Alkaline Phosphatase Isoforms Research Articles

Release of membrane-bound enzymes from cells and the generation of isoforms

Enzymes bound to the surfaces of cells may be retained by a hydrophobic amino acid sequence (e.g. γ-glutamyltransferase) or by a specific glycan phosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor (e.g. alkaline phosphatase). In either case the attachment is by means of non-covalent hydrophobic interactions between the anchoring domain of the enzyme and lipid components of the cell membrane. Enzyme molecules released into the plasma or bile, complete with their hydrophobic domains, can undergo aggregation and complexation to give rise to high molecular weight isoforms of γ-glutamyltransferase or alkaline phosphatase. However, the GPI domain of alkaline phosphatase can be degraded by an inositol-specific phospholipase in plasma, but not in bile, with production of the hydrophobic, non-aggregating isoform of alkaline phosphatase that predominates in plasma.

A novel ecto-phosphatidic acid phosphohydrolase activity mediates activation of neutrophil superoxide generation by exogenous phosphatidic acid.

Phosphatidic acid (PA) added to intact cells activates a variety of processes including mitogenesis in fibroblasts and superoxide generation in neutrophils. We have investigated the mechanism of activation of superoxide generation in intact human neutrophils by a short-chain (dioctanoyl) PA (diC8PA). After a lag, diC8PA caused a high rate of superoxide production (19.6 nmol of cytochrome c reduced/min/10(6) cells). Activation did not require extracellular Ca2+ and coincided with near quantitative conversion of diC8PA to dioctanoylglycerol (diC8-glycerol). diC8PA also activated cellular phospholipase D with release of long-chain PA and secondary production of long-chain diradylglycerol (sn-1,2-diacylglycerol and 1-O-alkyl-2-acylglycerol). The metabolism of diC8PA to diC8-glycerol was catalyzed by a novel PA phosphohydrolase on the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane as demonstrated by the exclusive release of Pi into the extracellular medium. This enzyme also showed activity toward PA containing long-chain unsaturated fatty acids. The ecto-PA phosphohydrolase differed from the intracellular PA phosphohydrolase based on its relative insensitivity to desipramine and N-ethylmaleimide. The enzyme was also present in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells and its activity did not change in transfected CHO cells expressing the two membrane-associated isoforms of alkaline phosphatase, indicating that the PA phosphohydrolase was not alkaline phosphatase. Non-hydrolyzable phosphonate analogs of diC8PA poorly stimulated superoxide production. Activation of superoxide generation by diC8PA was inhibited by staurosporine, suggesting a protein kinase C-dependent mechanism. We suggest that the action of a novel ecto-PA phosphohydrolase permits exogenously added short-chain PA to serve as "timed-release diacylglycerol" and that its biological effects in neutrophils are secondary to diacylglycerol-mediated protein kinase C activation.

Kinetic parameters for the cleaved substrate, and enzyme and substrate stability, vary with the phosphoacceptor in alkaline phosphatase catalysis

Nine different isoenzymes and (or) isoforms of alkaline phosphatase (ALP; EC 3.1.3.1) from human tissue were studied with respect to Km and Vmax values for p-nitrophenyl phosphate (p-NPP) in seven different potential phosphoacceptors/buffers. Generally, the phosphoacceptors/buffers with the lowest affinity for p-NPP (highest Km values) gave the highest Vmax values; for the nine enzyme forms in this study, the mean Km and Vmax values were greatest in 2-(ethylamino) (EAE). The two amino-propanol buffers gave the lowest Km and Vmax values. The phosphoacceptors/buffers N-methyl-D-glucamine (MEG), diethanolamine, and Tris had intermediate Km and Vmax values. Hydrophilic liver ALP retained > 90% of its activity after 24 h at 30 degrees C in both 1.0 and 0.3 mol/L Tris and 2-amino-2-methyl-1,3-propanediol and in 0.3 mol/L MEG. This isoenzyme showed greatest inactivation upon prolonged exposure to 1.0 and 0.3 mol/L EAE, the activity at 24 h being approximately 50-66% of that at zero time. p-NPP underwent the greatest spontaneous degradation, approximately 2.5 times that of baseline levels, in 1 mol/L MEG. There was little degradation in all of the buffers tested at 0.3 mol/L or in Tris, EAE, and 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol at 1.0 mol/L.

A method for the assay of phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase D activity in serum

A reproducible substrate for the assay of phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase D (PIPLD) can be prepared by extracting alkaline phosphatase from placental tissue with n-butanol under alkaline conditions. The alkaline phosphatase thus prepared retains its hydrophobic glycan phosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor and aggregates into high M r forms. Incubation with serum hydrolyses the phosphate inositol linkage by PIPLD action, producing a less lipophilic, non-aggregated isoform of alkaline phosphatase. Three methods of measuring the amount of this isoform produced after a timed incubation with serum are described and compared: two types of phase partitioning systems, and electrophoresis and densitometry of the products after gradient-pore electrophoresis. All give comparable and reproducible measurements of PIPLD; however, the electrophoretic method is preferred for routine analysis.

Methodological Aspects on Separation and Reaction Conditions of Bone and Liver Alkaline Phosphatase Isoform Analysis by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography

Some methodological aspects and characteristics on analysis of bone and liver alkaline phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.1, ALP) isoforms by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) methods are presented. Factors affecting separation (analytical column type, column temperature, mobile phase buffer, mobile phase salt, gradient elution, flow rate) and reaction conditions (substrate type, substrate concentration, fluorescent substrates, substrate buffer type, substrate buffer concentration, substrate pH, substrate activators, substrate detergent, substrate flow rate, reaction temperature, postcolumn reaction detection) are discussed. Six peaks with ALP activity were separated and quantified by our new HPLC method in normal adult nonplacental serum: one intestinal/bone, two bone, and three liver ALP isoforms. Differences between the six ALP iso-forms with respect to diethanolamine buffer concentration and substrate pH were observed. Although our HPLC method offers an improved possibility to clarify the reason for an increased total ALP in the routine clinical chemistry laboratory further research is needed to clarify the cellular origins of the different bone and liver ALP isoforms.

Chemical Nature of Intestinal-Type Alkaline Phosphatase in Human Kidney

Approximately 10% of the alkaline phosphatase activity in human kidney is derived from the intestinal-type alkaline phosphatase isoform, which can be differentiated from adult intestinal alkaline phosphatase by selective reactivity with monoclonal antibodies. The NH2-terminal sequence of the renal intestinal-type alkaline phosphatase was shown to be identical to sequences of the adult and meconial alkaline phosphatases except for the NH2-terminal valine residue, which is missing in the renal intestinal-type enzyme. Incubation of purified meconial alkaline phosphatase with kidney homogenate resulted in removal of the NH2-terminal valine residue, indicating the presence of aminopeptidases in kidney that catalyze this hydrolysis. Furthermore, the oligosaccharide chains of the renal intestinal-type alkaline phosphatase were shown to differ from those of meconial and adult intestinal alkaline phosphatases, as revealed by lectin affinity chromatography. The heterogeneity of the intestinal-type alkaline phosphatase can therefore be generated both by partial peptide bond hydrolysis and differences in glycosylation.

Wheat-Germ Lectin Affinity Electrophoresis for Alkaline Phosphatase Isoforms in Children: Age-Dependent Reference Ranges and Changes in Liver and Bone Disease

This modified lectin affinity electrophoresis method is suitable for simultaneous measurement of liver, bone, and high-molecular-mass (high-Mr) isoforms of alkaline phosphatase (ALP; EC 3.1.3.1) in children. Age-related isoform reference ranges were derived for 247 children, ages 0-13 years. Liver ALP did not appear in plasma until after six months of age, and remained constant after one year of age. Bone ALP was highest in the youngest age group, and declined to relatively constant activities thereafter. High-MrALP was not detected in normal children. In bone disease, the bone isoform was increased in all age groups. In liver disease, only 5 of 30 infants younger than six months had detectable liver ALP, although half had increased bone ALP. Among children older than six months, 5 patients with biliary atresia and 15 patients with hepatitis A all had increased liver isoform activity. Liver ALP was also a sensitive index of early hepatobiliary complications in 27 nonjaundiced children with cystic fibrosis. Measurement of ALP isoforms therefore yields useful clinical information in children older than six months but is of doubtful value in younger infants.

Alkaline phosphatase isoforms in bile and serum and their generation from cells in vitro

Alkaline phosphatase is anchored to cell membranes by a glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol anchor and is present in bile and plasma in various isoforms. The formation of these isoforms depends upon mechanisms of release and subsequent complex formation. Evidence is presented for an enzymatic activity possibly a glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase D (GPI-PLD), in serum that releases an isoform incapable of further complex formation, whereas such an activity is absent from bile.

Hyperphosphatasemia related to three intestinal alkaline phosphatase isoforms: Biochemical study

An unexplained hyperphosphatasemia was noted in a healthy 47-year-old woman. The electrophoretic pattern on agarose gel with and without wheat germ lectin of the serum of this patient showed the presence of three isoforms which have been characterised as being of intestinal origin: their biochemical (neuraminidase, phenylalanine) and thermodenaturation properties are similar to those of intestinal tissue extract. The p I and the pH optima of these isoforms agree with an intestinal origin. Our results suggest the existence of different allelozymes of intestinal alkaline phosphatase.

Phosphate-irrepressible Alkaline Phosphatase of Zymomonas mobilis

The phosphate regulation and subcellular location of the hydrolytic enzyme alkaline phosphatase were investigated in the Gram-negative bacterium Zymomonas mobilis. The biosynthesis of alkaline phosphatase was not derepressed at a low phosphate concentration as is generally observed in other micro-organisms, nor was it repressed by high phosphate concentrations in the medium. The enzyme level was rather constant during the growth phases in batch culture, at a value at least 8.4-fold lower than that observed in Escherichia coli. The alkaline phosphatase of Z. mobilis was found associated with the membrane fraction after cell disruption, osmotic shock treatment or spheroplast formation. This is a rather unusual location, since most of the alkaline phosphatases from Gram-negative bacteria have been shown to be periplasmic enzymes. Activity staining on polyacrylamide gels after two-dimensional electrophoresis revealed two isoforms of alkaline phosphatase, each of approximate molecular mass 56 kDa. These two forms belong to a group including the more basic envelope proteins of Z. mobilis. Our results indicate that the enzyme from Z. mobilis differs markedly from typical alkaline phosphatases of other Gram-negative bacteria.

Micro-scale two-dimensional electrophoresis of alkaline phosphatase from serum.

Isoenzymes of alkaline phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.1) were separated by micro-scale two-dimensional electrophoresis, with isoelectric focusing in capillary gels in the first dimension and polyacrylamide gradient-gel electrophoresis in the second. The isoenzymes detected were identified by several treatments--e.g., incubation with sialidase, papain, Triton X-100, and wheat-germ agglutinin--and by comparison with alkaline phosphatase from liver microsomes. Liver and bone isoforms in normal sera showed overlapping isoelectric points but differed in molecular mass, estimated as 172 and 185 kDa, respectively. Sera of patients with liver disease showed several additional groups of alkaline phosphatase isoforms, two of which were found to consist of multi-molecular complexes. Others probably correspond to incompletely glycated enzyme proteins. A further isoform with a mass of about 250 kDa does not seem to correspond to any known isoform of alkaline phosphatase in serum. With this technique, we demonstrated intra- and interindividual variations of the placental alkaline phosphatase isoenzyme in pregnancy sera.

Separation and identification of alkaline phosphatase isoenzymes and isoforms in serum of healthy persons by isoelectric focusing.

We have developed an isoelectric focusing procedure for resolving alkaline phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.1) isoenzymes and isoforms in serum. We use a thin-layer agarose gel film containing synthetic carrier ampholytes and a "separator" to flatten the pH gradient in the region of the isoenzyme and isoform isoelectric points. Sharp, highly resolved zones of enzyme activity are obtained by limiting diffusion; for this we rapidly couple the released product, 1-naphthol, to a diazonium salt, which forms a colored precipitate at the site of activity. We have resolved and identified 12 zones of alkaline phosphatase activity in the serum of ostensibly healthy persons within a wide age range. Theoretically, three basic isoenzymes are produced from independent gene loci: intestinal, placental, and nonspecific tissue alkaline phosphatase. The other zones of activity may be isoforms.

Serum alkaline phosphatase isoenzymes in hepatobiliary disorders resolved by use of immobilized pH gradients.

This new method for fractionating alkaline phosphatase isoforms in hepatobiliary disorders is based on isoelectric focusing on a mixed-type polyacrylamide support containing an immobilized pH gradient with a superimposed carrier-ampholyte gradient. The high-Mr alkaline phosphatase forms typical of hepatobiliary disease (greater than 1 mega-dalton), which cannot migrate into the Immobiline gel, are disaggregated in zwitterionic detergents (the most effective being sulfobetaine 3-12)--20 g/L in the sample, 5 g/L in the gel--suggesting that they are still complexed with membrane fragments or that they tend to aggregate spontaneously in solution. These isoforms focus in the pI 5-6 range (while alkaline phosphatases in normal serum focus in the pI 4-5 interval) in immobilized pH gradients, but behave as strongly acidic components by agarose isoelectric focusing in the presence of carrier ampholytes, suggesting that they are strongly complexed with the latter. On treatment with neuraminidase, the low-pI isoforms in normal serum focus in the pI 5-6 range typical of the hepatobiliary isoforms, suggesting that the latter are poorly glycosylated. By a second-dimension run, in a porosity gradient, followed by activity staining, all alkaline phosphatase forms that have entered the Immobiline gel in the first dimension (normal forms and high-Mr species) exhibit the same Mr (ca. 140,000 Da), suggesting that no new chains are synthesized in hepatobiliary disorders.

Alkaline phosphatase expression in human chorionic villi.

The physicochemical properties and electrophoretic mobility of different isoforms of alkaline phosphatase were studied in chorionic villi. Based on selective inactivation and inhibition studies (thermal stability, inactivation by urea, EDTA and L(+)ascorbic acid and L-amino acid inhibition), evidence was obtained for the existence of two distinct types of alkaline phosphatase in trophoblast cells. One type is peculiar to chorionic villi while the other is also found in term placenta. Both show two isoforms. These two isoforms were observed with polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, carried out at pH 6.0 and 9.5. It is suggested that the qualitative and quantitative methods of alkaline phosphatase analysis could be used for first trimester fetal diagnosis of severe infantile hypophosphatasia and for understanding genetic control during early fetal development.

Heredity and its relation to dentistry

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is an important biomarker of bone diseases clinically measured in blood as a routine assay by means of optical read-outs, which when compared with electroanalytical methods present lack of miniaturization, slow response and high cost. Thus, electrochemical ALP sensors have arisen as a tool to develop disposable low cost devices with an increased sensitivity for healthcare. However, few of them comply with clinical standards, hence, limiting their application and competitiveness compared to the traditional optical methods. Therefore, we address a rapid test for ALP determination in human samples based on an end-point electrochemical assay using disposable graphite screen-printed electrodes and following international clinical recommendations. Using Square Wave Voltammetry (SWV), we first evaluated the electrochemistry of the enzymatic product phenol both at commercial ALP samples as well as at in vitro samples from osteoblasts cell cultures. ALP present in human serum and saliva from patients under normal and pathological conditions was further quantified by SWV. Additionally, the bone ALP isoform of such human samples was measured via precipitation with lectin wheat germ agglutinin. The resulting sensor showed an operational range between 20 to 1500 U L−1 using 10 μL of sample, a total volume of 100 μL and a reaction time of 10 min at 37 °C in addition to no interference of human samples in the potential window of interest for phenol oxidation. This work demonstrates that the electrochemical ALP sensor, here developed, is a promising alternative against the traditional commercial methods currently used.