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T J Martin

Publications and source records attributed to T J Martin.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Interleukin (IL)-6 induction of osteoclast differentiation depends on IL-6 receptors expressed on osteoblastic cells but not on osteoclast progenitors.

We reported that interleukin (IL) 6 alone cannot induce osteoclast formation in cocultures of mouse bone marrow and osteoblastic cells, but soluble IL-6 receptor (IL-6R) strikingly triggered osteoclast formation induced by IL-6. In this study, we examined the mechanism of osteoclast formation by IL-6 and related cytokines through the interaction between osteoblastic cells and osteoclast progenitors. When dexamethasone was added to the cocultures, IL-6 could stimulate osteoclast formation without the help of soluble IL-6R. Osteoblastic cells expressed a very low level of IL-6R mRNA, whereas fresh mouse spleen and bone marrow cells, both of which are considered to be osteoclast progenitors, constitutively expressed relatively high levels of IL-6R mRNA. Treatment of osteoblastic cells with dexamethasone induced a marked increase in the expression of IL-6R mRNA. By immunoblotting with antiphosphotyrosine antibody, IL-6 did not tyrosine-phosphorylate a protein with a molecular mass of 130 kD in osteoblastic cells but did so in dexamethasone-pretreated osteoblastic cells. Osteoblastic cells from transgenic mice constitutively expressing human IL-6R could support osteoclast development in the presence of human IL-6 alone in cocultures with normal spleen cells. In contrast, osteoclast progenitors in spleen cells from transgenic mice overexpressing human IL-6R were not able to differentiate into osteoclasts in response to IL-6 in cocultures with normal osteoblastic cells. These results clearly indicate that the ability of IL-6 to induce osteoclast differentiation depends on signal transduction mediated by IL-6R expressed on osteoblastic cells but not on osteoclast progenitors.

Animals

Digitalis-induced visual disturbances with therapeutic serum digitalis concentrations.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the role of digitalis in the development of visual symptoms severe enough to warrant ophthalmologic consultation in patients who received digitalis and who had no other clinical or laboratory evidence of digitalis toxicity. DESIGN: Clinical case study. SETTING: Neuro-ophthalmology referral practice. PATIENTS: Six elderly patients (aged 66 to 85 years) who received digitalis were referred to ophthalmologists for evaluation of photopsia (five patients) or decreased visual acuity (one patient). No patient had chromatopsia or nonvisual clinical manifestations of digitalis intoxication at the time of examination. MEASUREMENTS: All patients had serum digitalis concentrations within or below the therapeutic range. In most patients, the electroretinographic cone b-wave implicit time was longer than normal. RESULTS: Discontinuation of digitalis therapy, which was possible in five patients, was followed by resolution of visual symptoms and by shortening of the b-wave implicit time. Characteristic features of digitalis-induced photopsia were its dependence on illumination and its tendency to be localized in peripheral visual fields. CONCLUSIONS: In an elderly patient receiving digitalis, the development of photopsia characterized by innumerable points of light in the peripheral visual fields or a decrease in visual acuity raises the possibility that the patient's visual disturbance may have been digitalis induced. Digitalis-induced visual disturbances other than chromatopsia or disturbances of color vision may occur in elderly patients who have no other clinical manifestations of digitalis intoxication and who have a serum digitalis concentration within or below the therapeutic range.

Aged

Modulation of the signal recognition particle 54-kDa subunit (SRP54) in rat preosteoblasts by the extracellular matrix.

Rat preosteoblastic cells, UMR201, develop a more mature phenotype when subcultured onto a type I collagen gel when compared with their growth on plastic. Basal osteopontin mRNA expression is up-regulated, whereas retinoic acid-induced alkaline phosphatase expression is reduced in cells on collagen when compared with cells plated onto plastic. We have used differential display polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of mRNA to identify other mRNA species that are regulated by collagen and/or retinoic acid in UMR201 cells. A number of differentially expressed PCR products were isolated, whose sequences did not correspond to known sequences in the data bank. However, one species which was up-regulated by growth on collagen showed 95 and 94% homology to the murine and canine 54-kDa subunit of the signal recognition particle (SRP54), respectively. In time course experiments, using reverse transcription PCR, it was found that SRP54 mRNA was up-regulated in UMR201 cells as early as 1 h after subculture onto collagen, when compared with cells subcultured onto plastic, and levels remained elevated after 48 h. The increased expression of SRP54 paralleled the increased expression of a known secreted protein, osteopontin. SRP54 recognizes signal sequences of proteins destined for secretion and retards them for further elongation in the endoplasmic reticulum. The increased expression may correlate with the synthesis of specific extracellular matrix molecules in differentiating osteoblasts.

Amino Acid Sequence

Metabolic bone diseases.

Metabolic bone diseases often present in old age and some are more easily treatable than others. Osteoporosis is best managed by prevention, with maximisation of peak bone density and reduction of subsequent bone loss. Although hormone replacement therapy is most useful in prevention, it also has a role in established osteoporosis. Other treating agents include calcium, calcitriol, calcitonin and bisphosphonates. Osteomalacia in the elderly mainly results from vitamin D deficiency and supplementation should be considered in those at risk. The newer bisphosphonates show great promise in the treatment of Paget's disease, while surgery remains the only treatment option in primary hyperparathyroidism.

Aged

Tumor necrosis factor alpha facilitates nuclear actions of retinoic acid to regulate expression of the alkaline phosphatase gene in preosteoblasts.

This study examines the molecular mechanisms of interaction between tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) and retinoic acid on the expression of the alkaline phosphatase gene by rat clonal preosteoblastic cells. In this cell line, alkaline phosphatase mRNA was not constitutively expressed but was progressively induced by treatment with 1 microM retinoic acid, detectable by 6 h. Combining retinoic acid with 0.6 nM TNF alpha resulted in alkaline phosphatase mRNA appearing by 2 h, as well as enhanced expression above that observed with retinoic acid alone at 6, 12, and 24 h. Nuclear run-on analysis showed constitutive transcription of the alkaline phosphatase gene in control and TNF alpha-treated cells. At 4 h, retinoic acid, alone or combined with TNF alpha, increased alkaline phosphatase gene transcriptional rate by 2-fold. However, at 24 h, while no retinoic acid effect was retained, retinoic acid plus TNF alpha resulted in a 5-fold increase in alkaline phosphatase transcriptional rate. Examination of the distribution of nuclear alkaline phosphatase mRNA demonstrated that pre-spliced precursor mRNA was localized to the nuclear matrix in control and all treatment groups. Retinoic acid caused a time-dependent accumulation of mature, spliced alkaline phosphatase mRNA located in the non-matrix and cytoplasmic fractions, implying a post-transcriptional action of retinoic acid in nuclear processing and nucleocytoplasmic transport. Adding TNF alpha with retinoic acid greatly enhanced this effect, which was observed after 4 h, prior to any detectable interaction between TNF alpha and retinoic acid on gene transcription. In sharp contrast, only a negligible amount of nuclear processing occurred in control and TNF alpha-treated cells. This study reveals distinct interactions between TNF alpha and retinoic acid at post-transcriptional as well as transcriptional levels to regulate expression of the alkaline phosphatase gene in preosteoblasts.

Alkaline Phosphatase

Epidermal growth factor-stimulated parathyroid hormone-related protein expression involves increased gene transcription and mRNA stability.

Epidermal growth factor (EGF) produced rapid and striking effects on parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) gene expression in the immortalized human keratinocyte cell line, HaCaT. Steady-state levels of PTHrP mRNA and secreted PTHrP were increased 10-fold by maximally effective concentrations of EGF. EGF increased both PTHrP gene transcription and PTHrP mRNA stability. Nuclear run-on assays demonstrated a 4-fold increase in transcriptional rate in EGF-stimulated cells while transient transfection analysis indicated that the action of EGF on transcription involved both the GC-rich promoter, P2, and the downstream TATA promoter, P3, but apparently not the upstream TATA promoter, P1. In experiments where EGF treatment produced more stable PTHrP transcripts, the half-life of c-fos mRNA was unaltered, suggesting a relatively specific effect of EGF. Moreover, only those species of PTHrP mRNA containing two of the alternative 3' exons (exons VII and VIII) were stable, those containing exon IX were not. Reverse-transcription PCR demonstrated that EGF produced differential increases in the abundance of PTHrP mRNA species initiated by the three PTHrP promoters. The major effect was seen on the abundance of transcripts initiated by P1 and P2, with less marked regulation of P3-initiated transcripts. Thus EGF regulation of PTHrP gene expression in HaCaT cells is multifactorial and the combination of its actions at the 5' and 3' ends of the gene favours the accumulation of subpopulations of PTHrP mRNA containing exons I, VII and VIII.

Cell Line, Transformed

Arg21 is the preferred kexin cleavage site in parathyroid-hormone-related protein.

Parathyroid-hormone-related protein (PTHrP) contains several potential sites for proteolytic processing. Although there is considerable evidence for the existence of cleaved products in vivo, little is known about the post-translational processing of PTHrP. We have used purified kexin (Kex2) protease to identify which cleavage sites in recombinant PTHrP(1-141) might be of physiological significance. Cleavage products were identified by N-terminal sequencing. Kex2 preferentially cleaved PTHrP(1-141) carboxy to the triplet arginine site Arg-Arg-Arg21 with a Km of 3.3 +/- 1.7 microM and a kcat of 6 +/- 1.2 s-1. Substitution of alanine for Arg19 resulted in substantially reduced conversion, while no detectable cleavage occurred when alanine was substituted for either Arg20 or Arg21. In contrast, the degree of Kex2 cleavage at Arg21 in PTHrP(1-34) was lower. No detectable cleavage occurred in an unrelated synthetic peptide containing both double and triple arginine sites. Low levels of cleavage also took place carboxy to Lys-Arg97, Lys-Arg105, Arg-Arg106 and Thr-Arg108. Cleavage carboxy to Lys-Arg105, the best of these minor sites, occurred with a Km of 8.4 +/- 2.7 microM and a kcat of 0.8 +/- 0.2 s-1. These studies indicate that the preferred Kex2 cleavage site in PTHrP(1-141) is carboxy to Arg-Arg-Arg21, which effectively destroys its parathyroid-hormone-like biological activity. Cleavage of this site by Kex2-related mammalian convertases in vivo may be an important mechanism for full elaboration of the non-parathyroid-hormone-like paracrine actions of PTHrP in a tissue-specific manner.

Arginine

Calcium inflow in cells transfected with cloned rat and porcine calcitonin receptors.

Ca2+ fluxes were examined in HEK 293 cells stably expressing the rat or porcine calcitonin receptors (CTRs). Calcitonin (CT) rapidly increased cytosolic Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) concentrations in these cells in a manner which was sustained in the presence of extracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]e). In cells pretreated with CT, elevation of the [Ca2+]e concentration resulted in a further increase in [Ca2+]i which was concentration-dependent with respect to both the concentration of CT and the increment of [Ca2+]e. Untransfected cells, cells transfected with vector alone, and CTR-transfected cells not treated with CT, were unresponsive to [Ca2+]e. The microsomal Ca(2+)-ATPase inhibitor thapsigargin was able to mimic both the acute [Ca2+]i fluxes and responsiveness to [Ca2+]e mediated by CT in these cells. The CT-induced responsiveness to [Ca2+]e was neither mimicked by, nor affected by, activators of the cAMP or protein kinase C pathways. Treatment of cells with pertussis toxin influenced neither the primary Ca2+ fluxes in response to CT or thapsigargin nor the agonist-induced [Ca2+]e influx. Nifedipine failed to block responses to either CT or thapsigargin. These results lead to the important conclusion that the CTR participates in receptor-activated Ca2+ inflow, in which depletion of intracellular Ca2+ pools leads secondarily to influx of extracellular Ca2+.

Animals

Calcitonin receptor isoforms in mouse and rat osteoclasts.

Calcitonin receptors (CTRs) from several species have recently been cloned and shown to belong to the 7 transmembrane domain class of receptor. We have identified two CTR isoforms in the rat, termed C1a and C1b, identical except for a 37-amino-acid insert in the putative second extracellular domain of C1b. To examine the CTR isoforms expressed in rat and mouse osteoclasts and the time course of their appearance in culture, bone marrow cells were cultured from C57/Bl6J mice and osteoclasts were isolated from newborn rat long bones. CTR-bearing cells were detected by autoradiography of 125I-salmon CT binding, and cultures were stained for tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP). RNA was extracted from parallel cultures, and CTR mRNA was detected by Northern blot analysis, using a rat digoxigenin-labeled riboprobe. Characterization of mRNA for the CTR isoforms was by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using primer sets and oligonucleotide probes specific for the two rat receptor isoforms. In mouse marrow cultures, TRAP positive mononucleated cells were present by day 2 of culture at which time CTR positive cells were few. Multinucleated cells with both these markers were seen only from day 4 and later. By Northern analysis of total RNA, a band of approximately 4 kb could be detected in day 4 and later cultures. RT-PCR showed that mouse homologs of both C1a and C1b mRNA species were expressed early in cultures of mouse osteoclasts, although at each time C1a appeared to predominate.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals

Prostaglandin E2 regulates production of plasminogen activator isoenzymes, urokinase receptor, and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 in primary cultures of rat calvarial osteoblasts.

The bone resorbing agent, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), was found to alter several components of the plasminogen activator (PA)/plasmin pathway in primary cultures of rat neonatal osteoblast-like cells. The mRNA and activities of both urokinase-type PA (uPA) and tissue-type PA (tPA) were enhanced by PGE2 treatment. The presence of mRNA for the uPA receptor (uPAR) has been demonstrated in these cells and steady-state levels shown to be greatly enhanced, the response being rapid and sustained for at least 24 hours. mRNA for plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) was modulated in a biphasic manner, with inhibition of the constitutive level apparent at 4 hours of treatment and stimulation apparent at 12 hours and longer, while PAI-1 protein, measured by an ELISA assay for rat PAI-1, was diminished over this period. Neither PAI-2 mRNA nor mRNA for the broad spectrum protease inhibitor, protease nexin-1 (PN-1), was found to be modulated by PGE2. Therefore, PGE2 is likely to stimulate cell surface proteolytic activity, since uPA mRNA and cell-associated activity were elevated, as was mRNA for the cellular receptor for uPA. Although it was not possible to measure uPAR number and affinity it seems likely that elevated uPAR mRNA would translate into increased uPARs which would localize the increased uPA activity to the pericellular region. tPA mRNA and activity were also increased transiently with the activity inhibited with prolonged incubations, apparently by PAI-1. Elevation of tPA mRNA and activity may result in elevated activity within the extracellular matrix as tPA has been reported to associate with several matrix proteins. Thus the early effect of PGE2 would be to promote proteolysis, both pericellularly and in the extracellular matrix. The inhibition of PAI-1 mRNA and protein, which would contribute to the elevation of activity, is due to PGE2, but the later stimulatory effect on PAI-1 mRNA may be due to feedback regulation by transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta), secreted by osteoblasts and activated by elevated levels of PA.

Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor

Parathyroid hormone-related protein antigen localization distinguishes between mesothelioma and adenocarcinoma of the lung.

The distinction between pleural malignant mesothelioma and pulmonary adenocarcinoma remains a problem in diagnostic histopathology. Parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) has been demonstrated in the neoplastic cells of malignant mesotheliomata, using a polyclonal antiserum raised to synthetic PTHrP(1-16). In a series of 44 malignant mesotheliomata and 44 cases of pleural adenocarcinomata, PTHrP was localized immunohistochemically in 84 per cent of the mesotheliomata and in 11 per cent of the pleural adenocarcinomata. Normal and reactive mesothelium did not contain detectable PTHrP. The presence of PTHrP in a very high percentage of malignant mesotheliomata indicates the value of including it in the panel of antibodies utilized in the differential diagnosis of mesothelioma.

Adenocarcinoma

Immunodetection of parathyroid hormone-related protein in plasma and tissues of an elasmobranch (Scyliorhinus canicula).

We have used antiserum to human parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) (1-16) to examine tissues and plasma of the dogfish (Scyliorhinus canicula) for the presence of immunoreactive PTHrP (irPTHrP). The plasma contained high concentrations of irPTHrP (9.34 +/- 0.37 pM), comparable to levels in humans with hypercalcaemia of malignancy. Other tissues with irPTHrP included brain neurones; epithelial cells of the saccus vasculosus, kidney, rectal gland and choroid plexus; and cells of the pituitary pars distalis. PTHrP was not detected in gut, skin, oviduct, and gill epithelia, nor in branchial cartilage. The principal source(s) of plasma PTHrP is not known.

Animals

Effects of ibogaine on responding maintained by food, cocaine and heroin reinforcement in rats.

The effects of ibogaine (40 and 80 mg/kg, i.p.), an indole alkaloid proposed for the treatment of drug abuse, were determined in three different groups of rats responding under an FR10 schedule of food, cocaine or heroin reinforcement. Ibogaine (80 mg/kg, i.p.) given 60 min before the start of the session resulted in a 97% decrease in the number of ratios completed under the food reinforcement schedule and resulted in a decrease in responding the following day. Neither 40 mg/kg ibogaine given 60 min prior to the session nor 80 mg/kg given 24 h before the session suppressed responding maintained by cocaine infusions (0.33 mg/infusion). Pretreatment with 80 mg/kg ibogaine either 60 or 90 min prior to the session suppressed cocaine self-administration on the day it was administered and the longer pretreatment continued to suppress responding for 48 h. Responding maintained by heroin (18 micrograms/infusion) was the most sensitive to the effects of ibogaine. Both 40 and 80 mg/kg ibogaine resulted in an almost complete suppression of responding following a 60-min pretreatment period. Responding maintained by heroin returned to control levels the day following the administration of ibogaine.

Animals

Evidence for the synthesis of parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) by nontransformed clonal rat osteoblastic cells in vitro.

Parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) is synthesized by a variety of tumors and is thought to be the main cause of the clinical syndrome of humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy (HHM). In addition to its parathyroid hormone (PTH)-like actions, novel actions of PTHrP on placental calcium transport and inhibition of in vitro osteoclast activity have been demonstrated. The fact that osteoblasts act as mediators of osteoclastic bone resorption prompted us to investigate whether nontranformed, osteoblastlike cells produce PTHrP. PTHrP has been detected in developing human fetal bones and in rat long bones in culture. For this study, osteogenic cells, CRP 5/4 and CRP 10/30, were employed. Both cell types represent clonal bone cell populations established from 1-day-old rats. While CRP 10/30 cells express the osteoblastic phenotype, CRP 5/4 cells resemble cells with preosteoblastic properties. With a radioimmunoassay (RIA), utilizing antiserum directed against the amino-terminal PTHrP(1-40), it was found that both cell types synthesize PTHrP constitutively. CRP 10/30 cells produce about twice as much as CRP 5/4 cells. Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta 1) was shown to increase the synthesis of PTHrP in CRP 5/4 cells by about 2.5-fold, while in CRP 10/30 cells it caused an approximate 50% reduction of PTHrP. Employing the reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique it was found that both bone cell types express mRNA for PTHrP and that the modulation of the PTHrP mRNA levels by TGF-beta 1 in CRP 5/4, and to a lesser degree in CRP 10/30 cells, was reflected in a change in the level of PTHrP protein in the culture medium.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals

Alternative promoter usage and mRNA splicing pathways for parathyroid hormone-related protein in normal tissues and tumours.

The parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) gene consists of nine exons and allows the production of multiple PTHrP mRNA species via the use of three promoters and 5' and 3' alternative splicing; as a result of 3' alternative splicing one of three protein isoforms may be produced. This organisation has potential for tissue-specific splicing patterns. We examined PTHrP mRNA expression and splicing patterns in a series of tumours and normal tissues, using the sensitive reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique. Use of promoter 3 and mRNA specifying the 141 amino acid PTHrP isoform were detected in all samples. Transcripts encoding the 139 amino acid isoform were detected in all but two samples. Use of promoters 1 and 2 was less widespread as was detection of mRNA encoding the 173 amino acid isoform. While different PTHrP splicing patterns were observed between tumours, no tissue- or tumour-specific transcripts were detected. In comparing normal and tumour tissue from the same patient, an increase in the number of promoters utilised was observed in the tumour tissue. Furthermore, mRNA for the PTH/PTHrP receptor was detected in all samples, thus the PTHrP produced by these tumours may potentially act in an autocrine or paracrine fashion.

Base Sequence

Heterogeneity of the calcitonin receptor: functional aspects in osteoclasts and other sites.

The recent cloning of the calcitonin receptor reveals it as a member of a new family of 7-transmembrane, G protein-linked receptors. Data from rat, mouse and human receptor cloning reveal that in each of these species the receptor exists in more than one form, most likely the result of alternate, splicing. In the rat, the two forms are C1a and C1b, the latter differing from C1a in that it contains a 37-amino acid insert in the second extracellular domain. The two receptor isoforms differ in their distribution in vivo, with the C1b predominantly in the central nervous system and C1a in other tissues. Both forms have been shown to be present in mature and developing osteoclasts, with the C1a isoform predominating. The two isoforms differ in their kinetics and pharmacological properties, with C1b being virtually unable to bind the human and rat calcitonins but readily binding salmon calcitonin. It will be important to elucidate the physiological significance of the structural heterogeneity of the calcitonin receptor.

Animals

Hypercalcaemia.

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Diagnosis, Differential