On the existence of a guanine nucleotide trap, the role of adenosine kinase and a possible cause of excessive purine production in mammalian cells

Internal standards for survival: increasing the accuracy for human cell mutation assays

In mutation and cell transformation assays, it has long been recognized that the common practice of using different numbers of cells on dishes with or without selective conditions creates a source of bias in mutant fraction determination. This is simply because colony formation may be enhanced or suppressed at higher initial cell densities, depending on the assay and agent tested. We propose a solution that consists of the inclusion of an experimentally distinguishable population of cells as an internal standard for colony-forming ability at the high cell density required for detection of rare variants. This method is found to be highly satisfactory for use in measuring mutation to 6-thioguanine resistance in a diploid human B lymphoblast line. For treatment with anti-2,3-dihydroxy-1,10b-epoxy-1,2,3-trihydrofluoranthene (FDE), N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG), and 4-nitroquinoline-oxide (4NQO), the calculated induced mutant fractions using the internal-standard method were significantly lower than those calculated using the conventional low-density-plating efficiency method. The results of these experiments and our analysis lead us to conclude that this approach is applicable to all single cell mutation or transformation assays and is a necessary feature of assays in which an accurate knowledge of the fraction of rare variants is required.

Adenosine cycle in African trypanosomes

African trypanosomes can convert adenosine to adenosine monophosphate. However, in Trypanosoma brucei, as in T. vivax and T. congolense, most of the adenosine is broken down to adenine before conversion to the nucleotide by adenine phosphoribosyltransferase. Trypanosoma brucei and T. vivax use the purine nucleoside hydrolase for adenosine cleavage while T. congolense uses purine nucleoside phosphorylase for the nucleoside cleavage. Trypanosoma vivax also deaminates adenine to hypoxanthine before its conversion to adenosine monophosphate by way of inosine monophosphate. All African trypanosomes lack adenosine deaminase. This finding particularly demonstrates that the effectiveness of the therapy of African trypanosomiasis with adenosine analogue drugs will depend upon the strain of trypanosome which causes the infection.

Genetic and biochemical studies on the activation and cytotoxic mechanism of bredinin, a potent inhibitor of purine biosynthesis in mammalian cells

To study the activation and cytotoxic mechanism of bredinin (4-carbamoyl-1-beta-D-ribofuranosylimidazolium-5-olate), a novel nucleoside antibiotic with potent cytotoxic and immunosuppressive effects, we isolated in a single-step manner five mutants resistant to 10 microM bredinin from cultured mouse mammary carcinoma FM3A cells mutagenized with N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG). Such resistant (Brdr) mutants were 15- to 19-fold less sensitive to the antibiotic than wild-type cells and maintained stably their resistant phenotypes in the absence of bredinin for more than 3 months. They were cross-resistant to tubercidin, an adenosine analog. Like wild-type cells, Brdr mutants were capable of incorporating radioactivity from ring-labeled adenosine into the acid-insoluble macromolecular fraction. However, hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase-deficient (HGPRT-) mutants derived from the Brdr cells did not incorporate the radioactivity at all or at a markedly reduced rate, indicating that blockade of the pathway via adenosine deaminase present in the Brdr cells resulted in loss of their ability to utilize adenosine. Enzyme assays using cell-free extracts revealed that all the Brdr mutants had less than 3% of the adenosine kinase (AK) activity found in wild-type cells. These results demonstrate that the bredinin resistance is attributed to a defective AK activity and, therefore, that bredinin is metabolized by AK, which may phosphorylate it to a toxic nucleotide, bredinin 5'-monophosphate (Brd-MP), in sensitive cells. Among exogenously added purine bases, guanine was able to reverse the cytotoxic effect of bredinin on both wild-type cells and F5 cells carrying the vector pSV2-Escherichia coli xanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (XGPRT) gene, while xanthine was able to do so only in F5 cells because the base was metabolized to XMP by the cells. These results support the mechanism of bredinin cytotoxicity, that Brd-MP formed in sensitive cells exposed to the antibiotic blocks the conversion of IMP to XMP by inhibiting IMP dehydrogenase.

Polypeptide-binding membrane receptors: analysis and classification

Polypeptide receptors on mammalian plasma membranes can be categorized on the basis of function. The binding of ligand by class I receptors results in changes in cell metabolism or behavior. Hormone-receptor interactions typify this group. The binding of ligand by class II receptors in ligand internalization. Although changes in cellular activity may result from metabolism of the internalized ligand, the interaction between ligand and class II receptor does not itself lead to alterations in cell behavior. Class II receptors include those for low-density lipoproteins and for alpha-macroglobulin-protease complexes. Although receptors within each category are chemically disparate, they show striking similarities in behavior. Analysis of the behavioral patterns of receptors in each category reveals insights into receptor physiology and allows for a prospective analysis of receptor characteristics.

A novel synergistic effect of alanosine and guanine on adenine nucleotide synthesis in mammalian cells. Alanosine as a useful probe for investigating purine nucleotide metabolism

A novel synergistic effect of the antitumor agent alanosine (2-amino-3-(hydroxynitrosoamino) propionic acid), which specifically inhibits the enzyme adenylosuccinate synthetase (ASS) and guanine on the growth of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells and human diploid fibroblasts (HDF) has been observed. In the presence of subinhibitory concentrations of alanosine, both CHO cells and the HDF show excessive sensitivity to exogenous guanine--a phenotype which closely resembles that seen with some of the mutants containing reduced enzymatic activity of ASS. The growth inhibitory effects of alanosine, or alanosine and guanine, on CHO cells are completely reverted by the addition of adenine to the culture medium, and the synergistic effect of guanine is not observed in mutants which lack the enzyme hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyl transferase. These resuls suggest that guanine nucleotides exert a regulatory effect on the activity of the enzyme adenylosuccinate synthetase. The ability to confer the guanine-sensitive phenotype and its modulation by subinhibitory concentrations of alanosine in different cell types indicates that alanosine provides a useful probe for investigating the regulation of purine nucleotide metabolism in mammalian cells.

Abnormal regulation of de novo purine synthesis and purine salvage in a cultured mouse T-cell lymphoma mutant partially deficient in adenylosuccinate synthetase

The isolation and characterization of a mutant murine T-cell lymphoma (S49) with altered purine metabolism is described. This mutant, AU-100, was isolated from a mutagenized population of S49 cells by virtue of its resistance to 0.1 mM 6-azauridine in semisolid agarose. The AU-100 cells are resistant to adenosine mediated cytotoxicity but are extraordinarily sensitive to killing by guanosine. High performance liquid chromatography of AU-100 cell extracts has demonstrated that intracellular levels of GTP, IMP, and GMP are all elevated about 3-fold over those levels found in wild type cells. The AU-100 cells also contain an elevated intracellular level of pyrophosphoribosylphosphate (PPriboseP), which as in wild type cells is diminished by incubation of AU-100 cells with adenosine. However AU-100 cells synthesize purines de novo at a rate less than 35% of that found in wild type cells. In other growth rate experiments, the AU-100 cell line was shown to be resistant to 6-thioguanine and 6-mercaptopurine. Levels of hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HGPRTase) measured in AU-100 cell extracts, however, are 50-66% greater than those levels of HGPRTase found in wild type cell extracts. Nevertheless this mutant S49 cell line cannot efficiently incorporate labeled hypoxanthine into nucleotides since the salvage enzyme HGPRTase is inhibited in vivo. The AU-100 cell line was found to be 80% deficient in adenylosuccinate synthetase, but these cells are not auxotrophic for adenosine or other purines. The significant alterations in the control of purine de novo and salvage metabolism caused by the defect in adenylosuccinate synthetase are mediated by the resulting increased levels of guanosine nucleotides.

The control of cell proliferation by preformed purines: a genetic study. I. Isolation and preliminary characterization of Chinese hamster lines with single or multiple defects in purine "salvage" pathways

Sublines with single or multiple defects in purine "salvage" enzymes were isolated from the Chinese hamster fibroblastic line GMA32 through single or successive one-step selections for resistance to purine analogs. They were examined for their ability to incorporate purine bases and nucleosides into macromolecules, for their sensitivity to growth inhibitory purines, and for their rescue by exogenous purines from deprivation imposed by metabolic inhibitors of endogenous synthesis. The results show that a deficiency of either adenosine kinase (EC 2.7.1.20), adenine phosphoribosyltransferase (EC 2.4.2.7) or hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (EC 2.4.2.8) abolishes the ability of adenine to cause cell death by interfering with pyrimidine synthesis; on the other hand, the pyrimidine starvation caused by adenosine is fully prevented only by a deficiency of adenosine kinase.

Activities of purine pathway enzymes in gouty human fibroblasts aged in vitro

The finite life-span of fibroblasts in culture may reflect aging at the cellular level and gout is clinical condition whose incidence also increases with age. In order to better understand the age-related changes in purine metabolism, activities of purine degrading (adenosine deaminase and 5'-nucleotidase) and reutilizing (adenine phosphoribosyltransferase, hypoxanthine phosphoribosyl-transferase and adenosine kinase) enzymes were measured in serially cultured skin fibroblasts from normal subjects and from gouty patients who overproduce uric acid. Serially cultured fibroblasts from gouty overproducers of uric acid displayed increased purine enzyme levels with increasing cell passage while fibroblasts from normal donors showed little change in activity. There was no alteration in relative degrading and reutilizing enzyme levels. The data suggest an increase in the rate of purine turnover in aging gouty fibroblasts compared with normal fibroblasts.

Biochemical genetics of Chinese hamster cell mutants with deviant purine metabolism: isolation, selection, and characterization of a mutant lacking hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase activity by nutritional means

Mutants of the Chinese hamster ovary cell derived from CHO-K1 have been selected for lack of hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (EC 2.4.2.8) (HGPRT) without the use of a drug-resistance protocol. The procedure depends on the use of a parental strain carrying a mutation making it unable to synthetize purines and thus dependent upon exogenously added purines for growth. The standard "BUdR-visible-light" procedure is then used to select those cells which can use adenine but cannot use hypoxanthine as a purine source. These cells are shown to be thioguanine resistant, to be unable to incorporate exogenously added hypoxanthine into purine nucleotides, to complement our other adenine-specific purine auxotrophs, Ade-H and Ade-I but not to complement a cell isolated by virtue of thioguanine resistance, and to lack the activity of HGPRT. The use of such multiply marked mutants and cells related to them for further analysis of purine nucleotide biosynthesis and interconversion is discussed.

Adenosine-aminohydrolase activity in the erythrocytes, lymphocytes, and plasma of healthy subjects and kidney transplant recipients

Adenosine-aminohydrolase activity in the red blood cells and lymphocytes of transplant patients were assayed by continuous flow analysis. This enzyme, which has been implicated in the ability of lymphocytes to mount an immune response, was evaluated in renal allografted patients immunosuppressed by azothiprine and methylprednisone. Red cell adenosine-aminohydrolase activity was depressed in all patients when compared to nontreated health controls. Adenosine aminohydrolase activity was raised in the lymphocytes of the renal allografted patients. Renal transplant patients' in vitro lymphocyte reactivity to antigens, mitogens, or skin testing to specific antigens, confirmed the depressive effects of immunosuppression observed in vivo. We conclude from these studies that red cell adenosine-aminohydrolase activity may be a more sensitive index of the state of immunoresponsiveness than the corresponding enzyme activity in the lymphocyte.

Biochemical genetics of Chinese hamster cell mutants with deviant purine metabolism III. Isolation and characterization of a mutant unable to convert IMP to AMP

The isolation and characterization of a new mutant of Chinese ovary cells (CHO-K1) is described. This mutant, Ade-H, has the following properties: (1) it forms a new genetic complementation group; (2) it specifically requires adenine for growth and will not grow on aminoimidazole carboxamide (AIC) or hypoxanthine; (3) it accumulates IMP; (4) it cannot synthesize adenine nucleotides; (5) its phenotype can be mimicked by treatment of CHO-K1 (the wild type parental strain) with hadacidin, an inhibitor of adenylosuccinate synthetase (E.C.6.3.4.4). Thus, the site of the defect in this mutant is presumed to involve the step in adenylate biosynthesis catalyzed by this enzyme. The usefulness of Ade-H for the study of regulation of purine biosynthesis in mammalian cells is discussed.

Mutants of chinese hamster cells resistant to adenosine

Chinese hamster cells do not grow in medium containing high concentrations of adenosine because pyrimidine biosynthesis is inhibited. Adenosine metabolism was examined in two mutant cell lines isolated on the basis of resistance to adenosine. One line was deficient in adenosine kinase suggesting that high intracellular AMP concentrations may block pyrimidine synthesis indirectly in wild type cells by inhibiting PRPP synthetase. Although no enzymatic defect could be identified in the other cell line, these cells inefficiently utilize adenosine supplied in the medium.

Pyrimidine starvation induced by adenosine in fibroblasts and lymphoid cells: role of adenosine deaminase

In the presence of 10(-4) to 10(-5) molar adenosine, established cell lines of fibroblastic or lymphoid origin die of pyrimidine starvation. Less than lethal concentrations inhibit cell growth. Over a broad concentration range, the effects of adenosine are prevented by providing a suitable pyrimidine source. We suggest that the recently described immune deficiency disease associated with absence of adenosine deaminase may be the result of pyrimidine starvation induced by adenosine nucleotides in cells of the lymphoid system.