Atm and Bax cooperate in ionizing radiation-induced apoptosis in the central nervous system.

Ataxia-telangiectasia is a hereditary multisystemic disease resulting from mutations of ataxia telangiectasia, mutated (ATM) and is characterized by neurodegeneration, cancer, immune defects, and hypersensitivity to ionizing radiation. The molecular details of ATM function in the nervous system are unclear, although the neurological lesion in ataxia-telangiectasia becomes apparent early in life, suggesting a developmental origin. The central nervous system (CNS) of Atm-null mice shows a pronounced defect in apoptosis induced by genotoxic stress, suggesting ATM functions to eliminate neurons with excessive genomic damage. Here, we report that the death effector Bax is required for a large proportion of Atm-dependent apoptosis in the developing CNS after ionizing radiation (IR). Although many of the same regions of the CNS in both Bax-/- and Atm-/- mice were radioresistant, mice nullizygous for both Bax and Atm showed additional reduction in IR-induced apoptosis in the CNS. Therefore, although the major IR-induced apoptotic pathway in the CNS requires Atm and Bax, a p53-dependent collateral pathway exists that has both Atm- and Bax-independent branches. Further, Atm- and Bax-dependent apoptosis in the CNS also required caspase-3 activation. These data implicate Bax and caspase-3 as death effectors in neurodegenerative pathways.

Ataxia telangiectasia mutated deficiency affects astrocyte growth but not radiosensitivity.

The cancer-prone neurodegenerative disorder, ataxia telangiectasia (A-T), results from mutations of ATM (ataxia telangiectasia mutated). Individuals with A-T are also hypersensitive to ionizing radiation (IR). Cultured cells from A-T individuals or Atm-/- mice have cell cycle and growth defects and are generally considered radiosensitive. However, it has been shown recently that cell populations in the Atm-/- central nervous system are radioresistant. To define specific IR sensitivities of neural populations, we analyzed Atm-/- astrocytes. Here we show that Atm-/- astrocytes exhibit premature senescence, express constitutively high levels of p21, and have impaired p53 stabilization. However, in contrast to radiosensitive Atm-/- fibroblasts and radioresistant Atm-/- neurons, survival of Atm-/- astrocytes after IR was similar to wild-type astrocytes. Additionally, p53-null astrocytes, but not fibroblasts, were moderately more radioresistant than their wild-type counterparts, suggesting that the deficit in p53 stabilization observed in Atm-null cells is not a measure of radiation susceptibility. Thus, in astrocytes, the function of Atm in cellular growth and radiosensitivity is distinct. These data may have implications for ATM disruption strategies as a radiosensitizing treatment for brain tumors.

Effects of ATP and bradykinin on endothelial cell Ca2+ homeostasis and formation of cGMP and prostacyclin.

ATP and bradykinin are known to activate Ca2+ release from intracellular Ca2+ pools as well as induce the influx of Ca2+ in many cell types. In adrenal medulla endothelial cells, we found that ATP and bradykinin could activate Ca2+ influx, although Ca2+ influx did not appear to be due to depletion of intracellular Ca2+ pools per se, since depletion of intracellular Ca2+ pools with thapsigargin reduced rather than enhanced both unidirectional and steady-state 45Ca2+ uptake. In addition, Ca2+ influx, activated by ATP but not bradykinin, was mostly abolished after agonist removal in cells in which intracellular Ca2+ pools had not been allowed to refill, suggesting that continued receptor occupancy was necessary for ATP to activate Ca2+ influx. The role of Ca2+ in activating guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cGMP) formation [a marker for nitric oxide (NO) secretion] and prostacyclin (PGI2) secretion was also studied. Bradykinin-induced cGMP and PGI2 formation and ATP-induced PGI2 formation each required Ca2+ release from intracellular Ca2+ pools, since depletion of these pools with thapsigargin inhibited their formation. In contrast, ATP-induced cGMP formation, particularly at early time points, did not appear to require either Ca2+ release or Ca2+ influx. This suggests that ATP, but not bradykinin, either induces Ca(2+)-independent NO formation or that ATP stimulates the generation of cGMP independently of NO. The latter supposition is supported by our observation that NO synthase inhibitors inhibited ATP-induced cGMP formation by at most 50%.

Function of rat hepatocyte tight junctions: studies with bile acid infusions.

To determine the effects of alteration of biliary paracellular permeability on bile flow and composition, we measured the biliary outputs of compounds highly concentrated in bile, all infused at a constant rate in the isolated rat liver perfused with Krebs-Henseleit buffer in a one-pass fashion. Paracellular permeability was increased by infusing 10(-8) M vasopressin (VP). The cholephilic compounds were three cations of various molecular weights, tributylmethylammonium (TBuMA), N-acetylprocainamide ethobromide (APAEB), and propidium iodide, and two anions, taurocholate (TC), a micelle-forming bile acid, and taurodehydrocholate (TDHC), an nonmicelle former. When TC was infused and paracellular permeability increased with VP, neither bile flow nor TC output changed, whereas outputs of cations fell. When TDHC was infused, TDHC output fell, as did outputs of all cations. The decrements in cation outputs exceeded that of TDHC and were inversely related to the molecular weight of the cation. To document that these changes were not related to reduced uptake of these compounds, we tested the uptakes of TBuMA, APAEB, and TDHC into isolated hepatocytes. In no case did 10(-8) M VP significantly reduce uptake. The data demonstrate that micelle-forming bile acids, with their high effective molecular weights, do not efflux from the biliary tree when permeability is increased with VP, whereas nonmicelle-forming bile acids do. Cations efflux more readily than anions, and within this group efflux rate is inversely related to molecular weight. The data confirm the size and charge selectivity of biliary tree permeability.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Nature of taurodehydrocholic acid uptake in rat hepatocytes.

We studied uptake into isolated rat hepatocytes of the bile acid analogue taurodehydrocholate (TDHC) over a concentration range of 2.5-4,000 microM. Uptake was mainly by a saturable sodium-dependent process with a Km of approximately 50 microM and a Vmax of 0.036 nmol.s-1.mg protein-1. A lesser sodium-independent process was evident but was linear in the range studied. Both processes were inhibited by incubation at 37 degrees C under nitrogen in the presence of 3 mM sodium cyanide or by incubation at 0 degrees C. A single transport site was suggested by the Eadie-Hofstee plot of TDHC uptake from 2.5 to 750 microM. TDHC was a weak competitive inhibitor of taurocholic acid (TCA) uptake (Ki = 236 microM) but was not itself taken up by the TCA transport site. TCA exhibited moderately potent mixed inhibition of TDHC uptake. Uptake of both compounds was strongly inhibited by bromosulfophthalein (BSP) and Rose Bengal, whereas 0.5 mM alanine uptake was not affected. BSP exhibited a complex pattern of inhibition of TDHC uptake: mixed partial inhibition. Degree of inhibition of both TDHC and TCA uptake did not increase as BSP concentrations were increased from 50 to 100 microM. BSP did not exert its inhibitory effects by alteration of membrane potential or sodium gradients; 50 microM BSP changed membrane potential less than 10% and sodium gradient not at all. The data indicate that despite close structural analogy between TDHC and TCA, the two compounds are taken up by different sodium-dependent mechanisms. Nonetheless, the similar qualitative and quantitative effects of BSP on their uptakes suggests the mechanisms are related.