AMP-activated protein kinase, super metabolic regulator.

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a metabolic-stress-sensing protein kinase that regulates metabolism in response to energy demand and supply by directly phosphorylating rate-limiting enzymes in metabolic pathways as well as controlling gene expression.

Progressive increase in human skeletal muscle AMPKalpha2 activity and ACC phosphorylation during exercise.

The effect of prolonged moderate-intensity exercise on human skeletal muscle AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK)alpha1 and -alpha2 activity and acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACCbeta) and neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOSmu) phosphorylation was investigated. Seven active healthy individuals cycled for 30 min at a workload requiring 62.8 +/- 1.3% of peak O(2) consumption (VO(2 peak)) with muscle biopsies obtained from the vastus lateralis at rest and at 5 and 30 min of exercise. AMPKalpha1 activity was not altered by exercise; however, AMPKalpha2 activity was significantly (P < 0.05) elevated after 5 min (approximately 2-fold), and further elevated (P < 0.05) after 30 min (approximately 3-fold) of exercise. ACCbeta phosphorylation was increased (P < 0.05) after 5 min (approximately 18-fold compared with rest) and increased (P < 0.05) further after 30 min of exercise (approximately 36-fold compared with rest). Increases in AMPKalpha2 activity were significantly correlated with both increases in ACCbeta phosphorylation and reductions in muscle glycogen content. Fat oxidation tended (P = 0.058) to increase progressively during exercise. Muscle creatine phosphate was lower (P < 0.05), and muscle creatine, calculated free AMP, and free AMP-to-ATP ratio were higher (P < 0.05) at both 5 and 30 min of exercise compared with those at rest. At 30 min of exercise, the values of these metabolites were not significantly different from those at 5 min of exercise. Phosphorylation of nNOSmu was variable, and despite the mean doubling with exercise, statistically significance was not achieved (P = 0.304). Western blots indicated that AMPKapproximately 2 was associated with both nNOSmu and ACCbeta consistent with them both being substrates of AMPKalpha2 in vivo. In conclusion, AMPKalpha2 activity and ACCbeta phosphorylation increase progressively during moderate exercise at approximately 60% of VO(2 peak) in humans, with these responses more closely coupled to muscle glycogen content than muscle AMP/ATP ratio.

Cellular stress regulates the nucleocytoplasmic distribution of the protein-tyrosine phosphatase TCPTP.

Specific cellular stresses, including hyperosmotic stress, caused a dramatic but reversible cytoplasmic accumulation of the otherwise nuclear 45-kDa variant of the protein-tyrosine phosphatase TCPTP (TC45). In the cytoplasm, TC45 dephosphorylated the epidermal growth factor receptor and down-regulated the hyperosmotic stress-induced activation of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase. The hyperosmotic stress-induced nuclear exit of TC45 was not inhibited by leptomycin B, indicating that TC45 nuclear exit was independent of the exportin CRM-1. Moreover, hyperosmotic stress did not induce the cytoplasmic accumulation of a green fluorescent protein-TC45 fusion protein that was too large to diffuse across the nuclear pore. Our results indicate that TC45 nuclear exit may occur by passive diffusion and that cellular stress may induce the cytoplasmic accumulation of TC45 by inhibiting nuclear import. Neither p42(Erk2) nor the stress-activated c-Jun N-terminal kinase or p38 mediated the stress-induced redistribution of TC45. We found that only those stresses that stimulated the metabolic stress-sensing enzyme AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) induced the redistribution of TC45. In addition, specific pharmacological activation of the AMPK was sufficient to cause the accumulation of TC45 in the cytoplasm. Our studies indicate that specific stress-activated signaling pathways that involve the AMPK can alter the nucleocytoplasmic distribution of TC45 and thus regulate TC45 function in vivo.

Reciprocal phosphorylation and regulation of endothelial nitric-oxide synthase in response to bradykinin stimulation.

Endothelial nitric-oxide synthase (eNOS) is phosphorylated at Ser-1179 (bovine sequence) by Akt after growth factor or shear stress stimulation of endothelial cells, resulting in increased eNOS activity. Purified eNOS is also phosphorylated at Thr-497 by purified AMP-activated protein kinase, resulting in decreased eNOS activity. We investigated whether bradykinin (BK) stimulation of bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) regulates eNOS through Akt activation and Ser-1179 or Thr-497 phosphorylation. Akt is transiently activated in BK-stimulated BAECs. Activation is blocked completely by wortmannin and LY294002, inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, suggesting that Akt activation occurs downstream from phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase. BK stimulates a transient phosphorylation of eNOS at Ser-1179 that is correlated temporally with a transient dephosphorylation of eNOS at Thr-497. Phosphorylation at Ser-1179, but not dephosphorylation at Thr-497, is blocked by wortmannin and LY294002. BK also stimulates a transient nitric oxide (NO) release from BAECs with a time-course similar to Ser-1179 phosphorylation and Thr-497 dephosphorylation. NO release is not altered by wortmannin. BK-stimulated dephosphorylation of Thr-497 and NO release are blocked by the calcineurin inhibitor, cyclosporin A. These data suggest that BK activation of eNOS in BAECs primarily involves deinhibition of the enzyme through calcineurin-mediated dephosphorylation at Thr-497.

Coordinated control of endothelial nitric-oxide synthase phosphorylation by protein kinase C and the cAMP-dependent protein kinase.

Endothelial nitric-oxide synthase (eNOS) is an important regulatory enzyme in the cardiovascular system catalyzing the production of NO from arginine. Multiple protein kinases including Akt/PKB, cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA), and the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activate eNOS by phosphorylating Ser-1177 in response to various stimuli. During VEGF signaling in endothelial cells, there is a transient increase in Ser-1177 phosphorylation coupled with a decrease in Thr-495 phosphorylation that reverses over 10 min. PKC signaling in endothelial cells inhibits eNOS activity by phosphorylating Thr-495 and dephosphorylating Ser-1177 whereas PKA signaling acts in reverse by increasing phosphorylation of Ser-1177 and dephosphorylation of Thr-495 to activate eNOS. Both phosphatases PP1 and PP2A are associated with eNOS. PP1 is responsible for dephosphorylation of Thr-495 based on its specificity for this site in both eNOS and the corresponding synthetic phosphopeptide whereas PP2A is responsible for dephosphorylation of Ser-1177. Treatment of endothelial cells with calyculin selectively blocks PKA-mediated dephosphorylation of Thr-495 whereas okadaic acid selectively blocks PKC-mediated dephosphorylation of Ser-1177. These results show that regulation of eNOS activity involves coordinated signaling through Ser-1177 and Thr-495 by multiple protein kinases and phosphatases.

AMPK signaling in contracting human skeletal muscle: acetyl-CoA carboxylase and NO synthase phosphorylation.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a metabolic stress-sensing protein kinase responsible for coordinating metabolism and energy demand. In rodents, exercise accelerates fatty acid metabolism, enhances glucose uptake, and stimulates nitric oxide (NO) production in skeletal muscle. AMPK phosphorylates and inhibits acetyl-coenzyme A (CoA) carboxylase (ACC) and enhances GLUT-4 translocation. It has been reported that human skeletal muscle malonyl-CoA levels do not change in response to exercise, suggesting that other mechanisms besides inhibition of ACC may be operating to accelerate fatty acid oxidation. Here, we show that a 30-s bicycle sprint exercise increases the activity of the human skeletal muscle AMPK-alpha1 and -alpha2 isoforms approximately two- to threefold and the phosphorylation of ACC at Ser(79) (AMPK phosphorylation site) approximately 8.5-fold. Under these conditions, there is also an approximately 5.5-fold increase in phosphorylation of neuronal NO synthase-mu (nNOSmu;) at Ser(1451). These observations support the concept that inhibition of ACC is an important component in stimulating fatty acid oxidation in response to exercise and that there is coordinated regulation of nNOSmu to protect the muscle from ischemia/metabolic stress.

Expression of the AMP-activated protein kinase beta1 and beta2 subunits in skeletal muscle.

A heterotrimeric member of the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) isoenzyme family was purified from rat skeletal muscle by immunoaffinity chromatography, consisting of an alpha2 catalytic and two non-catalytic subunits, beta2 and gamma1. The AMPK beta2 cDNA (271 amino acids (aa), molecular weight (MW)=30¿ omitted¿307, pI 6. 3) was cloned from skeletal muscle and found to share an overall identity of 70% with beta1 (270 aa, MW=30¿ omitted¿475, pI 6.0). In the liver AMPK beta1 subunit, Ser-182 is constitutively phosphorylated whereas in skeletal muscle beta2 isoform, we find that Ser-182 is only partially phosphorylated. In addition, the autophosphorylation sites Ser-24, Ser-25 found in the beta1 are replaced by Ala-Glu in the beta2 isoform. beta2 contains seven more Ser and one less Thr residues than beta1, raising the possibility of differential post-translational regulation. Immunoblot analysis further revealed that soleus muscle (slow twitch) contains exclusively beta1 associated with alpha2, whereas extensor digitorum longus muscle alpha2 (EDL, fast twitch) associates with beta2 as well as beta1. Sequence analysis revealed that glycogen synthase, a known AMPK substrate, co-immunoprecipitated with the AMPK alpha2beta2gamma1 complex.

The Akt kinase signals directly to endothelial nitric oxide synthase.

Endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) is an important modulator of angiogenesis and vascular tone [1]. It is stimulated by treatment of endothelial cells in a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase)-dependent fashion by insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) [2] [3] and is activated by phosphorylation at Ser1177 in the sequence RIRTQS(1177)F (in the single-letter amino acid code) [4]. The protein kinase Akt is an important downstream target of PI 3-kinase [5] [6], regulating VEGF-stimulated endothelial cell survival [7]. Akt phosphorylates substrates within a defined motif [8], which is present in the sequence surrounding Ser1177 in eNOS. Both Akt [5] [6] and eNOS [9] are localized to, and activated at, the plasma membrane. We found that purified Akt phosphorylated cardiac eNOS at Ser1177, resulting in activation of eNOS. Phosphorylation at this site was stimulated by treatment of bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) with VEGF or IGF-1, and Akt was activated in parallel. Preincubation with wortmannin, an inhibitor of Akt signalling, reduced VEGF- or IGF-1-induced Akt activity and eNOS phosphorylation. Akt was detected in immunoprecipitates of eNOS from BAECs, and eNOS in immunoprecipitates of Akt, indicating that the two enzymes associate in vivo. It is thus apparent that Akt directly activates eNOS in endothelial cells. These results strongly suggest that Akt has an important role in the regulation of normal angiogenesis and raise the possibility that the enhanced activity of this kinase that occurs in carcinomas may contribute to tumor vascularization and survival.

Structural basis of autoregulation of phenylalanine hydroxylase.

Phenylalanine hydroxylase converts phenylalanine to tyrosine, a rate-limiting step in phenylalanine catabolism and protein and neurotransmitter biosynthesis. It is tightly regulated by the substrates phenylalanine and tetrahydrobiopterin and by phosphorylation. We present the crystal structures of dephosphorylated and phosphorylated forms of a dimeric enzyme with catalytic and regulatory properties of the wild-type protein. The structures reveal a catalytic domain flexibly linked to a regulatory domain. The latter consists of an N-terminal autoregulatory sequence (containing Ser 16, which is the site of phosphorylation) that extends over the active site pocket, and an alpha-beta sandwich core that is, unexpectedly, structurally related to both pterin dehydratase and the regulatory domains of metabolic enzymes. Phosphorylation has no major structural effects in the absence of phenylalanine, suggesting that phenylalanine and phosphorylation act in concert to activate the enzyme through a combination of intrasteric and possibly allosteric mechanisms.

Dealing with energy demand: the AMP-activated protein kinase.

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a member of a metabolite-sensing protein kinase family that is found in all eukaryotes. AMPK activity is regulated by vigorous exercise, nutrient starvation and ischemia/hypoxia, and modulates many aspects of mammalian cell metabolism. The AMPK yeast homolog, Snf1p, plays a major role in adaption to glucose deprivation. In mammals, AMPK also has diverse roles that extend from energy metabolism through to transcriptional control.

AMP-activated protein kinase phosphorylation of endothelial NO synthase.

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) in rat skeletal and cardiac muscle is activated by vigorous exercise and ischaemic stress. Under these conditions AMPK phosphorylates and inhibits acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase causing increased oxidation of fatty acids. Here we show that AMPK co-immunoprecipitates with cardiac endothelial NO synthase (eNOS) and phosphorylates Ser-1177 in the presence of Ca2+-calmodulin (CaM) to activate eNOS both in vitro and during ischaemia in rat hearts. In the absence of Ca2+-calmodulin, AMPK also phosphorylates eNOS at Thr-495 in the CaM-binding sequence, resulting in inhibition of eNOS activity but Thr-495 phosphorylation is unchanged during ischaemia. Phosphorylation of eNOS by the AMPK in endothelial cells and myocytes provides a further regulatory link between metabolic stress and cardiovascular function.

Posttranslational modifications of the 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase beta1 subunit.

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) consists of catalytic alpha and noncatalytic beta and gamma subunits and is responsible for acting as a metabolic sensor for AMP levels. There are multiple genes for each subunit and the rat liver AMPK alpha1 and alpha2 catalytic subunits are associated with beta1 and gamma1 noncatalytic subunits. We find that the isolated gamma1 subunit is N-terminally acetylated with no other posttranslational modification. The isolated beta1 subunit is N-terminally myristoylated. Transfection of COS cells with AMPK subunit cDNAs containing a nonmyristoylatable beta1 reduces, but does not eliminate, membrane binding of AMPK heterotrimer. The isolated beta1 subunit is partially phosphorylated at three sites, Ser24/25, Ser182, and Ser108. The Ser24/25 and Ser108 sites are substoichiometrically phosphorylated and can be autophosphorylated in vitro. The Ser-Pro site in the sequence LSSS182PPGP is stoichiometrically phosphorylated, and no additional phosphate is incorporated into this site with autophosphorylation. Based on labeling studies in transfected cells, we conclude that alpha1 Thr172 is a major, although not exclusive, site of both basal and stimulated alpha1 phosphorylation by an upstream AMPK kinase.

AMP-activated protein kinase isoenzyme family: subunit structure and chromosomal location.

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) consists of catalytic alpha and non-catalytic, beta and gamma (38 kDa) subunits and is responsible for acting as a metabolic sensor for AMP levels. There are multiple genes for each subunit and we find that rat liver AMPK-alpha2 isoform catalytic subunit is associated with beta1 and gamma1 and not with beta2 or gamma2 subunit isoforms. The beta1 and gamma1 isoforms are also subunits of the alpha1 isoform. The sequence of cloned human AMPK-beta1 is 95% identical in amino acid sequence with rat beta1. Human chromosomal localizations were determined for AMPK-alpha1 (5p11-p14), AMPK-beta1 (12q24.1-24.3) and AMPK-gamma1 (12q12-q14), respectively.

Regulation and crystallization of phosphorylated and dephosphorylated forms of truncated dimeric phenylalanine hydroxylase.

Phenylalanine hydroxylase is regulated in a complex manner, including activation by phosphorylation. It is normally found as an equilibrium of dimeric and tetrameric species, with the tetramer thought to be the active form. We converted the protein to the dimeric form by deleting the C-terminal 24 residues and show that the truncated protein remains active and regulated by phosphorylation. This indicates that changes in the tetrameric quaternary structure of phenylalanine hydroxylase are not required for enzyme activation. Truncation also facilitates crystallization of both phosphorylated and dephosphorylated forms of the enzyme.

Isoform-specific purification and substrate specificity of the 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase.

The 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) mediates several cellular responses to metabolic stress. Rat liver contains at least two isoforms of this enzyme, either alpha1 or alpha2 catalytic subunits together with beta and gamma noncatalytic subunits in a trimeric complex. The alpha1 isoform is purified using a peptide substrate affinity chromatography column with ADR1 (222-234)P229 (LKKLTRRPSFSAQ), corresponding to the cAMP-dependent protein kinase phosphorylation site in the yeast transcriptional activator of the ADH2 gene, ADR1. This peptide is phosphorylated at Ser230 by AMPK alpha1 with a Km of 3.8 microM and a Vmax of 4.8 micromol/min/mg compared to the commonly used rat acetyl-CoA carboxylase (73-87)A77R86-87 peptide substrate, HMRSAMSGLHLVKRR, with a Km of 33.3 microM and a Vmax of 8.1 micromol/min/mg. Thus, the AMPK exhibits some overlapping specificity with the cAMP-dependent protein kinase. The rat liver AMPK alpha1 isoform has a Kcat approximately 250-fold higher than the AMPK alpha2 isoform isolated from rat liver. The AMPK alpha1 isoform readily phosphorylates peptides corresponding to the reported AMPK phosphorylation sites in rat, chicken, and yeast acetyl-CoA carboxylase and rat hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA reductase but not phosphorylase kinase. Based on previous peptide substrate specificity studies (Dale, S., Wilson, W. A., Edelman, A. M., and Hardie, G. (1995) FEBS Lett. 361, 191-195) using partially purified enzyme and variants of the peptide AMARAASAAALARRR, it was proposed that the AMPK preferred the phosphorylation site motif Phi(X, beta)XXS/TXXXPhi (Phi, hydrophobic; beta, basic). In good AMPK alpha1 peptide substrates, a hydrophobic residue at the P-5 position is conserved but not at the P+4 position. Oxidation of the Met residues in the rat acetyl-CoA carboxylase (73-87)A77R86-87 peptide increased the Km 6-fold and reduced the Vmax to 4% of the reduced peptide.

Mammalian AMP-activated protein kinase subfamily.

The mammalian 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is related to a growing family of protein kinases in yeast and plants that are regulated by nutritional stress. We find the most prominent expressed form of the hepatic AMPK catalytic subunit (alpha 1) is distinct from the previously cloned kinase subunit (alpha 2). The alpha 1 (548 residues) and alpha 2 (552 residues) isoforms have 90% amino acid sequence identity within the catalytic core but only 61% identity elsewhere. The tissue distribution of the AMPK activity most closely parallels the low abundance 6-kilobase alpha 1 mRNA distribution and the alpha 1 immunoreactivity rather than alpha 2, with substantial amounts in kidney, liver, lung, heart, and brain. Both alpha 1 and alpha 2 isoforms are stimulated by AMP and contain noncatalytic beta and gamma subunits. The liver alpha 1 isoform accounts for approximately 94% of the enzyme activity measured using the SAMS peptide substrate. The tissue distribution of the alpha 2 immunoreactivity parallels the alpha 2 8.5-kilobase mRNA and is most prominent in skeletal muscle, heart, and liver. Isoforms of the beta and gamma subunits present in the human genome sequence reveal that the AMPK consists of a family of isoenzymes.

Mammalian 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase non-catalytic subunits are homologs of proteins that interact with yeast Snf1 protein kinase.

The 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase is responsible for the regulation of fatty acid synthesis by phosphorylation and inactivation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase. The porcine liver 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase 63-kDa catalytic subunit co-purifies 14,000-fold with a 38- and 40-kDa protein (Mitchelhill, K.I. et al. (1994) J. Biol. Chem. 269, 2361-2364). The 63-kDa subunit is homologous to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Snf1 protein kinase, which regulates gene expression during glucose derepression. Peptide amino acid and polymerase chain reaction-derived partial cDNA sequences of both the pig and rat liver enzymes show that the 38-kDa protein is homologous to Snf4p (CAT3) and that the 40-kDa protein is homologous to the Sip1p/Spm/GAL83 family of Snf1p interacting proteins. Sucrose density gradient and cross-linking experiments with purified 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase suggest that both the 38- and 40-kDa proteins associate tightly with the 63-kDa catalytic polypeptide in either a heterotrimeric complex or in dimeric complexes. The 40-kDa subunit is autophosphorylated within the 63-kDa subunit complex. The sequence relationships between the mammalian 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase and yeast Snf1p extend to the subunit proteins consistent with conservation of the functional roles of these polypeptides in cellular regulation by this family of metabolite-sensing protein kinases.