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2 From the School of Optometry and the 1 Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley.
| Abstract |
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METHODS. Epinephrine-induced changes in RPE [Ca2+]in levels were monitored with the ratioing dye fura-2. Transepithelial potential, resistance, and unidirectional fluxes of 36Cl, 86Rb (K substitute), and 22Na were simultaneously determined in paired tissues from the same eye mounted in modified Üssing flux chambers. Radioisotopes (57 µCi) were added to the apical bath of one tissue and the basal bath of the other, and the appearance of label in the opposite bath was measured.
RESULTS. Apical epinephrine (100 nM) transiently increased
[Ca2+]in by 153 ± 78 nM. This increase
was inhibited by the
1-adrenoreceptor antagonist
prazosin (1 µM) and blocked by CPA(5 µM), an inhibitor of
endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-adenosine triphosphatases
(ATPases). Apical epinephrine (100 nM) more than doubled the net Cl
absorption rate, increased net K (86Rb) absorption by
fivefold, and tripled net fluid absorption
(JV), as predicted by isotonic
coupling between ion and fluid transport. The epinephrine-induced
increases in ion and fluid transport were completely inhibited by
apical bumetanide (100 µM).
CONCLUSIONS. Epinephrine increased fluid absorption across bovine RPE by activating
apical membrane
1-adrenergic receptors, increasing
[Ca2+]in, and stimulating
bumetanide-sensitive Na,K,2Cl uptake at the apical membrane and KCl
efflux at the basolateral membrane.
| Introduction |
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In vivo there are many paracrine and hormonal signals that impinge on
the RPE during light and dark. The RPE responds to the integrated
activity of these input signals, for example, adenosine triphosphate
(ATP), dopamine, neuropeptide Y, 5-HT, or epinephrine through a variety
of plasma membrane receptors and second-messenger pathways that
activate solute-linked fluid transport across the
RPE.5
8
9
10
11
12
In vitro it has been shown that many of these
receptors are metabotropically coupled to cell
Ca2+ and cAMP in mammalian and human
RPE.8
13
14
15
16
17
Physiological analysis of the intact
epithelium in vitro, in native rabbit, bovine, or human
RPE5
8
9
11
12
18
19
or in vivo 3
have focused mainly on adrenergic or purinergic
receptors. In particular, it has been shown that activation of apical
membrane
1-adrenergic or
P2Y2 purinergic receptors activated apical
membrane Na,K,2Cl cotransporters, and basolateral and apical membrane K
and Cl channels, respectively.8
11
20
In both cases,
an electrophysiological analysis suggested the possibility that
increased KCl transport across the RPE could provide the driving force
for increased fluid absorption.8
11
12
In the present experiments, we have provided the ionic basis for the epinephrine-induced stimulation of fluid absorption (JV) using radiolabeled ion tracers and capacitive probe fluid transport measurements. In addition, using the Ca2+-sensitive dye fura-2, we have identified intracellular Ca2+ as the second messenger involved in epinephrine signaling in bovine RPE.
| Materials and Methods |
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Intracellular Ca2+ Measurements
Intracellular Ca2+ levels were monitored
with the fluorometric ratioing dye fura-2 AM (Molecular Probes, Eugene,
OR) in a modified Üssing chamber. The chamber and setup have been
described previously.22
23
Briefly, melanotic RPEchoroid
preparations were bathed in Ringer solution containing 12.5 to 25 µM
fura-2 AM (dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide [DMSO]+20% pluronic acid)
for 2 hours (8% CO2, room temperature) to load
them with dye. In addition, 1 mM probenecid was included in the loading
solution and all subsequent apically perfused Ringer solutions to
inhibit dye extrusion by the organic anion transporter located in the
apical membrane.23
Tissues were mounted between the two
halves of the perfusion chamber, and the perfusion solutions were
maintained at 34°C. Photic excitation was achieved using a xenon
light source filtered at 340 and 380 nm every 0.5 seconds.
Approximately 10 cells were present in each field. The emission
fluorescence was measured at 510 nm or more with a photomultiplier tube
(Thorn, EMI) and the ratio of the fluorescence intensities at 340/380
nm (R) was determined every second. The technique and
computer software for data acquisition have been described
previously.24
Solution changes were made at a distance
of 30 cm from the chamber, causing an approximate 30-second delay in
the arrival of a new solution to the apical bath.
Fura-2 calibration was performed in situ by first perfusing both membranes with Ca2+-free Ringer solution containing 5 to 10 mM EGTA, which chelates any residual free Ca2+, and 10 µM ionomycin, a Ca2+ ionophore that facilitates the equilibration of [Ca2+]in and external Ca2+ ([Ca2+]o). The tissue was then exposed to a saturating (1.8 mM) concentration of Ca2+. [Ca2+]in was determined according to the equation [Ca2+]in = Kd (Fmin/Fmax)[(R - Rmin)/(Rmax - R)], where Kd is the dissociation constant for fura-2 AM (220 nM) and Fmin and Fmax are the fluorescence intensities at 380 nm in the absence and presence, respectively, of saturating Ca2+.25 For technical reasons, calibrations could not be obtained in all experiments. Transepithelial potential (TEP) and transepithelial resistance (RT) were determined concurrently with Ca2+ measurements. This was achieved using calomel electrodes in series with Ringeragar bridges (4%) to make contact with the apical and basolateral baths. A voltagecurrent clamp (VCC600; Physiologic Instruments, San Diego, CA) was used to pass a 1-µA current pulse across the tissue, and the RT was calculated from the current-induced change in TEP.
Ion Flux Experiments
The method for determining the transepithelial unidirectional
fluxes of 36Cl, 86Rb (K
substitute), and 22Na was similar to that
described earlier.26
27
Briefly, paired pieces of
RPEchoroid were obtained from the same eye and mounted in identical
clamping chips and flux chambers with an exposed surface area of 0.3
cm2. The apical and basolateral baths (1.8 ml
volume) were maintained at approximately 37°C by warmed circulated
water flowing through the water-jacketed chambers. Gas was injected
into both bathing solutions through stainless-steel 30-gauge needles,
which mixed the baths and maintained the pH at approximately 7.4.
Ringeragar bridges located on either side of the tissues were used to
measure TEP and RT.
RT was calculated from the change in
TEP induced when a 5-µA pulse was passed across the
tissue.
Radioisotope (57 µCi) was added to the apical bath of one tissue and basal bath of the other, and the appearance of label was measured from the opposite bath at either 10- or 15-minute intervals. Samples were counted on a scintillation counter (LS 7500; Beckman, Berkeley, CA) and ion flux calculated as microequivalents per square centimeter per hour.
Fluid Transport Measurements
The capacitive probe technique used to determine transepithelial
fluid transport has been described previously.8
12
28
Isolated bovine RPEchoroid was placed in a clamping chip with an
exposed surface area of 0.71 cm2. The clamping
chip was placed between two water-jacketed chamber halves, each with 12
ml total bath volume. Heated-circulated water kept the bathing solution
temperature at 35°C ± 0.05°C. L-shaped canals, approximately
1 mm in diameter, connected the baths with Teflon cups located at the
top of each half chamber. The chamber was placed in an incubator kept
at a constant 31.5°C with open water reservoirs that kept the
relative humidity at 80% ± 5%. The bathing solutions were preheated
to 38°C and perfused into the chambers using a pushpull system
equipped with 50-ml gas-tight feed-and-drain syringes (Hamilton Co.,
Reno, NV). The measurement of fluid transport was initiated after a 30-
to 45-minute temperature equilibration period.
Stainless-steel capacitive probes (Accumeasure System 1000; MT Instruments, Latham, NY) were lowered into the Teflon cup of each half chamber. The capacitance of the air gap between probe and fluid meniscus was measured and the system calibrated so that the voltage output from each probe reflected the loss of fluid from one chamber and the concomitant increase of fluid from the opposite chamber. The difference signal was converted into fluid transport rate (microliters per square centimeter per hour) and plotted as a function of time. The TEP was measured using Ringeragar bridges in contact with Ag-AgCl electrodes and monitored with a voltagecurrent clamp (VCC600; Physiologic Instruments). RT was obtained by passing a 6-µA current pulse across the tissue through Ag-AgCl electrodes for a duration of 1 second at 1-minute intervals and monitoring the change in TEP. Signals from the capacitive probes (JV) and tissue electrical parameters (TEP and RT) were digitized, stored, and plotted online by microcomputer (IBM, Armonk, NY).
Bathing Solutions and Materials
The control Ringer solution consisted of (in mM): 120 NaCl, 23
NaHCO3, 5 KCl, 1 MgCl2, 1.8
CaCl2, and 10 glucose gassed with 85%
N2, 10% O2, and 5%
CO2 (to keep pH constant at 7.4 ± 0.05).
Nominally HCO3-free Ringer was prepared by
substitution of 23 mM NaHCO3 with 12 mM sodium
cyclamate and 10 mM HEPES and equilibrated with room air (pH 7.4). All
solutions had a final osmolarity of 295 ± 5 mOsm. To increase
tissue longevity for flux experiments, 1 mM glutathione was added to
the Ringer.21
27
For Ca2+
experiments, 2 mM glutathione was added at the beginning of each
experiment. Epinephrine (bitartrate salt), prazosin, cyclopiazonic acid
(CPA), and bumetanide were obtained from Sigma Chemical Co. (St. Louis,
MO). 22Na and 86Rb
were obtained from Amersham Corp. (Arlington Heights, IL) and
36Cl from ICN (Irvine, CA). CPA was prepared as a
stock solution in DMSO, and diluted to a final concentration of less
than 0.02% (vol/vol). DMSO alone does not alter bovine RPE
[Ca2+]in at this
concentration.
All data are summarized as mean ± SEM, unless stated otherwise. Statistical comparisons were made using Students t-test. Differences were considered significant at P < 0.05.
| Results |
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|
1-adrenoreceptor antagonist, on 100 nM
epinephrine-induced changes in
[Ca2+]in. In this
experiment, prazosin completely inhibited the transient
[Ca2+]in increase caused
by epinephrine treatment, and in two other experiments, prazosin
decreased the Ca2+ response by 90%. In all
preparations, prazosin inhibited TEP responses by
approximately 50% and completely prevented the changes in
RT (n = 3). It has
been shown that prazosin inhibits epinephrine-induced changes in
basolateral and apical membrane voltage and resistance.11
|
|
· cm2. Very similar changes in
JV, TEP, and
RT were previously observed in this
preparation (n = 22).12
At
t = 50 minutes, 100 nM epinephrine was added apically
and increased JV by a factor of 3, to
2.5 µl/cm2 per hour. The TEP
increased transiently to 10 mV (from a baseline of 5 mV), and
RT decreased by approximately 25
· cm2. At t = 125 minutes,
100 µM bumetanide was added to the apical bath and decreased
JV by 1.3
µl/cm2 per hour and concomitantly decreased
TEP to 0 and increased RT
by 10
· cm2.
|
In three experiments, measured in HCO3-free
Ringer (three eyes), epinephrine increased
JV from 0.31 ± 0.54 to
2.03 ± 0.95 µl/cm2 per hour, and
TEP from 5.7 ± 1.8 to 10.4 ± 1.2 mV.
RT was not significantly changed
(183 ± 43 to 172 ± 34
· cm2).
In two of these experiments, the epinephrine-induced stimulation of
JV was inhibited by 1.4 and 2.1
µl/cm2 per hour with bumetanide (100 µM).
These results indicate that bath HCO3 is not
required for the epinephrine-induced stimulation of
JV.
Effect of Epinephrine on the Net Fluxes of Cl, Na, and K
Table 1
summarizes the results from a series of radioactive tracer
experiments using 36Cl,
22Na, and 86Rb (K
substitute). The value shown for net flux is the difference between the
unidirectional fluxes obtained across six paired tissues per isotope.
The direction of net flux was from apical-to-basal (absorption) for all
three ions (P < 0.05). The net Cl and Na absorption
rates were 0.67 and 0.68 µeq/cm2 per hour,
respectively, and there was a small but significant net K absorption of
0.05 µeq/cm2 per hour. TEP ranged
from approximately 6.5 to 10 mV and RT
from approximately 155 to 165
· cm2. There
was no significant difference in TEP and
RT between groups of paired tissues.
|
· cm2 in both tissues.
|
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· cm2, respectively.
|
These experiments, taken together, show that net KCl absorption is stimulated by epinephrine and strongly suggest that the bumetanide-sensitive Na,K,2Cl cotransporter mediated this response. However, K also enters the cell through the apical membrane Na,K-ATPase.21 27 32 If the Na,K pump was stimulated by epinephrine, then net Na transport may have been altered.28 33
The effect of 100 nM apical epinephrine on net Na (22Na) transport is summarized in Table 2 . In three experiments (three eyes), both unidirectional 22Na fluxes were increased slightly, but there was no significant change in unidirectional or net flux (P > 0.50). Epinephrine significantly increased the TEP (2.4 mV). These results suggest that the Na,K pump rate is not measurably altered by epinephrine and therefore strengthens our conclusion that the epinephrine-induced stimulation of KCl absorption is mainly determined by the bumetanide-sensitive Na,K,2Cl cotransporter.
| Discussion |
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1-adrenergic receptors that can be activated
by nanomolar amounts of epinephrine.5
11
In the present
experiments in bovine RPE, we showed that apical epinephrine elevated
cell calcium and increased the rate of net Cl
(36Cl) and K (86Rb)
absorption, without affecting net Na (22Na)
transport. Net fluid and KCl absorption were stimulated by apical
epinephrine and inhibited by apical bumetanide. The epinephrine-induced
[Ca2+]in changes were
blocked at two points in the signal-transduction pathway: at the apical
membrane, by prazosin, and intracellularly by the ER
Ca2+-ATPase inhibitor CPA. These
[Ca2+]in changes
coincided in time with the epinephrine-induced increase in basolateral
membrane Cl conductance and decrease in apical membrane K
conductance11
that ultimately produced the increase in
KCl-coupled fluid absorption. The model summarized in Figure 7
can be used to understand the plasma membrane and intracellular
signaling pathways that mediate fluid absorption across the RPE.
|
1-adrenoreceptors) leads to the phospholipase
C (PLC)mediated production of inositol triphosphate
(IP3), and IP3 then
interacts with its receptors on the ER membrane to cause a transient
increase in cell Ca2+.34
Previous
work in cultured human and rat RPE cells has indicated that
-adrenergic receptor activation is coupled to PLC
activation.14
35
The RPE contains several other
metabotropic receptors that could activate this signal-transduction
pathway to increase basolateral membrane Cl channel
activity.5
8
10
13
14
In bovine RPE, we have shown that
A23187, a Ca2+ ionophore, mimics the
epinephrine-induced electrical responses, and that BAPTA, a
membrane-permeable Ca2+ buffer, prevents the
epinephrine-induced membrane potential and resistance
changes,11
suggesting that Ca2+ was
the second messenger mainly responsible for mediating the RPE responses
to epinephrine. The present experiments strengthened this conclusion in
two ways: by showing that prazosin, an
1-adrenergic receptor antagonist, inhibited
the epinephrine-induced increase in
[Ca2+]in and by
implicating the ER stores (Fig. 3)
as the source of
Ca2+ that caused the epinephrine-induced changes
in membrane voltage and resistance.
In native fetal human RPE, epinephrine activates
and ß adrenergic
receptors at the apical membrane and two intracellular second
messengers, Ca2+ and cAMP, seem to determine the
physiological responses.5
In bovine RPE,11
we
previously showed that epinephrine also increases intracellular cAMP
levels, and this suggests the possibility of cross talk between the
Ca2+ and cAMP transduction pathways. Figure 7
indicates a possible locus of interaction for these two second
messengers at the ER Ca2+-ATPase regulatory
protein phospholamban (PLB). It has been shown that this protein is
present in bovine and human RPE.9
In its unphosphorylated
state, PLB inhibits ER Ca2+-ATPase
activity.36
This inhibition is removed by cAMP-dependent
protein kinase A (PKA) phosphorylation of PLB, which stimulates
Ca2+ uptake into ER stores and reduces
[Ca2+]in.37
The physiological effects of cAMP on bovine RPE physiology were studied by elevating cell cAMP using a cocktail of cAMP-elevating drugs. In striking contrast to the epinephrine results,11 12 elevation of cell cAMP per se decreased basolateral membrane Cl conductance, increased cell Cl, and reversed the direction of fluid transport from absorption to secretion. All these changes were blocked by CPA, consistent with a cAMP-mediated alteration in PLB phosphorylation.9 In the model shown in Figure 7 , we hypothesize that elevation of cell cAMP acts on PLB to lower cell Ca2+ and, in effect, provides a negative regulation of Ca2+-activated Cl conductance (and fluid) increase that opposes the dominant effect of epinephrine.
Ionic Basis of Fluid Absorption across Bovine RPE
In many epithelia, including frog RPE,28
net solute
(Js) and
JV are isotonically
coupled,38
39
so that JV
= Js/C, where
Js =
JCl +
JNa +
JK, and C is the solute
concentration of the bathing medium.1
28
The results
summarized in Table 1
show that Js =
1.40 µeq/cm2 per hour, which predicts a fluid
absorption rate of 4.7 µl/cm2 per hour in
control Ringer. This value is in relatively good agreement with the
maximum JV rate (4
µl/cm2 per hour) measured in tissues of
similarly high TEP and
RT.12
The data summarized in Table 2 show that epinephrine stimulated Js (JCl + JK) by approximately 0.5 µeq/cm2 per hour, which predicts an epinephrine-induced increase in JV of 1.7 µeq/cm2 per hour. This prediction is in excellent agreement with previous measurements showing that 100 nM epinephrine increased JV by 1.4 µl/cm2 per hour.12 It indicates that Cl and K are the ions responsible for the epinephrine-induced stimulation of fluid absorption and suggests that ion and fluid transport are isotonically coupled across bovine RPE.
KCl Absorption and RPE Physiology and Function
In combination with previous electrophysiological and fluid
transport studies,6
11
12
31
the present results
demonstrate that the rate of Na,K,2Cl cotransporter and conductive Cl
efflux were both increased by epinephrine. Activation of the
cotransporter could have been a direct result of epinephrine-induced
increases in [Ca2+]in or
cAMP, because the cotransport protein has consensus protein kinase C
(PKC) and PKA phosphorylation sites, and protein phosphorylation
activates the cotransporter. Another possibility, based on work in a
wide variety of systems, is that Na,K,2Cl cotransporters are activated
after a decrease in cell Cl ([Cl]in), which
then alters cotransporter phosphorylation.40
Additional
experiments would be required to evaluate these possibilities.
In control Ringer, most of the K that enters the cell across the apical membrane is recycled across that membrane (see Fig. 7 ) through a large apical membrane K conductance.21 27 The small but significant net absorption of K measured in the present study was probably driven through the paracellular pathway by TEP, because no net K flux was measured under short-circuited conditions.27 Epinephrine decreased the apical membrane K conductance,11 which would reduce the recycling of K across the apical membrane and possibly stimulate the transepithelial absorption of K, mediated by the cotransporter or pump27 (see Fig. 7 ).
The increase in net K (86Rb)Cl absorption stimulated by epinephrine was completely inhibited by apical bumetanide (Figs. 5 6) indicating that the cotransporter mediated this response. If net Na flux was altered by epinephrine, this may indicate that the Na,K pumps were stimulated,33 but Table 2 shows that net Na flux was not significantly altered by epinephrine. One possibility is that that Na is recycled at the apical membrane in the presence or absence of a secretagogue. Alternatively, if the cotransporter and the pump were both stimulated, KCl uptake might increase without an effect on Na transporta possibility that cannot be eliminated by the present data.
The basolateral membrane contains electrically coupled Cl and K conductances that mediate KCl efflux.6 21 27 31 The epinephrine-induced K efflux could have been mediated by the Ca2+ increase, by the change in membrane potential, or by both. It is also possible that an epinephrine-induced increase in cAMP increased K efflux at the basolateral membrane.11 41 Because epinephrine significantly depolarized the basolateral membrane, it would increase the driving force for conductive K efflux.6 21 42 Thus, in the steady state, K and Cl and osmotically obliged fluid exit the basolateral membrane, balanced by the influx of K and Cl and osmotically coupled fluid at the apical membrane.
In vitro and in vivo experiments have demonstrated that the apical membrane cotransporters and apical and basolateral membrane K and Cl channels are the main determinants of RPE cell volume as well as subretinal space hydration and chemical composition.32 43 44 45 46 47 48 The present experiments illustrate another level of regulation (Fig. 7) by showing that a putative retinal paracrine signal such as epinephrine2 49 50 can activate this pathway and perhaps act synergistically with other paracrine3 or hormonal signals to control the hydration and chemical composition of the extracellular spaces on either side of the RPE.
| Footnotes |
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Supported by National Eye Institute Grant EY02205 (SSM) and Core Grant EY03176.
Submitted for publication January 3, 2001; revised March 5, 2001; accepted April 6, 2001.
Commercial relationships policy: N.
The publication costs of this article were defrayed in part by page
charge payment. This article must therefore be marked
"advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C.
1734
solely to indicate this fact.
Corresponding author: Sheldon S. Miller, University of California, Berkeley, 360 Minor Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-2020. smiller{at}socrates.berkeley.edu
| References |
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