Effects of prostacyclin on the cAMP system in cultured rat inner medullary collecting duct cells.

Rat inner medullary collecting tubule (RIMCT) cells produce arachidonate derivatives including prostacyclin (PGI2). In RIMCT cells, PGI2 causes a dose-dependent increase in adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP; fmol/micrograms protein) from a basal level of 15.6 +/- 1.7 to 32.4 +/- 5.7 at 0.3 microM, 63.3 +/- 8.3 at 3 microM, and 103.5 +/- 9.4 at 30 microM PGI2. At concentrations of arginine vasopressin (AVP) from 10(-7) to 10(-9) M, cAMP was greater in the presence than absence of 3 microM PGI2, suggesting independent sites of action. To assess whether the PGI2 effect is mediated by the prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) receptor, desensitization studies were performed. A 6-h preincubation with 10 microM PGE2 blunted the response to 3 microM PGE2 by 90 +/- 2% but the PGI2 response was decreased by only 31 +/- 5%, P less than 0.001. Carbaprostacyclin (carba-PGI2), a stable analogue of PGI2, blunted the cAMP response to PGI2 by 94 +/- 3% but to PGE2 by only 46 +/- 7%, P less than 0.005. The postreceptor effect of PGI2 on components of the adenylate cyclase was examined. The response to forskolin was markedly potentiated by PGI2. PGI2 (3 microM) caused an increase in cAMP of 67 fmol/micrograms over basal in the absence of forskolin, of 164 fmol/micrograms at 10(-7) M forskolin, of 386 fmol/micrograms at 10(-6) M forskolin, and of 563 fmol/micrograms at 10(-5) M forskolin. The response of PGI2 was likewise potentiated by forskolin. Water permeability alone or in response to AVP in isolated perfused inner medullary collecting tubules was not affected by carba-PGI2.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)