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The Journal of Biological Chemistry May 2017Here we report the use of a fluorescein-tagged peroxisomal targeting sequence peptide (F-PTS1, acetyl-C{K(FITC)}GGAKL) for investigating pH regulation of glycosomes in...
Here we report the use of a fluorescein-tagged peroxisomal targeting sequence peptide (F-PTS1, acetyl-C{K(FITC)}GGAKL) for investigating pH regulation of glycosomes in live procyclic form When added to cells, this fluorescent peptide is internalized within vesicular structures, including glycosomes, and can be visualized after 30-60 min. Using F-PTS1 we are able to observe the pH conditions inside glycosomes in response to starvation conditions. Previous studies have shown that in the absence of glucose, the glycosome exhibits mild acidification from pH 7.4 ± 0.2 to 6.8 ± 0.2. Our results suggest that this response occurs under proline starvation as well. This pH regulation is found to be independent from cytosolic pH and requires a source of Na ions. Glycosomes were also observed to be more resistant to external pH changes than the cytosol; placement of cells in acidic buffers (pH 5) reduced the pH of the cytosol by 0.8 ± 0.1 pH units, whereas glycosomal pH decreases by 0.5 ± 0.1 pH units. This observation suggests that regulation of glycosomal pH is different and independent from cytosolic pH regulation. Furthermore, pH regulation is likely to work by an active process, because cells depleted of ATP with 2-deoxyglucose and sodium azide were unable to properly regulate pH. Finally, inhibitor studies with bafilomycin and EIPA suggest that both V-ATPases and Na/H exchangers are required for glycosomal pH regulation.
Topics: Adenosine Triphosphate; Amiloride; Animals; Cytosol; Deoxyglucose; Digitonin; Glucose; Homeostasis; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Macrolides; Microbodies; Microscopy, Fluorescence; Potassium; Proline; Protein Domains; Protozoan Proteins; Sodium Azide; Trypanosoma brucei brucei
PubMed: 28348078
DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M117.784173 -
PloS One 2018The calcium binding protein ALG-2 is upregulated in several types of cancerous tissues and cancer cell death may be a consequence of ALG-2 downregulation. Novel research...
The calcium binding protein ALG-2 is upregulated in several types of cancerous tissues and cancer cell death may be a consequence of ALG-2 downregulation. Novel research suggests that ALG-2 is involved in membrane repair mechanisms, in line with several published studies linking ALG-2 to processes of membrane remodeling and transport, which may contribute to the fitness of cells or protect them from damage. To investigate the involvement of ALG-2 in cell recovery after membrane damage we disrupted the PDCD6 gene encoding the ALG-2 protein in DT-40 cells and exposed them to electroporation. ALG-2 knock-out cells were more sensitive to electroporation as compared to wild type cells. This phenotype could be reversed by reestablishing ALG-2 expression confirming that ALG-2 plays an important role in cell recovery after plasma membrane damage. We found that overexpression of wild type ALG-2 but not a mutated form unable to bind Ca2+ partially protected HeLa cells from digitonin-induced cell death. Further, we were able to inhibit the cell protective function of ALG-2 after digitonin treatment by adding a peptide with the ALG-2 binding sequence of ALIX, which has been proposed to serve as the ALG-2 downstream target in a number of processes including cell membrane repair. Our results suggest that ALG-2 may serve as a novel therapeutic target in combination with membrane damaging interventions.
Topics: Animals; Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins; Avian Proteins; Calcium; Calcium-Binding Proteins; Cations, Divalent; Cell Line; Cell Membrane; Cell Survival; Chickens; Digitonin; Electroporation; Gene Knockout Techniques; HeLa Cells; Humans; Mutation
PubMed: 30240438
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0204520 -
Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics Jan 2009Mitochondrial metabolism depends on movement of hydrophilic metabolites through the mitochondrial outer membrane via the voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC). Here we...
Mitochondrial metabolism depends on movement of hydrophilic metabolites through the mitochondrial outer membrane via the voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC). Here we assessed VDAC permeability of intracellular mitochondria in cultured hepatocytes after plasma membrane permeabilization with 8 microM digitonin. Blockade of VDAC with Koenig's polyanion inhibited uncoupled and ADP-stimulated respiration of permeabilized hepatocytes by 33% and 41%, respectively. Tenfold greater digitonin (80 microM) relieved KPA-induced inhibition and also released cytochrome c, signifying mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization. Acute ethanol exposure also decreased respiration and accessibility of mitochondrial adenylate kinase (AK) of permeabilized hepatocytes membranes by 40% and 32%, respectively. This inhibition was reversed by high digitonin. Outer membrane permeability was independently assessed by confocal microscopy from entrapment of 3 kDa tetramethylrhodamine-conjugated dextran (RhoDex) in mitochondria of mechanically permeabilized hepatocytes. Ethanol decreased RhoDex entrapment in mitochondria by 35% of that observed in control cells. Overall, these results demonstrate that acute ethanol exposure decreases mitochondrial outer membrane permeability most likely by inhibition of VDAC.
Topics: Animals; Biological Transport; Cells, Cultured; Digitonin; Ethanol; Hepatocytes; Kinetics; Mitochondria, Liver; Mitochondrial Membranes; Oxygen Consumption; Permeability; Rats
PubMed: 19014900
DOI: 10.1016/j.abb.2008.10.036 -
The Analyst Sep 2021Analyzing intracellular signalling protein activities in living cells promises a better understanding of the signalling cascade and related biological processes. We have...
Analyzing intracellular signalling protein activities in living cells promises a better understanding of the signalling cascade and related biological processes. We have previously developed cyclic peptide-based probes for analyzing intracellular AKT signalling activities, but these peptide probes were not cell-permeable. Implementing fusogenic liposomes as delivery vehicles could circumvent the problem when analyzing adherent cells, but it remained challenging to study suspension cells using similar approaches. Here, we present a method for delivering these imaging probes into suspension cells using digitonin, which could transiently perforate the cell membrane. Using U87, THP-1, and Jurkat cells as model systems representing suspended adherent cells, myeloid cells, and lymphoid cells, we demonstrated that low concentrations of digitonin enabled a sufficient amount of probes to enter the cytosol without affecting cell viability. We further combined this delivery method with a microwell single-cell chip and interrogated the AKT signalling dynamics in THP-1 and Jurkat cells, followed by immunofluorescence-based quantitation of AKT expression levels. We resolved the cellular heterogeneity in AKT signalling activities and showed that the kinetic patterns of AKT signalling and the AKT expression levels were related in THP-1 cells, but decoupled in Jurkat cells. We expect that our approach can be adapted to study other suspension cells.
Topics: Biological Phenomena; Digitonin; Humans; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; Signal Transduction; Single-Cell Analysis
PubMed: 34351328
DOI: 10.1039/d1an00751c -
The Biochemical Journal Apr 1987A previously described digitonin-perfusion technique [Quistorff, Grunnet & Cornell (1985) Biochem. J. 226, 289-297], by which intracellular material of rat liver could...
A previously described digitonin-perfusion technique [Quistorff, Grunnet & Cornell (1985) Biochem. J. 226, 289-297], by which intracellular material of rat liver could be liberated, has been refined, now allowing release of cytosol of high purity from both periportal and perivenous parts of the same liver. The cytosolic fractions are obtained by perfusing the liver for short intervals (10-20 s) with digitonin (4-5 mg/ml), first in the normal perfusion direction and then, after an interval of 1-2 min, in the retrograde direction, the eluate being collected during and after both intervals. The technique is termed 'dual-digitonin-pulse perfusion'. The eluate fractions showed a peak specific activity of the cytosolic enzymes alanine aminotransferase (ALAT), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and pyruvate kinase (PK) of 3-5-fold higher than obtained in a biopsy from the same liver. For glutamine synthetase (GS) a 10-fold higher specific activity was obtained. Zonation, defined as the ratio of the specific activities in periportal and perivenous eluates, of ALAT, LDH and PK was 10, 1.7 and 0.70 respectively. Zonation of GS was less than 0.01. These factors may be modified by a slight zonation of cytosolic protein of 1.2-1.3. Peak concentrations in the eluate of ATP, ADP, Pi, NAD+ and glycerol 3-phosphate were 32.5 +/- 11.4, 19.9 +/- 4.3, 71.9 +/- 25.4, 2.41 +/- 0.83 and 6.84 +/- 2.74 nmol/mg of protein for periportal eluates. There was no difference between periportal and perivenous eluates except for glycerol 3-phosphate, which was significantly higher in perivenous eluates, 12.8 +/- 4.5 nmol/mg of protein.
Topics: Alanine Transaminase; Animals; Cytosol; Digitonin; Female; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase; Liver; Microcirculation; Perfusion; Proteins; Pyruvate Kinase; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains
PubMed: 3606584
DOI: 10.1042/bj2430087 -
The Journal of Biological Chemistry Mar 1986The dihydropyridine receptor-calcium channel complex, prelabeled with (+)-[3H]PN200-110, was solubilized from rat heart membranes with a detergent mixture of digitonin...
The dihydropyridine receptor-calcium channel complex, prelabeled with (+)-[3H]PN200-110, was solubilized from rat heart membranes with a detergent mixture of digitonin and Triton X-100. The dissociation of (+)-[3H]PN200-110 was slow enough to permit the hydrodynamic characterization of the complex by means of sucrose gradient sedimentation and gel filtration. The hydrodynamic properties of the complex were determined in several detergents, including Tween 80, 3-[(3-cholamidopropyl)dimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonic acid (CHAPS), and digitonin. S20,w values of 12.5, 15.4, and 21.0 S were obtained in sucrose gradients prepared in Tween 80, CHAPS, and digitonin, respectively. A Stokes radius of 86-87 A was obtained in each of the three detergents. Determination of the partial specific volume of the protein-detergent complex in each case revealed that the differences in S20,w values could be explained by the differences in the properties of the bound detergent species. Partial specific volumes of 0.796, 0.730, and 0.730 ml/g, corresponding to molecular weights of 595,000, 540,000, and 740,000 were obtained for the complex in Tween 80, CHAPS, and digitonin, respectively. This indicated that Tween 80 readily exchanged for the solubilizing mixture of digitonin and Triton X-100, whereas CHAPS did not. Detergent exchange with Tween 80 made it possible to determine the fractional contribution of the receptor protein to the molecular weight of the protein-detergent complex. The molecular weight of the dihydropyridine receptor-calcium channel complex was estimated to be 370,000. The protein-detergent complex was found to have a frictional coefficient of 1.39, consistent with a large transmembrane protein.
Topics: Animals; Calcium Channels; Centrifugation, Density Gradient; Cholic Acids; Chromatography, Gel; Deuterium; Deuterium Oxide; Digitonin; Male; Molecular Weight; Myocardium; Octoxynol; Polyethylene Glycols; Polysorbates; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains; Receptors, Nicotinic; Solubility; Water
PubMed: 3005292
DOI: No ID Found -
Journal of Bacteriology Feb 1976The urea-hydrolyzing activity of a T-strain mycoplasma was studied in experiments using whole cells and cell-free enzyme preparations by measuring the release of 14CO2...
The urea-hydrolyzing activity of a T-strain mycoplasma was studied in experiments using whole cells and cell-free enzyme preparations by measuring the release of 14CO2 from [14C]urea. Under the conditions used, the urea concentration optimum is approximately 5.6 X 10(-3) M urea. The activity is soluble and not membrane bound. It is stable at -70 C for several weeks but is more labile at higher temperatures. The pH optimum is between 5.0 and 6.0. The effect of several inhibitors on the activity was tested and revealed similarities, as well as differences, between T-strain mycoplasma urease activity and the urease activity of other organisms and plants.
Topics: Bacteriolysis; Carbon Dioxide; Cell-Free System; Digitonin; Edetic Acid; Gold; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Hydrolysis; Hydroxamic Acids; Hydroxyurea; Mycoplasmataceae; Temperature; Thallium; Thiourea; Urea; Urease
PubMed: 1381
DOI: 10.1128/jb.125.2.581-587.1976 -
The Journal of Cell Biology Jun 1981Preparations enriched with plasmalemmal, outer mitochondrial, or Golgi complex membranes from rat liver were subfractionated by isopycnic centrifugation, without or...
Analytical study of microsomes and isolated subcellular membranes from rat liver VIII. Subfractionation of preparations enriched with plasma membranes, outer mitochondrial membranes, or Golgi complex membranes.
Preparations enriched with plasmalemmal, outer mitochondrial, or Golgi complex membranes from rat liver were subfractionated by isopycnic centrifugation, without or after treatment with digitonin, to establish the subcellular distribution of a variety of enzymes. The typical plasmalemmal enzymes 5'-nucleotidase, alkaline phosphodiesterase I, and alkaline phosphatase were markedly shifted by digitonin toward higher densities in all three preparations. Three glycosyltransferases, highly purified in the Golgi fraction, were moderately shifted by digitonin in both this Golgi complex preparation and the microsomal fraction. The outer mitochondrial membrane marker, monoamine oxidase, was not affected by digitonin in the outer mitochondrial membrane marker, monoamine oxidase, was not affected by digitonin in the out mitochondrial membrane preparation, in agreement wit its behavior in microsomes. With the exception of NADH cytochrome c reductase (which was concentrated in the outer mitochondrial membrane preparation), typical microsomal enzymes (glucose-6-phosphatase, esterase, and NADPH cytochrome c reductase) displayed low specific activities in the three preparations; except for part of the glucose-6-phosphatase activity in the plasma membrane preparation, their density distributions were insensitive to digitonin, as they were in microsomes. The influence of digitonin on equilibrium densities was correlated with its morphological effects. Digitonin induced pseudofenestrations in plasma membranes. In Golgi and outer mitochondrial membrane preparations, a few similarly altered membranes were detected in subfractions enriched with 5'-nucleotidase and alkaline phosphodiesterase I. The alterations of Golgi membranes were less obvious and seemingly restricted to some elements in the Golgi preparation. No morphological modification was detected in digitonin-treated outer mitochondrial membranes. These results indicate that each enzyme is associated with the same membrane entity in all membrane preparations and support the view that there is little overlap in the enzymatic equipment of the various types of cytomembranes.
Topics: Animals; Cell Fractionation; Cell Membrane; Digitonin; Female; Golgi Apparatus; Hydrolases; Intracellular Membranes; Liver; Mitochondria, Liver; Oxidoreductases; Rats; Transferases
PubMed: 7251662
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.89.3.456 -
The Journal of Biological Chemistry Mar 1988The metabolism of D-glucose is believed to initiate and regulate insulin secretion by islet beta-cells, although the identity of the metabolite which couples glucose...
Studies of the Ca2+ requirements for glucose- and carbachol-induced augmentation of inositol trisphosphate and inositol tetrakisphosphate accumulation in digitonin-permeabilized islets. Evidence for a glucose recognition site in insulin secretion.
The metabolism of D-glucose is believed to initiate and regulate insulin secretion by islet beta-cells, although the identity of the metabolite which couples glucose metabolism to the cellular events involved in insulin secretion is unknown. An alternative hypothesis involves the presence of a glucoreceptor for which there has been no biochemical evidence. We have investigated whether glucose recognition by the beta-cell is coupled to phospholipase C. We have used digitonin-permeabilized, [3H]inositol-prelabeled islets to study glucose and carbachol activation of phospholipase C. In this model, carbachol recognition by its muscarinic receptor was coupled to phospholipase C activation. D-Glucose (but not L-glucose) also stimulated phospholipase C activity in these permeabilized islets. This effect was not due to glucose metabolism since glucose 6-phosphate did not affect phospholipase C activity and since phosphorylation of [3H]glucose was not detectable in digitonin-permeabilized islets. Glucose had no effect on the myo-inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate-5-phosphatase or 3-kinase activities. In the absence of agonist, free Ca2+ concentrations between 0.1 and 1 microM (as determined with a Ca2+-specific electrode) did not influence phospholipase C activity. Stimulation of phospholipase C activity by either carbachol or glucose required Ca2+ in the submicromolar range and was optimal at 0.5 microM free Ca2+.myo-Inositol-1,3,4,5-tetrakisphosphate production from permeabilized islets was synergistically augmented by Ca2+ (0.5-10 microM) and glucose. Phospholipase C activity in islets is therefore not directly activated by free Ca2+ concentrations in the submicromolar range. Furthermore, glucose per se activates phospholipase C activity independently of glucose metabolism. A working hypothesis based on these findings is that glucose is recognized by a site which is coupled to phospholipase C in islets.
Topics: Animals; Calcium; Carbachol; Cell Membrane Permeability; Cells, Cultured; Digitonin; Glucose; Inositol 1,4,5-Trisphosphate; Inositol Phosphates; Insulin; Insulin Secretion; Islets of Langerhans; Kinetics; Male; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains; Receptors, Cell Surface; Sugar Phosphates
PubMed: 2831191
DOI: No ID Found -
Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta Apr 1986We have recently reported that human neutrophils can be permeabilized with the cholesterol complexing agent saponin and that these cells can be induced to secrete the...
We have recently reported that human neutrophils can be permeabilized with the cholesterol complexing agent saponin and that these cells can be induced to secrete the granule enzyme lysozyme in response to micromolar levels of free calcium. We now report that digitonin can be used in place of saponin and that it has several advantages. Permeabilization of human neutrophils was accomplished with 10 micrograms/ml digitonin in a high potassium medium. Normally impermeant solutes such as [14C]sucrose and inulin [14C]carboxylic acid gained access to one half of the intracellular water space marked with [3H]H2O. Between 30 and 100% of the cytoplasmic enzyme, lactate dehydrogenase, leaked from the intracellular space. The permeabilization process and calcium-triggered granule secretion were critically dependent upon temperature, time and digitonin concentration. Permeabilized neutrophils secreted beta-glucuronidase, lysozyme and vitamin B-12 binding-protein, constituents of both azurophil and specific granules, when exposed to micromolar levels of free calcium. Release of specific granule constituents appeared to be more sensitive to free calcium than release from azurophil granules. Although the amount of permeabilization varied considerably with each batch of cells, release of these granule markers was a consistent finding. Release of granule markers was accompanied by resealing of the cells to high-molecular-weight (Mr greater than 5000) solutes. Electron microscopic evidence also suggested that granule and plasma membranes were intact following digitonin treatment and that fusion of these membranes occurred in response to calcium. These results suggest that elevation of intracellular free-calcium levels is a sufficient condition for lysosomal enzyme release.
Topics: Calcium Chloride; Cell Membrane Permeability; Digitonin; Glucuronidase; Humans; Kinetics; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase; Lysosomes; Microscopy, Electron; Muramidase; Neutrophils; Transcobalamins
PubMed: 3955077
DOI: 10.1016/0167-4889(86)90205-3