Increase in alkaline phosphatase activity in calvaria cells cultured with diphosphonates

1. Dichloromethanediphosphonate and to a lesser degree 1-hydroxyethane-1,1-diphosphonate, two compounds characterized by a P-C-P bond, increased the alkaline phosphatase activity of cultured rat calvaria cells up to 30 times in a dose-dependent fashion. 2. Both diphosphonates also slightly inhibited the protein synthesis in these cells. 3. Thymidine, an inhibitor of cell division, did not inhibit the induction of the enzyme, indicating that the increase in enzyme activity was not due to the formation of a specific population of cells with high alkaline phosphatase activity. 4. The effect on alkaline phosphatase was suppressed by the addition of cycloheximide, an inhibitor of protein synthesis. 5. After subculturing the stimulated cells in medium without diphosphonates, the enzyme activity fell almost to the control value. 6. Bovine parathyrin diminished the enzyme activity of the control cells and the cells treated with dichloromethanediphosphonate; however, at high concentration the effect of parathyrin was greater on the diphosphonate-treated cells than on the control cells. 7. The electrophoretic behaviour, heat inactivation, inhibition by bromotetramisole or by phenylalanine, and the Km value of the induced enzyme were identical with that of the control enzyme.