Role of serine phosphorylation of Stat5a in prolactin-stimulated beta-casein gene expression.

Milk production remains suppressed in mammals during late pregnancy despite high levels of lactogenic polypeptide hormones. At parturition, associated with a precipitous fall in circulating progesterone, rising glucocorticoid levels synergize with prolactin to initiate copious milk production. This synergy is mediated at least in part through the coordinated activation of glucocorticoid receptors and transcription factor Stat5, particularly Stat5a. Here we show that two proline-juxtaposed serine residues within the transactivation domain of Stat5a are phosphorylated in the mammary gland during late gestation and lactation, and that these phosphorylation sites inhibit the transcriptional activity of Stat5a in the absence of glucocorticoid receptor costimulation. Specifically, transfection assays revealed that phosphorylation of residues S725 and S779 of Stat5a cooperatively suppressed prolactin-stimulated transcription from the beta-casein promoter in both COS-7 kidney and MCF-7 mammary cells. This suppression was associated with shortened duration and reduced amplitude of nuclear DNA binding activity of wild type Stat5a relative to that of the serine phosphorylation-defective Stat5 mutant. However, costimulation of glucocorticoid receptors completely reversed the suppressive effect of Stat5a serine phosphorylation on beta-casein gene transcription. We propose that serine phosphorylation within the transactivation domain may limit the activity of Stat5a in the absence of proper coactivation by glucocorticoid receptors.

Glucocorticoid receptor gene mutations in leukemic cells acquired in vitro and in vivo.

Glucocorticoid resistance was investigated in human leukemic CCRF-CEM cells. A mutation (L753F), which renders the human glucocorticoid receptor (hGR) gene functionally hemizygous, was identified in all CEM-derived cell lines analyzed. Allele-specific PCR identified the same mutation in lymph node biopsy material from patient CEM cells. Given the correlation between hGR concentration and glucocorticoid sensitivity, this suggests that loss of functional heterozygosity may result in resistance to glucocorticoid-based chemotherapy. The L753F mutation was probably not responsible for the ontogeny of the disease because it did not appear to be present in all leukemic cells. Thus, it is unlikely that hGR mutations would be detected in leukemic patients at presentation, but they may occur, and be selected for, during treatment. Deletions and point mutations in the hGR gene of cells selected for steroid resistance in vitro were investigated by PCR-single strand conformation polymorphism analysis. Loss of hGR mRNA expression resulted from 5'-deletion of the hGR gene and nonsense mutations in exon 6. These results provide the first evidence for somatic mutation in the hGR gene of a patient with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, offer a potential in vivo mechanism for acquisition of steroid resistance in leukemia, and suggest that screening for additional in vivo mutations will require analysis of genomic DNA.

Glucocorticoid-induced cell death requires autoinduction of glucocorticoid receptor expression in human leukemic T cells.

In contrast to the negative autoregulation of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) expression seen in most cells and tissues, GR expression is positively autoregulated in human leukemic T cells and in other cells sensitive to glucocorticoid-induced cell death. To determine whether positive autoregulation is a necessary component of glucocorticoid-induced cell death, a wild-type GR gene under the control of a tetracycline-regulated promoter was stably transfected into glucocorticoid-resistant cells lacking endogenous functional receptor. Transfectants grown in the presence of tetracycline contained about 15,000 receptors/cell, a value approximately equal to basal level GR expression in glucocorticoid-sensitive 6TG1.1 cells before steroid treatment. Under these conditions, dexamethasone had a minimal effect on cell growth, elicited little internucleosomal DNA fragmentation, and induced no cell cycle perturbation. In the absence of tetracycline, GR mRNA and protein expression increased 2-3-fold, and cells expressed 48,000 receptors, a level nearly equivalent to that present in 6TG1.1 cells after 18 h of autoinduction. Under these conditions, dexamethasone markedly inhibited cell growth, caused G1 arrest, and induced significant internucleosomal DNA fragmentation. These studies therefore suggest that basal level GR expression is inadequate to mediate glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis in glucocorticoid-sensitive T cells and that positive autoregulation is a necessary component of this process.

Glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis and regulation of NF-kappaB activity in human leukemic T cells.

Glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis was investigated in glucocorticoid-sensitive 6TG1.1 and resistant ICR27TK.3 human leukemic T cells. Following glucocorticoid treatment of 6TG1.1 cells, chromatin fragmentation was observed after a delay of 24 h. Fragmentation was not observed in ICR27TK.3 cells containing mutant glucocorticoid receptors (L753F) that are activation-deficient but retain the ability to repress AP-1 activity. Nor was fragmentation observed after treatment with RU38486, indicating that repression of AP-1 activity is not involved. As described in other systems, fragmentation required ongoing protein synthesis. However, inhibition of protein synthesis with cycloheximide anytime during the first 18 h of steroid treatment was as effective in blocking chromatin fragmentation as inhibition for the entire period, suggesting that synthesis of a component with a rapid turnover rate is required. Dexamethasone treatment completely blocked 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate induction of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) activity and elicited an increase in the amount of immunoreactive IkappaB alpha in sensitive 6TG1.1 cells but not in resistant ICR27TK.3 cells. In addition, mild detergent treatment of cell extracts indicated that a substantial amount of cytoplasmic NF-kappaB is complexed with IkappaB alpha or some other inhibitory factor. These results suggest that induction of a labile inhibitory factor such as IkappaB alpha may contribute to glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis.

Transfection with aFGF cDNA improves wound healing.

Somatic gene therapy is a potentially useful strategy for the delivery of growth factors or cytokines to enhance wound healing. Experimental excisional and incisional wounds in impaired-healing diabetic mice (db/db) were treated with aFGF and with a plasmid coding for aFGF. A eukaryotic expression plasmid composed of the Hst signal peptide sequence in-frame with the human aFGF sequence was used. Transfection of tissues was accomplished either by direct plasmid uptake or by uptake facilitated with cationic liposomes. The results show that the closure of excisional wounds was significantly accelerated (p < 0.05) by topical application of human recombinant aFGF or by transfection with the aFGF plasmid but not by vehicle or control plasmid not containing the aFGF sequence. In incisional wounds, aFGF or transfection with the plasmid significantly increased the wound-breaking strength compared to their corresponding controls (p < 0.05). Quantitative histology of the plasmid-treated incisional wound sections revealed improved wound quality. The transcription of mRNA from human aFGF cDNA in the incisional wound tissue extracts was confirmed by RT-PCR, and the expressed aFGF was detected by immune dot blot and immunohistochemistry assays. The transfection was a transient process with a peak at 9 d in db/+ (littermates of the diabetic mice) incisional wounds, at 36 d in db/db incisional wounds, and at 27 d in db/db excisional wounds. Cells transfected with human aFGF occupied up to 6.4% of the transectional area in the wound sites. Thus, aFGF gene delivery resulted in both gene expression and a functional improvement in healing.

Heat shock mimics glucocorticoid effects on IFN-gamma-induced Fc gamma RI and Ia messenger RNA expression in mouse peritoneal macrophages.

Glucocorticoids activate or repress the expression of different genes. In murine macrophages, glucocorticoids exert opposing effects on the IFN-gamma-induced expression of Fc gamma RI and Ia mRNA and cell surface expression; they enhance IFN-gamma-induced Fc gamma RI mRNA and protein expression, yet inhibit IFN-gamma-induced Ia mRNA and protein expression. Recently, in transfected cell lines, heat shock (HS) has been shown to promote nuclear accumulation of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), resulting in potentiation of certain GR-mediated responses. In this study, we compared the effects of HS and dexamethasone (DEX) treatment on the IFN-gamma induction of Fc gamma RI and Ia mRNA in murine primary peritoneal macrophages. Our results show that HS exerted the same opposing effects on these IFN-gamma-responsive genes as DEX at 37 degrees C. The glucocorticoid antagonist RU 486 blocked both DEX and HS-induced enhancement of IFN-gamma induction of Fc gamma RI, suggesting a common GR-mediated mechanism. While RU 486 also reversed DEX-induced repression of Ia mRNA expression, supporting a GR-mediated action, it did not affect HS-mediated repression, raising the possibility of a ligand-independent HS response pathway.

Hormone-independent repression of AP-1-inducible collagenase promoter activity by glucocorticoid receptors.

The role of the ligand in glucocorticoid receptor-mediated transactivation and transrepression of gene expression was investigated. Half-maximal transactivation of a mouse mammary tumor virus-chloramphenicol acetyltransferase reporter gene in transfected cells expressing the human glucocorticoid receptor mutant GRL753F, from which the rate of ligand dissociation is four to five times higher than the rate of dissociation from normal receptors, required a 200- to 300-fold-higher concentration of dexamethasone than was required in cells expressing the normal receptor. Immunocytochemical analysis demonstrated that this difference was not the result of a failure of the mutant receptor to accumulate in the nucleus after steroid treatment. In contrast, in cells cotransfected with a reporter gene containing the AP-1-inducible collagenase gene promoter, the concentration of dexamethasone required for 50% transrepression was the same for mutant and normal receptors. Efficient receptor-mediated transrepression was also observed with the double mutant GRL753F/C421Y, in which the first cysteine residue of the proximal zinc finger has been replaced by tyrosine, indicating that neither retention of the ligand nor direct binding of the receptor to DNA is required. RU38486 behaved as a full agonist with respect to transrepression. In addition, receptor-dependent transrepression, but not transactivation, was observed in transfected cells after heat shock in the absence of the ligand. Taken together, these results suggest that unlike transactivation, transrepression of AP-1 activity by the nuclear glucocorticoid receptor is ligand independent.

Cloning and expression of mutant glucocorticoid receptors from glucocorticoid-sensitive and -resistant human leukemic cells.

The molecular basis for the receptorless (r-) and activation-labile (act1) phenotypes of glucocorticoid-resistant mutants isolated from glucocorticoid-sensitive human leukemic CEM-C7 cells was determined. Clones isolated from a complementary DNA library prepared from r- ICR27TK.3 cells, in which one glucocorticoid receptor (GR) gene has been deleted, contained a single adenosine to thymidine transversion in the third position of codon 753, resulting in the substitution of phenylalanine for leucine. This mutant gene (GR753F) had only 13% of the trans-activating activity of the normal gene and produced a M(r) 92,000 receptor protein with the same r- phenotype seen in ICR27TK.3 cells. Analysis of complementary DNA clones isolated from a library prepared from parental glucocorticoid-sensitive 6TG1.1 cells showed that these cells express both a normal GR gene (GR+) and the GR753F gene. Thus, their genotype is GR+/GR753F. Analysis of clones isolated from a complementary DNA library prepared from glucocorticoid-resistant activation-labile 3R7. 6TG.4 cells revealed the presence of the GR753F gene and a second mutant gene (GR421Y) containing a guanosine to adenosine transition in the second position of codon 421, resulting in the replacement of the first cysteine of the proximal zinc finger of the DNA-binding domain by tyrosine. This mutant had no trans-activating activity but normal ligand-binding characteristics. Thus, the genotype of act1 3R7.6TG.4 cells is GR421Y/GR753F. Consequently, the sequence-specific DNA-binding activity of receptors in act1 cells is attributable to the GR753F gene, while the ligand-binding activity seen in intact cells is attributable to the GR421Y gene. These results provide a direct explanation for the r- and act1 phenotypes of glucocorticoid-resistant cells and demonstrate that glucocorticoid-sensitive cells derived from CEM-C7 cells contain a heterogeneous population of normal and mutant receptors.

Glucocorticoid receptor binding to rat liver nuclei occurs without nuclear transport.

The binding of cell-free activated glucocorticoid receptor-steroid complexes from HTC cells to various preparations of HTC and rat liver nuclei has been examined under conditions that did or did not support the nuclear translocation of macromolecules via nuclear pores. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first such study with functionally active isolated nuclei. Conventionally prepared HTC nuclei were found to be porous, as determined from their inability to exclude the fluorescent macromolecule phycoerythrin (PE) at 4 degrees C. Thus the nuclear binding of activated complexes to these nuclei can not involve nuclear translocation. Further studies, using established conditions with sealed nuclei prepared from rat liver, revealed that nuclear translocation of PE containing a covalently linked, authentic nuclear translocation sequence could be obtained at 22 degrees C, but not at 4 degrees C. However, under the same conditions, activated glucocorticoid complexes displayed equal levels of nuclear binding at both temperatures. We therefore conclude that the current translocation conditions with intact rat liver nuclei are not sufficient to reproduce the nuclear transport of glucocorticoid complexes observed in intact cells. The nuclear binding that was seen with intact rat liver nuclei was not affected by aurintricarboxylic acid, which selectively inhibits protein-nucleic acid interactions. The antibody AP-64, shown to be specific for amino acids 506-514 of the nuclear translocation sequence of the rat glucocorticoid receptor, inhibited the nuclear binding of activated complexes, apparently by blocking receptor access to the nuclear membrane. Collectively, these data argue that activated complex binding to nuclei capable of nuclear translocation involves only an association with nuclear membrane components such as nuclear pores. Thus this system, and these reagents, may be useful in future studies of activated complex binding to nuclear pores.

Differential autoregulation of glucocorticoid receptor expression in human T- and B-cell lines.

Regulation of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) expression by its cognate ligand was examined in the glucocorticoid-sensitive human leukemic T-cell line 6TG1.1 and in the human B-cell line IM-9. In contrast to the decrease in GR mRNA seen in IM-9 cells after treatment with 1 microM dexamethasone for 16-18 h, treatment of 6TG1.1 cells resulted in an 8-fold increase in GR mRNA, as determined by Northern blot and RNase protection analysis, with a corresponding 3- to 4-fold increase in GR protein. Half-maximal induction of GR mRNA and protein in 6TG1.1 cells was observed between 10-100 nM dexamethasone, and inclusion of 1 microM RU 38486 completely blocked the effects of 100 nM dexamethasone, demonstrating that positive autoregulation of GR expression in 6TG1.1 cells is a receptor-mediated response. Positive autoregulation of GR expression was also observed in glucocorticoid-resistant CEM-C1 cells, which contain functional GR, but whose growth is unaffected by glucocorticoids. Thus, positive autoregulation is neither a consequence nor the sole cause of growth arrest. The degree of negative autoregulation in IM-9 cells and positive autoregulation in 6TG1.1 cells was unaffected by inhibition of protein synthesis with cycloheximide. Measurement of GR mRNA turnover in 6TG1.1 cells treated with actinomycin-D revealed a half-life of 2.5 h, which was unaffected by dexamethasone treatment. A similar half-life was determined in IM-9 cells and was also unaffected by steroid treatment. These results are consistent with the interpretation that glucocorticoid-mediated autoregulation of GR expression is a tissue-specific primary transcriptional response.

Evidence that the hormone binding domain of steroid receptors confers hormonal control on chimeric proteins by determining their hormone-regulated binding to heat-shock protein 90.

Previously, it has been shown that the hormone binding domain of the glucocorticoid receptor acts as a transferable regulatory cassette that can confer hormonal control onto chimeric proteins [Picard, D., Salser, S. J., & Yamamoto, K. R. (1988) Cell 54, 1073-1080]. The hormone binding domain of the glucocorticoid receptor contains its site of interaction with the 90-kDa heat-shock protein, hsp90 [Dalman, F. C., Scherrer, L. C., Taylor, L. P., Akil, H., & Pratt, W. B. (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 3482-3490]. We have now transfected COS cells with cDNAs for fusion proteins containing beta-galactosidase and portions of the glucocorticoid receptor, and we demonstrate a correlation between hormone regulation of fusion protein localization and binding of the fusion proteins to hsp90. The hormone binding domain (residues 540-795) of the rat glucocorticoid receptor is sufficient for conferring hormone regulation onto a fusion protein and for intracellular binding of a fusion protein to hsp90. The hormone binding domain of the rat glucocorticoid or the human estrogen receptor is also sufficient to permit reticulocyte lysate-mediated refolding of a fusion protein into association with hsp90. Consistent with the results of fusion protein localization in intact cells, binding of a fusion protein to hsp90 blocks binding of antibody directed against the NL1 nuclear localization signal of the glucocorticoid receptor. These observations argue strongly that the hormone binding domain of the glucocorticoid receptor confers hormonal control of fusion proteins by conferring hormone-regulated binding to hsp90.

Human glucocorticoid receptor gene deletion following exposure to cancer chemotherapeutic drugs and chemical mutagens.

The sensitivity of the human glucocorticoid receptor (hGR) gene to mutagenesis by the cancer chemotherapeutic drugs adriamycin, bleomycin, and chlorambucil was evaluated using glucocorticoid-sensitive (dexs) subclones of the human leukemic cell line CEM-C7. Treatment of cells with either bleomycin or chlorambucil increased the frequency of glucocorticoid-resistant (dexr) clones 3.3- and 10-fold, respectively. Measurement of steroid-binding activity in intact dexr cells demonstrated that the predominant phenotype of drug-induced dexr clones was receptorless (r-). dexs CEM cells express only one functional hGR allele and, in addition, are heterozygous for a BclI restriction fragment length polymorphism in the hGR gene (L. A. Palmer and J. M. Harmon, Cancer Res., 51:5224-5231, 1991). To determine the basis of the r- phenotype, BclI digests of genomic DNA isolated from r+ and r- cell lines were examined for the presence of the polymorphic 2.4- and 4.4-kilobase digestion products. A deletion of all or part of the hGR gene was demonstrated by the absence of the 4.4-kilobase fragment in one of two bleomycin-induced dexr clones, as well as the ICR191-induced dexr cell line ICR27TK.3. Cytogenetic analysis of ICR27TK.3 showed that the distal portion of the long arm of one chromosome 5 had been replaced with a portion of chromosome 15. Thus, in at least two dexr cell lines, deletions and/or chromosome breaks in the hGR locus appear to account for the r- phenotype.

Stability and sequence-specific DNA binding of activation-labile mutants of the human glucocorticoid receptor.

The stability and DNA-binding properties of activation-labile (act1) human glucocorticoid receptors (hGRs) from the glucocorticoid-resistant mutant 3R7.6TG.4 were investigated. These receptors are able to bind reversibly associating ligands with normal affinity and specificity, but become unstable during attempted activation to the DNA binding form [Harmon et al. (1984) J. Steroid Biochem. 21, 227-236]. Affinity labeling and immunochemical analysis demonstrated that act1 receptors are not preferentially proteolyzed during attempted activation. In addition, analysis of binding to calf thymus DNA showed that after loss of ligand, act1 receptors retain the ability to bind to DNA nonspecifically. A 370 bp MMTV promoter fragment containing multiple GREs and an upstream 342 bp fragment lacking GRE sequences were used to assess the binding of act1 hGR to specific DNA sequences. Immunoadsorption of hGR-DNA complexes after incubation with 32P-end-labeled fragments showed that both normal and act1 hGR bound selectively to the GRE-containing fragment in an activation-dependent manner. Binding of both normal and act1 hGRs could be blocked with a synthetic oligonucleotide containing a perfect palindromic GRE, but not with an oligonucleotide in which the GRE was replaced by an ERE. Analogous results were obtained for normal and act1 hGR activated in the absence of ligand, or after incubation with the glucocorticoid antagonist RU 38486. These results suggest that sequence-specific binding of the hGR does not require the presence of bound ligand and suggest a role for the ligand in trans-activation of hormonally responsive genes.

Biochemical evidence that glucocorticoid-sensitive cell lines derived from the human leukemic cell line CCRF-CEM express a normal and a mutant glucocorticoid receptor gene.

To characterize the immunoreactive glucocorticoid receptor (GR) protein present in "receptorless" (r-) mutants isolated from the glucocorticoid-sensitive (dexs) human leukemic cell line CEM-C7, binding of [3H]dexamethasone was determined in extracts prepared from the sensitive cell line 6TG1.1 and the r- mutant ICR27TK.3 after gentle freeze-thaw lysis and low-speed centrifugation. Under these conditions there was significant high-affinity binding activity in r- extracts assayed at 4 degrees C but not at 23 degrees C. Loss of binding at 23 degrees C was not a function of GR proteolysis or denaturation of the steroid-binding site and could be prevented by the addition of sodium molybdate. Dissociation of ligand from either activated or unactivated receptors in r- extracts was significantly more rapid than from receptors in extracts prepared from normal cells, suggesting that the defect in receptors in r- cells is the result of mutation in the ligand-binding site. While the rate of dissociation from unactivated receptors in r- extracts was linear, dissociation from receptors in extracts of 6TG1.1 cells was biphasic. Analysis of these dissociation curves, as well as dissociation from receptors in the B-cell line IM-9, indicated that the mutant gene present in r- cells is also present in the dexs parental cell line. This conclusion is consistent with our previous hypothesis (J.M. Harmon et al., Mol. Endocrinol., 3:734-743, 1989) that glucocorticoid-sensitive CCRF-CEM cells express both a normal (GR+) and a mutant (GR*) allele.

Hormone-free mouse glucocorticoid receptors overexpressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells are localized to the nucleus and are associated with both hsp70 and hsp90.

In this work, we examine the cellular localization and protein interactions of mouse glucocorticoid receptors that have been overexpressed in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells (Hirst, M. A., Northrop, J. P., Danielsen, M., and Ringold, G. M. (1990) Mol. Endocrinol. 4, 162-170). We demonstrate that wild-type unliganded mouse glucocorticoid receptor, which is expressed in CHO cells to a level approximately 10 times that of L cells, is localized entirely to the nucleus by indirect immunofluorescence with the BuGR antireceptor monoclonal antibody. Overexpressed receptors that have either no hormone binding activity or no DNA binding activity because of point mutations also localize to the nucleus, providing genetic proof that the nuclear localization cannot reflect a steroid-mediated shift of the receptor from the cytoplasm to the nucleus and that DNA binding activity is not required for nuclear localization. Like unliganded progesterone receptors, which also associate in a loosely bound "docking" complex with the nucleus, the mouse glucocorticoid receptor overexpressed in CHO cells is associated with both hsp90 and hsp70. This is in contrast to the untransformed mouse glucocorticoid receptor in L cell cytosol, which is associated with hsp90 but not hsp70. The difference in hsp70 association between cell types could reflect overexpression of the receptor in CHO cells. However, like receptors in CHO cells selected for very high levels of overexpression, receptors in CHO cells selected for an intermediate level of receptor expression that is comparable to that of L cells are also bound to hsp70. This observation argues against an explanation of hsp70 association based purely on receptor overexpression, and we speculate that association of the unliganded glucocorticoid receptor with hsp70 might be a consequence of its nuclear localization in the CHO cells. Although there are differences between the mouse receptor in CHO cells and L cells, the nuclear localization signal of the untransformed mouse receptor reacts equivalently with the AP64 antibody against NL1 in cytosols prepared from both cell types.

Use of high-resolution two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and affinity labeling to probe glucocorticoid receptor structure and function.

The possible role of posttranslational modification in glucocorticoid receptor regulation was investigated. Glucocorticoid receptor (GR), prepared from the human B-cell line IM-9 and affinity labeled with [3H]-dexamethasone 21-mesylate, was examined by a combination of one-dimensional sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and high-resolution two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Two-dimensional electrophoresis of immunopurified [3H]dexamethasone 21-mesylate-labeled GR revealed the presence of two isoelectric species (apparent pI approximately to 5.7, and 6.0-6.5). Both forms were present in preparations of unactivated receptor. After GR activation, the pI of neither isoform was altered, indicating that activation does not involve covalent charge modification of the steroid-binding protein. However, only the pI 6.0-6.5 isoform bound to DNA, suggesting that covalent charge modification of the GR can alter its ability to bind to DNA. Two-dimensional electrophoresis of tryptic and chymotryptic fragments showed that the charge heterogeneity responsible for the two GR isoforms is located in a Mr 26,500 tryptic fragment derived from the steroid-binding domain of the protein. In addition, analysis of [3H]dexamethasone 21-mesylate-labeled tryptic fragments suggests that the Mr 26,500 fragment corresponds to residues 499-743 of the human GR. These results demonstrate that posttranslational modification of the steroid-binding domain may regulate the ability of the protein to bind to DNA.

Glucocorticoid receptor expression in receptorless mutants isolated from the human leukemic cell line CEM-C7.

The molecular basis for the loss of steroid binding activity in receptorless (r-) glucocorticoid-resistant (dexr) mutants isolated from the glucocorticoid-sensitive (dexs) cell line CEM-C7 was investigated. Although there was little binding of the reversibly associating ligand [3H]dexamethasone in r- mutants, labeling with the covalent affinity ligand [3H] dexamethasone 21-mesylate revealed significant amounts of a 92 kilodalton human glucocorticoid receptor (hGR) protein. Immunoblots of hGR protein in r- and normal cells showed that r- mutants expressed approximately half the amount of immunoreactive hGR protein seen in dexs cells. Comparison of the genomic organization of the hGR genes in normal and mutant cells revealed no discernable differences in the structure, or dosage, indicating that the r- phenotype was not the result of gross deletion or rearrangement of the hGR genes. In addition, r- cells expressed the same 7 kilobase mRNA as normal cells. More importantly, the amount of hGR mRNA expressed in r- cells was never significantly less, and in some cases was greater than, that seen in normal cells, indicating that the decrease in immunoreactive hGR protein seen in r- cells is not the result of loss of hGR mRNA expression. Taken together with the known mutation rate of the hGR gene(s) in these cells, these results suggest that the hGR genes in dexs CEM-C7 cells are allelic and that dexs cells express both a normal hGR protein and one with an altered steroid binding site. Furthermore, they suggest that the r- phenotype is acquired as the result of mutation within the coding region of the originally functional allele, leading to loss of ligand binding and expression of immunoreactive product.

Region-specific antiglucocorticoid receptor antibodies selectively recognize the activated form of the ligand-occupied receptor and inhibit the binding of activated complexes to deoxyribonucleic acid.

A synthetic 18-amino acid peptide (Cys500-Lys517) was used to raise polyclonal antibodies in rabbits to the glucocorticoid receptor (GR). The sequence of this peptide is identical to that of residues 500-517 of the rat and 481-498 of the human GR. This sequence overlaps the carboxy-terminal end of the core DNA-binding domain and the amino-terminus of the hinge region of the receptor. Antiserum (AP64) was obtained which recognized both human and rat GR, as determined by immunoblots of receptors immunopurified with authentic anti-GR antibodies, immunoadsorption of both specific [3H]dexamethasone-bound GR and 98K receptors that were specifically covalently labeled by [3H]dexamethasone mesylate, and AP64-induced shifts in the elution position of monomeric [3H]dexamethasone-bound GR from Sephacryl S-300. The specificity of AP64 was demonstrated by the ability of the immunizing peptide, but not a peptide of similar length, to inhibit both the antibody-induced change in elution position from Sephacryl S-300 and the antibody-mediated immobilization of [3H]dexamethasone-bound complexes by protein-A. Further studies indicated that AP64 did not react with native steroid-free GR or with steroidbound (or affinity-labeled) unactivated GR, but did selectively associated with monomeric activated, steroid-bound (or affinity labeled) complexes. AP64 also inhibited the DNA binding of activated complexes in a manner that was specifically blocked by the immunizing peptide. Collectively, these data allow the direct localization of a structural region of the GR that is occluded in the unactivated complex but exposed as a result of activation.

Activation of the human glucocorticoid receptor: evidence for a two-step model.

The relationship between glucocorticoid receptor subunit dissociation and activation was investigated by DEAE-cellulose and DNA-cellulose chromatography of monomeric and multimeric [3H]triamcinolone acetonide ([3H]TA)-labeled IM-9 cell glucocorticoid receptors. Multimeric (7-8 nm) and monomeric (5-6 nm) complexes were isolated by Sephacryl S-300 chromatography. Multimeric complexes did not bind to DNA-cellulose and eluted from DEAE-cellulose at a salt concentration (0.2 M KCl) characteristic of unactivated steroid-receptor complexes. Monomeric [3H]TA-receptor complexes eluted from DEAE-cellulose at a salt concentration (20 mM KCl) characteristic of activated steroid-receptor complexes. However, only half of these complexes bound to DNA-cellulose. This proportion could not be increased by heat treatment, addition of bovine serum albumin, or incubation with RNase A. Incubation of monomeric complexes with heat inactivated cytosol resulted in a 2-fold increase in DNA-cellulose binding. Unlike receptor dissociation, this increase was not inhibited by the presence of sodium molybdate. Fractionation of heat inactivated cytosol by Sephadex G-25 chromatography demonstrated that the activity responsible for the increased DNA binding of monomeric [3H]TA-receptor complexes was macromolecular. These results are consistent with a two-step model for glucocorticoid receptor activation, in which subunit dissociation is a necessary but insufficient condition for complete activation. They also indicate that conversion of the steroid-receptor complex to the low-salt eluting form is a reflection of receptor dissociation but not necessarily acquisition of DNA-binding activity.