Arachidonic acid and cyclic adenosine monophosphate stimulation of c-fos expression by a pathway independent of phorbol ester-sensitive protein kinase C.

The stimulation of cell proliferation by platelet-derived and other growth factors is associated with a rapid increase in the expression of the c-fos protooncogene. We and others have shown that phosphosphoinositide turnover and protein kinase C play a role in the activation of this gene by growth factors, but that a second, kinase C-independent pathway(s) exist. Because cAMP potentiates the actions of a number of growth factors and is elevated in platelet-derived growth factor-stimulated Swiss 3T3 cells, we examined the ability of cAMP to stimulate c-fos expression in this cell type. Forskolin, a direct activator of adenylate cyclase, elicited marked increases in c-fos mRNA levels. Receptor-mediated activation of adenylate cyclase by prostaglandin E1 and stimulation with the cAMP analog 8-bromo-cAMP also enhanced c-fos expression. In cells made protein-kinase C deficient, c-fos induction by phorbol ester was abolished; by contrast, c-fos was still induced by cAMP-elevating agents in protein kinase C-depleted cells. Platelet-derived growth factor causes cAMP accumulation by stimulating arachidonic acid release and the formation of prostaglandins capable of activating adenylate cyclase. The addition of arachidonic acid and the arachidonate metabolite prostaglandin E2 to Swiss 3T3 cultures stimulated c-fos expression. These data suggest the existence of a pathway from growth factor receptor to gene induction that is mediated by cAMP and does not depend on a phorbol ester-sensitive protein kinase C.