Stimulation of collagen galactosyltransferase and glucosyltransferase activities by lysophosphatidylcholine.

Lysophosphatidylcholine stimulated the activities of collagen galactosyl- and glucosyl-transferases in chick-embryo extract and its particulate fractions in vitro, whereas essentially no stimulation was noted in the high-speed supernatant, where the enzymes are soluble and membrane-free. The stimulatory effect of lysophosphatidylcholine was masked by 0.1% Triton X-100. In kinetic experiments lysophosphatidylcholine raised the maximum velocities with respect to the substrates and co-substrates, whereas no changes were observed in the apparant Km values. Phospholipase A preincubation of the chick-embryo extract resulted in stimulation of both transferase activities, probably gy generating lysophosphatides from endogenous phospholipids. No stimulation by lysophosphatidylcholine was found when tested with 500-fold-purified glycosyltransferase. The results suggest that collagen glycosyltransferases must be associated with the membrane structures of the cell in order to be stimulated by lysophosphatidylcholine. Lysophosphatidylcholine could have some regulatory significance in vivo, since its concentration in the cell is comparable with that which produced marked stimulation in vitro.