dolichol-monophosphate and Inflammation

Hepatocytes were prepared from control and inflamed rats. The incorporation of [14C]mannose into protein was increased in inflamed compared with control hepatocytes. The incorporation of [14C]mannose into protein was also increased when the hepatocytes were cultured in presence of dexamethasone (1 microM), either from control or inflamed rats. At the same time the incorporation of [14C]mannose into dolichol phosphate mannose and dolichol-linked oligosaccharide was increased due to inflammation. The presence of dexamethasone in the hepatocyte culture caused an increased formation of these two products; in particular its effect on oligosaccharide lipid formation was very pronounced. The ratios of activities of formation of [14C]mannose-labelled oligosaccharide lipid in inflamed over control hepatocytes gradually decrease when increasing amounts of exogenous dolichol phosphate was added in cell homogenate assay mixture. These results suggest that the increase of oligosaccharide lipid formation in inflammation could be due to a higher concentration of endogenous dolichol phosphate, as was shown for dolichol phosphate mannose formation in inflammation [Sarkar & Mookerjea (1984) Biochem. J. 219, 429-436]. In contrast, the ratio of activities of [14C]mannose-labelled oligosaccharide lipid between dexamethasone-treated and untreated hepatocytes shows only a slight increase when increasing concentrations of exogenous dolichol phosphate were added to the assays. This suggests that the stimulation of dolichol pyrophosphate oligosaccharide synthesis observed in dexamethasone treatment is probably due to the higher level of enzymes involved in oligosaccharide synthesis rather than higher level of endogenous dolichol phosphate in these cells.

Topics: Animals; Cells, Cultured; Dexamethasone; Dolichol Phosphates; Glycoproteins; Inflammation; Liver; Male; Mannose; Polyisoprenyl Phosphate Sugars; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains

Studies on the developmental changes in oviducts of hormone-treated chicks and embryos of sea urchins have indicated that the level of dolichol phosphate in the tissues may serve as a control for asparagine-linked glycoprotein biosynthesis. Acute-phase reactant glycoprotein biosynthesis is greatly increased in inflamed rats given a single injection of turpentine. As most of the serum glycoproteins are synthesized via the dolichol pathway, the rate of synthesis of mannosyl and glucosyl dolichol monophosphate and of glucosyl dolichol pyrophosphoryl oligosaccharide, CTP-dependent dolichol phosphokinase, and the level of dolichol phosphate were measured in the livers of inflamed rats. The activities of the glycosyltransferases were increased at least twofold as a result of inflammation. It was also observed that dexamethasone treatment reversed the inflammation-induced increase of mannosyl and glucosyl transfer to dolichol monophosphate. The endogenous level of dolichol phosphate and dolichol kinase activity were increased in microsomes 24 h after inflammation. With exogenous dolichol added to the microsome assay, increased kinase activity was observed as early as 6 h after turpentine injection. The increase of dolichol phosphate in inflammation is most likely due to both greater availability of dolichol and an increase in the level of CTP-dependent dolichol kinase. Studies with purified subcellular fractions showed that dolichol kinase activity is primarily localized in the rough endoplasmic reticular fraction. Since this is the major site of dolichol-phosphate-linked N-glycosylation reactions, a key role of dolichol phosphokinase activity in rough microsomes to initiate the first steps of N-glycoprotein synthesis seems plausible.

Topics: Animals; Cytidine Triphosphate; Dexamethasone; Dolichol Phosphates; Glycoproteins; Humans; Inflammation; Microsomes, Liver; Phosphotransferases; Phosphotransferases (Alcohol Group Acceptor); Polyisoprenyl Phosphates; Turpentine