Search

Discusses the molecular basis of hormonal and neural communication between cells. Communication between special messenger molecules and specific receptors on target cell; Chemical classes of hormones; Use of unmodified amino acids as neurotransmitters; Importance of intercellular communication on the survival of multicellular organism.

As traditional antidepressants act only after weeks/months, the discovery that ketamine, an antagonist of glutamate/N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, elicits antidepressant actions in hours has been transformative. Its mechanism of action has been elusive, though enhanced mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling is a major feature. We report a novel signaling pathway wherein NMDA receptor activation stimulates generation of nitric oxide (NO), which S-nitrosylates glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH). Nitrosylated GAPDH complexes with the ubiquitin-E3-ligase Siah1 and Rheb, a small G protein that activates mTOR. Siah1 degrades Rheb leading to reduced mTOR signaling, while ketamine, conversely, stabilizes Rheb that enhances mTOR signaling. Drugs selectively targeting components of this pathway may offer novel approaches to the treatment of depression.

While molecular mechanisms for iron entry and storage within cells have been elucidated, no system to mediate iron efflux has been heretofore identified. We now describe an ATP requiring iron transporter in mammalian cells. (55)Fe is transported into microsomal vesicles in a Mg-ATP-dependent fashion. The transporter is specific for ferrous iron, is temperature- and time-dependent, and detected only with hydrolyzable nucleotides. It differs from all known ATPases and appears to be a P-type ATPase. The Fe-ATPase is localized together with heme oxygenase-1 to microsomal membranes with both proteins greatly enriched in the spleen. Iron treatment markedly induces ATP-dependent iron transport in RAW 264.7 macrophage cells with an initial phase that is resistant to cycloheximide and actinomycin D and a later phase that is inhibited by these agents. Iron release, elicited in intact rats by glycerol-induced rhabdomyolysis, induces ATP-dependent iron transport in the kidney. Mice with genomic deletion of heme oxygenase-1 have selective tissue iron accumulation and display augmented ATP-dependent iron transport in those tissues that accumulate iron.

Brain-enriched isoforms of skeletal proteins in the spectrin and ankyrin gene families have been described. Here we characterize protein 4.1B, a novel homolog of erythrocyte protein 4.1R that is encoded by a distinct gene. In situ hybridization revealed high level, focal expression of 4.1B mRNA in select neuronal populations within the mouse brain, including Purkinje cells of the cerebellum, pyramidal cells in hippocampal regions CA1-3, thalamic nuclei, and olfactory bulb. Expression was also detected in adrenal gland, kidney, testis, and heart. 4.1B protein exhibits high homology to the membrane binding, spectrin-actin binding, and C-terminal domains of 4.1R, including motifs for interaction with NuMA and FKBP13. cDNA characterization and Western blot analysis revealed multiple spliceoforms of protein 4.1B, with functionally relevant heterogeneity in the spectrin-actin and NuMA binding domains. Regulated alternative splicing events led to expression of unique 4. 1B isoforms in brain and muscle; only the latter possessed a functional spectrin-actin binding domain. By immunofluorescence, 4. 1B was localized specifically at the plasma membrane in regions of cell-cell contact. Together these results indicate that 4.1B transcription is selectively regulated among neuronal populations and that alternative splicing regulates expression of 4.1B isoforms possessing critical functional domains typical of other protein 4.1 family members.

The tumor suppressor patched1 (PTC1), a product of the mammalian homologue of the Drosophila segment polarity gene patched, is a receptor for hedgehog (HH) and is crucial for embryonic development. Although little is known about the signal transduction pathways leading to the activation of ptc1, increased ptc1 transcription has always been associated with elevated HH activity and decreased activity of cAMP-dependent protein kinase A. Here, we demonstrate that in the mammalian pineal gland, ptc1 expression exhibits a dramatic diurnal rhythm with peak expression at midnight. ptc1 mRNA expression in the pineal is regulated by a clock mechanism mediated by the superior cervical ganglion. Most importantly, ptc1 transcription can be induced by agents activating the cAMP signal transduction pathway both in vivo and in vitro and appears to be independent of HH signaling.

Exocytosis of synaptic vesicles is calcium-dependent, with synaptotagmin serving as the calcium sensor. Endocytosis of synaptic vesicles has also been postulated as a calcium-dependent process; however, an endocytic calcium sensor has not been found. We now report a physical association between the calcium-dependent phosphatase calcineurin and dynamin 1, a component of the synaptic endocytic machinery. The calcineurin-dynamin 1 interaction is calcium-dependent, with an EC(50) for calcium in the range of 0.1-0. 4 microM. Disruption of the calcineurin-dynamin 1 interaction inhibits clathrin-mediated endocytosis. Thus, the calcium-dependent formation of the calcineurin-dynamin 1 complex, delivered to the other endocytic coat proteins, provides a calcium-sensing mechanism that facilitates endocytosis.

Citalopram is a potent and selective inhibitor of neuronal serotonin uptake. In rat brain membranes [3H]citalopram demonstrates saturable and reversible binding with a KD of 0.8 nM and a maximal number of binding sites (Bmax) of 570 fmol/mg of protein. The drug specificity for [3H]citalopram binding and synaptosomal serotonin uptake are closely correlated. Inhibition of [3H]citalopram binding by both serotonin and imipramine is consistent with a competitive interaction in both equilibrium and kinetic analyses. The autoradiographic pattern of [3H]citalopram binding sites closely resembles the distribution of serotonin. By contrast, detailed equilibrium-saturation analysis of [3H]imipramine binding reveals two binding components, i.e., high affinity (KD = 9 nM, Bmax = 420 fmol/mg of protein) and low affinity (KD = 553 nM, Bmax = 8560 fmol/mg of protein) sites. Specific [3H]imipramine binding, defined as the binding inhibited by 100 microM desipramine, is displaced only partially by serotonin. Various studies reveal that the serotonin-sensitive portion of binding corresponds to the high affinity sites of [3H]imipramine binding whereas the serotonin-insensitive binding corresponds to the low affinity sites. Lesioning of serotonin neurons with p-chloroamphetamine causes a large decrease in [3H]citalopram and serotonin-sensitive [3H]imipramine binding with only a small effect on serotonin-insensitive [3H]imipramine binding. The dissociation rate of [3H]imipramine or [3H]citalopram is not altered by citalopram, imipramine or serotonin up to concentrations of 10 microM. The regional distribution of serotonin sensitive [3H]imipramine high affinity binding sites closely resembles that of [3H]citalopram binding.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The immunosuppressant rapamycin prevents cell cycle progression in several mammalian cell lines and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In mammalian cells, rapamycin binds to the small FK506-binding protein, FKBP12, allowing the drug-receptor complex to interact with the 289-kDa RAFT1/FRAP proteins. These proteins, along with their yeast homologs, TOR1/DRR1 and TOR2/DRR2, contain a C-terminal domain with amino acid homology to several phosphatidylinositol (PI) 4- and 3-kinases. However, no direct demonstration of kinase activity for this family of proteins has been reported. We now show that RAFT1, immunoprecipitated from rat brain and MG63 and HEK293 cells, contains PI 4-kinase activity and that rapamycin-FKBP12 has no effect on this activity. Thus, it is likely that, in vivo, rapamycin does not directly inhibit the PI 4-kinase activity and affects the RAFT1/FRAP protein through another mechanism.

SummaryA new method of displaying SPECT (single photon emission tomography) thallium-201 images is described in which cardiac activity is constructed as a cylindrical map. Exercise thallium-201 scintigrams from 52 patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease are analysed by this technique and a simplified severity score devised.

High affinity [3H]noscapine binding sites are brain specific, ion insensitive, and present in a variety of species and show strict structure-activity requirements. Among neurotransmitter-related structures, indoleamines and beta-carbolines display highest affinity for [3H]noscapine sites. Noscapine inhibits carbachol-stimulated phosphoinositide turnover in guinea pig and rat brain slices, with structural analogs possessing similar relative potencies for binding to [3H]noscapine binding sites and inhibiting phosphoinositide turnover. Noscapine and its derivatives also markedly enhance the ability of forskolin to augment cAMP levels in brain slices, with relative potencies paralleling affinities for noscapine binding sites.

To assess the role of phosphatidylinositol turnover in taste transduction we have visualized, in rat tongue, ATP-dependent endoplasmic reticular accumulation of 45Ca2+, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor binding sites, and phosphatidylinositol turnover monitored by autoradiography of [3H]cytidine diphosphate diacylglycerol formed from [3H]cytidine. Accumulated 45Ca2+, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors, and phosphatidylinositol turnover are selectively localized to apical areas of the taste buds of circumvallate papillae, which are associated with bitter taste. Further evidence for a role of phosphatidylinositol turnover in bitter taste is our observation of a rapid, selective increase in mass levels of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate elicited by low concentrations of denatonium, a potently bitter tastant.

N6-Cyclohexyl[3H]adenosine ([3H]CHA) and 1,3-diethyl-8-[3H]phenylxanthine ([3H]DPX) to bind to adenosine receptors in brain membranes. The agonist [3H]CHA has high affinity in both bovine and guinea pig brain (Kd, 0.7 nM and 6 nM, respectively). [3H]CHA binding kinetics are slow (dissociation t1/2;60 min); binding is much higher at 25 degrees C than at 0 degrees C and is inhibited by guanine nucleotides. Potencies of nucleosides and xanthines in competing for [3H]CHA sites indicate that specific binding is entirely to A1 adenosine receptors. In bovine brain, the antagonist [3H]DPX exhibits high-affinity binding (Kd, 5 nM) to the same A1 receptors that bind [3H]CHA. Binding kinetics are rapid (dissociation t1/2, 1 min), and binding is moderately higher at 0 degrees C than at 25 degrees C. In guinea pig brain, [3H]DPX binding has only moderate affintiy (Kd 50 nM), and about 60% of specific binding is to sites that resemble A2 adenosine receptors.

Autoradiographic studies localize [3H]bradykinin receptor binding sites to the substantia gelatinosa, dorsal root, and a subset of small cells in both the dorsal root and trigeminal ganglia of the guinea pig. [3H]Bradykinin labeling is also observed over myocardial/coronary visceral afferent fibers. The localization of [3H]bradykinin receptors to nociceptive pathways supports a role for bradykinin in pain mediation. Several bradykinin antagonists block bradykinin-induced acute vascular pain in the rat. The bradykinin antagonists also relieve bradykinin- and urate-induced hyperalgesia in the rat paw. These results indicate that bradykinin is a physiologic mediator of pain and that bradykinin antagonists have analgesic activity in both acute and chronic pain models.

The properties of benzodiazepine receptors in samples of six areas of cerebral cortex from patients and controls matched with respect to age, sex, and postmortem delay have been studied by in vitro radioligand binding techniques. A statistically significant 30 to 40 increase in the number of benzodiazepine and allosterically linked GABA-A receptors is observed in the midfrontal cortex (A9/A10), but in no other cortical region examined. The degree of enhancement of [3H]diazepam binding by a given dose of GABA or pentobarbital is significantly reduced in Huntington's disease midfrontal cortex. As in the case of receptor number changes, other cortical regions examined show less prominent changes in regulation of benzodiazepine binding by GABA or pentobarbital. Direct identification of the benzodiazepine binding subunit by photoaffinity labeling with [3H]flunitrazepam reveals a single species of apparent molecular weight 51 kD in patients and controls, suggesting that gross changes in structure of the benzodiazepine binding subunit do not account for the observed alterations in benzodiazepine receptor regulation.

With appropriate measures to protect 3H-substance P (3H-SP) from proteolytic degradation and from nonspecific adsorption to glass-fiber filters, we have been able to demonstrate reliably a high-affinity specific binding of 3H-SP to rat submaxillary/sublingual gland membranes with a KD of 1 nM and Bmax of 6 pmoles/g of tissue. The relative potencies of various SP fragments and related analogues in reducing 3H-SP binding parallel their potencies in stimulating phosphatidylinositol turnover, amylase release, and salivation, thus supporting an association of the observed 3H-SP binding site with the physiological SP receptors in this tissue. This binding is selectively stimulated by some divalent cations (Mn2+ greater than Mg2+ greater than Ca2+) but inhibited by several guanyl nucleotides, suggesting a possible linkage to adenylate cyclase. However, no effect of SP on either the basal or the norepinephrine-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity could be demonstrated in salivary gland homogenates.

Guanine nucleotides, divalent cations, and sodium differentially regulate agonist and antagonist binding to adenosine A1 receptors in brain membranes. Guanine nucleotides decrease the binding of the adenosine A1 receptor agonist [3H]N6-cyclohexyladenosine ([3H]CHA) to guinea pig and bovine brain membranes by about 50% at 1--3 microM, while not affecting binding of the antagonist [3H]1,3-diethyl-8-phenylxanthine ([3H]DPX) to A1 receptors in bovine brain. GTP decreases the potency of agonists competing for [3H]DPX binding by 3--6 times, without altering the potency of antagonists. This effect can be used to grade experimental substances along an adenosine agonist-antagonist continuum. The 66% inhibition of [3H]CHA binding by 1 mM EDTA, with no change in [3H]DPX binding, suggests that endogenous divalent cations may regulate adenosine receptor interactions. Removal of endogenous divalent cations by EDTA treatment greatly increases the enhancement of [3H]CHA binding by divalent cations. Specific binding of [3H]CHA to guinea pig brain is increased 150--170% by 0.3--1.0 mM Mn2+, Mg2+, and Ca2+ following EDTA preincubation, secondary to an increase in apparent affinity and receptor number. Sodium ions also selectively regulate the binding of [3H]CHA. Sodium decreases [3H]CHA binding 40%, whereas lithium and potassium are ineffective. Sodium does not affect [3H]DPX binding.

The ultrastructural distribution and subcellular localization of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) immunoreactivity and its possible colocalization with vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) and substance P in the muscularis externa in canine ileum and colon were studied by using polyclonal antisera raised against VIP, substance P, and cerebellar NOS. Immunogold staining, with or without silver enhancement, was carried out directly on ultrathin sections using single and two-faced double immunogold methods. NOS immunoreactivity was observed in nerve profiles in myenteric plexus and circular muscle layer. Immunoreactivity was occasionally detected in smooth muscle cells and interstitial cells of Cajal. The double immunostaining revealed NOS and VIP in the same nerve varicosities but never in the same organelles. NOS was localized in electron-dense material of undetermined nature, whereas VIP was associated with large granular vesicles. Substance P and NOS were never found in the same nerves. These results indicate that NOS is present in the enteric nerves containing VIP but in different organelles and that nitric oxide release probably does not occur by an exocytotic mechanism.

We have cloned two inwardly rectifying K+ channels that occur selectively in neurons in the brain and are designated BIRK (brain inwardly rectifying K+) channels. BIRK1 mRNA is extremely abundant and is enriched in specific brainstem nuclei, BIRK1 displays a consensus phosphate-binding loop, and expression in Xenopus oocytes has shown that its conductance is inhibited by ATP and adenosine 5'-[gamma-thio]triphosphate. BIRK2 is far less abundant and is selectively localized in telencephalic neurons. BIRK2 has a consensus sequence for cAMP-dependent phosphorylation.

Nitric oxide (NO) is known to mediate increases in regional cerebral blood flow elicited by CO2 inhalation. In mice with deletion of the gene for neuronal NO synthase (NOS), CO2 inhalation augments cerebral blood flow to the same extent as in wild-type mice. However, unlike wild-type mice, the increased flow in mutants is not blocked by the NOS inhibition, N omega-nitro-L-arginine, and CO2 exposure fails to increase brain levels of cGMP. Topical acetylcholine elicits vasodilation in the mutants which is blocked by N omega-nitro-L-arginine, indicating normal functioning of endothelial NOS. Moreover, immunohistochemical staining for endothelial NOS is normal in the mutants. Thus, following loss of neuronal NOS, the cerebral circulatory response is maintained by a compensatory system not involving NO.