Inhibition of protein phosphatases activates glucose-6-phosphatase in isolated rat hepatocytes

Dephosphorylation of CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein β by protein phosphatase 2A containing B56δ is required at the early time of adipogenesis

It is known that protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) expression is increased in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mice, but the role of PP2A in adipogenesis as well as obesity remains to be addressed. In this study, the role of PP2A in adipogenesis was explored. Preadipocytes were treated with okadaic acid (OA) during adipogenesis and the degree of adipogenesis was determined. The OA treatment blocked adipogenesis at the early time of adipogenesis, but not at the late time. In the early time of adipogenesis, CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein β (C/EBPβ) activation is preceded by the expression of key adipogenic transcription factors including PPARγ and C/EBPα, which function at the late time of adipogenesis, and then C/EBPβ is degraded. However, the inhibition of PP2A by OA treatment sustained phosphorylation of C/EBPβ and delayed its degradation. In turn, PPARγ and C/EBPα activation was altered. Among the various regulatory B56 subunits consisting of PP2A holoenzyme, B56δ was directly bound to C/EBPβ and was responsible for the dephosphorylation of C/EBPβ by PP2A. Taken together, these findings suggest that the phosphorylation of C/EBPβ after hormonal induction has to be inactivated by PP2A containing B56δ at the early time of adipogenesis to allow the completion of adipogenesis.

Decreased hepatic ALT synthesis is an outcome of subchronic microcystin-LR toxicity

Alanine aminotransferase (ALT; EC 2.6.1.2) is important for the transamination of amino acids and is also an important serum marker of hepatic damage. However, we had previously shown that hepatic ALT activity decreases with subchronic exposure to the hepatotoxin, microcystin-LR (MCLR), a potent inhibitor of serine/threonine protein phosphatases types 1 and 2A. These previous findings suggest that one outcome of subchronic MCLR toxicosis is decreased ALT synthesis by hepatocytes. This could affect the diagnostic sensitivity of serum ALT activity and metabolic processes within the cell. This study was done to investigate the mechanism by which ALT activity decreases following prolonged MCLR exposure. Immunoblots were first performed on liver tissue from 12 Harlan-Sprague-Dawley rats that had been treated with 0, 16, 32, or 48 microg/kg of microcystin-LR per day by continuous intraperitoneal infusion for 28 days. These revealed a dose-dependent decrease in ALT protein concentrations that correlated directly with hepatic ALT activity (r = 0.8132; P = 0.0013). Sixteen additional rats, treated with the same doses of MCLR showed a dose-dependent decrease in hepatic ALT activity to approximately 19% of values in saline-treated controls. Northern blot analysis revealed a decrease in hepatic ALT mRNA that correlated directly to hepatic ALT activity (r = 0.7909; P = 0.0004). It was concluded that subchronic MCLR exposure causes decreased hepatic ALT protein and mRNA concentrations. These findings suggest that one sequela of MCLR toxicosis is decreased hepatic ALT synthesis.

An altered T2 beta translocase of the glucose-6-phosphatase system in the membrane of the endoplasmic reticulum from livers of Ehrlich-ascites-tumour-bearing mice

The inhibitory interactions of orthophosphate (P1) with the glucose-6-phosphatase system of intact microsomes derived from the livers of normal and Ehrlich-ascites-tumour-bearing mice reveal the appearance of a novel form of the T2 beta translocase component of the glucose-6-phosphatase system in tumour-stressed mice. Kinetic studies, with and without 20 mM P1, show a strictly classical competitive inhibition, with a K1,P1 of 4.2 mM, with disrupted microsomes from both control and tumour-bearing mouse liver. Inhibition was also observed with intact microsomes from livers of control mice, and contributions by both competitive and non-competitive components of inhibition were quantified by calculation of Kis,P1 and Kii,P1 values respectively. However, little inhibition was noted with intact microsomes from the livers of tumour-bearing mice. It is concluded that this novel form of T2 beta is less able to transport Pi, from the cytosol to the endoplasmic reticulum lumen, perhaps because of the tumour-related increased Km for Pi transport in this direction.

Microcystin-LR induced an inhibition of protein synthesis in isolated rat hepatocytes

The effect of microcystin-LR, an inhibitor of protein phosphatases PP1 and PP2A, was studied on protein synthesis by measuring the incorporation of labelled amino acid into protein in isolated rat hepatocytes. Microcystin-LR inhibited protein synthesis in the first minutes of the incubation period, and half-maximum effect was obtained at about 60 nM. Such an inhibition was also observed in the presence of different protein phosphatase inhibitors, i.e. okadaic acid, calyculin A and microcystin-RR. This effect was observed in whole hepatocytes, in the supernatant of the post-mitochondrial fraction and in the microsomal fraction. It was independent of a substrate supply and of the labelled amino acid used. Furthermore, this inhibition preceded the previously reported glucose-6-phosphatase activation induced by microcystin-LR [Claeyssens, Chédeville and Lavoinne (1993) FEBS Lett. 315, 7-10].