Abstract
Inostamycin, a novel microbial secondary metabolite, inhibited [3H]inositol and 32P1 incorporation into phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns) induced by epidermal growth factor (EGF) in cultured A431 cells, the IC50 being 0.5μg/ml, without inhibiting macromolecular synthesis. The drug inhibited cellular inositol phosphate formation only when it was added at the same time as labeled inositol. It was found to inhibit in vitro CDP-DG: inositol transferase activity of the A431 cell membrane, the IC50 being about 0.02μg/ml. It did not inhibit tyrosine kinase, Ptdlns phospholipase C, or Ptdlns kinase. Therefore, inhibition of Ptdlns turnover by inostamycin must be due to the inhibition of CDP-DG: inositol transferase. Thus, inostamycin is a novel inhibitor of CDP-DG: inositol transferase.
