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Published ahead of print on May 11, 2006, doi:10.1165/rcmb.2006-0097OC

Am. J. Respir. Cell Mol. Biol., Volume 35, Number 4, October 2006, 436-443

A more recent version of this article appeared on October 1, 2006
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Submitted on March 4, 2006
Revised on May 11, 2006

Increased Protein Arginine Methylation in Chronic Hypoxia: Role of Protein Arginine Methyltransferases

Ali O Yildirim1, Patrick Bulau1, Dariusz Zakrzewicz1, Kamila E Kitowska1, Norbert Weissmann1, Friedrich Grimminger1, Rory E Morty1, and Oliver Eickelberg1*

1 Department of Medicine II, University of Giessen Lung Center, Justus-Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Hesse, Germany

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: oliver.eickelberg{at}innere.med.uni-giessen.de.

Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) is an endogenous inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis. ADMA is generated by catabolism of proteins containing methylated arginine residues and its levels are correlated with endothelial dysfunction in systemic cardiovascular diseases. Arginine methylation of cellular proteins is catalyzed by protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMT). The expression and localization of PRMT in the lung has not been addressed. Here, we sought to analyze the expression of PRMT isoforms in the lung, and determine whether PRMT expression is altered during exposure to chronic hypoxia (10% oxygen). Adult mice were exposed to hypoxia for up to three weeks, lung tissues harvested, and processed for reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, Western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and determination of tissue ADMA levels. All PRMT isoforms investigated were detected at the mRNA and protein level in mouse lung, and were localized primarily to the bronchial and alveolar epithelium. In lungs of mice subjected to chronic hypoxia, PRMT2 mRNA and protein levels were upregulated, whereas the expression of all other PRMT isoforms remained unchanged. This was mainly due to increased expression of PRMT2 in alveolar type II cells, which did not express detectable levels of PRMT2 under normoxic conditions. Consistent with these observations, lung ADMA levels and ADMA/L-Arginine ratios were increased under hypoxic conditions. These results demonstrate that PRMTs are expressed and functional in the lung, and that hypoxia is a potent regulator of PRMT2 expression and lung ADMA concentrations. These data suggest that structural and functional changes caused by hypoxia may be linked to ADMA metabolism.







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