Activated neutrophils play an important role in the pathogenesis of sepsis, glomerulonephritis, acute renal failure, and other inflammatory processes. The resolution of neutrophil-induced inflammation relies, in large part, on removal of apoptotic neutrophils. Neutrophils are constitutively committed to apoptosis, but inflammatory mediators, such as GM-CSF, slow neutrophil apoptosis by incompletely understood mechanisms. We addressed the hypothesis that GM-CSF delays neutrophil apoptosis by activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase) pathways. GM-CSF (20 ng/ml) significantly inhibited neutrophil apoptosis (GM-CSF, 32 vs 65% of cells p < 0.0001). GM-CSF activated the PI 3-kinase/Akt pathway as determined by phosphorylation of Akt and BAD. GM-CSF-dependent Akt and BAD phosphorylation was blocked by the PI 3-kinase inhibitor LY294002. A role for the PI 3-kinase/Akt pathway in GM-CSF-stimulated delay of apoptosis was indicated by the ability of LY294002 to attenuate apoptosis delay. GM-CSF-dependent inhibition of apoptosis was significantly attenuated by PD98059, an ERK pathway inhibitor. LY294002 and PD98059 did not produce additive inhibition of apoptosis delay. To determine whether PI 3-kinase and ERK are used by other ligands that delay neutrophil apoptosis, we examined the role of these pathways in IL-8-induced apoptosis delay. LY294002 blocked IL-8-dependent Akt phosphorylation. PD98059 and LY294002 significantly attenuated IL-8 delay of apoptosis. These results indicate IL-8 and GM-CSF act, in part, to delay neutrophil apoptosis by stimulating PI 3-kinase and ERK-dependent pathways.
Akt activation requires phosphorylation of Thr(308) and Ser(473) by 3-phosphoinositide-dependent kinase-1 and 2 (PDK1 and PDK2), respectively. While PDK1 has been cloned and sequenced, PDK2 has yet to be identified. The present study shows that phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-dependent p38 kinase activation regulates Akt phosphorylation and activity in human neutrophils. Inhibition of p38 kinase activity with SB203580 inhibited Akt Ser(473) phosphorylation following neutrophil stimulation with formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine, FcgammaR cross-linking, or phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate. Concentration inhibition studies showed that Ser(473) phosphorylation was inhibited by 0.3 microm SB203580, while inhibition of Thr(308) phosphorylation required 10 microm SB203580. Transient transfection of HEK293 cells with adenoviruses containing constitutively active MKK3 or MKK6 resulted in activation of both p38 kinase and Akt. Immunoprecipitation and glutathione S-transferase (GST) pull-down studies showed that Akt was associated with p38 kinase, MK2, and Hsp27 in neutrophils, and Hsp27 dissociated from the complex upon activation. Active recombinant MK2 phosphorylated recombinant Akt and Akt in anti-Akt, anti-MK2, anti-p38, and anti-Hsp27 immunoprecipitates, and this was inhibited by an MK2 inhibitory peptide. We conclude that Akt exists in a signaling complex containing p38 kinase, MK2, and Hsp27 and that p38-dependent MK2 activation functions as PDK2 in human neutrophils.
The signal transduction pathways activated by tumor necrosis factor ␣ (TNF-␣) and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) that lead to priming of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) are unknown. The hypotheses that these cytokines stimulate multiple mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades, including extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs), c-Jun amino-terminal kinases (JNKs), and p38 MAPK, and that these MAPKs participate in priming of human PMNs were examined. TNF-␣ stimulated a dose-dependent increase in ERK and p38 MAPK activities that was maximal at 10 min. JNKs were not stimulated by TNF-␣ or GM-CSF. GM-CSF stimulated ERK activity comparable to that of TNF-␣, but GM-CSF was a less potent stimulus of p38 MAPK activity. The tyrosine kinase inhibitor, genistein, inhibited ERK and p38 MAPK stimulation by both cytokines. The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase inhibitor, wortmannin, attenuated stimulation of ERKs and p38 MAPK by GM-CSF, but not TNF-␣. GM-CSF, but not TNF-␣, stimulated wortmannin-sensitive activation of Raf-1. TNF-␣ and GM-CSF priming of superoxide release stimulated by N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine was significantly attenuated by the MEK inhibitor, PD098059, and the p38 MAPK inhibitor, SB203580. Incubation with both MAPK inhibitors produced an additive effect. Our data suggest that TNF-␣ and GM-CSF activate ERKs and p38 MAPK by different signal transduction pathways. Both ERK and p38 MAPK cascades contribute to the ability of TNF-␣ and GM-CSF to prime the respiratory burst response in human PMNs. J. Leukoc. Biol. 64: 537-545; 1998.
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