Stimulation of porcine thyroid cell alkalinization and growth by EGF, phorbol ester, and diacylglycerol.

We studied the effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF), 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA), and 1-oleoyl-2-acetyl-glycerol (OAG) on cytoplasmic pH (pHi) and cell growth in cultured porcine thyroid cells. pHi was measured using 2',7'-bis(2-carboxyethyl-5,6-carboxyfluorescein (BCECF), an internalized fluorescent pH indicator. EGF, TPA, and OAG alkalinized the thyroid cells and stimulated their growth. These EGF-, TPA-, and OAG-stimulated cell alkalinization and growth depended on extracellular Na concentrations and were inhibited by amiloride, an inhibitor of Na(+)-H+ exchanger, indicating that EGF-, TPA-, and OAG-stimulated cell alkalinization and growth may occur through activation of Na(+)-H+ exchange. Alkalinization seems to be involved in thyroid cell growth. TPA (a tumor-promoting phorbol ester) and OAG (synthetic diacylglycerol), both potent activators of protein kinase C, imitate the action of EGF in rapidly elevating pHi and stimulating cell growth in thyroid cells. Trifluoperazine, an inhibitor of protein kinase C, inhibited EGF-, TPA-, and OAG-stimulated cell alkalinization and growth. The data suggest that activation of protein kinase C may be involved in the mechanism of EGF-stimulated cell alkalinization and growth of the thyroid cells.