies immunoprecipitated p27 and its precursor proteins from extracts of RSV-transformed cells. Reciprocal competitive binding experiments defined five nonoverlapping antigenic determinants within p27. The monoclonal antibodies also immunoprecipitated the transforming protein, p110gag-myc, from avian myelocytomatosis virus transformed cells. Their usefulness in studies of virion maturation and viral oncogenesis is discussed.

Isolation and partial characterization of a monoclonal antibody to the Rous sarcoma virus transforming protein pp60src.

Transformation of cells by Rous sarcoma virus is mediated by the product of the viral src gene, pp60src. A hybridoma cell line producing an immunoglobulin G3 antibody to pp60src was isolated after lymph node cells from immune mice were fused with mouse myeloma cells (P3-NS1-1). Mice were immunized with p60src purified from Escherichia coli cells expressing the src gene product. The monoclonal antibody immunoprecipitated pp60src from Rous sarcoma virus-transformed cells and recognized an antigenic determinant located in the amino-terminal third of the pp60src protein.