cGMP influences guanine nucleotide binding to frog photoreceptor G-protein

Amplification and kinetics of the activation steps in phototransduction

We can summarize our investigation of amplification in the activation steps of vertebrate phototransduction as follows. (1) A theoretical analysis of the activation steps of the cGMP cascade shows that after a brief flash of phi photoisomerizations the number of activated PDE molecules should rise as a delayed ramp with slope proportional to phi, and that, as a consequence, the cGMP-activated current should decay as a delayed Gaussian function of time (Eqn. 20). (i) Early in the response to a flash, the normalized response R(t) can be approximated as rising as 1/2 phi At2 (after a short delay), where A is the amplification constant characteristic of the individual photoreceptor. (ii) The delayed ramp behavior of PDE activation and the consequent decline of current in the form of the delayed Gaussian are confirmed by experiments in a variety of photoreceptors; the analysis thus yields estimates of the amplification constant from these diverse photoreceptors. (iii) Eqn. 20 further predicts that the response-intensity relation at any fixed time should saturate exponentially, as has been found experimentally. (2) The amplification constant A can be expressed as the product of amplification factors contributed by the individual activation steps of phototransduction, i.e., A = nu RG cGP beta sub n (Eqns. 9 and 21), where (i) nu RG is the rate of G* production per Rh*; (ii) cGP is the efficiency of the coupling between G* production and PDE* production; (iii) beta sub is the increment in hydrolytic rate constant produced by one PDE*, i.e., a single activated catalytic subunit of PDE; and (iv) n is the Hill coefficient of opening of the cGMP-activated channels. (3) The amplification factor beta sub includes the ratio kcat/Km, which characterizes the hydrolytic activity of the PDE in vivo where cG << Km. Two different analyses based upon photocurrents were developed which provide lower bounds for kcat/Km in vivo; these analyses establish that kcat/Km probably exceeds 10(7) M-1 s-1 (and is likely to be higher) in both amphibian and mammalian rods. Few biochemical studies (other than those using trypsin activation) have yielded such high values. A likely explanation of many of the relatively low biochemical estimates of kcat/Km is that Km may have been overestimated by a factor of about 4 in preparations in which stacks of disks are left intact, due to diffusion with hydrolysis in the stacks.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

ATP-independent deactivation of squid rhodopsin

Deactivation of light-activated squid rhodopsin was studied in vitro using GTP gamma S binding by G-protein as a direct measure of rhodopsin activity. Deactivation was inhibited by dilution of the retinal suspension or by removal of soluble components. Deactivation could be restored by addition of soluble material to washed membranes. These results indicate that the deactivation is not due entirely to a conformational transition within rhodopsin itself, but depends on the interaction with other molecules. The possibility that phosphorylation is involved in the deactivation was studied. Deactivation occurred in the presence and absence of added ATP. Deactivation also occurred in the presence of kinase inhibitors and after addition of apyrase, which reduced residual ATP levels to below 1 microM. These results indicate that light-induced phosphorylation is not required for deactivation of squid rhodopsin. In this regard deactivation of squid rhodopsin is different from that of vertebrate rhodopsin, which requires phosphorylation.

Stimulation by cGMP of apical Na channels and cation channels in toad urinary bladder

The effects of 8-bromoguanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (8-BrcGMP) on apical membrane cation conductances in the toad urinary bladder were investigated. 8-BrcGMP (1 mM) added to the serosal solution increased the amiloride-sensitive short-circuit current (INa) after a delay of 5 min to a steady-state value 1.8 times that of controls achieved after 30 min. Similar effects were seen when the bladders were bathed on the serosal side with a normal NaCl Ringer solution and with a high-K sucrose solution to depolarize the basolateral membrane. Under the latter conditions, the amiloride-sensitive transepithelial conductance increased in parallel with the short-circuit current, indicating stimulation of apical membrane Na channels. The threshold concentration for observing the stimulation of INa was 100 microM, 10-100 times larger than the concentration of 8-bromoadenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (8-BrcAMP) required to elicit an increase in INa. Currents through an outwardly rectifying Ca-sensitive cation conductance (Iout) were also increased by 1.8-fold relative to controls. This stimulatory effect occurred after a delay of 15 min and reached maximal levels 90-120 min after addition of the nucleotide. The effects of cGMP on INa were not additive with those of 8-BrcAMP or with antidiuretic hormone, an agent known to act by increasing cAMP within the cell. Addition of 1 mM 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine to the serosal side of the bladders stimulated INa by 1.3-fold and Iout by 2.4-fold. In both cases, subsequent addition of cGMP produced no further activation of either conductance.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Effect of bleached rhodopsin on signal amplification in rod visual receptors

Bleaching of rhodopsin markedly desensitizes the vertebrate visual system during a subsequent period of dark adaptation. Previous studies have indicated an origin of bleaching desensitization in the visual pigment itself, but have not identified the mechanism of action. A candidate for the site at which densensitization is initially expressed is the activation of transducin (formation of T*) on the rod disk membranes; this reaction directly involves rhodopsin in its photoactivated (R*) form and mediates initial amplification of the visual signal (reviewed in refs 7-9). We have analysed the effect of bleaching on the sensitivity of a flash-induced light-scattering signal known to monitor the disk-based amplifier, and which has been established as specifically monitoring transducin activation. We have recorded this signal from functioning retinal rods in situ ('ATR' signal) and find that bleaches inducing a pronounced, sustained loss in rod electrophysiological sensitivity do not alter the sensitivity of the ATR response after correction for reduced quantum catch. Our results indicate that the biochemical gain of the R*----T* transduction stage remains unchanged in the presence of bleached pigment and implicate a subsequent reaction as the first to show a sustained, bleaching-dependent gain reduction.

Characterization of guanylate cyclase in squid photoreceptors

Light causes a rapid, 1.7-fold increase in cyclic GMP concentration in intact squid retinas (Johnson et al. (1986]. To determine whether light-induced changes in cyclic GMP concentration result from activation of guanylate cyclase, we have studied the regulation of guanylate cyclase activity in squid (Loligo pealei) photoreceptors. The enzyme is membrane-associated and activity is enhanced by the detergents Triton X-100 or digitonin. The enzyme requires divalent cations, Mn2+ being preferred over Mg2+. The dependence of enzyme activity on the MnGTP concentration deviates from simple Michaelis-Menten kinetics. Under conditions where a light-induced binding of GTP to the guanine nucleotide regulatory protein can be observed, no light-induced change in guanylate cyclase could be detected.

Atrial natriuretic peptide inhibits a cation channel in renal inner medullary collecting duct cells

The patch-clamp technique was used to examine the effects of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) and its second messenger guanosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cGMP) on an amiloride-sensitive cation channel in the apical membrane of renal inner medullary collecting duct cells. Both ANP (10(-11) M) and dibutyryl guanosine 3',5'-monophosphate (10(-4) M) inhibited the channel in cell-attached patches, and cGMP (10(-5) M) inhibited the channel in inside-out patches. The inner medullary collecting duct is the first tissue in which ANP, via its second messenger cGMP, has been shown to regulate single ion channels. The results suggest that the natriuretic action of ANP is related in part to cGMP-mediated inhibition of electrogenic Na+ absorption by the inner medullary collecting duct.

Contribution of the guanosinetriphosphatase activity of G-protein to termination of light-activated guanosine cyclic 3',5'-phosphate hydrolysis in retinal rod outer segments

Light activation of GTP binding to G-protein and its eventual hydrolysis are hypothesized to lead to activation and inactivation of cGMP phosphodiesterase (PDE) in vertebrate rod disk membranes (RDM). However, the reported GTPase rate of 3 per minute is too slow to account for the observed rapid inactivation of PDE. Our investigations on GTPase activity showed that RDM isolated in the dark have considerable dark GTPase activity, which is enhanced by light. In dark and light, the enzyme exhibits biphasic substrate dependence with two Km's for GTP of 2-3 and 40-80 microM at 22 degrees C and less than 1 and 10-25 microM at 37 degrees C. The Km's were not influenced by light. On the basis of G-protein content of the RDM, the Vmax's for the two activities at 37 degrees C in light are 4-5 and 20-30 GTPs hydrolyzed per minute per G-protein. RDM washed free of soluble and peripheral proteins do not have measurable GTPase activity in the dark or light. Purified G-protein alone also did not turn over GTP, apparently because bleached rhodopsin is required for it to bind GTP. Reconstitution of washed membranes with purified G-protein restores both the low- and high-Km GTPase activities. Inactivation of G-protein as measured by PDE turnoff and dissociation signal recovery is found to be faster at higher than lower [GTP], consistent with the observation that the higher GTPase activity associated with the higher Km alos resides in the G-protein.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Direct activation of guanine nucleotide binding proteins through a high-energy phosphate-transfer by nucleoside diphosphate-kinase

An in vitro study of phosphate-transfer, from the high-energy phosphates on the phosphoenzyme (enzyme-bound high-energy phosphate intermediate) of NDP-kinase to GDP on various guanine nucleotide binding proteins (G1, elongation factor alpha 1, recombinant v-rasH p21 protein, transducin, Gi and Go), revealed that the GDP acts as a phosphate-acceptor, in the presence of divalent cations (Mg2+ and Ca2+). This finding suggests that via phosphate-transfer, NDP-kinase may be responsible for the direct activation of various guanine nucleotide binding proteins through phosphate-transfer by the enzyme.

Cyclic GMP is involved in the excitation of invertebrate photoreceptors

The hyperpolarizing receptor potential in vertebrate rod photoreceptors appears to be mediated by the second messenger, cyclic GMP. Injection of cGMP into rods or application of cGMP to inside-out membrane patches activates a conductance resembling that produced by light. Light produces a rapid reduction of cGMP in living rods, leading to closure of sodium channels and membrane hyperpolarization. In most invertebrate photoreceptors the response to light is depolarizing. We have investigated whether cGMP is involved in controlling the increase in sodium conductance that underlies this depolarization. We show here that injection of cGMP into Limulus photoreceptors produces a depolarization that mimics the receptor potential. We also show that the cGMP concentration of the squid retina increases rapidly during exposure to light. These results support the hypothesis that cGMP mediates the light-induced depolarization in invertebrate photoreceptors and suggests that vertebrate and invertebrate phototransduction may be more similar than previously thought.

ATP can promote activation and deactivation of the rod cGMP-phosphodiesterase. Kinetic light scattering on intact rod outer segments

The AT (amplified transient) signal is a flash-induced increase of the near-infrared light scattering from isolated bovine rod outer segments and is interpreted as a monitor of cGMP-phosphodiesterase activation [(1985) FEBS Lett. 188, 15-20]. We have investigated the effects of ATP and cyclic GMP on this signal. It has been found that ATP enhances the AT signal, the relative effect being the largest for low photoexcitation (approximately 1 rhodopsin per disc membrane). At a high rhodopsin turnover, which saturates the AT amplitude, the effect of ATP is to accelerate the rise of the signal. ATP can also accelerate the falling phase of the signal. This deactivating effect depends on the simultaneous presence of cyclic GMP. The results indicate that ATP acts on the phosphodiesterase activation cycle, promoting activation as well as deactivation, dependent on cGMP as a cofactor.