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Endocrinology Vol. 138, No. 11 4732-4739
Copyright © 1997 by The Endocrine Society


ARTICLES

Studies of Melatonin Effects on Epithelia Using the Human Embryonic Kidney-293 (HEK-293) Cell Line1

C. W. Y. Chan, Y. Song2, M. Ailenberg, M. Wheeler, S. F. Pang, G. M. Brown3 and M. Silverman4

The Clarke Institute of Psychiatry (C.W.Y.C., G.M.B.), Toronto, Ontario, M5T 1R8, Canada; Medical Research Council Membrane Biology Group (Y.S., M.S.), Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Medical Science Building, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1A8, Canada; Department of Medicine (M.W.), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1A8, Canada; and Department of Physiology (S.F.P.), University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Address all correspondence and requests for reprint to: Dr. M. Silverman, Medical Research Council Membrane Biology Group, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Medical Science Building, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8, Canada.


    Abstract
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
The expression of melatonin receptors (MR) of the Mel1a subtype in basolateral membrane of guinea pig kidney proximal tubule suggests that melatonin plays a role in regulating epithelial functions. To investigate the cellular basis of melatonin action on epithelia, we sought to establish an appropriate in vitro culture model. Epithelial cell lines originating from kidneys of dog (MDCK), pig (LLC-PK1), opossum (OK), and human embryo (HEK-293) were each tested for the presence of MR using 2-[125I]iodomelatonin (125I-MEL) as a radioligand. The HEK-293 cell line exhibited the highest specific 125I-MEL binding. By intermediate filament characterization, the HEK-293 cells were determined to be of epithelial origin. Binding of 125I-MEL in HEK-293 cells demonstrated saturability, reversibility, and high specificity with an equilibrium dissociation constant (Kd) value of 23.8 ± 0.5 pM and a maximum number of binding sites (Bmax) value of 1.17 ± 0.11 fmol/mg protein (n = 5), which are comparable with the reported Kd and Bmax values in human kidney cortex. Coincubation with GTP{gamma}S (10 µM) and pertussis toxin (100 ng/ml) provoked a marked decrease in binding affinity (Kd was increased by a factor of 1.5–2.0), with no significant difference in Bmax. Melatonin (1 µM) decreased the forskolin (10 µM) stimulated cAMP level by 50%. HEK-293 cells do not express dopamine D1A receptor. Following transient transfection of HEK-293 cells with human dopamine D1A receptor (hD1A-R), exposure of the cells to dopamine stimulated an increase in the level of cAMP. Similarly, transient transfection of HEK-293 cells with rat glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide (GIP), and PTH type 1 receptors, each resulted in an hormone inducible increase in cAMP levels. Surprisingly, only the stimulatory effect of dopamine could be inhibited by exposure to melatonin. The inhibitory effect of melatonin on dopamine D1-induced increase in cAMP was completely inhibited by pertussis toxin (100 ng/ml, 18 h). Immunoblot and immunocytochemical studies were carried out using two polyclonal antibodies raised against the extra and cytoplasmic domains of Mel1a receptor. Immunoblot studies using antibody against the cytoplasmic domain of Mel1a receptor confirmed the presence of a peptide blockable 37 kDa band in HEK-293 cells. Indirect immunofluorescent studies with both antibodies revealed staining predominantly at the cell surface, but staining with the antibody directed against the cytoplasmic domain required prior cell permeabilization. By RT-PCR, HEK-293 cells express both Mel1a and Mel1b messenger RNAs, but the messenger RNA level for Mel1b is several orders of magnitude lower than for Mel1a.

We conclude that HEK-293 cells express MR predominantly of the Mel1a subtype. Our evidence suggests that one of the ways that melatonin exerts its biological function is through modulation of cellular dopaminergic responses.


    Introduction
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
MELATONIN IS a hormone produced and secreted by the pineal gland, which has been implicated in a wide spectrum of physiological actions including the control of reproduction (1), sleep (2), and seasonal disorders (3). Studies of its actions have focused primarily on brain (4), retina (5), and pituitary (6), but the presence of high affinity 125I-MEL binding sites in peripheral tissues, such as kidney (7–10), intestine (8, 11) and heart (12), etc. have also been described. However, physiological effects of melatonin on these peripheral tissues still remain obscure. Previous work from our laboratory has shown that 125I-MEL binding sites are localized to basolateral membranes of guinea pig proximal tubule and small intestine and are coupled to a pertussis toxin-sensitive G protein (Gi) (8). These findings suggest that melatonin exerts a regulatory role on renal proximal tubular and intestinal epithelium and that the epithelial response is guided by the signal transduction mechanism activated by melatonin interaction with the basolateral MR. The existence of epithelial MR in both the avian and mammalian species also raises the question of whether the molecular mechanisms of melatonin action on epithelial tissues differ from its interaction with nonepithelial cells such as neuronal tissues.

To further explore the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which melatonin exerts its epithelial effects in greater detail, it would be advantageous to have an appropriate in vitro experimental system. Accordingly, several different kidney epithelial cell lines were screened for the presence of functional MR. Human embryonic kidney-293 (HEK-293) cells exhibited by far the highest 125I-MEL binding of the cells tested with level comparable to that reported in human kidney cortex (10) and were therefore chosen for further investigations.

HEK-293 cells were found to express an epithelial phenotype when compared with smooth muscle like mesangial cells as determined by intermediate filament characterization. The results of the present study show that HEK-293 cells express functional MR coupled to Gi predominantly of the Mel1a subtype and to a lesser extent of Mel1b as revealed by RT-PCR, pharmacological 125I-MEL binding studies and immunoblot studies with peptide specific polyclonal anti-Mel1a receptor antibody. When the effects of melatonin on stimulated cAMP were studied, melatonin decreased forskolin and dopamine stimulated cAMP via a pertussis toxin-sensitive mechanism. Studies carried out in HEK-293 cells transiently transfected with dopamine D1A, GIP, GLP-1, and PTH type 1 receptors, which coupled to adenylyl cyclase through stimulatory G protein (Gs), revealed that exposure to melatonin only affected the cAMP elevation elicited by dopamine. These results suggest that one of the mechanisms by which melatonin exerts its biological function is through modulation of cellular dopaminergic responses.


    Materials and Methods
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Materials
2-[125I]Iodomelatonin (specific activity, 2200 Ci/mmol) and 2-iodomelatonin were purchased from DuPont-New England Nuclear (Boston, MA) and Research Biochemicals (Natick, MA), respectively. 6-Chloromelatonin was kindly donated by Eli Lilly and Co. (Indianapolis, IN). 2-Phenylmelatonin was purchased from Tocris Cookson (Bristol, UK). [125I]-Succinyl cyclic adenosine-3',5'-monophosphate tyrosine methyl ester ([125I]-ScAMP-TME) was obtained from Hazleton Washington (Vienna, VA). Plasmid purification columns and RNeasy total RNA isolation kit were from Qiagen (Chatsworth, CA). DNase I was from Pharmacia Biotech (Baie d’Urfe, Quebec, Canada). SuperScript II RNase H- reverse transcriptase, SuperScript human brain complementary DNA (cDNA) library, Taq DNA polymerase, calcium-phosphate transfection kit, DMEM, FBS, and other cell culture reagents were purchased from GIBCO-BRL (Gaithersburg, MD). Antiserum to cAMP was kindly given by Dr. D. C. Klein (Department of Health & Human Services, NIH, Bethesda, MD). Enhanced chemiluminescence (ECL) was purchased from Amersham (Arlington Heights, IL). Synthetic human GIP (shGIP) was from Peninsula Laboratories (Belmont, CA). Dopamine, synthetic human PTH (shPTH), synthetic human GLP-1 (7–36) amide (shGLP-1(7–36)), guanosine 5'-O-(3'-thiotriphosphate) (GTP{gamma}S), pertussis toxin, DTT, phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF), and other chemicals of the highest chemical grade were obtained from Sigma Chemicals (St. Louis, MO).

Cell lines
MDCK, LLC-PK1, OK and HEK-293 were from American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) (Rockville, MD). They were grown in 100 mm culture dishes in DMEM supplemented with 10% FBS, 50 U/ml penicillin and 50 µg/ml streptomycin in a humidified incubator with 5% CO2 at 37 C. The medium was changed two or three times per week, and the cells were split 1:3 or 1:4 upon reaching confluence. The culture conditions before each of the assays varied depending on the experimental protocols and are described in the relevant sections. Mesangial cells as mesenchymal, smooth-muscle like cells in the renal glumerulus were prepared and cultured as previously described (13). HEK-293 cells between passage 35 to 55 were used in the study.

DNA
The reporter vector, which codes for the cDNA of green fluorescence protein (GFP), was obtained from Clontech (Palo Alto, CA). The genomic DNA encoding the full length of hD1A-R subcloned into pCD (6.5 kb) was a generous gift from Dr. H. B. Niznik of the Department of Pharmacology, University of Toronto (Toronto, Ontario, Canada). The full length rat PTH type 1 receptor (rPTH-R) cDNA subcloned into mammalian expression vector pcDNA3 (5.4 kb; Invitrogen) was donated by Dr. S. Palcy and Dr. D. Golzman at Calcium Research Laboratory, Royal Victoria Hospital (Montreal, Quebec, Canada). The full length of rat GLP-1 receptor (rGLP-1R) (14) and rat GIP receptor (rGIP-R) (15) were also subcloned into the vector pcDNA3. The cDNAs of Mel1a and Mel1b receptors subcloned into the vector pcDNA1 and pcDNA3, respectively, are kindly donated by Dr. S. M. Reppert at Laboratory of Developmental Chronobiology, Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston, MA).

2-[125I]Iodomelatonin binding assays
The assays were performed in duplicate. Cells were washed with HBSS three times and scraped and the suspension was centrifuged at 8,000 x g for 15 min. Cell pellets were washed twice in 50 mM Tris-HCl buffer (pH 7.4), centrifuged at 12,000 x g for 10 min and were then resuspended in Tris-HCl buffer for binding assays. Preliminary studies in our laboratory suggested that crude membrane preparation from HEK-293 cells yielded the same binding capacity as the cell suspension. Hence, for convenience, we employed the later method in the present study.

Cell suspensions were incubated with 5–160 pM of 125I-MEL at 37 C for 1 h with or without melatonin (1 µM) in the saturation studies. For the kinetic studies, incubation time varied from 5–100 min at a fixed concentration of 125I-MEL (50 pM). Melatonin (1 µM) is added at 40 min to initiate dissociation. For the competition studies, indoles of various concentrations ranging from 1 pM to 10 µM were incubated with samples and fixed concentration of 125I-MEL (70 pM). The effects of GTP{gamma}S (10 µM) and pertussis toxin (100 ng/ml, 18 h) on the saturation curves were also investigated. The effect of pertussis toxin was performed by pretreating the cells with 100 ng/ml pertussis toxin at 37 C overnight. On the next day, the cells were harvested as previously described. Cells pretreated with working solution of the pertussis toxin were used as control.

All reactions were terminated by addition of 3 ml cold Tris-HCl buffer (pH 7.4) three times followed by immediate vacuum filtration through Whatman GF/B glass fiber filters (pore size 1.0 µm). Radioactivity was measured by a gamma counter (Auto-gamma Gamma Counting System, Packard Instrument Company, Meriden, CT) with an efficiency of 74%. The equilibrium dissociation constant (Kd), maximum number of binding sites (Bmax), dissociation rate constant (K-1), association rate constant (K1), and inhibition constant (Ki) were determined as reported (7, 16).

RT-PCR
RT-PCR was performed as previously described (13). Primers specific for Mel1a and Mel1b receptors, keratin no. 8, desmin, vimentin, and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (G3PDH) were selected for the RT-PCR (Table 1Go). Primers for Mel1a and Mel1b receptors were designed to contain sequences in the transmembrane domain 1 and 2 of the receptors (17). Amplification of genomic DNA would be unlikely to occur due to the presence of a large intron between the transmembrane domains. Following RNA isolation from HEK-293 and mesangial cells by RNeasy total RNA isolation kit, RNAs were treated with DNase I to remove possible tracing amount of genomic DNA. RT was then performed producing first strand cDNA. PCR was then performed, and the products were subjected to 1% agarose gel electrophoresis. Master mix with all the reagents except templates were used in RT and PCR to ensure same reaction conditions for all samples.


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Table 1. Primers used in RT-PCR reactions and the results

 
Generation of the anti-Mel1a polyclonal antibodies
Antibodies against the third intracellular loop (anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3) and the third extracellular loop (anti-Mel1a IgG-TEL3) of human Mel1a receptor were generated as previously reported and their specificity was characterized (8).

Immunoblot study
HEK-293 cells were scraped in the cell lysate buffer (20 mM Tris-HCl, pH 8.0 at 4 C, 10% glycerol, 1% Triton X-100, 137 mM NaCl) with proteinase inhibitors (1 mM EDTA, 1 mM PMSF, 1 mg/liter each of leupeptin, pepstatin A, and aprotinin) and rocked at 4 C for 1 h. Then the suspension was centrifuged at 20,000 x g for 20 min and the supernatant was collected for gel electrophoresis. Cell lysates (80 µg/lane) were subjected to 10% SDS-PAGE in sample buffer (62.5 mM Tris-HCl, pH 6.8, 2% SDS, 10% glycerol, 42 mM DTT, and 0.01% bromophenol blue) and transferred electrophoretically to nitrocellulose. The nitrocellulose sheets were blocked in TBS-T (20 mM Tris-HCl, 137 mM NaCl, 0.2% Tween-20, pH 7.6) with 5% nonfat dry milk for 30 min at room temperature. Nitrocellulose strips were then incubated with anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 (0.4 mg/liter) supplemented with or without 0.5 mg/liter of the corresponding peptide TIL3 in blocking buffer at room temperature for 1 h then washed with TBS-T at least four times for a total of 1.5 h. The strips were then incubated with a horseradish peroxidase conjugated goat antirabbit IgG (Bio-Rad, Hercules, CA) followed by washing in TBS-T and detected by ECL according to the manufacturer’s instruction. The immunoblot presented in this paper is representative of three separate experiments.

Immunolocalization of MR using anti-Mel1a receptor antibodies
HEK-293 cells were plated on coverslips and cultured for 1 day. Cells were first rinsed in HBSS, then fixed in freshly prepared 3% paraformaldehyde in PBS (pH 7.4) and blocked in PBS with 10% dry milk followed by permeabilization with 0.2% Triton X-100 in PBS. Antibody directed against Mel1a receptor (anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 or anti-Mel1a IgG-TEL3) at concentration of 0.05 mg/ml was added and incubated for 30 min at room temperature. The IgG fraction of preimmune sera was used as a control. PBS with 0.2% Tween-20 and 1% Triton X-100 was used to wash the cells after incubation, which were then incubated at dark with rhodamine-labeled goat antirabbit IgG (Jackson ImmunoResearch Lab, Inc., West Grove, PA) for 30 min at room temperature. Washing was repeated as described previously. Cells were then mounted on glass slides with 0.1% p-phenylenediamine with 90% glycerol and observed under a confocal laser-scanning microscope (LSM-410, Carl Zeiss Jena GmbH, Oberkochen, Germany) with a Carl Zeiss LSM 3.8 program.

Calcium phosphate transfection
The DNA for transfection was purified using the Qiagen Plasmid Kit (Qiagen, Chatsworth, CA). HEK-293 cells were transfected with different DNA separately, including the plasmid pCD encoding the genomic DNA of hD1A-R, the plasmids pcDNA3 encoding the cDNA of rGLP-1R, rGIP-R, and rPTH-R. Cells were plated at a density of 8 x 104 cells/35cm2 in the 6 well plates in DMEM with 10% FBS one day before tranfection. DNA (1.8 µg/well) was introduced into the cells as a calcium phosphate DNA complex using the calcium-phosphate transfection kit (18). Empty plasmid, pCD or pcDNA3, was used as a negative control in each experiment. The vector encoding cDNA of GFP from the jellyfish Aequorea victoria was used as a reporter for estimating gene expression efficiency (19) by counting the number of GFP expressed per million of cells under fluorescence microscope 72 h after transfection.

Adenylyl cyclase activity
Cells were grown to confluence in six-well plates in DMEM with 10% FBS. Reactions were started by the addition of 10 µM forskolin and/or melatonin analogs at various concentrations from 1 µM to 1 pM at 37 C for 30 min supplemented with 100 µM isobutylmethyl xanthine (Sigma, St. Louis, MO). The reactions were terminated by centrifugation of the cell suspension followed by the addition of 5 mM acetic acid to the pellets. Then, cells were boiled for 5 min, sonicated, and centrifuged for 15 min. The supernatant was collected and assayed for cAMP, whereas the pellet was saved for protein assay based on the method reported by Lowry et al. (20) with BSA as the standard. All determinants were done in triplicate. Cyclic AMP levels were determined in duplicate by RIA. The data are expressed as the increment of cAMP above basal levels.

For the cells transfected with genomic DNA of the hD1A-R, cDNA of rGIP-R, rGLP-1R, or rPTH-R, stimulation was performed 72 h after transfection with the same protocol mentioned above. Cells were incubated with different concentrations of dopamine, shGIP, shGLP-1(7–36), and shPTH to induce cAMP accumulation and the EC50 values were determined. Those hormones were also added to the untransfected cells to check if the corresponding receptors are expressed endogenously and the effects of melatonin were also examined. Meanwhile, the effects of melatonin on transfected cells were studied by incubating cells with dopamine (10 µM), shGIP (10 nM), shGLP-1(7–36) (10 nM) or shPTH (10 nM) respectively in concentrations closed to their EC50 with or without melatonin (1 µM).

In some experiments, cells were pretreated with 100 ng/ml of pertussis toxin in DMEM. In the case for untransfected cells, incubation started on the day before stimulation whereas for the transfected cells, incubation started on the third day after transfection. After 18 h of incubation, the cells were washed twice with DMEM and stimulation was done as described earlier.

RIA of cAMP
The RIA was performed using a high specific activity adenosine 3',5'-cyclic phosphoric acid 2'-O-succinyl-3-[125I]iodotyrosine methyl ester ([125I]cAMP-TME) together with a high affinity antisuccinyl cAMP sera as reported (9, 21). All assays were performed in duplicate.

Statistical analysis
Comparisons of two groups were analyzed by paired or unpaired Student’s t test. Group differences in the cAMP studies were analyzed by one-way ANOVA, followed by Fisher’s least-significant-difference (LSD) tests. All analysis were performed by Systat 5.2.1. (Systat Inc., Evanston, IL), fitted for the Macintosh system. The level of significance were set at P < 0.05. Data are expressed as means ± SEM.


    Results
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Epithelial characterization of HEK-293 cells
One of the major objectives of this study was to establish an in vitro model system that could be employed for further study of the mechanism by which melatonin exerts its effects on epithelial cells at the cellular level. It was therefore necessary to confirm the epithelial origin of the HEK-293 cells. Intermediate filament characterization was carried out using RT-PCR to determine the expression of keratin no. 8, desmin, and vimentin. As shown on Table 1Go, HEK-293 cells but not mesangial cells expressed keratin no. 8 consistent with cells being of epithelial origin. Both cell types expressed vimentin consistent with its production by transformed cell lines and mesenchymal cells (Table 1Go) (22). Mesangial cells also expressed desmin consistent with its production by smooth muscle-like cells (22). Contamination of genomic DNA was unlikely to occur in these experiments because no amplification product was observed when PCR was performed using G3PDH primers without reverse transcription following RNA isolation (data not shown).

In vitro ligand-receptor binding studies of HEK-293 cells
The saturability of 125I-MEL binding was determined using a range of 125I-MEL concentrations (5–160 pM). Binding of 125I-MEL to MDCK, OK, and LLC-PK1 was too low to be detected (data not shown). Specific binding of 125I-MEL to HEK-293 cells increased with increasing concentration of radioligand and approached saturation approximately at 80 pM 125I-MEL (Fig. 1aGo). A representative Scatchard plot is showed in Fig. 1bGo. The Kd was 23.8 ± 0.5 pM, and the Bmax was 1.17 ± 0.11 fmol/mg protein (n = 3). Hill coefficients approached 1.0 in each case (Fig. 1cGo). Taken together, these results suggest the presence of a single class of high affinity binding sites in HEK-293 cells.



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Figure 1. a, Representative saturation study of 125I-MEL binding to HEK-293 cells. TB, total binding; NSB, nonspecific binding; SB, specific binding. NSB was determined in the presence of 1 µM melatonin. b, Scatchard transformation of the data in panel a, with a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.98 and a Kd value of 25.0 pM and a Bmax value of 1.17 fmol/mg protein. c, Hill plot with a coefficient of 0.98.

 
Melatonin and a series of analogs competitively inhibited 125I-MEL binding (Table 2Go). The order of potency is shown in order in the table.


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Table 2. Specificity of 125I-MEL binding sites in the HEK-293 cells

 
At 37 C, the specific 125I-MEL binding increased rapidly and reached equilibrium by approximately 40 min. Addition of 1 µM cold melatonin displaced 125I-MEL binding indicating that such binding was reversible. Linearization of the association and dissociation kinetics gave K1 of 1.3 ± 0.1 nM-1 min-1 and K-1 of (1.5 ± 0.2) x 10-2 min-1. The kinetically derived value of Kd is 12.3 ± 2.1 pM (n = 3).

Specific binding of 125I-MEL to the membrane was inhibited by the addition of 10 µM nonhydrolyzable GTP analog, GTP{gamma}S. The addition of GTP{gamma}S significantly increased the Kd from 23.8 ± 0.5 to 37.2 ± 0.9 pM (P < 0.05, paired Student’s t test, n = 3) and with no significant difference in the Bmax (1.17 ± 0.11 and 0.91 ± 0.04 fmol/mg protein). Incubation of HEK-293 cells with pertussis toxin (100 ng/ml) significantly increased the Kd from 14.3 ± 3.3 to 31.7 ± 2.3 pM (P < 0.05, unpaired Student’s t test, n = 3), whereas there was no significant difference in the Bmax (0.40 ± 0.05 and 0.45 ± 0.07 fmol/mg protein).

Characterization of MR in HEK-293 by RT-PCR
As shown in Fig. 2Go by PCR, HEK-293 cells can be seen to express messenger RNAs for both Mel1a and Mel1b receptors.



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Figure 2. Characterization of MR in HEK-293 cells with RT-PCR. Total RNA extracted from HEK-293 cells was used for RT-PCR. Lanes 1–4 were PCR products using primers for Mel1a receptor, whereas lanes 5–8 were products using primers for Mel1b receptor. Plasmids containing Mel1a and Mel1b receptors were used as a positive control (lanes 2 and 5, respectively). A 207-bp and 320-bp product was observed for HEK-293 cells (lanes 4 and 7, respectively) and human brain cDNA (lanes 3 and 6, respectively) with primers for Mel1a and Mel1b receptors, correspondingly. Lanes 1 and 8 were negative controls with water as a sample with primers for Mel1a and Mel1b receptors, respectively.

 
Characterization of HEK-293 MR using peptide-specific antibodies
Expression of MR in HEK-293 cells was further confirmed by immunoblot and immunocytochemical studies using two different peptide specific polyclonal antibodies (anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 and anti-Mel1a IgG-TEL3) against the MEL1a receptor (see Materials and Methods). Figure 3Go shows an immunoblot using anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 antibody. A single peptide blockable band at 37 kDa is present. The molecular mass of approximately 37 kDa is consistent with that found in the human brain and guinea pig kidney proximal tubule basolateral membrane (8) and close to the predicted size of the MEL1a receptor from the cDNA clone (39.4 kDa) (23). These observations together with the binding studies and RT-PCR strongly suggest that HEK-293 cells express MR with majority of MEL1a subtype.



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Figure 3. Immunoblot of HEK-293 cells with anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 (lane 1) or anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 plus peptide TIL3 (lane 2). A single peptide blockable 37 kDa band was detected.

 
Immunolocalization of Mel1a receptors
Localization of Mel1a receptors in HEK-293 cells was investigated by indirect immunofluorescence using confocal microscopy. No specific staining was observed in either the controls of permeabilized or nonpermeabilized cells incubated with the IgG fraction of preimmune sera (data not shown). As shown in Fig. 4Go, a and b, using anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 antiserum (antibody directed against a predicted intracellular domain of the Mel1a receptor), specific staining was observed only in permeabilized but not nonpermeabilized cells, and the staining is localized primarily at the cell membrane.



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Figure 4. Photomicrographs of indirect immunofluorescence studies of HEK-293 cells using anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 and anti-Mel1a IgG-TEL3 antibodies visualized by laser confocal microscopy. a, Immunostained permeabilized HEK-293 cells using anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 antibody. b, Immunostained nonpermeabilized HEK-293 cells using anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 antibody. c, Immunostained permeabilized HEK-293 cells using anti-Mel1a IgG-TEL3 antibody. d, Immunostained nonpermeabilized HEK-293 cells using anti-Mel1a IgG-TEL3 antibody.

 
In contrast, as shown in Fig. 4Go, c and d, application of anti-Mel1a IgG-TEL3 antiserum (the antibody directed against a predicted extracellular domain of the Mel1a receptor) allowed staining of both the permeabilized and nonpermeabilized cells.

Mechanism of melatonin action on HEK-293
In kidney (9), pars tuberalis (24), and other neural tissues (21, 25), it has been demonstrated that melatonin reduces forskolin stimulated cAMP. Therefore, it is possible that melatonin might exert its regulatory role on epithelia by regulating intracellular cAMP levels. As shown in Fig. 5aGo, stimulation of HEK-293 cells with 10 µM forskolin in the absence of melatonin induced an approximately 10-fold increase in the cAMP level (P < 0.05, unpaired Student’s t test, n = 3). Exposure of HEK-293 cells to melatonin had no effect on basal cAMP levels (data not shown) but caused a 50% reduction in forskolin (10 µM) stimulated cAMP at a concentration of 1 µM (Fig. 5aGo). Furthermore, the melatonin-induced reduction of forskolin stimulated cAMP was abolished by pretreatment with pertussis toxin (Fig. 5aGo), implying that the effect mediated by the MR transduction is Gi coupled.



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Figure 5. The effects of melatonin on induced intracellular cAMP levels. a, Effects of melatonin (10 pM or 1 µM) on forskolin- (10 µM) stimulated cAMP level in the presence or absence of pertussis toxin (100 ng/ml, 18 h). b, Effects of melatonin (10 pM or 1 µM) on dopamine (10 µM), shGIP (10 nM), shGLP-1(7–36) (10 nM), and shPTH (10 nM) stimulated cAMP levels in the presence or absence of pertussis toxin (100 ng/ml, 18 h). M10 denotes 10 pM melatonin, whereas M6 denotes 1 µM melatonin. F, D, GIP, GLP, and PTH represent 10 µM forskolin, 10 µM dopamine, 10 nM shGIP, 10 nM shGLP-1(7–36), and 10 nM shPTH, respectively. The basal levels of cAMP were 198 ± 37 fmol/mg protein. *, P < 0.05; **, P < 0.01 vs. corresponding F and D group (ANOVA, n = 3).

 
The melatonin induced decrease in cAMP would be functionally more relevant if it acted in concert with other physiological regulators of cAMP. To investigate this possibility, we tested if whether melatonin could reduce the cAMP-stimulatory effects of other Gs-coupled hormone receptors. To accomplish this goal, we transiently transfected HEK-293 cells with either the hD1A-R, rGIP-R, rGLP-1R, or rPTH-R and then examined for inhibitory effects of melatonin on the level of cAMP elevations stimulated by those hormones. A range of concentrations (10 µM to 10 pM) of dopamine, shGIP, shGLP-1(7–36), and shPTH were employed to determine the EC50 values so that the effects of melatonin can be examined (data not shown). Dopamine, shGIP, shGLP-1(7–36) and shPTH each caused concentration-dependent increases in cAMP accumulation in transfected HEK-293 cells (data not shown). However, none of the above stimulatory hormones altered the cAMP levels in untransfected cells; otherwise, no transfection studies have to be done. The effects of melatonin on untransfected cells incubated with stimulatory hormones were unobserved (data not shown).

Application of 10 pM melatonin drastically decreased the dopamine (10 µM) stimulated cAMP in the D1A receptor transfected HEK-293 cells by 61% and further inhibition was observed at 1 µM melatonin (Fig. 5bGo) (P < 0.01, ANOVA, n = 3).

Similar to what was observed after exposure to forskolin, pretreatment of transfected cultures with pertussis toxin for 18 h (100 ng/ml) had no effect on dopamine-stimulated cAMP accumulation but significantly reduced the inhibitory effect of melatonin (Fig. 5bGo).

As shown in Fig. 5bGo, all rGIP-R, rGLP-1R and rPTH-R transfected HEK-293 cells showed stimulated cAMP above basal level by corresponding hormones (P < 0.01, unpaired Student’s t test, n = 3), reaching levels approximately 50–80% of that observed by dopamine. But interestingly, in contrast to the case for dopamine, the increase in cAMP stimulated by shGIP, shGLP-1(7–36), and shPTH was not inhibited by melatonin (Fig. 5bGo) (P > 0.05, unpaired Student’s t test, n = 3).


    Discussion
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Using both 125I-MEL binding studies as well as peptide specific polyclonal antibodies, we have demonstrated that HEK-293 cells express MR of the Mel1a subtype at the cell surface. Moreover, the results of RT-PCR showed that HEK-293 cells also express Mel1b subtype at the messenger RNA level, but to a lesser extent than Mel1a. By intermediate filament and morphological criteria, the HEK-293 cells exhibit epithelial characteristics. Furthermore, in a pilot study, evaluation of HEK-293 cells growing on Millipore filters coated with Matrigel by routine transmission electron microscopy revealed typical morphological features of a polarized epithelium including well differentiated basal and apical membranes as well as the presence of typical tight junctions (Chan, C. W. Y., G. M. Brown, and M. Silverman; unpublished data). Together with the expression of keratin no. 8, the morphology strongly suggests that HEK-293 cells are of epithelial origin (22, 26). Therefore, HEK-293 cells appear to be a useful in vitro model with which to study melatonin-epithelial interaction. Furthermore, the immunolocalization studies with the anti-Mel1a IgG-TIL3 and anti-Mel1a IgG-TEL3 antibodies directly confirm the predicted topology of the Mel1a receptor proposed by Reppert et al. (27).

The molecular mechanisms of melatonin action on HEK-293 cells were assessed by examining the effects of melatonin on cellular cAMP levels. Pertussis toxin-sensitive inhibitory effects of melatonin were observed only on forskolin and dopamine-stimulated cAMP accumulation, suggesting that melatonin interaction with HEK-293 MR is mediated by a Gi-coupled interaction. The effect of melatonin on forskolin stimulated cAMP is in line with those reported in chicken kidney (9) and pars tuberalis (24). However, what is particularly intriguing is that the interaction of melatonin and dopamine exhibited a degree of specificity in that melatonin could not inhibit the GIP-, GLP-1-, and PTH-stimulated cAMP on HEK-293 cells. In other words, of the four Gs-coupled hormone receptors tested, only dopamine exhibited an interaction with melatonin. It is not so surprising that picomolar concentrations of melatonin acting through endogenous MR are capable of effectively blocking (~50% inhibition) of dopamine stimulated HEK-293 overexpressing dopaminergic receptors because similar melatonin concentrations yield approximately the same degree of inhibition following forskolin stimulated cAMP. Nevertheless, it suggested the MR signaling is more effective than the dopamine D1A receptor signaling because a lesser level of MR was capable of competing with and blocking the presumably massive stimulation from the overexpressed D1A receptors. This may also explain the levels of MR in the kidney in vivo are likely to be lower because a relatively low level of MR would be enough to generate an effective signaling response.

Although one study has suggested that MR upon stimulation by melatonin might directly inhibit adenylyl cyclase (28) and thereby decrease cAMP levels, it is more likely that in HEK-293 cells, endogenous MR and transfected dopamine D1A receptors interact with a common isozyme of adenylyl cyclase whereas GIP, GLP-1 and PTH receptors are coupled to different HEK-293 adenylyl cyclase isozymes. However, we have to emphasis that these experiments were done under artificial situation. It is of course possible that this specificity of the melatonin dopamine interaction is restricted to HEK-293 cells or in vitro situation only. But a likely scenario is that this observation has general biological implication. For example, one could hypothesize that the mechanism by which melatonin affects epithelial (as well as nonepithelial) functions is through modulation of their dopaminergic response. In fact, the melatonin-dopamine interaction has been described in other cells (5), but to our knowledge, the present study is the first demonstration of differential inhibitory effects of melatonin on dopamine-stimulated adenylyl cyclase.

It should also be pointed out that the melatonin-dopamine interaction might not be necessarily restricted to the level of cellular cAMP. Other mechanisms may also be involved. We believed that such specific melatonin-dopamine but not melatonin-GIP, GLP-1 or PTH interaction may suggest possible physiological functions of melatonin and also the mechanisms, besides adenylyl cyclase, involved in the melatonin-dopamine systems. Unfortunately, we could not distinguish which MR subtype was responsible for the effects in the study. However, we believe the Mel1a is also the predominant subtype of MR at the protein level based on the results of RT-PCR and was responsible for the effects. Nonetheless, future experiments have to be done to support our hypothesis.

Based on the present study, we would predict that the Gi-coupled Mel1a (and/or possibly also Mel1b) receptor and the Gs-coupled dopamine receptor share the same effector adenylyl cyclase isozyme. It may be that other hormone receptors also share this same isozyme, but the specificity of the linkage of melatonin and dopamine is sufficiently interesting to warrant further investigation to explore this hypothesis. The HEK-293 cell model should facilitate the dissection of the complex cellular and molecular processes of melatonin action on epithelia in the future.


    Footnotes
 
1 This work was supported by the Neuroendocrinology Research Fund (to S.F.P.) and Clarke Foundation Grants (to G.M.B.) and the Medical Research Council Membrane Biology Group grant (to M.S.). Back

2 Recipient of a postdoctoral fellowship award from the Kidney Foundation of Canada. Back

3 Ontario Mental Health Foundation Research Associate. Back

4 Member of the MRC Membrane Biology Group, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto. Back

Received March 26, 1997.


    References
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 

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