Active Rho kinase (ROK-α) associates with insulin receptor substrate-1 and inhibits insulin signaling in vascular smooth muscle cells

Abstract

Recent studies from our laboratory have shown that insulin stimulates myosin-bound phosphatase (MBP) in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) by decreasing site-specific phosphorylation of the myosin-bound subunit (MBS) of MBP via nitric oxide/cGMP-mediated Rho/Rho kinase inactivation. Here we tested potential interactions between Rho kinase and insulin signaling pathways. In control VSMCs, insulin inactivates ROK-α, the major Rho kinase isoform in VSMCs, and inhibits thrombin-induced increase in ROK-α association with the insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1). Hypertension (in spontaneous hypertensive rats) or expression of an active RhoAV14 up-regulates Rho kinase activity and increases ROK-α/IRS-1 association resulting in IRS-1 serine phosphorylation that leads to inhibition of both insulin-induced IRS-1 tyrosine phosphorylation and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-kinase) activation. In contrast, expression of dominant negative RhoA or cGMP-dependent protein kinase type Iα inactivates Rho kinase, abolishes ROK-α/IRS-1 association, and potentiates insulin-induced tyrosine phosphorylation and PI3-kinase activation leading to decreased MBSTT695 phosphorylation and decreased MBP inhibition. Collectively, these results suggest a novel function for ROK-α in insulin signal transduction at the level of IRS-1 and potential cross-talk between cGMP-dependent protein kinase type Iα, Rho/Rho kinase signaling, and insulin signaling at the level of IRS-1/PI3-kinase.