calcimycin and Situs-Inversus

Xenopus laevis embryos at the blastula-early tail bud stage were exposed to norepinephrine or octopamine dissolved in culture saline until they reached the larval stage. The left-right asymmetry of the heart and gut was then examined. We found that these adrenergic neurotransmitters induced situs inversus in the heart and/or gut in up to 35% of tested neurula embryos. Norepinephrine-induced situs inversus was blocked by the alpha-1 adrenergic antagonist prazosin. Furthermore, A23187, a calcium ionophore, also increased the incidence of situs inversus up to 54% when late-neurula embryos were exposed to the solution. A23187 treatment initiated before neural groove formation was less effective. The incidence of situs inversus induced by these reagents decreased towards the control level (2.2%, 25 untreated embryos out of 1127 embryos in total) in embryos past the stage of neural tube closure. In the present experiments we obtained 22 gut-only situs inversus embryos having an inverted gut and a normal heart. In contrast, such embryos were not observed among the 1127 untreated embryos. An adrenergic signal mediated by an increase in intracellular free calcium may be involved in the asymmetrical visceral morphogenesis of Xenopus embryos.

Topics: Adrenergic alpha-Agonists; Animals; Calcimycin; Calcium; Digestive System; Female; Heart; Ionophores; Male; Norepinephrine; Octopamine; Signal Transduction; Situs Inversus; Xenopus laevis

In previous studies, we have demonstrated that stimulation of alpha 1 but not alpha 2 or beta adrenergic receptors in rat embryos grown in culture interferes with normal development of the left/right body axis leading to situs inversus. In the present study, we aimed to determine the alpha 1 adrenergic receptor subtype and signal transduction pathway involved in this phenomenon. Rat embryos at Stage 11a by a modified Theiler's staging system were cultured for 50 hr in medium containing various compounds which are known to activate or inhibit different sites of the signal transduction pathways associated with alpha 1 adrenergic receptors. They were then examined to determine the sidedness of asymmetric body structures. WB4101, a selective antagonist of alpha 1A adrenergic receptor subtype, but not chlorethylclonidine, a selective antagonist of alpha 1B adrenergic receptor subtype, inhibited phenylephrine (an alpha 1 adrenergic agonist)-induced situs inversus. Neither the protein kinase C (PKC) activators phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate and SC-9 nor the PKC inhibitor calphostin C caused situs inversus. Furthermore, calphostin C did not block phenylephrine-induced situs inversus. A23187, a Ca2+ ionophore, induced situs inversus; nifedipine, a L-type Ca2+ channel blocker, partially blocked phenylephrine-induced situs inversus. The calmodulin antagonists trifluoperazine, W-7, and W-13 blocked phenylephrine-induced situs inversus, although they did not cause situs inversus by themselves. KN-62, a Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaM kinase II) inhibitor, dose-dependently blocked phenylephrine-induced situs inversus. However, higher concentrations of this compound produced no block in the presence of phenylephrine and in its absence produced a 50% incidence of situs inversus. These results indicate that alpha 1 adrenergic stimulation-induced situs inversus is mediated by the alpha 1A adrenergic receptor subtype and that activation of CaM kinase II but not PKC may be involved.

Topics: 1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine; Animals; Calcimycin; Calcium; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinases; Calmodulin; Embryo, Mammalian; Female; Isoquinolines; Organ Culture Techniques; Phenylephrine; Piperazines; Pregnancy; Protein Kinase C; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha-1; Signal Transduction; Situs Inversus