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Biomedical subjects

G Weissmann

Publications and source records attributed to G Weissmann.

At least 253 records · Page 14Linked to original sources
PubMed1975

Protein kinase and phosphatases from human polymorphonuclear leucoytes.

Purified preparations of human polymorphonuclear leucocytes contain a protein kinase in the cytosol which is stimulated by cyclic AMP and cyclic IMP but not by other cyclic nucleotides. The holoenzyme had a molecular weight of 66000 estimated by gel filtration; when it was incubated with histone or cyclic AMP, it dissociated into two smaller subunits of molecular weight 45000 and 30000; the former remained cyclic AMP-sensitive, whereas the latter had become independent of added cyclic AMP. By means of substrate-affinity chromatography on histone-Sepharose 4B, cyclic [3H5AMP-binding activity (regulatory or R subunit) could be resolved into two peaks of enzyme activity, one again independent of added cyclic AMP, with a molecular weight of 30000 (catalytic or C subunit). Also by means of substrate-affinity chromatography it was possible to resolve 'specific' polymorphonuclear leukocyte histone phosphatases from 'non-specific' phosphomonesterases capable of dephosphorylating histone previously phosphorylated by the protein kinase. Specific histone phosphatase displayed greatest affinity for histone-Sepharose 4B, followed by acid p-nitrophenyl phosphatase, and the unretained acid beta-glucerophosphatase. Polymorphonuclear leucocyte histone phosphatase, purified approx. 40-fold, was further resolved from the other phosphatases by gel filtration on Sephadex G-150 from which it was eluted with apparent molecular weights of 45000 and 18700. The apparent Km values for dephosphorylation of histone are 4.3 X 10-6M and 3.6 X 10-6M. Most (69%) of cytoplasmic histone phosphatase was found in the cell sap, whereas 20% remained tightly associated with polymorphonuclear leucocyte lysosomes from which it could not be solubilized by treatments (Triton X-100, freeze-thawing) that released approx. 70% of lysosomal beta-glucuronidase or acid phosphatases. Although both soluble and particulate enzymes required 5-10 mM-Mn2 for maximal activation, and showed a pH maximum of 6.5-7.0, only the particulate enzyme was partly inhibited by ammonium molybdate. Polymorphonuclear leucocyte histone phosphatases were neither inhibited nor stimulated by those cyclic nucleotides that greatly stimulate the protein kinase of the same subcellular fraction

Acid Phosphatase↗
PubMed1975

A general method for the introduction of enzymes, by means of immunoglobulin-coated liposomes, into lysosomes of deficient cells.

Phagocytes of the smooth dogfish (Mustelus canis) contain no endogenous peroxidase within their lysosomes and constitute models for cells genetically deficient in lysosomal enzymes such as myeloperoxidase. We have obtained uptake of over 50% of exogenous horseradish peroxidase, provided the enzyme is exhibited to cells after incorporation into liposomes coated with heat-aggregated (62 degrees, 10 min), isologous IgM. Trapping of horseradish peroxidase (EC 1.11.1.7) by liposomes was established by chromatographic resolution (Sephadex G-200; Sepharose 2B and 4B) of free enzyme from that associated with liposomes; liposome-associated horseradish peroxidase, together with trapped markers of the aqueous compartment (glucose, CrO4 equals), were excluded, and free enzyme and markers were retained. Enzyme and marker trapping was not electrostatic, varied with the molar ratio of charged membrane components, and was reversed by detergent lysis (Triton X-100) of liposomes. Uptake at 30 degrees of aggregated IgM-coated liposomes containing trapped horseradish peroxidase exceeded that of free enzyme of 100-fold, and was more efficient than uptake of horseradish peroxidase presented in uncoated liposomes or in liposomes coated with native IgM. After phagocytosis, peroxidase-rich liposomes were localized exclusively in lysosomes of the phagocytes by ultrastructural histochemistry; the enzyme displayed over 50% latency to osmotic lysis. This method may prove to be of general use in the provision of exogenous enzymes to phagocytic cells genetically deficient in lysosomal hydrolases.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Mechanisms of lysosomal enzyme release from human polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Effects of phorbol myristate acetate.

PMA enhanced release of the azurophil granule enzyme, beta-glucuronidase, as well as lysozyme, from cytochalasin B-treated PMN's exposed to either zymosan particles or C5a. PMA was active at nanomolar concentrations, was not toxic to the cells, and was most effective when present for brief durations (0-1 min) before exposure of the cells to the stimuli. Beta-glucuronidase was not released in significant amounts from PMN's exposed to PMA alone, in the absence of stimuli such as zymosan or C5a. In contrast, only the specific granule enzyme, lysozyme, was released from unstimulated cells. Electron micrographs of cells exposed to PMA revealed an increase in the number of visible cytoplasmic microtubules as compared to control cells. Enhancement of lysosomal enzyme (beta-glucuronidase) release by PMA appears to be independent of effects on release of specific granule enzymes (lysozyme), but rather is likely due to PMA-induced elevations of cellular cGMP.

Complement C5↗
PubMed1975

Complement and immunoglobulins stimulate superoxide production by human leukocytes independently of phagocytosis.

Human peripheral blood polymorphonuclear leukocytes, when exposed to appropriate stimuli, generate significant amounts of superoxide anion (O-.2), a highly reactive molecule which is possibly involved in bacterial killing. Since the subcellular localization and mechanism of activation of O-.2 generating systems are unknown, we have investigated superoxide dismutase-inhibitable cytochrome c reduction (attributable to O-.2) by, and lysosomal enzyme release from, normal polymorphonuclear leukocytes and cells rendered incapable of ingesting particles by treatment with cytochalasin B. Neither phagocytosis nor lysosomal degranulation were prerequisites for enhanced O-.2 generation. Cytochalasin B-treated cells exposed to (a) serum-treated zymosan, a C3b receptor stimulus; (b) heat aggregated human IgG, an Fc receptor stimulus; and (c) the complement component, C5a, generated enhanced amounts of O-.2 in a time and concentration-dependent fashion. These cells also responded by releasing lysosomal enzymes, but there was no correlation between the ability of any immune reactant to provoke enzyme release and its ability to stimulate O-.2 generation. The three stimuli also enhanced O-.2 generation by normal (untreated) polymorphonuclear leukocytes, but only serum-treated zymosan and aggregated IgG were capable of provoking lysosomal enzyme release from normal cells. Untreated zymosan and native IgG neither stimulated O-.2 production nor provoked lysomal enzyme release. Since enhanced O-.2 production was stimulated by immune reactants in the absence of phagocytosis, the O-.2 generating system is very likely associated with the external plasma membrane of the polymorphonuclear leukocyte. Leukocyte membrane receptors for complement and immunoglobulins may therefore not only serve in particle recognition but also may initiate biochemical events which accompany phagocytosis and killing.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Enhancement of nitroblue tetrazolium dye reduction by leukocytes exposed to a component of complement in the absence of phagocytosis.

Enhancement of in vitro nitroblue tetrazolium dye reduction by human polymorphonuclear leukocytes may be mediated by a low molecular weight fluid phase component of the complement system. This occurs in the absence of phagocytosis and is associated with an increase in leukocyte hexose monophosphate shunt activity. The stimulatory component may be generated by activating the alternate complement pathway in serum, and shares many of the properties of human C5a. Thus, the enhanced spontaneous reduction of nitroblue tetrazolium by leukocytes from patients with bacterial sepsis may not necessarily be due to the phagocytic activity of these cells, but rather may occur as a consequence of in vivo complement activation by either intact microorganisms or their products.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Colloidal lanthanum as a marker for impaired plasma membrane permeability in ischemic dog myocardium.

Colloidal lanthanum salts have an average particle size of 40 degrees A; consequently, this electron-opaque marker remains extracellular and does not cross the intact plasma membrane. The affinity of lanthanum for calcium-binding sites on mitochondrial membranes makes it possible to demonstrate loss of plasma membrane integrity at the cellular level in ischemic myocardium. Biopsies were obtained from infarcted, marginal and normal areas 3 1/2 hours after ischemia was produced in 9 anesthetized closed-chest dogs by electrically induced thrombosis of the left anterior descending coronary artery. The tissue was immediately fixed in 4% glutaraldehyde and 0.1 M cacodylate buffer containing 1.3% La(NO3)3, pH 7.4, for 2 hours. In normal control tissue prepared this way the lanthanum tracer, as expected, was confirmed to the extracellular spaces, including, basement membranes, gap junctions and portions of the intercalated discs. Specimens taken near the center of frank infarctions all contained intracellular as well as extracellular lanthanum. Intracellular lanthanum could be seen evenly distributed around lipid droplets and in focal deposits around mitochondria. Only when mitochondria were disrupted did lanthanum gain access to internal sites on mitochondrial membranes. Areas marginal to the infarct contained cells in varying stages of degeneration including many that appeared normal by morphologic criteria alone. Intracellular lanthanum was present in many but not all of the marginal cells in which degenerative changes could be seen. Similarly a few of the cells that appeared morphologically normal contained intracellular lanthanum. The entry of lanthanum into some of these marginal cells and its exclusion from adjacent cells demonstrated that ischemic injury affects the permeability properties of the plasma membrane and independently of other intracellular morphologic changes and that lanthanum can be a sensitive indicator of such alteration in membrane permeability.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Influence of divalent cations upon complement-mediated enzyme release from human polymorphonuclear leukocytes.

The complement component, C5a provokes the selective release of granule-associated enzymes from the intact, viable cytochalasin B-treated human polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) in the absence of phagocytosis or cellular adherence to surfaces. Consquently, in this experimental system the influence of divalent cations on these two processes can be disregarded and their effects on enzymes secretion can be studied directly. Cytochalasin B-treated PMN exposed to C5a in calcium and magnesium-free media consistently secreted significant amounts of the granule-associated enzymes, beta-glucuronidase and lysozyme. The basal secretory response was not diminished if cells were preincubated with 5.0 mM EDTA, nor was it influenced if 1.0 mm or 2.0 mM EDTA were present in the reaction mixtures. The addition of calcium (up to 1.5 to 2.0 mM) produced a concentration-dependent enhancement of beta-glucuronidase release, whereas increasing amounts of calcium (above 2.0 mM) inhibited secretion of this enzyme. Lysozyme release was similarly enhanced by the addition of calcium, but inhibition with high concentrations was not observed. Calcium per se, in the absence of C5a, provoked only the release of lysozyme from these cells. The effects of calcium upon enzyme release were not associated with alterations in the state of assembly of cytoplasmic microtubules. These findings provide another example of the role of calcium in "stimulus-secretion coupling" and provide evidence that exocytosis of various granules in human PMN is regulated by independent mechanisms involving calcium.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Cytochemical localization of lysosomal enzyme activity in normal and ischemic dog myocardium.

The effect of ischemia on the integrity of myocardial lysosomes was observed 3 1/2 and 24 hours after the production of infarcts in 20 anesthetized closed-chest dogs by electrically induced thrombosis of the left anterior descending coronary artery. Biopsies from normal, marginal and infarcted areas were fixed and incubated to localize the lysosomal enzymes acid phosphatase and aryl sulphatase. Reaction product in normal cells was localized in small circular or oblong profiles between bundles of myofilaments and adjacent to mitochondria. In addition, curvilinear, membrane-bound profiles containing reaction product were found in close apposition to transverse tubules and near the free margins of the myocardial cells. Thus the distribution of elements of the sarcoplasmic reticulum. Additional reaction product was also seen in residual bodies, on myelin figures, and in the few conventional appearing spherical lysosomes. Little or no acid phosphatase or aryl sulphatase reaction product was seen in the sarcoplasmic reticulum of infarcted myocardium. The degree of cellular degeneration correlated with disappearance of enzyme activity from the sarcoplasmic reticulum and included disruption of membranes and loss of mitochondrial matrix and erosion of I but not A bands. Marginal areas showed variable amounts of cellular degeneration. Separation of myofilament bundles and loss of glycogen correlated with the localized disappearance of acid phosphatase and aryl sulphatase activity in marginal tissue. Disruption of mitochondrial and erosion of I bands correlated with extensive loss of these enzymes. The data suggest that degeneration of myocardial cells following ischemic injury is associated with release of endogenous lysosomal enzymes from the sarcoplasmic reticulum.

Acid Phosphatase↗
PubMed1974

Potassium and amino acid transport in human leukocytes exposed to phagocytic stimuli.

Influxes of potassium and amino acids were measured in suspensions of human polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) under resting conditions and after various phagocytic stimuli. Both ouabain-sensitive (or pump) and ouabain-insensitive (or leak) influxes of K were determined. In 5 mM external K, mean total K influx was 0.69 nmol/10(6) cells x min, of which 52% was ouabain-sensitive. Ouabain binding was irreversible, and, as in erythrocytes, was inhibited by K. At external concentrations of 0.1 mM, influxes of lysine and leucine were entirely carrier-mediated, with means of 0.021 nmol/10(6) cells x min, and 0.019 nmol/10(6) cells x min, respectively. After incubation of PMNs with zymosan or latex particles, the K pump was reduced more than 60%, whereas amino acid influxes were inhibited only by 30%. PMNs were also exposed to cytochalasin B before challenge by particles: the drug prevented phagocytosis but not surface binding of zymosan, nor did it influence transport of K or amino acids. After pretreatment of PMNs with cytochalasin B, interaction of zymosan with their surface resulted in the same degree of inhibition of influxes of K and amino acids as when the cells were permitted to phagocytose the particles. In contrast, exposure of PMN to latex particles, which do not bind to cytochalasin B-treated cells, after pretreatment of cells with cytochalasin B did not result in inhibition of influxes. Treatment of cells with colchicine had no effect on either membrane transport or its inhibition after exposure to various phagocytic stimuli. These results indicate that the surface membranes of PMNs are functionally heterogeneous with respect to the association of transport sites for the different solutes. Moreover, loss of specific membrane functions from phagocytosing cells may result from the surface-at-tachment phase of particle-cell interactions, since the interactions of zymosan particles with PMNs in the absence of phagocytosis also inhibited transport of solutes.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1974

Mechanisms of lysosomal enzyme release from human leukocytes. II. Effects of cAMP and cGMP, autonomic agonists, and agents which affect microtubule function.

Selective release of inflammatory materials from leukocyte lysosomes is reduced by compounds which increase cyclic 3',5'-adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels in suspensions of human leukocytes and is augmented by agents which increase cyclic 3',5'-guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) levels in these cell suspensions. Lysosomal enzymes are released in the absence of phagocytosis when cytochalasin B (5 mug/ml) converts polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) to secretory cells: lysosomes merge directly with the plasma membrane upon encounter of PMN with zymosan, and cells selectively extrude substantial proportions of lysosomal, but not cytoplasmic enzymes. beta-Adrenergic stimulation of human leukocytes produced a dose-related reduction in beta-glucuronidase release (blocked by 10(-6) M propranolol) whereas alpha-adrenergic stimulation (phenylephrine plus propranolol) was ineffective. In contrast, the cholinergic agonist carbamylcholine chloride enhanced enzyme secretion, an effect blocked by 10(-6) M atropine. Incubation of cells with exogenous cAMP or with agents that increase endogenous cAMP levels (prostaglandin E1, histamine, isoproterenol, and cholera enterotoxin) reduced extrusion of lysosomal enzymes; in contrast, exogenous cGMP and carbamylcholine chloride (which increases endogenous cGMP levels), increased beta-glucuronidase release. Whereas colchicine (5 x 10(-4) M), a drug which impairs microtubule integrity, reduced selective enzyme release, deuterium oxide, which favors microtubule assembly, enhanced selective release of lyosomal enzymes. The data suggest that granule movement and acid hydrolase release from leukocyte lysosomes requires intact microtubules and may be modulated by adrenergic and cholinergic agents which appear to provoke changes in concentrations of cyclic nucleotides.

Atropine↗
PubMed1974

Interaction of immunoglobulins with liposomes.

Liposomes were used as model targets to test the effect of immunoglobulins on biomembranes. Heat-aggregated immunoglobulins (Ig) exceeded native immunoglobulins in their capacity to release anions and glucose from model liposomes (either lecithin-dicetyl-phosphate-cholesterol or lecithin-stearylamine-cholesterol in molar ratios of 7:2:1). This interaction was not dependent upon the presence of cholesterol in the membrane. Mild heat-aggregation (10 min at 61.5 degrees C) increased the membrane-perturbing activity of certain Ig. Activity varied among classes and subclasses: IgG1 > pooled IgG > IgG4 > IgA1 > IgG3. IgG2, IgA2 and IgM were inert. Fc fragments of IgG were as active as IgG1, whereas Fab fragments were inactive. Prolonging aggregation to 60 min destroyed the activity of Ig. Membrane-activity could not be induced in non-Ig molecules (such as bovine serum albumin) by 10 or 60 min heat-aggregation. Density gradient centrifugation of IgG1 molecules indicated that membrane perturbing activity was associated with 15-20-s aggregates. Sepharose 4B chromatography demonstrated preferential interaction between cationic membranes and aggregated Ig, whereas anionic membranes interacted nonselectively with both native and aggregated Ig via salt-like interactions. One explanation for these data is that heat aggregation induces a conformational change in the Fc regions of certain Ig permitting them to interact with liposomes, presumably by enhancing their hydrophobic associations with membrane phospholipids.

Animals↗