Fusion of clonal ncuroblastoma cells with rat glioma cells lelded clonal hybrid cell lines which synthesize, store and excrete acetylcholine; properties which are not expressed by the parental cell lines. Cells from one hybrid line were found to form synapses with cultured striated muscle cells. Synapses between normal hybrid cells and muscle cells closely resemble the synapses between motor neurons and striated muscle before they are fully developed. Vnder appropriate conditions, hybrid cells establish synaptic connections with virtually every muscle cell tested; thus, synaptic connections are formed in abundance. Marked diffefences were observed in the . . efficiency of transmission across different synapses. Axonal activities which were found to be regulated include choline acetyltransferase, acetylcholinesterasa, Na+ action potential ionophore specific activities, and the rate of choline transport into cells. In muscle ce11s, the distribution of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors is regulated. Eight species of receptors have been found thus far with the hybrid cell line which forms synapses. Receptor mediated shifts in cANP levels, cGW levels and membrane potentials have been identified and characterized. Thus the foundation has been laid for studies on the effects of receptor mediated reactions on synaptic transmission. In addition, more than 100 cell lines which synthesize acetylcholine have been obtained. Preliminary results suggest that some cell lines may be defective with respect to synapse formation. Although these studies are in their infancy, it seems clear that the experi- mental approach qnd model systems which have been established afford extraordinary opportunities to explore synapse properties and to correlate biochemical events with developmental. and electrophysiological phenomona. Synaptogenesis by normal neurons also was . Neurons dissociated from chick embryo retina and maintained in vitro reaggregate and were also shown to -- form in vitro approximately 1 x 10' synapses per mg of protein. Three types of -- synapses and several subtypes were identified which closely resemble those of the intact retina. Studies with this system are described in other sections of this report. A preliminary histochemical technique for detecting and localizing nicotinic acetylcholine receptors was devised which depends upon the formation of a complex B between peroxidase coupled to an antibody for a-bungarotoxin and the nicotinic I acetylcholine receptor. Using this method, clusters of nicotinic acetylcholine b receptors on cultured muscle cells were shown to contain at least 7 times the I concentration of receptors found in other membrang regions. Receptor clusters were not characteristically associated with folds in the plasma membrane. The hybrid cells which form synapses possess abundant morphine receptors. Morphine and other narcotics were shown to be potent inhibitors of adenylate cyclase in cells which possess opiate receptors and to be without effect in cells which lack these receptors. Exposure of cells with opiate receptors to morphine for 12 to 48 hours results in an increase in adenylate cyclase activity which compensates for the inhibition of enzyme activity by morphine. Cells have normal cAHP levels and appear tolerant to morphine because the increase in adenyalte cyclase activity is approxi- mately equal to the inhibition of enzyme activity by morphine. However, the cells te are dependent upon morphine to maintain normal CAMP levels. Withdrawal of morphine, or displacement of the narcotic from the opiate receptor by the antagonist, naloxone, reverses the inhibition and results in the synthesis of abnormally high : levels of CAN?. Thus, dual regulation of adenylate cyclase by narcotics accounts for the phenomena of narcotic dependence and tolerance. The recently discovered endogenous opiate peptides, Met-enkephalin and Leu-enkephalin, also were shown to be potent'inhibitors of adenylate cyclase. The endogenous opiate peptides and narcotics act as pleiotropic regulators of other species of receptors which are coupled to the activation of adenylate cyclase. Thus opiates alter the perception of cells to messages. A cell line with muscarinic inhibitory acetylcholine receptors, and another with muscarinic excitatory receptors were found. The number of receptors, the affinities of receptors for cholinergic ligands and other properties of the receptors were determined by measuring the [3H]-quinuclidinyl benzilate binding of receptors to the muscarinic acetylcholine receptors present, results in a transient increase in &Ml?, and a profound long lived inhibition of adenylate cyclase activity.X`Exposure of cells to acetylcholine or carbachol..for 24 hours markedlytdecreases the number of acetylcholine recEp,ptors and increases adenylate cyclase activity 50 to 500%. Removal of carbachol results in the return of adenylate cyclase activity and acetylcholine receptors levels to normal values after approximately 3 and 24 hours, respectively. Similarly, exposure of cells with u-receptors to norepinephrine inhibits adenylate cyclase activity and elicits a delayed, compensatory increase in adenylate cyclase activity. These results show that cells with a-receptors, muscarinic acetylcholine receptors, or opiate receptors can become tolerant to and dependent upon norepinephrine, acetylcholine, and opiates, respectively, and that withdrawal of the receptor ligand elevates intracellular CAM? levels and shifts cells to a supersensitive state with respect to other species of receptors which activate adenylate cyclase. Desensitization of muscarinic receptors was found to decrease the affinity of the receptor for ligands which activate the receptor. Although the interaction of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors with agonists exhibits an apparent negative cooperativity; the interactions between the receptor and antagonist is not a cooperative process. Both muscarinic excitatory and muscarinic inhibitory acetylcholine receptors were solubilized and the properties of membrane found and soluble receptors were compared. Chick embryo retina was found to be a rich source of both muscarinic and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors were shown to be associated predominantly'with the synaptic layers of the retina. Both muscariiric and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors are synthesized before synapses-appear.in the retina; however, during the development of the retina, nicotinic acetylchQline receptors become associated predominantly with neurites in the synaptic layers of the retina. The properties of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors were determined at different developmental ages and were compared with the properties of muscarinic inhibitory and excitatory receptors of neuroblastoma cells. Evidence for-a new type,of PGEl receptor coupled to cGMP accumulation was obtained. Cell lines with PGEl receptors coupled to c&II? were found as well as cell lines with 2 species of PGEl receptors, one coupled to CAMP accumulation, the other to cGW accumulation. PGEl desensitizes both species of receptors but at different rates. PGF2i% receptors coupled to cGMP accumulation can be selectively inactivated without inactivation of PGE 1 receptors and vice versa. These results show that the coupling of PGEl to cAMP and cGMP are clonally inherited, independently expressed, properties. Two pathways for r-aminobutyric acid synthesis were found in chick embryo retina. The first pathway depends upon the conversion of putrescine to omithine, catalyzed by omithine decarboxylase and the subsequent conversion of omithine to y-aminobutyric acid. The second route of synthesis is dependent upon the conversion of glutamic acid to y-aminobutyric acid, catalyzed by glutamic acid decarboxylase. The omithine decarboxylase pathway accounts for 20% of the y-aminobutyric acid synthesized in retina on the 6th embryonic day but only 1% on the A8th embryonic day. Elevation of CAMP levels in neuroblastoma cells results in an induction of ornithine decarboxylase activity. Thus neurotransmitters which affect CAMP levels may regulate ornithine decarboxylase activity and thus may control the rate of GABA synthesis from ornithine. Previous results led to the conclusion that veratridine, batrachotoxin, and aconitine activate the action potential Na+ ionophore by interaction with a single class of sites; scorpion venom activates the ionophore by interaction with a different class of sites; two species of toxin bound to separate sites are allosterically coupled and interact in a cooperative manner; and tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin act at a 3rd site which is involved in ion transport. A toxin which activates the action potential Na+ ionophore has been purified from scoprion venom. The toxin binds to a single class of sites and acts cooperatively with each of the three alkaloids. ~Bepolarization of cells causes a 30-fold increase in the apparent dissociation constant. The results app suggest that the scorpion toxin binds to a voltage sensitive component of the Na+ ionophore that acts cooperatively in regulating ion transport activity. Binding studies with an 125 I-labelled derivative of scorpion toxin showed that the concentration of toxin binding sites is approximately 3 to 6 fmole per mg protein. Clonal skeletal muscle myoblasts have substantial action potential Na+ ionophore activity. A small increase in activity accompanies cell fusion. The activity in both myoblasts and myotubes is relatively insensitive to inhibition by saCtoxin and tetrodotoxin.and thus resembles denervated rat striated muscle which has been shown to be realtively insensitive to these toxins. Chronic electrical stimulation of muscle cells in vitro does not increase tetrodotoxin sensitivity. -- At least 3 ionophores are involved in the action potential in adult heart: -I- a rapidly activated axon-like Na ionophore responsible for the rising phase of the action potential, -f-l- + a slower Ca /Na ionophore responsible for the plateau phase, and a K+ ionophore responsible for the repolarization phase. Studies with + specific inhibitors of the fast Na ionophore (tetrodotoxin) and the slow Ca*/Na ionophore (D-600) show that the role of these two types of ionophore in beating changes during development of the embryonic chick heart. In early embryonic hearts, the fast Na' ionophore is present but is not required for beating. During occer Setxeer, ds-fs 4 2ir.d 7 in ova, -- Duriilg this tire, vngal iznwvation 05 the k?s2z", t&as place- Conseqc2ntlj xe have studied the zmcaxinic ace.tylcholine, >e+*&&s to c?e+.-T!-le whether ckmges in their properties are teqorally corselated c-c I. -a with dizqes ir). the action potential ioxq$aores. I+arly edxy0r.i.c hearts, muscarinic qents are ineffective irr irklibiting beating. 5etween days 5 2rd 7, .sensitLv5ty to inhibition by imscarinic agents increases to the adult level. QX3 binds specifically to muscarir?ipacetyl&oliae receptors in ezrbryonic arid a&d.t heart 2s assessed by co~s~-~~~ Lj*;w? stcdies with mscarinic and nicotir_ic &gents. Receptors, as detected by QX3 bir,di.ng, are present in unresponsive early ez&ryonic ileazts an-d the zxiker 2-2~ I;lg I'leart protein does no t incredse dr$atically &ring deV2?.GpOeRt. Receltou desexiiL Lzation is accoqanFed by a small char?g2 (3 fold increase) in K -3 D for imscaii-inic agcnists a~ seas-zed by ccm~etition with f! QSS;. c-1 I s c-l1 ax c in K D OCC'x!zd 0;zly ir. hearts that are rcsxnsive to nucarinic zgeEts aiCl t'kxs nsy b3 essoci; zsscciated with thz phirsiol0gi.c action of the recqtgr. Competition curves for agmists r;ugr;2st the involvement of mgative ccoserativity in sctivation of the receptor. iI:;?ps2 rcsd.ts suggest that nuscarinic acetylc:loline receptors, iike action potential Studies on mechanism of catabolite repression in E. coli show that glucose -- inhibits adenylate cyclase activity reversibly in cells treated in toluene, and that phosphate is required for high adenylate cyclase activity for glucose dependent inhibition of enzyme activity. Other sugars also inhibit adenylate cyclase provided that transport systems for the sugars are induced. Mutant strains of E. coli defective in the phosphoenolpyruvate:sugar phosphotr&sferase -- system components were examined. Cyclic AMP levels were normal in a HPr mutant, but were markedly depressed in a leaky Enzyme I mutant. Adenylate cyclase activity was low in the Enzyme I mutant wherase the HPr mutant had normal enzyme activity. The Enzyme I mutant under starvation conditions exhibits high adenylate cyclase activity and the adenylate cyclase of this mutant is unusually sensitive to variations in carbon source. The addition of phosphoenolpynavate leads to a substantial increase in adenylate cyclase activity in permeabilized cell preparations of the Enzyme I mutant. These results suggest that Enzyme I is involved in the regulation of adenylate cyclase activity. Studies are in progress to test the possibility that Enzyme I interacts with adenylate cyclase and that the PEP- dependent phosphorylation of Enzyme I is responsible for activation of adenylate cyclase. Levels of &IQ were compared with CAMP levels when E. coli was grown under -- different conditions. The results showed: 1) cells starved for a carbon source for a short time have high levels of CAME and low levels of cGMP. Addition of a' carbon source leads to a decrease in CAMP and an increase in cGKP, a bi-directional change. Washed cells starved for a carbon source for long periods have low CAMP levels which do not respond to the addition of glucose; however, the addition of glucose results in a transient increase in cGMP levels. The results reveal the presence in E. coli of reactions which inversely couple cGMP and CAMP concentrations -- and show that the regulation of cGMP levels can be uncoupled from that of CAMP. Since specific species of tRNA are involved in amino acid mediated repression and end-product inhibition, the effect of amino acid deprivation upon tIWA of relaxed and stringent strains of E. coli was studied. In relaxed -- control E. coli leucine starvation results in the formation of new isoacceptor -- species of leucine, histidine, arginine, valine, and alanine-specific tRNA and quantitative changes -in the concentration of some other isoacceptors. Experiments with stringent strains were the use of uracil starvation or rifampicin addition provided evidence for the de novo synthesis of new -- species of isoacceptor tRNA. The new species of leucine RNA are not aggregation artifacts, or nuclease-damaged forms of anormal leucine isoacceptor, or grossly deficient with respect to methylation. Since there is some evidence from the recent work of others that tIQiA formed under conditions of amino acid starvation is deficient in the minor bases 5,6idihydrouridine and 4-thiouridine, we think that the biochemical explanation for the accumulation of new tRNA species under conditions of amino-acid starvation may be that the enzymes responsible for these tFNA modifications are unstable and require continued protein synthesis to maintain their levels of activity. Further information was obtained on the mechanism of arginyl-tRNA synthetase which does not catalyze an amino acid dependent ATP-PPi exchange in the absence of added tRNA. A new purification procedure was devised which yields homogeneous enzyme in approximately 10% yield. Pulse labelling experiments indicate that no enzyme bound arginyl-adenylate is formed in the absence of added tRNA. Equilibrium experiments show that no arginyl-adenylate accumulates either in the presence oi absence of tWAarg. These data further validate our earlier suggestion that the mechanism of this reaction is probably concerted. A series of additional studies carried out with the pure preparation of arginyl-tRNA synthetase from E. coli indicate that metals may have two functional -- roles in the catalytic mechanism. Complete metal activation is observed when MgC12, M&12, CoCl*, or FeCl is present at a concentration (5 mN) in excess 2 of the total ATP concentration (2 tif). When CaC12 is substituted for MgC12, activity is not observed unless a small amount (0.3. mM) of MgC12, MnC12, CoC12, FeC12 or ZnCl2 is added. On the basis of these experiments, we visualize a model in which the enzyme possesses a site for free metal which, when filled, lowers'the KM for all three substrates (arginine, tRNAarg, and metal-ATP) and increases the V of the reaction. max