title: Evidence for separate control mechanisms at the message, protein, and enzyme activation levels for transglutaminase during calcium-induced differentiation of normal and transformed human keratinocytes.
abstract: We analyzed the effects of three different calcium concentrations on the RNA and functional protein levels of transglutaminase (TGase) and involucrin (INV) over time in culture. We compared the results in normal human keratinocytes with those in a squamous cell carcinoma, SCC4. The highest calcium concentration (1.2 mM) induced the greatest levels of INV and TGase message, INV protein, and rates of CE formation, but not maximal levels of TGase protein. By examining cytosol and membrane fractions of keratinocytes, we found that after synthesis, TGase protein shifts, under the influence of calcium (both 0.1 mM and 1.2 mM), from the cytosol into the membrane in postconfluent cells. However, only 1.2 mM calcium induced significant amounts of TGase activity. These data indicate that elevated calcium (1.2 mM) achieves the expected induction in keratinocyte differentiation by regulation of not only INV and TGase message levels, but also the translation and activation of TGase protein. Our data suggest that this calcium-induced activation of TGase protein occurs while the protein is anchored in the membrane. In contrast, despite ample INV and TGase message levels within SCC4 cells, these RNA levels are not regulated by calcium or translated into protein, suggesting that the transformed phenotype of SCC4 cells results not only in a failure of calcium to regulate gene transcription, but also in a defect within the translation machinery of these differentiation-specific proteins.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Veterans Administration Medical Center, University of California, San Francisco 94121, USA.
authors.forename: D F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Gibson
authors.forename: A V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Ratnam
authors.forename: D D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Bikle
mesh_terms: D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002461:Cell Line, Transformed; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D003600:Cytosol / Q000378:metabolism; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D006801:Humans; D015603:Keratinocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D011498:Protein Precursors / Q000235:genetics; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism*; D012016:Reference Values; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D011503:Transglutaminases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
chemical_list: D011498:Protein Precursors; D012333:RNA, Messenger; C032253:involucrin; D011503:Transglutaminases; D002118:Calcium