Identification and properties of a novel type of Na+-permeable amiloride-sensitive channel in thyroid cells

Extraoral Taste Receptor Discovery: New Light on Ayurvedic Pharmacology

More and more research studies are revealing unexpectedly important roles of taste for health and pathogenesis of various diseases. Only recently it has been shown that taste receptors have many extraoral locations (e.g., stomach, intestines, liver, pancreas, respiratory system, heart, brain, kidney, urinary bladder, pancreas, adipose tissue, testis, and ovary), being part of a large diffuse chemosensory system. The functional implications of these taste receptors widely dispersed in various organs or tissues shed a new light on several concepts used in ayurvedic pharmacology (dravyaguna vijnana), such as taste (rasa), postdigestive effect (vipaka), qualities (guna), and energetic nature (virya). This review summarizes the significance of extraoral taste receptors and transient receptor potential (TRP) channels for ayurvedic pharmacology, as well as the biological activities of various types of phytochemical tastants from an ayurvedic perspective. The relative importance of taste (rasa), postdigestive effect (vipaka), and energetic nature (virya) as ethnopharmacological descriptors within Ayurveda boundaries will also be discussed.

Altered ion transport by thyroid epithelia from CFTR(-/-) pigs suggests mechanisms for hypothyroidism in cystic fibrosis

Subclinical hypothyroidism has been linked to cystic fibrosis, and the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) shown to be expressed in the thyroid. The thyroid epithelium secretes Cl⁻ and absorbs Na(+) in response to cAMP. Chloride secretion may provide a counter-ion for the SLC26A4 (pendrin)-mediated I⁻ secretion which is required for the first step of thyroid hormonogenesis, thyroglobulin iodination. In contrast, few models exist to explain a role for Na(+) absorption. Whether CFTR mediates the secretory Cl⁻ current in thyroid epithelium has not been directly addressed. We used thyroids from a novel pig CFTR(-/-) model, generated primary pig thyroid epithelial cell cultures (pThECs), analysed these cultures for preservation of thyroid-specific transcripts and proteins, and monitored the following parameters: (1) the Cl⁻ secretory response to the cAMP agonist, isoprenaline; and (2) the amiloride-sensitive Na(+) current. Baseline short-circuit current (I(sc)) did not differ between CFTR(+/+) and CFTR(-/-) cultures. Serosal isoprenaline increased I(sc) in CFTR(+/+), but not CFTR(-/-), monolayers. Compared with CFTR(+/+) thyroid cultures, amiloride-sensitive Na(+) absorption measured in CFTR(-/-) pThECs represented a greater fraction of the resting I(sc). However, levels of transcripts encoding epithelial sodium channel (ENaC) subunits did not differ between CFTR(+/+) and CFTR(-/-) pThECs. Immunoblot analysis verified ENaC subunit protein expression, but quantification indicated no difference in expression levels. Our studies definitively demonstrate that CFTR mediates cAMP-stimulated Cl⁻ secretion in a well-differentiated thyroid culture model and that knockout of CFTR promotes increased Na(+) absorption by a mechanism other than increased ENaC expression. These findings suggest several models for the mechanism of cystic fibrosis-associated hypothyroidism.

Cloning and functional studies of splice variants of the alpha-subunit of the amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel

The alpha-subunit of the amiloride-sensitive epithelial Na+ channel (alpha ENaC) is critical in forming an ion conductive pore in the membrane. We have identified the wild-type and three splice variants of the human alpha ENaC (h alpha ENaC) from the human lung cell line H441, using RT-PCR. These splice variants contain various structures in the extracellular domain, resulting in premature truncation (h alpha ENaCx), 19-amino acid deletion (h alpha ENaC-19), and 22-amino acid insertion (h alpha ENaC + 22). Wild-type h alpha ENaC and splice variants were functionally characterized in Xenopus oocytes by coexpression with hENaC beta- and gamma-subunits. Unlike wild-type h alpha ENaC, undetectable or substantially reduced amiloride-sensitive currents were observed in oocytes expressing these splice variants. Wild-type h alpha ENaC was the most abundantly expressed h alpha ENaC mRNA species in all tissues in which its expression was detected. These findings indicate that the extracellular domain is important to generate structural and functional diversity of h alpha ENaC and that alternative splicing may play a role in regulating hENaC activity.

Molecular cloning and functional expression of a novel amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel

We have isolated a cDNA for a novel human amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel isoform (called delta) which is expressed mainly in brain, pancreas, testis, and ovary. When expressed in Xenopus oocytes, it generates an amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel with biophysical and pharmacological properties distinct from those of the epithelial Na+ channel, a multimeric assembly of alpha, beta, and gamma subunits. The Na+ current produced by the new delta isoform is increased by two orders of magnitude after coexpression of the beta and gamma subunit of the epithelial Na+ channel showing that delta can associate with other subunits and is part of a novel multisubunit ion channel.

Structure and function of amiloride-sensitive Na+ channels

A new molecular biological epoch in amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel physiology has begun. With the application of these new techniques, undoubtedly a plethora of new information and new questions will be forthcoming. First and foremost, however, is the question of how many discrete amiloride-sensitive Na+ channels exist. This question is important not only for elucidating structure-function relationships, but also for developing strategies for pharmacological or, ultimately, genetic intervention in such diseases as obstructive nephropathy, Liddle's syndrome, or salt-sensitive hypertension where amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel dysfunction has been implicated [17, 62]. Epithelia Na+ channels purified from kidney are multimeric. However, it is not yet clear which subunits are regulatory and which participate directly as a part of the Na+ conducting core and what is the nature of the gate. The combination of electrophysiologic techniques such as patch clamp and the ability to study reconstituted channels in planar lipid bilayers along with molecular biology techniques to potentially manipulate the individual subunits should provide the answers to questions that have puzzled physiologists for decades. It seems clear that the robust versatility of the channel in responding to a wide range of differing and potentially synergistic regulatory inputs must be a function of its multimeric structure and relation to the cytoskeleton. Multiple mechanisms of regulation imply multiple regulatory sites. This hypothesis has been validated by the demonstration that enzymatic carboxyl methylation and phosphorylation have both individual and synergistic effects on the purified channel in planar lipid bilayers. Of the multiple mechanisms proposed for channel regulation, evidence is now available to support the ideas that channels may be activated (or inactivated) by direct modifications including phosphorylation and carboxyl methylation, by activation or association of regulatory proteins such as G proteins, and by recruitment from subapical membrane domains. The observation that channel gating is achieved primarily through regulation of open probability without alterations in conductance may simplify future understanding of the molecular events involved in gating once the regulatory sites have been identified. As more Na+ channels or Na+ channel subunits are cloned from different epithelia, it will become possible to piece together the puzzle of epithelial Na+ channels. It is interesting to observe that renal Na+ channel proteins contain a subunit which falls into the 70 kD range. This size protein is in the range reported for the aldosterone-induced proteins [12, 46, 153].(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Thyrotropin regulation of basolateral Cl- and I- effluxes in thyroid follicles in culture

This report describes chloride and iodide effluxes across the basolateral membrane of porcine thyroid follicles reconstituted in culture. Basolateral chloride efflux is activated by thyrotropin (TSH). TSH (10 mU/ml) induces a twofold increase in the initial rate of chloride efflux. Forskolin (FSK, 5 microM) which increases intracellular cAMP also stimulates the initial rate of chloride efflux 3.5-fold, whereas an increase in the free cytosolic Ca2+ with the ionophore A23187 or thapsigargin, fails to mimic the TSH effect. The chloride channel blocker 5-nitro-2(3-phenylpropylamino)benzoic acid (NPPB) dose dependently inhibits chloride efflux rates with the maximal and half maximal effects observed for 100 microM and 30 microM, respectively. Basolateral chloride efflux rates are also inhibited in the presence of the organic anion transporter blocker probenecid (5 mM) or the Cl-/HCO3- exchanger blocker 4-acetamido-4'-isothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (SITS, 250 microM), respectively, by 60% and 40%, whereas it is not affected by ClO4 (100 microM). The initial rate of iodide efflux is weakly activated (1.4-fold) by TSH (10 mU/ml). TSH effect could be reproduced by agents known to activate Ca(2+)-dependent processes as A23187, ionomycin (1 microM), phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (TPA, 0.1 microM) and epidermal growth factor (EGF, 0.1 microM) which increase the initial rate of iodide efflux from 1.2- to 1.8-fold, whereas FSK is without effect. The chloride channel blocker NPPB (500 microM) is required to significantly inhibit the initial rate of iodide efflux by 30%. The initial rate of iodide efflux is also reduced by 30% in the presence of SITS (250 microM) or probenecid (5 mM) whereas it is activated by ClO4 (100 microM). We conclude that basolateral chloride and iodide effluxes are both regulated by TSH, using two different transduction pathways. Chloride efflux regulation may involve a cAMP transduction signal, whereas the regulation of iodide efflux may involve a Ca2+ signal. Furthermore, as the sensitivities of chloride and iodide effluxes for the anion transporter blockers (especially NPPB) are different, it seems likely that chloride and iodide use two different transport pathways.

The lung amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel: biophysical properties, pharmacology, ontogenesis, and molecular cloning

Water balance in the lung is controlled via active Na+ and Cl- transport. Electrophysiological measurements on lung epithelial cells demonstrated the presence of a Na+ channel that is inhibited by amiloride (K0.5 = 90 nM) and some of its derivatives such as phenamil (K0.5 = 19 nM) and benzamil (K0.5 = 14 nM) but not by ethylisopropylamiloride. An amiloride-sensitive Na+ channel of 4 pS was recorded from outside-out patches excised from the apical membrane. This channel is highly selective for Na+ (PNa+/PK+ > or = to 10). Isolation of a human lung cDNA led to the primary structure of the lung Na+ channel. The corresponding protein is 669 residues long and has two large hydrophobic domains. An amiloride-sensitive Na(+)-selective current apparently identical to the one observed in lung epithelial cells was recorded after expression of the cloned channel in oocytes. The level of the mRNA for the Na+ channel was highly increased from fetal to newborn and adult stages. This observation indicates that the increased Na+ reabsorption that occurs at birth as a necessary event to pass to an air-breathing environment is probably associated with control of transcription of this Na+ channel. The human gene for the lung Na+ channel was mapped on chromosome 12p13.

Sodium-permeable channels in the apical membrane of human nasal epithelial cells

We used patch-clamp techniques to study the channels that underlie the Na+ conductance of the apical membrane of human normal nasal epithelial cells. Cells were cultured on permeable supports and studied after confluence. In 172 of 334 (52%) excised membrane patches, we observed 20-pS Na(+)-permeable channels that do not discriminate between Na+ and K+ (pNa/pK = 1.33). These nonselective cation channels contained subpopulations that differed by dependence of open probability on voltage and bath Ca2+ activity, suggesting two or more channel types with similar electrical properties. In the presence of 10(-4) M amiloride in the pipette, the proportion of excised patches with nonselective cation channels decreased to 52 of 139 patches (37%), but the decrease was spread across all subpopulations of nonselective cation channels in excised patches. Thus no distinctive Na(+)-selective amiloride-sensitive channels were identified in excised patches. In cell-attached patches, Na(+)-permeable channels were recorded in 56 of 262 patches (21%). Their conductance was 21.4 +/- 1.5 pS (n = 25), and most were selective for Na+ over K+ (pNa/pK > 6). In the presence of amiloride (10(-4) M) in the pipette, the frequency of lambda Na(+)-permeable channels in cell-attached patches decreased to 8 of 134 patches (6%), revealing a population of Na(+)-selective channels recorded in cell-attached patches that was inhibited by amiloride. We conclude that, in excised patches, Na(+)-permeable channels are nonselective for Na+ over K+ and < 30% appear to be amiloride sensitive. In contrast, in cell-attached patches, most channels that conduct sodium are 1) selective for Na+ over K+ and 2) amiloride sensitive. Although we have not discovered the explanation for the discrepancy between cell-attached and excised patch data, we speculate that the channels recognized on cell account for the amiloride-sensitive Na+ conductance of the apical membrane, whereas the excision process alters the properties of the Na(+)-permeable channels and/or activate new channels.

Molecular cloning and functional expression of different molecular forms of rat amiloride-binding proteins

The colon and lung amiloride-binding proteins were cloned from rat tissues. Two sizes of transcripts were identified. The 2.7-kb transcript codes for an 85-kDa protein, whereas the 1.2-kb transcript codes for a 25-kDa polypeptide. The 2.7-kb transcript was detected in the proximal and distal colon and in duodenum, liver, placenta and thymus. The 1.2-kb transcript was the only form present in lung and spleen, and it was also detected in placenta and colon. The short form corresponds to the 3' terminus of the longer one. It is formed by alternative transcription under the control of an internal promoter. Cells stably transfected with cDNAs encoding these two proteins were used for binding studies using [3H]phenamil, a potent blocker of the epithelial Na+ channel, derived from amiloride. Both the long and short forms of the protein bind amiloride and some of its derivatives, but they have distinct pharmacologies. The order of potency of the different amiloride derivatives to inhibit [3H]phenamil binding was phenamil (K0.5 = 10 nM) > benzamil (K0.5 = 43 nM) > amiloride (K0.5 = 1.4 microM) approximately ethylisopropylamiloride (K0.5 = 1.6 microM) for the long form, whereas it was phenamil (K0.5 = 68 nM) > amiloride (K0.5 = 3.2 microM) approximately ethylisopropylamiloride (K0.5 = 4 microM) approximately benzamil (K0.5 = 6.3 microM) for the short form. Although the binding proteins described here are distinct from the pore-forming protein of the epithelial Na+ channel, the pharmacological profile of the long form of the ABP is identical to that described previously in pig and human kidney, and similar to that expected for an epithelial Na+ channel. The pharmacological profile of the short form resembles that previously described for an amiloride-binding protein in pneumocytes. Results presented in this paper suggest that previously purified preparations showing Na+ channel activity contain different forms of the amiloride-binding protein, possibly associated with other proteins. The similarity between amiloride-binding proteins and a protein identified in seminal vesicles suggests that amiloride-binding proteins are the first members of a new family of epithelia-specific proteins.

Bidirectional ion transport in thyroid: secretion of anions by monolayer cultures that absorb sodium

Cultured porcine thyroid cell monolayers transport Na+ in an apical-to-basal direction, resulting in the development of a basal-positive transepithelial potential difference (TEP) and the formation of domes (fluid-filled elevations of the cell layer above the culture dish substrate). Stimulation by prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) increases the magnitude of the TEP, the short-circuit current (Isc) measured in Transwell Ussing chambers, and the height of domes in cultures grown on impermeable substrates. A phenamil-resistant, PGE2-stimulated component of the Isc in Transwells and of the TEP in monolayers in conventional culture dishes was inhibitable by bumetanide, a diuretic drug that blocks NaKCl2 symporters, mediating active transport of Cl-. The rate of decrease in height of domes in cultures after addition of phenamil, presumably indicative of transport of fluid in a basal-to-apical direction, was also reduced by bumetanide. Studies with Transwells in Cl(-)-free, HCO(3-)-free or Cl(-)- and HCO(3-)-free media indicated that thyroid cells transported HCO3- as well as Cl- in a basal-to-apical direction. It was concluded that the thyroid epithelium is both sodium absorbing and anion secreting.

A new non-voltage-dependent, epithelial-like Na+ channel in vascular smooth muscle cells

A new type of Na+ channel was identified in smooth muscle cells of the rat aortic cell line A7r5, and in smooth muscle cells cultured from rat aorta and rat portal vein. The channel is highly selective for Na+ (PNa/PK greater than 11). It is active in cell-attached patches, and independent of the trans-patch membrane potential. The single channel conductance is low (10.7 pS). Two substates were identified. This channel is insensitive to effectors of other types of Na+ channels, such as amiloride (100 microM) or tetrodotoxin (100 microM). It is inhibited by phenamil at high concentrations (greater than 10 microM). The mean open state probability P(O) varied from patch to patch (0.05-0.88). Kinetics analysis reveals a complex behaviour: open times separate in short (tau 1 = 84 ms) and long (tau 2 = 845 ms) openings and closed times separate into short (tau 1 = 60 ms) and long closures (tau 2 = 272-3130 ms). Short openings and long closures are preponderant at a low P(O). Long openings are absent in the presence of phenamil (50 microM) and are unaffected by amiloride (100 microM). Fluctuations of the channel activity in cell-attached patches and the fast disappearance after excision suggest that this channel is under metabolic control. This vascular smooth muscle channel appears to be a potentially important Na+ entry pathway for vascular cells and an amiloride-resistant homologue of the epithelial Na+ channel.

Human kidney amiloride-binding protein: cDNA structure and functional expression

Phenamil, an analog of amiloride, is a potent blocker of the epithelial Na+ channel. It has been used to purify the porcine kidney amiloride-binding protein. Synthetic oligonucleotides derived from partial sequences have been used to screen a human kidney cDNA library and to isolate the cDNA encoding the human amiloride-binding protein. The primary structure was deduced from the DNA sequence analysis. The protein is 713 residues long, with a 19-amino acid signal peptide. The mRNA was expressed in 293-S and NIH 3T3 cells, yielding a glycoprotein (i) that binds amiloride and amiloride analogs with affinities similar to the amiloride receptor associated with the apical Na+ channel in pig kidney membranes and (ii) that is immunoprecipitated with monoclonal antibodies raised against pig kidney amiloride-binding protein.

Localization of the gene for amiloride binding protein on chromosome 7 and RFLP analysis in cystic fibrosis families

The apical sodium channel is essential for sodium reabsorption by the kidney. Its activity is blocked by the diuretic amiloride. Using a human cDNA coding for the amiloride binding protein (ABP), the corresponding structural gene was mapped to human chromosome 7q34-q36 by in situ hybridization. This region flanks the region implicated in cystic fibrosis (7q32). Because an alteration of the amiloride sensitive sodium channel function has been suggested in cystic fibrosis, a possible link between the ABP gene and this disease was analyzed by restriction fragments length polymorphism (RFLP) analyses. From this study, it appears that the gene coding for ABP is not directly modified by mutations causing cystic fibrosis.

Evidence for probenecid-sensitive organic anion transporters on polarized thyroid cells in culture

Epithelial thyroid cells in primary cultures loaded with BCECF/AM rapidly released the impermeant fluorescent dye BCECF (bis(carboxyethyl)carboxyfluorescein) in the incubation medium. Cells organized into follicles rapidly cleared BCECF (80% within 10 min) whereas fluorescence microscopy did not show any fluorescence in the follicular cavity. Cells organized into monolayers on plastic exported BCECF into the medium (70% within 40 min) whereas fluorescence microscopy showed intense fluorescence under the domes. BCECF efflux was blocked by probenecid, one of the known inhibitors of organic anion transporters, with similar efficiency in both structures. Maximal and half-maximal effects were respectively observed for 5 mM and 0.4 mM probenecid. The polarity of BCECF efflux was studied by using monolayers on collagen-coated Nuclepore filters: 85% of BCECF released was found in the basal compartment and 15% in the apical compartment. These findings suggested that thyroid cells in culture expressed a transport mechanism for the anionic form of BCECF. Furthermore, the observed activation of the Na+/H+ exchanger by probenecid suggested that the presence of this blocker did not overcome problems arising in the use of BCECF as intracellular pH indicator for thyroid cells.

[3H]phenamil binding protein of the renal epithelium Na+ channel. Purification, affinity labeling, and functional reconstitution

This paper describes a large-scale purification procedure of the amiloride binding component of the epithelium Na+ channel. [3H]Phenamil was used as a labeled ligand to follow the purification. The first two steps are identical with those previously described [Barbry, P., Chassande, O., Vigne, P., Frelin, C., Ellory, C., Cragoe, E. J., Jr., & Lazdunski, M. (1987) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 84, 4836-4840]. A third step was a hydroxyapatite column. The purified material consisted of a homodimer of two 88-kDa proteins that migrated anomalously in SDS-PAGE to give an apparent Mr of 105,000. Deglycosylation by treatment with neuraminidase and endoglycosidase F or with neuraminidase and glycopeptidase F indicated that less than 5% of the mass of the native receptor was carbohydrate. Sedimentation analysis of the purified Na+ channel in H2O and D2O sucrose gradients and gel filtration experiments led to an estimated molecular weight of the [3H]phenamil receptor protein-detergent-phospholipid complex of 288,000 and of the native [3H]phenamil receptor protein of 158,000. [3H]Br-benzamil is another labeled derivative of amiloride that recognized binding sites that had the same pharmacological properties as [3H]phenamil binding sites and that copurified with them. Upon irradiation of kidney membranes, [3H]Br-benzamil incorporated specifically into a 185-kDa polypeptide chain under nonreducing electrophoretic conditions and a 105-kDa protein under reducing conditions. The same labeling pattern was observed at the different steps of the purification. Reconstitution of the purified phenamil receptor into large unilamellar vesicles was carried out. A low but significant phenamil- and amiloride-sensitive electrogenic Na+ transport was observed.

The thyroid cell monolayer in culture. A tight sodium absorbing epithelium

When cultured on collagen coated nitrocellulose filters, thyroid epithelial cells form morphologically and functionally polarized monolayers. The bioelectric parameters of these monolayers were measured after mounting in Ussing chambers; transepithelial potential (Vab), short circuit current (Isc) and transepithelial resistance were respectively 12 +/- 1 mV (apical side negative), 3.8 +/- 0.2 microA cm-2 and 3250 +/- 214 omega cm2 (mean +/- SEM, n = 75). Eighty two percent of the short circuit current was related to sodium absorption as shown by inhibition by apical amiloride (Km = 0.2 microM) and by basal ouabain (K1/2 = 0.3 microM). Amphotericin B (5-25 micrograms/ml) added to the apical bath increased Isc suggesting an apical rate-limiting step. Step by step replacement of choline by Na+ in a Na+-free medium resulted in a progressive increase in Vab and Isc with half maximal effect at 20 +/- 1 mM Na+. Thyrotropin (TSH) increased Isc and Vab in a biphasic way with a transient maximum after 5 min and a plateau after 20 min (about four times the basal level at 100 microU/ml TSH). This increase in sodium transport was also inhibited by apical amiloride. Thus, in culture, the thyroid cell monolayer behaves as a tight sodium absorbing epithelium controlled by TSH, with a rate limiting apical sodium channel as the entry mechanism and a basolateral Na+, K+-ATPase as the electromotive force.