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. 2002 Jul;110(7):641–645. doi: 10.1289/ehp.02110641

Mitogen-activated protein kinase activation by oxidative and bacterial stress in an amphibian cell culture model.

Lisa A Carter 1, Maija B Tabor 1, James C Bonner 1, Lisa A Bonner 1
PMCID: PMC1240909  PMID: 12117640

Abstract

The decline of many amphibian species could be caused by their susceptibility to environmental pollutants that cause cellular stress and cell death. A variety of intracellular signal transduction pathways are activated by environmental stress factors, which result in cell death. Mitogen-activated protein kinases are intracellular signaling molecules that include the extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK-1 and ERK-2). We used cultured (italic)Xenopus(/italic) tadpole cells (XTC-2 cells) to investigate the activation of ERK by oxidative or bacterial stress, two environmental factors that could contribute to pollution in aquatic systems. We exposed XTC-2 cell monolayers to hydrogen peroxide or bacterial lipopolysaccharide and measured ERK activation by Western blotting using antibodies raised against phosphorylated ERK-1 and ERK-2. Only ERK-2 was detected in XTC-2 cells. Both hydrogen peroxide and lipopolysaccharide caused ERK-2 phosphorylation in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. Hydrogen peroxide caused a 20- to 30-fold increase in ERK-2 activation that peaked 30 min after treatment, and lipopolysaccharide induced a 5- to 10-fold increase in ERK-2 activation that peaked 60 min after treatment. PD98059, an inhibitor of the ERK pathway, reduced the cytotoxic response of XTC-2 cells to hydrogen peroxide or lipopolysaccharide. These data suggest that ERK-2 is an intracellular target of oxidative and bacterial stress in amphibians that mediates, at least in part, the cytotoxic response to hydrogen peroxide or lipopolysaccharide. Moreover, the (italic)Xenopus(/italic) (XTC-2) cell culture system could serve as a useful model to identify agents that might threaten amphibian populations and human health.

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Selected References

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