Abstract
KRP (kinase-related protein), also known as telokin, has been proposed to inhibit smooth muscle contractility by inhibiting the phosphorylation of the rMLC (regulatory myosin light chain) by the Ca2+-activated MLCK (myosin light chain kinase). Using the phosphatase inhibitor microcystin, we show in the present study that KRP also inhibits Ca2+-independent rMLC phosphorylation and smooth muscle contraction mediated by novel Ca2+-independent rMLC kinases. Incubating KRP-depleted Triton-skinned taenia coli with microcystin at pCa>8 induced a slow contraction reaching 90% of maximal force (Fmax) at pCa 4.5 after approximately 25 min. Loading the fibres with KRP significantly slowed down the force development, i.e. the time to reach 50% of Fmax was increased from 8 min to 35 min. KRP similarly inhibited rMLC phosphorylation of HMM (heavy meromyosin) in vitro by MLCK or by the constitutively active MLCK fragment (61K-MLCK) lacking the myosin-docking KRP domain. A C-terminally truncated KRP defective in myosin binding inhibited neither force nor HMM phosphorylation. Phosphorylated KRP inhibited the rMLC phosphorylation of HMM in vitro and Ca2+-insensitive contractions in fibres similar to unphosphorylated KRP, whereby the phosphorylation state of KRP was not altered in the fibres. We conclude that (i) KRP inhibits not only MLCK-induced contractions, but also those elicited by Ca2+-independent rMLC kinases; (ii) phosphorylation of KRP does not modulate this effect; (iii) binding of KRP to myosin is essential for this inhibition; and (iv) KRP inhibition of rMLC phosphorylation is most probably due to the shielding of the phosphorylation site on the rMLC.