Calcium reveals different mechanisms of guanylate cyclase activation by atrial natriuretic factor and ATP in rat lung membranes

Natriuretic peptides in vascular physiology and pathology

Four major natriuretic peptides have been isolated: atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP), and Dendroaspis-type natriuretic peptide (DNP). Natriuretic peptides play an important role in the regulation of cardiovascular homeostasis maintaining blood pressure and extracellular fluid volume. The classical endocrine effects of natriuretic peptides to modulate fluid and electrolyte balance and vascular smooth muscle tone are complemented by autocrine and paracrine actions that include regulation of coronary blood flow and, therefore, myocardial perfusion; modulation of proliferative responses during myocardial and vascular remodeling; and cytoprotective anti-ischemic effects. The actions of natriuretic peptides are mediated by the specific binding of these peptides to three cell surface receptors: type A natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR-A), type B natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR-B), and type C natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR-C). NPR-A and NPR-B are guanylyl cyclase receptors that increase intracellular cGMP concentration and activate cGMP-dependent protein kinases. NPR-C has been presented as a clearance receptor and its activation also results in inhibition of adenylyl cyclase activity. The wide range of effects of natriuretic peptides might be the base for the development of new therapeutic strategies of great benefit in patients with cardiovascular problems including coronary artery disease or heart failure. This review summarizes current literature concerning natriuretic peptides, their receptors and their effects on fluid/electrolyte balance, and vascular and cardiac physiology and pathology, including primary hypertension and myocardial infarction. In addition, we will attempt to provide an update on important issues regarding natriuretic peptides in congestive heart failure.

Different effect of ATP on ANP receptor guanylyl cyclase in spontaneously hypertensive and normotensive rats

AIM

Natriuretic peptide receptor A (NPR-A) is the main physiological receptor for atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP). Maximal activation of NPR-A guanylyl cyclase (GC) requires ANP binding and ATP interaction with a putative cytoplasmic site. This study investigates the regulatory effect of ATP on GC-coupled NPR-A activity in Wistar Kyoto (WKY) and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR).

METHODS

Cyclic GMP production and competitive inhibition of [(125)I]ANP(1-28) binding were performed in solubilized glomerular and papillary renal membranes.

RESULTS

Here, we report that incubation of renal glomerular and papillary membranes with ATP induced a concentration-dependent increase in basal and ANP(1-28)-stimulated GC activity that was significantly greater in SHR than in age-matched WKY. ATPgammaS was more effective than ATP and induced a greater stimulation of cGMP production in SHR than in WKY. In contrast, in solubilized membranes ATP exerted an inhibitory role on basal and ANP(1-28)-induced GC activity, suggesting that an accessory protein is required for ATP-induced GC activation. ATP increases NPR-A affinity for ANP(1-28) and decreased B(max) in crude and solubilized membranes. Kinetic analysis of GC-coupled NPR-A revealed that ATP reduced the Km and increased the V(max), an effect that was greater in SHR.

CONCLUSION

Our observations indicate that ATP exerts a greater net effect on NPR-A in SHR than in WKY, which might explain the greater rate of cGMP production observed in SHR compared to WKY.

Proteolytic activation of membrane-bound guanylate cyclase

Membrane-bound guanylate cyclase-A (GC-A), the receptor for atrial natriuretic factor (ANF), has been shown to be regulated by its kinase-like domain. To resolve the nature of this regulation, we measured the effects of various proteases on the activity of guanylate cyclase in rat lung membranes, and on the activity of the bacterial-expressed catalytic domain (GC-c) and on a recombinant peptide composed of both the kinase-like and catalytic domain (GC-kc) of guanylate cyclase. Pronase increased rat guanylate cyclase activity in a biphasic manner with a maximal effect at about 10-20 microg per assay tube. Thermolysin had effects similar to those of pronase on the activity of guanylate cyclase in rat lung membranes. In the case of bacterial-expressed proteins, pronase increased the activity of GC-kc, but not GC-c. These results indicate that GC-A contains an autoinhibitory site on its kinase-like domain, and that removal of the autoinhibitory site by limited proteolysis leads to enzyme activation. GC-A was poorly activated by ANF and ATP after the rat lung membrane was pretreated with pronase, suggesting that ANF/ATP and pronase activate guanylate cyclase through the same mechanism. It is suggested that the binding of ANF and ATP to GC-A may induce a conformational change of the receptor that releases the inhibitory constraint on enzyme activity leading to enzyme activation.

Molecular cloning of a regulatory protein for membrane-bound guanylate cyclase GC-A

Activation of membrane-bound guanylate cyclase GC-A by atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) may require the involvement of accessory proteins. To identify these postulated proteins, we isolated a 1. 0-kb cDNA clone from a rat brain expression library using a polyclonal antiserum against mastoparan. The 1.0-kb cDNA encodes a protein of 111 amino acids. Expression of this cDNA in COS-7 cells potentiated ANF-stimulated GC-A activity. Therefore, the 1.0-kb gene encodes a guanylate cyclase regulatory protein (GCRP). Fluorescence microscopy studies using the fusion protein of GCRP with green fluorescence protein (GFP) indicated that GCRP was present in the cytosol in PC12 cells, but translocated toward the plasma membrane in the presence of ANF. Coimmunoprecipitation experiments indicate that GCRP associates with GC-A in the presence of ANF. These results suggest that ANF induces the association of GCRP with GC-A and this association contributes to the activation of GC-A.

Structural requirements of mastoparan for activation of membrane-bound guanylate cyclase

Mastoparan activated membrane-bound guanylate cyclase and potentiated the effect of atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) and ATP on guanylate cyclase activity in rat lung membranes. Mastoparan is a cationic, amphiphilic tetradecapeptide with an amidated carboxyl terminus. It takes the alpha-helical conformation upon interacting with the membrane. Several analogs were synthesized to study the role of the positive charges, the carboxyl amino group and the alpha-helical conformation of mastoparan in the activation of guanylate cyclase. The results showed that substitution of the C-terminal amide group of mastoparan with a carboxyl group significantly reduced its potency on the activation of guanylate cyclase. Replacement of three lysine residues of mastoparan with aspartic acid or serine residues completely abolished the stimulatory effect of mastoparan. When the alanine at position 10 of mastoparan was substituted by a proline, the resulting analog had no effect on guanylate cyclase activity. These results demonstrate that the positive charges and the helical structure of mastoparan are critical determinants for the activation of guanylate cyclase.

Formycin triphosphate as a probe for the ATP binding site involved in the activation of guanylate cyclase

Formycin A triphosphate (FTP), a fluorescent analog of ATP, slightly increased basal guanylate cyclase activity, but significantly potentiated guanylate cyclase activity stimulated by atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) in rat lung membranes. FTP potentiated ANF-stimulated guanylate cyclase activity with an EC50 at about 90 microM and inhibited ATP-stimulated guanylate cyclase activity with an IC50 at about 100 microM. These results indicate that FTP binds more tightly than ATP for the same binding site. Therefore, FTP would be an excellent tool for studying the ATP binding site.

Receptor guanylyl cyclases

Three different guanylyl cyclase cell receptors are known, but others will likely be discovered within the next few years. The general function of these receptors appear to relate to the regulation of fluid volume or fluid movement. New receptors, or possibly the currently known receptors, therefore, may be discovered in areas of the body where fluid volume regulation is important. Such fluids whose volume or composition might be regulated by guanylyl cyclase receptors include synovial fluid, uterine/oviductal luminal fluid, follicular fluid, aqueous humor, cerebral spinal fluid, seminiferous tubule luminal fluid, epididymal luminal fluid, seminal plasma, and airway luminal fluid. The function of the heterodimeric forms of guanylyl cyclase appear to relate to a primary regulation of nitric oxide (or similar molecules) concentrations, which are in turn regulated by a Ca2+/calmodulin-sensitive nitric oxide synthase.