NaK-ATPase β1-Subunit Increases the Translation Efficiency of the α1-Subunit in MSV-MDCK Cells

摘要

The Na,K-ATPase consists of an α- and β-subunit. Moloney sarcoma virus-transformed MDCK cells (MSV-MDCK) express low levels of Na,K-ATPase β1-subunit. Ectopic expression of Na,K-ATPase β1-subunit in these cells increased the protein levels of the α1-subunit of Na,K-ATPase. This increase was not due to altered transcription of the α1-subunit gene or half-life of the α1-subunit protein because both α1-subunit mRNA levels and half-life of the α1-subunit protein were comparable in MSV-MDCK and β1-subunit expressing MSV-MDCK cells. However, short pulse labeling revealed that the initial translation rate of the α1-subunit in β1-subunit expressing MSV-MDCK cells was six- to sevenfold higher compared with MSV-MDCK cells. The increased translation was specific to α1-subunit because translation rates of occludin and β-catenin, membrane and cytosolic proteins, respectively, were not altered. In vitro cotranslation/translocation experiments using rabbit reticulocyte lysate and rough microsomes revealed that the α1-subunit mRNA is more efficiently translated in the presence of β1-subunit. Furthermore, sucrose density gradient analysis revealed significantly more α1-subunit transcript associated with the polysomal fraction in β1-subunit expressing MSV-MDCK cells compared with MSV-MDCK cells, indicating that in mammalian cells the Na,K-ATPase β1-subunit is involved in facilitating the translation of the α₁-subunit mRNA in the endoplasmic reticulum.