cholecystokinin and Neuroectodermal-Tumors--Primitive--Peripheral

Topics: 1-Methyl-3-isobutylxanthine; 8-Bromo Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate; Cell Line; Cholecystokinin; Exons; Gene Expression; Humans; Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive, Peripheral; Restriction Mapping; RNA, Messenger; Second Messenger Systems; Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate; Tumor Cells, Cultured

Regulation of cholecystokinin (CCK) expression was studied in the human neuroepithelioma cell line SK-N-MCIXC. The cells were treated with the phosphodiesterase inhibitor isobutyl-methylxanthine and the tumor promoting phorbol ester, phorbol-12-myristate 13-acetate; activators of the cyclic AMP (cAMP) and protein kinase C (PKC) second messenger pathways, respectively. Levels of CCK mRNA were determined after 6, 12 and 24 hour drug treatments, with Northern blot analysis using human CCK cDNA hybridization probes. Activation of both cAMP and PKC second messenger pathways increased CCK mRNA levels in SK-N-MCIXC cells. These results indicate that the levels of CCK mRNA in SK-N-MCIXC cells are regulated by cAMP and PKC dependent mechanisms.

Topics: 1-Methyl-3-isobutylxanthine; 8-Bromo Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate; Cell Line; Cholecystokinin; Cyclic AMP; Dimethyl Sulfoxide; Gene Expression Regulation; Humans; Kinetics; Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive, Peripheral; Protein Kinase C; RNA, Messenger; Second Messenger Systems; Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate

The human cholinergic neuroepithelioma cell line SK-N-MCIXC, which expresses high levels of cholecystokinin (CCK) mRNA and secretes intact CCK into the media, was used to examine CCK processing and metabolism. Our data provide evidence for the existence of specific candidate processing enzymes in SK-N-MCIXC cells which may be involved in processing proCCK in the brain and indicate that SK-N-MCIXC cells provide a model system for studying the regulation of these enzymes. mRNAs for the intracellular processing enzymes, prohormone convertase 1 (PC1), PC2 and furin were present in SK-N-MCIXC cells. PC1 and/or PC2 and/or furin may cleave at the dibasic amino acid pairs Arg-Arg at the C-terminal part of proCCK, and Arg-X-X-Arg at the N-terminal of the CCK-58 sequence in proCCK. The SK-N-MCIXC cell line demonstrated spontaneous and regulated release of CCK and large amounts of CCK-precursors, as measured with region specific radioimmunoassays coupled to high performance liquid chromatography. Storage granules containing glycine-extended CCK were shown in SK-N-MCIXC cells using indirect immunofluorescence. The extracellularly localized CCK-metabolizing enzyme, neutral endopeptidase 24.11 (EC 3.4.24.11), was present in membranes from both SK-N-MCIXC cells and in intact slices of rat cerebral cortex. The rat cerebral cortex is a brain region known to be rich in CCK. The SK-N-MCIXC cell line provides an in vitro model to study the regulation of CCK synthesis and metabolism in neuronal systems since it contains the storage granules, mRNA, intact peptide, and complement of enzymes necessary for biosynthesis and metabolism of CCK.

Topics: Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Brain; Cholecystokinin; Humans; Male; Molecular Sequence Data; Neprilysin; Nerve Tissue Proteins; Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive, Peripheral; Protein Precursors; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; RNA, Messenger; Tumor Cells, Cultured

Regulation of co-expression of three neuropeptide genes, i.e. genes encoding enkephalin, cholecystokinin, and gastrin-releasing peptide, was studied in human neuroepithelioma cells. In nondifferentiated state, the continuous cell line SK-N-MC displayed an equally high level of expression of the enkephalin, cholecystokinin, and gastrin-releasing peptide genes. By culturing in medium containing endothelial cell growth supplement the SK-N-MC cells differentiated morphologically into a cell type with neurite-like processes. After 3 days the expression of the enkephalin gene in endothelial cell growth supplement-differentiated cells was significantly reduced by 75% as compared to the nondifferentiated cells, while there was no change in the expression of the cholecystokinin and gastrin-releasing peptide genes during differentiation. The results show that the enkephalin gene is selectively down-regulated during differentiation of neuroepithelioma cells. It is suggested that the down-regulation is related to the transient expression of the enkephalin gene in developing brain and other organs. Thus the neuroepithelioma cell line may provide a cellular model to study the underlying molecular mechanism.

Topics: Blotting, Northern; Cell Differentiation; Cell Line; Cholecystokinin; Enkephalins; Gastrin-Releasing Peptide; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; Humans; In Vitro Techniques; Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive, Peripheral; Peptides; Protein Precursors; RNA, Messenger; RNA, Neoplasm

The cholinergic human neuroepithelioma cell line SK-N-MCIXC expressed mRNAs for the neuropeptides cholecystokinin (CCK), neuropeptide Y, gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) and enkephalin. The CCK transcript of about 800 nt was present at very high levels and CCK-like peptides immunoreactive to a C-terminal CCK octapeptide antiserum were present in the cell line and its medium. This clonal neuronal cell line provides a unique model system to identify cis- and trans-acting factors responsible for neuron-specific expression and regulation of the CCK gene. Furthermore, the pluripotent properties of the undifferentiated cell line may open studies on neuronal differentiation at the level of co-expression of neuropeptides and transmitters.

Topics: Blotting, Northern; Cholecystokinin; Enkephalins; Gastrin-Releasing Peptide; Gene Expression; Humans; Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive, Peripheral; Neuropeptide Y; Neuropeptides; Peptides; RNA, Messenger; Tumor Cells, Cultured

In this report we identify two cultured human primitive neuroepithelioma cell lines that express cholecystokinin (CCK) RNA and synthesize substantial amounts of pro-CCK, but differ in their ability to process the prohormone. Seven cultured human neural tumor lines, including two primitive neuroepitheliomas and five neuroblastomas, were screened for CCK gene expression using a CCK C-terminal RIA system, a RIA specific for the carboxy-terminal extension of prepro-CCK, and RNAse protection assays specific for CCK mRNA. RNA derived from the two primitive neuroepitheliomas yielded strong hybridization signals with CCK-specific probes. The five other neuronal tumors were negative for CCK mRNA. The two primitive neuroepitheliomas also synthesized substantial quantities of material reactive in the CCK carboxy-terminal extension RIA system. One of the tumors, Sk-N-Mc, postranslationally processed the CCK prohormonal material poorly, yielding only high mol wt CCK precursors and no immunoreactive CCK. The other, SK-PN-Dw, was able to process the prohormone, producing immunoreactive CCK-like material plus a peptide that immunochemically and chromatographically resembled the intact CCK C-terminal extension peptide. These cultured tumor lines should prove useful in furthering our understanding of the regulation of the CCK gene in human neuronal cells and will also provide an in vitro system for investigation of the posttranslational processing of the CCK preprohormone. In addition, the data demonstrate that screening procedures for examining peptide hormone expression by tumors are most comprehensive when specific molecular genetic probes are employed in addition to standard peptide assay methodology. Finally, these data suggest that CCK production may be a feature of some primitive neuroepitheliomas.

Topics: Animals; Cholecystokinin; Chromatography, Gel; Humans; Mice; Neuroblastoma; Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive, Peripheral; Protein Biosynthesis; Protein Precursors; Protein Processing, Post-Translational; Radioimmunoassay; RNA, Messenger; Tumor Cells, Cultured