scholarly journals A Versatile Toolkit for Semi-Automated Production of Fluorescent Chemokines to Study CCR7 Expression and Functions

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. 4158
Author(s):  
Marc Artinger ◽  
Christoph Matti ◽  
Oliver J. Gerken ◽  
Christopher T. Veldkamp ◽  
Daniel F. Legler

Chemokines guide leukocyte migration in different contexts, including homeostasis, immune surveillance and immunity. The chemokines CCL19 and CCL21 control lymphocyte and dendritic cell migration and homing to lymphoid organs. Thereby they orchestrate adaptive immunity in a chemokine receptor CCR7-dependent manner. Likewise, cancer cells that upregulate CCR7 expression are attracted by these chemokines and metastasize to lymphoid organs. In-depth investigation of CCR7 expression and chemokine-mediated signaling is pivotal to understand their role in health and disease. Appropriate fluorescent probes to track these events are increasingly in demand. Here, we present an approach to cost-effectively produce and fluorescently label CCL19 and CCL21 in a semi-automated process. We established a versatile protocol for the production of recombinant chemokines harboring a small C-terminal S6-tag for efficient and site-specific enzymatic labelling with an inorganic fluorescent dye of choice. We demonstrate that the fluorescently labeled chemokines CCL19-S6Dy649P1 and CCL21-S6Dy649P1 retain their full biological function as assessed by their abilities to mobilize intracellular calcium, to recruit β-arrestin to engaged receptors and to attract CCR7-expressing leukocytes. Moreover, we show that CCL19-S6Dy649P1 serves as powerful reagent to monitor CCR7 internalization by time-lapse confocal video microscopy and to stain CCR7-positive primary human and mouse T cell sub-populations.

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (10) ◽  
pp. 11481-11491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takuya Yashiro ◽  
Hiromi Takeuchi ◽  
Shusuke Nakamura ◽  
Atsushi Tanabe ◽  
Mutsuko Hara ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 1564
Author(s):  
Viraj P. Ichhaporia ◽  
Linda M. Hendershot

Cell surface and secreted proteins provide essential functions for multicellular life. They enter the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) lumen co-translationally, where they mature and fold into their complex three-dimensional structures. The ER is populated with a host of molecular chaperones, associated co-factors, and enzymes that assist and stabilize folded states. Together, they ensure that nascent proteins mature properly or, if this process fails, target them for degradation. BiP, the ER HSP70 chaperone, interacts with unfolded client proteins in a nucleotide-dependent manner, which is tightly regulated by eight DnaJ-type proteins and two nucleotide exchange factors (NEFs), SIL1 and GRP170. Loss of SIL1′s function is the leading cause of Marinesco-Sjögren syndrome (MSS), an autosomal recessive, multisystem disorder. The development of animal models has provided insights into SIL1′s functions and MSS-associated pathologies. This review provides an in-depth update on the current understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying SIL1′s NEF activity and its role in maintaining ER homeostasis and normal physiology. A precise understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms associated with the loss of SIL1 may allow for the development of new pharmacological approaches to treat MSS.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S659-S660
Author(s):  
Brett Baker

Abstract Background The rise in resistance to existing antimicrobials has prompted a need for the development of novel antibiotics. Microbion has identified a novel compound, pravibismane, with potent broad spectrum anti-infective and anti-biofilm activity. Methods Here we used a variety of assays, including Bacterial Cytological Profiling (BCP), to analyze pravibismane in E.coli to gain insight into its likely mechanism of action (MOA). The BCP profile of pravibismane suggested it rapidly shut down cell growth, potentially by turning off cellular gene or protein expression. This was confirmed using a plasmid based GFP induction assay in E.coli tolC that showed pravibismane strongly reduced expression of GFP. The kinetics, reversibility and MOA of pravibismane was further characterized by using time-lapse microscopy, wash out experiments and measurements of both membrane potential and relative intracellular ATP levels. Results We found that pravibismane acts rapidly (within 30 mins) to completely halt cell growth rather than causing immediate cell lysis such as that observed with non-specific cell damaging agents bleach or detergent. Inhibitor wash out experiments in which cells were exposed to pravibismane for 2 hours, washed to remove the compound, and then observed using time-lapse microscopy revealed that the effect of pravibismane is reversible and that cells recovered 8-12 hrs after removing the compound. Wash out experiments with an E.coli tolC strain carrying a plasmid with an IPTG inducible GFP demonstrated that transcription and translation ultimately resumed in most cells after washout. The bioenergetics of the membrane was measured using DiBAC 4(5), a membrane potential sensitive dye which can enter depolarized cells, which revealed that pravibismane caused depolarization of the membrane within 30 mins of exposure in a concentration dependent manner. Finally, a luciferase assay determined pravibismane reduced ATP levels (resulting in decreased luminescence) within 15 mins of exposure in a concentration dependent manner unlike antibiotic controls that had modest or no effect on luminescence. Conclusion Our results suggest that pravibismane acts rapidly to disrupt cellular bioenergetics, resulting in the immediate cessation of cell growth and protein expression. Disclosures Brett Baker, M.Sc., D.C., Microbion Corporation (Board Member, Employee)


eLife ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan Sulpizio ◽  
Marena E Minelli ◽  
Min Wan ◽  
Paul D Burrowes ◽  
Xiaochun Wu ◽  
...  

Pseudokinases are considered to be the inactive counterparts of conventional protein kinases and comprise approximately 10% of the human and mouse kinomes. Here, we report the crystal structure of the Legionella pneumophila effector protein, SidJ, in complex with the eukaryotic Ca2+-binding regulator, calmodulin (CaM). The structure reveals that SidJ contains a protein kinase-like fold domain, which retains a majority of the characteristic kinase catalytic motifs. However, SidJ fails to demonstrate kinase activity. Instead, mass spectrometry and in vitro biochemical analyses demonstrate that SidJ modifies another Legionella effector SdeA, an unconventional phosphoribosyl ubiquitin ligase, by adding glutamate molecules to a specific residue of SdeA in a CaM-dependent manner. Furthermore, we show that SidJ-mediated polyglutamylation suppresses the ADP-ribosylation activity. Our work further implies that some pseudokinases may possess ATP-dependent activities other than conventional phosphorylation.


Cells ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 224
Author(s):  
Tina B. McKay ◽  
Shrestha Priyadarsini ◽  
Dimitrios Karamichos

The growth and maintenance of nearly every tissue in the body is influenced by systemic hormones during embryonic development through puberty and into adulthood. Of the ~130 different hormones expressed in the human body, steroid hormones and peptide hormones are highly abundant in circulation and are known to regulate anabolic processes and wound healing in a tissue-dependent manner. Of interest, differential levels of sex hormones have been associated with ocular pathologies, including dry eye disease and keratoconus. In this review, we discuss key studies that have revealed a role for androgens and estrogens in the cornea with focus on ocular surface homeostasis, wound healing, and stromal thickness. We also review studies of human growth hormone and insulin growth factor-1 in influencing ocular growth and epithelial regeneration. While it is unclear if endogenous hormones contribute to differential corneal wound healing in common animal models, the abundance of evidence suggests that systemic hormone levels, as a function of age, should be considered as an experimental variable in studies of corneal health and disease.


1987 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Arnout ◽  
A Van Hecken ◽  
I Delepeleire ◽  
Y Miyamoto ◽  
I Holmes ◽  
...  

Platelet activating factor (PAF) is a naturally occurring phospholipid with a wide spectrum of biological activities. Although PAF has been ascribed a potential role in various conditions including inflammation, asthma, glomerulonephritis and thrombosis, its precise function in physiologic/pathophysiologic processes remains unclear. The introduction of selective PAF receptor antagonists could represent a useful tool to extend our knowledge of the role of this mediator in health and disease.We have investigated the efficacy and tolerability of (RS)-2-methoxy-3-(octadecylcarbomoyloxy)propy1 2-(3-thiazolio)-ethyIphosphate (CV-3988, Takeda Chem. Ind), a selective PAF antagonist with structural analogies with PAF, after intravenous infusion in man in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. The compound, in doses from 750 to 2,000 pg/kg, significantly reduced platelet sensitivity to PAF. The threshold aggregating concentration (TAC) of PAF was defined as the minimal concentration causing an irreversible aggregation with a maximal amplitude of at least 50% of the difference in light transmission between platelet rich plasma and platelet poor plasma. It increased in a dose-dependent manner reaching 3.6 times the basal TAC (p<0.0005) at the end and 2.60 times the basal TAC (p<0.0005) 4 hours after infusion of the highest dose. The TAC of PAF returned to the basal value within 24 hours after the end of the infusion.CV-3988 did not cause major side effects nor changes in blood pressure, pulse or respiratory rate. However, small but clinically insignificant changes in plasma haemoglobin and serum haptoglobin were seen at the end and four hours after the end of the infusion, indicating a slight haemolysis probably by high local concentrations at the infusion site.Our results indicate that, when adequate infusion volumes and infusion rates are used, CV-3988 can be safely administered to man and should be useful in elucidating the role of PAF in health and disease.


2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
pp. 869-876
Author(s):  
Bendix R. Slegtenhorst ◽  
Oscar R. Fajardo Ramirez ◽  
Yuzhi Zhang ◽  
Zahra Dhanerawala ◽  
Stefan G. Tullius ◽  
...  

The vascular endothelium plays a critical role in the health and disease of the cardiovascular system. Importantly, biomechanical stimuli generated by blood flow and sensed by the endothelium constitute important local inputs that are translated into transcriptional programs and functional endothelial phenotypes. Pulsatile, laminar flow, characteristic of regions in the vasculature that are resistant to atherosclerosis, evokes an atheroprotective endothelial phenotype. This atheroprotective phenotype is integrated by the transcription factor Kruppel-like factor-2 (KLF2), and therefore the expression of KLF2 can be used as a proxy for endothelial atheroprotection. Here, we report the generation and characterization of a cellular KLF2 reporter system, based on green fluorescence protein (GFP) expression driven by the human KLF2 promoter. This reporter is induced selectively by an atheroprotective shear stress waveform in human endothelial cells, is regulated by endogenous signaling events, and is activated by the pharmacological inducer of KLF2, simvastatin, in a dose-dependent manner. This reporter system can now be used to probe KLF2 signaling and for the discovery of a novel chemical-biological space capable of acting as the “pharmacomimetics of atheroprotective flow” on the vascular endothelium.


1984 ◽  
Vol 179 (2) ◽  
pp. 207-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Tosi ◽  
L. Leoncini ◽  
R. Kraft

2003 ◽  
Vol 375 (2) ◽  
pp. 351-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoqing WU ◽  
Thomas M. McINTYRE ◽  
Guy A. ZIMMERMAN ◽  
Stephen M. PRESCOTT ◽  
Diana M. STAFFORINI

Plasma platelet-activating factor acetylhydrolase (PAF-AH) is a phospholipase that inactivates platelet-activating factor (PAF) and PAF-like lipids to generate products with little or no biological activity. The levels of circulating PAF-AH correlate with several disease syndromes. We previously reported that mediators of inflammation regulate the expression of the human PAF-AH gene at the transcriptional level. In the present paper, we characterize the constitutive expression of plasma PAF-AH using the mouse gene as a model system, and we report comparative results obtained using human and mouse promoter constructs. We first cloned, sequenced and analysed the promoter region of the murine plasma PAF-AH (mPAF-AH) gene and found that this gene lacks a canonical TATA box. We demonstrated that the cis-elements required for basal transcription are localized within the −316 to −68 bp region. In vitro band-shift and supershift assays showed that Sp1 and Sp3 transcription factors from RAW264.7 and J774A.1 macrophage nuclear extracts bound strongly to a distal GC-rich site within −278/−243 [specificity protein (Sp-A)] and to a proximal TC-rich motif within −150/−114 (Sp-B). In addition, we observed weak binding to a GA-rich site within −110/−82 (Sp-C). The regions containing Sp-B and Sp-C are highly conserved between the human and mouse genes. Forced expression of Sp1 or Sp3 in Sp-lacking Drosophila SL2 cells induced markedly the activity of the exogenous mPAF-AH promoter in a dose-dependent manner, and this induction was dependent on the presence of intact Sp-A and Sp-B. Interestingly, we found that the Sp1- and Sp3-associated DNA-binding activities increased during the maturation of primary human monocytes into macrophages in cell culture. These results demonstrate that Sp1 and Sp3 are key factors that contribute to the basal, constitutive transcription of the plasma PAF-AH gene in macrophages.


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