Corticotroph cells in primary cultures of rat adenohypophysis: a light and electron microscopic immunocytochemical study

Immunolocalization of laminin, heparan-sulfate proteoglycan, entactin and type IV collagen in the rat anterior pituitary. II. An in vitro study on primary cultures

The distribution of four basement membrane components: laminin (LAM), type IV collagen (Coll. IV), heparan-sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG), and entactin (ENT), was studied by immunocytochemistry in primary cultures of adult rat anterior pituitaries. In such cultures, the pituitary cells are deprived of their normal environment of adjacent cells and basement membranes (BM), and of the connectivo-vascular system of the hypophysis. In this dissociated system, pituitary cells grow as small clusters upon a monolayer of fibroblasts. LAM was found highly expressed in endocrine and in folliculo-stellate cells. Very small amounts of Coll. IV, but neither HSPG nor ENT, could be detected in endocrine cells. In contrast, in fibroblasts, very large amounts of Coll. IV, HSPG, and ENT, and a lower quantity of LAM were detected. At the ultrastructural level, the immunoreactive components present within the cells were located in the subcellular compartments involved in the elaboration of exported products. In addition to that intracellular distribution, the four constituents were observed in an extracellular matrix which appeared between the cultured cells, either as an amorphous material, or as a more or less dense reticular network, weakly stained with anti-LAM, but strongly stained with the other antibodies. Thus, the present immunocytochemical data support the implication of pituitary endocrine cells, at least for LAM secretion, in the elaboration of a novel extracellular matrix in primary cultures. In addition, a cooperation with non-endocrine cells seemed to be required for the production of the four BM components.

Dissimilar responsiveness of cultured corticotrophs and melanotrophs to tripeptide aldehydes

Cultured cells from adult rat anterior pituitaries or intermediate lobes were treated with the proteinase inhibitor tripeptide aldehydes BOC-DPhe-Pro-Arg-H (Boc-fPRH) and DPhe-Pro-Arg-H (fPRH), ovine corticotropin-releasing factor (oCRF), and bromocriptine. One millimolar fPRH stimulated basal, and slightly enhanced oCRF-induced ACTH release by melanotrophs in short-term experiments. The basal release of alpha-MSH was also stimulated by the drug. In long-term experiments, fPRH elevated markedly both the release and the intracellular level of ACTH; BOC-fPRH caused an increased alpha-MSH release. Tritiated fPRH had no preference for POMC-producing cells and BOC-fPRH or fPRH were harmless to the cell morphology. In anterior pituitary cell cultures, fPRH diminished slightly basal and oCRF-induced ACTH release. Bromocriptine was ineffective on corticotrophs, however, in melanotrophs it inhibited ACTH release markedly with or without fPRH in the medium. The dissimilar responsiveness of the corticotrophs and melanotrophs to the peptide aldehydes may be interpreted in terms of their differing membrane receptors or intracellular mechanism of stimulus-secretion coupling.

A quantitative approach to trace the corticotrophs in culture after adrenalectomy

Anterior pituitaries of adrenalectomized and sham operated adult rats were dispersed by trypsin and cultured for 4 and 8 days. Adrenalectomy caused a moderate increase in number of corticotrophs in both zero-time cell suspensions and cultures. There was a pronounced elevation of immunoreactive ACTH content in both cells and media and an enhanced secretory response to stimulation of cultures with stalk-median eminence extract containing cortiocotropin releasing (CRF) activity. Some cells identified as corticotrophs by a specific immunostaining incorporated tritiated thymidine into their nuclei suggesting their ability to enter the cell cycle. The relatively smaller increase in number of ACTH cells and the considerably higher ACTH producing capacity of the corticotrophs after adrenalectomy seem to be inconsistent with the quantal response model of hormone secretion recently introduced by Rodbard.

Electron-microscopic cytochemical studies on the secretory process in rat prolactin cells in primary culture

Three aspects of the secretory process in male rat prolactin (PRL) cells grown in primary cultures for 7--14 days have been investigated by cytochemical methods. The subcellular localization of prolactin has been studied using preembedding or postembedding immunocytochemical methods after various fixatives. With the postembedding method, PRL is localized essentially in secretory granules. The maximum intensity of staining is obtained with PAF fixative. With the preembedding method, subcellular localization of the staining varies depending on the fixative. After PAF-fixation, positive staining is observed on secretory granules, ground cytoplasm, the outer face of some RER cisternae and, in a few cells, on the innermost Golgi cisternae, as well as on masses of condensing secretory material. After Ohtsuki's hypotonic fixative followed by saponin permeabilization, PRL is visualized within the totality of RER cisternae, including the perinuclear cisternae and the peripheral saccules on the cis-Golgi face. Secretory granules are unstained. Membrane traffic was investigated using the Con A-HRP indirect method as a tracer of surface saccharides. Plasma membrane, coated with Con A-HRP at 4 degrees C, is slowly internalized at 37 degrees C. This involves both randomly distributed invaginations and capping. The final step of endocytosis (1--2 hours) is located in the Golgi zone, where very few smooth membranes are stained. In contrast, a conspicuous deposit is found around the dense content of secretory granules. This suggests a recycling of internalized membrane and a transfer of Con A-HRP from the inner face of smooth cisternae to the secretory material. The internalization of Con A-HRP-coated membrane leads to an inhibition of PRL release starting after 30 minutes. This is accompanied by a marked increase of acid phosphatase activity, mostly around forming and mature secretory granules.

Use of protein A-coated colloidal gold particles for immunoelectronmicroscopic localization of ACTH on ultrathin sections

ACTH was localized in dissociated porcine adenohypophysial cells using a novel indirect EM immunocytochemical technique. Incubation of ultrathin resin sections in anti-ACTH was followed by incubation with protein A-coated colloidal gold particles. Protein A binds specifically to the Fc part of the IgG molecule, and thus the ACTH-containing secretory granules became labelled with electron-dense gold particles. With this method, the dissociated porcine ACTH cells was identified as containing numerous round or ovoid 170--300 nm secretory granules.

ACTH radioimmunocytochemistry (RICH) on rat anterior pituitary cells

Radioimmunocytochemistry (RICH) was applied to detect corticotrophs in adult rat pituitaries and 8-day-old anterior pituitary monolayers by incubating sections and cultures with 125I-ACTH-anti ACTH immune complexes. After incubations autoradiography was made. In comparison, "conventional" immunostaining was carried out on adjacent sections and parallel cultures. It has been established that RICH is suitable for detection of corticotrophs.

DNA synthesis in immunreactive glandular cells in pituitary intermediate lobe cultures

Cell suspensions were prepared from adult rat pituitary intermediate lobes and grown in medium TC 199 supplemented with foetal calf serum. 7 or 8 days old cultures were pulse labelled with tritiated thymidine and thereafter processed for immunostaining using an antiserum against a synthetic alpha-1-28-ACTH-analogue. Immunreactivity was mainly confined to epithelial cells, but some spindle-shaped cells were also immunopositive. Thymidine incorporation was observed in some immunpositive cells which shows that cells committed to hormone production may enter the mitotic cycle.