title: Intracellular processing of endothelial nitric oxide synthase isoforms associated with differences in severity of cardiopulmonary diseases: cleavage of proteins with aspartate vs. glutamate at position 298.
abstract: An endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) polymorphism in exon 7 (894 G/T) resulting in glutamate or aspartate, respectively, at position 298 on the protein is correlated with severity of cardiopulmonary diseases. Because glutamate and aspartate are considered to be conservative replacements, the polymorphism was thought to be a marker for a functional locus elsewhere in the gene. We now show in transfected cells, primary human endothelial cells, and human hearts, that eNOS with aspartate, but not glutamate, at position 298 is cleaved, resulting in the generation of 100-kDa and 35-kDa products. Recombinant or native eNOS was examined by immunoblotting either in lysates (COS7) or after partial purification over 2',5'-ADP-Sepharose and calmodulin-Sepharose. Immunoblotting after SDS/PAGE with a carboxyl-terminal antibody showed a single major protein band in the predicted position for eNOS at 135 kDa. An additional band at approximately 100 kDa was present only in the recombinant 298Asp eNOS and in the eNOS synthesized by primary cells and heart tissue with a G/T genotype. Using an eNOS amino-terminal-specific antibody, an immunoreactive band at approximately 35 kDa, corresponding to the residual N-terminal cleavage fragment, was observed in those cells with a T genotype. Thus, eNOS with aspartate but not glutamate at position 298 is cleaved, resulting in the generation of N-terminal 35-kDa and C-terminal 100-kDa fragments. Thus, the eNOS gene with polymorphisms at nucleotide 894 generates protein products with differing susceptibility to cleavage, suggesting that, in contrast to prior predictions, this polymorphism has a functional effect on the eNOS protein.
authors.affiliation: Pulmonary-Critical Care Medicine Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-1590, USA. tesaurm@gwgate.nhlbi.nih.gov
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tesauro
authors.forename: W C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rogliani
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.forename: P P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Chaudhary
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Moss
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001011:Aorta / Q000201:enzymology; D001224:Aspartic Acid / Q000737:chemistry*; D019556:COS Cells; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D005838:Genotype; D018698:Glutamic Acid / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D007527:Isoenzymes; D008171:Lung Diseases / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III; D010957:Plasmids; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D014162:Transfection
chemical_list: D007527:Isoenzymes; D001224:Aspartic Acid; D018698:Glutamic Acid; C496314:NOS3 protein, human; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III