Interleukin-1beta, Src- and Non-Src Tyrosine Kinases, and Nitric Oxide Synthase Induction in Rat Aorta in Vitro

We studied the potential roles for endogenous interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) and for several signaling pathways in the spontaneous induction in vitro of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in endothelium-denuded rat aorta rings. Added IL-1beta augmented, whereas the IL-1beta receptor antagonist IL-1ra blocked, spontaneous iNOS induction. Furthermore, increases in IL-1beta mRNA preceded those of iNOS mRNA. Mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase and phosphatidyl inositol 3' kinase inhibition did not block iNOS induction, whereas nuclear factor kappaB inhibition did. The sarcoma virus tyrosine kinase (Src) family-selective inhibitor 4-amino-5(4-methylphenyl)-7-(t-butyl)pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine (PP1) blocked the upregulation of IL-1beta mRNA and the subsequent induction of iNOS but not the induction of iNOS stimulated by exogenously added IL-1beta. In contrast, the non-Src inhibitors TP 47/AG 213 and genistein and the tyrosine phosphatase inhibitor vanadate did not affect the spontaneous upregulation of IL-1beta mRNA but blocked both the IL-1beta-mediated and spontaneous induction of iNOS. We conclude that 1) the upregulation of tissue IL-1beta, via a signaling pathway involving a Src family kinase, plays a key role in rat vascular iNOS induction and 2) non-Src tyrosine kinases play roles downstream from IL-1beta for iNOS induction.