Lack of correlation between effects of tumor promoter TPA on plasminogen activator production, phosphatidyl choline synthesis, and hexose transport in mammalian cell culture systems

The role of protein kinase C in the stimulation of phosphatidylcholine synthesis by phospholipase C

The role of protein kinase C in the stimulation of phosphatidylcholine (PC) synthesis by phospholipase C was investigated. Phospholipase C treatment of Chinese hamster ovary cells (CHO) generates diacylglycerol, which is an activator of protein kinase C. The protein kinase C activator, 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) stimulated choline incorporation into two CHO cell lines, a wild-type cell line, WTB, and a mutant cell line, DTG 1-5-4. DTG 1-5-4 is a mutant defective in receptor-mediated endocytosis. A 3-h phospholipase C treatment resulted in the activation and translocation of CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase in both cell lines. TPA treatment, however, resulted in only a slight (20%) translocation of cytidylyltransferase in WTB; no detectable translocation of cytidylyltransferase was observed in DTG 1-5-4. A decrease in the phosphocholine pools was observed in response to TPA treatment in both cell lines, which indicated that the cytidylyltransferase step was being activated. Phospholipase C stimulated choline incorporation into PC even when protein kinase C had been down-regulated in both cell lines. It was concluded that phospholipase C does not activate PC synthesis by activating protein kinase C.

Phorbol ester stimulates hexose uptake by brain microvessel endothelial cells

Glucose uptake into cultured endothelial cells (EC) derived from brain microvessels was determined in the absence and presence of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA), EGTA, the calcium ionophore A23187, and insulin. EC were obtained from dog and human (autopsy) brain microvessels and maintained in culture for up to four passages. Monolayers of EC were treated with TPA and other compounds immediately prior to harvesting for hexose uptake measurements using 3-O-[3H]methyl-D-glucose, 2-[3H]deoxy-D-glucose, or D-[3H]glucose. Typically, treatment with TPA (0.1-100 ng/ml) resulted in hexose uptake levels 2 to 3 times those of controls, although occasionally levels 5 to 10 times those of controls were observed. Similar stimulation was observed with all radiolabeled hexoses. Stimulation by TPA was greatest in primary or first passage cells and was greatly diminished in older cells. Neither chelation of extracellular calcium with EGTA nor the presence of both EGTA and A23187 in the culture medium prevented the stimulatory effect of TPA. Insulin (1200 ng/ml) failed to stimulate hexose uptake. Treatment with 100 ng/ml TPA did not alter the appearance of actin filaments in canine EC as visualized with rhodamine phalloidin. These results, in combination with other recent studies, suggest that blood-brain glucose transport may be regulated by phorbol ester-activated protein kinase C.

The effects of phorbol ester on anabolism of lipids of cultured human skin fibroblasts

We have investigated the independent effects of phorbol ester (phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate) on anabolism of the major lipid components in cultured diploid human skin fibroblasts. When we incubated these cells with [3H]acetate in serum-free medium for 18 h in the presence of 16 nM phorbol ester, [3H]acetate incorporation and the cellular content of cholesterol ester increased, and free cholesterol decreased. Enhancement of [3H]acetate incorporation into cholesterol ester was also observed when the cells were incubated with phorbol ester for 5 h in medium containing lipoprotein-deficient serum. Incorporation of [3H]galactose into glycosphingolipids increased many fold upon exposure of the cells either to fetal calf serum or separately to phorbol ester. Therefore, phorbol ester independently affects cholesterol and glycosphingolipid metabolism in a way that may be similar to that reported for serum low-density lipoproteins and unknown other factors in fetal calf serum. We have observed these effects of phorbol ester in the intact living cell. These findings should provide useful means for the study of metabolism of the plasma membrane lipid components in fibroblasts.

Regulation of phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis by mitogenic growth factors

Phosphatidylcholine (PC) biosynthesis in cultured 3T3 fibroblasts was increased in varying degrees by these mitogenic growth factors: fetal bovine serum, insulin, 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate, epidermal growth factor, vasopressin, fibroblast growth factor and insulin-like growth factors I and II. PC synthesis was increased 2-4-fold by 10% serum, up to 4-fold by growth factors alone, and up to 8-fold by combinations of two or more growth factors. Single growth factors had no effect on the incorporation of [3H]choline into the acid-soluble precursors of PC, while serum or combinations of two or more mitogens could increase the incorporation of [3H]choline into acid-soluble material by up to 2-fold. Serum was shown to increase choline phosphorylation, choline kinase activity and the size of the phosphocholine pool. These data were utilized to calculate the radioactive specific activity of phosphocholine. Serum did not increase phosphocholine specific activity above control values; thus the increased incorporation of labelled choline into PC after serum stimulation resulted from increased PC synthesis and not from a simple change in specific activity of precursor phosphocholine.

Phorbol ester inhibits furosemide-sensitive potassium transport in BALB/c 3T3 preadipose cells

The tumor promoter phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) rapidly decreased the rate of 86Rb+ uptake into BALB/c 3T3 preadipose cells. The component of total 86Rb+ influx affected by PMA is insensitive to ouabain but sensitive to the diuretic furosemide. Experiments designed to investigate the characteristics of the K+ transport system sensitive to PMA revealed that: (i) 86Rb+ uptake is highly dependent on external Na+, (ii) 86Rb+ uptake is highly dependent on external Cl-, (iii) 22Na+ uptake is dependent on external K+, and (iv) a major component of 86Rb+ efflux that is sensitive to PMA and furosemide is not dependent on extracellular K+. These features strongly implicate a Na+K+/Cl- cotransport system as the target of PMA and furosemide in these experiments. PMA caused a net intracellular accumulation of K+ within 15 min in these cells, presumably via its inhibitory effect on furosemide-sensitive K+ transport. Within 30 min after PMA treatment, the mean cell volume was significantly reduced in treated compared to control cells, with a maximum decrease of 21% attained at 4 hr after PMA. The significance of these findings for biologic changes induced by PMA is discussed.

5'-Deoxyadenosine metabolism in various mammalian cell lines

5'-Deoxyadenosine (5'-dAdo) was rapidly cleaved to adenine by cell-free, dialyzed extracts of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO), Novikoff rat hepatoma and HeLa cells in a phosphate-dependent reaction, but not by extracts from L929, L1210 and P388 cells. Radioactivity from [5'-3H]5'-dAdo was incorporated into the acid-soluble pool (uptake) by whole CHO, Novikoff and HeLa cells almost as rapidly as from labeled adenosine or adenine (all at 5 microM extracellular concentration). Radioactivity in the acid-soluble pool was mainly associated with a component identified as 5-deoxyribose-1-phosphate. Compared to ribose-1-phosphate, 5-deoxyribose-1-phosphate was metabolically highly stable. A second labeled component, however, was formed slowly and accumulated mainly in the medium. Its formation was greatly stimulated by hypoxanthine and, under conditions where their deamination was not blocked, by adenosine and 2'- and 3'-deoxyadenosine. The second product was 5'-deoxyinosine synthesized from hypoxanthine and 5-deoxyribose-1-phosphate by purine nucleoside phosphorylase. Cleavage of 5'-dAdo by whole cells was dependent on the continuous removal of the product adenine, since uptake was greatly reduced in cells deficient in adenine phosphoribosyl transferase and 50 microM adenine strongly inhibited 5'-dAdo cleavage. The results are consistent with the view that 5'-dAdo is a substrate for 5'-methylthioadenosine phosphorylase and that its use as a non-metabolizable substrate for the nucleoside transport measurements is limited to cells lacking this enzyme.

Glucose uptake and ornithine decarboxylase activity in tetradecanoyl phorbol acetate non-proliferative variants

The potent tumor promoter 12-0-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) is also an excellant mitogen for 3T3 cells. We have previously isolated two independent variants, 3T3-TNR-2 and 3T3-TNR-9, that are unable to divide in response to TPA (Butler-Gralla and Herschman, 1981). We have now tested two components of the pleiotypic response, elevation of 2-deoxyglucose uptake and ornithine decarboxylase induction, in these cells. Basal levels of 2-deoxyglucose uptake were nearly tenfold higher in confluent 3T3-TNR-2 and 3T3-TNR-9 cells than in 3T3 cells. In contrast, basal ornithine decarboxylase levels were five- to tenfold lower in the variants. TPA stimulation of 2-deoxyglucose uptake was as great in absolute terms in the variant cell lines as that of 3T3 cells but was only half that observed with serum. TPA was unable to induce any elevation of ornithine decarboxylase in 3T3-TNR-9 cells. Although an elevation of ornithine decarboxylase levels occurred in 3T3-TNR-2 cells treated with TPA, the maximal specific activity in the variant was less than the unstimulated value for 3T3 cells.

The phorbol ester 12-0-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate and stimulation of 3H-choline incorporation into endoplasmic reticulum membranes and other subcellular fractions of Krebs II ascites cells during in vitro incubation

After transfer of Krebs II ascites cells from the mouse peritoneum to suspension culture addition of the phorbol ester 12-0-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) causes an early stimulation of 3H-choline incorporation into phosphatidylcholine (PC). Choline transport into the treated cells, however, was unaffected. Within 30 min of TPA treatment 3H-choline incorporation was almost 300% above the control level. During a 5 hr period of suspension culture the overall patterns of 3H-choline incorporation were similar in TPA-treated and control cultures though the rate was greatly accentuated by the presence of the phorbol ester. Incubation of cells with cycloheximide prior to incubation with TPA did not result in an inhibition of the TPA-directed 3H-choline incorporation. After 3 hr incubation with TPA there were large increases in radioactivity in all subcellular fractions. At 20 hr, however, the values were not far from those of the control. During the first 3 hr of incubation with TPA the incorporation of 3H-choline into light rough (LR) and smooth (S) membranes was stimulated to levels of 400% and 320% respectively above control values. At later times the profiles of radioactivity in membrane subfractions in TPA-treated and control cultures were similar. The results illustrate an early effect of TPA on PC biosynthesis in Krebs II ascites cells while at later times of incubation the stimulatory effect was virtually abolished.

Effect of temperature on kinetics and symmetries of the hexose transporter of Novikoff rat hepatoma cells

We have used rapid kinetic techniques to measure the accumulation of radioactively labeled 3-O-methyl-D-glucose to transmembrane equilibrium in Novikoff cell suspensions as a function of temperature. Arrhenius plots of the maximum velocities of isotopic exchange and zero-trans entry were continuous between 6 and 39 degrees C (Ea = 15-19 kcal/mol). Equilibrium exchange and zero-trans entry of 3-O-methyl-glucose at six concentrations (1-30 mM) at 16, 27, and 35 degrees C conformed to appropriate integrated rate equations derived for a single transporter. The hexose transporter exhibited directional symmetry, but the loaded carrier moved about 2 times faster than the empty carrier at all three temperatures investigated. Thus, the differential mobilities of loaded and empty carrier are not affected by temperature in this range. The Michaelis--Menten constant for equilibrium exchange increased about 2-fold with increase in temperature between 16 and 35 degrees C.