science pharmaceutical expo biotech jobs

This Article
Right arrow Abstract Freely available
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Walev, I.
Right arrow Articles by Bhakdi, S.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Walev, I.
Right arrow Articles by Bhakdi, S.
(Journal of Leukocyte Biology. 2000;68:865-872.)
© 2000 by Society for Leukocyte Biology

Streptolysin O-permeabilized granulocytes shed L-selectin concomitantly with ceramide generation via neutral sphingomyelinase

Iwan Walev, Dennis Tappe, Erich Gulbins* and Sucharit Bhakdi

Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene, University of Mainz; and
* Institute of Physiology I, University of Tuebingen, Germany

Correspondence: Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene, Hochhaus am Augustusplatz, D-55101 Mainz, Germany. E-mail: makowiec{at}mail.uni-mainz.de


arrow
ABSTRACT
 
Cleavage of membrane-associated L-selectin regulates leukocyte rolling on vascular endothelium at sites of inflammation. We report that rapid and massive shedding of L-selectin occurs from granulocytes attacked by the pore-forming bacterial toxin streptolysin O (SLO). Shedding was not induced by an SLO mutant that retained binding capacity but lacked pore-forming activity. Cells permeabilized with SLO exhibited a 1.5-fold increase in the activity of neutral sphingomyelinase, which was accompanied by increased ceramide formation. L-selectin cleavage was inducible by treatment of cells with bacterial sphingomyelinase, and also through exogenous application of a cell-permeable ceramide analog. Our data identify a novel path to the shedding process and show that activation of neutral sphingomyelinase with the generation of ceramide is an important event underlying enhanced sheddase function in cells permeabilized by a pore-forming toxin.

Key Words: neutrophils • shedding • bacterial toxin


arrow
INTRODUCTION
 
Many membrane-anchored molecules, including cytokines and their receptors, growth factors, and cellular adhesion molecules can be released from the cell surface by proteolytic cleavage [1 , 2 ]. A metalloproteinase disintegrin has been identified as the "sheddase" for tumor necrosis factor {alpha} (TNF-{alpha}) [3 , 4 ], and there is evidence to suggest existence of further enzymes with related function [5 ]. The putative family of shedding enzymes is characteristically inhibitable by peptide-hydroxamate metalloproteinase inhibitors, e.g., TAPI, and to a lesser degree by conventional metalloproteinase inhibitors such as 1,10-phenanthroline [5 ].

Several pathways converge to activate the shedding enzymes. One operates via activation of protein kinase C (PKC), so that exposure of cells to phorbol esters results in shedding of many proteins [2 ]. However, shedding can also be induced via PKC-independent pathways, of which at least one is Ca2+-dependent [6 ]. Knowledge on the sequence of events underlying sheddase activation, and the components involved in their regulation, has remained fragmentary.

It was recently found that pore-forming bacterial toxins invoke rapid and massive shedding of CD14 and the interleukin-6 (IL-6) receptor from monocytes. Enhanced sheddase function occurring in the wake of membrane permeabilization depended neither on PKC nor on Ca2+ [7 ]. Released IL-6 receptor retained biological activity and sensitized bystander cells to trans-signaling with IL-6. Hence, shedding events induced by membrane-damaging agents are potentially relevant in the context of disease pathogenesis.

In this work, we elected to study the shedding of L-selectin (CD 62L) from granulocytes after treatment with streptolysin O (SLO). L-selectin is constitutively expressed on lymphocytes, monocytes, and granulocytes, and is responsible for their tethering to and rolling on endothelial cells [8 , 9 ]. L-selectin can be cleaved by a sheddase to yield a soluble fragment that contains the functional lectin and epidermal growth factor domains [10 ]. Various stimuli trigger L-selectin shedding, including chemoattractants, phorbol esters, TNF-{alpha}, C-reactive protein, anti-inflammatory drugs, and cross-linking of the L-selectin molecule itself [11 12 13 14 15 ]. Analysis of L-selectin shedding afforded the advantage that the process could easily be followed and quantified by flow cytometry.

We report that the pore-forming toxin SLO induces rapid and massive shedding of L-selectin. A novel path to the shedding process is identified that involves the Ca2+-independent activation of neutral sphingomyelinase. Evidence is presented that ceramide, a major product of sphingomyelinase action, assumes a central role in this pathway.


arrow
MATERIALS AND METHODS
 
Materials
All materials were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich (Deisenhofen, Germany), if not otherwise indicated. SLO and SLO mutant 402 (SLO N402C) were prepared as described [16 , 17 ].

The metalloproteinase inhibitor TAPI (N-{D,L-[2-(hydroxyaminocarbonyl)methyl]-4-methylpentanoyl}L-3-(2’-naphthyl)-alanyl-L-alanine, 2-amino-ethylamide) was prepared at Immunex [18 ]. Aprotinin, leupeptin, and Pefabloc [4-(2-aminoethylbenzenesulfonylfluoride)] were obtained from Boehringer Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany. The L-selectin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was supplied by R & D Systems, Wiesbaden, Germany.

Cell preparation and experimental protocol
Human granulocytes were isolated from heparinized blood of healthy volunteers after conventional procedures. In brief, 1 vol of dextran (Pharmacia Biotech, Uppsala, Sweden; 4.5%, in isotonic salt solution, pH 7.4) was added to 5 vol whole blood, and cells were allowed to sediment in tilted plastic centrifugation tubes for 40 min at 37°C. The erythrocyte-depleted supernatants were transferred in 4-mL aliquots to 4-mL Ficoll-Hypaque gradients (Pharmacia Biotech) and centrifuged for 20 min at 400 g, 20°C. Erythrocytes contaminating the cell pellet were lysed in a buffer containing NH4Cl (150 mM), KHCO3 (10 mM), and EDTA (10 mM), pH 7.4. Cells were then resedimented (100 g, 10 min), washed, suspended in sterile Hanks’ buffered salt solution, and kept on ice. The cell preparations contained <3% contaminating lymphocytes, and <4% nonviable cells as determined by staining with Trypan blue.

Cell surface L-selectin (CD 62L) was quantified by flow cytometry using fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-conjugated monoclonal antibodies (clone Dreg 56, Coulter-Immunotech, Hamburg, Germany). Granulocytes were incubated with anti-CD-62L (dilution 1:500) for 60 min at 4°C and washed twice.

After a 5-min pre-incubation at 37°C in the presence of inhibitors, cells were stimulated with N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (fMLP), SLO, sphingomyelinase from Staphylococcus aureus, C2-ceramide, or C2-dihydroceramide (Calbiochem-Novabiochem, Bad Soden, Germany) for the desired time. Flow cytometric analysis was performed using FACScan and Lysys II Software (Becton Dickinson).

The human myelomonocytic cell line JOSK-M was cultured in RPMI 1640 medium supplemented with 10% fetal calf serum, 10 mM HEPES (pH 7.4), 2 mM L-glutamine, 1 mM sodium pyruvate, 100 µM nonessential amino acids, 100 U/mL penicillin, 100 µg/mL streptomycin, and 50 µM ß-mercaptoethanol. The cells were differentiated in vitro by 4-day incubation with 50 nM retinoic acid and 10 nM bufalin.

Determination of neutral sphingomyelinase activity
Cells were lysed in a buffer containing HEPES (20 mM, pH 7.4), EDTA (2 mM), dithiothreitol (5 mM), MgCl2 (10 mM), Na3VO4 (0.1 mM), ß-glycerophosphate (10 mM), ATP (7.5 mM), leupeptin (10 µM), and Triton-X 100 (Roth, Karlsruhe, Germany; 0.2 %). Samples were sonicated three times for 10 s. The substrate [14C]sphingomyelin (NEN Life Science Products, Cologne, Germany; 0.5 µCi/sample, 54.5 mCi/mmol) was dried and solubilized by sonication for 10 min in a water bath in HEPES (20 mM, pH 7.4), MgCl2 (1 mM), and Triton-X 100 (0.2%). Aliquots were added to the lysed samples.

After 30 min at 37°C, samples were extracted with chloroform/methanol/H2O (v/v/v, 4:2:1). The upper phase was collected, and radioactivity was determined in a liquid scintillation counter.

Activity of acidic sphingomyelinase
Cells were lysed in a sonication buffer containing Tris (50 mM, pH 7.4), bacitracin, benzamidine, Na3VO4 (1 mM each), soybean trypsin inhibitor (0.1 mg/mL), aprotinin, leupeptin (10 µg/mL each), and Triton X-100 (0.2%). Samples were immediately sonicated three times for 10 s each.

After centrifugation at 600 g for 5 min, the supernatants were resuspended in a lysis buffer containing Tris (50 mM, pH 7.4), Na3VO4 (1 mM), aprotinin and leupeptin (10 µg/mL each), Triton X-100 (1%), and NP-40 (3%). The acidic sphingomyelinase was immunoprecipitated using a goat-anti-acidic sphingomyelinase serum [19 ] followed by protein A/G-coupled agarose (Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Santa Cruz, CA). Samples were washed three times each in the lysis buffer and in a buffer consisting of sodium acetate (50 mM, pH 5.0), Na3VO4 (1 mM), aprotinin and leupeptin (10 µg/mL each), and Triton X-100 (0.2%).

[14C]sphingomyelin (NEN-DuPont, 0.5 µCi/sample, 54.5 mCi/mmol) was dried and solubilized by 10-min water bath sonication in EDTA (1.3 mM), sodium acetate (250 mM, pH 5.0), and NP-40 (0.05%). Samples were processed as above.

Quantification of ceramide
Cellular lipids were extracted with chloroform/methanol/HCl (v/v/v, 100:100:1), and the organic phase was dried under nitrogen. Samples were re-extracted, dried again, and solubilized by sonication for 10 min in a water bath in n-octyl-ß-glucopyranoside (w/v, 7.5%), cardiolipin (5 mM), and DETAPAC (1 mM). Purified Escherichia coli diacylglycerol-kinase (Calbiochem; 40 µg/mL) in 70 µL reaction buffer containing imidazole-HCl (100 mM, pH 6.6), NaCl (100 mM), MgCl2 (25 mM), EGTA (2 mM) plus [32P]{gamma}ATP (ICN Biochemicals, Eschwege, Germany) and ATP (1 µm) was added. The samples were incubated for 30 min at 22°C, after which the kinase reaction was stopped by adding chloroform/methanol/HCl (v/v/v, 100:100:1, 1 mL), salt solution [170 µL, HEPES (10 mM, pH 7.2), NaCl (135 mM), CaCl2 (1.5 mM), MgCl2 (0.5 mM), glucose (5.6 mM)], and EDTA (30 µL, 100 mM). The organic phase was dried, resuspended in chloroform/methanol (v/v, 1:1), subjected to thin-layer chromatography on a silica 60 gel plate (Merck, Darmstadt, Germany), using chloroform/methanol/acetic acid (v/v/v, 65:15:5) as solvent. Autoradiography was performed, and the spots were scraped into vials and counted in a liquid scintillation counter.

To directly measure ceramide release JOSKM cells were labeled with [3H]serine (25 mCi/mmol, NEN) for 36 h, washed, and stimulated with SLO. Lipids were extracted with CHCl3/CH3OH/H2O/pyridine (60:160:6:1), the lower organic phase was dried, and phospholipids were degraded by 2-h incubation with methanolic NaOH at 37°C. After re-extraction, the lower organic phase was dried again, resuspended in CHCl3/CH3OH (95:5) and separated on silica G60 plates with CHCl3/CH3OH/CaCl2 (60:35:8, v/v/v). Ceramide was detected by co-migration with a C16 ceramide standard.


arrow
RESULTS
 
SLO induces shedding of L-selectin
Treatment of human granulocytes with SLO led to loss of L-selectin from the cell surface in a dose- and time-dependent manner (Fig. 1 A and B ). As shown in Figure 2A , treatment of human granulocytes for 15 min with SLO and the chemoattractant fMLP led to extensive shedding of L-selectin into the supernatants. When detergent extracts of cells were analyzed, it was found that both SLO and fMLP treatment resulted in reduction of cellular content of L-selectin by ~70% (Fig. 2B) .



View larger version (23K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 1. SLO-induced shedding of L-selectin from granulocytes. (A) Dose-depencency. Granulocytes (106 cells/mL) were stained with FITC-conjugated anti-L-selectin antibody (anti-CD 62L) and treated for 15 min with SLO at the given concentrations (per milliliter). Cell-bound fluorescence was determined by flow cytometry. FL 1, green fluorescence (FITC). The experiment was repeated five times with equivalent results. (B) Kinetics. Granulocytes were stained with anti-CD 62L and treated with 1 µg/mL SLO. Flow-cytometric analyses were performed at the given times. The experiment was reproduced four times.



View larger version (22K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 2. Quantitative assessment of L-selectin shedding induced by SLO or fMLP. (A) Measurement of L-selectin in cell supernatants. Granulocytes (107 cells in 0.5 mL) were treated with 1 µg of SLO/mL or with 10-6 M fMLP for 15 min. The concentration of L-selectin in the supernatants of untreated (control) or stimulated cells was determined by ELISA (n = 3 ± SD). (B) ELISA determination of cell-bound L-selectin present in detergent extracts. After removal of the supernatants, cells were lysed with 0.5 mL Nonidet P-40 in the presence of protease inhibitors, and L-selectin contained in the detergent extracts was quantified (n = 3 ± SD).

Proteinase inhibitors were employed to characterize the proteinase involved in the shedding process. N-ethylmaleimide (1 mM), Pefabloc (3 mM), aprotinin (10 µM), pepstatin (10 µM), and EDTA did not suppress the SLO-dependent shedding of L-selectin. When used at 5 mM, a concentration fivefold of that normally applied in inhibition experiments [20 ], 1,10-phenanthroline weakly suppressed shedding. In contrast, TAPI, the specific inhibitor of TNF-{alpha} shedding proteinase, effectively inhibited shedding of L-selectin at a concentration of 10 µM (Fig. 3 ).



View larger version (23K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 3. Inhibition of L-selectin shedding. Granulocytes were stained with anti-CD 62L and pre-incubated for 5 min with EDTA (5 mM) + staurosporine (1 µg/mL), 1,10-phenanthroline (5 mM), or TAPI (10 µM). After exposure to SLO (1 µg/mL) for 15 min, cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. Shedding induced by SLO was markedly inhibited by the specific metalloproteinase inhibitor TAPI. The experiment was reproduced five times.

Staurosporine, a broad-spectrum protein kinase inhibitor, failed to inhibit toxin-induced shedding, whereas the inhibitor did block L-selectin release provoked by fMLP (data not shown).

Shedding of L-selectin by SLO depends on membrane permeabilization
To differentiate whether L-selectin shedding was dependent on toxin binding or on membrane permeabilization, we employed a cysteine-substitution mutant (SLO N402C). After chemical modification of the sulfhydryl group, this mutant retains cell-binding activity but lacks pore-forming properties as a result of its inability to undergo correct polymerization [16 , 21 ]. It was found that SLO N402C failed to trigger release of L-selectin (Fig. 4 ). Thus, shedding was dependent on membrane permeabilization. In a further experiment, SLO N402C was first applied to the cells, and wild-type SLO was subsequently added at 15 min. It was found that L-selectin shedding occurred to the same extent as observed with WT SLO alone. These results went further to show that L-selectin shedding induced by SLO was not due to simple interaction of the toxin with specific membrane binding sites.



View larger version (19K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 4. Dependency of shedding on pore-forming activity of SLO. Granulocytes were stained with anti-CD 62L and treated with 1 µg/mL SLO or with the nonlytic mutant SLO (N402C) for 15 min. Shedding was not induced by the nonlytic mutant. The experiment was reproduced twice.

SLO activates the neutral but not acidic sphingomyelinase
We anticipated that membrane permeabilization with perturbation of the lipid bilayer might result in altered turnover of membrane lipids. Therefore, we quantified the activity of several phospholipases and sphingomyelinases, and obtained positive results with the latter.

The activities of neutral and acidic sphingomyelinase were measured in cell lysates of granulocytes after stimulation with SLO and fMLP. fMLP failed to activate either sphingomyelinase (data not shown). However, cells permeabilized with SLO showed a 1.5-fold increase in activity of neutral sphingomyelinase (Fig. 5 ). In contrast, no significant change in the activity of the acidic sphingomyelinase was observed.



View larger version (15K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 5. Activity of neutral and acidic sphingomyelinase in SLO-treated cells. Granulocytes (10 x 106/mL) were stimulated with SLO (1 µg/mL) for the desired time, lysed, and [14C]sphingomyelin was added as substrate. The samples were incubated for 30 min, and radioactivity of the aqueous phase containing the labeled [14C]phosphorylcholine was measured after lipid extraction. Unstimulated cells used as controls are set at a basal activity level of 100%. Mean values of two experiments with similar results are shown. The activity of the acidic sphingomyelinase remained virtually unchanged after SLO treatment. In contrast, a rapid increase of activity of the neutral sphingomyelinase was observed (n = 3 ± SD).

SLO stimulates ceramide production
To corroborate the finding that membrane permeabilization results in enhanced sphingomyelinase activity, we quantified ceramide, which is a major product of sphingomyelin cleavage. Two different methods to measure ceramide were used. Similar results were obtained through determination of ceramide generation by the DGK method and direct labeling with [3H]serine (three independent experiments each). As shown in Figure 6 , SLO provoked a rapid increase of ceramide formation. Basal ceramide levels were 390 ± 20 pmol/1 x 106 cells, presented as 100% in Figure 6 . After 10-min stimulation with SLO the ceramide levels increased up to 530 ± 17 pmol.



View larger version (28K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 6. Enhanced generation of ceramide in SLO-treated cells. Granulocytes or JOSK-M cells (10 x 106/mL) were stimulated with 1 µg/mL SLO, and lipids were extracted at the given times. Ceramide generation was detected indirectly by labeling with {gamma}-[32P]ATP and E. coli sn-1,2-diacylglycerol kinase or directly by labeling with [3H]serine. Samples were subjected to thin-layer chromatography, the spots corresponding to [32P]ceramide phosphate of [3H]ceramide were scraped into vials, and radioactivity was determined in a liquid scintillation counter. The basal ceramide levels in unstimulated cells were set at 100% (n = 3 ± SD). Inset shows autoradiogram of lipids separated by thin-layer chromatography. Left lane, unstimulated cells; right lane, neutrophils stimulated with SLO for 10 min. Ceramide standards were phosphorylated in parallel with cell samples in order to identify the spot corresponding to [32P]ceramide phosphate.

Ceramide possibly functions as a second messenger to induce shedding
To test whether ceramide might directly be involved in triggering L-selectin shedding, granulocytes were incubated with a cell-permeable ceramide analog, C2-ceramide. This was indeed found to induce L-selectin shedding in a dose- and time-dependent manner (Fig. 7 A and B ), with a maximum effect at 16 µM. In contrast, application of the structural analog C2-dihydroceramide was without effect. Addition of C6- or C8-ceramide showed less potent shedding activity than C2-ceramide at equimolar concentrations.



View larger version (22K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 7. Ceramide induces shedding of L-selectin. (A) Dose-dependency. Granulocytes were stained with anti-CD 62L and treated for 15 min with C2-ceramide at the given concentrations or 16 µM sphingosine (dotted curve). The experiment was reproduced three times. (B) Kinetics. Cells were stained with anti-CD 62L, stimulated with 16 µM C2-ceramide for the indicated periods, and subjected to flow cytometric analysis. The experiment was reproduced three times.

Priming of granulocytes (1 x 106) with different ceramides at concentrations that did not cause shedding (4 µM C2-ceramide, 10 µM C6-ceramide, or 20 µM C8-ceramide) led to enhancement of SLO-induced shedding. The ceramidase inhibitor N-oleoyl-ethanolamine (OE, 10 µM) was also found to prime SLO-dependent shedding (Fig. 8 ).



View larger version (26K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 8. Ceramides and ceramidase inhibitor prime SLO-induced shedding. Priming with different ceramides and ceramidase inhibitor. Granulocytes were incubated for 5 min with 4 µM C2-ceramide, 10 µM C6-ceramide, 20 µM C8-ceramide, or 10 µM N-oleoyl-ethanolamine (OE) before stimulation with SLO. Ceramides or OE alone did not provoke shedding at the given concentrations but enhance SLO-dependent shedding activity.

In contrast to ceramides, priming with sphingosine at concentrations that did not induce shedding (0.5, 2, and 4 µM) resulted in no significant increase of SLO-dependent shedding activity (data not shown). Addition of the sphingosine kinase inhibitor N,N-dimethyl-sphingosine (DMS, 3 µM) 5 min before SLO stimulation was without effect (data not shown). Sphingosine at 16 µM did induce shedding, although to a lesser extent than C2-ceramide (Fig. 7A) .

The kinetics of shedding induced by ceramide resembled those observed after application of SLO, and results of inhibition experiments were also equivalent. Staurosporine did not block ceramide-induced shedding, and 1,10 phenanthroline only weakly suppressed L-selectin cleavage. In contrast, TAPI effectively inhibited shedding induced by C2-ceramide (Fig. 9 ) and by other ceramides (not shown). All other proteinase inhibitors tested were ineffective (not shown).



View larger version (25K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 9. Inhibition of ceramide-induced L-selectin shedding. Granulocytes were stained with anti-CD 62L, preincubated for 5 min with EDTA (5 mM) + staurosporine (1 µg/mL), 1,10-phenanthroline (5 mM), or TAPI (10 µM), and exposed to C2-ceramide (16 µM) for 15 min. Shedding provoked by ceramide was markedly inhibited by the specific metalloproteinase inhibitor TAPI. The experiment was reproduced three times.

As a further test of the hypothesis that sphingomyelinase activation can cause L-selectin shedding, we applied sphingomyelinase from S. aureus to intact cells. It was found that, indeed, exogenously added sphingomyelinase provoked shedding of L-selectin, with maximum effects being observed at 1 U/mL sphingomyelinase after 40 min (Fig. 10 ). The enzyme-treated cells remained propidium-iodide-negative, indicating lack of direct cytotoxic action of sphingomyelinase on these cells (not shown). In contrast, high amounts of exogenously added phospholipase D (up to 10 U, 40 min) provoked no shedding. L-selectin cleavage was observed after application of phospholipase A2 (1 U and 10 U, 40 min), but to a lesser extent than observed with sphingomyelinase (Fig. 10) .



View larger version (18K):
[in this window]
[in a new window]
 
Figure 10. L-selectin shedding induced by bacterial sphingomyelinase. Granulocytes were stained with anti-CD 62L and treated for 40 min with 1 unit of exogenously added S. aureus sphingomyelinase, phospholipase A2, or phospholipase D. The remaining cell-bound fluorescence was determined by flow cytometry.


arrow
DISCUSSION
 
This study extends our previous finding that pore-forming toxins can induce shedding of membrane-anchored proteins [7 ]. Assessment of L-selectin shedding from human granulocytes represents a useful model system because cells are easily prepared and can be subjected to flow-cytometric analyses, which generate quantitative data on the kinetics and extent of shedding. Novel recognitions have thus been forthcoming that may be extrapolated to shedding processes in general.

SLO was used as the permeabilizing agent for several reasons. The toxin binds to membrane cholesterol and rapidly oligomerizes to form transmembrane pores [22 23 24 ]. In contrast to the pore-forming hemolysin of E. coli, SLO does not require Ca2+ for its activity [25 ]. Permeabilization experiments could therefore be conducted in the presence of EDTA, and these showed that L-selectin shedding occurring in response to SLO was not Ca2+-dependent. Utilization of SLO provided another asset because mutant toxins are now available that retain their binding function but cannot form pores due to their inability to correctly polymerize [16 , 21 ]. With the use of one such mutant, it was shown that L-selectin shedding was not induced by toxin binding alone, but required membrane permeabilization to occur.

The collective evidence indicates that SLO-induced L-selectin shedding occurs via activation of a physiological sheddase. Foremost, L-selectin liberation was effectively suppressed by TAPI, the classical sheddase inhibitor, whereas the conventional metalloproteinase inhibitor 1,10-phenanthroline, was relatively ineffective. This inhibition pattern is typical of the physiological sheddases [5 ]. The fact that toxin-induced shedding was entirely refractory to inhibition by all other proteinase inhibitors tested may, in retrospect, not appear surprising, but it is noteworthy nevertheless. In the presence of Ca2+, membrane permeabilization triggers granule secretion in neutrophils [26 ], so the possibility that lysosomal proteases might have been responsible for L-selectin cleavage required consideration. Our findings indicated that secreted cellular proteases were not involved, inasmuch as shedding also occurred in the presence of EDTA.

Surprisingly diverse pathways seem to converge to trigger sheddase activity. One pathway is Ca2+-dependent, but this clearly was not involved in our case. The second well-established sequence involves PKC; thus, phorbol esters are generally potent inducers of shedding, and activation of PKC via binding of physiological ligands to their receptors (e.g., fMLP, chemokines) naturally causes shedding [12 ]. We readily confirmed that fMLP induces L-selectin cleavage in neutrophils that was totally suppressed by staurosporine, the inhibitor of PKC.

In contrast, shedding provoked by membrane permeabilization was entirely refractory toward inhibition by staurosporine. Analogous findings were previously made in our shedding experiments with monocytes [7 ]. Thus, membrane permeabilization must be linked to sheddase activation via yet another pathway. In the literature, there have been reports on shedding processes that were apparently independent of PKC and Ca2+ [6 , 7 ]; however, little is known of the underlying mechanisms and putative mediators. The present work identifies a novel component that appears to play a pivotal role in this scenario. Our data indicate that neutral sphingomyelinase is important through its capacity to generate ceramide. The latter may be the molecule that directly causes shedding. This contention derives from the observation that shedding could be induced through application of an exogenous, cell-permeable ceramide analog. Furthermore, L-selectin cleavage occurred when cells were treated with exogenous sphingomyelinase from S. aureus. In contrast, other phospholipases (phospholipase A2, phospholipase D) induced little or no shedding.

Quantitative aspects of neutral sphingomyelinase stimulation warrant comment. The finding that SLO caused an increase in activity of 40–50% within 1–5 min is comparable to results obtained in other investigations using different agonists. Thus, Brenner et al. reported an increase in neutral sphingomyelinase activity of 25% within 10 min after cross-linking of L-selectin [27 ]. Similarly, Tomiuk et al. calculated a 20–25% activity increase within 10 min after stimulation of U937 cells with TNF-{alpha} [28 ]. The concomitant increase in ceramide generation observed in our study was also compatible with the literature, although the kinetics were faster. Thus, a 50% increase of ceramide in the cells was observed 10 min after SLO stimulation. TNF treatment of MCF-7 cells resulted in a comparable, but slower reaction [29 ]. Yayadev et al. similarly observed a 50% increase in cellular ceramide after 80 min of stimulation of HLA60 cells with arachidonic acid [30 ]. Pilot experiments in our laboratory indicate that arachidonic acid indeed induces shedding of L-selectin in granulocytes, but at slower rates compared with SLO.

Methods to correctly determine cellular ceramide levels have been the subject of recent debates [31 , 32 ]. As suggested by Perry and Hannun [32 ], we performed the DGK assay with an excess of enzyme. In addition, we validated the amount of ceramide by direct labeling of ceramide with [3H]serine and obtained similar results with both methods.

How ceramide promotes shedding remains to be clarified. Basically, it is possible to envisage three distinct mechanisms. First, ceramide may interact directly with the sheddase and enhance its activity. Second, ceramide may act as a second messenger to trigger further events that ultimately lead to shedding. Third, ceramide may alter the vertical or horizontal organization of membrane components and so promote access of the shedding substrates to the enzyme.

The cause of sphingomyelinase activation is unknown. One possibility was that membrane depolarization played a key role. However, experiments in which cells were immersed in 100 mM KCl yielded negative results, and no shedding of L-selectin was observed. Intracellular glutathion has been reported to suppress the activity of neutral sphingomyelinase [29 , 33 ]. Membrane permeabilization leads to rapid loss of glutathion (unpublished data), and it is therefore tempting to postulate that this directly results in a selective derepression of neutral sphingomyelinase. However, pilot experiments have not yet enabled us to verify this hypothesis, and further experimentation is required to generate a firm basis on which an explanatory model can be built. Independent of the resolution of this problem, our findings reveal a potentially significant novel consequence of bacterial pore-forming toxins and of sphingomyelinase action in general. The concentration of SLO required to induce shedding was more than a magnitude below the concentration found in an overnight culture supernatant of the bacteria. Further to its action from the fluid phase, SLO likely can provoke pathology when cell-adherent bacteria secrete the toxin. Hence, SLO-induced shedding may be of significance in both intravascular and extravascular compartments. Depending on the location, both diapedesis and migration through tissues could be impeded. The significance of SLO-induced shedding in relation to sheddase activation by other microbial products cannot be gauged at present.

Sphingomyelinase is produced by many bacterial pathogens, but the biological relevance of the enzyme is not well understood. Our results may be relevant in the context of microbial pathogenesis because shedding of L-selectin can be expected to adversely affect vascular adhesion and emigration of cells. Shedding of other biologically important molecules from various cell targets may contribute to pathological events encountered during infections with microorganisms that elaborate pore-forming toxins and sphingomyelinase.


arrow
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
 
This work was supported by funds from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (SFB 490) and by the Verband der Chemischen Industrie. We thank Stefan Rose-John for kindly supplying a sample of the protease inhibitor TAPI and Michael Palmer for generously providing SLO and SLO N402C. Part of this work is contained in the M.D. thesis of Dennis Tappe. Iwan Walev and Dennis Tappe contributed equally to this study.

Received January 23, 2000; revised July 10, 2000; accepted July 11, 2000.


arrow
REFERENCES
 
    1
  1. Bazil, V. (1995) Physiological enzymatic cleavage of leukocyte membrane molecules Immunol. Today 16,135-140[Medline]
  2. 2
  3. Rose-John, S., Heinrich, P. C. (1994) Soluble receptors for cytokines and growth factors: generation and biological function Biochem. J. 300,281-290
  4. 3
  5. Black, R. A., Rauch, C. T., Kozlosky, C. J., Peschon, J. J., Slack, J. L., Wolfson, M. F., Castner, B. C., Stocking, K. L., Reddy, P., Srinivasan, S., Nelson, N., Boiani, N., Schooley, K. A., Gerhart, M., Davis, R., Fitzner, J. N., Johnson, R. S., Paxton, R. J., March, C. J., Cerretti, D. P. (1997) A metalloproteinase disintegrin that releases tumour-necrosis factor-{alpha} from cells Nature 385,729-733[Medline]
  6. 4
  7. Moss, M. L., Jin, S.-L. C., Milla, M. E., Burkhart, W., Carter, H. L., Chen, W. J., Clay, W. C., Didsbury, J. R., Hassler, D., Hoffman, C. R., Kost, T. A., Lambert, M. H., Leesnitzer, M. A., McCauley, P., McGeehan, G., Mitchell, J., Moyer, M., Pahel, G., Rocque, W., Overton, L. K., Schoenen, F., Seaton, T., Su, J. L., Warner, J., Willard, D., Becherer, J. D. (1997) Cloning of a disintegrin metalloproteinase that processes percursor tumour-necrosis factor-{alpha} Nature 385,733-736[Medline]
  8. 5
  9. Hooper, N. M., Karran, E. H., Turner, A. J. (1997) Membrane protein secretases Biochem. J. 321,265-279
  10. 6
  11. Pandiella, A., Massagué, J. (1991) Multiple signals activate cleavage of the membrane transforming growth factor-{alpha} precursor J. Biol. Chem. 266,5769-5773[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  12. 7
  13. Walev, I., Vollmer, P., Palmer, M., Bhakdi, S., Rose-John, S. (1996) Pore-forming toxins trigger shedding of receptors for interleukin 6 and lipopolysaccharide Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 93,7882-7887[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  14. 8
  15. Hafezi-Moghadam, A., Ley, K. (1999) Relevance of L-selectin shedding for leukocyte rolling in vivo J. Exp. Med. 189,939-948[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  16. 9
  17. Stein, J. V., Cheng, G., Stockton, B. M., Fors, B. P., Butcher, E. C., von Andrian, U. H. (1999) L-selectin-mediated leukocyte adhesion in vivo: microvillous distribution determines tethering efficiency, but not rolling velocity J. Exp. Med. 189,37-50[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  18. 10
  19. Chen, A., Engel, P., Tedder, T. F. (1995) Structural requirements regulate endoproteolytic release of the L-selectin (CD62L) adhesion receptor from the cell surface of leukocytes J. Exp. Med. 182,519-530[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  20. 11
  21. Diaz-Gonzales, F., Gonzales-Alvaro, I., Campanero, M. R., Mollinedo, F., del Pozo, M. A., Munoz, C., Pivel, J. P., Sanchez-Madrid, F. (1995) Prevention of in vitro neutrophil-endothelial attachment through shedding of L-selectin by nonsteridal antiinflammatory drugs J. Clin. Invest. 95,1756-1765
  22. 12
  23. Kishimoto, T. K., Jutila, M. A., Berg, E. L., Butcher, E. C. (1989) Neutrophil Mac-1 and MEL-14 adhesion proteins inversely regulated by chemotactic factors Science 245,1238-1241[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  24. 13
  25. Palecanda, A., Wallcheck, B., Bishop, D. K., Jutila, M. A. (1992) Rapid activation-independent shedding of leukocyte L-selectin induced by cross-linking of the surface antigen Eur. J. Immunol. 22,1279-1286[Medline]
  26. 14
  27. Preece, G., Murphy, G., Ager, A. (1996) Metalloproteinase-mediated regulation of L-selectin levels on leucocytes J. Biol. Chem. 271,11634-11640[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  28. 15
  29. Zouki, C., Beauchamp, M., Baron, C., Filep, J. G. (1997) Prevention of in vitro neutrophil adhesion to endothelial cells through shedding of L-selectin by C-reactive protein and peptides derived from C-reactive protein J. Clin. Invest. 100,522-529[Medline]
  30. 16
  31. Harris, J. R., Adrian, M., Bhakdi, S., Palmer, M. (1998) Cholesterol-streptolysin O interaction: an EM study of wild-type and mutant streptolysin O J. Struct. Biol. 121,343-355[Medline]
  32. 17
  33. Weller, U., Müller, L., Messner, M., Palmer, M., Valeva, A., Tranum-Jensen, J., Agrawal, P., Biermann, C., Döbereiner, A., Kehoe, M. A., Bhakdi, S. (1996) Expression of active streptolysin O in Escherichia coli as a maltose-binding protein-Streptolysin O fusion protein Eur. J. Biochem. 236,34-39[Medline]
  34. 18
  35. Mohler, K. M., Sleat, P. R., Fitzner, J. N., Cerretti, D. P., Alderson, M., Kerwar, S. S., Torrance, D. S., Otten-Evans, C., Greenstreet, T., Weerawarna, K., Kronheim, S. R., Petersen, M., Gerhart, M., Kozlosky, C. J., March, C. J., Black, R. A. (1994) Protection against a lethal dose of endotoxin by an inhibitor of tumor necrosis factor processing Nature [Lond.] 370,218-220[Medline]
  36. 19
  37. Hurwitz, R., Ferlinz, K., Vielhaber, G., Moczall, H., Sandhoff, K. (1994) Processing of human acid sphingomyelinase in normal and I-cell fibroblasts J. Biol. Chem. 269,5440-5445[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  38. 20
  39. Barret, A. J. (1977) Introduction to the history and classification of tissue proteinases Barret, A. J. eds. Proteinases in Mammalian Cells and Tissues ,1-55 Elsevier Amsterdam.
  40. 21
  41. Abdel Ghani, E. M., Weis, S., Walev, I., Kehoe, M., Bhakdi, S., Palmer, M. (1999) Streptolysin-O: inhibition of the conformational change during membrane binding of the monomer prevents oligomerization and pore formation Biochemistry 38,15204-15211[Medline]
  42. 22
  43. Alouf, J. E., Geoffrey, C. (1991) The family of the antigenically-related cholesterol-binding ("sulphhydryl-activated") cytolytic toxins Alouf, J. E. Freer, J. H. eds. Sourcebook of Bacterial Protein Toxins ,147-186 Academic London.
  44. 23
  45. Bhakdi, S., Tranum-Jensen, J., Sziegoleit, A. (1985) Mechanism of membrane damage by streptolysin O Infect. Immun. 47,52-60[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  46. 24
  47. Palmer, M., Harris, R., Freytag, C., Kehoe, M., Tranum-Jensen, J., Bhakdi, S. (1998) Assembly mechanism of the oligomeric streptolysin O pore: the early membrane lesion is lined by a free edge of the lipid membrane and is extended gradually during oligomerization EMBO J 17,1598-1605[Medline]
  48. 25
  49. Bhakdi, S., Weller, U., Walev, I., Martin, E., Jonas, D., Palmer, M. (1993) A guide to the use of pore-forming toxins for controlled permeabilization of cell membranes Med. Microbiol. Immunol. 182,167-175[Medline]
  50. 26
  51. Bhakdi, S., Greulich, S., Muhly, M., Eberspacher, B., Becker, H., Thiele, A., Hugo, F. (1989) Potent leukocidal action of Escherichia coli hemolysin mediated by permeabilization of target cell membranes J. Exp. Med. 169,737-754[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  52. 27
  53. Brenner, B., Grassmé, H. U. C., Müller, C., Lang, F., Speer, C. P., Gulbins, E. (1998) L-selectin stimulates the neutral sphingomyelinase and induces release of ceramide Exp. Cell Res. 243,123-128[Medline]
  54. 28
  55. Tomiuk, S., Hofmann, K., Nix, M., Zumbansen, M., Stoffel, W. (1998) Cloned mammalian neutral sphingomyelinase: functions in sphingolipid signaling? Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 95,3638-3643[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  56. 29
  57. Liu, B., Hannun, Y. A. (1997) Inhibition of the neutral magnesium-dependent sphingomyelinase by glutathione J. Biol. Chem. 272,16281-16287[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  58. 30
  59. Jayadev, S., Linardic, C. M., Hannun, Y. (1994) Identification of arachidonic acid as a mediator of sphingomyelin hydrolysis in response to tumor necrosis factor {alpha} J. Biol. Chem. 269,5757-5763[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  60. 31
  61. Watts, J. D., Gu, M., Polverino, A. J., Patterson, S. D., Aebersold, R. (1997) Fas-induced apoptosis of T cells occurs independently of ceramide generation Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94,7292-7296[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  62. 32
  63. Perry, D. K., Hannun, Y. A. (1999) The use of diglyceride kinase for quantifying ceramide Trends Biol. Sci. 24,226-227
  64. 33
  65. Liu, B., Andrieu-Abadie, N., Levade, T., Zhang, P., Obeid, L. M., Hannun, Y. A. (1998) Glutathione regulation of neutral sphingomyelinase in tumor necrosis factor-{alpha}-induced cell death J. Biol. Chem. 273,11313-11320[Abstract/Free Full Text]



This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
J. Immunol.Home page
E. M. Hanson, V. K. Clements, P. Sinha, D. Ilkovitch, and S. Ostrand-Rosenberg
Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells Down-Regulate L-Selectin Expression on CD4+ and CD8+ T Cells
J. Immunol., July 15, 2009; 183(2): 937 - 944.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
J. Biol. Chem.Home page
T. Dierker, R. Dreier, A. Petersen, C. Bordych, and K. Grobe
Heparan Sulfate-modulated, Metalloprotease-mediated Sonic Hedgehog Release from Producing Cells
J. Biol. Chem., March 20, 2009; 284(12): 8013 - 8022.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USAHome page
A. I. Iliev, J. R. Djannatian, R. Nau, T. J. Mitchell, and F. S. Wouters
Cholesterol-dependent actin remodeling via RhoA and Rac1 activation by the Streptococcus pneumoniae toxin pneumolysin
PNAS, February 20, 2007; 104(8): 2897 - 2902.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
J. Biol. Chem.Home page
Y. Chen, A. Hayashida, A. E. Bennett, S. K. Hollingshead, and P. W. Park
Streptococcus pneumoniae Sheds Syndecan-1 Ectodomains through ZmpC, a Metalloproteinase Virulence Factor
J. Biol. Chem., January 5, 2007; 282(1): 159 - 167.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
J. Biol. Chem.Home page
P. W. Park, T. J. Foster, E. Nishi, S. J. Duncan, M. Klagsbrun, and Y. Chen
Activation of Syndecan-1 Ectodomain Shedding by Staphylococcus aureus {alpha}-Toxin and {beta}-Toxin
J. Biol. Chem., January 2, 2004; 279(1): 251 - 258.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
J. Biol. Chem.Home page
V. Matthews, B. Schuster, S. Schutze, I. Bussmeyer, A. Ludwig, C. Hundhausen, T. Sadowski, P. Saftig, D. Hartmann, K.-J. Kallen, et al.
Cellular Cholesterol Depletion Triggers Shedding of the Human Interleukin-6 Receptor by ADAM10 and ADAM17 (TACE)
J. Biol. Chem., October 3, 2003; 278(40): 38829 - 38839.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


This Article
Right arrow Abstract Freely available
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Walev, I.
Right arrow Articles by Bhakdi, S.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Walev, I.
Right arrow Articles by Bhakdi, S.