scholarly journals Differential regulation of the Menkes and Wilson disease copper transporters by hormones: an integrated model of metal transport in the placenta

2007 ◽  
Vol 402 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Des R. Richardson ◽  
Yohan Suryo rahmanto

Copper (Cu) plays a critical role in the developing foetus, but virtually nothing is known concerning the regulation of its uptake and metabolism in the placenta. In this issue of the Biochemical Journal, Hardman and colleagues, using a model of placental trophoblasts in culture, identify differential hormonal regulation of two copper-transporting ATPases; namely, those responsible for Menkes disease (ATP7A; MNK) and Wilson disease (ATP7B; WND). Insulin and oestrogen, which are essential during gestation, up-regulate MNK and this leads to trafficking of the MNK protein from the Golgi to the basolateral membrane, resulting in increased Cu efflux. At the same time, insulin decreased WND levels, and this leads to intracellular sequestration of the protein to a perinuclear region that reduces apical Cu release. As such, this results in a concerted flux of Cu from the basolateral surface of the trophoblast that would potentially be used by the developing foetus. An integrated model of vectorized Cu transport is proposed, which involves co-ordinated expression of transporters, organelle interactions and probable protein–protein interactions. The findings have wider implications for considering general models of intracellular metal transport.

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 430-448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khalid Bashir Dar ◽  
Aashiq Hussain Bhat ◽  
Shajrul Amin ◽  
Syed Anjum ◽  
Bilal Ahmad Reshi ◽  
...  

Protein-Protein Interactions (PPIs) drive major signalling cascades and play critical role in cell proliferation, apoptosis, angiogenesis and trafficking. Deregulated PPIs are implicated in multiple malignancies and represent the critical targets for treating cancer. Herein, we discuss the key protein-protein interacting domains implicated in cancer notably PDZ, SH2, SH3, LIM, PTB, SAM and PH. These domains are present in numerous enzymes/kinases, growth factors, transcription factors, adaptor proteins, receptors and scaffolding proteins and thus represent essential sites for targeting cancer. This review explores the candidature of various proteins involved in cellular trafficking (small GTPases, molecular motors, matrix-degrading enzymes, integrin), transcription (p53, cMyc), signalling (membrane receptor proteins), angiogenesis (VEGFs) and apoptosis (BCL-2family), which could possibly serve as targets for developing effective anti-cancer regimen. Interactions between Ras/Raf; X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP)/second mitochondria-derived activator of caspases (Smac/DIABLO); Frizzled (FRZ)/Dishevelled (DVL) protein; beta-catenin/T Cell Factor (TCF) have also been studied as prospective anticancer targets. Efficacy of diverse molecules/ drugs targeting such PPIs although evaluated in various animal models/cell lines, there is an essential need for human-based clinical trials. Therapeutic strategies like the use of biologicals, high throughput screening (HTS) and fragment-based technology could play an imperative role in designing cancer therapeutics. Moreover, bioinformatic/computational strategies based on genome sequence, protein sequence/structure and domain data could serve as competent tools for predicting PPIs. Exploring hot spots in proteomic networks represents another approach for developing targetspecific therapeutics. Overall, this review lays emphasis on a productive amalgamation of proteomics, genomics, biochemistry, and molecular dynamics for successful treatment of cancer.


2012 ◽  
Vol 23 (19) ◽  
pp. 3911-3922 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongqiang Wang ◽  
Xinlei Zhang ◽  
Hong Zhang ◽  
Yi Lu ◽  
Haolong Huang ◽  
...  

The highly abundant α-helical coiled-coil motif not only mediates crucial protein–protein interactions in the cell but is also an attractive scaffold in synthetic biology and material science and a potential target for disease intervention. Therefore a systematic understanding of the coiled-coil interactions (CCIs) at the organismal level would help unravel the full spectrum of the biological function of this interaction motif and facilitate its application in therapeutics. We report the first identified genome-wide CCI network in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which consists of 3495 pair-wise interactions among 598 predicted coiled-coil regions. Computational analysis revealed that the CCI network is specifically and functionally organized and extensively involved in the organization of cell machinery. We further show that CCIs play a critical role in the assembly of the kinetochore, and disruption of the CCI network leads to defects in kinetochore assembly and cell division. The CCI network identified in this study is a valuable resource for systematic characterization of coiled coils in the shaping and regulation of a host of cellular machineries and provides a basis for the utilization of coiled coils as domain-based probes for network perturbation and pharmacological applications.


2002 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 1569-1578 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Granville ◽  
Roberta A. Gottlieb

The past 5 years has seen an intense surge in research devoted toward understanding the critical role of mitochondria in the regulation of cell death. Apoptosis can be initiated by a wide array of stimuli, inducing multiple signaling pathways that, for the most part, converge at the mitochondrion. Although classically considered the powerhouses of the cell, it is now understood that mitochondria are also “gatekeepers” that ultimately determine the fate of the cell. The mitochondrial decision as to whether a cell lives or dies is complex, involving protein-protein interactions, ionic changes, reactive oxygen species, and other mechanisms that require further elucidation. Once the death process is initiated, mitochondria undergo conformational changes, resulting in the release of cytochrome c (cyt c), caspases, endonucleases, and other factors leading to the onset and execution of apoptosis. The present review attempts to outline the complex milieu of events regulating the mitochondrial commitment to and processes involved in the implementation of the executioner phase of apoptotic cell death.


Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 986
Author(s):  
Monique D. Appelman ◽  
Marion J.D. Robin ◽  
Esther W.M. Vogels ◽  
Christie Wolzak ◽  
Winnie G. Vos ◽  
...  

The sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP) is expressed at the basolateral membrane of hepatocytes, where it mediates the uptake of conjugated bile acids and forms the hepatocyte entry receptor for the hepatitis B and D virus. Here, we aimed to identify novel protein–protein interactions that could play a role in the regulation of NTCP. To this end, NTCP was precipitated from HA-tagged hNTCP-expressing HepG2 cells, and chloride channel CLIC-like 1 (CLCC1) and stomatin were identified as interacting proteins by mass spectrometry. Interaction was confirmed by co-immunoprecipitation. NTCP, CLCC1 and stomatin were found at the plasma membrane in lipid rafts, as demonstrated by a combination of immunofluorescence, cell surface biotinylation and isolation of detergent-resistant membranes. Neither CLCC1 overexpression nor its knockdown had an effect on NTCP function. However, both stomatin overexpression and knockdown increased NTCP-mediated taurocholate uptake while NTCP abundance at the plasma membrane was only increased in stomatin depleted cells. These findings identify stomatin as an interactor of NTCP and show that the interaction modulates bile salt transport.


Blood ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 118 (13) ◽  
pp. e62-e73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louisa Dowal ◽  
Wei Yang ◽  
Michael R. Freeman ◽  
Hanno Steen ◽  
Robert Flaumenhaft

Abstract Protein palmitoylation is a dynamic process that regulates membrane targeting of proteins and protein-protein interactions. We have previously demonstrated a critical role for protein palmitoylation in platelet activation and have identified palmitoylation machinery in platelets. Using a novel proteomic approach, Palmitoyl Protein Identification and Site Characterization, we have begun to characterize the human platelet palmitoylome. Palmitoylated proteins were enriched from membranes isolated from resting platelets using acyl-biotinyl exchange chemistry, followed by identification using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. This global analysis identified > 1300 proteins, of which 215 met criteria for significance and represent the platelet palmitoylome. This collection includes 51 known palmitoylated proteins, 61 putative palmitoylated proteins identified in other palmitoylation-specific proteomic studies, and 103 new putative palmitoylated proteins. Of these candidates, we chose to validate the palmitoylation of triggering receptors expressed on myeloid cell (TREM)–like transcript-1 (TLT-1) as its expression is restricted to platelets and megakaryocytes. We determined that TLT-1 is a palmitoylated protein using metabolic labeling with [3H]palmitate and identified the site of TLT-1 palmitoylation as cysteine 196. The discovery of new platelet palmitoyl protein candidates will provide a resource for subsequent investigations to validate the palmitoylation of these proteins and to determine the role palmitoylation plays in their function.


1995 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 5214-5225 ◽  
Author(s):  
A D Catling ◽  
H J Schaeffer ◽  
C W Reuter ◽  
G R Reddy ◽  
M J Weber

Mammalian MEK1 and MEK2 contain a proline-rich (PR) sequence that is absent both from the yeast homologs Ste7 and Byr1 and from a recently cloned activator of the JNK/stress-activated protein kinases, SEK1/MKK4. Since this PR sequence occurs in MEKs that are regulated by Raf family enzymes but is missing from MEKs and SEKs activated independently of Raf, we sought to investigate the role of this sequence in MEK1 and MEK2 regulation and function. Deletion of the PR sequence from MEK1 blocked the ability of MEK1 to associate with members of the Raf family and markedly attenuated activation of the protein in vivo following growth factor stimulation. In addition, this sequence was necessary for efficient activation of MEK1 in vitro by B-Raf but dispensable for activation by a novel MEK1 activator which we have previously detected in fractionated fibroblast extracts. Furthermore, we found that a phosphorylation site within the PR sequence of MEK1 was required for sustained MEK1 activity in response to serum stimulation of quiescent fibroblasts. Consistent with this observation, we observed that MEK2, which lacks a phosphorylation site at the corresponding position, was activated only transiently following serum stimulation. Finally, we found that deletion of the PR sequence from a constitutively activated MEK1 mutant rendered the protein nontransforming in Rat1 fibroblasts. These observations indicate a critical role for the PR sequence in directing specific protein-protein interactions important for the activation, inactivation, and downstream functioning of the MEKs.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oleksandr Narykov ◽  
Nathan Johnson ◽  
Dmitry Korkin

AbstractThe critical role of alternative splicing (AS) in cell functioning has recently become apparent, whether in studying tissue-or cell-specific regulation, or understanding molecular mechanisms governing a complex disorder. Studying the rewiring, or edgetic, effects of alternatively spliced isoforms on protein interactome can provide system-wide insights into these questions. Unfortunately, high-throughput experiments for such studies are expensive and time-consuming, hence the need to develop an in-silico approach. Here, we formulated the problem of characterization the edgetic effects of AS on protein-protein interactions (PPIs) as a binary classification problem and introduced a first computational approach to solve it. We first developed a supervised feature-based classifier that benefited from the traditional features describing a PPI, the problem-specific features that characterized the difference between the reference and alternative isoforms, and a novel domain interaction potential that allowed pinpointing the domains employed during a specific PPI. We then expanded this approach by including a large set of unlabeled interactomics data and developing a semi-supervised learning method. Our method called AS-IN (Alternatively Splicing INteraction prediction) Tool was compared with the state-of-the-art PPI prediction tools and showed a superior performance, achieving 0.92 in precision and recall. We demonstrated the utility of AS-IN Tool by applying it to the transcriptomic data obtained from the brain and liver tissues of a healthy mouse and western diet fed mouse that developed type two diabetes. We showed that the edgetic effects of differentially expressed transcripts associated with the disease condition are system-wide and unlikely to be detected by looking only at the gene-specific expression levels.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 442 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Tanna ◽  
Louisa Goss ◽  
Calvin Ludwig ◽  
Pei-Wen Chen

Arf•GTPase-activating proteins (Arf•GAPs) control the activity of ADP-ribosylation factors (Arfs) by inducing GTP hydrolysis and participate in a diverse array of cellular functions both through mechanisms that are dependent on and independent of their Arf•GAP activity. A number of these functions hinge on the remodeling of actin filaments. Accordingly, some of the effects exerted by Arf•GAPs involve proteins known to engage in regulation of the actin dynamics and architecture, such as Rho family proteins and nonmuscle myosin 2. Circular dorsal ruffles (CDRs), podosomes, invadopodia, lamellipodia, stress fibers and focal adhesions are among the actin-based structures regulated by Arf•GAPs. Arf•GAPs are thus important actors in broad functions like adhesion and motility, as well as the specialized functions of bone resorption, neurite outgrowth, and pathogen internalization by immune cells. Arf•GAPs, with their multiple protein-protein interactions, membrane-binding domains and sites for post-translational modification, are good candidates for linking the changes in actin to the membrane. The findings discussed depict a family of proteins with a critical role in regulating actin dynamics to enable proper cell function.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Alquezar ◽  
Shruti Arya ◽  
Aimee W. Kao

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) on tau have long been recognized as affecting protein function and contributing to neurodegeneration. The explosion of information on potential and observed PTMs on tau provides an opportunity to better understand these modifications in the context of tau homeostasis, which becomes perturbed with aging and disease. Prevailing views regard tau as a protein that undergoes abnormal phosphorylation prior to its accumulation into the toxic aggregates implicated in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other tauopathies. However, the phosphorylation of tau may, in fact, represent part of the normal but interrupted function and catabolism of the protein. In addition to phosphorylation, tau undergoes another forms of post-translational modification including (but not limited to), acetylation, ubiquitination, glycation, glycosylation, SUMOylation, methylation, oxidation, and nitration. A holistic appreciation of how these PTMs regulate tau during health and are potentially hijacked in disease remains elusive. Recent studies have reinforced the idea that PTMs play a critical role in tau localization, protein-protein interactions, maintenance of levels, and modifying aggregate structure. These studies also provide tantalizing clues into the possibility that neurons actively choose how tau is post-translationally modified, in potentially competitive and combinatorial ways, to achieve broad, cellular programs commensurate with the distinctive environmental conditions found during development, aging, stress, and disease. Here, we review tau PTMs and describe what is currently known about their functional impacts. In addition, we classify these PTMs from the perspectives of protein localization, electrostatics, and stability, which all contribute to normal tau function and homeostasis. Finally, we assess the potential impact of tau PTMs on tau solubility and aggregation. Tau occupies an undoubtedly important position in the biology of neurodegenerative diseases. This review aims to provide an integrated perspective of how post-translational modifications actively, purposefully, and dynamically remodel tau function, clearance, and aggregation. In doing so, we hope to enable a more comprehensive understanding of tau PTMs that will positively impact future studies.


2004 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gang Liu ◽  
Guang-Xiu Lu ◽  
Xiao-Wei Xing

Abstract Beginning from a mouse EST (GenBank accession No. BE644537) which was significantly up-regulated in cryptorchidism and represented a novel gene, we cloned a new gene (GenBank accession No. AY138810) which is related to apoptosis in human spermatogenic cells by means of GeneScan program and PCR technology. The gene whose full cDNA length is 1875 bp containing 8 exons and 7 introns is located in human chromosome 11q13.3. Its protein containing 316 amino acid residues is a new member of HSP40 protein family because the sequence contains the highly conserved J domain which is present in all DnaJ-like proteins and is considered to have a critical role in DnaJ-DnaK protein-protein interactions. TSARG6 protein displays a 45% identity in a 348-amino acid overlap with DJB5_HUMAN protein. The result of RT-PCR and Northern blot analysis showed that TSARG6 is specifically expressed in adult testis and the transcript is 1.8 kb. Based upon all these observations, it is considered that we cloned a new gene which probably inhibited human testis spermatogenesis apoptosis.


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