Characterization of the bovine brain cytosolic phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase complex

Autophosphorylation of serine 608 in the p85 regulatory subunit of wild type or cancer-associated mutants of phosphoinositide 3-kinase does not affect its lipid kinase activity

Background

The α-isoform of the Type 1A Phosphoinositide 3-kinases (PI3Kα) has protein kinase activity as well as phosphoinositide lipid kinase activity. The best described substrate for its protein kinase activity is its regulatory subunit, p85α, which becomes phosphorylated on Serine 608. Phosphorylation of Serine 608 has been reported to down-regulate its lipid kinase activity.

Results

We have assessed whether oncogenic mutants of PI3Kα, which have up-regulated lipid kinase activity, have altered levels of Serine 608 phosphorylation compared to wild type PI3Kα, and whether differential phosphorylation of Serine 608 contributes to increased activity of oncogenic forms of PI3Kα with point mutations in the helical or the kinase domains. Despite markedly increased lipid kinase activity, protein kinase activity was not altered in oncogenic compared to wild type forms of PI3Kα. By manipulating levels of phosphorylation of Serine 608 in vitro, we found no evidence that the protein kinase activity of PI3Kα affects its phosphoinositide lipid kinase activity in either wild-type or oncogenic mutants of PI3Kα.

Conclusions

Phosphorylation of p85α S608 is not a significant regulator of wild-type or oncogenic PI3Kα lipid kinase activity.

PKCα reduces the lipid kinase activity of the p110α/p85α PI3K through the phosphorylation of the catalytic subunit

The modulation of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) activity influences the quality of cellular responses triggered by various receptor tyrosine kinases. Protein kinase C (PKC) has been reported to phosphorylate signalling molecules upstream of PI3K and thereby it may affect the activation of PI3K. Here, we provide the first evidence for a direct effect of a PKC isoenzyme on the activity of PI3K. PKCalpha but not PKCepsilon phosphorylated the catalytic subunit of the p110alpha/p85alpha PI3K in vitro in a manner inhibited by the PKC inhibitor bisindolylmaleimide I (BIM I). The incubation of PI3K with active PKCalpha resulted in a significant decrease in its lipid kinase activity and this effect was also attenuated by BIM I. We conclude that PKCalpha is able to modulate negatively the lipid kinase activity of the p110alpha/p85alpha PI3K through the phosphorylation of the catalytic subunit.

Protein kinase B/AKT 1 plays a pivotal role in insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor signaling induced 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation

During 3T3-L1 preadipocyte differentiation induction, the insulin-stimulated insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) receptor signal is responsible for the induction of adipocyte differentiation. Treatment with inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, LY294002 or wortmannin, leads to the complete blockade of adipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. Of the three factors (1-methyl-3-isobutylxanthine, dexamethasone, and insulin) inducing 3T3-L1 preadipocyte differentiation, only insulin was able to activate the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-protein kinase B/Akt signal cascade. In 3T3-L1 preadipocytes, protein kinase B/Akt 1 RNA interference not only suppressed the expression of protein kinase B/Akt 1 but also blocked hormone-induced adipocyte differentiation. In these protein kinase B/Akt 1 RNA interference cells, the signal molecules upstream of protein kinase B/Akt 1, such as IGF-1 receptor and insulin receptor substrate-1, were normally activated by insulin stimulation, whereas insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of forkhead transcription factor (FKHR), which is a downstream molecule of PKB/Akt 1, was blocked. Thus, protein kinase B/Akt 1 is an important signal mediator in IGF-1 receptor signal cascade for inducing adipocyte differentiation.

Tyrosine phosphorylation of the catalytic subunit p110 of phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase induced by HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor inhibits its kinase activity in L6 myoblasts

Previous studies from this laboratory have shown that 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitor (HCRI) causes apoptotic cell death of a muscle cell-derived cell line, L6 myoblasts, by involving the phosphatidylinositol-3 (PI-3) kinase pathway and tyrosine phosphorylation of several cellular proteins, although the relationship between PI-3 kinase pathway and tyrosine phosphorylation responses remained to be elucidated. Here, we show that HCRI induces tyrosine phosphorylation of catalytic subunit p110 of PI-3 kinase as early as 5 min after addition of HCRI into culture medium. We could not detect the tyrosine phosphorylation of the regulatory subunit p85 of PI-3 kinase under the present experimental conditions. Concomitantly, the kinase activity toward PI in p110 immunoprecipitates was decreased with a similar time course. Furthermore, both herbimycin A and genistein, potent inhibitors of tyrosine kinase activity, inhibited HCRI-induced inhibition of PI-3 kinase activity as well as HCRI-induced apoptotic cell death. Once the catalytic subunit p110 becomes tyrosine-phosphorylated, the regulatory subunit p85 appears to be dissociated from the catalytic subunit, because we observed a decreasing amount of p85 regulatory subunits in p110 immunoprecipitates in response to HCRI treatment. These results strongly suggest the novel function of tyrosine phosphorylation of catalytic subunit p110 of PI-3 kinase in the regulation of its kinase activity. The tyrosine phosphorylation of these catalytic subunits may play an important role in the intracellular signal transduction of apoptotic cell death. To our knowledge, this is the first report that tyrosine phosphorylation of p110 catalytic subunit acts as a negative regulator of its kinase activity.

Differences in survival-promoting effects and intracellular signaling properties of BDNF and IGF-1 in cultured cerebral cortical neurons

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) act on various neurons of the CNS as neurotrophic factors promoting neuronal differentiation and survival. We examined the survival-promoting effects of BDNF and IGF-1 on serum deprivation-induced death in cultured cerebral cortical neurons, and compared the intracellular signaling pathways stimulated by BDNF and IGF-1 in the neurons. We found that the survival-promoting effect of BDNF was much weaker than that of IGF-1 in serum deprivation-induced death of cultured cortical neurons. We found no differences in the levels of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PtdIns3-K) activity or Akt (also called PKB) phosphorylation induced by BDNF and IGF-1 in the cultured cortical neurons, although many reports suggest that PtdIns3-K and Akt are involved in survival promotion. In addition, phosphorylation signals of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and cAMP responsive element-binding protein (CREB), which have also been reported to be involved in survival promotion, were stimulated by BDNF much more potently than by IGF-1. These results show that there may be, as yet unidentified, intracellular signaling pathways other than the PtdIns3-K-Akt, MAPK and CREB signaling, to regulate survival promotion. These unidentified signaling pathways may be responsible for the distinct strengths of the survival-promoting effects of BDNF and IGF-1.

Ligands of CD4 inhibit the association of phospholipase Cgamma1 with phosphoinositide 3 kinase in T cells: regulation of this association by the phosphoinositide 3 kinase activity

We have previously shown that CD4 ligands inhibit interleukin-2 (IL-2) production and T cell proliferation in human peripheral CD4+ T lymphocytes, in an MHC-independent way. Two major pathways implicated in T cell activation are inhibited by binding of CD4 ligands to the CD4 molecule, i.e. Ca2+ signaling by phospholipase Cgamma1 (PLCgamma1), and ERK-2 activation, suggesting a p21ras inhibition. We have correlated these inhibitions with the disruption of multifunctional complexes containing PLCgamma1, p120GAP and Sam68, induced by T cell activation. We report here that T cell activation through the TCR/CD3 induces an association of the phosphoinositide 3 kinase (PI3 kinase) with PLCgamma1, both in peripheral CD4+ T lymphocytes and the HUT-78 CD4+ T cell line. PI3 kinase is present in the multifunctional complexes that we have described previously. Preincubation of human peripheral CD4+ T cells and HUT-78 CD4+ T cells with gp160 or a peptide analogue of the HLA class II DR molecule precludes the association of PLCgamma1 with PI3 kinase. We also demonstrate, using two specific inhibitors of PI3 kinase activity (LY294002 and wortmannin), that this activity plays a key role in the association of PLCgamma1 with PI3 kinase. Moreover, we demonstrate the implication of the PI3 kinase activity in the negative signal mediated by HIV gp160 binding to CD4 molecules. We propose that the products of the PI3 kinase are important mediators of the negative signaling induced by the binding of CD4 ligands to the CD4 molecule implicated in the regulation of the formation of multifunctional complexes.

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase: the key switch mechanism in insulin signalling

Insulin plays a key role in regulating a wide range of cellular processes. However, until recently little was known about the signalling pathways that are involved in linking the insulin receptor with downstream responses. It is now apparent that the activation of class 1a phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase) is necessary and in some cases sufficient to elicit many of insulin's effects on glucose and lipid metabolism. The lipid products of PI 3-kinase act as both membrane anchors and allosteric regulators, serving to localize and activate downstream enzymes and their protein substrates. One of the major ways these lipid products of PI 3-kinase act in insulin signalling is by binding to pleckstrin homology (PH) domains of phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase (PDK) and protein kinase B (PKB) and in the process regulating the phosphorylation of PKB by PDK. Using mechanisms such as this, PI 3-kinase is able to act as a molecular switch to regulate the activity of serine/threonine-specific kinase cascades important in mediating insulin's effects on endpoint responses.

Distinctive regulation of v-Src-associated phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase during PC12 cell differentiation

In chicken embryo fibroblasts, the binding of v-Src to PtdIns 3-kinase requires Src homology domains, SH3, SH2 and the SH1 or kinase domain, which induces the cytoskeletal disruption associated with fibroblast transformation. In the rat phaeochromocytoma PC12 cell line, v-Src has a different effect on the cytoskeleton, inducing neurite extension rather than cytoskeletal disruption. Here we show that v-Src-induced neurite outgrowth is suppressed by the selective PtdIns 3-kinase inhibitor LY294002, suggesting that this effect of v-Src in PC12 cells also requires the activity of the lipid kinase. However, in contrast with chicken embryo fibroblasts, the association of PtdIns 3-kinase with v-Src in PC12 cells is delayed until several hours after activating the v-Src tyrosine kinase. Furthermore the v-Src-associated p85 regulatory subunit of PtdIns 3-kinase is not phosphorylated on tyrosine in PC12 cells and associates only weakly with isolated v-Src homology domains (SH3/SH2) in a Src kinase-independent manner. However, p85 and v-Src both associate with an unidentified protein (of molecular mass approx. 68 kDa; termed p68), which becomes tyrosine phosphorylated concomitantly with the association of both p85 and PtdIns 3-kinase with v-Src in PC12 cells. Thus we conclude that the mode of regulation of v-Src-associated PtdIns 3-kinase is cell-context-dependent and that p68 might act as an adaptor protein to mediate the association of p85 and v-Src in PC12 cells. The different regulation of PtdIns 3-kinase in PC12 and in chicken embryo fibroblasts in response to v-Src activity might reflect the different cytoskeletal rearrangements induced by this oncoprotein in the two cell types.

Insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1 and IRS-2 are tyrosine-phosphorylated and associated with phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase in response to brain-derived neurotrophic factor in cultured cerebral cortical neurons

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a member of the neurotrophins, promotes differentiation and survival of various types of neurons in the central nervous system. BDNF binds to and activates the tyrosine kinase receptor, TrkB, initiating intracellular signaling and exerting its effects. Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-K), which has been implicated in promotion of neuronal survival by neurotrophic factors, is a component in the signaling pathway of BDNF. We examined how BDNF activates PI3-K in cultured cerebral cortical neurons. We found that insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1 and -2 are involved in the BDNF signaling pathway that activates PI3-K. IRS-1 and -2 were tyrosine-phosphorylated and bound to PI3-K in response to BDNF. This BDNF-stimulated signaling via IRS-1 and -2 was inhibited by K-252a, an inhibitor of Trk tyrosine kinase. In addition, signaling via IRS-1 and -2 was markedly sustained as well as the BDNF-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of TrkB. On the other hand, we observed no association of PI3-K with TrkB in response to BDNF. These results indicate that the activation of TrkB by BDNF induces the activation of PI3-K via IRS-1 and -2 rather than by a direct interaction of TrkB with PI3-K in cultured cortical neurons.

The neurotrophic action and signalling of epidermal growth factor

Epidermal growth factor (EGF) is a conventional mitogenic factor that stimulates the proliferation of various types of cells including epithelial cells and fibroblasts. EGF binds to and activates the EGF receptor (EGFR), which initiates intracellular signalling and subsequent effects. The EGFR is expressed in neurons of the cerebral cortex, cerebellum, and hippocampus in addition to other regions of the central nervous system (CNS). In addition, EGF is also expressed in various regions of the CNS. Therefore, EGF acts not only on mitotic cells, but also on postmitotic neurons. In fact, many studies have indicated that EGF has neurotrophic or neuromodulatory effects on various types of neurons in the CNS. For example, EGF acts directly on cultured cerebral cortical and cerebellar neurons, enhancing neurite outgrowth and survival. On the other hand, EGF also acts on other cell types, including septal cholinergic and mesencephalic dopaminergic neurons, indirectly through glial cells. Evidence of the effects of EGF on neurons in the CNS is accumulating, but the mechanisms of action remain essentially unknown. EGF-induced signalling in mitotic cells is better understood than that in postmitotic neurons. Studies of cloned pheochromocytoma PC12 cells and cultured cerebral cortical neurons have suggested that the EGF-induced neurotrophic actions are mediated by sustained activation of the EGFR and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) in response to EGF. The sustained intracellular signalling correlates with the decreased rate of EGFR down-regulation, which might determine the response of neuronal cells to EGF. It is likely that EGF is a multi-potent growth factor that acts upon various types of cells including mitotic cells and postmitotic neurons.

Binding to the platelet-derived growth factor receptor transiently activates the p85alpha-p110alpha phosphoinositide 3-kinase complex in vivo

Ligand stimulation of the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptor results in its association with phosphoinositide 3-kinase activity and a corresponding synthesis of 3'-phosphorylated lipids. Early studies that examined this interaction in vivo employed anti-phosphotyrosine antiserum or antiserum against the PDGF receptor. The recent identification of multiple isoforms of both the regulatory and the catalytic subunit of the enzyme have led us to utilize antisera against p85alpha and p110alpha to characterize the association of this particular phosphoinositide 3-kinase complex with the PDGF receptor following ligand stimulation of murine fibroblasts. Both the p85alpha and p110alpha subunits rapidly associated with the ligand-activated receptor resulting in a transient, 2-fold increase in the total pool of p110alpha lipid kinase activity. This association was stable for 15 min after initial stimulation. Subsequently, both subunits began to dissociate from the receptor with similar kinetics. By 60 min this process was complete, demonstrating that p85alpha and p110alpha both associate with the receptor and dissociate from the receptor as a dimeric complex. At this time, marked PDGF receptor down-regulation was observed. Immunoprecipitation from metabolically labeled cells revealed that p85alpha is constitutively phosphorylated on serine residues in quiescent cultures. Upon PDGF stimulation, this phosphorylation upon serine residues was maintained in addition to tyrosine phosphorylation of this subunit. No phosphorylation of the p110alpha subunit was detected in either quiescent or PDGF-stimulated cells. Quantitation of Western blot analysis demonstrated that only 5% of the total pool of p85alpha associated with the PDGF receptor upon ligand stimulation. The 2-fold increase in the lipid kinase activity measured in immunoprecipitates using either anti-p85alpha or anti-p110alpha antiserum therefore reflects a far greater increase in the specific activity of the enzyme upon its association with the PDGF receptor.

Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase: inhibition of intrinsic protein-serine kinase activity by phosphoinositides, and of lipid kinase activity by Mn2+

Phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase is composed of 110 kDa catalytic and 85 kDa regulatory subunits. The 110 kDa subunit has two intrinsic kinase activities, i.e., Mn(2+)-dependent protein-serine kinase and Mg(2+)-dependent lipid kinase activities. These intrinsic kinases have been reported to be interdependent: protein-serine kinase phosphorylates the 85 kDa subunit of PI 3-kinase, which upon phosphorylation inhibits the lipid kinase activity of PI 3-kinase. We report here that phosphoinositides can selectively inhibit the protein-serine kinase activity of PI 3-kinase without affecting lipid kinase activity. This inhibition depends on the phosphorylation status of the phosphoinositides, i.e., PI 4,5-bisphosphate > PI 4-phosphate >> PI. Mn2+ (2 mM) protected protein kinase activity from phosphoinositides-mediated inhibition if added prior to interaction of PI 3-kinase with phosphoinositides. On the other hand, Mn2+ (2 mM) inhibited lipid kinase activity independent of its effect on the protein kinase activity of PI 3-kinase. The present study suggests that the protein-serine kinase and the lipid kinase activities of PI 3-kinase can be selectively inhibited by phosphoinositides and Mn2+ respectively.

The catalytic subunit of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase is a substrate for the activated platelet-derived growth factor receptor, but not for middle-T antigen-pp60c-src complexes

The interaction of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-K) with polyoma-virus middle-T antigen-pp60c-src (mT:cSrc) complexes and with the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptor has been investigated. Firstly, we undertook reconstitution studies, using proteins derived from a baculovirus expression system. The p110 catalytic subunit of the PI 3-K associated with tyrosine kinases only when complexed with the p85 alpha regulatory subunit. Both p85 alpha and p110 were substrates of the PDGF receptor. In contrast, only the p85 alpha subunit was detectably phosphorylated when PI 3-K was associated with mT:cSrc. Secondly, we studied PI 3-K in mammalian cells. In mT-antigen-transformed NIH-3T3 cells neither p85 alpha nor p110 was phosphorylated on tyrosine residues in vivo, even though p85 alpha was a substrate in kinase assays in vitro. In quiescent NIH-3T3 cells, PI 3-K showed detectable activity in vitro; PDGF stimulation resulted in a rapid and transient association of PI 3-K with the receptor, which was correlated with a transient increase in intrinsic P13-K activity (approx. 2-fold). The activated PDGF receptor phosphorylated p110 in vitro, at one major site. In vivo, PDGF stimulation induced tyrosine phosphorylation of p110 that persisted for at least 1 h after stimulation. Immunodepletion of the PDGF receptor from stimulated cell lysates showed that p110 was released from the receptor in a tyrosine-phosphorylated form. From these results we conclude that (i) the mT:cSrc complex and the PDGF receptor differ in their association with PI 3-K activity, (ii) PDGF receptor appears to activate PI 3-K in vivo both by relocation of the enzyme and by stimulation of its intrinsic activity, and (iii) tyrosine phosphorylation of the p110 subunit by the PDGF receptor may play a role in PI 3-K regulation in some circumstances.

A novel phosphoinositide 3 kinase activity in myeloid-derived cells is activated by G protein beta gamma subunits

Phosphoinositide 3 kinase (PI3K) is a key signaling enzyme implicated in receptor-stimulated mitogenesis, oxidative bursting in neutrophils, membrane ruffling, and glucose uptake. A PI3K has already been purified, cloned, and shown to be regulated by receptors that act via tyrosine kinase-dependent regulatory mechanisms. We report that an immunologically, pharmacologically, and chromatographically distinct form of PI3K activity present in neutrophils and U937 cells is specifically activated by G protein beta gamma subunits. This data suggests PI3Ks conform to the paradigm set by receptor regulation of phosphoinositidase Cs: different receptor transduction systems specifically regulate dedicated isoforms of effector protein.

Characterization of a phosphatidylinositol-specific phosphoinositide 3-kinase from mammalian cells

BACKGROUND

As phosphoinositides can serve as signalling molecules within cells, the enzymes responsible for their synthesis and cleavage are likely to be involved in the transduction of signals from the cell surface through the cytoplasm. The precise role of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase that has been cloned from mammalian cells is not known, but it has been implicated in receptor-stimulated mitogenesis, glucose uptake and membrane ruffling. The enzyme can use phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns), PtdIns 4-phosphate and PtdIns (4,5)-bisphosphate as substrates in vitro, but it seems to phosphorylate PtdIns (4,5)-bisphosphate preferentially in vivo. The VPS34 gene product of yeast, by contrast, is a phosphoinositide 3-kinase homologue implicated in vacuolar protein sorting that apparently utilizes only PtdIns as a substrate. The significance of this difference in lipid-substrate preference and its relationship to the functions of the two phosphoinositide kinases is unknown.

RESULTS

We have characterized a distinct PtdIns-specific phosphoinositide 3-kinase activity in mammalian cells. Unlike the previously identified, broad-specificity mammalian phosphoinositide kinase, this enzyme is resistant to the drug wortmannin and uses only PtdIns as a substrate in vitro; it therefore has the capacity to generate PtdIns 3-phosphate specifically. The newly characterized enzyme, which was purified by chromatography from cytosol, has biochemical and pharmacological characteristics distinct from those of the broad-specificity enzyme.

CONCLUSIONS

The enzyme we have characterized may serve to generate PtdIns 3-phosphate for fundamentally different roles in the cell from those of PtdIns (3,4)-bisphosphate and/or PtdIns (3,4,5)-trisphosphate. Furthermore, the functions of the VSP34 gene product, which may not be relevant to the broad-specificity mammalian phosphoinositide 3-kinase, may be related to those of the enzyme we describe.

Antibodies to fluorylsulfonylbenzoyladenosine permit identification of protein kinases

Antibodies were raised to fluorylsulfonylbenzoyladenosine (FSBA) coupled to carrier proteins. Affinity purified sera are shown to specifically detect protein kinase C-beta 1 treated with FSBA. Immunodetection is specific to modification at the ATP binding site as judged by the ability of ATP to block subsequent detection. The antisera are shown to react with a number of U937 cell proteins fractionated on Mono Q and treated with FSBA; the majority of these immunoreactions are prevented by inclusion of ATP in the FSBA treatments. One of these is positively identified as PKC-beta 1.