A R Saltiel

The effect of phorbol esters on the extent of phosphorylation of receptors for insulin and somatomedin C (insulin-like growth factor I) was studied in intact IM-9 cells that were labeled by incubation with H332PO4. The tumor-promoting phorbol esters phorbol tetradecanoate acetate (TPA) and phorbol dibutyrate, but not the inactive 4 alpha-phorbol, enhanced phosphorylation of the beta subunit of both receptors approximately 4-fold; 70 nM TPA maximally stimulated phosphorylation of both receptors, whereas concentrations less than or equal to 0.7 nM had no observable effect. Insulin also enhanced the phosphorylation of the beta subunit of the insulin receptor, and its effects appeared to be additive to those of TPA. Peptide maps indicated that at least some of the residues phosphorylated by these two agents are distinct. These results suggest a possible role of protein kinase C in regulating insulin and somatomedin C receptors.

Insulin binding to plasma membrane receptors results in the generation of substances that acutely mimic the actions of the hormone on certain target enzymes. Two such substances, which modulate the activity of the high-affinity cAMP phosphodiesterase (EC 3.1.4.17), have been purified from hepatic plasma membranes. The two have similar properties and activities but can be resolved by ion-exchange chromatography and high-voltage electrophoresis. They exhibit a net negative charge, even at pH 1.9, and an apparent molecular weight of approximately 1400. The generation of these substances from membranes by insulin can be reproduced by addition of a phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C purified from Staphylococcus aureus. This enzyme is known to selectively hydrolyze phosphatidylinositol and release from membranes several proteins that are covalently linked to phosphatidylinositol by a glycan anchor. Both enzyme-modulating substances appear to be generated by the phosphodiesterase cleavage of a phosphatidylinositol-containing glycolipid precursor that has been characterized by thin-layer chromatography. Some of the chemical properties of these substances have been examined. They appear to be related complex carbohydrate-phosphate substances containing glucosamine and inositol. These findings suggest that insulin may activate a selective phospholipase activity that hydrolyzes a membrane phospholipid, releasing a carbohydrate-containing molecule that regulates cAMP phosphodiesterase and perhaps other insulin-sensitive enzymes.

Some of the acute actions of insulin may be mediated by an enzyme-modulating inositol phosphate glycan, produced by the insulin-sensitive hydrolysis of glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol (GPI) that is structurally similar to a membrane protein anchor. An inositol glycan fragment from the structurally characterized Trypanosoma brucei variant surface glycoprotein GPI anchor is evaluated for insulin-mimetic antilipolytic activity. The fragment specifically and dose-dependently inhibits isoproterenol-stimulated lipolysis. Like the effect of insulin, glycan-induced antilipolysis is blocked by the low Km cAMP phosphodiesterase inhibitor imazodan (CI-914) and the serine/threonine phosphatase inhibitor, okadaic acid, suggesting that the activation of both cAMP phosphodiesterase and serine/threonine protein phosphatases are necessary. Moreover, this fragment causes a specific and dose-dependent inhibition of both microsomal glucose-6-phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.9) and cytosolic fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (EC 3.1.3.11) activity. Additionally, direct addition of the glycan to hepatocytes caused marked inhibition of glucose production from pyruvate. These results suggest that the direct modification of the activities of these two gluconeogenic enzymes by an inositol glycan may play a role in the inhibition of glucose output by insulin and provide the first evidence for the insulin-mimetic properties of a chemically characterized inositol glycan.

The cellular actions of nerve growth factor (NGF) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) may be mediated by changes in protein phosphorylation. The tyrosine phosphorylation of two predominant proteins of molecular mass 40 and 42 kDa is seen in PC-12 cells treated with NGF or EGF, correlating with activation of a previously identified serine/threonine protein kinase that phosphorylates microtubule-associated protein (MAP). Stimulation of phosphoprotein (pp) 40 and 42 phosphorylation and MAP kinase activity by NGF but not EGF is selectively attenuated by staurosporine and K-252A. Moreover, the time courses of pp40/42 phosphorylation and MAP kinase activation produced by NGF or EGF are identical. Chromatography of lysates from growth factor-treated cells on ion-exchange or hydrophobic-interaction HPLC resolves MAP kinase into two peaks, neither of which precisely coelutes with pp40 or pp42. One of these peaks (II) exhibits no detectable phosphotyrosine. The other peak (I) has some overlap with pp40. However, the activity residing in both peaks is almost completely inhibited after treatment with alkaline phosphatase, suggesting that, at least, serine/threonine phosphorylation is required for the activity of these enzymes. These data indicate that while tyrosine phosphorylation appears to be a critical early event in NGF action, the role of this modification in activation of MAP kinases remains unclear.

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) plays a critical role in the metabolism of plasma lipoproteins. In 3T3-L1 adipocytes, insulin elicits the rapid release of LPL through mechanisms that are independent of energy metabolism and protein synthesis. Some of the metabolic actions of insulin may be mediated by the activation of a specific phospholipase that hydrolyzes a glycosyl phosphatidylinositol (PI) molecule. The insulin-sensitive glycosyl-PI is structurally similar to the glycolipid membrane anchor of a number of proteins. LPL appears to be anchored to the 3T3-L1 cell surface by glycosyl-PI, and its rapid release by insulin may be due to activation of a glycosyl-PI-specific phospholipase C.