scholarly journals Fortilin binds Ca2+ and blocks Ca2+-dependent apoptosis in vivo

2007 ◽  
Vol 408 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Potchanapond Graidist ◽  
Michio Yazawa ◽  
Moltira Tonganunt ◽  
Akiko Nakatomi ◽  
Curtis Chun-Jen Lin ◽  
...  

Fortilin, a 172-amino-acid polypeptide present both in the cytosol and nucleus, possesses potent anti-apoptotic activity. Although fortilin is known to bind Ca2+, the biochemistry and biological significance of such an interaction remains unknown. In the present study we report that fortilin must bind Ca2+ in order to protect cells against Ca2+-dependent apoptosis. Using a standard Ca2+-overlay assay, we first validated that full-length fortilin binds Ca2+ and showed that the N-terminus (amino acids 1–72) is required for its Ca2+-binding. We then used flow dialysis and CD spectropolarimetry assays to demonstrate that fortilin binds Ca2+ with a dissociation constant (Kd) of approx. 10 μM and that the binding of fortilin to Ca2+ induces a significant change in the secondary structure of fortilin. In order to evaluate the impact of the binding of fortilin to Ca2+in vivo, we measured intracellular Ca2+ levels upon thapsigargin challenge and found that the lack of fortilin in the cell results in the exaggerated elevation of intracellular Ca2+ in the cell. We then tested various point mutants of fortilin for their Ca2+ binding and identified fortilin(E58A/E60A) to be a double-point mutant of fortilin lacking the ability of Ca2+-binding. We then found that wild-type fortilin, but not fortilin(E58A/E60A), protected cells against thapsigargin-induced apoptosis, suggesting that the binding of fortilin to Ca2+ is required for fortilin to protect cells against Ca2+-dependent apoptosis. Together, these results suggest that fortilin is an intracellular Ca2+ scavenger, protecting cells against Ca2+-dependent apoptosis by binding and sequestering Ca2+ from the downstream Ca2+-dependent apoptotic pathways.

Blood ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 107 (5) ◽  
pp. 1872-1877 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa S. Marsden ◽  
Thomas Kaufmann ◽  
Lorraine A. O'Reilly ◽  
Jerry M. Adams ◽  
Andreas Strasser

Cytokines promote survival of mast cells by inhibiting apoptotic pathways regulated by the Bcl-2 protein family. We previously showed that lymphocyte apoptosis can proceed via a Bcl-2-inhibitable pathway independent of the canonical initiator caspase, caspase-9, and its adaptor, Apaf-1. Here we report that mast cells lacking caspase-9 or Apaf-1 are refractory to apoptosis after cytotoxic insults but still lose effector function and ability to proliferate. In response to cytokine deprivation or DNA damage, fetal liver-derived mast cells lacking Apaf-1 or caspase-9 failed to undergo apoptosis. Nevertheless, the cytokine-starved cells were not functionally alive, because, unlike those overexpressing Bcl-2, they could not degranulate on Fcϵ receptor stimulation or resume proliferation on re-addition of cytokine. Furthermore, mast cells lacking Apaf-1 or caspase-9 had no survival advantage over wild-type counterparts in vivo. These results indicate that the Apaf-1/caspase-9-independent apoptotic pathway observed in lymphocytes is ineffective in cytokine-deprived mast cells. However, although Apaf-1 and caspase-9 are essential for mast cell apoptosis, neither is required for the functional or clonogenic death of the cells, which may be due to mitochondrial dysfunction.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 354
Author(s):  
Subir Roy Chowdhury ◽  
Cheryl Peltier ◽  
Sen Hou ◽  
Amandeep Singh ◽  
James B. Johnston ◽  
...  

Mitochondrial respiration is becoming more commonly used as a preclinical tool and potential biomarker for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and activated B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling. However, respiration parameters have not been evaluated with respect to dose of ibrutinib given in clinical practice or the effect of progression on ibrutinib treatment on respiration of CLL cells. We evaluated the impact of low and standard dose ibrutinib on CLL cells from patients treated in vivo on mitochondrial respiration using Oroboros oxygraph. Cytokines CCL3 and CCL4 were evaluated using the Mesoscale. Western blot analysis was used to evaluate the BCR and apoptotic pathways. We observed no difference in the mitochondrial respiration rates or levels of plasma chemokine (C-C motif) ligands 3 and 4 (CCL3/CCL4), β-2 microglobulin (β-2 M) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) between low and standard doses of ibrutinib. This may confirm why clinical observations of the safety and efficacy of low dose ibrutinib are observed in practice. Of interest, we also observed that the mitochondrial respiration of CLL cells paralleled the increase in β-2 M and LDH at progression. Our study further supports mitochondrial respiration as a biomarker for response and progression on ibrutinib in CLL cells and a valuable pre-clinical tool.


1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 3257-3266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoya Zeng ◽  
Lihong Chen ◽  
Christine A. Jost ◽  
Ruth Maya ◽  
David Keller ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The newly identified p53 homolog p73 can mimic the transcriptional activation function of p53. We investigated whether p73, like p53, participates in an autoregulatory feedback loop with MDM2. p73 bound to MDM2 both in vivo and in vitro. Wild-type but not mutant MDM2, expressed in human p53 null osteosarcoma Saos-2 cells, inhibited p73- and p53-dependent transcription driven by the MDM2 promoter-derived p53RE motif as measured in transient-transfection and chloramphenicol acetyltransferase assays and also inhibited p73-induced apoptosis in p53-null human lung adenocarcinoma H1299 cells. MDM2 did not promote the degradation of p73 but instead disrupted the interaction of p73, but not of p53, with p300/CBP by competing with p73 for binding to the p300/CBP N terminus. Both p73α and p73β stimulated the expression of the endogenous MDM2 protein. Hence, MDM2 is transcriptionally activated by p73 and, in turn, negatively regulates the function of this activator through a mechanism distinct from that used for p53 inactivation.


mBio ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Autumn T. LaPointe ◽  
V Douglas Landers ◽  
Claire E. Westcott ◽  
Kevin J. Sokoloski

ABSTRACT Alphaviruses are positive-sense RNA viruses that utilize a 5′ cap structure to facilitate translation of viral proteins and to protect the viral RNA genome. Nonetheless, significant quantities of viral genomic RNAs that lack a canonical 5′ cap structure are produced during alphaviral replication and packaged into viral particles. However, the role/impact of the noncapped genomic RNA (ncgRNA) during alphaviral infection in vivo has yet to be characterized. To determine the importance of the ncgRNA in vivo, the previously described D355A and N376A nsP1 mutations, which increase or decrease nsP1 capping activity, respectively, were incorporated into the neurovirulent AR86 strain of Sindbis virus to enable characterization of the impact of altered capping efficiency in a murine model of infection. Mice infected with the N376A nsP1 mutant exhibited slightly decreased rates of mortality and delayed weight loss and neurological symptoms, although levels of inflammation in the brain were similar to those of wild-type infection. Although the D355A mutation resulted in decreased antiviral gene expression and increased resistance to interferon in vitro, mice infected with the D355A mutant showed significantly reduced mortality and morbidity compared to mice infected with wild-type virus. Interestingly, expression of proinflammatory cytokines was found to be significantly decreased in mice infected with the D355A mutant, suggesting that capping efficiency and the production of ncgRNA are vital to eliciting pathogenic levels of inflammation. Collectively, these data indicate that the ncgRNA have important roles during alphaviral infection and suggest a novel mechanism by which noncapped viral RNAs aid in viral pathogenesis. IMPORTANCE Mosquito-transmitted alphaviruses have been the cause of widespread outbreaks of disease that can range from mild illness to lethal encephalitis or severe polyarthritis. There are currently no safe and effective vaccines or therapeutics with which to prevent or treat alphaviral disease, highlighting the need to better understand alphaviral pathogenesis to develop novel antiviral strategies. This report reveals production of noncapped genomic RNAs (ncgRNAs) to be a novel determinant of alphaviral virulence and offers insight into the importance of inflammation to pathogenesis. Taken together, the findings reported here suggest that the ncgRNAs contribute to alphaviral pathogenesis through the sensing of the ncgRNAs during alphaviral infection and are necessary for the development of severe disease.


Proceedings ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 44
Author(s):  
Autumn T. LaPointe ◽  
Kevin J Sokoloski

Alphaviruses are positive-sense RNA arthropod-borne viruses that represent a significant threat to public health. During alphaviral replication, significant quantities of viral genomic RNAs that lack a canonical 5’ cap structure are produced and packaged into viral particles, despite the fact that the noncapped genomes cannot be translated and are essentially noninfectious. Previously, we have reported that the capping efficiency of nsP1, the alphaviral capping enzyme, of Sindbis virus (SINV) could be modulated via point mutation. It was found that increasing RNA capping efficiency led to decreased viral growth kinetics via decreased particle production, despite increased innate immune evasion, whereas decreasing capping efficiency led to wild-type growth kinetics and particle production. This led to the conclusion that the noncapped viral RNAs meaningfully contribute to the biology of alphaviral infections at the molecular level. To determine the importance of the noncapped viral RNAs in vivo, we characterized the impact of altered capping efficiency in a murine model of infection utilizing a neurovirulent strain of SINV. Mice infected with the nsP1 mutant with decreased capping exhibited wild-type rates of mortality, weight loss, and neurological symptoms. Conversely, the mice infected with the increased capping nsP1 mutant showed significantly reduced mortality and morbidity compared to mice infected with the wild-type virus. Interestingly, viral titers in the ankle, serum, and brain were equivalent between the wild-type virus and the two mutant viruses. Importantly, examination of the brain tissue revealed that mice infected with the increased capping mutant had significantly reduced immune cell infiltration and expression of proinflammatory cytokines compared to the decreased capping mutant and wild-type virus. Collectively, these data indicate that the noncapped viral RNAs have important roles during the early and late stages of alphaviral infection and suggest a novel mechanism by which noncapped viral RNA aids in viral pathogenesis.


1999 ◽  
Vol 277 (3) ◽  
pp. G702-G708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alix de la Coste ◽  
Monique Fabre ◽  
Nathalie McDonell ◽  
Arlette Porteu ◽  
Helène Gilgenkrantz ◽  
...  

Fas ligand (CD95L) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) are pivotal inducers of hepatocyte apoptosis. Uncontrolled activation of these two systems is involved in several forms of liver injury. Although the broad antiapoptotic action of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL has been clearly established in various apoptotic pathways, their ability to inhibit the Fas/CD95- and TNF-α-mediated apoptotic signal has remained controversial. We have demonstrated that the expression of BCL-2 in hepatocytes protects them against Fas-induced fulminant hepatitis in transgenic mice. The present study shows that transgenic mice overexpressing[Formula: see text]in hepatocytes are also protected from Fas-induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner. Bcl-xL and Bcl-2 were protective without any change in the level of endogenous[Formula: see text]or Bax and inhibited hepatic caspase-3-like activity. In vivo injection of TNF-α caused massive apoptosis and death only when transcription was inhibited. Under these conditions,[Formula: see text]mice were partially protected from liver injury and death but PK-BCL-2 mice were not. A similar differential protective effect of Bcl-xL and Bcl-2 transgenes was observed when Fas/CD95 was activated and transcription blocked. These results suggest that apoptosis triggered by activation of both Fas/CD95 and TNF-α receptors is to some extent counteracted by the transcription-dependent protective effects, which are essential for the antiapoptotic activity of Bcl-2 but not of Bcl-xL. Therefore, Bcl-xL and Bcl-2 appear to have different antiapoptotic effects in the liver whose characterization could facilitate their use to prevent the uncontrolled apoptosis of hepatocytes.


Blood ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 106 (11) ◽  
pp. 1566-1566
Author(s):  
Tiffany Khong ◽  
Janelle Sharkey ◽  
Andrew Spencer

Abstract Azacytidine (AZA), a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, has been shown to inhibit cell growth and induce apoptosis in some cancer cells. We determined the impact of AZA on a panel of human myeloma cell lines (HMCL); KMS 12PE, KMS 18, LP-1, NCI-H929, OPM-2, RPMI-8226 and U266 and in an in vivo murine model of multiple myeloma (5T33 model). Dose responsiveness to AZA was determined via MTS assays with a range of AZA doses (1–10mM) for 72 hours. FACS and cell cycle analysis were used to evaluate the profile of the cells after exposure to AZA for 72 hours. MTS assays demonstrated a dose and time dependent AZA-induced inhibition of HMCL viability with effective concentrations of AZA ranging from 1–10 mM. This was associated with accumulation of cells in the Go/G1 phase with decreasing number of cells in the S and G2/M phases. Western Blot analysis using antibodies against caspases 3,8,10, PARP, phospho-ERK, ERK, Stat3 and phospho -Stat3 were performed to help characterize the mechanism(s) of cell killing. Cleavage of caspases 3,8,10 and PARP within 24 hours of AZA treatment confirmed early AZA-induced HMCL apoptosis. phospho-ERK which was absent in untreated U266 appeared after 48 hours exposure to 5mM AZA. Similarly inhibitors of caspases 3,8 and 9 were used to determine which apoptotic pathway was being preferentially activated by AZA. Inhibitors of both caspase 3 and 9 effectively abrogated AZA-induced apoptosis in U266 and NCI-H929. In contrast caspase 8 inhibitor was less effective which is consistent with AZA acting via the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway. Reactivation of p16 gene by AZA-induced hypomethylation was assessed with methylation specific PCR. MSP-PCR of the p16 gene indicated a loss of methylation and up-regulated transcription after 48 hours treatment with 5 mM AZA. The level of IL-6 in conditioned media from U266 cells treated with AZA was determined by ELISA assay and demonstrated a rapid fall in autocrine IL-6 production. RT-PCR demonstrated rapid AZA-induced cessation of IL-6 transcription temporarily associated with the disappearance of upstream phospho -Stat3. Addition of exogenous IL-6 did not rescue U266 from AZA-induced apoptosis. AZA was also administered to a 5T33 murine model of multiple myeloma at increasing concentrations (1, 3, 10 mg/kg). At 10 mg/kg the median survival of vehicle versus AZA treated mice was 28 days versus 30+ days (p=0.003). These findings justify further evaluation of AZA as a potential therapeutic agent for multiple myeloma.


2008 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
pp. 837-849 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Liu ◽  
Mingqi Deng ◽  
Cheryl A. Lancto ◽  
Mitchell S. Abrahamsen ◽  
Mark S. Rutherford ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The impact of Cryptosporidium parvum infection on host cell gene expression was investigated by microarray analysis with an in vitro model using human ileocecal HCT-8 adenocarcinoma cells. We found changes in 333 (2.6%) transcripts at at least two of the five (6, 12, 24, 48, and 72 h) postinfection time points. Fifty-one of the regulated genes were associated with apoptosis and were grouped into five clusters based on their expression patterns. Early in infection (6 and 12 h), genes with antiapoptotic roles were upregulated and genes with apoptotic roles were downregulated. Later in infection (24, 48, and 72 h), proapoptotic genes were induced and antiapoptotic genes were downregulated, suggesting a biphasic regulation of apoptosis: antiapoptotic state early and moderately proapoptotic state late in infection. This transcriptional profile matched the actual occurrence of apoptosis in the infected cultures. Apoptosis was first detected at 12 h postinfection and increased to a plateau at 24 h, when 20% of infected cells showed nuclear condensation. In contrast, experimental silencing of Bcl-2 induced apoptosis in 50% of infected cells at 12 h postinfection. This resulted in a decrease in the infection rate and a reduction in the accumulation of meront-containing cells. To test the significance of the moderately proapoptotic state late in the infection, we inhibited apoptosis using pancaspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK. This treatment also affected the progression of C. parvum infection, as reinfection, normally seen late (24 h to 48 h), did not occur and accumulation of mature meronts was impaired. Control of host apoptosis is complex and crucial to the life of C. parvum. Apoptosis control has at least two components, early inhibition and late moderate promotion. For a successful infection, both aspects appear to be required.


2002 ◽  
Vol 76 (2) ◽  
pp. 717-729 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maryam Ahmed ◽  
Martin Lock ◽  
Cathie G. Miller ◽  
Nigel W. Fraser

ABSTRACT Recent studies have suggested that the latency-associated transcript (LAT) region of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) is effective at blocking virus-induced apoptosis both in vitro and in the trigeminal ganglia of acutely infected rabbits (Inman et al., J. Virol. 75:3636–3646, 2001; Perng et al., Science 287:1500–1503, 2000). By transfecting cells with a construct expressing the Pst-Mlu segment of the LAT, encompassing the LAT exon 1, the stable 2.0-kb intron, and 5′ part of exon 2, we confirmed that this region was able to diminish the onset of programmed cell death initiated by anti-Fas and camptothecin treatment. In addition, caspase 8-induced apoptosis was specifically inhibited in cells expressing the Pst-Mlu LAT fragment. To further delineate the minimal region of LAT that is necessary for this antiapoptotic function, LAT mutants were used in our cotransfection assays. In HeLa cells, the plasmids lacking exon sequences were the least effective at blocking apoptosis. However, similar to previous work (Inman et al., op. cit.), our data also indicated that the 5′ end of the stable 2.0-kb LAT intron appeared to contribute to the promotion of cell survival. Furthermore, cells productively infected with the 17N/H LAT mutant virus, a virus deleted in the LAT promoter, exon 1, and about half of the intron, exhibited a greater degree of DNA fragmentation than cells infected with wild-type HSV-1. These data support the finding that the exon 1 and 2.0-kb intron region of the LAT transcription unit display an antiapoptotic function both in transfected cells and in the context of the virus infection in vitro. In trigeminal ganglia of mice acutely infected with the wild-type virus, 17, and 17ΔSty, a virus lacking most of exon 1, apoptosis was not detected in cells that were positive for virus particles. However, dual staining was observed in cells from mice infected with 17N/H virus, indicating that the LAT antiapoptotic function demonstrated in cells transfected by LAT-expressing constructs may also play a role in protecting cells from virus-induced apoptosis during acute viral infection in vivo.


Oncogene ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 469-485 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Liang ◽  
Lidan Hou ◽  
Linjing Li ◽  
Lei Li ◽  
Liming Zhu ◽  
...  

Abstract The development of chemoresistance remains a major challenge that accounts for colorectal cancer (CRC) lethality. Dichloroacetate (DCA) was originally used as a metabolic regulator in the treatment of metabolic diseases; here, DCA was assayed to identify the mechanisms underlying the chemoresistance of CRC. We found that DCA markedly enhanced chemosensitivity of CRC cells to fluorouracil (5-FU), and reduced the colony formation due to high levels of apoptosis. Using the microarray assay, we noted that miR-149-3p was involved in the chemoresistance of CRC, which was modulated by wild-type p53 after DCA treatment. In addition, PDK2 was identified as a direct target of miR-149-3p. Mechanistic analyses showed that overexpression of miR-149-3p enhanced 5-FU-induced apoptosis and reduced glucose metabolism, similar to the effects of PDK2 knockdown. In addition, overexpression of PDK2 partially reversed the inhibitory effect of miR-149-3p on glucose metabolism. Finally, both DCA treatment and miR-149-3p overexpression in 5-FU-resistant CRC cells were found to markedly sensitize the chemotherapeutic effect of 5-FU in vivo, and this effect was also validated in a small retrospective cohort of CRC patients. Taken together, we determined that the p53/miR-149-3p/PDK2 signaling pathway can potentially be targeted with DCA treatment to overcome chemoresistant CRC.


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