Effects of adenosine 3' : 5'-monophosphate and guanosine 3' : 5'-monophosphate on calcium uptake and phosphorylation in membrane fractions of vascular smooth muscle.

The effects of adenosine 3' : 5'-monophosphate (cyclic AMP), guanosine 3' : 5'-monophosphate (cyclic GMP) and exogenous protein kinase on Ca uptake and membrane phosphorylation were studied in subcellular fractions of vascular smooth muscle from rabbit aorta. Two functionally distinct fractions were separated on a continuous sucrose gradient: a light fraction enriched in endoplasmic reticulum (fraction E) and a heavier fraction containing mainly plasma membranes (fraction P). While cyclic AMP and cyclic GMP had no effect on Ca uptake in the absence of oxalate, both cyclic nucleotides inhibited the rate of oxalate-activated Ca uptake when used at concentrations higher than 10(-5) M. The addition of bovine heart protein kinase to either fraction produced an increase in the rate of oxalate-activated Ca uptake which was further augmented by cyclic AMP. Cyclic GMP caused smaller stimulations of protein kinase-catalyzed Ca uptake than cyclic AMP. Mg-dependent phosphorylation, attributable to endogenous protein kinase(s), was inhibited in fraction E by low concentrations (10(-8) M) of both cyclic AMP and cyclic GMP. In fraction P, an inhibition by cyclic AMP occurred also at a concentration of 10(-8) M, while with cyclic AMP a concentration of 10(-5) M was required for a similar inhibition. Bovine heart protein kinase stimulated the phosphorylation of the membrane fractions much more than Ca uptake. In fraction E, in the presence of bovine protein kinase, both cyclic AMP and cyclic GMP stimulated phosphorylation up to 200%. Under these conditions, no stimulation was observed in fraction P. These results are compatible with the hypothesis that in vascular smooth muscle soluble rather than particulate protein kinases are involved in the regulation of intracellular Ca concentration.