Robert J. Bridges

Purification and functional reconstitution of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR)

Circumstantial evidence has accumulated suggesting that CFTR is a regulated low-conductance Cl- channel. To test this postulate directly, we have purified to homogeneity a recombinant CFTR protein from a high-level baculovirus-infected insect cell line. Evidence of purity included one- and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, N-terminal peptide sequence, and quantitative amino acid analysis. Reconstitution into proteoliposomes at less than one molecule per vesicle was accomplished by established procedures. Nystatin and ergosterol were included in these vesicles, so that nystatin conductance could serve as a quantitative marker of vesicle fusion with a planar lipid bilayer. Upon incorporation, purified CFTR exhibited regulated chloride channel activity, providing evidence that the protein itself is the channel. This activity exhibited the basic biophysical and regulatory properties of the type of Cl- channel found exclusively in CFTR-expressing cell types and believed to underlie cAMP-evoked secretion in epithelial cells.

Peroxynitrite inhibits sodium uptake in rat colonic membrane vesicles.

Peroxynitrite (ONOO-) is a potent oxidizing agent that initiates lipid peroxidation and sulfhydryl oxidation and may be responsible for a portion of the cytotoxicity attributed to superoxide anion (.O2-). We quantified the extent to which ONOO-, xanthine plus xanthine oxidase (XO) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), decreased sodium (Na+) uptake into membrane vesicles derived from colonic cells of dexamethasone-treated rats. Carrier-free 22Na+ uptake into vesicles was measured in the presence of an inside-negative membrane potential, produced by the addition of the potassium ionophore valinomycin (10 microM) after removal of all external potassium by cation exchange chromatography. Preincubation of vesicles with either 100 microM or 1 mM ONOO- for 30 s decreased the amiloride-blockable fraction of Na+ uptake by 27 +/- 7% and 65 +/- 2%, respectively (means +/- S.E.; n greater than or equal to 5; P less than 0.05 from control). However, the amiloride-insensitive part of Na+ uptake was not affected, indicating that there was no overt destruction of these vesicles by these ONOO- concentrations. Decomposed ONOO-, hydrogen peroxide (1 microM-10 mM), or xanthine (500 microM) plus XO (10-30 mU/ml), either in the absence or in the presence of 100 microM FeEDTA, did not decrease Na+ uptake. These data suggest that ONOO- is a potent injurious agent that can compromise Na+ uptake across epithelial cells, possibly by damaging Na+ channels.

Tolbutamide causes open channel blockade of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator Cl- channels

Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) is an epithelial Cl- channel that is regulated by protein kinase A and cytosolic nucleotides. Previously, Sheppard and Welsh reported that the sulfonylureas glibenclamide and tolbutamide reduced CFTR whole cell currents. The aim of this study was to quantify the effects of tolbutamide on CFTR gating in excised membrane patches containing multiple channels. We chose tolbutamide because weak (i.e., fast-type) open channel blockers introduce brief events into multichannel recordings that can be readily quantified by current fluctuation analysis. Inspection of current records revealed that the addition of tolbutamide reduced the apparent single-channel current amplitude and increased the open-channel noise, as expected for a fast-type open channel blocker. The apparent decrease in unitary current amplitude provides a measure of open probability within a burst (P0 Burst), and the resulting concentration-response relationship was described by a simple Michaelis-Menten inhibition function. The concentration of tolbutamide causing a 50% reduction of Po Burst (540 +/- 20 microM) was similar to the concentration producing a 50% inhibition of short-circuit current across T84 colonic epithelial cell monolayers (400 +/- 20 microM). Changes in CFTR gating were then quantified by analyzing current fluctuations. Tolbutamide caused a high-frequency Lorentzian (corner frequency, fc > 300 Hz) to appear in the power density spectrum. The fc of this Lorentzian component increased as a linear function of tolbutamide concentration, as expected for a pseudo-first-order open-blocked mechanism and yielded estimates of the on rate (koff = 2.8 +/- 0.3 microM-1 s-1), the off rate (kon = 1210 +/- 225 s-1), and the dissociation constant (KD = 430 +/- 80 microM). Based on these observations, we propose that there is a bimolecular interaction between tolbutamide and CFTR, causing open channel blockade.

Endocytosis is regulated by protein kinase A, but not protein kinase C in a secretory epithelial cell line.

Endocytosis in the chloride secreting epithelial cell line T84 was monitored by uptake of the fluid-phase markers FITC-dextran and horseradish peroxidase (HRP). Uptake of marker was inhibited by incubation of cells at 4 degrees C, consistent with an endocytic uptake. Although activation of the cAMP-dependent second messenger pathway has been shown to stimulate exocytosis in this cell line, it caused a 63% reduction in endocytosis as measured by uptake of fluid-phase markers. In contrast, the presence of the protein kinase C activator phorbol-myristate acetate (PMA) caused no significant reduction in the level of endocytosis compared to control, nor did it reverse the inhibitory effect of PKA activation. The data thus suggest that endocytosis in T84 cells is regulated through activation of protein kinase A, but not through activation of protein kinase C.

Comparison of-nitro versus-amino 4, 4′-substituents of disulfonic stilbenes as chloride channel blockers

We showed previously that the disulfonic stilbene DNDS (4, 4′-dinitrostilben-2, 2′-disulfonic acid) was a potent blocker of outwardly rectifying chloride channels (ORCC). The studies reported here were designed to quantify the relationship between electron withdrawal by the 4, 4′-substituents and blocker potency. Specifically we compared the blocking effects and molecular properties of the symmetrically substituted 4, 4′-diaminostilben-2, 2′-disulfonic acid (DADS) and the hemi-substituted 4-amino, 4′-nitrostilben-2, 2′-disulfonic acid (ANDS) with those of DNDS. Blockade was studied using outwardly rectifying colonic chloride channels incorporated into planar lipid bilayers. DADS was 430-fold and ANDS 44-fold less potent than DNDS as blockers of ORCC. Amplitude distribution analysis revealed that all three disulfonic stilbenes act as open channel blockers. Furthermore, this kinetic analysis indicated that the lower potency of DADS and ANDS was due to an increase in off rate. These results support the conclusion that the 4, 4′-substituents make an important contribution to blockade by stabilizing the channel-blocker complex. Isopotential electron contour maps illustrated the dramatic shift in charge at the 4, 4′-poles of the disulfonic stilbene molecule from electronegative in DNDS to electropositive in DADS as well as the bipolar contour of ANDS. Thus, the greater potency of DNDS results from the symmetric electronegative regions at the 4, 4′-poles of the molecule. We hypothesize that the channel protein has two corresponding electropositive areas at the blocker binding site.

Chapter 9 Reconstitution of Epithelial Ion Channels

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the reconstitution of ion channels, emphasizing both functional and biochemical approaches. Functional reconstitution means the direct transfer of an ion channel from its native membrane into a planar lipid bilayer, whereas biochemical reconstitution refers to the detergent extraction and purification of an ion channel and its subsequent reinsertion back into a defined lipid environment. The chapter summarizes the experimental approaches used in the isolation of ion channels and discusses planar lipid bilayer techniques used in reconstitution studies. It also provides a description of the channel incorporation process and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each method using specific examples of channels studied in each fashion. The chapter considers reconstitution studies of Na + , CI – , and K + channels from epithelial tissues. It concludes by giving projections and expectations of the future of the reconstitution field.