A potential role for gap junctions in breast cancer metastasis to bone.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to C V Gay.
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We isolated and characterized a cDNA for the N-terminal half of the eukaryotic initiation of translation factor 2 (cIF2) during a screen of chicken osteoblast cDNAs. The apparent size of the message for this protein, approximately 5.6 kb, is slightly larger in size than that for human IF2 (hIF2). There is a high degree of sequence similarity between the human and chicken N-terminal portions of the protein that extends to the encoding nucleotide sequence. The tissue specific expression pattern for cIF2 and hIF2 are similar, being moderately abundant in brain, liver, and skeletal muscle, and detectable in kidney, chondrocytes, and freshly isolated osteoblasts. The ratio of message for cIF2 to that of beta-actin was 0.10 and 0.18 for liver and brain. Message levels peak in osteoblasts between 8 and 12 days of culture, coinciding with high levels of matrix protein synthesis. At peak expression, the ratio of cIF2:beta-actin for 8 day osteoblasts was 0.76. Treatment of osteoblast cultures with cycloheximide markedly reduces the level of cIF2 message indicating that novel protein synthesis is required for its expression. Hybridization of RNA samples from either chicken osteoblasts or a human osteoblast cell line with a probe for a subunit of human eukaryotic initiation of translation factor 2 (eIF2alpha), the housekeeping initiation factor, indicates that levels of eIF2 remain low. With hIF2, cIF2 represents the only other vertebrate homolog of IF2 for which a major portion of the coding sequence has been identified. This is the first report of regulated expression for a eukaryotic IF2 and is the first demonstration of its abundance in osteoblasts.
Osteoblasts form new bone by secreting a complex extracellular matrix that has the capacity to mineralize when adequate amounts of calcium and phosphate are supplied. The studies reported here show that long-term treatment of cultured, primary osteoblasts with Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCX) inhibitors, bepridil and KB-R7943, impacts in a dose-dependent manner the ability of the cells to form a calcified matrix. Treatment of confluent osteoblast cultures for 14 days with low levels of bepridil (3.0 microM) or KB-R7943 (1.0 microM and 0.1 microM) resulted in a significantly diminished capacity of these cells to mineralize bone matrix, without significantly altering cell morphology, viability, or cell differentiation. The data indicate that inhibition of NCX reduces mineral accumulation in the bone matrix by blocking the efflux of Ca2+ from the osteoblast into the bone fluid. In addition, immunocytochemistry of type I collagen (COLI) and bone sialoprotein (BSP) suggests that inhibition of NCX by 1.0 microM KB-R7943 also may impair the secretion of bone matrix proteins by the osteoblasts. This study is the first to show that NCX is an important regulator of the bone fluid microenvironment and that NCX appears critical to the mineralization process.
Osteoblasts derived from the periosteal surfaces of two-three-week-old male broiler chicken tibias were cultured for eight days. The cells were then loaded with fura-2/AM ester to detect surges in intracellular Ca(2+). Treatment with 10(-7) M testosterone (T) or 17beta-estradiol (E) elicited a rapid (within seconds) response that was substantially reduced by introducing the calcium chelating agent EGTA or the calcium-channel blocker verapamil. The hormones were equally effective when covalently linked to bovine serum albumin (BSA), a procedure that ensures the hormone does not enter the cells. The rapid response to surface-bound steroids indicates that the responses were invoked through plasma-membrane receptors. The source of Ca(2+) was shown to be through entry from external sources, as well as from intracellular stores. Flow cytometry of fluorescein-tagged T-BSA and E-BSA revealed that osteoblasts derived from male chickens had similar and substantial levels of both receptors.
Primary osteoblasts derived from avian long bone have been evaluated in terms of spatial and temporal expression of known osteoblastic marker proteins during the early phases of cell culture. Confocal imaging of matrix proteins revealed that osteocalcin, bone sialoprotein, osteopontin, and osteonectin were restricted to the cell interior at day 4 of culture; secretion and deposition into the extra-cellular matrix of bone sialoprotein and osteopontin was evident at 8 and 12 days of culture. Osteocalcin and osteonectin were not deposited in the matrix within the timeframe of the study. Total collagen levels produced and alkaline phosphatase activity were substantial by day 4 of culture, and increased from that point 4.0- and 5.5-fold, respectively, by culture day 12. The expression of type I collagen, PTHrP receptor, osteopontin, bone sialoprotein and osteocalcin was followed by Northern blot analysis. Type I collagen and osteopontin mRNA were expressed at constant levels throughout the culture period. Over the 12 days of culture both PTH/PTHrP receptor and bone sialoprotein mRNA expression were found to increase by 2.3- and 2.5-fold, respectively. In contrast, the expression of osteocalcin message decreased by 2.5-fold by day 8 of culture.
We present evidence that the polar, matrix-forming osteoblasts are connected laterally to form an impervious layer of cells. Next, the possible mechanisms by which calcium ions are translocated across the layer of cells into sites of mineralization are analyzed. Finally, mechanisms of attachment of bone-resorbing osteoclasts are considered. Osteoclasts adhere to matrix, in part, though an arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD)-dependent mechanism. Adherence is under control of parathyroid hormone and 17beta-estradiol.
Tibial dyschondroplasia (TD) is a skeletal deformity associated with rapid growth in a number of avian species. The disease is the result of a disruption in the cascade of events that occur in the epiphyseal growth plate. Whereas the incidence of TD is susceptible to genetic selection, no specific genetic defect has been identified. Although there are extensive data describing the morphological and biochemical characteristics of the lesion, the mechanism of lesion formation is unknown. However, naturally occurring or induced genetic mutations in other species can provide important clues to possible mechanisms responsible for lesion development. Disruption of normal chondrocyte differentiation by constitutive activation of the parathyroid hormone/parathyroid hormone-related peptide (PTH/PTHrP) receptor, inactivation of the fibroblast growth factor receptor-3 (FGFR-3) receptor, and blocking vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling all result in lesions that resemble TD. Impairment of vascular penetration due to the ablation of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) or tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) activity also results in similar cartilage abnormalities. We have integrated these observations with our current knowledge of TD to describe a hypothesis for the sequence of events responsible for the development of tibial dyschondroplastic lesions.
Osteoclasts respond to many factors, including endocrines, cytokines, cell-cell interactions, and cell-matrix contacts. For mature osteoclasts, the first level of control occurs through signaling that follows binding to an appropriate substrate. Mononuclear and multinucleate osteoclasts are activated when cell surface integrins, notably but not exclusively alphavbeta3 integrins, bind to calcified matrices. The binding process results in actin ring formation and deployment of adhesive proteins into a ring shape such that a seal is formed. As this ring forms, components of the ruffled border assemble from diffuse distribution to form the resorption apparatus, which includes the vacuolar-ATPase, carbonic anhydrase, and other key molecules. This review focuses on the control of osteoclast activity, beginning with attachment and ruffled border assembly. Direct and indirect regulation by PTH/PTHrP, genomic and nongenomic effects of estrogen, and gene expression of ruffled border components, carbonic anhydrase, and vacuolar ATPase are reviewed. Finally, the need to understand complex signaling pathway interaction is discussed.
The estrogen, 17beta-estradiol, stimulated a profound increase in phosphotyrosine immunostaining of proteins that localized along the site of attachment in avian osteoclasts within 1 min of treatment. By 10 min, this rapidly occurring event had returned to basal levels. Pretreatment with 1 microM herbimycin A, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, prevented the response. Immunoblotting revealed that Src kinase was one of the phosphorylated intermediates. Src kinase also appeared to translocate to the periphery of the cells during the 1 min 17beta-estradiol treatment and became dispersed by 10 min. Src kinase activity measurements indicated an increase in phosphotransferase activity after the 1 min estradiol treatment; this effect diminished with longer exposures to estrogen. Pretreatment of osteoclasts with 1 microg/ml cytochalasin B, an inhibitor of actin polymerization, delayed the appearance of increased phosphotyrosine immunostaining at attachment sites, possibly through inhibition of Src kinase translocation. These findings demonstrate that estrogen stimulates rapid tyrosine phosphorylation in osteoclasts, a process that involves activation and translocation of Src kinase to the plasma membrane.
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We describe the synthesis of Bodipy 558/568-modified acetazolamide, a fluorescent inhibitor of carbonic anhydrase and its use to localize the enzyme in living cells. The modified acetazolamide, with its specific sulfonamide group intact, labeled cells at concentrations as low as 10(-9) M, with a minimal loading time of 5 min. The staining was decreased by 57.4% by preincubating cells with unaltered acetazolamide (1:100) or with trifluoromethane sulfonamide, 6-ethoxyzolamide, and 5-(3-hydroxybenzoyl)-thiophene-2-sulfonamide. The efficacy of the inhibitor was unchanged by the fluorescent label, as determined by an acridine orange assay that detects acidification of osteoclasts, the cell model used in this study. This compound should prove to be useful for studying carbonic anhydrase in many organisms because of the high degree of conservation of the active site of this enzyme. (J Histochem Cytochem 47:545-550, 1999)
The effect of estrogen on plasma membrane potential of isolated avian osteoclasts was examined through the use of a fluorescent potential-sensitive dye, bis-(1,3-dibutylbarbiturate) trimethine oxonol, also known as bis-oxonol. A decrease in potential was observed within seconds of addition of 17beta-estradiol. Ouabain, a specific Na+K+-ATPase inhibitor, and BaCl2, an inhibitor of the inwardly rectifying K+ channel, blocked the estrogen response. Verapamil and lanthanum chloride (LaCl3), inhibitors of inward Ca2+ channels, and 4'4-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2'2-disulfonic acid (DIDS), an inhibitor of Cl- channels, did not affect the depolarization. Herbimycin A, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, also had no effect on the decreased membrane potential. These data provide evidence which suggests that estrogen regulates osteoclasts through ion channel activities. The change in K+ channel activity was observed within seconds of addition of 17beta-estradiol, indicating an action at the level of the plasma membrane.
The presence of spectrin was demonstrated in chick osteoclasts by Western blotting and light and electron microscopic immunolocalization. Additionally, screening of a chick osteoclast cDNA library revealed the presence of alpha-spectrin. Light microscope level immunocytochemical staining of osteoclasts in situ revealed spectrin staining throughout the cytoplasm with heavier staining found at the marrow-facing cell margin and around the nuclei. Confocal microscopy of isolated osteoclasts plated onto a glass substrate showed that spectrin encircled the organelle-rich cell center. Nuclei and cytoplasmic inclusions were also stained and the plasma membrane was stained in a nonuniform, patchy distribution corresponding to regions of apparent membrane ruffling. Ultracytochemical localization showed spectrin to be found at the plasma membrane and distributed throughout the cytoplasm with especially intense staining of the nuclear membrane and filaments within the nuclear compartment.
When utilizing streptavidin systems with Western blots of chondrocyte, osteoblast and osteoclast lysates, proteins of the molecular weights 116 kDa, 75 kDa and 67 kDa were observed to be bound by streptavidin alone. Streptavidin binding could not be blocked by pre-incubation with an RGD containing peptide. The same proteins were bound by ExtrAvidin which lacks the RGD sequence present in streptavidin. Pre-incubation with free biotin completely abolished the binding of both streptavidin and ExtrAvidin. The three proteins observed are believed to be the biotin containing carboxylases: pyruvate carboxylase, 3-methylcrotonyl carboxylase, and propionyl carboxylase. The findings of this study underscore the need to apply vigorous controls to distinguish between endogenous biotinylated proteins and biotin used as a means to amplify avidin detection systems since a wide variety of proteins with relevance to bone and cartilage biology have molecular weights similar to the biotin carboxylases.
OBJECTIVE: Tibial dyschondroplasia (TD) is an abnormality of growth plate cartilage characterized by the presence of non-vascularized, non-mineralized tissue. The objective of this study was to examine structural and functional alterations of the growth plate-specific type X collagen in TD cartilage. DESIGN: Collagen biosynthesis was examined in organ cultures and in cultured chondrocytes from normal growth plate and TD cartilage. Thermal stability of type X collagen extracted from normal and TD cartilage organ cultures to protease digestions by trypsin plus chymotrypsin or bacterial collagenase was determined. The expression of collagen genes was examined in cultured normal and TD chondrocytes. RESULTS: Synthesis of total collagen and of type X collagen was greater than threefold higher in organ cultures from the TD lesion compared with normal growth plate. The increase in type X collagen synthesis in the lesion was compensated by a reduction in the relative proportions of types II and XI collagens. The thermal denaturation and collagenase cleavage properties of purified types II and X collagens from TD cartilage were normal. The expression of type X collagen gene was threefold higher in cultured TD chondrocytes compared to chondrocytes from normal growth plate. Normal growth plate chondrocytes in primary cultures synthesized predominantly type X collagen (80% of total collagen). In contrast, TD chondrocytes synthesized mainly types I and II collagens and type X collagen represented only 22% of total collagen. TD cells initiated the synthesis of type I collagen within 5 days of primary culture, whereas normal chondrocytes did not synthesize this collagen during the same culture period. Although type X collagen synthesis was reduced in TD chondrocytes, the mRNA levels for type X collagen were substantially higher than in normal chondrocytes. CONCLUSION: Accumulation of type X collagen in TD cartilage results from its increased biosynthesis which is due largely to increased expression of the gene for this collagen, although, the chondrocyte culture studies suggest the possibility of postranscriptional defect in type X collagen synthesis or processing in TD lesion. Moreover, the TD chondrocytes in contrast with normal chondrocytes display evidence of prompt loss of their specific phenotype during short-term primary cultures.
To understand calcium translocation in osteoblasts, we have determined the location of sodium-calcium (Na-Ca) exchanger (NCX) in relation to actin and alpha-tubulin in primary cultures of avian osteoblasts. Osteoblasts derived from the periosteal surface of tibias from growing chickens were cultured for 8 days in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium containing 10% fetal bovine serum. Lysates immunoblotted with antibodies raised against the canine cardiac Na-Ca antibodies revealed a 70 kDa exchanger protein. Cross-reactivity of the anti-NCX antibody was confirmed by enriching for NCX in protein samples derived from plasma membrane vesicles by affinity chromatography using the exchanger inhibitory peptide. Fractions enriched for the exchanger were eluted from the column and subjected to immunoblotting with the anti-NCX antibody, revealing an intense single band at 70 kDa. Examination of live cells loaded with Calcium Green-1 AM ester by confocal microscopy demonstrated sodium-dependent calcium uptake, confirming the presence of functional NCX in intact cells. Immunolocalization studies of osteoblasts stained with anti-NCX antibodies revealed asymmetric localization of the exchanger in cultured osteoblasts, residing almost entirely within two 0.5-microm optical sections along the substrate adherent side of the cells. Since NCX is known to be a low-affinity, high-capacity calcium translocating molecule and also appears to be asymmetrically positioned, it is likely to play a key role in bone formation.
Osteoclasts, isolated from the endosteum of 2.5- to 3-week-old chickens, were treated with acridine orange, a hydrogen ion concentration-sensitive fluorescent dye, in order to monitor changes in acid production. The adenylate cyclase inhibitor, alloxan, blocked parathyroid hormone (PTH)-stimulated acid production. Dibutyryl cyclic adenosine monophosphate, a membrane-permeant form of cyclic adenosine monophosphate, mimicked the PTH effect. Bisindolylmaleimide, a specific inhibitor of protein kinase C (PKC), blocked the initial stimulation (15, 30, and 60 min) of acid production by PTH but had no effect on long-term stimulation (120 min). Confocal microscopy of osteoclasts stained with fluorescein-conjugated bisindolylmateimide revealed a shift in location of PKC from the cytoplasm to the plasma membrane region after treatment with parathyroid hormone. The results of these studies support the hypothesis that PTH regulation of acid production in osteoclasts involves both adenylate cyclase and PKC as effectors.