title: Human 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase: studies on the stably transfected isoforms and localization of the type 2 isozyme within renal tissue.
abstract: The type 1 and type 2 isoforms of human 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11 beta-HSD) play a crucial role, respectively, in modulating glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid hormone action. Deficiency of the 11 beta-HSD2 isoform, as described in the syndrome of apparent mineralocorticoid excess and following liquorice (glycyrrhetinic acid) or carbenoxolone ingestion, results in hypertension in which cortisol acts as a potent mineralocorticoid. Several studies have addressed the effects of progesterone, glycyrrhetinic acid, and their derivatives on 11 beta-HSD activity, but these were largely undertaken before the characterization of the 11 beta-HSD isoforms. The aim of this study was to evaluate the localization of 11 beta-HSD2 in human kidney and to study the effects of progesterone, glycyrrhetinic acid, and their related compounds on stable transfectants of the human 11 beta-HSD isoforms. Using an in-house sheep antibody against human 11 beta-HSD2, immunoperoxidase studies localized 11 beta-HSD2 to renal cortical and medullary collecting ducts. Glomeruli, vascular structures, loops of Henle, and proximal tubules were all negative. Confocal laser microscopy studies indicated both a cytoplasmic and nuclear localization for the enzyme within renal collecting ducts. The nuclear staining, which was intranuclear and was not associated with the nuclear membrane, accounted for 40% of the total cellular 11 beta-HSD2 immunoreactivity. Kinetic analysis of 11 beta-HSD activity in fetal kidney 293 cells stably transfected with h11 beta-HSD1/pcDNA3 or 11 beta-HSD2/pCR3, indicated, respectively, low-affinity dehydrogenase/oxoreductase activity (Km for F, 1.8 microM; Km for E, 270 nM) and high-affinity dehydrogenase activity (Km for F, 190 nM). The reductase activity of 11 beta-HSD1 was inhibited by 11 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone > carbenoxolone = glycyrrhetinic acid = progesterone > 11 beta-hydroxyprogesterone. The dehydrogenase activity of 11 beta-HSD2 was inhibited 11 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone = 11 beta-hydroxyprogesterone > glycyrrhetinic acid > carbenoxolone = progesterone. 11 beta-HSD2, expressed in the renal collecting duct, serves to protect the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) in an autocrine fashion. The demonstration of a nuclear localization for what was thought to be principally a microsomal enzyme suggests that interaction between the MR and its ligand (either aldosterone or cortisol) may be a nuclear rather than a cytoplasmic event. The inhibitory effects of progesterone, glycyrrhetinic acid, and related compounds on 11 beta-HSD1 and 2 were similar, and it remains to be seen what implication these findings have for 11 beta-HSD1 action in tissues such as the liver and gonad and renal 11 beta-HSD2 activity in relation to sodium homeostasis and blood pressure control.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Birmingham, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Edgbaston, England.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Bujalska
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shimojo
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Howie
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Stewart
mesh_terms: D042842:11-beta-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D006801:Humans; D006913:Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D007527:Isoenzymes; D007668:Kidney / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000166:cytology / Q000201:enzymology*; D007700:Kinetics; D014162:Transfection
chemical_list: D007527:Isoenzymes; D006913:Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases; D042842:11-beta-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases