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M L Lacombe

Publications and source records attributed to M L Lacombe.

53 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Trypsin solubilization of rat liver membrane-bound guanylate cyclase results in a form kinetically distinct from the cytosolic enzyme.

We have previously reported that treatment of rat liver plasma membranes with various proteases led to activation and solubilization of membrane-bound guanylate cyclase. We report here that the guanylate cyclase solubilized by proteolysis differed from the cytosolic cyclase and rather was similar to the membrane-bound form of the enzyme in that it exhibited a sigmoidal MnGTP concentration dependence and was not activated by an excess Mn2+ or by nitrosocompounds. Also, whereas the cytosolic guanylate cyclase activity was completely abolished by 10 to 100 microM Cd2+, a dithiol reagent, no inhibitory effect was observed on the trypsin-solubilized enzyme. Therefore, the differences in kinetic properties between cytosolic and membrane-bound rat liver guanylate cyclase reside in structural differences between both forms of the enzyme rather than in differences in their environment.

Animals↗

Activation of rat liver guanylate cyclase by proteolysis.

Guanylate cyclase activity (GTP pyrophosphate-lyase (cyclizing), EC 4.6.1.2.), measured in purified rat liver plasma membranes, was markedly increased by treatment with various purified proteases. The effect was maximal with trypsin, alpha-chymotrypsin, papain, and thermolysin (6- to 8-fold increase with 5 to 20 microgram of protease/ml) and lower with subtilisin and elastase (3- to 4-fold increase). The activation was due to an increase in the maximal velocity of the cyclizing reaction. No modification was observed either in the apparent affinity for the substrate MnGTP or in the cooperative behavior of the enzyme kinetics which displayed Hill coefficients of 1.6 for both basal and activated states. The Triton X-100-dispersed guanylate cyclase remained sensitive to papain, which suggests that the action of proteases was not restricted to an indirect action upon the membranous environment of the guanylate cyclase. In contrast, the cytosolic soluble guanylate cyclase, assayed in the presence or absence of sodium azide, was absolutely insensitive to papain. Thus, proteolysis represents a previously undescribed mechanism for activating membranous guanylate cyclase systems, which might be of importance in the physiological regulation of this enzyme.

Animals↗

Proteolytic activation of rat liver adenylate cyclase by a contaminant of crude collagenase from Clostridium histolyticum.

Treatment of rat liver plasma membranes with various commercial preparations of crude collagenase from Clostridium histolyticum at concentrations as low as 1 mug/ml, resulted in activation of the adenylate cyclase system. Maximal activation occurred at 50 to 100 mug/ml of collagenase, and promoted a 2- to 3-fold increase in the basal activity as well as in the activities stimulated by catecholamines, glucagon, fluoride, or GTP. This was due to an increase in the maximal velocity of the cyclizing reaction without any increase in the affinity of the enzyme for its substrate. Treatment of plasma membranes with crude collagenase did not induce gross structural modifications as judged by electron microscopic examination. 5'-Nucleotidase activity was slightly inhibited and ATPase activity remained unaffected. The stimulatory substance was nondialyzable, thermolabile, and inhibited by both EDTA and -SH reagents, thus appearing to be a protein. The following observations suggest the effects observed were due to other protease(s) present in crude collagenase: (a) only crude collagenase was active on liver adenylate cyclase: treatment with purified collagenase from C. histolyticum or from Achromobacter iophagus gave no stimulation; (b) the stimulatory activity was irreversible since washing of the membranes after treatment was without effect; (c) crude collagenase contained no lecithinase or sphingomyelinase activity under our conditions of adenylate cyclase assay; (d) after chromatography on Sephadex G-100, the activator appeared as a peak in the 30,000-dalton region and was clearly separated from the collagenase and clostripain peaks, but coincident with elastolytic and caseinolytic activities; (e) the effect of crude collagenase could be prevented by addition of elastin in vitro and was mimicked by purified elastase from hog pancreas. It remains to be seen whether the effects observed result from an increase in the catalytic constant of adenylate cyclase, or an unmasking of new catalytic sites.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

The epinephrine-sensitive adenylate cyclase of rat liver plasma membranes. Role of guanyl nucleotides.

The epinephrine sensitivity in vitro of the adenylate cyclase system in liver plasma membranes from adrenalectomized rats was increased by the addition of 1 to 100 muM GTP or GDP in the incubation medium. Basal and glucagon-stimulated cyclase activities were also enhanced by GTP and GDP. These effects occurred even in the absence of an ATP-regenerating system. They were mimicked by 5'-guanyl diphosphonate and a series of guanyl derivatives, indicating that the structural requirement for the GTP action is not very stringent. Guanyl nucleotides did not increase the affinity of the adenylate cyclase system for the activating hormones, nor did they protect the enzyme activity against denaturation. Their synergic effect was due to an enhancement of the affinity of the enzyme for the substrate MgATP and also to an increase of the maximal velocity of the reaction. It is proposed that the guanyl nucleotides act directly and primarily upon the catalytic component of the cyclase system, independently of their effects on the binding of the activating hormones to liver plasma membrane. Since the activating effects of epinephrine and glucagon are similar in the presence of GTP, but not in its absence, it is suggested that the lower efficiency of epinephrine under normal conditions is not due to intrinsic membrane characteristics, but rather, to superimposed extraneous modulations.

Adenylyl Cyclases↗

[Role of guanidylic nucleotides in the adenylate cyclase activity of the rat liver].

Glucagon and adrenaline exert their action upon the liver via the cyclic AMP synthetizing system located in the plasma membrane. The enzyme adenylate cyclase is further regulated by guanyl nucleotides. It has been recently shown that the rat liver plasma membrane system could respond to GTP by simultaneous increase in the cyclase activity in response to glucagon and by the dissociation of this hormone from its binding sites (1). Unambiguous relationship between the activating effect of GTP upon the cyclase and its action upon glucagon binding has not been determined yet (2). This problem was approached using the in vitro action of epinephrine as a model. When 1 to 100 muM GTP or DGP were added to rat liver plasma membranes isolated from adrenalectomized animals, they increased markedly the response of the cyclase system to epinephrine. These effects could be observed in the absence of an ATP-regenerating system and were mimicked by 5'-guanylyl diphosphonate; GTP and GDP were the most active compounds followed by ITP, CTP and by a series of guanyl derivatives. UTP, as well as guanosine, GMP, cyclic GMP and ppGpp were inactive. Guanyl nucleotides did not increase the affinity of the cyclase system for the activating hormones, but enhanced the affinity for ATP-Mg and also the Vmax of the reaction. Finally, GTP, ATP, CTP, UTP but not GDP displaced epinephrine bound to plasma membranes by a mere chelation phenomenon. It is concluded that 1) guanyl nucleotides do not act primarily by influencing the binding of hormones to the membranes; 2) they act directly upon the catalytic subunit of the cyclase; 3) the low concentrations of GTP required for its action strongly suggest that this nucleotide plays a role in the physiological regulation of the intrahepatic cyclic AMP level.

Adenylyl Cyclases↗

[Alteration of the catecholamine receptor during hepatic malignancy (author's transl)].

The adenylate cyclase system of a plasma membrane preparation from normal rat liver responds to various catecholamines in the following order: protokylol greater than isoproterenol greater than epinephrine greater than norepinephrine. In the Zadejela ascites hepatoma, the order of sensitivity is modified, indicating a transformation of the receptor from the beta2 to the beta1 type. These observations suggest that the catecholamine receptor might be a single entity, susceptible to secondary, and reversible, modification towards either a beta 1 or a beta 2 type.

Animals↗