Lipid-Lipid Interactions as Regulators of Carboxylester Lipase Activity

Larvicidal, growth inhibitory and biochemical effects of soil bacterium, Pseudomonas sp. EN4 against Spodoptera litura (Fab.) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

BACKGROUND

Spodoptera litura (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) also known as tobacco caterpillar, is one of the most serious polyphagous pests that cause economic losses to a variety of commercially important agricultural crops. Over the past few years, many conventional insecticides have been used to control this pest. However, the indiscriminate use of these chemicals has led to development of insecticide resistant populations of S. litura in addition to harmful effects on environment. Due to these ill effects, the emphasis is being laid on alternative eco-friendly control measures. Microbial control is one of the important components of integrated pest management. Thus, in search for novel biocontrol agents, the current work was carried out with the aim to evaluate the insecticidal potential of soil bacteria against S. litura.

RESULTS

Among the tested soil bacterial isolates (EN1, EN2, AA5, EN4 and R1), maximum mortality (74%) was exhibited by Pseudomonas sp. (EN4). The larval mortality rate increased in a dose-dependent manner. Bacterial infection also significantly delayed the larval development, reduced adult emergence, and induced morphological deformities in adults of S. litura. Adverse effects were also detected on various nutritional parameters. The infected larvae showed a significant decrease in relative growth and consumption rate as well as efficiency of conversion of ingested and digested food to biomass. Histopathological studies indicated damage to the midgut epithelial layer of larvae due to the consumption of bacteria treated diet. The infected larvae also showed a significantly decreased level of various digestive enzymes. Furthermore, exposure to Pseudomonas sp. also caused DNA damage in the hemocytes of S. litura larvae.

CONCLUSION

Adverse effects of Pseudomonas sp. EN4 on various biological parameters of S. litura indicate that this soil bacterial strain may be used as an effective biocontrol agent against insect pests.

Beyond the hydrophobic effect: Critical function of water at biological phase boundaries--A hypothesis

Many life-sustaining processes in living cells occur at the membrane-water interface. The pertinent questions that need to be asked are what is the evolutionary reason for biology to choose the membrane-water interface as the site for performing and/or controlling crucial biological reactions and what is the key physical principle that is singular to the membrane-water interface that biology exploits for regulating metabolic processes in cells? In this review, a hypothesis is developed, which espouses that cells control activities of membrane-bound enzymes and receptor activated processes via manipulating the thermodynamic activity of water at the membrane-water interfacial region. In support of this hypothesis, first we establish that the surface pressure of a lipid monolayer is a direct measure of a reduction in the thermodynamic activity of interfacial water. Second, we show that the surface pressure-dependent activation/inactivation of interfacial enzymes is fundamentally related to their dependence on interfacial water activity. We extend this argument to infer that cells might manipulate activities of membrane-associated biological processes via manipulating the activity of interfacial water via localized compression or expansion of the interface. In this paper, we critically analyze literature data on mechano-activation of large pore ion channels in Escherichia coli spheroplasts and G-proteins in reconstituted lipid vesicles, and show that these pressure-induced activation processes are fundamentally and quantitatively related to changes in the thermodynamic state of interfacial water, caused by mechanical stretching of the bilayer.

Water at Biological Phase Boundaries: Its Role in Interfacial Activation of Enzymes and Metabolic Pathways

Many life-sustaining activities in living cells occur at the membrane-water interface. The pertinent questions that we need to ask are, what are the evolutionary reasons in biology for choosing the membrane-water interface as the site for performing and/or controlling crucial biological reactions, and what is the key physical principle that is very singular to the membrane-water interface that biology exploits for regulating metabolic processes in cells? In this chapter, a hypothesis is developed, which espouses that cells control activities of membrane-bound enzymes through manipulation of the thermodynamic activity of water in the lipid-water interfacial region. The hypothesis is based on the fact that the surface pressure of a lipid monolayer is a direct measure of the thermodynamic activity of water at the lipid-water interface. Accordingly, the surface pressure-dependent activation or inactivation of interfacial enzymes is directly related to changes in the thermodynamic activity of interfacial water. Extension of this argument suggests that cells may manipulate conformations (and activities) of membrane-bound enzymes by manipulating the (re)activity of interfacial water at various locations in the membrane by localized compression or expansion of the interface. In this respect, cells may use the membrane-bound hormone receptors, lipid phase transition, and local variations in membrane lipid composition as effectors of local compression and/or expansion of membrane, and thereby local water activity. Several experimental data in the literature will be reexamined in the light of this hypothesis.

Atomic force microscope visualization of lipid bilayer degradation due to action of phospholipase A2 and Humicola lanuginosa lipase

An important application of liquid cell Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) is the study of enzyme structure and behaviour in organized molecular media that mimic in-vivo systems. In this study we demonstrate the use of AFM as a tool to study the kinetics of lipolytic enzyme reactions occurring at the surface of a supported lipid bilayer. In particular, the time course of the degradation of lipid bilayers by Phospholipase A(2) (PLA(2)) and Humicola Lanuginosa Lipase (HLL) has been investigated. Contact mode imaging allows visualization of enzyme activity on the substrate with high lateral resolution. Lipid bilayers were prepared by the Langmuir-Blodgett technique and transferred to an AFM liquid cell. Following injection of the enzyme into the liquid cell, a sequence of images was acquired at regular time intervals to allow the identification of substrate structure, preferred sites of enzyme activation, and enzyme reaction rates.

Basal lipolysis in epididymal fat cells from streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats

The level of free fatty acid (FFA) in plasma is increased by diabetes. The increase in plasma FFA levels accompanied the stimulation of basal lipolysis (i.e. lipolysis in the absence of lipolytic agents) in fat cells. Injection of streptozotocin with rats resulted in a significant increase in basal FFA production (5.5 fold) in fat cells. However, basal glycerol production in fat cells was increased only 1.5 fold by streptozotocin-induced diabetes, implying that FFA re-esterification in fat cells was decreased by streptozotocin-induced diabetes. The FFA re-esterification in fat cells was also decreased by 1 d of fasting. Although basal lipolysis was increased by streptozotocin-induced diabetes or 1-d fasting, neutral triacylglycerol lipase activity and the immunoreactive HSL protein content in fat cells from streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats or 1-d fasting rats were not significantly changed. Although beta-blockers inhibited lipolysis induced by norepinephrine at a concentration of 10(-4) M, it failed to inhibit the basal lipolysis and FFA re-esterification in fat cells from streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Nor did insulin or H-89, another antilipolytic agent, affect basal lipolysis or FFA re-esterification in fat cells from streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. These results indicate that basal FFA production may be induced by a decrease of re-esterification of FFA in diabetic rats and is not affected by antilipolytic agents such as insulin, beta-blockers or H-89.

Selective mobilization of fatty acids from adipose tissue triacylglycerols

Adipose tissue triacylglycerols represent the main storage of a wide spectrum of fatty acids differing by molecular structure. The release of individual fatty acids from adipose tissue is selective according to carbon chain length and unsaturation degree in vitro and in vivo in animal studies and also in humans. The mechanism of selective fatty acid mobilization from white fat cells is not known. Lipolysis is widely reported to work at a lipid-water interface where only small amounts of substrate are available. A preferential hydrolysis of a small triacylglycerol fraction enriched in certain triacylglycerol molecular species at the lipid-water interface and enzymological properties of hormone-sensitive lipase could explain the selective mobilization of fatty acids from fat cells. This selectivity could affect the individual fatty acid supply to tissues.

Lipid lateral organization in fluid interfaces controls the rate of colipase association

Colipase, a cofactor of pancreatic triacylglycerol lipase, binds to surfaces of lipolysis reactants, like fatty acid and diacylglycerol, but not to the nonsubstrate phosphatidylcholine. The initial rate of colipase binding to fluid, single-phase lipid monolayers was used to characterize the interfacial requirements for its adsorption. Colipase adsorption rates to phosphatidylcholine/reactant mixed monolayers depended strongly on lipid composition and packing. Paradoxically, reactants lowered colipase adsorption rates only if phosphatidylcholine was present. This suggests that interactions between phosphatidylcholine and reactants create dynamic complexes that impede colipase adsorption. Complex formation was independently verified by physical measurements. Colipase binding rate depends nonlinearly on the two-dimensional concentration of phosphatidylcholine. This suggests that binding is initiated by a cluster of nonexcluded surface sites smaller than the area occupied by a bound colipase. Binding rates are mathematically consistent with this mechanism. Moreover, for each phosphatidylcholine-reactant pair, the complex area obtained from the analysis of binding rates agrees well with the independently measured collapse area of the complex. The dynamic complexes between phosphatidylcholine and lipids, like diacylglycerols, exist independently of the presence of colipase. Thus, our results suggest that lipid complexes may regulate the fluxes of other proteins to membranes during, for example, lipid-mediated signaling events in cells.

Coenzyme A-independent monoacylglycerol acyltransferase from rat intestinal mucosa

Rat intestinal mucosa contains high diacylglycerol-synthesizing activity (monoacylglycerol acyltransferase (MGAT) activity) due to monoacylglycerol and fatty acid, independently of coenzyme A and ATP. MGAT activity was purified from rat intestinal mucosa by successive chromatography separations on DEAE-cellulose, CM- Sephadex, and anti-IgG-Sepharose against rat pancreatic lipase. The enzyme was electrophoretically homogeneous, and its molecular weight was 49,000, which is identical with that of rat pancreatic lipase. Immunoblotting analysis with antibody against rat pancreatic lipase showed one immunoreactive protein with an estimated molecular weight of 49,000. The activity of the purified enzyme was completely inhibited by addition of the antibody. Using immunocytochemical techniques, it was found that immunoreactive protein against rat pancreatic lipase was uniformly distributed within the absorptive cells of the intestine but was absent from the microvillar membrane. The MGAT activity of intestinal mucosal homogenate was inhibited by about 65% by addition of antibody against rat pancreatic lipase. Trioleoylglycerol- and dioleoylglycerol-hydrolyzing activities of the purified enzyme and pancreatic lipase were inhibited by addition of intestinal mucosa extract. These results suggest that pancreatic lipase is present in intestinal absorptive cells and that it may contribute to resynthesis of diacylglycerol from monoacylglycerol and fatty acids in these cells.

Mechanism of increase in basal lipolysis of enlarged adipocytes in obese animals

Sonication of rat fat cells caused an increase in lipolysis in the absence of lipolytic hormones (basal lipolysis) and loss of epinephrine responsiveness. Sonication of endogenous lipid droplets from fat cells also induced an increase in lipolysis in the presence of HSL. Addition of phosphatidylcholine to the sonicated lipid droplets reduced the hydrolysis of triglyceride by HSL. These results suggest that the active HSL is already present in the fat cell even in the absence of lipolytic hormone, and phosphatidylcholine on the surface of endogenous lipid droplets causes inhibition toward lipolytic action of HSL. The decrease in the surface phosphatidylcholine concentration in endogenous lipid droplets was proved to cause the increase in basal lipolysis. It is demonstrated that basal lipolysis was elevated in the enlarged fat cells of obese rats by reduction of surface phosphatidylcholine concentration of the endogenous lipid droplets.

Is lateral phase separation required for fatty acid to stimulate lipases in a phosphatidylcholine interface?

Lipase-catalyzed oxygen exchange between 13,16-cis,cis-docosadienoic acid and water in liquid-expanded monolayers with 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine exhibits abrupt, lipid composition-dependent changes in extent and mechanism [e.g., Muderhwa, J. M. and Brockman, H. L. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 24184-24192]. The critical nature of this transition suggests possible lateral phase separation of the lipids. This has been addressed by substituting for either lipid species one which can exist in more condensed monolayer states. Analysis of phase transition surface pressures as a function of lipid composition shows that each set of fatty acid-phosphatidylcholine mixtures exhibits a finite range of miscibility in liquid-expanded monolayers. These results strongly suggest that 13,16-cis,cis-docosadienoic acid and 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine are miscible under the conditions of the oxygen-exchange experiments. Furthermore, to address more directly the relation of lateral lipid phase separation to lipase regulation, oxygen exchange catalyzed by pancreatic carboxylester and triglyceride lipases was studied using mixed monolayers of [18O]2-docosadienoic acid and 1-myristoyl-2-palmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine. These lipids are miscible in the liquid-expanded state at all compositions. The lipid composition dependencies of both the extent and mechanism of lipase-catalyzed oxygen exchange were essentially identical to those obtained earlier. Thus, lateral lipid phase separation is not required for the critical transition in substrate accessibility to lipases. This finding supports a percolation-based model of lipase regulation within a single surface phase and suggests the "topo-temporal" regulation of lipid-mediated signaling in cells.

Regulation of fatty acid 18O exchange catalyzed by pancreatic carboxylester lipase. 2. Effects of lateral lipid distribution in mixtures with phosphatidylcholine

The lipase-catalyzed exchange of the carboxyl oxygens of 13,16-cis,cis-docosadienoic acid (DA) was studied in the presence of a nonsubstrate matrix lipid, 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoylphosphatidylcholine. For mixed lipid films at the argon-water interface exposed to pancreatic carboxylester lipase (EC 1.1.1.13), the extent of oxygen exchange showed an abrupt increase as the abundance of DA in the interface was increased from 0.5 to 0.6 mole fraction. This compositional range was independent of the level of enzyme used and of the surface pressure, i.e., lipid packing density, of the film. Concomitant with the transition was a change in the apparent mechanism of exchange from coupled to random sequential. Like the extent of oxygen exchanged, the shift in mechanism was independent of all variables except the lipid composition of the interface. The absence of any chemical or physical change accompanying the exchange reaction precludes mechanistic explanations based on the generation of reaction products by the enzyme. Instead, the results suggest that the lateral distribution of DA in phosphatidylcholine-DA interfaces regulates the expression of carboxylester lipase activity and its apparent mechanism. Preliminary measurements give an average cluster size of 1825 molecules of DA when its mole fraction is 0.35. As the DA content of the interface reaches 0.5-0.6, there appears to be a lipid head-group based percolative transition in which DA becomes the continuum. Because this transition involves the lateral organization of the lipids themselves, other interfacially active enzymes may be regulated similarly.

Regulation of fatty acid 18O exchange catalyzed by pancreatic carboxylester lipase. 1. Mechanism and kinetic properties

The exchange of 18O between H2O and long-chain free fatty acids is catalyzed by pancreatic carboxylester lipase (EC 1.1.1.13). For palmitic, oleic, and arachidonic acid in aqueous suspension and for 13,16-cis,cis-docosadienoic acid (DA) in monomolecular films, carboxyl oxygens were completely exchanged with water oxygens of the bulk aqueous phase. With enzyme at either substrate or catalytic concentrations in the argon-buffer interface, the exchange of DA oxygens obeyed a random sequential mechanism, i.e., 18O,18O-DA in equilibrium with 18O,16O-DA in equilibrium with 16O,16O-DA. This indicates that the dissociation of the enzyme-DA complex is much faster than the rate-limiting step in the overall exchange reaction. Kinetic analysis of 18O exchange showed a first-order dependence on surface enzyme and DA concentrations, i.e., the reaction was limited by the acylation rate. The values of kcat/Km, 0.118 cm2 pmol-1 s-1, for the exchange reaction was comparable to that for methyl oleate hydrolysis and 5-fold higher than that for cholesteryl oleate hydrolysis in monolayers [Bhat, S., & Brockman, H. L. (1982) Biochemistry 21, 1547]. Thus, fatty acids are good "substrates" for carboxylester lipase. With substrate levels of carboxylester lipase in the interfacial phase, the acylation rate constant kcat/Km was 200-fold lower than that obtained with catalytic levels of enzyme. This suggests a possible restriction of substrate diffusion in the protein-covered substrate monolayer.

Biomodulator-mediated susceptibility of endogenous lipid droplets from rat adipocytes to hormone-sensitive lipase

The amount of fatty acid release by a fat cell homogenate without pretreatment with epinephrine was found to be slightly more than that released from fat cells by epinephrine, suggesting that fat cells contain high lipolytic activity even in the absence of lipolytic agents. Fat cells contain high hormone-sensitive lipase activity (1383 mumole free fatty acids/g/hr) in the absence of epinephrine, and addition of epinephrine to the cells did not increase the activity, significantly. Like epinephrine, DBcAMP and/or theophylline also elicited marked release of glycerol from fat cells without activating the hormone-sensitive lipase activity. However, although fat cells contain a large amount of hormone-sensitive lipase, lipolysis was negligible in the absence of these lipolytic agents. These results suggest that lipolytic agents such as epinephrine, DBcAMP, and theophylline induce lipolysis in fat cells through some mechanism other than activation of hormone-sensitive lipase and that in the absence of lipolytic agents, some system in fat cells inhibits lipolysis of endogenous lipid droplets by hormone-sensitive lipase. The lipid droplets in fat cells consist mainly of triglyceride with phospholipids, cholesterol, carbohydrate, and protein as minor constituents. The phospholipid fraction was found to consist of 75% phosphatidylcholine and 25% phosphatidylethanolamine. Of the minor constituents of endogenous lipid droplets, only phosphatidylcholine strongly inhibited hormone-sensitive lipase activity in a [3H]triolein emulsion. These results suggest that phosphatidylcholine in endogenous lipid droplets may be responsible for inhibition of hormone-sensitive lipase. Then, a cell-free system was established in which epinephrine, DBcAMP, and theophylline stimulated lipolysis of endogenous lipid droplets from fat cells by lipase solution. In this system, these lipolytic agents did not induce lipolysis in the absence of added lipase. Lipolysis in the mixture of the endogenous lipid droplets and lipase solution was accelerated by phospholipase C with concomitant loss of epinephrine-induced lipolysis. After pretreatment of the endogenous lipid droplets with phospholipase C, these lipolytic agents no longer induced lipolysis. Pretreatment of the endogenous lipid droplets with phospholipase C reduced their phospholipid content with the formation of phosphorylcholine, but did not affect their triglyceride and cholesterol contents. Treatment of the endogenous lipid droplets with phospholipase D did not affect lipolysis in the cell-free system. These results suggest that phosphatidylcholine in the endogenous lipid droplets may inhibit their lipolysis by hormone-sensitive lipase in fat cells and also be involved in the mechanisms of the stimulatory effects of epinephrine, DBcAMP, and theophylline on lipolysis.