J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 265, Issue 13, 7188-7194, 05, 1990
Sphingosine differentially inhibits activation of the Na+/H+ exchanger by phorbol esters and growth factors
JH Lowe, CL Huang and HE Ives
Division of Nephrology, University of California, San Francisco 94143.
The role of protein kinase C in activation of the plasma membrane Na+/H+
exchanger was studied in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells. The basic
lipid, sphingosine, was used to block enzymatic activity of protein kinase
C. Na+/H+ exchange was activated by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA),
diacylglycerols, platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), thrombin, or by
osmotically-induced cell shrinkage. Intracellular pH and Na+/H+ exchange
activity were measured using the intracellular pH indicator,
2',7'-bis(carboxyethyl)-5(6) carboxyfluorescein. Acting alone, both crude
sphingosine and pure, synthetic C18 D-(+)-erythro-sphingosine raised pHi in
a dose-dependent manner (from 6.95 +/- 0.02 to 7.19 +/- 0.09 over 10 min
for 10 microM sphingosine). This alkalinization was not due to Na+/H+
exchange as it was not altered by t-butylamiloride (50 microM) nor by
replacement of the assay medium with a Na(+)-free solution.
Sphingosine-induced alkalinization did not require protein kinase C
activity, since it was fully intact in protein kinase C-depleted cells. It
was also not due to a detergent action of sphingosine on the cell membrane,
since both ionic and non-ionic detergents caused cell acidification.
Rather, alkalinization induced by sphingosine appeared to be due to
cellular uptake of NH3 groups since N-acetylsphingosine showed no
alkalinization. After the initial cell alkalinization, cellular uptake of
[3H]sphingosine continued slowly for up to 24 h. The ability of PMA or
dioctanoylglycerol to activate Na+/H+ exchange fell to 20% of control after
24 h of sphingosine exposure. At all times, C11 and N- acetylsphingosine
failed to block PMA-induced activation of the exchanger. Activation of the
Na+/H+ exchanger by sucrose, which does not depend on protein kinase C
activity, was unaffected by sphingosine. Activation of Na+/H+ exchange by
thrombin and PDGF was partially inhibited by 30 and 20%, respectively.
These data indicate that both thrombin and PDGF activate Na+/H+ exchange by
pathway(s) that are primarily independent of protein kinase C.