Foetal-calf serum stimulates a pertussis-toxin-sensitive high-affinity GTPase activity in rat glioma C6 BU1 cells

Abstract

Cellular proliferation of rat glioma C6 BU1 cells in tissue culture is dependent on the presence of either calf or foetal-calf serum in the medium. Foetal-calf serum stimulated a high-affinity GTPase in membranes derived from C6 BU1 cells. Pretreatment of the cells with pertussis toxin decreased the high-affinity GTPase activity substantially, and attenuated the foetal-calf-serum-stimulated increase in this GTPase activity. Cholera toxin, in contrast, did not modulate the response to foetal-calf serum. Foetal-calf serum did not inhibit adenylate cyclase activity in membranes of these cells, indicating that the G-protein that was stimulated by foetal-calf serum was not Gi (the inhibitory one). Although the nature of the specific component of foetal-calf serum responsible for this pertussis-toxin-sensitive receptor-mediated stimulation of high-affinity GTPase activity has not been identified, it was mimicked neither by bombesin, which can stimulate inositol phospholipid turnover via a guanine nucleotide binding protein, nor by platelet-derived growth factor, which is present in substantial concentrations in foetal-calf serum. This report represents the first demonstration of a pertussis-toxin-substrate-mediated response in this cell line and provides further evidence that G-proteins other than Gi can be functionally inactivated by pertussis toxin.