Regulation of the stability of P-glycoprotein by ubiquitination.
Ubiquitination plays a crucial role in regulating protein turnover. Here we show that ubiquitination regulates the stability of the MDR1 gene product, P-glycoprotein, thereby affecting the functions of this membrane transporter that mediates multidrug resistance. We found that P-glycoprotein was constitutively ubiquitinated in drug-resistant cancer cells. Transfection of multidrug-resistant cells with wild-type ubiquitin or treatment with an N-glycosylation inhibitor increased the ubiquitination of P-glycoprotein and increased P-glycoprotein degradation. Carbobenzoxy-L-leucyl-L-leucyl-L-leucinal (MG-132), a proteasome inhibitor, induced accumulation of ubiquitinated P-glycoprotein, suggesting the involvement of the proteasome in the turnover of the transporter. Treatment of multidrug-resistant cells with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate, a phorbol ester that increases the phosphorylation of P-glycoprotein through activation of protein kinase C, or substituting phosphorylation sites of P-glycoprotein by nonphosphorylatable residues did not affect the ubiquitination of the transporter. Enhanced ubiquitination of P-glycoprotein resulted in a decrease of the function of the transporter, as demonstrated by increased intracellular drug accumulation and increased cellular sensitivity to drugs transported by P-glycoprotein. Our results indicate that the stability and function of P-glycoprotein can be regulated by the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway and suggest that modulating the ubiquitination of P-glycoprotein might be a novel approach to the reversal of drug resistance.
Zhang
Zhigang
Z
The Cancer Institute of New Jersey, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey/Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, 195 Little Albany Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA.
Wu
Jin-Ying
JY
Hait
William N
WN
Yang
Jin-Ming
JM
D020168:ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B, Member 1 / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000378:metabolism; D004351:Drug Resistance / Q000502:physiology*; D006031:Glycosylation; D006801:Humans; D009097:Multienzyme Complexes / Q000378:metabolism; D010766:Phosphorylation; D046988:Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D014452:Ubiquitins / Q000378:metabolism*
D020168:ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B, Member 1; D009097:Multienzyme Complexes; D014452:Ubiquitins; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases; D046988:Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate