Faculty Collaboration Database

Vasopressin-induced translocation and proteolysis of protein kinase Calpha in an amphibian brain: modulation by corticosterone. Brain Res 2007 Feb 23;1134(1):18-26

Date

01/02/2007

Pubmed ID

17196180

DOI

10.1016/j.brainres.2006.11.071

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-33846380714 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   5 Citations

Abstract

In urodele amphibians, the hypothalamic neuropeptide arginine vasotocin and the adrenal steroid corticosterone interact to regulate reproductive behavior by actions in the brain. The present study investigated signal transduction pathways underlying acute effects of vasotocin and corticosterone, presumably mediated via "non-genomic" steroid action, in an amphibian brain. We used Western blot to examine the effects of corticosterone and the vasotocin receptor agonist arginine vasopressin, alone and in combination, on the subcellular localization and proteolytic processing of protein kinase C-alpha (PKCalpha) in tiger salamander brain tissue. Treatment of whole brain minces with vasopressin or vasotocin led to increases in PKCalpha in membrane fractions and concurrent decreases in PKCalpha in cytosolic fractions. Vasopressin or vasotocin treatment also induced the appearance in membrane and cytosolic fractions of a PKCalpha-immunoreactive band that corresponds to PKMalpha, the proteolytically generated, free catalytic subunit of PKCalpha. Treatment with corticosterone alone had no consistent effect on either PKCalpha or PKMalpha in either fraction. However, pretreatment with corticosterone reliably blocked vasopressin-induced increases in cytosolic PKMalpha. These data provide new information about the cellular mechanisms of action of vasopressin and corticosterone in the vertebrate brain and suggest a cellular mechanism by which the two hormones interact to regulate neuronal physiology and behavior.

Author List

Gasser PJ, Orchinik M

Author

Paul Gasser BS,MS,PhD Assistant Professor in the Biomedical Sciences department at Marquette University

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Ambystoma
Animals
Arginine Vasopressin
Brain
Catalytic Domain
Cell Membrane
Corticosterone
Cytosol
Female
Male
Peptide Hydrolases
Protein Kinase C
Protein Kinase C-alpha
Protein Transport
Receptors, Vasopressin