Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

A Yatani

Publications and source records attributed to A Yatani.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Control of K+ channels by G proteins.

Heterotrimeric G3 proteins are though to couple receptors to ionic channels via cytoplasmic mediators such as cGMP in the case of retinal rods, cAMP in the case of olfactory cells, and the cAMP cascade in the case of cardiac myocytes. G protein-mediated second messenger effects on K+ channels are dealt with elsewhere in this series. Recently, membrane-delimited pathways have been uncovered and an hypothesis proposed in which the alpha subunits of G proteins directly couple receptors to ionic channels, particularly K+ channels. While direct coupling has not been proven, the membrane-delimited nature has been established for specific G proteins and their specific K+ channel effectors.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

The nature and origin of spontaneous noise in G protein-gated ion channels.

Arrival of agonist is generally thought to initiate the signal transduction process in G protein-receptor coupled systems. However, the muscarinic atrial K+ (K+[ACh]) channel opens spontaneously in the absence of applied agonist, giving a noisy appearance to the current records. We investigated the nature and origin of the noise by measuring single channel currents in cell-attached or excised, inside-out membrane patches. Guanosine triphosphate (GTP) produced identical single channel currents in a concentration- and Mg(2+)-dependent manner in the presence or absence of carbachol, but the requirements for GTP were greater in the absence of agonist. Hence the agonist-independent currents appeared to be produced by an endogenous G protein, Gk. This prediction was confirmed when an affinity-purified, sequence-specific Gi-3 alpha antibody or pertussis toxin (PTX) blocked the agonist-independent currents. Candidate endogenous agonists were ruled out by the lack of effect of their corresponding antagonists. Thus agonist-independent currents had the same nature as agonist-dependent K+[ACh] currents and seemed to originate in the same way. We have developed a hypothesis in which agonist-free, empty receptors prime Gk with GTP and Gk activates atrial K+ [ACh] channels producing basal currents or noise. Agonist-independent activation by G proteins of effectors including ion channels appears to be a common occurrence.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1990

Heart rate regulation by G proteins acting on the cardiac pacemaker channel.

Heart rate is determined by pacemaker currents, of which the most important is the hyperpolarization-activated current I(f). Heart rate and I(f) are increased by beta-adrenergic agonists and decreased by muscarinic agonists released from cardiac sympathetic and vagal nerves, respectively. The hypothesis that the receptors for each agonist are directly coupled to I(f) channels by G proteins was tested. Under substrate-free conditions, preactivated G protein Gs stimulated and preactivated G protein G(o) inhibited I(f) channels of sinoatrial node pacemaker cells. These effects were mimicked by the corresponding preactivated alpha subunits of the G proteins. Unexpectedly, the two G proteins acted simultaneously, with G(o) being the more potent. This result may explain in molecular terms the classical observation in cardiac physiology, that vagal inhibition of heart rate is much greater on a background of sympathetic stimulation.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Beta gamma dimers of G proteins inhibit atrial muscarinic K+ channels.

It has been proposed that beta gamma dimers of signal-transducing G proteins mediate muscarinic activation of atrial K+ channels. We examined this hypothesis by testing the effects of beta gamma dimers from four sources (human erythrocytes, human placenta, bovine brain, and bovine retina) on single channel muscarinic K+ (K+[acetylcholine (ACh)]) currents in inside-out membrane patches of adult guinea pig atria. None of the four beta gamma dimer preparations stimulated K+[ACh] currents; on the contrary, each inhibited the currents whether the currents were activated with GTP alone (agonist-independent activity) or with GTP plus a muscarinic agonist (agonist-dependent activity). Detergents at concentrations used to suspend erythrocyte, brain, and placental beta gamma dimers had no effect by themselves, and detergents were not used with the retinal beta gamma dimers. We conclude that beta gamma dimers do not mediate stimulatory effects of the endogenous G protein that regulates the K+ channels. In fact beta gamma dimers appear to inhibit activation by the endogenous G alpha subunits. Further insight into the role of beta gamma dimers came from the observation that agonist-independent GTP-activated K+[ACh] currents were inhibited by beta gamma dimers at about one-tenth the concentration required to inhibit agonist-dependent activation. One possibility is that dimeric beta gamma may have a higher affinity for free alpha subunits than for alpha subunits associated with agonist-occupied receptors. Thus, in addition to the known requirement of beta gamma dimers for the interaction of alpha subunits with receptors, beta gamma dimers may also improve the signal-to-noise ratio for agonists by reducing agonist-independent background activities.

Acetylcholine↗
PubMed1990

ras p21 and GAP inhibit coupling of muscarinic receptors to atrial K+ channels.

The signal-transducing G protein Gk couples muscarinic receptors to K+ (K+[ACh]) channels in atrial cells. Recombinant human ras p21 GAP (GTPase activating protein) at subnanomolar concentrations inhibited GTP-dependent channel opening in isolated atrial cell membranes. This inhibition depended on interaction of GAP with ras p21 in the isolated membranes. In addition, recombinant ras p21 proteins blocked the currents; this effect could be blocked by prior incubation of membranes with specific anti-GAP antibodies. We therefore propose that ras p21 GTP complexed with GAP (ras p21-GAP) blocks K+[ACh] currents. The channel block could be overcome by GTP gamma S activation of endogenous Gk; this indicates that ras p21-GAP does not interfere with interaction of Gk with the K+[ACh] channel directly, but prevents coupling of the muscarinic receptor to endogenous Gk.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Direct coupling of the somatostatin receptor to potassium channels by a G protein.

G proteins couple receptors to ionic channels indirectly by acting on membrane enzymes which modulate channel activity through second or third messengers such as cytoplasmic kinases, IP3 or Ca++. Recently, it has been shown that G proteins can act on ionic channels in a membrane-delimited or direct manner; from our experience this phenomenon seems to be widespread. A G protein purified from human red blood cells (hRBC) Gk when preactivated with GTP gamma S acts directly on muscarinic acetylcholine receptor-regulated K+ channels (K+[ACh]) in atrial cells and the stimulatory regulator of adenylyl cyclase, Gs from hRBCs acts directly on two distinct voltage-gated Ca++ channels, one in cardiac muscle and the other in skeletal muscle T-tubules. In many cells, including clonal GH3 pituitary cells, somatostatin (SST) inhibits secretion by a complex mechanism that involves a pertussis toxin (PTX)-sensitive step. This is not due to lowering cAMP since secretion induced by cAMP analogs and K+ depolarization are also inhibited. SST also causes membrane hyperpolarization, which is similar to the effect of ACh on cardiac pacemaking cells and may lead to decreases in intracellular Ca++ needed for secretion. ACh acting through a muscarinic recpetor in GH3 cells has the same effects as SST.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Endothelium-dependent vasodilating effect of substance P during flow-reducing coronary stenosis in the dog.

The effects of substance P, a putative central and peripheral neurotransmitter, on coronary vasculature and its mechanisms were studied in 31 anesthetized open chest dogs. Without coronary stenosis, intracoronary infusion of substance P (0.001 to 1 pmol/kg per min) for 40 s increased coronary blood flow up to 173 +/- 10.7% in dose-dependent fashion. Application of coronary stenosis created by an inflated intraluminal microballoon that preserved active vasomotion of the stenosed segment produced a pressure gradient of 34 +/- 2 mm Hg, a decrease in rest coronary blood flow of 21 +/- 1.6% and significant depression of the rate of rise in left ventricular pressure (dP/dt). During coronary stenosis, substance P increased coronary blood flow up to 150 +/- 9.4%, lowered mean distal coronary pressure and decreased stenosis resistance in dose-dependent fashion. After endothelial denudation of the proximal part of the coronary artery, the substance P-induced increments in coronary blood flow during coronary stenosis were abolished. In vitro measurements of isometric tension from both intact and denuded portions of coronary arteries confirmed a marked inhibition of substance P-induced relaxation in the denuded segments. These results show the obligatory role of the endothelium in substance P-induced coronary artery dilation. Furthermore, intracoronary infusion of substance P (1 pmol/kg per min) from the site distal to coronary stenosis that precluded the responsiveness of the large coronary artery decreased coronary blood flow by 24 +/- 4%, lowered mean distal coronary pressure by 15 +/- 1.9 mm Hg and intensified stenosis resistance by 77 +/- 7.2%. Thus, substance P exerts a direct potent dilating effect on both large and small coronary arteries. However, because of its strict endothelium-dependency, this peptide may play a detrimental role in the regulation of coronary blood flow when an atherosclerotic stenotic lesion with endothelial damage or dysfunction is present in the proximal part of the coronary artery.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

G protein coupling of receptors to ionic channels and other effector systems.

1. Four questions raised by previous studies that had shown activation of K+ channels by alpha subunits of the type 3 Gi protein are addressed in the present communication: a) are K+ channels specific for one Gi? b) are there more ionic channels under direct G protein control? c) can we confirm using recombinant G alpha s the results obtained with biochemically resolved G alpha s and continue ascribing the regulatory effector to this part of the alpha beta gamma holo-G protein? and d) can we confirm that a single G alpha, Gs alpha in this case, is able to affect more than one type of effector function? 2. We found Gi alpha s are isoforms, that there exist also Gi-insensitive, Go-responsive K+ channels and that G alpha s can be multifunctional. Thus, a single receptor will elicit cellular responses that will depend on the endogenous G protein as well as the type of effector function expressed in it. 3. In another set of experiments we found that G beta gamma s, be they derived from human erythrocytes, human placenta, bovine brain or bovine retina, all inhibit Gk-gated K+ channel activity as seen in inside out membrane patches with GTP as the driving nucleotide. In addition we noted that inhibition was much more effective under basal (no agonist in the pipette) than agonist stimulated conditions, as reported in earlier experiments in which beta-adrenoceptors, Gs and catalytic unit of adenylyl cyclase had been incorporated into phospholipid vesicles. 4. We propose that one of the roles of G beta gamma s in membranes is to quench ligand independent G protein activation by unoccupied receptors. Other roles of G beta gamma s are: a) by re-associating with GDP-G alpha s, to promote interaction with receptors, and b) by dissociating from activated R.G alpha *GTP.beta gamma, to allow for receptor dissociation from GTP-activated G alpha s, which is required to satisfy the catalytic mode of receptor action.

GTP-Binding Proteins↗
PubMed1990

Detergents, dimeric G beta gamma, and eicosanoid pathways to muscarinic atrial K+ channels.

Control experiments for the direct effects of G protein beta gamma-subunits (G beta gamma) on muscarinic atrial K+ channel [K+ (ACh)] currents have produced different results (Nature Lond. 327: 21-22, 1987; Nature Lond. 325: 296-297, 1987; Cold Spring Harbor Symp. Quant. Biol. 53: 365-373, 1989). A recent view is that stimulation is indirect via phospholipase by (PLA2) and arachidonic acid (AA) metabolites (Nature Lond. 337: 504-505, 1989). On reexamination we found that 1) the zwitterionic detergent 3-[(3-cholamidopropyl)-dimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonate (CHAPS) used to suspend beta gamma stimulates atrial K+ (ACh) currents by itself, and the effects are concentration and Mg2+ dependent; 2) CHAPS stimulates atrial ATP-sensitive K+ channel and inwardly rectifying K+ channel currents; 3) blockers of eicosanoid pathways have nonspecific effects on atrial K+, Ca2+, and Na+ channels. We have confirmed that detergent-free, hydrophilic G beta gamma-subunits inhibit K+ (ACh) currents. Stimulatory effects of dimeric G beta gamma could not be separated from stimulatory effects of detergent, and blockers of PLA2 or lipoxygenase pathways do not clearly establish the significance of these pathways to atrial K+ (ACh) currents.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Regulation of cardiac pacemaker current If in excised membranes from sinoatrial node cells.

We have proposed that voltage-gated ionic channels are regulated by receptor-guanine-nucleotide binding (G) protein pathways that are membrane delimited (direct) or cytoplasmic (indirect). Since indirect pathways are known to couple muscarinic and beta-adrenergic receptors to hyperpolarization-activated current (If) channels, we tested our hypothesis that direct pathways might also be present by measuring If currents in rabbit sinoatrial node cells using the gigaseal patch clamp method. Whole cell If currents were increased by the beta-agonist isoproterenol (Iso) and decreased by the muscarinic agonist carbachol (Carb) at rates that were similar to the rate at which carbachol increased muscarinic K(+)-acetylcholine channel (K+[ACh]) current in the same cells. K+[ACh] currents are directly gated by a G protein, and the results therefore supported our hypothesis. Much stronger support came after we established for the first time that If could be recorded from excised inside out membrane patches in the absence of cytoplasmic substrates. Under these conditions Iso increased and Carb decreased cell-free patch If provided guanosine 5'-triphosphate and Mg2+ were present. Thus G proteins couple autonomic receptors to If within the plasma membrane, probably by a direct action.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Roles of G proteins in coupling of receptors to ionic channels and other effector systems.

Guanine nucleotide binding (G) proteins are heterotrimers that couple a wide range of receptors to ionic channels. The coupling may be indirect, via cytoplasmic agents, or direct, as has been shown for two K+ channels and two Ca2+ channels. One example of direct G protein gating is the atrial muscarinic K+ channel K+[ACh], an inwardly rectifying K+ channel with a slope conductance of 40 pS in symmetrical isotonic K+ solutions and a mean open lifetime of 1.4 ms at potentials between -40 and -100 mV. Another is the clonal GH3 muscarinic or somatostatin K+ channel, also inwardly rectifying but with a slope conductance of 55 pS. A G protein, Gk, purified from human red blood cells (hRBC) activates K+ [ACh] channels at subpicomolar concentrations; its alpha subunit is equipotent. Except for being irreversible, their effects on gating precisely mimic physiological gating produced by muscarinic agonists. The alpha k effects are general and are similar in atria from adult guinea pig, neonatal rat, and chick embryo. The hydrophilic beta gamma from transducin has no effect while hydrophobic beta gamma from brain, hRBCs, or retina has effects at nanomolar concentrations which in our hands cannot be dissociated from detergent effects. An anti-alpha k monoclonal antibody blocks muscarinic activation, supporting the concept that the physiological mediator is the alpha subunit not the beta gamma dimer. The techniques of molecular biology are now being used to specify G protein gating. A "bacterial" alpha i-3 expressed in Escherichia coli using a pT7 expression system mimics the gating produced by hRBC alpha k.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Rapid beta-adrenergic modulation of cardiac calcium channel currents by a fast G protein pathway.

beta-Adrenergic agonists activate the G protein, Gs, which stimulates cardiac calcium currents by both cytoplasmic, indirect and membrane-delimited, direct pathways. To test whether beta-adrenergic agonists might use both pathways in the heart, isoproterenol was rapidly applied to cardiac myocytes, resulting in a biphasic increase in cardiac calcium channel currents that had time constants of 150 milliseconds and 36 seconds. beta-Adrenergic antagonists of a G protein inhibitor blocked both the fast and slow responses, whereas the adenylyl cyclase activator forskolin produced only the slow response. The presence of a fast pathway in the heart can explain what the slow pathway cannot account for: the ability of cardiac sympathetic nerves to change heart rate within a single beat.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Splice variants of the alpha subunit of the G protein Gs activate both adenylyl cyclase and calcium channels.

Signal transducing guanine nucleotide binding (G) proteins are heterotrimers with different alpha subunits that confer specificity for interactions with receptors and effectors. Eight to ten such G proteins couple a large number of receptors for hormones and neurotransmitters to at least eight different effectors. Although one G protein can interact with several receptors, a given G protein was thought to interact with but one effector. The recent finding that voltage-gated calcium channels are stimulated by purified Gs, which stimulates adenylyl cyclase, challenged this concept. However, purified Gs may have four distinct alpha-subunit polypeptides, produced by alternative splicing of messenger RNA. By using recombinant DNA techniques, three of the splice variants were synthesized in Escherichia coli and each variant was shown to stimulate both adenylyl cyclase and calcium channels. Thus, a single G protein alpha subunit may regulate more than one effector function.

Adenylyl Cyclases↗
PubMed1989

Recombinant alpha i-3 subunit of G protein activates Gk-gated K+ channels.

G proteins, particularly those sensitive to pertussis toxin, are difficult to separate biochemically, creating uncertainty in functional assignments. For this reason the cDNAs encoding G alpha i-3 and two of the G alpha s splice variants were expressed as fusion proteins in Escherichia coli using a T7 promoter-based expression system. These proteins were denoted r alpha i-3 and r alpha s (short and long) and accumulated in bacteria to as much as 5-10% of total cellular protein, of which 5-10% was soluble in lysates. Soluble r alpha subunits were tested for stimulation of K+ channel activity in inside-out atrial membrane patches and for reconstitution of cyc- adenylyl cyclase activity. r alpha i-3, activated either by guanosine 5'-(3-thio)triphosphate (GTP gamma S) or AlF-4, stimulated in a concentration-dependent manner single channel K+ currents in isolated atrial membrane patches of three species: guinea pigs, neonatal rats, and embryonic chick. In contrast, GTP gamma S-activated r alpha s did not. In agreement with a similar study by Graziano et al. (Graziano, M. P., Casey, P. J. and Gilman, A. G. (1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 11375-11381), both r alpha s forms reconstituted GTP gamma S-stimulated cyc- adenylyl cyclase activity, albeit at concentrations 50-100 times higher than those needed with native Gs. The concentrations of r alpha i-3 needed to stimulate the K+ channels were also higher than needed with native human erythrocyte Gk, in this case 30-50 times. Single K+ channel currents stimulated by r alpha i-3 were indistinguishable from those stimulated by the natural effector acetylcholine. Thus, bacterial expression of G alpha subunits provided the means to demonstrate unequivocally that Gi-3 has intrinsic Gk activity.

Adenylyl Cyclases↗