Temporal relationship between nerve-stump-length-dependent changes in the autophosphorylation of a cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase and the acetylcholine receptor content in skeletal muscle.

The acetylcholine receptor (AChR) content and the autophosphorylation of the regulatory subunit of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase type II (R-II) were evaluated in rats soleus muscles at 24, 30 and 66 hr after surgical denervation by cutting the nerve at a short distance (short-nerve-stump) and at a long distance (long-nerve-stump) from the muscle. AChR content was based on the specific binding of [125I]alpha-bungarotoxin (BUTX); changes in the autophosphorylation of R-II were based upon the predominant in vitro 32P-phosphorylation of a 56-Kd soluble protein in cytosolic fractions of solei. The AChR content and the 32P-autophosphorylation of R-II were increased in samples from short-nerve-stump solei, but not from long-nerve-stump solei, after a denervation-time of 30 hr. This nerve-stump-length dependency indicates that the two denervation effects are not related to the immediate halt of impulse-evoked muscle contractility. Furthermore, the results show that alterations in the 32P-autophosphorylation of R-II occurred before, as well as whenever, increases in the AChR content were found. Speculatively, this temporal relationship may be significant with respect to the potential role of R-II in gene expression.