Search

Insulin regulation of energy metabolism is complex and involves numerous signaling cascades. Insulin has been suggested to stimulate a phospholipase that cleaves glycosylphosphatidylinositols resulting in the generation of an inositol glycan that serves as an insulin mediator. To determine if glycosylphosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase D (GPI-PLD) may play a role in glucose metabolism, we examined the effect of overexpressing GPI-PLD using adenovirus-mediated gene transfer in C57BL/6 mice. Overexpressing GPI-PLD was associated with a decrease in fasting glucose as well as an improvement in glucose tolerance as determined by an intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test. This effect to improve glucose tolerance does not result from an increase in insulin sensitivity, as overexpressing GPI-PLD does not alter the response to insulin. In contrast, the insulin response during the glucose tolerance test in GPI-PLD-overexpressing mice was increased. Overexpressing GPI-PLD in an insulinoma cell line enhanced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, suggesting that enhanced insulin secretion in vivo may have contributed to the improved glucose tolerance.

Previous studies of glycosylphosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase D (GPI-PLD) have demonstrated that GPI-PLD can bind Ca 2+ ions with high specificity (J.-Y. Li, K. Hollfelder, K.-S. Huang, and M. G. Low, J. Biol. Chem. 269, 28063–28971, 1994). In this study the functional role of the bound Ca 2+ ions was evaluated. The enzymatic activity of purified GPI-PLD, which was depleted of divalent cations by pretreatment with EDTA, EGTA, or 1,10-phenanthroline, could be completely restored with Zn 2+ (and partially with Co 2+ ), which indicates that Ca 2+ can be removed from the protein without affecting its enzymatic activity. This result suggested that Ca 2+ bound to GPI-PLD has a structural or regulatory role but is not required for GPI hydrolysis. To evaluate these possibilities we transfected COS cells with GPI-PLD mutants in which the predicted Ca 2+ -binding sites were either deleted completely or altered by single-residue substitution. All of the mutations showed substantial reductions in the amount of GPI-PLD secreted into the medium (0–6% of wild type). The data indicate that bound Ca 2+ plays an important role in the initial folding, intracellular transport, or secretion of GPI-PLD even though it has no discernible role in the mature, secreted protein.

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL), the major enzyme responsible for the hydrolysis of triglycerides, is primarily synthesized by adipocytes and myocytes. In addition to synthesis, degradation of cell surface-associated LPL is thought to be important in regulating production of the enzyme. We studied LPL metabolism in the LPL synthesizing adipocyte cell line BFC-1 beta and assessed the contributions of cell surface heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPG), low density lipoprotein receptor related protein (LRP), and glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-linked proteins to LPL uptake and degradation by these cells. Adipocytes degraded 10-12% of total cell surface I-labeled LPL in 2 h and 23-28% in 4 h. In 1 h, 30-54%; of the degradation was inhibited by the 39 kDa receptor associated protein (RAP), an inhibitor of ligand binding to LRP. At 4 h, only 19-23% of the LPL degradation was RAP inhibitable. This suggested that two pathways with different kinetics were important for LPL degradation. Heparinase/heparitinase treatment of cells showed that most LPL degradation required the presence of HSPG. Treatment with phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PIPLC) inhibited 125I-labeled LPL degradation by 13%. However, neither RAP nor PIPLC treatment of adipocytes significantly increased the amount of endogenously produced LPL activity in the media. To determine whether direct uptake of LPL bound to HSPG could account for the non-RAP sensitive LPL uptake and degradation, proteoglycan metabolism was assessed by labeling cells with 35SO4. Of the total pericellular proteoglycans, 14% were PIPLC releasable; surprisingly, 30% were dissociated from the cells with heparin. The amount of labeled pericellular proteoglycans decreased 26% in 2 h and 50% in 8 h, rapid enough to account for at least half of the degradation of cell surface LPL. We conclude that adipocytes degrade a fraction of the cell surface LPL, and that this process is mediated by both proteoglycans and RAP-sensitive receptors.

Streptolysin-O (SLO), a cholesterol-binding agent, was used for studies on the release of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored alkaline phosphatase (AP) from ROS cells. Treatment of cells with SLO resulted in a time- and concentration-dependent release of AP into the extracellular medium. This release was potentiated by Ca2+ and bovine serum, but not by GPI-specific phospholipase D (GPI-PLD) purified from bovine serum. The released AP distributed to the detergent phase after Triton X-114 phase separation. This result suggested that the released AP contained an intact GPI anchor, and thus both proteolysis and anchor degradation by anchor-specific hydrolases, including GPI-PLD, as the potential mechanisms for SLO-mediated AP release were ruled out. The released AP sedimented at 100,000 g. A substantial amount of lipids was detected in the 100,000 g pellet. Cholesterol and sphingomyelin were enriched in SLO-released material, compared with intact cells. These results were consistent with vesiculation as the mechanism for SLO induction of AP release. Two other cholesterol-binding agents, saponin and digitonin, were also able to release AP, possibly by a similar vesiculation mechanism, whereas others, including nystatin, filipin and beta-escin, failed to elicit any AP release. Eight GPI-anchored proteins were identified in ROS cells, and all were substantially enriched in the vesicles released by SLO. Taken together, these results do not provide any support for the hypothesis that the clustering of GPI-anchored proteins in the plasma membrane is responsible for their resistance to GPI-PLD cleavage.

Glycosylphosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase D (GPI-PLD) is abundant in plasma and is potentially capable of degrading the anchor utilized by many cell surface proteins. The goal of this work was to study structural features of the GPI-PLD that might be involved in regulation of its activity. Trypsin cleaved the 100-110 kDa GPI-PLD polypeptide into three major fragments (two of approximately 40 kDa and a carboxyl-terminal fragment of 30 kDa) which were relatively resistant to further proteolysis. Pretreatment of the GPI-PLD with chelators resulted in complete degradation. During the cleavage process the GPI-PLD enzymatic activity increased approximately 3-4-fold but no other major change in its properties (e.g. inhibition by chelators and lipids, thermal stability, oligomerization, etc.) was observed. Intact or trypsinized GPI-PLD bound 45Ca2+ (approximately 5.5 ions/molecule GPI-PLD; Kd approximately 16.1 microM as determined by equilibrium dialysis) which could not be blocked by the addition of other divalent metal ions. However, inhibition of enzymatic activity by divalent cation chelators appeared to involve removal of bound Zn2+ rather than Ca2+. A metal analysis of GPI-PLD revealed approximately 5 and 10 atom/molecule of calcium and zinc, respectively. The data suggest that the predicted integrin E-F hand-like sites in GPI-PLD are functional but not directly involved in enzymatic activity.

Previous studies have shown that some cells (e.g. SKG3a) express human placental alkaline phosphatase (AP) in a form which can be released from the membrane by bacterial PtdIns-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC) while others (e.g. HeLa) are relatively resistant to this enzyme. Chemical and enzymic degradation studies have suggested that the PI-PLC resistance of AP is due to inositol acylation of its glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor. In order to identify the biosynthetic origin of PI-PLC resistance we determined the PI-PLC sensitivity of AP in 35S-labelled cells (10 min pulse; 0-60 min chase) by Triton X-114 phase separation. At the beginning of the chase period, the majority of the AP synthesized was hydrophilic, indicating that it had not acquired a GPI anchor. The concentration of hydrophilic AP species decreased with a t1/2 of 30-60 min but was not processed to an endoglycosidase H-resistant species or secreted into the medium. In both SKG3a and HeLa cells all of the hydrophobic, GPI-anchored AP detectable at the beginning of the chase was PI-PLC sensitive. PI-PLC-resistant species of AP were only observed in HeLa cells and these only appeared after about 30 min. The delayed appearance of PI-PLC resistance was unexpected as previous studies have suggested that candidate GPI-anchor precursors are PI-PLC-resistant as a result of inositol acylation. This work reveals unanticipated complexities in the biosynthesis of AP and its GPI anchor.

Glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-specific phospholipase D (GPI-PLD) is abundant in mammalian plasma. It could potentially regulate the surface expression of GPI-anchored proteins, but it remains to be established which tissue(s) or cell type(s) are the principal sources of the circulating enzyme. Here we report that all the myeloid cell lines tested, including K562 (multipotential blast), KG-1 (human myeloblast), HL-60, NB4, PLB-985 (human promyelocyte), U937 (human promonocyte), THP-1 (human monocyte) and J774, RAW264.7 (mouse monocyte/macrophage), contained GPI-degrading activity. T.l.c. analysis of reaction products confirmed the activity as a phospholipase D. These cells also exhibited positive immunofluorescent staining with an anti-GPI-PLD monoclonal antibody. The expression of GPI-PLD activity was not substantially reduced when the cells were cultured in either serum-free medium or GPI-PLD-depleted regular medium. Both granulocytic and monocytic differentiation of myelomonoblastic lines (e.g. HL-60) induced by dimethyl sulphoxide or phorbol diester respectively was accompanied by a 2-3-fold increase in GPI-PLD activity. J774 and HL-60 cells secreted GPI-PLD into the medium constitutively. Taken together, these data suggest that myeloid cells are a potential contributor to the circulating GPI-PLD pool. As leucocytes express many important GPI-anchored surface antigens, these cells may prove to be a valuable model system for studying the physiological functions of GPI-PLD.

Three forms of 5′-nucleotidase purified from human placenta (two membrane-bound forms, one sensitive and one resistant to cleavage by phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C, as well as a soluble form) had the same molecular weight before (73,000 Da) and after (56,000 Da) digestion with N-glycosidase F and showed similar amino acid compositions, N-terminal amino acid sequences, and KMs for IMP (9.6 to 11.9 μM). Thus, these three forms of 5′-nucleotidase appear to have very similar structures. The form sensitive to phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C contained nearly 1 mol myo -inositol/mol of protein as determined by mass spectrometry, indicating a glycosyl phosphatidylinositol membrane anchor. Soluble 5′-nucleotidase contained a similar quantity of myo -inositol, suggesting that it was previously membrane-anchored via glycosyl phosphatidylinositol. The form resistant to phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C contained less myo -inositol, leaving open the possibility of a third form of 5′-nucleotidase with a conventional transmembrane anchor.

Publisher Summary A unique feature of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchors is their ability to be cleaved by specific phospholipases resulting in the release of the protein from the membrane. This property has proven of great practical value and played an important role in the initial discovery and characterization of GPI-anchored proteins (GPI-AP). In fact, the history of the two biochemical entities, the GPI anchors and their phospholipases, is so intertwined that it is difficult to perceive which was discovered first. Three distinct types of phospholipase are capable of hydrolyzing the phosphodiester bond linking the lipid moiety and the inositol residue in GPIs. This chapter describes these GPI-specific phospholipases, with particular emphasis on the mammalian GPI-specific phospholipase. The biochemical properties of these enzymes are compared. The mammalian phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C family isalso included for comparison in the chapter; these enzymes can hydrolyze phosphatidylinositol and polyphosphoinositides, but appear unable to degrade GPIs.

Relatively little information is available about the transbilayer distribution of phosphatidylinositol (Ptdlns) in plasma membranes. In order to address this question, B. thuringiensis Ptdlns phospholipase C was used as a probe for cell surface Ptdlns in a variety of mammalian cell lines. Addition of Ptdlns phospholipase C to [H] inositol labelled bovine aortic endothelial cells hydrolysed -9% of the total Ptdlns levels after 5 minutes (similar results were obtained for J774 macrophages, NIH3T3 fibroblasts, NRK fibroblasts and rat cortical astrocytes).

Intact PAM212 keratinocytes were found to preferentially degrade exogenous phosphatidic acids (PA) containing short fatty acid chains. The product of this degradation was inorganic phosphate (Pi), suggesting that the enzyme was a phosphatase. Systematic studies using enzymatically synthesized PA and lysophosphatidic acid (lysoPA) demonstrated that the sn-2 fatty acid chain length was the determining factor for suitability of PA as substrate for this cell-associated enzyme. Thus 1-acyl-2-lyso-PA provided the best substrate for this enzyme while long-chain PA were poor substrates. The enzyme was effectively inhibited by NaF and Na3VO4, but was insensitive to inhibitors of alkaline phosphatase or other nonspecific phosphatases. The enzyme activity was solubilized from intact cells by proteinases, such as trypsin and papain, and the reaction product Pi was distributed exclusively in the extracellular medium, suggesting that this (lyso)PA phosphatase is an ectoenzyme. These results unequivocally demonstrated the presence of a (lyso)PA phosphatase located at the cell surface. This novel ectoenzyme may provide a mechanism for the inactivation of the potent bioactive phospholipid, lysoPA.

Staphylococcus aureus secretes a phosphatidylinositol (PI)-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC) which is able to hydrolyze the membrane lipid PI and membrane protein anchors containing glycosyl-PI. The gene for PI-PLC (plc) was cloned from S. aureus into Escherichia coli. Oligonucleotide probes based on partial protein sequence and polyclonal antibodies raised against the purified protein were used to identify positive clones. E. coli transformed with a plasmid containing the plc gene expressed PI-PLC enzyme activity which was abolished by mutagenesis with a tetracycline resistance gene. The plc gene was present in all 15 S. aureus strains examined but not in any of 6 coagulase-negative staphylococcal species. The plc gene contained 984 bp and coded for a mature protein with a calculated molecular mass of 34,107 Da. Amino acid sequence comparisons indicated that the staphylococcal plc gene was similar (51 to 56%) to the PI-PLCs from Bacillus cereus, Bacillus thuringiensis, and Listeria monocytogenes. The recombinant PI-PLC expressed in E. coli was purified and exhibited biochemical properties identical to those of the native PI-PLC from S. aureus. PI-PLC production was decreased in agr mutant strains of S. aureus. However, PI-PLC production by both agr+ and agr mutant strains exhibited a similar dependence on the type of medium used. These data suggested that PI-PLC production was regulated by both agr-dependent and agr-independent mechanisms.

Mammalian serum and plasma contain high levels of glycosylphosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase D (GPI-PLD). Previous studies with crude serum or partially purified GPI-PLD have shown that this enzyme is capable of degrading the GPI anchor of several purified detergent-solubilized cell surface proteins yet is unable to act on GPI-anchored proteins located in intact cells. Treatment of intact ROS17/2.8, WISH or HeLa cells (or membrane fractions prepared from them) with GPI-PLD purified from bovine serum by immunoaffinity chromatography gave no detectable release of alkaline phosphatase into the medium. However, when membranes were treated with GPI-PLD in the presence of 0.1% Nonidet P-40 substantial GPI anchor degradation (as measured by Triton X-114 phase separation) was observed. The mechanism of this stimulatory effect of detergent was further investigated using [3H]myristate-labelled variant surface glycoprotein and human placental alkaline phosphatase reconstituted into phospholipid vesicles. As with the cell membranes the reconstituted substrates exhibited marked resistance to the action of purified GPI-PLD which could be overcome by the inclusion of Nonidet P-40. Similar results were obtained when crude bovine serum was used as the source of GPI-PLD. These data indicate that the resistance of cell membranes to the action of GPI-PLD is not entirely due to the action of serum or membrane-associated inhibitory factors. A more likely explanation is that, in common with many other eukaryotic phospholipases, the action of GPI-PLD is restricted by the physical state of the phospholipid bilayer in which the substrates are embedded. These data may account for the ability of endothelial and blood cells to retain GPI-anchored proteins on their surfaces in spite of the high levels of GPI-PLD present in plasma.

We directly manipulated the levels of PtdIns, PtdInsP and PtdInsP2 in digitonin-treated adrenal chromaffin cells with a bacterial phospholipase C (PLC) from Bacillus thuringiensis and by removal of ATP. The PtdIns-PLC acted intracellularly to cause a large decrease in [3H]inositol- or [32P]phosphate-labelled PtdIns, but did not directly hydrolyse PtdInsP or PtdInsP2. [3H]PtdInsP and [3H]PtdInsP2 levels declined markedly, probably because of the action of phosphatases in the absence of synthesis. Removal of ATP also caused marked decreases in [3H]PtdInsP and [3H]PtdInsP2. The decrease in polyphosphoinositide levels by PtdIns-PLC treatment or ATP removal was reflected by the inhibition of the production of inositol phosphates upon subsequent activation of the endogenous PLC by Ca2(+)-dependent catecholamine secretion from permeabilized cells was strongly inhibited by PtdIns-PLC treatment and by ATP removal. Ca2(+)-dependent secretion was similarly correlated with the sum of PtdInsP and PtdInsP2 when the level of these lipids was changed by either manipulation. PtdIns-PLC inhibited only the ATP-dependent component of secretion and did not affect ATP-dependent secretion. Both PtdIns-PLC and ATP removal inhibited the late slow phase of secretion, but had little effect on the initial rapid phase. Although we found a tight correlation between polyphosphoinositide levels and secretion, endogenous phospholipase C activity (stimulated by Ca2+, guanine nucleotides and related agents) was not correlated with secretion. Additional experiments indicated that neither the products of the PtdIns-PLC reaction (diacylglycerol and InsP1) nor the inability to generate products by subsequent activation of the endogenous PLC is likely to account for the inhibition of secretion. Incubation of permeabilized cells with neomycin in the absence of ATP maintained the level of polyphosphoinositides and more than doubled subsequent Ca2(+)-dependent secretion. The data suggest that: (1) Ca2(+)-dependent secretion has a requirement for the presence of inositol phospholipids; (2) the enhancement of secretion by ATP results in part from increased polyphosphoinositide levels; and (3) the role for inositol phospholipids in secretion revealed in these experiments is independent of their being substrates for the generation of diacylglycerol and InsP3.

Cell surface antigens thought to be linked to the membrane via phosphatidylinositol (PI) are incompletely, and variably, released by treatment with phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC). The basis for this was investigated with cloned tumor cell lines and PI-PLCs isolated from two species of bacteria. Residual Thy-1 antigen, which was detectable by flow cytometry, remained on all thymoma cell lines after exposure to very high concentrations of either purified enzyme. A majority of the presumptive PI anchored molecules on all of the cell lines was sensitive to release by PI-PLC derived from Bacillus thuringiensis. However, cell lines differed dramatically in the ease with which PI-PLC from Staphylococcus aureus liberated the same surface antigens. This heterogeneity was determined at the single cell level because at least five different PI-anchored antigens exhibited similar behavior on a given cell line or transfected subclones of it. The two phospholipases differed with respect to molecular mass, serological cross-reactivity and sensitivity to inhibition by NaCl and detergents. These observations suggest that the two types of PI-PLC may have distinct substrate specificities or sensitivities to environmental conditions which account for the difference in their ability to act on PI-anchored proteins in particular cell types. Such enzymes should continue to be important tools for investigating the method and significance of attachment of lymphocyte surface glycoproteins. In particular, the S. aureus PI-PLC can be used to demonstrate and investigate a previously unrecognized heterogeneity in cells which express PI-anchored molecules.

In long-term culture of mouse bone marrow, the growth and differentiation of B-lineage lymphocytes depends on interaction with adherent cells or their products. The objectives of these studies were to characterize the types of cells present in the supporting adherent layer as well as the physical relationships of these cells with lymphocytes. With an extensive panel of antibodies against hemopoietic and lymphocyte antigens, two discrete nonlymphoid populations were identified: macrophages and undefined, large cells which we termed "stromal cells". Lymphocyte clusters grew in actual contact with the latter cells only. Stromal cells lacked expression of most hemopoietic antigens, including the common leukocyte antigen, J11d, heat stable antigen (M1/69), Thy-1 and BP 1. Antigens expressed by stromal cells were detected by AA4.1, our 94.2 antibody, and antibody to the Forsmann antigen, but the most distinguishing characteristics of the lymphocyte-binding stromal cells were production of basement membrane components, laminin and collagen IV, and the extremely low uptake of acetylated low density lipoprotein (LDL). Using acetylated LDL uptake as a sorting criterion, the lymphocyte-binding stromal cells were separated from the macrophages, recultured and shown to support lymphocyte proliferation. We found the binding between stromal cells and lymphocytes to be highly selective and dependent on divalent cations; hence, specialized adhesion mechanisms may have a role in B cell development. Moreover, our studies suggest that phosphatidylinositol-anchored cell surface molecules may be involved in this adhesion. Our findings demonstrate the possibility that a single cell type provides physical support and proliferation stimuli for early B-lineage cells. This accessory cell is not a macrophage; rather, it has features of an endothelial or epithelial cell.

Lymphocyte function-associated antigen 3 (LFA-3) is a widely distributed cell surface glycoprotein that binds to the T lymphocyte CD2 surface glycoprotein. This interaction mediates CTL-target cell conjugate formation and adhesion of thymocytes to thymic epithelial cells. CD2 is also the E rosette receptor of T lymphocytes and mediates rosetting with autologous E by binding to LFA-3. We describe deficient expression of LFA-3 on E from paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) patients. PNH is an acquired defect affecting phosphatidylinositol-anchored membrane proteins, of which decay-accelerating factor (DAF) is most important in the clinical symptoms of PNH. LFA-3-negative, weakly positive, and positive populations were found among PNH E. There was a good correlation with DAF deficiency. PNH E exhibited decreased binding of 125I-CD2 and rosetting with a human T lymphoma cell line. PNH E readily incorporated purified LFA-3, restoring LFA-3 expression and the CD2 binding and rosetting activity to normal levels. The expression of DAF was not restored after the incorporation of purified LFA-3 into PNH E, showing that LFA-3 and DAF are different molecules. Phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PIPLC) treatment of a B lymphoma cell line released 35% of the cell surface LFA-3 and 62% of DAF. LFA-3 on E was resistant to PIPLC. However, when LFA-3 purified from human E was reconstituted in sheep E or human E and subjected to PIPLC treatment, 40-50% of LFA-3 was released from the cell membrane. The results show that LFA-3 is attached to the cell membrane by a phosphatidylinositol glycolipid moiety, and confirm previous findings (37-41) that LFA-3 is a cell adhesion molecule that mediates adhesion by interacting with CD2 antigen.

To study the membrane anchoring of the 120 kDa component of the neural cell adhesion molecule N-CAM, the smallest form lacking a transmembrane domain, cultured mouse neural cells were treated with phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C from Staphylococcus aureus. When live cultures of astrocytes and neurons are treated with phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C, N-CAM120 is released into the supernatant. Under these conditions N-CAM140 and N-CAM180 are not released. Phospholipase C from Bacillus cereus or Clostridium perfringens does not release N-CAM120. The embryonic form of N-CAM on astrocytes migrating as a broad band between 120 and 180 kDa is also partially released by phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C as a band migrating between 120 and 160 kDa. These observations suggest novel mechanisms in regulation of N-CAM120 expression on the cell surface and in modulation of N-CAM-mediated cell adhesion.

Recently a novel mechanism has been described for the hydrophobic attachment of proteins to membranes, which is shared by membrane proteins of widely differing origin and function. The hydrophobic anchor is the 1,2-diacylglycerol moiety of a phosphatidylinositol molecule which is covalently attached to the polypeptide chain. These findings have important structural and functional implications.

A lipoprotein with ice nucleator activity was purified from the hemolymph of the freezetolerant larvae of the craneflyTipula trivittata. Characterization of this lipoprotein ice nucleator (LPIN) showed that it differed from other previously described insect hemolymph lipoproteins which lack ice nucleator activity, by the presence of phosphatidylinositol (PI) at 11.0% by weight of the total phospholipid content. The potential roles of PI and other lipoprotein components in the ice nucleating activity were examined using various phospholipases, proteases, LPIN antibodies, borate compounds and various lipid-protein reconstitutions. It was found that phosphatidylinositol specific phospholipase C was the most effective phospholipase in eliminating the activity of the LPIN. Borate compounds effectively depressed activity. Treatment of the LPIN with protease also eliminated ice nucleator activity but the binding of LPIN specific antibody did not. Reconstitutions consisting of the native LPIN lipids, PI specific phospholipase-treated native LPIN lipids, or pure standard phospholipids with the apolipoproteins of the LPIN andManduca sexta larval lipoproteins gave evidence that both the apolipoproteins of the LPIN and PI are necessary for the ice nucleating activity.

Decay-accelerating factor (DAF) is a 70,000 Mr membrane protein that inhibits amplification of the complement cascade on the cell surface, and protects cells from damage. Purified DAF can be reincorporated into the membrane of red cells and is functional. DAF is deficient in paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH), a disease characterized by increased sensitivity of erythrocytes to complement lysis. We show here that DAF is part of a newly described family of membrane proteins anchored to the lipid bilayer by means of phosphatidylinositol (PI). Treatment with PI-specific phospholipase C (PIPLC) releases 70-80, 60, and 10% of cell surface DAF from mononuclear cells, neutrophils, and erythrocytes, respectively. The PIPLC-released DAF (DAF-S) is slightly smaller (67,000 Mr) than the membrane form. DAF and DAF-S cannot be distinguished antigenically. Furthermore, DAF-S has lost its ability to significantly inhibit the C3-convertase, as well as its ability to incorporate into cell membranes. Since DAF can only inhibit C3-convertase endogenously, i.e., within the membrane of the same cell, it is likely that the loss of activity of DAF-S is causally related to its inability to reincorporate in the lipid bilayer. As shown by others, the complement-sensitive red cells from PNH patients lack acetylcholinesterase, which is also anchored to the membrane by PI (9). Thus it is possible that the molecular defect in PNH lies in the biosynthetic pathways leading to the attachment of PI to the polypeptide chains, in the transport of these proteins to the surface, or in their release by the action of endogenous phospholipases. From a practical standpoint the specific release of DAF by PIPLC could facilitate killing of tumor cells by amplifying the effects of the complement cascade on the surface of antibody-sensitized cells.

The molecular events involved in the cellular actions of insulin remain unexplained. Some of the acute actions of the hormone may be due to the intracellular generation of a chemical substance which modulates certain enzyme activities. Such an enzymemodulating substance has been identified as an inositol phosphate-glycan, produced by the insulin-sensitive hydrolysis of a glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol (glycosyl-Ptdlns) precursor. This precursor glycolipid is structurally similar to the glycosylphosphoinositide membrane protein anchor. The exposure of fat, liver or muscle cells to insulin results in the hydrolysis of glycosyl-Ptdlns, giving rise to the inositol phosphate glycan and diacylglycerol. This hydrolysis reaction is catalysed by a glycosyl-PtdIns-specific phospholipase C. This enzyme has been characterized and purified from a plasma membrane fraction of liver. This reaction also results in the acute release of certain glycosyl-Ptdlns-anchored proteins from the cell surface. Elucidation of the functional role of glycosyl-phosphoinositides in the generation of second messengers or the release of proteins may provide further insights into the pleiotropic nature of insulin action.

The COOH terminus of the externally disposed variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) of the eukaryotic pathogenic protozoan Trypanosoma brucei strain 427 variant MITat 1.4 (117) is covalently linked to a novel phosphatidylinositol-containing glycolipid. This conclusion is supported by analysis of the products of nitrous acid deamination or Staphylococcus aureus phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C treatment of purified membrane-form VSG. Lysis of trypanosomes is accompanied by release of soluble VSG, catalyzed by activation of an endogenous phospholipase C. The only apparent difference between membrane-form VSG and soluble VSG is the removal of sn-1,2-dimyristylglycerol. The COOH-terminal glycopeptide derived by Pronase digestion of soluble VSG was characterized by chemical modification and digestion with alkaline phosphatase. The results are consistent with the single non-N-acetylated glucosamine residue being the reducing terminus of the oligosaccharide and in a glycosidic linkage to a myo-inositol monophosphate that is probably myo-inositol 1,2-cyclic monophosphate. A partial structure for the VSG COOH-terminal moiety is presented. This structure represents a new type of eukaryotic post-translational protein modification and membrane anchor. We discuss the relevance of this structure to observations that have been made with other eukaryotic membrane proteins.

5'-Nucleotidase was purified greater than 1000-fold from human placenta by treatment of plasma membranes with S. aureus phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C and affinity chromatography on Con A Sepharose and AMP-Sepharose. The resulting enzyme had a specific activity of greater than 5000 mumol/hr/mg protein and a subunit molecular weight of 73,000. Goat antibodies against 5'-nucleotidase inhibited enzyme activity and detected 5'-nucleotidase after Western blotting. These antibodies also recognized a soluble form of 5'-nucleotidase and residual membrane-bound 5'-nucleotidase which could not be released by phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C treatment, suggesting that the three forms of the enzyme are structurally related. The soluble 5'-nucleotidase may be derived from the membrane-bound form by the action of an endogenous phospholipase C. The structural basis for the inability of some of the membrane-bound 5'-nucleotidase to be released by phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C is unknown.

The carboxy-terminal amino acid sequence of the soluble form of the 53,000 mol. wt monocyte surface antigen, CD 14, was determined by carboxypeptidase Y digestion and compared with the complete amino acid sequence of this protein as predicted from the structure of cloned cDNA [Goyert et al. Science239, 497–500 (1988)]. The soluble antigen isolated from urine appears to lack eight C-terminal amino acid residues predicted for the full-size translation product, but possesses a major part of the C-terminal hydrophobic domain originally suggested as the membrane-spanning segment. The CD 14 antigen can be removed from the monocyte surface by phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C treatment, indicating that this glycoprotein is anchored in the membrane by a phospholipid and is not a transmembrane protein. The soluble form occurring in serum and in supernatants of cultured monocytes thus probably arises by phospholipase-mediated cleaving off the cell surface antigen. A sensitive sandwich ELISA was developed using a monoclonal anti-CD 14 antibody, MEM-18, and polyclonal rabbit anti-CD 14 antiserum for quantitation of the soluble antigen concns in sera and cell culture supernatants. Using this assay, the antigen present in the supernatant of phospholipase treated peripheral blood mononuclear cells could be estimated. The assay was also used for estimation of the concns of the soluble form of the CD 14 antigen in human sera.

Covalent linkage of proteins to glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol (GPI) molecules is now recognized as an important mechanism for anchoring proteins to membranes. Recent structural work on the GPI anchors indicates that the structure of the glycan connecting the protein and the phosphatidylinositol molecule has been conserved during evolution. Attachment of the protein to the GPI molecule is directed by a signal sequence at the COOH terminus of the polypeptide that is removed during the attachment process. Alternative processing of the same RNA transcript may lead to mRNA species encoding for the same protein but not utilizing GPI for membrane anchoring. One function of the GPI anchor may be to offer a site for degradation by specific endogenous phospholipases with release of the protein from the cell surface. The products of GPI anchor degradation may also have biological activity and be involved in cell communication. Although the physiological role of these events is not certain, the available evidence sug...

A novel membrane-bound glycan-phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C, which catalyzes the conversion of membrane form variant surface glycoproteins to soluble variant surface glycoproteins, with the release of sn-1,2-dimyristylglycerol, has been isolated from Trypanosoma brucei. The activity was solubilized from trypanosome membrane fractions in non-ionic detergent and purified by anion exchange chromatography on DEAE-cellulose followed by chromatography on phosphatidylinositol-Sepharose. The enzyme constitutes about 0.1% of the total cellular protein and has an apparent molecular weight of 39,800. The enzyme shows a head group specificity for molecules containing carbohydrate covalently linked to glycan-phosphatidylinositol, but can also act on the monoacyl derivative of membrane form variant surface glycoprotein. It shows no specific ion requirements but is stimulated by thiol-reducing agents and inhibited by ions that thiols chelate.

Glycoproteins exposed on cell surfaces are commonly anchored in the membrane via hydrophobic peptide domains which penetrate the lipid bilayer1. However, it has recently been appreciated that there are exceptions to this generalization and certain cell-surface proteins appear to be anchored via a specific association with phosphatidylinositol2–7. Thy-1 glycoprotein may also be attached to cell membranes by a non-protein hydrophobic domain located at the C-terminus and although the chemical nature of this moiety has not been determined, it was postulated that it might be a lipid8. On the other hand, ammo-acid sequences predicted from nucleotide sequence analyses suggest that a C-terminal hydrophobic peptide segment not found in the purified, detergent-solubilized Thy-1 glycoprotein may be responsible for attachment9–11. We report here that a highly purified phospholipase C specific for phosphatidylinositol selectively released Thy-1 from viable normal or malignant T lymphocytes. This result supports the proposed lipid nature of the Thy-1 anchoring domain8 and further suggests that this lipid is, or is closely related to, phosphatidylinositol.

An enzyme activity capable of degrading the glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol membrane anchor of cell-surface proteins has previously been reported in a number of mammalian tissues. The experiments reported here demonstrate that this anchor-degrading activity is also abundant in mammalian plasma. The activity was inhibited by EGTA or 1,10-phenanthroline. It was capable of removing the anchor from alkaline phosphatase, 5'-nucleotidase, and variant surface glycoprotein but had little or not activity toward phosphatidylinositol or phosphatidylcholine. Phosphatidic acid was the only 3H-labeled product when this enzyme hydrolyzed [3H]myristate-labeled variant surface glycoprotein. It could be distinguished from the Ca2+-dependent inositol phospholipid-specific phospholipase C activity in several rat tissues on the basis of its molecular size and its sensitivity to 1,10-phenanthroline. The data therefore suggest that this activity is due to a phospholipase D with specificity for glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol structures. Although the precise physiological function of this anchor-specific phospholipase D remains to be determined, these findings indicate that it could play an important role in regulating the expression and release of cell-surface proteins in vivo.

The H-2, Qa, and Tla genes of the murine major histocompatibility complex are related to each other by DNA sequence homology. The H-2 genes encode ubiquitously expressed transplantation antigens that serve as recognition structures for cytotoxic T cells. The identities of the Qa and Tla products, their sites of expression, and their functions are largely unknown. We report here that the Qa region gene Q7 encodes a membrane-bound as well as a secreted form of the serologically defined antigen Qa-2. The Q7 gene introduced into liver-derived cells is expressed as a membrane-bound and as a secreted molecule. In transfected L cells it is expressed only as a soluble protein. Biochemical analysis suggests that the Q7 product is anchored to the liver cell membranes by a phospholipid tail. This feature may be responsible for cell type-specific expression of the two forms of the Qa-2 molecules.

The distribution of phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylcholine in sonicated phospholipid vesicles (phosphatidylcholine : diphosphatidylglycerol : phosphatidylinositol, 90 : 5 : 5 mol%) has been determined by the use of exchange protein from beef heart and phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C from Staphylococcus aureus. Approximately 70% of the phosphatidylinositol in the sonicated vesicles was accessible to the exchange protein and 70--75% was accessible to the phospholipase C. A similar proportion (65%) of the phosphatidylcholine was accessible to the exchange protein suggesting that phosphatidylinositol was not preferentially located in either surface of the phospholipid bilayer. The rate of translocation of both phospholipids was very slow but the rate for phosphatidylcholine (t 1/2 = 4--7 days) appeared to be greater than that for phosphatidylinositol (t 1/2 = 8--60 days). Production of asymmetric vesicles by removing phosphatidylinositol from the outer surface with either exchange protein or phospholipase C did not induce rapid phospholipid translocation.

Phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC) produced by Bacillus thuringiensis has been used as a probe for the distribution of phosphatidylinositol in hepatocyte membranes. Approx. 50% of this phospholipid was hydrolysed in microsomal vesicles (endoplasmic reticulum) with no significant hydrolysis of the remaining membrane phospholipids. Latency of mannose-6-phosphatase was retained during treatment indicating that the vesicles remained impermeable. Stripping of the ribosomes did not increase hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol; however, when the vesicles were opened using dilute sodium carbonate, hydrolysis increased to greater than 90%. Hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol of Golgi membranes was 35% and of plasma membranes was 50%. After treatment with PI-PLC, radiolabelled secretory proteins were retained in Golgi membranes and trapped lactate dehydrogenase was retained in plasma-membrane preparations indicating that the vesicles remained closed. Hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol increased to greater than 90% when the membranes were opened by treatment with dilute sodium carbonate. These observations indicate that PI-PLC of Bacillus thuringiensis is a suitable probe for the distribution of phosphatidylinositol in membranes, and that in liver membranes this phospholipid occurs on each side of the bilayer, a topography consistent with its diverse roles.

Description des groupements fonctionnels glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol se liant aux extremites C terminales des proteines procaryotiques ou eucaryotiques. Identification des proteines modifiees. Analyse de leur structure chimique. Developpement de methodes permettant leur determination et leur identification. Etude de la synthese des groupements se greffant aux proteines (phenomene posttraductionnel, precurseur, interaction mecanisme…), de leur degradation (activite enzymatique impliquee) et de leur fonction (phylogenese, proprietes physiques, interaction et activation cellulaire, regulation hormonale)

Proteins anchored in the membrane by covalent linkage to phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns) can be released by treatment with purified PtdIns-specific phospholipase C (Ptd-Ins-PLC). A recent survey of leukocyte antigens using flow cytometry has shown that staining of certain Qa antigens was diminished after PtdIns-PLC treatment, but staining of structurally related H-2 antigens was not affected. Therefore, in this study, the sensitivity of cell-surface Qa-2, H-2Kb, and H-2Db to hydrolysis by PtdIns-PLC was investigated biochemically by immunoprecipitation of radioiodinated molecules from cell lysates or supernatants. Qa-2, but not H-2Kb, was released from the surface of PtdIns-PLC-treated C57BL/10 mouse spleen cells and recovered in the cell supernatants. Similar analysis of thymoma cells transfected with cloned C57BL/10 genes showed that cell-surface Qa-2 molecules encoded by a Q7b cDNA and the Q7b or Q9b gene were sensitive to hydrolysis by PtdIns-PLC, whereas the H-2Kb and H-2Db gene products were resistant. Using thymoma cells transfected with hybrid genes constructed by exchanging exons between Q7b and H-2Db, the signals for PtdIns modification were localized to a defined region of Qa-2. This region differs from H-2Db most significantly by the presence of a central aspartate residue in the transmembrane segment and in the length of the cytoplasmic portion.

Recently we isolated a protein growth factor of 34 kDa from trophoblastic membranes of human placenta. A fraction (approximately equal to 50%) of the membrane-associated 34-kDa protein is peripherally associated--i.e., it can be released by high salt treatment. The remainder shows the characteristics of an integral membrane protein--i.e., its release requires detergent treatment. Here we report studies on the structural basis for membrane anchorage of the protein. Phospholipase C was found to release an immunoreactive 34-kDa polypeptide from intact isolated cytotrophoblasts. Studies with isolated trophoblastic membranes showed that phospholipase C specifically released the salt-resistant fraction of the 34-kDa polypeptide. The polypeptide released by phospholipase C showed the same electrophoretic mobility in NaDodSO4/PAGE as the polypeptide prior to phospholipase C treatment. The identity of the released protein with the 34-kDa growth factor has been established by both immunologic and receptor-binding assays. Other studies show that there is biosynthetic incorporation of [3H]myristate into the 34-kDa protein. The myristate label is labile to phospholipase C treatment. These results suggest that some of the 34-kDa protein is anchored to the plasma membrane via a posttranslationally added phospholipid. This mode of anchorage has been observed for some other membrane proteins and raises interesting questions regarding the role of this novel linkage in the mitogenic function of the 34-kDa polypeptide.

Myelin basic protein has been isolated from bovine central-nervous-system myelin by four methods, none of which exposes the protein to acid. After purification the inositol content of both hydrolysed and unhydrolysed protein was quantified by g.c.-m.s. Basic protein prepared by all methods contained less than 4 mol % of inositol. It is concluded, contrary to a previous proposal, that covalent binding to phosphoinositides does not represent a general mechanism for attachment of this cytoplasmically-oriented protein to its membrane.

Here we characterize the T-cell-activating protein (TAP), an Ly-6 gene product involved in T cell activation, as a glycoprotein with a molecular weight of 10–12 kd under nonreducing conditions and 15–18 kd under reducing ones. Two of the three bands that are precipitated from metabolically labeled cells are expressed on the cell surface and can be recovered from the supernatants of cells treated with a phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C. Thus TAP appears to be attached to the cell membrane via this lipid. Precisely the same anchorage is observed for the activating Thy-1 molecule, and is therefore of particular interest as a potentially novel linkage involved in membrane signal transduction.

The mechanism of release of alkaline phosphatase from membranes by phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C from Staphylococcus aureus was studied. Alkaline phosphatase was readily released from pig kidney microsomes by phospholipase C but not by a variety of other treatments, e.g., high ionic strength, extremes of pH, divalent cations, chelating agents, or analogues of the polar head group of phosphatidylinositol. Alkaline phosphatase released from microsomes by phospholipase C did not bind to phospholipid vesicles containing phosphatidylinositol. Alkaline phosphatase solubilized from microsomes by butanol extraction, however, was able to bind phospholipid vesicles even when they contained no phosphatidylinositol. The ability of butanol-extracted alkaline phosphatase to bind to phospholipid vesicles was destroyed by added phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C. Hydrolysis of added phosphatidylinositol by endogenous phospholipase activity in butanol extracts was also accompanied by loss of binding ability. Loss of binding ability was paralleled by a decrease in the apparent molecular weight of alkaline phosphatase. These results indicate that alkaline phosphatase is attached to membranes by a strong interaction with phosphatidylinositol.

A dimeric form of acetylcholinesterase from the electric organ of Torpedo californica was solubilized by phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C from Staphylococcus aureus. The solubilized enzyme had a sedimentation coefficient of 7.3S which was not modified by detergents. The high salt-soluble asymmetric forms of acetylcholinesterase were not solubilized by the phospholipase. Our data suggest that the hydrophobic dimer of acetylcholinesterase may be associated with the plasma membrane through a specific interaction involving phosphatidylinositol.