Norepinephrine transport by the extraneuronal monoamine transporter in human bronchial arterial smooth muscle cells

Gabor Horvath,1,3 Zoltan Sutto,1,3 Aliza Torbati,2 Gregory E. Conner,1,2 Matthias Salathe,1 and Adam Wanner1

1Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine and 2Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy, University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, Florida 33133; and 3Department of Respiratory Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary

Submitted 27 February 2003 ; accepted in final form 5 June 2003


    ABSTRACT
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 DISCLOSURES
 REFERENCES
 
Inhaled glucocorticosteroids (GSs) cause acute, {alpha}1-adrenoreceptor (AR)-mediated bronchial vasoconstriction. After release from sympathetic nerves, norepinephrine (NE) must be taken up into cells for deactivation by intracellular enzymes. Because postsynaptic cellular NE uptake is steroid sensitive, GSs could increase NE concentrations at {alpha}1-AR, causing vasoconstriction. We therefore evaluated mRNA expression of different NE transporters in human bronchial arterial smooth muscle and pharmacologically characterized NE uptake into these cells. RT-PCR demonstrated mRNA expression of the extraneuronal monoamine transporter (EMT) and organic cation transporter 1 (OCT-1). Fluorometric uptake assay showed time (within minutes)- and concentration-dependent NE uptake by freshly isolated bronchial arterial smooth muscle cells (SMC) with an estimated Km of 240 µM. Corticosterone and O-methylisoprenaline (1 µM each), but not desipramine, inhibited NE uptake, a profile indicative of NE uptake by EMT, but not OCT-1. Budesonide and methylprednisolone inhibited uptake with IC50 values of 0.9 and 5.6 µM, respectively. Corticosterone's action was reversible and not sensitive to RU-486 (GS receptor antagonist), actinomycin D (transcription inhibitor), or cycloheximide (protein synthesis inhibitor). Corticosterone made membrane impermeant by coupling to BSA also blocked NE uptake. Immunocytochemistry indicated a specific membrane binding site for corticosterone on bronchial arterial SMC. These data demonstrate that although human bronchial arterial SMC express OCT-1 and EMT, EMT is the predominant plasma membrane transporter for NE uptake. This process can be inhibited by GSs, likely via a specific membrane binding site. This nongenomic GS action (increasing NE concentrations at {alpha}1-AR) could explain acute bronchial vasoconstriction caused by inhaled GSs.

vasoconstriction; glucocorticosteroids; budesonide; nongenomic; plasma membrane binding site


NOREPINEPHRINE (NE), released from airway sympathetic nerve endings, mediates vasoconstriction in the tracheobronchial circulation (4). NE acts largely via postjunctional {alpha}1-adrenoreceptors on bronchial vascular smooth muscle cells (SMC). The NE concentration and duration at its receptor determine the extent of neurogenic vasoconstriction. Because NE is metabolically stable in the extracellular space (i.e., the metabolizing enzymes are localized intracellularly) and because NE cannot freely diffuse through membranes, the NE concentration at postjunctional {alpha}1-adrenoreceptors is largely dependent on the rates of release, neuronal reuptake [uptake1, or cocaine-sensitive uptake (36)], and extraneuronal uptake [uptake2, or steroid-sensitive uptake (7)]. In contrast to other tissues where uptake1 predominates (7), NE removal from the extracellular space in the airways by uptake2 is five times greater than removal by uptake1 (31), possibly because of the relatively sparse sympathetic innervation (6). Inhibition of uptake2 in the airways is therefore expected to increase overall sympathetic tone and cause local vasoconstriction, in keeping with observations of uptake2 inhibition in other vascular beds (9, 19, 21, 27).

We previously showed that human tracheobronchial blood flow decreases in response to {alpha}1-adrenergic stimulation in vivo (2) and that inhaled glucocorticosteroids (GSs) cause an acute, {alpha}1-adrenoreceptor-mediated bronchial vasoconstriction (20, 26). This GS-mediated vasoconstriction occurred too rapidly to be due to the "classic," transcriptional steroid effect (1, 23), suggesting that GSs exert this vasoconstrictive effect via a nongenomic action (39). In search of such a nongenomic action, we previously showed that GSs inhibit NE uptake by rabbit aortic SMC in a membrane-dependent fashion and that rabbit aortic SMC express mRNA of the GS-sensitive, extraneuronal monoamine transporter [EMT, or organic cation transporter 3 (OCT-3)] (12, 15). Preliminary observations in human bronchial arterial SMC showed that these cells also exhibit GS-sensitive NE uptake and express EMT mRNA (15). These findings suggested that inhaled GSs could cause bronchial vasoconstriction by acutely interfering with NE uptake into bronchial vascular SMC, but the process remained to be carefully characterized in human cells.

The present investigation was designed to expand our preliminary human data by carefully characterizing NE uptake into freshly isolated human bronchial arterial SMC and determining mRNA expression profiles of different known NE transporters in these cells. Furthermore, we studied whether the inhibitory effect on NE uptake by corticosterone is also applicable to GSs used in the treatment of airway diseases. Finally, using immunocytochemistry, we examined the presence of a specific plasma membrane binding site for corticosterone in human bronchial arterial SMC.


    MATERIALS AND METHODS
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 DISCLOSURES
 REFERENCES
 
Materials. All media and agents were obtained from Sigma-Aldrich (St. Louis, MO) unless otherwise noted.

Human bronchial arterial SMC isolation. Donor lungs, rejected for transplantation, were obtained through the University of Miami Life Alliance Organ Recovery Agency with approval from the local Institutional Review Board. Donors had no history of lung diseases and were not preselected on the basis of their age or gender. Lungs obtained from at least three different donors were used for each experiment. Major branches of bronchial arteries from the main bronchi (~0.5-1 mm diameter) were excised using a dissecting stereomicro-scope under sterile conditions. To confirm that the dissected structure was, in fact, an artery (thick muscular wall and narrow lumen), a small portion of each vessel was fixed in 4% formaldehyde buffered with PBS, processed according to regular procedures for histology, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin. The rest of the vessel was dissected from adhering fat and connective tissue and opened longitudinally. Endothelial cells were removed by scraping the inside surface.

From this muscle preparation, strips were cut transversely and immediately used for RNA extraction (see below) or cell isolation. SMC were isolated as described previously (15, 16), with some modifications. Briefly, muscle strips were transferred to a constantly oxygenated incubation solution (137 mM NaCl, 4.17 mM NaHCO3, 0.34 mM NaH2PO4, 5.37 mM KCl, 0.44 mM KH2PO4, 7 mM glucose, 0.15 mM CaCl2,2mM MgCl2, 10 mM HEPES, 0.02% BSA, pH 7.4) containing papain (1.5 mg/ml) and 2 mM DTT and incubated at 37°C for 30 min with shaking. Then the muscle strips were transferred to a constantly oxygenated incubation solution containing collagenase type F (1.5 mg/ml) and hyaluronidase type I-S (1 mg/ml) and incubated at 37°C for an additional 20 min with shaking. At the end of the digestion period, individual SMC were obtained by gentle tituration, followed by filtration through a 500-µm sieve. Finally, cells were collected by centrifugation at 1,000 g for 3 min and resuspended in fresh (enzyme free) incubation solution. The viability of freshly isolated SMC after enzymatic dispersion was always >95% as tested by trypan blue exclusion. The SMC suspension was deposited onto human placental collagen (type VI)-coated glass coverslips. Cells were allowed to settle for 60 min at 37°C before NE uptake experiments.

Cell culture techniques. For immunochemical detection of a corticosterone binding site, bronchial arterial SMC were maintained for 3 days in DMEM (Life Technologies, Rockville, MD) supplemented with 10% FBS, penicillin (100 U/ml), and streptomycin (100 µg/ml) within a humidified atmosphere containing 5% CO2 at 37°C. This was necessary because acutely dissociated cells did not sufficiently adhere to the coverslips to withstand the staining process, and they were lost during the immunocytochemical procedure. The 3-day-cultured cells still revealed corticosterone-dependent NE uptake similar to the freshly isolated cells.

To provide a positive control sample for RT-PCR optimization of EMT mRNA, human renal carcinoma-derived Caki-1 cells were purchased from the American Type Culture Collection (Manassas, VA). Caki-1 cells were cultured in Mc-Coy's 5A medium (American Type Culture Collection) supplemented with 10% FBS, penicillin (100 U/ml), and streptomycin (100 µg/ml) in a humidified atmosphere containing 5% CO2 at 37°C. Media were changed every other day.

Airway epithelial cell air-liquid interface cultures were prepared as described previously (22).

RT-PCR analysis of mRNA expression of NE transporters. NE transporter expression was determined in bronchial arterial smooth muscle and compared with expression in Caki-1 cells, airway epithelium, and brain, liver, and kidney tissues. Total RNA was extracted from freshly isolated bronchial arterial smooth muscle as well as cultured Caki-1 and airway epithelial cells using the RNeasy Protect Mini Kit (Qiagen, Valencia, CA). RNA samples were treated with DNase (DNase I Amplification Grade, Life Technologies), precipitated with ethanol, and quantified spectrophotometrically at 260 nm. Good quality of isolated RNA (28S-to-8S rRNA ratio > 1.75) was confirmed using an RNA 6000 Lab-Chip Kit (Agilent Technologies, Palo Alto, CA) and a bioanalyzer (model 2100, Agilent Technologies) provided by the University of Miami DNA Microarray Facility. Total RNA samples from human brain, liver, and kidney were purchased from Ambion (Austin, TX). RNA (1 µg per sample) was used for first-strand cDNA synthesis with Superscript II RT (Life Technologies) using oligo-(dT)16 primers. For PCR amplification, oligonucleotide primers were designed on the basis of the published sequences of neuronal epinephrine transporter (NET; GenBank NM_001043 [GenBank] ), organic cation transporters 1 and 2 (OCT-1 and OCT-2; GenBank NM_003057 [GenBank] and GenBank NM_003058 [GenBank] ), extraneuronal monoamine transporter (EMT; GenBank NM_021977 [GenBank] ), and GAPDH (GenBank NM_002046 [GenBank] ) cDNAs (Table 1). PCR amplifications were done using Taq DNA polymerase (Life Technologies) using optimized annealing temperatures and cycle numbers for each primer pair (Table 1). RT-PCR products were electrophoresed on ethidium bromide-stained 2% SeaKem agarose (BMA, Rockland, ME) gels. Control reactions were performed in the absence of RT to verify that the amplified products were from mRNA, and not from genomic DNA contamination. In the absence of RT, no PCR products were observed. To confirm specific amplification, RT-PCR products were purified on a silica spin column (Qiaquick PCR Purification Kit, Qiagen) and sequenced by the University of Miami DNA Core Laboratory. Sequences were compared with the published cDNA sequences by PileUp (Wisconsin Package, GCG, Madison, WI).


View this table:
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Table 1. Oligonucleotide primers, annealing temperatures, and cycle numbers for RT-PCR amplifications of NE transporter and GAPDH mRNAs

 

NE uptake experiments. For NE uptake studies, coverslips with SMC were placed in 12-well cell culture clusters (Corning, Corning, NY), and the cells were exposed to incubation solution containing NE with or without different NE transporter inhibitors (see below) in a humidified atmosphere containing 5% CO2 at 37°C. To inhibit the intracellular NE-metabolizing enzymes, 500 µM pargyline (a monoamine oxidase inhibitor) (14) and 1 µM Ro-41-0960 (a catecholamine-O-methyltransferase inhibitor) (30) were added to the incubation solution 30 min before the NE uptake experiments. The following inhibitors were used: 1 µM desipramine, which inhibits only NET (Ki = 4 nM) (3), 1 µM corticosterone, which inhibits OCT-1, OCT-2, and EMT (IC50 = 21.7, 34.2, and 0.29 µM, respectively) (3, 25, 33), or 1 µM O-methylisoprenaline (Boehringer Ingelheim), which inhibits OCT-2 (Ki = 580 µM) and EMT (IC50 = 4.38 µM), but not OCT-1 (10, 33). GSs, such as corticosterone, budesonide, and methylprednisolone, were dissolved in ethanol and freshly diluted into the incubation solution just before use. The final concentration of ethanol was 0.1%, a concentration with no significant effect on NE uptake measurements as confirmed in control experiments using this vehicle only.

Fluorometric NE uptake assay. At the end of the incubation period, SMC were washed with ice-cold incubation solution. Intracellular NE was visualized using a sucrose-potassium phosphate-glyoxylic acid (SPG) method described for tissue slices (37) and adapted by us for use in isolated vascular SMC (15, 16). Briefly, coverslips with SMC were washed with SPG solution (0.2 M sucrose, 236 mM KH2PO4, 1% glyoxylic acid monohydrate, pH 7.4) at room temperature. After they were air-dried for 5 min, the specimen was covered with a drop of light mineral oil. Then the sample was sealed with a coverslip and placed in an oven at 95°C for 2.5 min. To quantify fluorescence, a microscope (Eclipse E600FN, Nikon, Melville, NY) with a Lambda DG-4 excitation system (Sutter Instruments, Novato, CA), a cooled charge coupled device camera (Coolsnap HQ, Roper Scientific), and ISee software (ISee Imaging Systems, Raleigh, NC) were used. Cells were imaged at x600 magnification with differential interference contrast microscopy, and individual cells were identified as regions of interest. For quantification of the SPG fluorescence (or intracellular NE concentration) in these cells (or regions of interest), a 10-nm-wide filter centered on 405 nm was used for excitation, and the emission was measured at >455 nm using a long-pass filter (emission maximum 480 nm), integrating the signal for 1 s. The cooled charge coupled device camera was always set to a predefined gain, which was held constant throughout the experiments. SMC fluorescence was measured by selecting five well-separated regions on each coverslip (5-10 cells per region). Each single cell's mean fluorescence intensity value (Fn), expressed in arbitrary units, was normalized for background fluorescence by subtracting the mean Fn of SMC from the same tissue that had not been exposed to NE. Average NE uptake of each experimental group was calculated using the mean normalized Fn of all cells. Because we have shown that the intracellular fluorescence is nearly linear to the intracellular NE concentration over a wide concentration range (15), we chose to report here the fluorescence in arbitrary units and only convert the values to NE concentration for the Km determination of NE uptake.

Immunochemical detection of a plasma membrane binding site for corticosterone in bronchial arterial SMC. Cells maintained on collagen-coated coverslips for 3 days were washed three times with PBS and incubated with 1 µM BSA, 1 µM corticosterone-21-hemisuccinate-BSA, or 1 µM corticosterone-21-hemisuccinate-BSA + 100 µM corticosterone for 5 min at 37°C. Then the cells were fixed with 4% paraformaldehyde buffered with PBS for 30 min at room temperature. Fixed cells were washed with PBS containing 200 µg/ml goat IgG (blocking buffer) and incubated with blocking buffer for 60 min at room temperature. The cells were washed with blocking buffer and then incubated with rabbit anti-BSA IgG primary antibody (10 µg/ml; Molecular Probes, Eugene, OR) for 60 min at room temperature. After they were washed again with blocking buffer, the cells were incubated with a tetramethylrhodamine isothiocyanate (TRITC)-conjugated goat anti-rabbit IgG secondary antibody (20 µg/ml) for 60 min at room temperature. After being washed with PBS and mounted in permanent aqueous mounting medium (Gel/Mount, Biomedia, Foster City, CA), cells were visualized on the Nikon Eclipse E600FN microscope described above, and TRITC fluorescence was imaged using an appropriate excitation-emission filter set.

Data analysis and statistical methods. Uptake experiments were carried out in triplicate with measurements on 25-50 cells each. Values are means ± SE. For time-course analysis of NE uptake, the data were fit with nonlinear regression methods using Prism version 3.0a (GraphPad Software, San Diego, CA) with the following equations: A(t) = kin/kout * (1 - e-kout * t), where A(t) is uptake of NE at time t, kin and kout are rate constants for inward and outward transport, respectively, and t is incubation time. The variables for the fit were kin and kout and, thus, were determined during the fitting procedure.

Km was determined with a nonlinear regression fit (Prism) using the following equation: y = (Vmax * x)/(Km + x), where y is uptake of x amount of NE. Again Vmax was a variable of the fitting procedure.

For IC50 calculations, the data were fit to a multisite inhibition model (Prism) using the following equation: y = inhibitionmax + (inhibitionmin - inhibitionmax)/(1 + 10(logIC50xHill slope)), where y is the effect of x amount of the inhibitor.

Statistical significance was determined with an unpaired Student's t-test for comparison of two groups and ANOVA followed by the post hoc Tukey-Kramer honestly significant difference test for multiple groups. P < 0.05 was considered significant.


    RESULTS
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 DISCLOSURES
 REFERENCES
 
NE transporter mRNA expression. Because nonneuronal cells may express various and/or multiple transport systems for NE, RT-PCR was used as described in MATERIALS AND METHODS to examine the presence of neuronal [NET (29)] and nonneuronal [OCT-1 (11), OCT-2 (28), and EMT] transporter mRNAs. On the basis of the published expression data, human brain, liver, kidney, and Caki-1 cell mRNA samples were used to optimize the RT-PCR for NET, OCT-1, OCT-2, and EMT mRNAs, respectively. Gel electrophoresis of the RT-PCR products for these samples showed bands of expected sizes (Fig. 1). Gel purification and sequence analysis confirmed that these amplicons were fragments of the corresponding NE transporter cDNAs. The isolated fragments contained only exon sequences (from >=3 different exons for each), confirming the amplification of mRNA, rather than genomic sequences. Interestingly, brain and kidney expressed mRNA for every neuronal and nonneuronal NE transporter, whereas Caki-1 cells expressed only mRNA for every nonneuronal NE transporter. In addition to the previously reported mRNA expression of EMT (15), only OCT-1 mRNA was detectable in human bronchial arterial smooth muscle. The possibility of EMT and OCT-1 mRNA amplifications from cells other than bronchial arterial smooth muscle (e.g., endothelial cells and neurons) is unlikely because these cells are expressing NET mRNA (29), which was not detected (Fig. 1). Cultured airway epithelial cells expressed neuronal and nonneuronal (OCT-1 and EMT) transporters for NE.



View larger version (112K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Fig. 1. RT-PCR analysis of norepinephrine (NE) transporter mRNA expression. With use of primers and conditions listed in Table 1, RT-PCR products were electrophoresed on ethidium bromide-stained 2% agarose gels. Gel purification and DNA sequencing were used to confirm specific amplification of neuronal epinephrine transporter (NET), organic cationic transporters 1 and 2 (OCT-1 and OCT-2), extraneuronal monoamine transporter (EMT), and GAPDH cDNAs. Starting RNA was from human brain, liver, kidney, Caki-1 cells, bronchial arterial smooth muscle (BASM), and airway epithelial cells (AEC) cultured at the air-liquid interface.

 

NE uptake characteristics in bronchial arterial SMC. Because rabbit aortic and human bronchial arterial SMC showed steroid-sensitive NE uptake in our prior study (15) and because our new RT-PCR data indicated that EMT and OCT-1 mRNAs are expressed in human bronchial arterial SMC, NE uptake was measured in these cells in the absence or presence of 10 µM corticosterone. This concentration of corticosterone was chosen to inhibit EMT, but not other OCTs, in a significant amount (13; see also below). The amount of uptake inhibited by 10 µM corticosterone was defined as EMT mediated.

To show first that NE uptake into human bronchial arterial SMC is a time-dependent phenomenon, cells were incubated in 50 µM NE with and without 10 µM corticosterone for 5, 15, 30, 45, and 90 min. NE uptake was detectable after 5 min and increased in a time-dependent fashion for 45 min (Fig. 2A). The concentration dependence was evaluated by incubating the cells in 25, 50, 250, and 1,000 µM NE with and without 10 µM corticosterone for 5 min. EMT-mediated uptake appeared to saturate (Fig. 2B). The calculated Km for NE uptake was 240 µM. This is close to the Km of 245 µM calculated for NE uptake into rabbit aortic SMC (15), a process likely mediated by EMT (16, 33).



View larger version (12K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Fig. 2. Time and concentration dependence of NE uptake by human bronchial arterial smooth muscle cells (SMC). A: cells were exposed to 50 µM NE-containing incubation medium for 0-90 min. {bullet}, EMT-mediated NE uptake; {circ}, non-EMT-mediated NE uptake. EMT-mediated uptake was defined as amount of uptake inhibited by 10 µM corticosterone. B: EMT-mediated NE uptake rates (v) calculated from the 5-min time point and plotted against NE concentrations. F, fluorescence (in arbitrary units). Lines were fitted to experimental data using nonlinear regression methods. Values are means ± SE for triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each.

 

The NE uptake inhibition by 10 µM corticosterone as well as the calculated Km for NE uptake suggested that EMT played the major part in NE uptake into human bronchial arterial SMC. To support this hypothesis, the pharmacological inhibitor profile of NE uptake was further investigated. In these experiments, SMC were exposed to 50 µM NE for 5 min without or with 1 µM desipramine, which inhibits only NET (Ki = 4 nM) (3), 1 µM corticosterone, which inhibits OCT-1, OCT-2, and EMT (IC50 = 21.7, 34.2, and 0.29 µM, respectively) (33), or 1 µM O-methylisoprenaline, which inhibits OCT-2 (Ki = 580 µM) and EMT (IC50 = 4.38 µM), but not OCT-1 (13, 33). Control experiments showed that these inhibitors did not affect the fluorometric assay at the concentrations used. (It was necessary to use O-methylisoprenaline below its reported IC50 for EMT, because its autofluorescence interfered with the assay at higher concentrations.) Desipramine did not decrease NE uptake significantly (the decrease was only 4.2 ± 5.7% in triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each, P > 0.05 vs. control), whereas corticosterone and O-methylisoprenaline inhibited NE uptake by 63.2 ± 6.9 and 57.8 ± 2.9%, respectively (in triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each, P < 0.05 vs. control for both; Fig. 3). Together with NE transport kinetics data (see above), these inhibitor characteristics suggest that the majority of NE uptake is mediated by EMT.



View larger version (20K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Fig. 3. Effects of NE transporter inhibitors on NE uptake by human bronchial arterial SMC. Cells were exposed to 50 µM NE for 5 min without (control) or with 1 µM desipramine (DESI) to inhibit NET, 1 µM corticosterone (CORT) to inhibit EMT, or 1 µM O-methylisoprenaline (OMI) to inhibit EMT. Values are means ± SE for triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each. *P < 0.05 vs. control.

 

Inhibition of NE uptake by different GSs. Because inhaled and systemic drug administration can expose the bronchial arterial smooth muscle to GSs, we investigated the effects of budesonide and methylprednisolone on NE uptake by bronchial arterial SMC. Similar to corticosterone, budesonide and methylprednisolone inhibited NE uptake after 5 min of incubation (Fig. 4). The inhibitory potency was ranked in the following order: corticosterone > budesonide > methylprednisolone. These compounds inhibited EMT-mediated uptake (i.e., with only the amount of uptake that is inhibited by 10 µM corticosterone taken into account) with apparent IC50 values of 0.2 µM (close to the reported IC50 of 0.29 µM for EMT in other cells), 0.9 µM, and 5.6 µM, respectively.



View larger version (16K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Fig. 4. Inhibition of NE uptake by glucocorticosteroids in human bronchial arterial SMC. Cells were exposed to 50 µM NE for 5 min in the presence of corticosterone, budesonide, or methylprednisolone. Data are shown as a percentage of NE uptake measured in the absence of inhibitors. Values are means ± SE for triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each.

 

To investigate whether the combination of budesonide and methylprednisolone inhibited NE uptake differently from each single inhibitor, bronchial arterial SMC were exposed to these compounds and 50 µM NE for 5 min in the presence of 1 µM corticosterone (which, by itself, almost completely inhibits EMT-mediated uptake). Because 10 µM budesonide and 30 µM methylprednisolone alone caused the same degree of NE uptake inhibition, these concentrations were used for the experiments. In the presence of 1 µM corticosterone and 10 µM budesonide or 30 µM methylprednisolone, NE uptake was inhibited by 61.2 ± 8.2 and 64.8 ± 5.6%, respectively (in duplicate experiments, P > 0.05 vs. corticosterone alone for both). Because budesonide and methylprednisolone did not further increase the inhibition induced by corticosterone, these data suggest that these compounds also act on EMT.

EMT inhibition by corticosterone is a nongenomic effect. Because NE uptake into rabbit aortic SMC is mediated by a nongenomic action of GSs, independent of transcription, protein synthesis, and membrane penetration of the drug (15), we repeated these experiments with human bronchial arterial SMC. In addition, using freshly dissociated human bronchial arterial SMC, we examined reversibility of the corticosterone effect and its dependence on the classical, intracellular GS receptor.

To investigate reversibility, human bronchial arterial SMC were exposed to 1 µM corticosterone for 5 min, which blocked NE uptake by ~65% in our experiments (see above). Then the cells were transferred to a corticosterone-free medium containing 50 µM NE for uptake measurements. There was no significant difference in NE uptake between SMC pretreated with corticosterone but washed and control cells not exposed to corticosterone (17.1 ± 2.2 vs. 21.1 ± 0.9 arbitrary units in triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each, P > 0.05; Fig. 5A). Thus the inhibition of NE uptake by corticosterone is reversible after removal of the GS.



View larger version (13K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Fig. 5. Corticosterone inhibits NE uptake into human bronchial arterial SMC via a nongenomic mechanism. A: cells exposed to 50 µM NE for 5 min without (control) or with 1 µM corticosterone. Additionally, cells were pretreated with 1 µM corticosterone for 5 min but exposed to NE in corticosterone-free solutions (CORT = NE). B: cells exposed to 50 µM NE without (control) or with 10 µM RU-486 (RU) + 1 µM corticosterone, 100 µM actinomycin D (ACT) + 1 µM corticosterone, or 10 µM cycloheximide (CYC) + 1 µM corticosterone. C: cells exposed to 50 µM NE without (control) or with 1 µM corticosterone-BSA conjugate (CORT:BSA). Values are means ± SE for triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each. *P < 0.05 vs. control.

 

To show that the classic genomic pathway (i.e., binding to cytoplasmic receptors followed by changes in transcription and protein synthesis of target genes) was not involved in corticosterone's rapid action, 10 µM RU-486 (a cytoplasmic GS receptor antagonist), 100 µM actinomycin D (a transcription inhibitor), or 10 µM cycloheximide (a protein synthesis inhibitor) was added to the incubation medium 30 min before the addition of 50 µM NE and 1 µM corticosterone. Control experiments showed that RU-486, actinomycin D, or cycloheximide by themselves did not inhibit NE uptake at the concentrations used. Corticosterone inhibited NE uptake by 66.7 ± 12.4, 62.1 ± 6.8, and 69.4 ± 11.6% in the presence of RU-486, actinomycin D, or cycloheximide, respectively (in triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each, P < 0.05 vs. control for all, P > 0.05 vs. corticosterone treated; Fig. 5B). Thus the NE uptake inhibition by corticosterone does not depend on the cytoplasmic GS receptor or on changes in transcription or translation.

To investigate whether corticosterone acts at the plasma membrane, corticosterone was prevented from entering the cell by conjugation to the membrane-impermeant carrier protein BSA (40). Corticosterone-21-hemisuccinate-BSA (1 µM) decreased NE uptake into SMC by 57.7 ± 16.3% (in triplicate experiments with 25-50 cells each, P < 0.05 vs. control, P > 0.05 vs. corticosterone treated; Fig. 5C). Because membrane-impermeant corticosterone also inhibited NE uptake into human bronchial arterial SMC, we concluded that the acute effects of GSs are likely mediated through a GS binding site at the plasma membrane.

Plasma membrane binding site for corticosterone in human bronchial arterial SMC. Inasmuch as the activity of the membrane-impermeant corticosterone-BSA conjugate suggested that corticosterone acted at a site located at or in the plasma membrane, we looked for further evidence of a membrane-binding site for corticosterone in human bronchial arterial SMC. To immunocytochemically visualize the binding of membrane-impermeant corticosterone-BSA conjugate to the plasma membrane, rabbit IgG antibodies against BSA were used in combination with TRITC-labeled goat anti-rabbit IgG secondary antibodies. Fluorescent labeling was absent in control cells that were incubated in 1 µM BSA-containing medium for 5 min (Fig. 6, A and B), whereas cells incubated in 1 µM corticosterone-21-hemisuccinate-BSA for 5 min were specifically labeled (Fig. 6, C and D). Inasmuch as the conjugated corticosterone was necessary for BSA binding, this experiment demonstrated a binding site for corticosterone in the cell membrane. Competition with 100 µM corticosterone completely inhibited binding of corticosterone-21-hemisuccinate-BSA to the cells (Fig. 6, E and F), indicating that corticosterone binding to the plasma membrane was specific.



View larger version (85K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Fig. 6. Immunochemical demonstration of a specific plasma membrane binding site for corticosterone in human bronchial arterial SMC. Cells were incubated with 1 µM BSA (A and B), 1 µM corticosterone-BSA (C and D), or 1 µM corticosterone-BSA + 100 µM corticosterone (E and F). Rabbit anti-BSA primary and a tetramethylrhodamine isothiocyanate-labeled goat anti-rabbit IgG secondary antibody were used for immunocytochemistry. A, C, and E: differential interference contrast microscopy; B, D, and F: fluorescence (tetramethylrhodamine isothiocyanate) microscopy. Original magnification x600.

 


    DISCUSSION
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 DISCLOSURES
 REFERENCES
 
In the present study, we showed that human bronchial arterial SMC express mRNAs for two transmembrane NE transporters: EMT and OCT-1. Our uptake measurements demonstrated that NE uptake is mainly EMT mediated and acutely inhibited by various GSs, including budesonide and methylprednisolone, which are commonly used in clinical practice. The inhibitory action of GSs is rapidly reversible and seems to be mediated by a specific GS binding site in the plasma membrane.

After the original description of uptake2 (18), it became clear that three transmembrane transporters for catecholamines are expressed at various extraneuronal locations, either individually or simultaneously: OCT-1 (11), OCT-2 (28), and EMT [i.e., the classic uptake2 transporter (12)]. These transporters have a characteristic regional distribution that may reflect their specialized roles. OCT-1 appears to be confined to the liver, kidney, and intestine, OCT-2 is mainly expressed in the kidney and brain, and EMT has a broad tissue distribution (7). In blood vessels, OCT-1 mRNA is expressed at 15-fold lower levels than in the kidney, and OCT-2 mRNA is undetectable (35), whereas EMT mRNA expression is the highest (16, 35). In human bronchial arterial smooth muscle, we found RT-PCR amplicons for EMT and OCT-1 mRNAs.

Although EMT and OCT-1 show a high degree of sequence homology, they can be pharmacologically distinguished on the basis of their sensitivities to inhibitors (13). To investigate the physiological roles of EMT and OCT-1 in NE uptake into these cells, a recently developed fluorometric assay was used. In contrast to other uptake measurement methods using tissue samples (14), our single-cell technique eliminated variables of substrate diffusion and allowed experiments with low numbers of cells (<100) isolated from a small artery.

Corticosterone and O-methylisoprenaline were used to identify the EMT-specific uptake of NE and indicated that NE uptake in freshly isolated human bronchial arterial SMC was mediated mainly by EMT. Although our mRNA expression analysis may also suggest a role for OCT-1, our functional studies, together with the reported GS sensitivities of NE transporters (13), indicate that EMT is the primary target for GSs in bronchial arterial smooth muscle. Uptake via OCT-1 is unlikely, inasmuch as >=1 µM corticosterone did not decrease NE uptake into the cells further, as expected if OCT-1 were to play a role, given the IC50 of its inhibition by corticosterone (21.7 µM; Fig. 4). Because papain digestion is unlikely to differentially digest these related transport molecules, we do not believe that the enzymatic treatment step influenced the results significantly.

The remaining NE uptake after blocking EMT could be due to nonspecific uptake, possibly related to the measurement technique or, less likely, due to binding of NE to receptors on the cell surface. Similar nonspecific uptake has been observed in experiments on EMT using the synthetic substrate 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridium (17).

There is a considerable variability in the ability of different steroid hormones to inhibit EMT-mediated uptake of catecholamines (32, 33). Among GSs, corticosterone is the most potent, with an IC50 of ~130 nM in Caki-1 cells (33). In our experiments performed on human bronchial arterial SMC, corticosterone inhibited NE uptake with an almost identical IC50 (i.e., 0.2 µM). Although EMT inhibition requires relatively high GS amounts, such concentrations can be encountered after systemic GS drug administration and even in stress conditions. The concentrations of inhaled GSs in the airway wall may also be in the inhibitory range of EMT (8).

Corticosterone and possibly other GSs inhibit NE uptake by human bronchial arterial SMC through a nongenomic mechanism as demonstrated by corticosterone's rapid action, insensitivity to changes in transcription or protein synthesis, and lack of need to penetrate the plasma membrane. In addition to these findings, shown previously by us in rabbit aortic SMC (15), we demonstrated here that corticosterone's action is acutely reversible and not mediated by the classic cytoplasmic GS receptors. However, the mechanism by which GSs acutely inhibit NE uptake is still unknown. Because many rapid steroid actions influence plasma membrane ion channels [e.g., K+ channels and, thus, membrane potential (38)] and intracellular Ca2+-mediated signaling mechanisms (5), which have recently been shown to play a key role in EMT's functional regulation (24), GSs might inhibit EMT through these mechanisms. Alternatively, GSs might act directly on the transporter.

A specific plasma membrane binding site for corticosterone was also demonstrated in bronchial arterial SMC by immunocytochemical labeling of the membrane-impermeant corticosterone-BSA conjugate. Although hydrophobic steroids are thought to pass easily across a plasma membrane into a cell and interact with cytosolic receptors, various rapid GS actions have recently been attributed to plasma membrane-bound receptors (39). The existence of GS binding sites has been reported previously, but not in vascular SMC. Their molecular identity as well as their role in inhibiting NE uptake remain to be clarified.

Although the detailed cellular mechanisms of GSs in vascular tissues remain largely unknown, they apparently include transcriptional regulation of gene expression (e.g., increased {alpha}-adrenoreceptor number and NO synthase inhibition) and nongenomic responses (e.g., uptake2 inhibition). NE uptake mechanisms have attracted increased interest recently, because several studies suggest that impaired NE reuptake could be responsible for increased sympathetic tone seen in essential hypertension (6) and postural tachycardia (34). Because extraneuronal NE uptake is quantitatively larger than neuronal reuptake in the airways, it is likely that EMT has a role in regulating local concentrations of NE as well as other transported and intracellularly metabolized compounds. Our data suggest that the interaction of GSs with local NE metabolism is physiologically important to regulate the noradrenergic vasomotor tone in the tracheobronchial circulation and possibly other vascular beds. This mechanism can certainly explain the acute bronchial vasoconstrictive action of inhaled GSs.


    DISCLOSURES
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 DISCLOSURES
 REFERENCES
 
This work was supported in part National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Grants HL-58086 (to A. Wanner), HL-60644 and HL-67206 (to M. Salathe), and HL-66125 (to G. E. Conner) and an award from the American Heart Association, Florida/Puerto Rico Affiliate (to G. Horvath).


    FOOTNOTES
 

Address for reprint requests and other correspondence: A. Wanner, Div. of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, University of Miami School of Medicine, PO Box 016960 (R-47), Miami, FL 33101 (E-mail: awanner{at}miami.edu).

The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. The article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.


    REFERENCES
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 DISCLOSURES
 REFERENCES
 

  1. Beato M, Herrlich P, and Schutz G. Steroid hormone receptors: many actors in search of a plot. Cell 83: 851-857, 1995.[ISI][Medline]
  2. Brieva J and Wanner A. Adrenergic airway vascular smooth muscle responsiveness in healthy and asthmatic subjects. J Appl Physiol 90: 665-669, 2001.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  3. Buck KJ and Amara SG. Structural domains of catecholamine transporter chimeras involved in selective inhibition by antidepressants and psychomotor stimulants. Mol Pharmacol 48: 1030-1037, 1995.[Abstract]
  4. Butler J. The Bronchial Circulation. New York: Dekker, 1992.
  5. Cato AC, Nestl A, and Mink S. Rapid actions of steroid receptors in cellular signaling pathways. Sci STKE 2002: RE9, 2002.[Medline]
  6. Daniel EE, Kannan M, Davis C, and Posey-Daniel V. Ultra-structural studies on the neuromuscular control of human tracheal and bronchial muscle. Respir Physiol 63: 109-128, 1986.[ISI][Medline]
  7. Eisenhofer G. The role of neuronal and extraneuronal plasma membrane transporters in the inactivation of peripheral catecholamines. Pharmacol Ther 91: 35-62, 2001.[ISI][Medline]
  8. Esmailpour N, Hogger P, Rabe KF, Heitmann U, Nakashima M, and Rohdewald P. Distribution of inhaled fluticasone propionate between human lung tissue and serum in vivo. Eur Respir J 10: 1496-1499, 1997.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  9. Ginsburg J. Influence of intra-arterial hydrocortisone on adrenergic responses in the hand. Br Med J 16: 424-427, 1958.
  10. Grundemann D, Babin-Ebell J, Martel F, Ording N, Schmidt A, and Schomig E. Primary structure and functional expression of the apical organic cation transporter from kidney epithelial LLC-PK1 cells. J Biol Chem 272: 10408-10413, 1997.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  11. Grundemann D, Gorboulev V, Gambaryan S, Veyhl M, and Koepsell H. Drug excretion mediated by a new prototype of polyspecific transporter. Nature 372: 549-552, 1994.[ISI][Medline]
  12. Grundemann D, Schechinger B, Rappold GA, and Schomig E. Molecular identification of the corticosterone-sensitive extraneuronal catecholamine transporter. Nat Neurosci 1: 349-351, 1998.[ISI][Medline]
  13. Hayer-Zillgen M, Bruss M, and Bonisch H. Expression and pharmacological profile of the human organic cation transporters hOCT1, hOCT2 and hOCT3. Br J Pharmacol 136: 829-836, 2002.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  14. Henseling M. Kinetic constants for uptake and metabolism of 3H-(-)noradrenaline in rabbit aorta. Possible falsification of the constants by diffusion barriers within the vessel wall. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol 323: 12-23, 1983.[ISI][Medline]
  15. Horvath G, Lieb T, Conner GE, Salathe M, and Wanner A. Steroid sensitivity of norepinephrine uptake by human bronchial arterial and rabbit aortic smooth muscle cells. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol 25: 500-506, 2001.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  16. Horvath G, Torbati A, Conner GE, Salathe M, and Wanner A. Systemic ovalbumin sensitization downregulates norepinephrine uptake by rabbit aortic smooth muscle cells. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol 27: 746-751, 2002.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  17. Inazu M, Takeda H, and Matsumiya T. Expression and functional characterization of the extraneuronal monoamine transporter in normal human astrocytes. J Neurochem 84: 43-52, 2003.[ISI][Medline]
  18. Iversen LL and Salt PJ. Inhibition of catecholamine uptake-2 by steroids in the isolated rat heart. Br J Pharmacol 40: 528-530, 1970.[ISI][Medline]
  19. Kalsner S. Role of extraneuronal mechanisms in the termination of contractile responses to amines in vascular tissue. Br J Pharmacol 53: 267-277, 1975.[Abstract]
  20. Kumar SD, Brieva JL, Danta I, and Wanner A. Transient effect of inhaled fluticasone on airway mucosal blood flow in subjects with and without asthma. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 161: 918-921, 2000.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  21. Laporte R and DeRoth L. Modulation of the effects of norepinephrine uptake inhibitors on the norepinephrine-induced contractile response of the porcine uterine artery during early pregnancy. Can J Vet Res 61: 214-220, 1997.[ISI][Medline]
  22. Lieb T, Frei CW, Frohock JI, Bookman RJ, and Salathe M. Prolonged increase in ciliary beat frequency after short-term purinergic stimulation in human airway epithelial cells. J Physiol 538: 633-646, 2002.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  23. Mangelsdorf DJ, Thummel C, Beato M, Herrlich P, Schutz G, Umesono K, Blumberg B, Kastner P, Mark M, and Chambon P. The nuclear receptor superfamily: the second decade. Cell 83: 835-839, 1995.[ISI][Medline]
  24. Martel F, Keating E, Calhau C, Grundemann D, Schomig E, and Azevedo I. Regulation of human extraneuronal monoamine transporter (hEMT) expressed in HEK293 cells by intracellular second messenger systems. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol 364: 487-495, 2001.[ISI][Medline]
  25. Martel F, Ribeiro L, Calhau C, and Azevedo I. Comparison between uptake2 and rOCT1: effects of catecholamines, meta-nephrines and corticosterone. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol 359: 303-309, 1999.[ISI][Medline]
  26. Mendes ES, Pereira A, Danta I, Duncan RC, and Wanner A. Comparative bronchial vasoconstrictive efficacy of inhaled glucocorticosteroids. Eur Respir J 21: 989-993, 2003.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  27. Ohkubo H and Chiba S. Vascular responses of ophthalmic arteries to exogenous and endogenous norepinephrine. Exp Eye Res 48: 539-547, 1989.[ISI][Medline]
  28. Okuda M, Saito H, Urakami Y, Takano M, and Inui K. cDNA cloning and functional expression of a novel rat kidney organic cation transporter, OCT2. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 224: 500-507, 1996.[ISI][Medline]
  29. Pacholczyk T, Blakely RD, and Amara SG. Expression cloning of a cocaine- and antidepressant-sensitive human noradrenaline transporter. Nature 350: 350-354, 1991.[ISI][Medline]
  30. Percy E, Kaye DM, Lambert GW, Gruskin S, Esler MD, and Du XJ. Catechol-O-methyltransferase activity in CHO cells expressing norepinephrine transporter. Br J Pharmacol 128: 774-780, 1999.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  31. Russell JA and Kircher KW. Metabolism of norepinephrine during nerve stimulation in dog trachea. J Appl Physiol 59: 1236-1241, 1985.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  32. Salt PJ. Inhibition of noradrenaline uptake 2 in the isolated rat heart by steroids, clonidine and methoxylated phenylethylamines. Eur J Pharmacol 20: 329-340, 1972.[ISI][Medline]
  33. Schomig E and Schonfeld CL. Extraneuronal noradrenaline transport (uptake2) in a human cell line (Caki-1 cells). Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol 341: 404-410, 1990.[ISI][Medline]
  34. Shannon JR, Flattem NL, Jordan J, Jacob G, Black BK, Biaggioni I, Blakely RD, and Robertson D. Orthostatic intolerance and tachycardia associated with norepinephrine-transporter deficiency. N Engl J Med 342: 541-549, 2000.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  35. Slitt AL, Cherrington NJ, Hartley DP, Leazer TM, and Klaassen CD. Tissue distribution and renal developmental changes in rat organic cation transporter mRNA levels. Drug Metab Dispos 30: 212-219, 2002.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  36. Stjarne L and Stjarne E. Geometry, kinetics and plasticity of release and clearance of ATP and noradrenaline as sympathetic cotransmitters: roles for the neurogenic contraction. Prog Neurobiol 47: 45-94, 1995.[ISI][Medline]
  37. Torre JC and Surgeon JW. A methodological approach to rapid and sensitive monoamine histofluorescence using a modified glyoxylic acid technique: the SPG method. Histochemistry 49: 81-93, 1976.[ISI][Medline]
  38. Valverde MA, Rojas P, Amigo J, Cosmelli D, Orio P, Bahamonde MI, Mann GE, Vergara C, and Latorre R. Acute activation of maxi-K channels (hSlo) by estradiol binding to the {beta}-subunit. Science 285: 1929-1931, 1999.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  39. Watson CS and Gametchu B. Membrane-initiated steroid actions and the proteins that mediate them. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 220: 9-19, 1999.[Abstract]
  40. Zheng J and Ramirez VD. Demonstration of membrane estrogen binding proteins in rat brain by ligand blotting using a 17{beta}-estradiol-[125I]bovine serum albumin conjugate. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 62: 327-336, 1997.[ISI][Medline]