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(Hypertension. 2006;47:509.)
© 2006 American Heart Association, Inc.
Novartis Award |
From the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Ga.
Correspondence to Ken Bernstein, Rm 7107 WMB, 101 Woodruff Circle, Atlanta, GA 30322. E-mail kbernst{at}emory.edu
| Abstract |
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Key Words: angiotensin angiotensin-converting enzyme renin mice blood pressure renin-angiotensin system
| Introduction |
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There is a second train of thought that unifies the hepatocyte, glomerular mesangial cells, developing sperm, and smooth muscle cells: all of these cells are affected by ACE and/or angiotensin II. The RAS influences many different tissue types and gives rise to the intellectual dilemma that individual tissue types respond quite differently to the stimulation of the angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptor. Thus, someone who wishes to understand the RAS must often make a choice. Do we study the small, the cell, and the detailed biochemistry that enable one to understand tissue responses to angiotensin II, or do we study the large, the animal, the normal physiology, and the abnormal pathology observed in a complex system, such as a mouse? This article deals with the large: studies of mice that illuminate some of the physiological actions of the RAS. However, we acknowledge that our approach leaves unexamined the cellular biochemistry that underpins observable physiological responses.
| Mice Lacking ACE |
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An important aspect of the ACE-null phenotype is that is it precisely duplicated by mice lacking angiotensinogen or all of the AT1 receptors.36 Furthermore, the phenotype of a mouse null for ACE and also lacking the bradykinin B2 receptor is not significantly different from that present in an animal only lacking ACE.7 These observations suggest that, at least in mice, the major described phenotypes are because of the selective absence of angiotensin II generation and not because of other ACE substrates. ACE is known to degrade bradykinin, and ACE inhibition is associated with elevation of bradykinin levels. In humans, it has been suggested that bradykinin plays a role in the cough sometimes seen in patients on ACE inhibitors.8 Thus, the observation in mice that pathology is a direct result of angiotensin II underlines the caveat that mice are not an exact model of human biology. Nonetheless, work from many laboratories suggests that angiotensin II production is the critical catalytic function of ACE; the lack of angiotensin II accounts for most of the pathology in ACE-null mice.
A second lesson from ACE-null mice is that ACE and angiotensin II play major physiological roles in several different systems. These include blood pressure control, electrolyte balance, urinary concentrating mechanism, proper ureteral function, hematopoieses, reproduction, and so forth. This idea is consistent with the known distribution of angiotensin II receptors and reflects the increasingly broad role that angiotensin II is now recognized as playing in normal physiology. Given this backdrop, our group set about a series of studies to more precisely define the tissue-specific roles of the RAS.
| Promoter Swapping as a Means of Targeting ACE Expression |
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It is worthwhile to discuss a specific experimental example that convinced my group of the importance and power of renin in controlling blood pressure. This is our analysis of the ACE 1/3 mouse line.11 ACE 1/3 mice are compound heterozygotes for the ACE gene, meaning that these mice have 2 different copies of the ACE gene. The ACE 1 allele is a knockout allele that produces no ACE. The ACE 3 allele uses the albumin promoter to direct ACE expression. Thus, ACE 1/3 mice are different from wild-type mice in 2 distinct ways. First, the presence of the knockout allele means that only a single functional ACE 3 allele directs ACE synthesis. As such, these animals have less ACE expression than animals with a typical complement of 2 functional ACE genes. Furthermore, the single functional ACE gene has been engineered to direct ACE expression to hepatocytes. Thus, ACE 1/3 mice not only express no endothelial ACE, but they also express roughly half the liver ACE concentration observed in ACE 3/3 mice (Figure 2). In an ACE 3/3 mouse, the normal process of ACE liberation from tissue results in ACE plasma levels roughly 80% those of a wild-type mouse. In contrast, an ACE 1/3 mouse has reduced hepatic expression of ACE with the result that plasma ACE levels are only &40% of normal. Despite all of these physiological differences from wild-type mice, ACE 1/3 mice have a systolic blood pressure indistinguishable from that of wild-type mice.
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In analyzing this experiment, we realized that basal blood pressure was not a complete characterization of the function of the RAS, because this system is one that comes into play during physiological stresses, such as dehydration, salt depletion, or blood loss. So, perhaps it is not surprising that, under laboratory conditions of free access to food and water, ACE 1/3 mice are phenotypically normal. To examine a stress situation, the mice were placed on a sodium-free diet for 2 weeks.11 We then analyzed the resulting blood pressure and urinary salt excretion. Because of an increased ability to concentrate urine, mice tolerate salt restriction far better than humans. Thus, in response to 2 weeks of salt depletion, wild-type mice have a reduction of systolic blood pressure, but this averaged <4 mm Hg. ACE 1/3 mice were not able to achieve quite as profound a reduction of urinary sodium excretion as wild-type mice. As a consequence, these animals had a somewhat greater loss of systolic blood pressure (9 mm Hg) in response to salt depletion. Although the stress of 2 weeks without salt does uncover a difference between wild-type and ACE 1/3 mice, the magnitude of this difference is not particularly great. Thus, ACE 1/3 mice, despite lacking all vascular ACE and with 1 ACE allele totally nonfunctional, still maintain near-normal physiological parameters after major physiological stress!
How can the ACE 1/3 mice maintain near-normal physiology? The answer is the ability of the kidney to produce renin. During a normal sodium diet, ACE 1/3 mice compensate for both the positional change of ACE location and the quantity of expressed ACE by upping renin production (Figure 3). This actually results in plasma angiotensin II levels that are abnormally high. In fact, we hypothesize that the elevated plasma angiotensin II levels are, in part, a compensation for the lack of local, tissue-based production of angiotensin II. From the prospective of angiotensin II receptors on smooth muscle cells or within the adrenal, it is the local concentration of angiotensin II that is important, not whether the peptide is produced within the circulation or locally within adjacent tissues. Under normal physiological conditions, the angiotensin II that binds to receptors is a combination of angiotensin II made locally by endothelium and angiotensin II made within the systemic circulation. In ACE 1/3 mice, local production of angiotensin II has been removed (no endothelial ACE), and the circulating ACE present in plasma is only 40% of normal. This induces physiological compensation, namely, elevated renin production, elevation of angiotensin I, increased angiotensin II production, and elevated angiotensin II levels in plasma. Plasma circulates with the result that the local concentration of angiotensin II within most tissues is similar to that found in wild-type mice. Consistent with this hypothesis, aldosterone levels in ACE 1/3 mice are normal; from the perspective of the adrenal, angiotensin II levels are physiological despite the abnormal location of angiotensin II production.
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The real question is what happens to this compensated system when the animal is exposed to 2 weeks without sodium. This is also shown in Figure 3 and can be summarized as "more of the same." The reduction of dietary sodium induces a massive elevation of renin. Although not completely compensatory, this physiological change permits renal retention of sodium and only a slightly increased drop of systolic blood pressure in response to sodium deprivation.
| ACE, an Enzyme With 2 Catalytic Domains |
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One peptide that does accumulate during ACE inhibition is acetyl-SerAspLysPro (acetyl-SDKP). This peptide was initially purified from bone marrow and described as a regulator of hematopoiesis.13 In vitro, acetyl-SDKP inhibits the proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells.14,15 One of the more interesting features of ACE-null mice (animals with an elevation of acetyl-SDKP) is that they are anemic. Indeed, there is a whole clinical literature describing changes of human hematocrit in response to ACE inhibitors.16
One hypothesis concerning ACE inhibition (in humans) or the lack of ACE (in mice) is that accumulated acetyl-SDKP may play a role in reducing hematocrit. To study this and to create mouse models allowing in vivo identification of the physiological effects of each ACE catalytic domain, we created mice in which amino acid point mutations were introduced into either the N-terminal or C-terminal catalytic domains. These mutations specifically inactivate 1 of the ACE domains. An advantage of this strategy is that the amino acid point mutations were introduced in a fashion designed to minimize differences in expression of the ACE protein. For instance, the first mouse created was called ACE 7/7 (Figure 4).17 This animal was engineered such that 2 histidine residues (amino acids 395 and 399) were converted to lysine, a change that makes it impossible for the N-terminal catalytic domain to bind zinc. Without zinc, the N-terminal catalytic domain is inactive. ACE 7/7 mice produce the modified ACE protein at levels indistinguishable from wild-type mice. Furthermore, this protein retains its C-terminal catalytic activity.
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My group studied the physiology of 2 related mouse lines termed ACE 7/7 (homozygous for the point mutations) and ACE 1/7 (an ACE compound heterozygote in which the ACE 1 allele is null).17 Whereas ACE 7/7 mice produced normal quantities of ACE protein, ACE 1/7 mice produced &50% normal levels. Despite the lack of N-terminal ACE activity, both ACE 7/7 and ACE 1/7 mice have a normal blood pressure and hematocrit. In fact, we tested the ability of these mice to recover from an acute anemia induced by phenylhydrazine; both ACE 7/7 and ACE 1/7 mice recovered hematocrit equivalent to that of wild-type mice. Thus, these experiments show that acetyl-SDKP has little influence on hematocrit, at least in mice. In fact, experiments in ACE-null mice infused with angiotensin II by minipump suggest that it is angiotensin II that has effects on hematocrit.16 At present, the biochemical mechanisms by which angiotensin II contribute to hematopoiesis are not well understood.
My group has also used targeted homologous recombination to introduce point mutations into the C-terminal catalytic domain of ACE. Although the results of this manipulation are not yet published, it is important to underline that 1 of the major considerations for doing this experiment is to investigate the role of ACE in male reproduction.
| ACE and Male Fertility |
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Although the different ACE isozymes are interesting to those who specialize in this protein, what gives this topic biological relevance is that testis ACE plays an important role in male fertility. This became apparent with the analysis of ACE-null mice.2 Although these animals were originally thought to be infertile, this is now known to be incorrect in the sense that ACE-null mice can give rise to rare offspring.1 However, there is a very marked difference in the fecundity of wild-type and male ACE knockout male mice: both the number of litters and the size of litters is very much reduced in knockout animals. Additionally complicating this topic is a recent publication by Kondoh et al20 where the authors identified glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-releasing activity in testis and attributed this enzymatic action to ACE. They claim that it is the GPI-releasing activity and not the dicarboxypeptidase action of ACE that is important to male fertility.
An important consideration of creating mice with the point mutations inactivating the ACE C-terminal catalytic domain is that this is the only domain present in the testis ACE isozyme. Thus, we predict that these mice (termed ACE 13/13) will make a somatic ACE protein with N-terminal catalytic activity intact but that the dicarboxypeptidase activity of testis ACE will be completely eliminated. This addresses 2 important questions. First, the introduction of point mutations will not change expression levels of testis ACE. Now, we will test whether the mere presence of testis ACE protein (although catalytically inactive) is sufficient for normal male fertility. Second, point mutations in the zinc-binding domain of testis ACE should not interfere with the GPI-releasing activity described by Kondoh et al.20 Thus, we can directly examine whether it is dicarboxypeptidase activity of the testis isozyme that plays a role in male fertility. Conceivably, these experiments could have direct human applications in stimulating pharmaceutical development of a compound that blocks the C-terminal catalytic activity of ACE while leaving N-terminal function intact. In theory, such a scheme could play a part in developing a male contraceptive.
| Future Advances |
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We began the article by noting that cells have no difficulty in accepting and integrating many simultaneous signaling events. An important corollary is that biological systems have adapted the RAS into something that influences many different physiological processes apart from blood pressure control. One of the great challenges scientists face is to develop a comfort level viewing biological systems and, in particular, the RAS, as part of multifactorial parallel processing. This type of thinking goes against-the grain in that it is much more natural to simplify angiotensin II as something simply influencing blood pressure. However, as long as we remember that the history of the RAS is one of expanding biological influence and not close our minds to the possibility that much remains unknown, we feel that the RAS will continue to reveal itself and provide opportunities to modify disease for the betterment of humankind.
| Acknowledgments |
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Received September 15, 2005; first decision October 6, 2005; accepted October 21, 2005.
| References |
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15. Jackson JD, Ozerol E, Yan Y, Ewel C, Talmadge JE. Activity of acetyl-Ser-Asp-Lys-Pro (AcSDKP) on human hematopoietic progenitor cells in short-term and long-term bone marrow cultures. J Hematother Stem Cell Res. 2000; 9: 489496.[CrossRef][Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
16. Cole J, Ertoy D, Lin H, Sutliff RL, Ezan E, Guyene TT, Capecchi M, Corvol P, Bernstein KE. Mice deficient in angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) have anemia due to a lack of angiotensin II facilitated erythropoiesis. J Clin Invest. 2000; 106: 13911398.[Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
17. Fuchs S, Xiao HD, Cole JM, Adams JW, Frenzel K, Michaud A, Zhao H, Keshelava G, Capecchi MR, Corvol P, Bernstein KE. Role of the N-terminal catalytic domain of angiotensin-converting enzyme investigated by targeted inactivation in mice. J Biol Chem. 2004; 279: 1594615953.
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