Release of specific protease during mitotic cycle of L5178Y murine leukaemic cells by sublethal autolysis

The effects of serine protease inhibitors on morphological differentiation of murine neuroblastoma cells (NB15)

Morphological differentiation of neuroblastoma cells (NB15) was induced by cAMP effectors in the presence and absence of serine protease inhibitors. In all conditions tested, the percent differentiation was inhibited by protease inhibitors antipain, diisopropylfluorophosphate (DFP), leupeptin, and soybean trypsin inhibitor (SBTI). The level of morphological differentiation obtained in medium containing fetal calf serum was significantly less than the percent differentiation obtained with serum-free medium alone, so serum-free medium was the principal method of induction and comparisons were made to control uninduced cultures or cultures induced with the phosphodiesterase inhibitor R020-1724. Secreted or cell surface caseinolytic protease activity was higher in differentiating cells than in control cultures and was inhibited by the serine protease inhibitors. The effects of the protease inhibitors on growth and differentiation are discussed.

Extracellular matrix destruction by invasive tumor cells

The invasion of normal tissues and penetration of basement membranes by malignant cells is likely to require the active participation of hydrolytic enzymes. The four major groups of connective tissue proteins, glycoproteins, proteoglycans, collagen and elastin, vary in their quantitative distributions between different tissues. With the exception of elastin, they also vary qualitatively within each class, so that there are no 'typical' connective tissue barriers to tumor cell penetration. The matrix constituents are stabilized and organized by a variety of covalent and noncovalent interactions between the connective tissue proteins. These interactions play important roles in matrix integrity and may alter the susceptibilities of the constituents to degradative enzymes. It is likely that the complete degradation of the matrix will require the action of more than one enzyme because of differing susceptibilities to tissue proteinases. Primary and transplantable tumors produce well-characterized enzymes which may participate in invasion. These enzymes may also be involved in connective tissue turnover in other normal and pathological situations. The use of long-term tumor cell cultures has verified that tumor cells themselves are capable of producing these enzymes. However, there are many potential modulating influences operative in vivo which are absent in culture so that details of actual mechanisms and control of digestion of complex substrates are not well understood. Recent work on the degradation by tumor cells of extracellular matrices previously produced by cultured cells is likely to shed more light on pathways of tissue destruction in vivo. Experiments with tumor cell variants of defined metastatic potentials will also be useful, but invasive and metastatic abilities are not necessarily correlated. It is unlikely that simple correlations can be drawn between the production of one particular degradative enzyme by all tumor cells and the complex biological mechanisms operative during tumor invasion.

Changes in acid proteolytic activity during differentiation of murine erythroleukemic cells

Proteolytic activity was measured in murine erythroleukemic 745 cell line grown in culture, before and after the addition of agents which promote differentiation. The 36,000 X g soluble fraction of the cells degraded [14C]globin with maximal activity at pH 3.6, while the insoluble fraction failed to degrade [14C]globin within a pH range of 2.5-9.0. The acid protease activity in the soluble fraction of the undifferentiated murine erythroleukemic cells increased during the first 2 days in culture and remained constant during the following 4 days. We suggest that this activity resides in the lysosomes since it migrates together with the lysosomal marker alpha-mannosidase on colloidal silica gradients, shows maximum activity at acid pH and is sensitive towards inhibition by pepstatin. Induced differentiation of the cells by dimethyl sulfoxide, butyric acid or hexamethylene bisacetamide was concomitantly associated with a marked reduction in protease activity and the accumulation of hemoglobin within the cells. In contrast, in a non-inducible variant of 745 cell line DMSO failed to affect proteolysis. It is suggested that in murine erythroleukemic cells changes in acid protease activity are associated with the cellular triggered by chemical inducers.

An investigation in vitro of the exocytosis of lysosomal enzymes from C6 glioma cells

The rates of exocytosis on the lysosomal hydrolase n-acetyl-beta D-glucosaminidase and beta-glucuronidase were measured in monolayer cultures of the C-6 glioma cell line. A comparison of the kinetics of release of the enzymes and the effects of cytochalasin B suggest that either intralysosomal localisation or the mechanism of release may be different for each enzyme. Evidence was obtained that exocytosis is accompanied by receptor-mediated endocytosis of hydrolases and the importance of the microtubular system in the maintenance of the exocytosis equilibrium was indicated by the effect of colchicine on the rate of extracellular accumulation of the enzymes.

Anchorage independent growth and plasminogen activator production by bovine endothelial cells

Endothelial cells obtained from the aortae of 1- to 2-d-old calves were cloned at high efficiency using fibrin-coated dishes. Primary cultures as well as clones derived from them produced high fibrinolytic activity when grown on 125I-fibrin-coated dishes which was 90% dependent upon the presence of plasminogen. High plasminogen-dependent proteolytic activity was also demonstrated in endothelial cell lysates and in the culture medium of the cells. The production and secretion of the plasminogen activator(s) were found to increase during the log phase of cell growth and to reach a maximum level at confluence. These endothelial cells exhibited morphological phenotypes comparable to those of transformed cells when grown in the presence of acid-treated fetal calf, dog, or human serum. Furthermore, they demonstrated anchorage independent growth, and large colonies were formed in semisolid media. Spontaneous neoplastic transformation of these cells was excluded by karyotypic analysis, lack of tumorigenicity in athymic nude mice, and limited lifespan in culture. Cell clones isolated from colonies grown in agarose demonstrated the same growth characteristics and proteolytic activity as before plating in agarose. High fibrinolytic activity, morphological changes in the appropriate serum, and growth in semisolid media may therefore be indicative of the migratory and/or invasive capacity of both nontransformed endothelial cells as well as tumor cells.

Enhancement of phytohemagglutinin-induced DNA synthesis of mouse thymocytes and T-lymphocytes by a neutral protease of polymorphonuclear leukocytes

Mouse thymocytes were poorly triggered in vitro with phytohemagglutinin (PHA) to induce DNA synthesis and the response was markedly enhanced by culture supernatant (SUP) of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN). The PMN factor was nondialysable, heat-labile and precipitated with 65% ammonium sulphate. Its molecular weight was approximately 19,000 on sephadex G-75. The sephadex fraction had a proteolytic activity on 3H-acetyl hemoglobin at neutral pH. The protease seemed to be a chymotrypsin-like enzyme on the basis of inhibition profile using various protease inhibitors. The thymocyte-helping activity in the protease fraction was absorbed by affinity columns of protease inhibitors. The PMN-protease also enhanced the DNA synthesis by antigen-stimulated lymph node cells and by PHA-stimulated T-lymphocytes, but not by LPS-stimulated B-lymphocytes. Only the lymphocytes already been stimulated with antigen or mitogen received preferentially the helping action by PMN-protease. The helping activity was effectively absorbed by PHA-stimulated thymocytes but not by nonstimulated thymocytes. These evidences seems to suggest that acceptor sites for the protease, newly developed on lymphocyte surface after stimulation, may play an important role in the enhanced DNA synthetic response.

Relationship between cell surface protease activity and doubling time in various normal and transformed cells

A sensitive method for measuring cell surface and secreted protease activity utilizing 3H-labelled casein is described. The method is based upon proteolytic degradation of the casein substrate into trichloracetic acid soluble 3H-labelled peptides. Utilizing the radioassay we found that all cultured cell lines examined contain cell surface proteolytic activity which is not secreted into the media. The protease activity was found to be due to protease(s) other than plasminogen activator or plasmin. A comparison of surface protease activity of normal and transformed mouse epidermal cells indicated that the transformed cells contained approximately 3--1 times more proteolytic activity than the normal cells. Surface protease activity was also correlated with the doubling times of various cultured cells. The results indicated that cultured cells with doubling times of greater than three days possess less surface protease activity than cells with shorter doubling times. In order to determine changes in the levels of surface protease activity during the cell cycle several cell lines were synchronized. In synchronized rabbit aortic fibroblasts, mouse transformed epidermal cells and human melanoma cells, a marked increase in surface protease activity was observed during or before mitosis. The protease levels decreased following mitosis. The results suggest that in culture, cell surface protease(s) may be important factor in regulating the rate of cell growth.

Proteinases of human epidermis; a possible mechanism for polymorphonuclear leukocyte chemotaxis

Three neutral proteinases (EC 3.4.--.--) and cathepsin D have been identified in human epidermis utilizing a highly sensitive radioactive method. The proteinases were extracted in 1.0 M KC1 and 0.1% Triton X-100 and separated by Sephadex G-75 chromatography. The neutral proteinase peaks were all inhibited by diisopropyl fluorophosphate and thus were serine proteinases. Incubation of the enzyme fractions with [3H] diisopropyl fluorophosphate followed by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis demonstrated that the two larger molecular weight proteinases were enzyme mixtures. The small molecular weight [3H] diisopropyl fluorophosphate proteinase migrated as a single band. Injection of the small molecular weight neutral proteinase into rabbit skin produced a polymorphonuclear leukocyte infiltration and edema. The reaction was not observed with the diisopropyl fluorophosphate-inhibited enzyme fraction. The release of neutral proteinases may be one of the signal events in the epidermal inflammatory response.

The demonstration of acid phosphatase in cultured 3T3 mouse cells

Acid phosphatase has been demonstrated ultrastructurally in 3T3 and SV40-3T3 mouse cells using sodium beta-glycerophosphate and p-nitrophenyl phosphate as substrate. The former substrate only demonstrates the enzyme in lysosomes and elements of the Golgi apparatus while the latter demonstrates it in the cisternae of the endoplasmic reticulum and in the cell surface as well as at lysosomal sites. The significance of surface acid phosphatase activity is discussed in terms of sublethal autolysis.

Fibroblast surface antigen (SF): molecular properties, distribution in vitro and in vivo, and altered expression in transformed cells

We have recently described a cell type-specific surface (SF) antigen that is deleted in chick fibroblasts transformed by Rous sarcoma virus, SF antigen is a major surface component and makes up about 0.5% of the total protein on normal cultured fibroblasts. The antigen is shed from normal cells and is present in circulation (serum, plasma), and in vivo, also, in tissue boundary membranes. The molecular equivalents of both cellular and serum SF antigen are distinct, large polypeptides, one of which (SF210, MW 210,000) is glycosylated and, on the cell surface, highly susceptible to proteases and accessible to surface iodination. Immunofluorescence and scanning electron microscopy have indicated that the antigen is located in fibrillar structures of the cell surface, membrane ridges, and processes. Human SF antigen is present in human fibroblasts and in human serum. We have recently shown that human SF antigen is identical to what has been known as the "cold-insoluble globulin" and that it shows affinity toward fibrin and fibrinogen. Our results also indicate that loss of the transformation-sensitive surface proteins is due not to loss of synthesis but to lack of insertion of the protein in the neoplastic cell surface. Both normal and transformed cells produce the SF antigen, but the latter do not retain it in the cell surface. The loss of SF antigen, a major cell surface component, from malignant cells creates an impressive difference between the surface properties of normal and malignant cells. The possible significance of SF antigen to the integrity of the normal membrane and its interaction to surrounding structures is discussed.