title: Thrombin-induced events in non-platelet cells are mediated by the unique proteolytic mechanism established for the cloned platelet thrombin receptor.
abstract: We recently isolated a cDNA clone encoding a functional platelet thrombin receptor that defined a unique mechanism of receptor activation. Thrombin cleaves its receptor's extracellular amino terminal extension, unmasking a new amino terminus that functions as a tethered peptide ligand and activates the receptor. A novel peptide mimicking this new amino terminus was a full agonist for platelet secretion and aggregation, suggesting that this unusual mechanism accounts for platelet activation by thrombin. Does this mechanism also mediate thrombin's assorted actions on non-platelet cells? We now report that the novel thrombin receptor agonist peptide reproduces thrombin-induced events (specifically, phosphoinositide hydrolysis and mitogenesis) in CCL-39 hamster lung fibroblasts, a naturally thrombin-responsive cell line. Moreover, these thrombin-induced events could be recapitulated in CV-1 cells, normally poorly responsive to thrombin, after transfection with human platelet thrombin receptor cDNA. Our data show that important thrombin-induced cellular events are mediated by the same unusual mechanism of receptor activation in both platelets and fibroblasts, very likely via the same or very similar receptors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, University of California, San Francisco 94143-0524.
authors.forename: D T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Hung
authors.forename: T H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Vu
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Nelken
authors.forename: S R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Coughlin
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002455:Cell Division; D002460:Cell Line; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005347:Fibroblasts; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009842:Oligopeptides / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D010716:Phosphatidylinositols / Q000378:metabolism; D010980:Platelet Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D018179:Receptors, Thrombin; D013917:Thrombin / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D014162:Transfection; D010566:Virulence Factors, Bordetella / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D009842:Oligopeptides; D010716:Phosphatidylinositols; D010980:Platelet Membrane Glycoproteins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D018179:Receptors, Thrombin; D010566:Virulence Factors, Bordetella; D013917:Thrombin