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Endocrinology Vol. 141, No. 2 621-628
Copyright © 2000 by The Endocrine Society


ARTICLES

Potential Involvement of FRS2 in Insulin Signaling1

Laurent Delahaye, Stephane Rocchi and Emmanuel Van Obberghen

INSERM, U-145 and IFR 50, 06107 Nice, France

Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Dr. Laurent Delahaye, INSERM U-145 and IFR 50, Faculté de Médecine, avenue de Valombrose, 06107 Nice Cedex 2, France. E-mail: delahaye{at}unice.fr


    Abstract
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Shp-2 is implicated in several tyrosine kinase receptor signaling pathways. This phosphotyrosine phosphatase is composed of a catalytic domain in its C-terminus and two SH2 domains in its N-terminus. Shp-2 becomes activated upon binding through one or both SH2 domains to tyrosine phosphorylated molecules such as Shc or insulin receptor substrates.

We were interested in finding a new molecule(s), tyrosine phosphorylated by the insulin receptor (IR), that could interact with Shp-2. To do so, we screened a human placenta complementary DNA (cDNA) library with the SH2 domain-containing part of Shp-2 using a modified yeast two-hybrid system. In this system we induce or repress the expression of a constitutive active IR ß-subunit. When expressed, IR phosphorylates proteins produced from the library that can then associate with Shp-2.

Using this approach, we isolated FRS2 as a potential target for tyrosine phosphorylation by the IR. After cloning the entire cDNA, we found that 1) in the yeast two-hybrid system, FRS2 interacts with Shp-2 in a fashion dependent on the presence of the IR; and 2) in the PC12/IR cell-line, insulin leads to an increase in FRS2 association with the phosphatase.

We next wanted to determine whether FRS2 could be a direct substrate for IR. In an in vitro kinase assay we found that wheat-germ agglutinin-purified IR phosphorylates glutathione-S-transferase-FRS2 fusion protein. Finally, in intact cells we show that insulin stimulates tyrosine phosphorylation of endogenous FRS2.

In summary, by screening a two-hybrid cDNA library, we have isolated FRS2 as a possible substrate for IR. We found that IR can directly phosphorylate FRS2. Moreover, in intact cells insulin stimulates tyrosine phosphorylation of FRS2 and its subsequent association with Shp-2. Taken together these results suggest that FRS2 could participate in insulin signaling by recruiting Shp-2 and, hence, could function as a docking molecule similar to insulin receptor substrate proteins.


    Introduction
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
INSULIN IS A key hormone implicated in a wide range of biological effects on metabolism, cellular growth, and differentiation. After insulin binds to the extracellular {alpha}-subunit of its receptor (IR), the tyrosine kinase activity of the ß-subunit becomes active, leading to IR autophosphorylation and subsequently tyrosine phosphorylation of substrates. These tyrosine-phosphorylated molecules then act as docking proteins, recruiting SH2 domain-containing effectors such as phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase), the adaptor growth factor receptor-bound protein-2 (Grb-2), and the phosphotyrosine phosphatase Shp-2 (1).

The PI 3-kinase pathway triggers several cellular responses, such as 1) glucose transport, 2) glycogen synthesis, and 3) protein synthesis (2, 3). Grb-2 binding to tyrosine-phosphorylated substrates associates Sos, activates p21ras, and subsequently activates the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase pathway. Shp-2 is a member of the phosphotyrosine phosphatase family. It was first described as the corkscrew gene product in Drosophila implicated in the torso tyrosine kinase receptor signaling pathway (4). Shp-2 is composed of two SH2 domains in its N-terminus and a catalytic domain at its C-terminus. The N-terminal SH2 domain of Shp-2 negatively regulates the phosphatase activity in resting conditions by binding the catalytic region. Upon binding to tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins such as insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) or Shc, the N-terminal SH2 domain no longer represses the catalytic domain, which allows subsequent activation of the enzyme (5). Shp-2 is phosphorylated in response to many growth factors, such as platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and epidermal growth factor (EGF), but not in response to insulin. Whether this phosphorylation influences the activation level of Shp-2 remains unclear. A Shp-2 molecule, deleted in 65 amino acids of the N-terminal SH2 domain, is lethal in utero at midgestation for mice homozygous for the mutant allele, suggesting a major role of Shp-2 in development (6).

Shp-2 acts as a positive mitogenic transducer downstream of tyrosine kinase receptors, as shown by the fact that injection of either glutathione-S-transferase (GST)-SH2 of Shp-2 or antibodies to Shp-2 leads to inhibition of DNA synthesis in Rat1 cells (7). Furthermore, expression of a catalytically inactive mutant of Shp-2 in NIH-3T3 cells stably expressing insulin receptors blocks insulin-induced activation of MAP kinases (8). In CHO/IR cells, this catalytically inactive mutant or the N-terminal SH2 mutant fails to induce c-fos transcription in response to insulin (9). Considering these data, Shp-2 appears to be a key component in mitogenic signaling induced by various growth factors, such as PDGF, EGF, and insulin.

Although it has been demonstrated that upon PDGF stimulation the Grb-2/Sos complex is recruited to the PDGF receptor through binding to Shp-2 (10) and that this leads to stimulation of MAP kinases, it is not clear how Shp-2 enhances MAP kinase activity.

To identify tyrosine-phosphorylated substrates that recruit Shp-2 when phosphorylated by the IR or new proteins that interact with Shp-2, we screened a human placenta complementary DNA (cDNA) library using Shp-2 as bait. For this purpose we engineered a modified two-hybrid system in which we induce the expression of IR at the same time as two fusion proteins. The first is composed of the DNA-binding domain fused to Shp-2, and the second comprises the activation domain fused to a potential interacting protein. This system allows IR to phosphorylate proteins expressed from the library, revealing phosphotyrosine-dependent interaction(s) with the Shp-2 SH2 domain. Using this strategy, we identified a protein as a potential Shp-2-interacting molecule when phosphorylated by the IR tyrosine kinase. This protein has a region homologous to the phosphotyrosine-binding (PTB) domain of IRS-1, a consensus myristylation sequence in its amino-terminus, and putative binding sites for adaptors such as Grb-2 in its C-terminal part. After cloning, we found in the NCBI Blast Databank that this protein was similar to FRS2/SNT, a molecule shown to link the FGF receptor (FGFR) to the Ras-MAP kinase pathway (11, 12). Further, we examined whether FRS2 could bind Shp-2 in cells exposed to insulin. We found that Shp-2 associates with FRS2 after insulin treatment of a PC12 cell line stably expressing the IR. Further, FRS2 incubated with IR in vitro becomes tyrosine phosphorylated, indicating that FRS2 is likely to be a direct IR substrate. Consistent with this view, we observed in PC12/IR cells, that insulin leads to tyrosine phosphorylation of FRS2.


    Materials and Methods
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Materials
Yeast strain L40 (MATa, Trp1, Leu2, His3, Lys2::lexA-HIS3, URA3::lexA-lacZ) and yeast two-hybrid expression vector pBTM116 (pLex) were provided by A. Vojtek (Seattle, WA), and the plasmid pACTII was provided by S. Elledge (Houston, TX). The pVJL-IR yeast expression plasmid was previously described (13). Human IR cDNA was provided by A. Ullrich (Munich, Germany), and human Shp-2 cDNA was obtained from E. Fischer (Seattle, WA). The human placenta matchmaker cDNA library, the marathon-ready cDNA amplification kit, the advantage cDNA polymerase mix, the human liver Marathon-ready cDNA, and the rat Multiple Tissue Northern were obtained from CLONTECH Laboratories, Inc. (Palo Alto, CA). The original TA Cloning Kit was purchased from Invitrogen (San Diego, CA).

Oligonucleotides were purchased from Life Technologies, Inc. (Paisley, Scotland), restriction enzymes were obtained from New England Biolabs, Inc. (Beverly, MA), Pwo DNA polymerase was obtained from Roche Molecular Biochemicals (Strasbourg, France), and synthetic defined dropout yeast media lacking the appropriate amino acids were purchased from BIO 101 (La Jolla, CA). Cell culture media and geneticin were obtained from Life Technologies, Inc.. All chemical reagents used were purchased from Sigma (St. Louis, MO), except protein A-Sepharose, which was obtained from Pharmacia Biotech, Inc. (Uppsala, Sweden).

We produced precipitating rabbit antibodies to FRS2 against amino acids 325–508 fused to GST protein. Blotting antibodies to FRS2 were provided by J. Schlessinger (New York, NY). Antibodies to Shp-2 and Grb-2 were purchased from Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Inc. (Santa Cruz, CA).

The PC12/IR cell line was previously described (14).

Plasmid construction
The coding sequence of the IR cytoplasmic domain was inserted in the plasmid pVJL9-IR downstream of the repressible promoter MET25 as previously described (13). The SH2 domains of Shp-2 cDNA and p85 cDNA were also subcloned in pVJL9-IR in-frame with the DNA-binding domain of Lex A (15). The fusion proteins obtained (LexA-n/cSH2-Shp-2 and LexA-p85) corresponded to the LexA DNA-binding domain 1–147 fused to both proteins. Correct in-frame fusion between LexA and both Shp-2 and p85 cDNA was verified by sequencing.

Full-length FRS2 was amplified by PCR using the following primers: sense, 5'-ccggaattcgaatgggtagctgttgtagctgtcc-3'; and antisense, 5'-cggctcgagccaggctcacatgggcagatcagtactattgtgtctag-3'. Then we subcloned it in-frame into pGex-4T2 and pActII polylinker using EcoRI (5'-side) and XhoI (3'-side). Correct in-frame fusion between GST and FRS2 cDNA was verified by sequencing. Correct in-frame fusion between the activation domain of Gal4 and FRS2 was verified by sequencing.

Yeast transformation and reporter gene activity
L40 yeast were transformed with the pVJL-IR-n/c-SH2-Shp-2 used as a bait and a human placenta cDNA library expressed in pGAD10 by the improved lithium acetate method of Gietz et al. (16). Selection of positive clones was realized according to the manufacturer’s recommendation (CLONTECH Laboratories, Inc.).

To study protein-protein interactions, L40 yeast were cotransformed with pBTM116 (or pVJL-IR) and pActII plasmids expressing hybrid proteins of interest, using the lithium acetate method (16). L40 were grown for 48 h on plates containing Trp-, Leu- complete supplemented medium to select clones containing both plasmids (pVJL-IR and pACTII carry the Trp+ and Leu+ selection markers, respectively). Suppression of IRß gene expression carried on the pVJL-IR vector was accomplished by addition of L-methionine (Sigma) at 2 mM to the medium.

The histidine reporter gene was tested by replicating the clones expressing the different sets of plasmids on plates containing complete supplemented medium without tryptophan, leucine, and histidine and by growing them at 30 C for 48 h. Double transformants were also assayed for ß-galactosidase activity, using a color filter assay as previously described (17).

Selection of positive clones using the yeast two-hybrid system
After yeast transformation with both the human placenta cDNA library containing vector and the vector carrying the bait, we isolated clones growing on selective media. We then tested the specificity of interactions to discriminate false positives. To do so we first tested their ability to induce transcription of the ß-galactosidase reporter gene by color filter assay (17). To discriminate between yeast containing the vector with the bait and yeast with the vector carrying the cDNA from the library, we grew the yeast and isolated the cDNA. Thereafter, we transformed HB101 bacteria auxotropic for leucine, growing only in presence of the vector from the library. We isolated the cDNA from those cells and retransformed yeast to confirm the interaction in the presence, but not in absence, of IRß-subunit. We also tested the interaction of the clone with unrelated proteins such as Ras or lamin to confirm the specificity.

cDNA amplification of the partial clones obtained by screening the human placenta library
To isolate the full-length sequence of the partial cDNA clone obtained by using a two-hybrid library, we screened a human liver Marathon-ready cDNA library with the Marathon-ready cDNA amplification kit (CLONTECH Laboratories, Inc.) and the advantage cDNA polymerase mix (CLONTECH Laboratories, Inc.) according to the conditions recommended by the manufacturer. The PCR products were subcloned in the pCR 2.1 vector using Original TA Cloning Kit (Invitrogen).

Northern blot analysis
The FRS2 cDNA (reading frame) was amplified by PCR and purified. [{alpha}-32P]Deoxy-CTP radiolabeled FRS2 cDNA probe was prepared using a random priming kit (Amersham Pharmacia Biotech, Piscataway, NJ), and Northern blot analysis was performed using a rat Multiple Tissue Northern (CLONTECH Laboratories, Inc.). The hybridization was realized according to the manufacturer’s recommendations. The membrane was washed with 0.2 x SSC (standard saline citrate) and 0.1% (wt/vol) SDS and visualized by autoradiography.

Cell culture and transfection
PC12/IR cells were cultured in RPMI 1640 medium containing 10% (vol/vol) FCS, 10% (vol/vol) horse serum, and 500 µg/ml geneticin. Cells were starved for 16 h before the experiment in 0.2% (wt/vol) BSA and 0.2% Biomedia serum (Foster City, CA).

In vitro kinase assay
Wheat-germ agglutinin (WGA)-purified IR (150 fmol) was incubated for 25 min in HNT buffer (50 mM HEPES, 150 mM NaCl, and 0.1% Triton X-100, pH 7.4) containing 4 mM MnCl2, 8 mM MgCl2, 30 µM ATP, and 1 mM vanadate with or without 10-7 M insulin. GST protein or various amounts (1, 10, or 20 µg) of GST-FRS2 were preincubated with glutathione-coupled Sepharose beads for 1 h at 4 C. Then WGA-IR, activated or not, was added to the GST-FRS2 pellets in addition to [{gamma}-32P]ATP. After 30 min of shaking at room temperature, the supernatant was removed, and the pellets were washed three times with HNT buffer containing 50 mM HEPES, 150 mM NaCl, and 0.5% Triton X-100, pH 7.4. The pellets were dried, and the proteins were resuspended in Laemmli buffer before being subjected to SDS-PAGE under reducing conditions. The gel was incubated with Coomassie Blue in trichloroacetic acid to visualize the GST-FRS2 and then autoradiographed.

Immunoprecipitation and immunoblotting
Cells were pretreated with 2 mM vanadate (Na3VO4) for 40 min, stimulated or not with 10-6 M insulin for 5 min, and washed in PBS. Then they were incubated in lysis buffer containing 20 mM HEPES, 150 mM NaCl, 1.5 mM MgCl2, 50 mM NaF, 1 mM EDTA, 1 mM EGTA, 10 mM Na4P2O7, 10% glycerol, 2 mM vanadate, 1 mM PhMeS02F, 100 UI/ml aprotinin, 20 µM leupeptin, 2 µM pepstatin, 4 mM benzamidine, and 1% (vol/vol) Triton X-100. The lysates were centrifuged at 15,000 x g at 4 C for 15 min, and the samples were immunoprecipitated at 4 C with the appropriate antibodies preadsorbed on protein A coupled to Sepharose beads. After 3 h, the pellets were washed with lysis buffer and 2 mM vanadate, and the proteins were analyzed by SDS-PAGE under reducing conditions. Then the proteins were transferred to an Immobilon membrane (Immobilon polyvinylidene difluoride, Millipore Corp., Milford, MA). After blocking the membrane with TBS buffer (10 mM Tris-HCl and 140 mM NaCl, pH 7.4) containing 0.5% (wt/vol) BSA and cutting it, we immunoblotted with antibodies to FRS2, Shp-2, or phosphotyrosine followed by [125I]protein A and autoradiography or used the Enhanced Chemiluminescent Light System (Pierce Chemical Co., Rockford, IL).


    Results
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Cloning of FRS2
We were interested in identifying novel proteins phosphorylated by the IR that could interact with the N-terminal SH2 and/or C-terminal SH2 domains of the phosphotyrosine phosphatase Shp-2. To do so, we screened a human placenta library using a modified two-hybrid system (Fig. 1AGo). L40 cells were transformed with two plasmids. One plasmid contains the nSH2- and cSH2-containing part of Shp-2 fused to the DNA-binding domain of LexA. The other contains cDNAs from a library fused to the activation domain of Gal4. In addition, we repressed or induced expression of the active IR ß-subunit (repression of expression is induced by L-methionine in the culture medium). Hence, the IR ß-subunit is able to phosphorylate the protein expressed from the library, which allows for a phosphotyrosine-dependent interaction with the nSH2 and/or cSH2 domain(s) of Shp-2. Yeast containing both plasmids grow on Trp-, Leu- medium. In clones interacting with the bait, transcription of the HIS reporter gene is induced, permitting growth on His- medium. Our system is schematized in Fig. 1AGo.



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Figure 1. A, Modified two-hybrid cloning method. A human placenta cDNA library in pGAD was screened with a modified two-hybrid system using nSH2- and cSH2-containing domains of Shp-2 as bait. Similar to the classical two-hybrid system, the n/cSH2-containing domain of Shp-2 and the protein from the library are fused to the activation domain of Gal4 transcription factor and the DNA-binding domain of the bacterial repressor LexA, respectively. Cotransformed yeasts grow on selective media only if the two proteins interact, allowing survival through transcription of the His reporter gene. In the modified two-hybrid system, we have placed the IRß gene under the control of a L-methionine-repressible promoter on the pLex vector. Expression of IRß in absence of the repressor allows tyrosine phosphorylation on specific sites of the protein encoded by the library. Hence, it allows n/cSH2 Shp-2 to interact with the protein phosphorylated by IRß, resulting in growth of the cotransformed yeast on selective media. B, Northern blot analysis. [{alpha}-32P]Deoxy-CTP-radiolabeled FRS2 cDNA (600 bp) was used as a probe for hybridizing a rat multiple tissue Northern membrane according to the manufacturer’s instructions (Clontech Laboratories, Inc.). After washing with 0.2 x SSC containing 0.1% SDS, the membrane was autoradiographed.

 
Using this system we cotransformed yeast with both the human placenta cDNA library and the vector carrying Shp-2 as a bait. We isolated 375 clones on selective media and then tested their specificity of interaction in the two-hybrid system to discriminate false positives. Hence, three isolated positive clones were selected, and we isolated their cDNA. We then sequenced them, and they all corresponded to the same coding sequence. The longest clone isolated was 1.2 kb in length. Within this we found a sequence of 600 bp that corresponded to the part of a cDNA coding for the C-terminus of a protein in NCBI Blast Databank. We amplified this 600-bp sequence with random priming and labeled it with [{alpha}-32P]deoxy-CTP. This was used as a probe on the rat Multiple Tissue Northern membrane (CLONTECH Laboratories, Inc.). As shown in Fig. 1BGo, we observed that the corresponding messenger RNA is about 6.5 kb. This messenger RNA is present in every tissue tested, but at a higher level in brain, lung, liver, kidney, and testis.

To obtain the full-length coding region of this protein, we used the Marathon-ready cDNA amplification kit (CLONTECH Laboratories, Inc.). We screened a human liver cDNA library and obtained a cDNA corresponding to the complete coding region with approximately 1.5 kb. This cDNA was 99.5% identical to one cloned by Rabin et al. (18) coding for SNT (suc-associated neurotropic factor-induced tyrosine phosphorylated target) and more recently identified by Kouhara et al. as FRS2 (FGF receptor substrate-2) (11). Our cDNA displays 7 different nucleotides of 1524, and in 2 cases it leads to amino acid changes, L175M and S447F. SNT is involved in the Ras-independent nerve growth factor signaling pathway, promoting neuronal differentiation (19). FRS2 has been characterized in fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling, where it links FGFR tyrosine kinase activity to the Ras/MAP kinase pathway, promoting FGF-induced neurite outgrowth (11). However, the fact that we cloned this protein using IR indicates that this protein may also be involved in insulin signaling and act as a substrate for insulin receptors.

FRS2 interacts with Shp-2 in the yeast two-hybrid system
As IRS proteins interact with SH2-containing proteins such as Shp-2 and p85, we tested in our two-hybrid system whether FRS2 would bind to Shp-2 and p85, the regulatory subunit of PI 3-kinase. We subcloned full-length cDNA of FRS2 in pActII vector and coexpressed FRS2 in yeast with p85 or different forms of Shp-2 subcloned in pVJL-IR vector. Next we repressed or induced expression of IR by growth in the presence or absence of L-methionine. Figure 2Go represents the results obtained with a color filter assay. When FRS2 is coexpressed with wild-type (WT) Shp-2, no interaction is observed. This could be explained if Shp-2 catalytic activity can dephosphorylate the necessary tyrosine(s) on FRS2 that functions as a docking site for the SH2 domain of the phosphotyrosine phosphatase. Hence, we used a catalytically inactive form of Shp-2, in which cysteine 459 of the catalytic domain is replaced by a serine, resulting in an inactive enzyme (8). This Shp-2 mutant can interact with FRS2, but only when IRß is expressed (Fig. 2Go). We also tested the n/cSH2-containing part of Shp-2 that does not have the catalytic domain of the phosphatase. Yeast cotransformed with this construct shows blue coloration within 1 h, reflecting interaction with FRS2. This occurs only in presence of IRß, as repression of the IRß expression prevents interaction. We did not detect any association between FRS2 and p85 in the presence of IR as might be expected, as FRS2 does not possess YXXM motifs that are docking sites for PI 3-kinase regulatory subunits. Taken as a whole these results suggest that 1) FRS2 can bind to both a catalytically inactive form of Shp-2 and the n/cSH2 domain of Shp-2 dependent on the presence of IR; and 2) FRS2 does not interact with p85, even in presence of IRß.



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Figure 2. Interaction of FRS2 with p85 and Shp-2 in the yeast two-hybrid system. Yeast colonies coexpressing FRS2 with different proteins were patched on Trp-Leu-selective medium plates. The patches were replicated on filters, and yeast was grown for 48 h at 30 C. The filters were then incubated in presence of X-Gal substrate. The blue color of the colonies due to ß-galactosidase activity reflects the interaction between FRS2 and the different proteins tested. -, No color was observed; +, the blue color level of the colonies; 2+, blue color appeared within 1 h. One representative experiment of three is shown.

 
FRS2 binds to Shp-2 in insulin-treated cells
As we found that FRS2 can bind to Shp-2 using the yeast two-hybrid system only in the presence of IRß, we next wanted to determine whether upon insulin stimulation of PC12/IR cells, Shp-2 could associate with FRS2. We immunoprecipitated FRS2 from PC12/IR cells stimulated or not with insulin (10-6 M) for 5 min. Proteins were then separated by SDS-PAGE and blotted with antibodies to either FRS2 or Shp-2 (Fig. 3AGo). In unstimulated conditions, Shp-2 is poorly associated with FRS2, but after insulin treatment, an increased amount (~35%) of Shp-2 is coimmunoprecipitated with FRS2 (Fig. 3BGo). We conclude that in intact PC12/IR cells, Shp-2 associates with FRS2 in an insulin-dependent fashion.



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Figure 3. A, Insulin induces Shp-2 coimmunoprecipitation with FRS2 in PC12/IR cells. PC12/IR cells were grown in 150-mm dishes. They were starved for 15 h in DMEM supplemented with 0.2% BSA and 0.2% FCS from Biomedia. Cells were then incubated in the presence or absence of 10-6 M insulin for 5 min before lysis for 15 min on dry ice. FRS2 was immunoprecipitated from the lysates using a specific antibody. As a control, nonimmune serum (NI) was added in place of anti-FRS2 antibodies. The proteins were resolved on SDS-PAGE before electrotransfer to polyvinylidene difluoride membranes. Membranes were subsequently immunoblotted with antibodies to FRS2 or Shp-2 and treated with 125I-coupled protein A. B, Quantification of Shp-2 coimmunoprecipitated with FRS2 in PC12/IR cells. The bands of the Western blot corresponding to either Shp-2 or FRS2 were scanned and quantified using NIH Image 1.6. Then, the quantity of Shp-2 was adjusted to FRS2 quantity. The percentage of Shp-2 associated with FRS2 is presented in the schema.

 
FRS2 is phosphorylated in vitro by purified IR
Shp-2 contains two SH2 domains in its N-terminus and a catalytic domain in its C-terminus. Through these SH2 domains Shp-2 interacts with tyrosine-phosphorylated adaptor proteins such as IRS-1. The data from the yeast two-hybrid system suggest that one or both SH2 domains may be involved in the interaction with FRS2. We hypothesized that Shp-2 binding to FRS2 in insulin-treated cells could occur through one or both of the SH2 domains of the phosphatase. In this case, FRS2 should be tyrosine phosphorylated in response to insulin before interacting with the Shp-2 SH2 domain(s). Therefore, we wished to determine whether insulin induces tyrosine phosphorylation of FRS2.

We first tested whether purified IR phosphorylates FRS2 in an in vitro kinase assay. We incubated WGA-IR with or without insulin (10-7 M) for 25 min in the presence of 30 µM ATP. Then WGA-IR was added to increasing amounts of GST or GST-FRS2 in the presence of [{gamma}-32P]ATP. After 30 min, we washed the pellets and analyzed the proteins by SDS-PAGE. The experiment presented in the lower panel of Fig. 4Go illustrates the increasing amounts of GST-FRS2 on the Coomassie blue-stained gel. The upper panel is an autoradiogram showing that WGA-IR previously activated with insulin phosphorylates GST-FRS2, whereas nonactivated WGA-IR does not. The level of phosphorylation increases in parallel with the amount of fusion protein incubated. GST alone was not phosphorylated by the WGA-IR, even after insulin incubation. To conclude, in an in vitro kinase assay, WGA-purified IR phosphorylates FRS2 upon insulin activation, suggesting that FRS2 is probably a direct substrate of IR.



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Figure 4. IR phosphorylates FRS2 in vitro. We incubated increasing amounts of GST-FRS2 (1, 10, and 20 µg) to glutathione-coupled Sepharose beads for 1 h at 4 C. WGA-purified IR was incubated, or not, with (10-7 M) insulin for 30 min and added to the GST-FRS2-containing pellets in the presence of [{gamma}-32P]ATP for 20 min. The pellets were washed, and the proteins were separated under reducing conditions. The gel was stained with Coomassie blue (lower panel) to visualize proteins. The gel was subsequently autoradiographed to reveal phosphorylated proteins. An autoradiogram is presented in the upper panel. One representative experiment of three is shown.

 
FRS2 is tyrosine phosphorylated in insulin-treated cells
Next we wanted to determine whether in insulin-treated cells FRS2 could undergo tyrosine phosphorylation. We stimulated PC12/IR cells with 10-6 M insulin for 5 min and immunoprecipitated FRS2 from the cell lysates. We then resolved the proteins by SDS-PAGE before Western blotting with FRS2 antibody. The membrane was then incubated with 125I-labeled protein A. This revealed that similar amounts of FRS2 were immunoprecipitated from cells treated with or without insulin (Fig. 5Go, lower panel). We then stripped the membrane and reblotted it with antiphosphotyrosine antibodies. As shown in the upper panel of Fig. 5Go, insulin strongly induced tyrosine phosphorylation of FRS2.



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Figure 5. Insulin-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of FRS2 in intact cells. Cells were grown in 150-mm dishes for 24 h, then starved for 15 h as previously described. After stimulation of cells for 5 min in the absence or presence of 10-6 M insulin, cells were lysed and FRS2 immunoprecipitated. A control precipitation using nonimmune serum (NI) instead of FRS2 antibodies was also performed. Precipitated proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE, transferred to a polyvinylidene difluoride membrane, and immunoblotted with antibodies to FRS2. The membrane was then stripped by washing four times in 0.2 M glycine (pH 2.5), 0.1% SDS, and 1% Tween-20. The membrane was blocked with 5% BSA, then incubated again with 125I-coupled protein A to verify that no residual antibodies remained after stripping. Finally, we incubated the membrane with antibodies to phosphotyrosine and revealed the proteins with enhanced chemiluminescence (upper panel).

 

    Discussion
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Shp-2 has been implicated in playing a positive role in growth factor-stimulated mitogenic signaling. Disruption of both alleles of the Shp-2 gene prevents proper embryonic development, leading to lethality (6, 20). A catalytic inactive mutant of Shp-2 acts as a dominant negative molecule in insulin-induced mitogenesis, probably by blocking activation of MAP kinases and gene expression (8, 9). In signaling by growth factors such as EGF, Shp-2 acts as an adaptor protein, linking Grb2 and the nucleotide exchange factor Sos to Ras, but in insulin signaling it is not clear whether such a mechanism is occurring. We wished to more clearly define the roles of Shp-2 in cells and the mechanism by which it acts. We were particularly interested in finding new molecules interacting with Shp-2 and determining the function of Shp-2 in insulin signaling. To this end we used a modified two-hybrid system for screening a human placenta cDNA library to determine novel substrates and/or partners of Shp-2. We isolated FRS2 as a potential Shp-2-associated protein. We found that the n/cSH2 domain-containing part of Shp-2 interacted more strongly with FRS2 than a catalytically inactive mutant of Shp-2. We believe that this may be due to a different conformation of Shp-2, as Pluskey et al. (21) proposed that the C-terminal part of the protein is folded over the SH2 domain-containing part of the phosphatase. This prevents association with phosphotyrosines (21). This view has been supported by the crystallographic structure study (22). In our case, removing this C-terminal tail would thereby increase the ability of the SH2 domains to bind phosphotyrosines. We did not detect interaction between FRS2 and the p85 regulatory subunit of PI 3-kinase. It has been described that p85 binds through its SH2 domains to YXXM motifs found in IRS proteins (23). No such motifs are found in FRS2, and this may explain the lack of interaction.

We tested whether in the absence of IR expression the interactions detected in the yeast two-hybrid system between FRS2 and other proteins occur. We found that FRS2 interacts with Shp-2 in a phosphotyrosine-dependent manner, as the repression of IR by L-methionine abolishes all interactions observed when IR is expressed. Those experiments in the yeast two-hybrid system show that IR should phosphorylate FRS2, allowing the interaction with Shp-2.

Using Northern blotting we found that FRS2 appears to be ubiquitously expressed, but is most abundant in brain, lung, liver, kidney, and testis. As Shp-2 is involved in insulin-induced Ras activation (24) and has been described as a positive effector in insulin signaling (9), we wanted to determine whether FRS2 associates Shp-2 in insulin-treated cells. We found that in unstimulated PC12/IR cells, a small fraction of FRS2 is bound to Shp-2. Upon insulin stimulation, an increased amount of Shp-2 associates with FRS2. FRS2 contains a consensus myristylation sequence in its amino-terminus, which lies in a MGXXXS/T motif (25). This myristylated head targets FRS2 to the membrane and is essential for membrane localization, tyrosine phosphorylation, Grb2/Sos recruitment, and MAP kinase activation in response to FGF (11). In the light of our findings, Shp-2 could also be recruited to the membrane through its interaction with FRS2 upon insulin treatment of cells.

In PDGF signaling, the PDGF receptor binds and phosphorylates Shp-2, which then acts as an adaptor linking Grb2/Sos complex to activation of the Ras/MAP kinase pathway. In contrast, Shp-2 is not phosphorylated in response to insulin, and thus, the mechanism by which Shp-2 exerts an effect in insulin signaling remains unclear. We have attempted to detect alterations in Grb2 association with FRS2 in insulin-treated cells. However, we found no change in the Grb2 protein content associated in FRS2 immunoprecipitates from insulin-treated cells (data not shown). FRS2 contains docking sites for Grb2 at Tyr196, Tyr306, Tyr349, and Tyr392 (11), and Shp-2 contains also potential binding sites at Tyr279, Tyr304, and Tyr356 for the Grb2 SH2 domain (26). Considering these data, we conclude that in insulin-treated cells Grb2 is not recruited by the FRS2/Shp-2 complex, as it does not associate with either FRS2 or Shp-2 under these conditions.

FRS2 contains a region that is 29% homologous to the IRS-1 PTB domain. In contrast to genuine IRS molecules, FRS2 does not contain a pleckstrin homology (PH) domain. This domain is implicated in targeting IRSs to the membrane, probably by binding phospholipids. IRS-1 lacking its PH domain is no longer able to undergo in vivo tyrosine phosphorylation in response to insulin stimulation (27). FRS2 does not possess a PH domain, but its myristylated tail may target it to the membrane in a manner analogous to the PH domains of other IRSs. In addition, FRS2 could interact through its PTB domain with the IR before phosphorylation.

We examined whether FRS2 could be a direct substrate for the tyrosine kinase of the insulin receptor. We found in an in vitro kinase assay that GST-FRS2 could be phosphorylated by WGA-purified IR. Furthermore, we observed that in intact cells FRS2 is tyrosine phosphorylated after treatment with insulin. It should be mentioned that we cannot exclude the possibility that upon insulin treatment of cells, another kinase is activated and phosphorylates FRS2. However, based on our in vitro association and phosphorylation data we favor the idea that FRS2 is a direct substrate of IR.

Taking these results as a whole, we suggest that FRS2 may act as an adaptor molecule in insulin-treated cells. After phosphorylation by IR, FRS2 would recruit the SH2-containing effector(s), such as the phosphotyrosine phosphatase Shp-2. IRS-1 is phosphorylated upon insulin treatment by interacting with the IR ß-subunit. The IRS-1 PTB domain binds to the juxtamembrane tyrosine 960, whereas the IRS-1 PH domain links to membrane phospholipids (28). If FRS2 undergoes tyrosine phosphorylation by IR in intact cells, we hypothesize that its myristyl tail may target it to the membrane while its PTB domain interacts with the NPXY motif comprising tyrosine 960.

It was recently proposed that FRS2 could compete with Shc for binding to the TrkA receptor, as both proteins bind to the same phosphotyrosine of the receptor (29). Hence, FRS2 could also compete with other IRS molecules or adaptor proteins such as Shc or Gab-1.

It has been suggested that Shp-2 could play dual roles in cells. Kim et al. (30) demonstrated that the gp130 subunit of the IL-6 receptor can bind Shp-2, which then undergoes tyrosine phosphorylation. When the gp130-binding sites on Shp-2 are mutated, phosphorylation of the receptor, the associated JAK activity, and the DNA-binding activity of STAT1 and STAT3 are maintained at elevated levels for a prolonged time compared with WT gp130. This suggests that Shp-2 could play a negative role by dephosphorylating substrates and attenuating cytokine signaling. Myers and al. (31) also showed that insulin-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of IRS-1 on residues 1172 and 1222 leads to binding and subsequent activation of Shp-2. When they mutated both tyrosines, IRS-1 became more heavily phosphorylated on tyrosine, and more PI 3-kinase was associated with IRS-1, leading to an increase in protein synthesis. However, they did not find changes in the proliferative behavior of cells expressing the IRS-1 mutant compared with WT-IRS-1. Those data demonstrate that Shp-2 could down-regulate, at least in this cellular context, the metabolic effect of insulin transduced through PI 3-kinase. In contrast to these examples of negative regulation of signaling by Shp-2, numerous studies using deficient Shp-2 cell lines or injection of inhibitory antibodies have demonstrated the positive role of Shp-2 in growth factor signaling. Recently, Takada et al. showed that Shp-2 is recruited to the membrane by the SHPS (SHP substrate) in response to insulin (32). Shp-2 binds the Y449 and Y473 of SHPS, is activated, and potentiates insulin-induced MAP kinase activation, suggesting a positive role for Shp-2 in insulin signaling.

Whether FRS2 is playing overall a positive or a negative role in insulin signaling remains to be determined. After FRS2 is tyrosine phosphorylated by the IR, Shp-2 moves to the membrane and binds FRS2. This is thought to activate the phosphatase activity, possibly leading to MAP kinase activation and enhancement of gene expression. Alternatively, Shp-2 could dephosphorylate FRS2 or the receptor, and by doing so, down-regulate signaling by the tyrosine kinase receptor.

Finally, we can envision that cross-talk between signaling by insulin and FGF could impact on FRS2. The skin disorder acanthosis nigricans is often found in disease states associated with extreme insulin resistance. It is intriguing to note that acanthosis nigricans is also observed in Crouzon syndrome, which is known to be due to mutations of FGFR3 (33, 34). Therefore, the issue of whether for this skin disorder FRS2 could be the point on which insulin receptor and FGF receptor signals converge represents a potentially promising area of investigation.

To summarize we have shown that FRS2 may act as a direct substrate of the activated IR. Furthermore, after its phosphorylation, FRS2 is able to recruit Shp-2 in intact cells in response to insulin, probably through interaction with the SH2 domains of Shp-2. Therefore we propose a role for FRS2 as a newly identified IRS.


    Acknowledgments
 
We thank J. Schlessinger and Y. R. Hadari for providing Western blotting FRS2 antibodies. We also thank S. Tartare-Deckert for advice, and S. Giorgetti-Peraldi, P. Peraldi, and J. Rochford for critical reading of the manuscript.


    Footnotes
 
1 This work was supported in part by INSERM, Association pour la Recherche sur le Cancer, La Ligue Nationale Contre le Cancer, Université de Nice Sophia-Antipolis, and Groupe LIPHA-Merck & Co., Inc. (Lyon, France). Back

Received July 13, 1999.


    References
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 

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