Identification of KRAP-expressing cells and the functional relevance of KRAP to the subcellular localization of IP3R in the stomach and kidney

KRAS-induced actin-interacting protein (KRAP), originally identified as one of the deregulated genes expressed in colorectal cancer, participates under physiological conditions in the regulation of systemic energy homeostasis and of the exocrine system. We have recently found that KRAP is a molecule associated with inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP(3)R) and is critical for the proper subcellular localization of IP(3)R in the liver and the pancreas. However, the expression of KRAP and its precise function in other tissues remain elusive. In this study, we aimed to identify the KRAP-expressing cells in mouse stomach and kidneys and to examine the relevance of KRAP expression in the regulation of IP(3)R localization in these tissues. In the stomach, double immunohistochemical staining for KRAP and IP(3)R demonstrated that KRAP was expressed along with the apical regions in the mucous cells and the chief cells, and IP(3)R3 was dominantly co-localized with KRAP in these cells. Furthermore, IP(3)R2 was also co-localized with IP(3)R3 in the chief cells. It is of note that the proper localization of IP(3)R3 and IP(3)R2 in the chief cells and of IP(3)R3 in the mucous cells were significantly abrogated in KRAP-deficient mice. In the kidneys, KRAP was expressed in both the apical and the basal regions of the proximal tubular cells. Intriguingly, KRAP deficiency abrogated the localization of IP(3)R1 in the proximal tubular cells. Finally, co-immunoprecipitation study in the stomachs and the kidneys validated the physical association of KRAP with IP(3)Rs. These findings demonstrate that KRAP physically associates with IP(3)Rs and regulates the proper localization of IP(3)Rs in the mucous cells and the chief cells of the stomach and in the proximal tubular cells of the kidneys.