G Protein-Coupled Receptor Kinase-6 Interacts with Activator of G Protein Signaling-3 To Regulate CXCR2-Mediated Cellular Functions

The IL-8 (CXCL8) receptors CXCR1 and CXCR2 couple to G alpha(i) to induce leukocyte recruitment and activation at sites of inflammation. We recently showed that CXCR1 couples predominantly to the G protein-coupled receptor kinase (GRK)2, whereas CXCR2 interacts with GRK6 to regulate cellular responses. In addition to G protein-coupled receptors, GRKs displayed a more diverse protein/protein interaction in cells. In this study, we sought to identify GRK6 binding partner(s) that may influence CXCL8 activities, using RBL-2H3 cells stably expressing CXCR1 (RBL-CXCR1) or CXCR2 (RBL-CXCR2), as well as human and murine neutrophils. Our data demonstrated that, upon CXCR2 activation, GRK6 interacts with activator of G protein signaling (AGS) 3 and G alpha(i2) to form a GRK6/AGS3/G alpha(i2) complex. This complex is time dependent and peaked at 2-3 min postactivation. GTP gamma S pretreatment blocked GRK6/AGS3/G alpha(i2) formation, suggesting that this assembly depends on G protein activation. Surprisingly, CXCR2 activation induced AGS3 phosphorylation in a PKC-dependent, but GRK6-independent, fashion. Overexpression of AGS3 in RBL-CXCR2 significantly inhibited CXCL8-induced Ca2+ mobilization, phosphoinositide hydrolysis, and chemotaxis. In contrast, short hairpin RNA inhibition of AGS3 enhanced CXCL8-induced Ca2+ mobilization, receptor resistance to desensitization, and recycling to the cell surface, with no effect on receptor internalization. Interestingly, RBL-CXCR2-AGS3 2/2 cells displayed a significant increase in CXCR2 expression on the cell surface but decreased ERK1/2 and P38 MAPK activation. Taken together, these results indicate that GRK6 complexes with AGS3-G alpha(i2) to regulate CXCR2-mediated leukocyte functions at different levels, including downstream effector activation, receptor trafficking, and expression at the cell membrane.