Protein kinase-zeta interacts with munc18c: role in GLUT4 trafficking.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Insulin-stimulated glucose transport requires a signalling cascade through kinases protein kinase (PK) Czeta/lambda and PKB that leads to movement of GLUT4 vesicles to the plasma membrane. The aim of this study was to identify missing links between the upstream insulin-regulated kinases and the GLUT4 vesicle trafficking system. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A yeast two-hybrid screen was conducted, using as bait full-length mouse munc18c, a protein known to be part of the GLUT4 vesicle trafficking machinery. RESULTS: The yeast two-hybrid screen identified PKCzeta as a novel interactor with munc18c. Glutathione S transferase (GST) pull-downs with GST-tagged munc18c constructs confirmed the interaction, mapped a key region of munc18c that binds PKCzeta to residues 295-338 and showed that the N-terminal region of PKCzeta was required for the interaction. Endogenous munc18c was shown to associate with endogenous PKCzeta in vivo in various cell types. Importantly, insulin stimulation increased the association by approximately three-fold. Moreover, disruption of PKCzeta binding to munc18c by deletion of residues 295-338 of munc18c or deletion of the N-terminal region of PKCzeta markedly inhibited the ability of insulin to stimulate glucose uptake or GLUT4 translocation. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: We have identified a physiological interaction between munc18c and PKCzeta that is insulin-regulated. This establishes a link between a kinase (PKCzeta) involved in the insulin signalling cascade and a known component of the GLUT4 vesicle trafficking pathway (munc18c). The results indicate that PKCzeta regulates munc18c and suggest a model whereby insulin triggers the docking of PKCzeta to munc18c, resulting in enhanced GLUT4 translocation to the plasma membrane.

Fibronectin-mediated hepatocyte shape change reprograms cytochrome P450 2C11 gene expression via an integrin-signaled induction of ribonuclease activity.

A major limitation to the use of rat hepatocytes in the study of drug metabolism and toxicity is the rapid loss of CYPs. We demonstrate that the culture of rat hepatocytes results in a rapid loss of liver-specific CYP2C11 mRNA and transcripts encoding the general housekeeping gene copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD) as well as poly(A(+)) mRNA. These losses are accelerated by fibronectin, which has no effect on the transcription of CYP2C11 and CuZnSOD. However, fibronectin, an extracellular matrix protein involved in cell adhesion and spreading, induces ribonuclease (RNase) activity. Fibronectin also increases hepatocyte diameter and data are presented that cell spreading is involved in the loss of both CYP2C11 and CuZnSOD mRNAs. The use of functional blocking antibodies demonstrates that fibronectin is operating through its alpha(5)beta(1) integrin receptor and genistein, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, prevents hepatocyte spreading, RNase induction, and CYP2C11 mRNA loss. Collectively, the data indicate that hepatocytes in vitro actively promote the extinction of their phenotype via the autocrine effects of fibronectin rather than the current consensus that they simply lose differentiated function, such as CYP2C11 expression, through the absence of extracellular matrix proteins. The substrate specificity of the ribonuclease induced is also considered.

Temperature-sensitive mRNA degradation is an early event in hepatocyte de-differentiation.

The isolation and culture of metabolically active hepatocytes by proteolytic digestion of the extracellular matrix of the liver results in the transcriptional silencing of liver-specific genes encoding cytochromes P-450 (CYP) and albumin together with an induction of cellular RNase activity. The levels of albumin mRNA are maintained in cultured hepatocytes at similar levels to that present in the intact liver for at least 24 h, whereas the major constitutively expressed CYP2C11 mRNA is rapidly degraded. Hepatocytes heat-shocked at 40 degrees C during the isolation procedure (which results in an induction of heat-shock protein mRNA species) blocks the increase in RNase activity and abrogates the loss of CYP2C11 mRNA for at least 4 h. Cycloheximide-dependent inhibition of protein synthesis blocks the temperature-dependent induction of heat-shock proteins without affecting the protection afforded to CYP2C11 mRNA, indicating that CYP2C11 mRNA levels are not directly dependent on heat-shock protein induction and suggesting that the induction of RNase activity might be responsible for the specific loss of CYP2C11 mRNA in hepatocytes isolated at 37 degrees C. Differential rates of degradation of CYP2C11 transcribed in vitro and of albumin mRNA are observed in the presence of cellular extracts from cultured hepatocytes isolated at 37 degrees C (which have maximally induced levels of cellular RNase activity) but not in comparable extracts from cultured hepatocytes isolated at 40 degrees C, supporting the hypothesis that an RNase activity is induced in culture that specifically degrades CYP2C11 mRNA but not albumin mRNA. These results suggest that an early event in hepatocyte de-differentiation involves the induction of RNase activity in addition to transcriptional silencing of liver-specific genes and that the induced RNase activity demonstrates specificity within liver-specific gene products.

Labial adhesions presenting as urinary incontinence in postmenopausal women.

Most discussion on labial adhesions is about the pediatric group. A case is presented of a postmenopausal woman whose main complaint was urinary incontinence. Etiology, symptoms, signs, and diagnosis are discussed. Guidelines for treatment and prevention are proposed. Because the number of postmenopausal women is steadily increasing, it is important to draw attention to this condition.

"Recurrent" stress urinary incontinence.

This report constitutes a 15 year review of 205 operations performed upon 198 adult women suffering from "recurrent" stress urinary incontinence (SUI). All patients received special preoperative investigation including direct electronic urethrocystometry and metallic bead-chain urethrocystography. From these studies 163 of the patients were determined to have pure "anatomic SUI" and 42 demonstrated characteristics of anatomic SUI plus some anatomic or physiologic defect which might compromise the final results ("compromised SUI"). Preoperative radiographs demonstrating the previous causes for failure fell into four general categories: philosophic, pragmatic, subjective, and psychological. All patients were operated upon with the single objective of achieving high retropubic elevation and fixation of the urethrovesical junction. In those have pure "anatomic SUI" the failure rate was 5 per cent. In the "compromised SUI" group the failure rate was 39 per cent. Type II detrusor dyssynergia was the most common cause of failure.

Infravesical nerve resection for detrusor dyssynergia. The Ingelman-Sundberg operation.

In 1959 a paper was published in Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand (38:487, 1959) by Axel Ingelman-Sundberg (1) entitled "Partial Denervation of the Bladder--a new operation for the treatment of Urge Incontinence and similar conditions in women". The basis for the operation was stated in the initial sentence: "The function of an autonomous neurogenic bladder is usually superior to that of a neurogenic bladder, where higher centers are still partially in function." His operation consisted of transection of the preganglionic pelvic nerves near the inferior surface of the bladder and involved division of both the sympathetic and the parasympathetic nerves.