title: Rat pulmonary arterial smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase and phosphatase activities decrease with age.
abstract: We and others have shown that the fetal pulmonary arterial smooth muscle potential for contraction and relaxation is significantly reduced compared with the adult. Whether these developmental changes relate to age differences in the expression and/or activity of key enzymes regulating the smooth muscle mechanical properties has not been previously evaluated. Therefore, we studied the catalytic activities and expression of myosin light chain kinase (MLCK) and myosin light chain phosphatase (MLCP) catalytic (PP1cdelta) and regulatory (MYPT) subunits in late fetal, early newborn, and adult rat intrapulmonary arterial tissues. In keeping with the greater force development and relaxation of adult pulmonary artery, Western blot analysis showed that the MLCK, MYPT, and PP1cdelta contents increased significantly with age and were highest in the adult rat. In contrast, their specific activities (activity/enzyme content) were significantly higher in the fetal compared with the adult tissue. The fetal and newborn pulmonary arterial muscle relaxant response to the Rho-kinase inhibitor Y-27632 was greater than the adult tissue. In addition to the 130-kDa isoform of MLCK, we documented the presence of minor higher-molecular-weight embryonic isoforms in the fetus and newborn. During fetal life, the lung pulmonary arterial MLCK- and MLCP-specific activities are highest and appear to be related to Rho-kinase activation during lung morphogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Hospital for Sick Children, Univ. of Toronto, Div. of Neonatology, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 Univ. Ave., Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada. Jaques.Belik@SickKids.ca
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Belik
authors.forename: Ewa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kerc
authors.forename: Mary D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Pato
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000577:Amides / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000378:metabolism; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D009126:Muscle Relaxation; D009131:Muscle, Smooth, Vascular / Q000201:enzymology*; D009219:Myosin-Light-Chain Kinase / Q000378:metabolism*; D043263:Myosin-Light-Chain Phosphatase / Q000378:metabolism*; D010766:Phosphorylation; D020033:Protein Isoforms; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism; D021122:Protein Subunits; D011651:Pulmonary Artery / Q000166:cytology / Q000201:enzymology*; D011725:Pyridines / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D054460:rho-Associated Kinases
chemical_list: D000577:Amides; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D020033:Protein Isoforms; D021122:Protein Subunits; D011725:Pyridines; C108830:Y 27632; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D054460:rho-Associated Kinases; D009219:Myosin-Light-Chain Kinase; D043263:Myosin-Light-Chain Phosphatase