Calcium signaling and gonadotropin secretion

Addition of a carboxy terminal tail to the normally tailless gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor impairs fertility in female mice

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) is the primary neuropeptide controlling reproduction in vertebrates. GnRH stimulates follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) synthesis via a G-protein-coupled receptor, GnRHR, in the pituitary gland. In mammals, GnRHR lacks a C-terminal cytosolic tail (Ctail) and does not exhibit homologous desensitization. This might be an evolutionary adaptation that enables LH surge generation and ovulation. To test this idea, we fused the chicken GnRHR Ctail to the endogenous murine GnRHR in a transgenic model. The LH surge was blunted, but not blocked in these mice. In contrast, they showed reductions in FSH production, ovarian follicle development, and fertility. Addition of the Ctail altered the nature of agonist-induced calcium signaling required for normal FSH production. The loss of the GnRHR Ctail during mammalian evolution is unlikely to have conferred a selective advantage by enabling the LH surge. The adaptive significance of this specialization remains to be determined.

Function- and agonist-specific Ca2+signalling: The requirement for and mechanism of spatial and temporal complexity in Ca2+signals

Calcium signals have been implicated in the regulation of many diverse cellular processes. The problem of how information from extracellular signals is delivered with specificity and fidelity using fluctuations in cytosolic Ca2+concentration remains unresolved. The capacity of cells to generate Ca2+signals of sufficient spatial and temporal complexity is the primary constraint on their ability to effectively encode information through Ca2+. Over the past decade, a large body of literature has dealt with some basic features of Ca2+-handling in cells, as well as the multiplicity and functional diversity of intracellular Ca2+stores and extracellular Ca2+influx pathways. In principle, physiologists now have the necessary information to attack the problem of function- and agonist-specificity in Ca2+signal transduction. This review explores the data indicating that Ca2+release from diverse sources, including many types of intracellular stores, generates Ca2+signals with sufficient complexity to regulate the vast number of cellular functions that have been reported as Ca2+-dependent. Some examples where such complexity may relate to neuroendocrine regulation of hormone secretion/synthesis are discussed. We show that the functional and spatial heterogeneity of Ca2+stores generates Ca2+signals with sufficient spatiotemporal complexity to simultaneously control multiple Ca2+-dependent cellular functions in neuroendocrine systems.Key words: signal coding, IP3receptor, ryanodine receptor, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi, secretory granules, mitochondria, exocytosis.

In vitro application of testosterone potentiates gonadotropin-releasing hormone-stimulated gonadotropin-II secretion from cultured goldfish pituitary cells

The in vitro effects of overnight treatment with testosterone (T) on gonadotropin (GTH)-II secretion from primary cultures of dispersed female goldfish pituitary cells were examined. T (100 nM) did not affect basal GTH-II release, but increased GTH-II responses to initial applications of 0.5-h pulses of sGnRH or cGnRH-II in cells from females at sexually regressed, recrudescing, or mature (prespawning) stages. Pretreatment with 10 nM T was also effective, except in experiments with cells from sexually regressed females. Analysis of GTH-II response profiles to the first GnRH pulse revealed that T increased the size of the initial (first 15 min) and sustained (rest of response) release phases, and the duration of the total response to both GnRHs. These results indicate that direct positive influence of T on GnRH-stimulated GTH-II release is demonstrable in cells from female goldfish at all ovarian maturational stages; in addition, T affects both the initial and the sustained response phases. However, compared to the initial GnRH challenge, responses to a second 0.5-h GnRH pulse were decreased in T-treated but not in control cells, suggesting that T also enhanced desensitization. Ovarian maturational conditions modulated the effects of T on the GTH-II response kinetics. In cells prepared from sexually regressed females, T treatment changed the "monophasic" (initial phase only) GTH-II response to sGnRH to a "biphasic" one characteristic of cells prepared from fish at later stages of gonadal recrudescence. Advancing gonadal maturity increased the magnitude of both initial and sustained phases of the T-enhanced GTH-II response to sGnRH, but only elevated the initial phase of T-potentiated cGnRH-II-induced release. Direct actions of T on pituitary cells may play a role in ovarian steroid feedback regulation of GTH-II secretion during the seasonal reproductive cycle in goldfish.

Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide regulates [Ca(2+)](i) and electrical activity in pituitary cells through cell type-specific mechanisms

Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) is a recently identified hypothalamic factor that acts on a variety of anterior pituitary cell types. It is clear, however, that its actions are not mediated by the same intracellular signaling mechanisms in each cell type. The signaling pathways by which PACAP regulates changes in [Ca(2+)], and electrical activity in rat somatotrophs and gonadotrophs is described in the present article. Finally, the possibility that the differences in PACAP-regulated signaling in anterior pituitary cells is due to the differential expression and coupling of PACAP receptor subtypes is discussed.

Involvement of protein kinase C in the modulation of gonadotropin and growth hormone secretion from dispersed goldfish pituitary cells

It has been established that secretion of gonadotropin (GtH) and growth hormone (GH) release in goldfish are both stimulated by GtH-releasing hormone (GnRH); in addition GtH secretion is inhibited by dopamine D2 mechanisms. In the present study, depletion of protein kinase C (PKC) in goldfish pituitary cells reduced the GtH and GH responses to GnRH and an activator of PKC in static culture. In perifusion studies, GtH released in response to sGnRH analog was greatly attenuated in PKC-depleted cells, however, hormone responses to forskolin were enhanced. Stimulation of dopamine D2 receptors reduced the GtH, but not the GH, responses elicited by PKC activators. These results indicate that PKC participates in the GtH and GH responses to natural neuroendocrine regulators in the goldfish.

Intracellular mechanisms mediating gonadotropin and growth hormone release in the goldfish, Carassius auratus

Evidence for the involvement of Ca(2+), protein kinase C, cAMP, and arachidonic acid metabolism in mediating gonadotropin (GTH) and growth hormone (GH) release in the goldfish is reviewed. Models for the signal transduction pathways mediating GTH-releasing hormone (GnRH) and dopamine actions on GTH and GH secretion are postulated. A novel hypothesis that two GnRHs which bind to the same receptor type activate different transduction cascade in two different cell types (GTH vs. GH) as well as within the same cell type (GTH) is presented.

The modulation of placental lactogen release by opioids: a role for extracellular calcium

We previously reported that kappa opioids stimulated the release of human placental lactogen (hPL) from trophoblastic cells and that this effect was prevented by co-incubation with naloxone. We also reported that adenylate cyclase was not directly involved in this process. In order to understand the post-receptor events mediating hPL release by opioids in the human placenta, we studied the role of extracellular calcium. Human trophoblastic cells obtained by trypsin digestion were cultured for 48 h in Ham's F-10 medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS), 200 U/ml penicillin, and 200 micrograms/ml streptomycin. 45Ca2+ influx was then measured by filtration on glass-fiber filters. We observed a time- and dose-dependent stimulation of 45Ca2+ influx by ethylketocyclazocine (EKC) with an EC50 of 0.5 nM and a maximal stimulation of 196% over control. This effect was completely blocked by naloxone, a non-specific opioid antagonist, and by nor-binaltorphimine, a specific kappa antagonist. We also demonstrated that U-50,488 (kappa agonist) had the same stimulatory effect as EKC (221 +/- 25% of control). D-Ala2,NMe-Phe4,Gly-ol5)-enkephalin (DAGO) (mu agonist) slightly stimulated Ca2+ influx (128 +/- 5% of control, p > 0.05) whereas D-Ser2,Leu,Thr6)-enkephalin (DSLET) (delta agonist) had no effect. Pre-incubation of trophoblastic cells with pertussis toxin (PTX) did not affect the EKC-induced 45Ca2+ influx, suggesting that this placental opiate effect is not coupled with PTX-sensitive G proteins.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Estradiol regulates gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor number, growth and inositol phosphate production in alpha T3-1 cells

Gonadal steroids act at the pituitary to regulate gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) receptor number and the responsiveness of gonadotropes to GnRH and can act at post-receptor sites to modulate Ca(2+)-mediated and protein kinase C-mediated signal-transducing pathways. However, such effects have been seen in the mixed cell population of primary cell cultures and may involve indirect effects on cells other than gonadotropes. Here, steroid effects on a recently described gonadotrope-derived cell line (alpha T3-1 cells) have been assessed. In these cells estradiol, progesterone, testosterone and corticosterone all exerted trophic effects. Estradiol increased [3H]thymidine incorporation with an EC50 of 10(-12) to 10(-11) M and this effect was blocked by keoxifene, an estrogen receptor antagonist. Estradiol also reduced binding of [125I]buserelin (EC50 approximately 10(-11) M), an effect which appears to reflect a reduction in GnRH receptor number rather than a change in Kd. Estradiol also shifted the dose-response curve for GnRH-stimulated inositol phosphate (IP) accumulation rightward, increasing the EC50 for this GnRH effect by approximately 20-fold. Accordingly estradiol acts directly upon alpha T3-1 cells not only to reduce GnRH receptor number, but also to reduce the efficiency of coupling of residual GnRH receptors to second messenger generation.

Evolving role of Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone antagonists

GnRH antagonists, unlike GnRH agonists, do not act via "downregulation." Instead, GnRH antagonists monopolize the GnRH receptors to such an extent that endogenous GnRH is unable to bind to sufficient numbers of GnRH receptors to provoke release of LH/FSH. This fundamental difference in the mechanism of action of GnRH antagonists versus GnRH agonists is anticipated to result in clinical benefits for certain applications.

Actions of two native GnRHs and protein kinase C modulators on goldfish pituitary cells. Studies on intracellular calcium levels and gonadotropin release

Previous results indicate that the two native gonadotropin (GtH)-releasing hormones of the goldfish, sGnRH and cGnRHII, stimulate GtH secretion in an extracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]o) dependent manner. In the present study, sGnRH, cGnRHII, KCI and the protein kinase C (PKC) activators TPA and DiC8, stimulated increases in intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) levels in goldfish pituitary cells. Testing in Ca(2+)-deficient medium abolished the [Ca2+]i responses to cGnRHII, TPA and KCI and attenuated responses to sGnRH and DiC8. These results are the first to demonstrate that in teleost pituitary cells both native GnRHs stimulate increases in [Ca2+]i levels via [Ca2+]o entry. sGnRH- and DiC8-stimulated increases in [Ca2+]i also appear to be partially due to mobilization of Ca2+ from intracellular stores. Other results are consistent with a role for PKC in mediating GnRH action especially extracellular Ca2+ entry. Firstly, the PKC inhibitor staurosporine decreased GnRH- and TPA-induced [Ca2+]i responses. Secondly, incubation with Ca(2+)-deficient medium attenuated TPA- and DiC8-stimulated GtH release. Thirdly, GtH release responses to PKC activators were enhanced and reduced by an agonist and an antagonist of Ca2+ channel function, respectively. However, differences in the sensitivity of DiC8- and TPA-elicited responses to manipulations of [Ca2+]o entry indicate that these two PKC activators may have different actions in the goldfish pituitary. A difference in action of the two GnRHs on mobilization of Ca2+ from intracellular stores is also indicated.

Relationship between cyclic AMP-stimulated and native gonadotropin-releasing hormone-stimulated gonadotropin release in the goldfish

The relationship between drugs elevating intracellular cAMP levels and gonadotropin (GTH)-releasing hormone (GnRH) in the stimulation of GTH secretion in the goldfish was investigated using dispersed goldfish pituitary cells in primary culture. In static incubation experiments, activation of adenylyl cyclase by forskolin and the inhibition of cAMP phosphodiesterase by 3 isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX) increased cAMP release and stimulated GTH secretion. The addition of membrane permeant cAMP analogs, 8-bromoadenosine 3':5'-cyclic monophosphate (8Br-cAMP), and dibutyryl cAMP also increased GTH release, suggesting that elevation of cAMP levels can induce GTH secretion. In the goldfish, dopamine is a physiological inhibitor of GTH release. Application of the dopamine agonist apomorphine decreased the GTH responses to forskolin, 8Br-cAMP, and salmon GTH-releasing hormone (sGnRH). The ability of agents that elevate cAMP levels to mimic GnRH action on GTH release suggests that cAMP may mediate GnRH-stimulated GTH secretion in the goldfish; however, this possibility was not substantiated by results from further experiments. In 2-hr static incubation studies, the GTH responses to sGnRH and chicken GnRH-II (cGnRH-II) were enhanced by coincubations with forskolin, IBMX, and 8Br-cAMP. The magnitudes of these enhancements were at least additive, if not synergistic. The levels of cAMP released into the media were unaffected by treatment with sGnRH and cGnRH-II, either in the absence or in the presence of IBMX. Replacement of normal testing media with Ca(2+)-deficient media (without Ca2+ salts and in the presence of 0.1 mM EGTA) decreased sGnRH and cGnRH-II stimulation of GTH release but did not affect forskolin and 8Br-cAMP actions. These results indicate that sGnRH and cGnRH-II stimulation of short term (less than or equal to 2-h) GTH release in the goldfish is not mediated by cAMP. The kinetics of the interactions between sGnRH, forskolin, and IBMX were also investigated in cell column perifusion studies. Applications of 5-min pulses of forskolin and IBMX stimulated rapid increases in GTH release; the latencies of these responses were similar to that observed with sGnRH. The simultaneous applications of sGnRH with either forskolin or IBMX resulted in GTH responses that were of greater magnitude and longer duration than those in response to sGnRH alone. These results together indicate that elevation of cAMP levels can potentiate the GTH response to the native GnRHs by increasing the magnitude of the acute GTH release and by prolonging the duration of GnRH action; however, cAMP does not appear to be involved directly in mediating GnRH stimulation of GTH release.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Lack of involvement of arachidonic acid metabolism in chicken gonadotropin-releasing hormone II (cGnRH-II) stimulation of gonadotropin secretion in dispersed pituitary cells of goldfish, Carassius auratus. Identification of a major difference in salmon GnRH and chicken GnRH-II mechanisms of action

Gonadotropin (GTH) release in static incubations of dispersed goldfish pituitary cells was stimulated by chicken GTH-releasing hormone II (cGnRH-II), salmon (s)GnRH, phospholipase A2, phospholipase C, phospholipase D, and arachidonic acid (AA). Coincubations with nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA), 5,8,11,14-eicosatetraenoic acid, and indomethacin did not alter the GTH responses to cGnRH-II. In contrast, NDGA reduced sGnRH-stimulated GTH release. Incubation with Ca(2+)-deficient medium abolished the GTH responses to cGnRH-II, reduced sGnRH-stimulated GTH release, but did not alter AA actions on GTH secretion. Apomorphine, a dopamine agonists that had been shown to partially inhibit the GTH responses to sGnRH and to abolish those induced by cGnRH-II, did not affect the hormone response to AA. However, the partial inhibitory actions of NDGA and apomorphine on sGnRH-induced GTH release were additive. These findings suggest the existence of a major difference in cGnRH-II and sGnRH stimulation of GTH release--AA metabolism is not involved in cGnRH-II, as opposed to sGnRH actions. This difference in second messenger activation may also explain the differential sensitivity of the two GnRH peptides to dopamine inhibition and manipulations of extracellular Ca2+ availability. The results further suggest that dopamine and AA affect GTH release via non-overlapping signal transduction pathways.

The effects of age on the postreceptor regulation of luteinizing hormone secretion by gonadotropin-releasing hormone

We studied the effects of age on the roles of phosphoinositide (PI) and protein kinase C (PKC) in luteinizing hormone (LH) release by gonadotropin-releasing hormone from mouse pituitaries. Pituitary cells from intact and 14-day ovariectomized (OVX) mice aged 4-8 months, 10-12 months and 14-18 months were cultured at a dilution of 3 x 10(5) cells/ml of M199-bovine serum albumin medium for 3 days prior to stimulation with either buserelin or phorbol ester (phorbol myristate acetate, PMA), while LH was assayed by radioimmunoassay using anti-rat LH antibody (NIDDK-5-10). In intact young mice, buserelin and PMA specifically induced time- and dose-dependent increases in LH release with specific mean ED50 of 0.82 x 10(-11) M (buserelin) and of 1.6 x 10(-8) M (PMA) and a maximal LH release of 138 +/- 15 ng/10(6) cells after a 3 h stimulation period. Age did not affect the ED50 of either agonist but significantly reduced their ability to release LH. This reduction was more pronounced for buserelin than for PMA and was evident as early as middle-age. OVX resulted in a significant increase in both basal and stimulated LH release, but did not affect the age-related reduced secretion rate of LH by either agonist. Buserelin stimulated the incorporation of [3H]inositol into [3H]inositol phosphates (IP) in a dose-dependent manner, which was unaffected by either age or OVX. We conclude that, with aging, there occurs a reduced LH release rate to both buserelin and PKC stimulations, uncoupled to changes in PI-IP cycle.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Possible involvement of protein kinase C in gonadotropin and growth hormone release from dispersed goldfish pituitary cells

Static incubation with tumor-promoting 4 beta-phorbol esters, activators of the Ca2(+)- and phospholipid-dependent protein kinase C enzyme (PKC), caused dose-dependent increases in gonadotropin (GTH) and growth hormone (GH) secretion in primary cultures of dispersed goldfish pituitary cells. The estimated half-maximal effective doses (ED50) for stimulating GTH and GH release were 0.35 +/- 0.17 and 0.32 +/- 0.13 nM 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol 13 acetate (TPA), 3.71 +/- 1.30 and 1.37 +/- 0.76 nM 4 beta-phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate, 6.90 +/- 4.84 and 1.89 +/- 0.25 nM 4 beta-phorbol 12,13-dibenzoate, and 455 +/- 258 and 311 +/- 136 nM 4 beta-phorbol 12,13-diacetate, respectively. In contrast, treatments with up to 10 microM of the inactive 4 alpha-phorbol 12,13-didecanoate ester did not alter GTH and GH release. Additions of the synthetic diacylglycerol, dioctanoyl glycerol, also enhanced GTH and GH secretion in a dose-dependent manner and with ED50s of 1.73 +/- 0.83 and 1.73 +/- 1.19 microM, respectively. The GTH and GH responses to stimulation by TPA were attenuated by incubation with Ca2(+)-depleted medium containing EGTA or by treatment with the Ca2+ channel blocker verapamil. Coincubation with the PKC inhibitor H7 reduced the GTH and GH responses to TPA. As in previous studies, additions of salmon gonadotropin-releasing hormone (sGnRH) or chicken GnRH-II (cGnRH-II) induced GTH and GH release; these hormone responses to sGnRH and cGnRH-II were also decreased by the addition of H7. These results indicate that activation of PKC may stimulate GTH and GH release in goldfish and suggest that sGnRH and cGnRH-II actions on goldfish pituitary GTH and GH secretion are also mediated, at least partially, by PKC.

Dependence of hormone secretion on activation-inactivation kinetics of voltage-sensitive Ca2+ channels in pituitary gonadotrophs

The relationships between the activation status of voltage-sensitive Ca2+ channels and secretory responses were analyzed in perfused rat gonadotrophs during stimulation by high extracellular K+ concentration ([K+]e) or the physiological agonist, gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). Increase of [K+]e to 50 mM evokes an on-off secretory response, with a rapid rise in luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion to a peak at 35 sec (on response) followed by an exponential decrease to the steady-state level. Cessation of K+ stimulation elicits a transient (off) response followed by an exponential decrease to the basal level. The LH response to high [K+]e is nifedipine-sensitive and its amplitude depends on membrane potential. There is a close relationship between the LH secretory response to high [K+]e and the amplitude of the inward Ca2+ current measured at 100 msec in whole-cell patch clamp experiments. In addition, the profile of the LH secretory response is similar to that of the response of intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) in K(+)-stimulated cells. In Ca2(+)-deficient medium, the effect of high [K+]e is abolished; subsequent elevation of [Ca2+]e during the K+ pulse is followed by restoration of the on response, but with reduced magnitude. Agonist stimulation during the steady-state phase of the [K+]e pulse or after repetitive stimulation by high [K+]e elicited biphasic [Ca2+]i and secretory responses with a significantly reduced plateau phase; conversely, K(+)-induced LH release was reduced in cells treated with desensitizing doses of GnRH. These findings indicate that depolarization-induced changes in the status of voltage-sensitive Ca2+ channels determine the profiles of [Ca2+]i and LH responses to stimulation by high [K+]e; the initial activation of dihydropyridine-sensitive Ca2+ channels is clearly dependent on membrane potential, whereas their subsequent inactivation depends on increased [Ca2+]i. Such inactivation of voltage-sensitive Ca2+ channels also occurs during GnRH action and may represent an additional regulatory mechanism to limit the entry of extracellular Ca2+ during prolonged or frequent agonist stimulation.

Role of voltage-sensitive calcium channels in [Ca2+]i and secretory responses to activators of protein kinase C in pituitary gonadotrophs

The gonadotropin secretory response of anterior pituitary cells to phorbol esters includes both extracellular Ca2(+)-dependent and -independent components (Stojilković et al, 1988; J. Biol. Chem. 263, 17301-17306, 1988). In cultured pituitary cells, measurements of [Ca2+]i using Fura-2 and of LH release during cell perifusion studies revealed that the initial effects of phorbols and permeant diacylglycerols on these responses are extracellular Ca2(+)-dependent and are mediated through activation of voltage- and dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels. On the other hand, pretreatment with phorbol esters for 30 to 60 min inhibited subsequent [Ca2+]i responses to diacylglycerols and phorbols and significantly reduced agonist-induced biphasic [Ca2+]i responses, with no change in the number of GnRH receptors. These findings demonstrate that protein kinase C exerts both positive and negative control of [Ca2+]i, and indicate that the calcium, phospholipid dependent enzyme participates in the activation of voltage-sensitive calcium channels and hormone secretion in pituitary gonadotrophs.

Endothelin stimulation of cytosolic calcium and gonadotropin secretion in anterior pituitary cells

The presence of endothelin, a vasoconstrictor peptide, in the hypothalamus and posterior pituitary suggests that it also regulates neural and other nonvascular target cells. In pituitary gonadotrophs, low doses of endothelin evoked oscillations in the intracellular calcium concentration, and high doses induced a biphasic calcium response. Mobilization of intracellular calcium predominated during the spike phase of the calcium response to endothelin, whereas calcium entry through dihydropyridine-sensitive channels contributed to both the spike and plateau phases of the calcium response. Endothelin was a potent as hypothalamic gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) in stimulation of gonadotropin release in perifused pituitary cells. Endothelin bound specifically to pituitary cells with a dissociation constant of 70 picomolar, and induced rapid formation of inositol trisphosphate and diacyglycerol. Although intracellular calcium concentration and gonadotropin secretory responses to endothelin were independent to the GnRH receptor, endothelin and GnRH appeared to have a common signal transduction mechanism. These observations suggest that endothelin can act as a neuropeptide to regulate anterior pituitary function.