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S Olsnes

Publications and source records attributed to S Olsnes.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

Membrane translocation of diphtheria toxin carrying passenger protein domains.

For diphtheria toxin to be cytotoxic, the enzymatically active part (fragment A) must be translocated to the cytosol. We here demonstrate that additional proteins linked as N-terminal extensions can be translocated along with fragment A across the plasma membrane of toxin-sensitive cells. Thus, an extra fragment A of diphtheria toxin and some of apolipoprotein AI were translocated as passenger proteins along with mutant diphtheria toxin fragment A. Translocation was monitored by the cytotoxic effect of the additional fragment A as well as by the translocation of [35S]methionine-labelled protein to a compartment protected from externally added pronase. Cytotoxicity experiments indicated that double A fragments can also be translocated across the membrane of intracellular vesicles. The results demonstrate that the translocation apparatus used for toxin translocation is not limited to a single A fragment but can accommodate additional proteins as well. The fact that proteins as large as 20 kDa can be brought into cells by way of diphtheria toxin under both in vitro and in vivo conditions opens up the possibility of using diphtheria toxin mutants for introducing molecules with biological activity into cells.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Entry of diphtheria toxin-protein A chimeras into cells.

Fusion proteins consisting of diphtheria toxin and a duplicated Fc-binding domain of protein A were made in vitro after amplification of the DNA template by the polymerase chain reaction. The fusion proteins bound avidly to Vero cells coated with antibodies. A fusion protein containing full-length diphtheria toxin was toxic at lower concentrations than diphtheria toxin alone, apparently due to more efficient binding. The enzymatic part of the fusion protein was translocated across the surface membrane upon exposure to low pH. Like authentic diphtheria toxin, the fusion protein formed cation selective channels at low pH. Excess amounts of unlabeled diphtheria toxin inhibited formation of pronase-protected fragments derived from radiolabeled fusion protein. Furthermore, conditions that down-regulate the diphtheria toxin receptors reduced the sensitivity of the cells to the fusion protein, supporting the notion that authentic diphtheria toxin receptors are required. At temperatures below 18 degrees C the toxicity of the fusion protein was strongly reduced, whereas there was no temperature block for authentic diphtheria toxin. Brefeldin A protected Vero cells against the fusion protein but not against diphtheria toxin. The results indicate that the diphtheria toxin receptor is required for efficient toxin translocation even under conditions where the toxin is bound by an alternate binding moiety, and they suggest that the intracellular routing of the fusion protein is different from that of diphtheria toxin.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Insertion of diphtheria toxin B-fragment into the plasma membrane at low pH. Characterization and topology of inserted regions.

When the enzymatically active A-fragment of diphtheria toxin is translocated to the cytosol, the B-fragment inserts into the membrane in such a way that a 25-kDa polypeptide becomes shielded from proteases added to the external medium. We have attempted to determine the boundaries of this polypeptide within the toxin B-fragment as well as the topology of the B-fragment in the membrane. Chemical cleavage of the 25-kDa polypeptide with hydroxylamine and o-iodosobenzoic acid yielded fragments of sizes indicating that the 25-kDa polypeptide starts at residue approximately 300 and extends to the COOH-terminal end. Experiments where the toxin was labeled with [35S]cysteine at distinct positions of the B-fragment supported this conclusion. Treatment of cells with inserted B-fragment with L-1-tosyl-amido-2-phenylethyl chloromethyl ketone-treated trypsin and with V8 protease from Staphylococcus aureus yielded protected 27- and 30-kDa fragments in addition to 25 kDa, indicating that the region 240-264 is also at the outside. The topology of the inserted B-fragment is discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Internalization and action of an immunotoxin containing mistletoe lectin A-chain.

An immunotoxin consisting of the enzymatically active A-chain of mistletoe lectin I and a monoclonal antibody against a surface protein on mouse leukemia L1210V cells was found to inhibit protein synthesis in these cells as efficiently as the native mistletoe toxin. The immunotoxin was somewhat more slowly endocytosed than the native toxin, but in both cases the endocytic uptake continued under conditions in which uptake from clathrin-coated pits was inhibited by mild acidification of the cytosol. This indicates that the toxin and the immunotoxin were at least partially internalized by a non-clathrin-dependent uptake mechanism and that uptake by this pathway is responsible for most of the toxic effect on the cells. The results indicate that efficient immunotoxins can be made with antibodies against cell surface epitopes that are endocytosed by a mechanism not involving clathrin-coated pits.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Effect of monensin on ricin and fluid phase transport in polarized MDCK cells.

The effect of monensin on endocytosis, transcytosis, recycling and transport to the Golgi apparatus in filter-grown Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells was investigated using 125I-labeled ricin as a marker for membrane transport, and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) as a marker for fluid phase transport. Monensin (10 microM) stimulated transcytosis of both markers about 3-fold in the basolateral to apical direction. Transcytosis of HRP in the opposite direction, apical to basolateral, was reduced to approximately 50% of the control by monensin, whereas that of ricin was slightly increased. Recycling of markers endocytosed from the apical surface was reduced in the presence of monensin and there was an increased accumulation of both ricin and HRP in the cells. Transport of ricin to the Golgi apparatus increased to the same extent as the increase in intracellular accumulation. No change in recycling or accumulation was observed with monensin when the markers were added basolaterally, but transport of ricin to the Golgi apparatus increased almost 3-fold. Our results indicate that basolateral to apical transcytosis is increased in the absence of low endosomal pH, and they suggest that apical to basolateral transcytosis of a membrane-bound marker (ricin) is affected by monensin differently from that of a fluid phase marker (HRP).

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Evidence for involvement of protein kinase C in regulation of intracellular pH by Cl-/HCO-3 antiport.

The activity of the main base-extruding mechanism in Vero cells, the Na(+)-independent Cl-/HCO-3 antiport, increases 5- to 10-fold when the cytosolic pH (pHi) is increased over a narrow range close to neutrality. We have studied the effect on this regulation of stimulation and inhibition of protein kinase C by short-term and long-term treatment with the phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA). After short-term treatment with TPA to stimulate the kinase, the threshold value for activation of the antiport is shifted to a more acidic pH. After prolonged treatment with TPA to downregulate protein kinase C the sensitivity of the antiport to variation in proton concentration was lowered, possibly by reducing the number of essential proton-binding sites. Concomitantly, the steady state pHi of the cells was increased. The data indicate that protein kinase C is involved in the regulation of the Na(+)-independent Cl-/HCO-3 antiport.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Peptides fused to the amino-terminal end of diphtheria toxin are translocated to the cytosol.

Diphtheria toxin belongs to a group of toxic proteins that enter the cytosol of animal cells. We have here investigated the effect of NH2-terminal extensions of diphtheria toxin on its ability to become translocated to the cytosol. DNA fragments encoding peptides of 12-30 amino acids were fused by recombinant DNA technology to the 5'-end of the gene for a mutant toxin. The resulting DNA constructs were transcribed and translated in vitro. The translation products were bound to cells and then exposed to low pH to induce translocation across the cell membrane. Under these conditions all of the oligopeptides tested, including three viral peptides and the leader peptide of diphtheria toxin, were translocated to the cytosol along with the enzymatic part (A-fragment) of the toxin. Neither hydrophobic nor highly charged sequences blocked translocation. The results are compatible with a model in which the COOH-terminus of the A-fragment first crosses the membrane, whereas the NH2-terminal region follows behind. The possibility of using nontoxic variants of diphtheria toxin as vectors to introduce peptides into the cytosol to elicit MHC class I-restricted immune response and clonal expansion of the relevant CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes is discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Elimination of the disulphide bridge in fragment B of diphtheria toxin: effect on membrane insertion, channel formation, and ATP binding.

Active diphtheria toxin consists of two disulphide-linked fragments, termed A and B. Fragment B, which contains an internal disulphide bridge, facilitates translocation of the enzymatically active fragment A to the cytosol of eukaryotic cells. In this process cation-selective channels are formed. An in vitro translated full-length mutant lacking the internal disulphide bridge (A-58**) was functionally indistinguishable from its disulphide-containing counterpart (A-58) with respect to trypsin sensitivity, receptor binding, A-fragment translocation, and channel formation. In contrast, the B fragment of A-58** (B-36**) was slightly less trypsin resistant than the S-S-containing B fragment, B-36, and was approximately 300-fold less efficient than B-36 in permeabilizing cells. When first dialysed and then reconstituted with A fragment, B fragment without disulphide bridge yielded a less-active toxin than did wild-type B fragment. We conclude that the disulphide bridge in fragment B is not necessary for toxicity, as earlier believed, and that channel formation may play a role in membrane translocation.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed1991

Bacterial protein toxins acting on intracellular targets.

A number of bacterial toxins act on targets located in the cytosol. Diphtheria toxin, Pseudomonas aeruginosa exotoxin A and shigella toxin inhibit protein synthesis by enzymatic inactivation of elongation factor 2 or the 60 S ribosomal subunit. These toxins enter the cells by receptor-mediated endocytosis, followed by translocation across the membranes of intracellular organelles. Also a number or toxins that are not cytocidal act on targets in the cytosol. A number of nontoxic bacterial proteins are able to modify enzymatically intracellular molecules. Some of these proteins could be considered for targeting to special cells followed by translocation to obtain defined physiological effects.

ADP Ribose Transferases↗
PubMed1990

Regulation of Na+/H+ and Cl-/HCO3- antiports in Vero cells.

The effect of serum, phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (TPA), and forskolin on the activity Na+/H+ antiport and the Na(+)-coupled and Na(+)-independent Cl-/HCO3- antiport was studied in Vero cells by measuring 22Na+ and 36Cl- fluxes and changes in cytosolic pH (pHi). The Na(+)-independent Cl-/HCO3- antiport, which acts as an acidifying mechanism, is strongly pH-sensitive. In serum-starved cells it is activated at alkaline cytosolic pH, with a half-maximal activity at pHi approximately 7.20. Incubation with serum increased the activity of the Na(+)-independent Cl-/HCO3- antiport at pHi values from 6.8 to 7.2. Thus serum appeared to alter the pHi sensitivity of this antiporter such that the threshold value for activation of the antiport was shifted to a more acidic value. Na+/H+ antiport was somewhat stimulated initially by addition of serum, but further incubation with serum (greater than 45 min) decreased its activity. The activity of the Na(+)-coupled Cl-/HCO3- antiport, which is the major alkalinizing antiport in Vero cells, was not altered by short-term incubation with serum (less than 10 min) but decreased after prolonged incubation (greater than 45 min). Our findings with TPA and forskolin indicate that the effect of serum is partly mediated by the protein kinase C pathway, whereas the cyclic adenosine monophosphate pathway does not appear to play an important role. The net effect of serum on the pHi-regulating antiports was a slight decrease in intracellular pH.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Role of Na(+)-H+ and Cl(-)-HCO3- antiports in the regulation of cytosolic pH near neutrality.

In Vero cells, Na(+)-H+ antiport as well as Na(+)-coupled and Na(+)-independent Cl(-)-HCO3- antiport are involved in regulation of cytosolic pH (pHi) after large (unphysiological) deviations from neutrality. In this paper we have studied to which extent each of the three antiports is involved in regulation of pHi after small deviations from neutrality expected to occur under physiological conditions. At physiological extracellular pH (pHo), inhibition of Na(+)-H+ exchange by amiloride did not alter pHi. At neutral and alkaline pHo, pHi was found to be lower in the presence of HCO3- than in its absence, whereas at acidic pHo, pHi was higher in the presence of HCO3- than in its nominal absence. Above pHi 6.5, the activity of the Na(+)-coupled Cl(-)-HCO3- antiport was higher than the Na(+)-H+ antiport. After a small reduction of pHi, the recovery of steady-state pHi was entirely dependent on Na(+)-coupled Cl(-)-HCO3- antiport, whereas after more pronounced acidification, also Na(+)-H+ exchange contributed to the acid extrusion. The Na(+)-independent Cl(-)-HCO3- antiport, which acts as an acidifying mechanism, was strongly activated at pHi greater than 7.1. The results indicate that at physiological pHo the steady-state pHi is largely determined by the activity of the two Cl(-)-HCO3- antiports, and they suggest that Na(+)-H+ exchange does not influence the resting pHi under these conditions.

4,4'-Diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-Disulfonic Acid↗
PubMed1990

Translocation of diphtheria toxin to the cytosol and formation of cation selective channels.

A number of protein toxins act by translocating an enzymatically active polypeptide to the cytosol. The translocation process is best understood in the case of diphtheria toxin which binds to cell surface receptors, is then taken up by endocytosis and is subsequently translocated to the cytosol, where it inactivates elongation factor 2. The translocation of the enzymatically active part of the toxin can be induced at the level of the plasma membrane upon exposure to low pH of cells with surface-bound toxin. Receptor molecules appear to be involved in the translocation process, which also requires an inward directed H(+)-gradient and permeant anions. Cation-selective channels are formed in the membrane upon toxin entry. The B-fragment alone is much more efficient in inducing channels than the whole toxin. The current model of the translocation process is discussed.

Biological Transport↗
PubMed1989

Inhibition of chloride/bicarbonate antiports in monkey kidney cells (Vero) by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

Two chloride/bicarbonate antiport mechanisms are involved in the regulation of cytosolic pH (pHi) in Vero cells, namely Na+-dependent chloride/bicarbonate antiport to normalize pHi after acidification of the cytosol, and Na+-independent Cl-/HCO3- exchange to regulate pHi back to normal after alkalinization of the cytosol. We have tested the effects of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin), salicylic acid, indomethacin and piroxicam on chloride/bicarbonate exchange and on chloride self exchange in Vero cells. All these drugs were found to inhibit both the Na+-independent and the Na+-linked chloride/bicarbonate antiport in a dose dependent manner. The Na+-independent chloride/bicarbonate antiport was inhibited by lower doses of the drugs than the Na+-linked antiport. The ability of the drugs to inhibit chloride self exchange did not vary much with varying external pH, indicating that the inhibitory effect is due to the anionic form of the drugs. Inhibition occurred immediately upon addition of the drugs, and it was rapidly reversible, indicating that the inhibitory effect is due to direct interaction of the drugs with chloride/bicarbonate antiport, and not to inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis. The relevance of our findings to the clinical effects of the drugs is discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Translocation of diphtheria toxin A-fragment to the cytosol. Role of the site of interfragment cleavage.

Diphtheria toxin contains a trypsin-sensitive region with 3 closely spaced arginines in the sequence (Asn189, Arg190, Val191, Arg192, Arg193, Ser194). Cleavage of the toxin to yield A- and B-fragments ("nicking") appears to occur in a stochastic manner after either of these arginine residues. Isoelectric focusing of A-fragment prepared in vitro showed four bands of varying intensity with pI between 4.5 and 5.0, three of which could be accounted for by the three different cleavage sites. Exposure of cells with surface-bound toxin to pH less than 5.3 induces translocation of A-fragment to a position where it is shielded from external Pronase, presumably in the cytosol. A-fragment translocated in this manner had the same pI as the most acidic A-fragments, indicating that only A-fragments lacking both Arg192 and Arg193 are translocation-competent. This was confirmed by amino acid sequencing. Treatment of A-fragment with carboxypeptidase B eliminated the two bands with the highest pI while there was a concomitant increase in the bands corresponding to the two most acidic A-fragments. Such treatment of nicked diphtheria toxin increased the amount of translocated A-fragment and the ability of toxin to form cation-selective pores in the cell membrane. The site of trypsin cleavage therefore appears to be one of the factors limiting toxin entry to the cytosol.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Formation of active diphtheria toxin in vitro based on ligated fragments of cloned mutant genes.

An intact gene coding for wild type diphtheria toxin was reconstituted in vitro from fragments of cloned inactive diphtheria toxin mutants with defects in different parts of the gene. The reconstituted DNA template was amplified using the Taq DNA polymerase chain reaction, providing a virtually unlimited supply. The toxin was expressed in vitro by transcription from a T3 RNA polymerase promoter, followed by translation of the mRNA in a rabbit reticulocyte lysate system. Diphtheria toxin synthesised in this manner was shown to be as toxic as natural toxin and behaved like natural toxin in every way tested. This can serve as a general approach for study of toxic proteins, opening up the possibility of in vitro gene manipulation. Reconstitution of the wild type gene from fragments followed by polymerase chain reaction amplification bypasses the hazards of cloning protein toxins.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Role of anions in low pH-induced translocation of diphtheria toxin.

Previous work has shown that when Vero cells with surface-bound diphtheria toxin are exposed to low pH, toxin entry across the plasma membrane is induced and that this entry involves two steps, insertion of the B-fragment of the toxin into the membrane and translocation of the enzymatically active A-fragment to the cytosol. Here we have studied the role of permeant anions in this process. It was found that when the B-fragment was inserted into the membrane, part of it, a 25-kDa polypeptide, was shielded from externally added Pronase. This insertion did not require permeant anions. The translocation of the A-fragment was monitored by measuring either its ability to inhibit protein synthesis in the cells or the appearance of radioactively labeled 21-kDa fragment after treatment of the cells with externally applied Pronase. The translocation of the A-fragment was dependent on the presence of permeant anions in the medium. However, when the cells were depleted of Cl- by incubation in Cl- free buffer at high pH, translocation of the A-fragment did not require permeant anions in the medium. The possibility that translocation of the A-fragment is inhibited by an outward directed chloride gradient rather than by the absence of chloride is discussed.

Animals↗