Differences in signal transduction between platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) alpha and beta receptors in vascular smooth muscle cells. PDGF-BB is a potent mitogen, but PDGF-AA promotes only protein synthesis without activation of DNA synthesis.

Cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) from spontaneously hypertensive rats express both alpha and beta isoforms of the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptors at high levels (100,000 and 240,000 sites/cell, respectively). In this cell type, PDGF-BB elicited a mitogenic response; however, PDGF-AA increased only protein synthesis without activating DNA synthesis. Protein kinase C (PKC) was activated by PDGF-AA as well as PDGF-BB with concomitant translocation from cytosol to membrane fractions. However, the hypertrophic effect of PDGF-AA was not affected by depletion of cellular PKC, whereas the mitogenic action of PDGF-BB was partially attenuated by the depletion. Following incubation with PDGF-AA or -BB, phospholipase C-gamma 1 (PLC-gamma 1) and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase were tyrosine phosphorylated; however, the phosphorylation of Ras-GTPase-activating protein was induced only by PDGF-BB. Both PDGF isoforms resulted in a prompt and transient increase in the level of 1,2-diacylglycerol (DAG), presumably through the action of PLC-gamma 1. After returning to basal levels, the rate of DAG synthesis steadily increased for at least 15 min due to activation of phosphatidylcholine-hydrolyzing phospholipase C (PC-PLC). Incubation with PDGF-BB-activated phospholipase D (PLD) in a PKC-dependent manner resulting in the formation of phosphatidic acid (PA). PA was also formed by the sequential reactions of PC-PLC and DAG kinase in the PDGF-BB-stimulated VSMC, and these sequential reactions were not affected by PKC depletion. In contrast, PDGF-AA stimulation did not result in increased PA synthesis as neither PLD nor DAG kinase activities were affected. PA may be a significant second messenger in the activation of DNA synthesis by PDGF-BB. These results indicate that signaling mechanisms of the PDGF-alpha and -beta receptors in VSMC are distinctly different in signal transduction in VSMC and that the alpha receptor promotes cellular hypertrophy (but not hyperplasia), whereas a mitogenic response is mediated only through the beta receptor.