title: Heregulin degradation in the absence of rapid receptor-mediated internalization.
abstract: Heregulin receptors are unable to mediate the rapid internalization of bound ligand as demonstrated in cells transfected with chimeric or wild-type ErbB-2, -3, or -4 receptors (Baulida et al., 1996, J. Biol. Chem. 271, 5251-5257; Pinkas-Kramanski et al., 1996, EMBO J. 15, 2452-2467). This observation is now extended to include mammary carcinoma cell lines (SK-BR-3 and MDA-543) which express endogenous ErbB-2 and ErbB-3 receptors. Also, the fate of receptor-bound heregulin is examined. While receptor-bound heregulin is not rapidly internalized, the ligand is subject to a slow process of inactivation and degradation, which requires heregulin incubation at 37 degrees C with cells that express heregulin receptors. The degradation of heregulin is blocked to a significant extent by chloroquine, an inhibitor of endosome fusion with lysosomes, indicating that heregulin is slowly internalized and degraded. However, this process is not sufficiently rapid to produce ligand-dependent down-regulation of heregulin receptors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232-0146, USA.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Baulida
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Carpenter
mesh_terms: D016475:3T3 Cells; D000818:Animals; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D002738:Chloroquine / Q000494:pharmacology; D015536:Down-Regulation; D004705:Endocytosis; D011992:Endosomes / Q000187:drug effects; D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor / Q000378:metabolism; D066246:ErbB Receptors / Q000378:metabolism*; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D008561:Membrane Fusion / Q000187:drug effects; D051379:Mice; D020890:Neuregulin-1; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D020893:Receptor, ErbB-3; D066247:Receptor, ErbB-4
chemical_list: D002352:Carrier Proteins; D002738:Chloroquine; D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor; D066246:ErbB Receptors; D006023:Glycoproteins; D020890:Neuregulin-1; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; D020893:Receptor, ErbB-3; D066247:Receptor, ErbB-4; C087230:heregulin beta1; C587690:Erbb4 protein, mouse