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Title: Potential involvement of calcium, CaM kinase II, and MAP kinases in PCB-stimulated insulin release from RINm5F cells.

Authors: Fischer, L J; Wagner, M A; Madhukar, B V

Published In Toxicol Appl Pharmacol, (1999 Sep 15)

Abstract: Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are environmental contaminants that induce release of insulin in rat insulinoma cells, RINm5F (Fischer et al., Life Sci. (1996) 59, 2041-2049). In the present study the mechanisms of this effect were investigated using noncytotoxic concentrations (10 microg/ml) of a PCB mixture, Aroclor-1254, and the pure PCB congeners 2,2',4,4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl and 2,2',4,4',5, 5'-hexachlorobiphenyl. Treatment of RINm5F cells with each of these agents resulted in a rapid increase in intracellular free calcium. The presence of extracellular calcium was required for PCB-induced insulin release because removal of calcium from the medium attenuated the effect. In addition, pretreatment of RINm5F cells with the calcium channel blocker verapamil also blocked PCB-induced insulin release. To determine whether PCB-related insulin release could be associated with the enzyme, calcium/calmodulin-dependent kinase II (CaM kinase II), RINm5F cells were pretreated with the CaM kinase II inhibitor KN-93. PCB-induced insulin release was completely blocked by KN-93. Under similar treatment conditions, PCBs also induced the activity of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) 1 and 2. However, inhibition of MAPK activation by a specific inhibitor, PD-98059 (10.0 microM) did not prevent insulin release induced by PCBs. The results of the present investigation suggest a role for calcium and CaM kinase II in PCB-induced insulin release. Furthermore, the results suggest that insulin release by PCBs is independent of the activation of MAPKs.

PubMed ID: 10486306 Exiting the NIEHS site

MeSH Terms: Animals; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase Type 2; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinases/metabolism*; Calcium/metabolism*; Fungicides, Industrial/pharmacology; Hexachlorobenzene/pharmacology; Insulin/metabolism*; Phosphorylation; Polychlorinated Biphenyls/pharmacology*; Rats; Tumor Cells, Cultured

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