Depletion of lysophosphatidic acid triggers a loss of oriented detyrosinated microtubules in motile fibroblasts

We reported earlier that isolated plasma membranes trigger a number of responses comprising contact inhibition of motility, including loss of oriented detyrosinated microtubules (Glu MTs) from the lamella of motile fibroblasts. In this study, we show that the membranes trigger this loss of Glu MTs, not by binding to cells, but by removing an essential component from the medium necessary to maintain oriented Glu MTs. Preincubation of membranes with medium containing serum followed by removal of the membranes by sedimentation rendered the membrane-treated medium capable of triggering the loss of oriented Glu MTs. Membrane activity was inhibited by high concentrations of serum and removal of serum from medium triggered the loss of oriented Glu MTs similar to that triggered by membranes. These results suggest that the membranes trigger the loss of Glu MTs by inactivating factors in serum that are required for the maintenance of oriented Glu MTs. By fractionating serum, we have identified lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) as the principal serum factor that is responsible for supporting oriented Glu MTs. The activity of LPA to maintain oriented Glu MTs upon serum withdrawal was half maximal at 100 nM and no activity was observed with structurally related phospholipids. Serum LPA levels were sufficient to account for the ability of serum to support oriented Glu MTs. Enzymatic degradation of serum LPA strongly reduced the ability of serum to support oriented Glu MTs. That membranes degrade LPA was shown by the ability of membranes to block LPA's ability to maintain oriented Glu MTs, and by direct measurement of the loss of radiolabeled LPA after incubation with membranes in vitro. These results show that isolated plasma membranes trigger the loss of Glu MTs from the lamella of motile cells by degrading serum LPA. Coupled with earlier results showing that membranes trigger a number of contact inhibition responses, our data suggest a new model for contact inhibition of motility in which local degradation of LPA and/or interference with LPA-stimulated signalling pathways initiates a contact inhibition response in colliding cells.