Locally controlled inhibitory mechanisms are involved in eukaryotic GPCR-mediated chemosensing

J Cell Biol. 2007 Jul 2;178(1):141-53. doi: 10.1083/jcb.200611096.

Abstract

Gprotein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling mediates a balance of excitatory and inhibitory activities that regulate Dictyostelium chemosensing to cAMP. The molecular nature and kinetics of these inhibitors are unknown. We report that transient cAMP stimulations induce PIP3 responses without a refractory period, suggesting that GPCR-mediated inhibition accumulates and decays slowly. Moreover, exposure to cAMP gradients leads to asymmetric distribution of the inhibitory components. The gradients induce a stable accumulation of the PIP3 reporter PHCrac-GFP in the front of cells near the cAMP source. Rapid withdrawal of the gradient led to the reassociation of G protein subunits, and the return of the PIP3 phosphatase PTEN and PHCrac-GFP to their pre-stimulus distribution. Reapplication of cAMP stimulation produces a clear PHCrac-GFP translocation to the back but not to the front, indicating that a stronger inhibition is maintained in the front of a polarized cell. Our study demonstrates a novel spatiotemporal feature of currently unknown inhibitory mechanisms acting locally on the PI3K activation pathway.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cell Membrane / metabolism
  • Cell Polarity
  • Chemotactic Factors / metabolism*
  • Chemotactic Factors / pharmacology
  • Cyclic AMP / pharmacology
  • Dictyostelium / cytology
  • Dictyostelium / drug effects
  • Dictyostelium / metabolism
  • Dictyostelium / physiology
  • Eukaryotic Cells / metabolism*
  • Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins / metabolism
  • Kinetics
  • Models, Biological
  • PTEN Phosphohydrolase / genetics
  • PTEN Phosphohydrolase / metabolism
  • Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / biosynthesis
  • Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors
  • Protein Binding
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / metabolism*
  • Signal Transduction*

Substances

  • Chemotactic Factors
  • Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins
  • Cyclic AMP
  • PTEN Phosphohydrolase