类赖氨酰氧化酶2与肿瘤转移和发生

类赖氨酰氧化酶2（lysyl oxidase—like 2,LOXL2）是赖氨酰氧化酶（1ysyl oxidase,LOX）基因家族的成员之一,其表达产物能促进胶原沉积。LOXL2的过表达能促进纤维化,并与肿瘤侵袭、转移及不良预后有关。目前大部分学者认为LOXL2是一种转移促进基因,也有实验支持其是一种肿瘤抑制基因。研究发现LOXL2可以通过激活Snail／Ecadherin通路或Src／FAK通路促进转移。LOXL2有望作为肿瘤生物标志物,用于预后判断,成为一个新的治疗靶点。     

赖氨酰氧化酶样蛋白2在肾细胞癌中的表达及其临床意义

为探究赖氨酰氧化酶样蛋白2 (lysyl oxidase like 2, LOXL2)与肾细胞癌(renal cell carcinoma, RCC)的关系,本研究采用免疫组织化学方法检测58例RCC组织及13例癌旁组织中LOXL2的表达水平,并利用统计学方法进一步分析LOXL2与临床病理参数和预后之间的关系。研究显示,LOXL2在癌组织和癌旁组织的阳性表达率分别为68.96%和23.08%,差异具有统计学意义(p<0.05)。LOXL2阳性表达与患者的临床分期和肾包膜浸润相关(p<0.05),但是与患者的性别、年龄、吸烟、病理类型、肿瘤大小和肿瘤分级均无相关性(p>0.05)。采用Kaplan-Meier法和Log-Rank检验分析LOXL2与术后生存时间的关系,实验显示LOXL2阳性组和阴性组患者的5年生存率分别为61.58%和89.46%,差异具有统计学意义(p<0.05)。我们的研究表明LOXL2在肾癌中过表达,其可能在肾癌的侵袭和转移过程中发挥作用,可作为预后的分子标记物。     

人LOXL2启动子的鉴定与初步分析

LOXL2（lysyl oxidase like 2）是赖氨酰氧化酶（LOX）家族的一个重要成员,不仅可促进细胞外基质中胶原蛋白和弹性蛋白的交联,而且在转录调控、细胞信号转导以及细胞粘附等生物学过程中也有重要作用。多篇研究表明,LOXL2在多种肿瘤中高表达,且与多种肿瘤细胞的增殖迁移等生物学行为密切相关。LOXL2的表达调控机制目前仍不清楚。为了进一步研究LOXL2的转录调控机制,本研究克隆鉴定了LOXL2的启动子。首先通过数据库对LOXL2基因结构及潜在启动子区域进行了分析,进而以人的基因组DNA为模板,通过PCR定向克隆策略,构建了5个长度不同并覆盖LOXL2基因转录起始位点附近约1.7 kb的LOXL2基因启动子荧光素酶报告基因重组体。启动子活性分析结果表明,与对照组相比,5个重组体均具有启动子活性(P<0.05),提示LOXL2基因核心启动子定位于转录起始位点附近约185 bp的区域内。转录因子结合位点分析结果表明,LOXL2基因启动子缺乏典型的TATA盒,但含有GC盒以及Sp1、NFkB等潜在的转录因子结合位点。外源转染Sp1表达质粒能显著增强LOXL2基因启动子的活性（P<0.05）,提示Sp1能直接激活LOXL2的转录。     

新型抗癌药物分子靶标STAT3的研究进展

信号转导与转录激活因子(STATs)是一类发挥信号转导和转录因子调节作用的蛋白质家族,它们可以作为信号转导分子和转录调节因子参与到细胞因子和生长因子对于正常细胞的调控作用中。STATs的异常激活,特别是STAT3激活,和多种人类恶性肿瘤相关联。相关的分子生物学和药理学模型的研究也已确认STAT3在肿瘤发生中的重要作用,这些工作为抗癌药物研发和治疗癌症提供了新的靶标。此外,结构性活化的STAT3突变体就足以诱导瘤原细胞的转化,并且进一步在体内形成肿瘤。结构性激活的STAT3信号通路常常伴随着一些基因如cyclinD1,c-Myc和Bcl-x的上调,同时也会破坏正常细胞生长与生存的调控机制。体外和体内的实验研究结果也证明,对于STAT3信号通路结构性的阻断可以导致STAT3高表达肿瘤类型中的细胞生长抑制和凋亡。这种已被证实了的肿瘤细胞内的结构性激活和生长存活之间的相互联系,为癌症治疗提供了广阔的应用前景。近年来针对STAT3抑制剂的研究逐渐成为热点,本文就此作一综述。     

TLRs信号通路激活的MSCs外泌体对巨噬细胞极化的影响

目的探讨Toll样受体（TLR）3和4信号通路激活的间充质干细胞外泌体（MSCs-Exo）对巨噬细胞极化的影响。 方法差速贴壁法体外培养大鼠骨髓源MSCs,用外泌体提取试剂盒分别提取MSCs、TLR3信号通路激活的MSCs、TLR4信号通路激活的MSCs培养上清中的外泌体。用含10%FBS、10%L929条件培养基的RPMI-1640培养得M0型巨噬细胞,实验分6组：对照组及MSCs-Exo、TLR3信号通路激活的MSCs-Exo、TLR4信号通路激活的MSCs-Exo、LPS、IL-4+IL-13分别与M0型巨噬细胞共培养,48 h后收集各组巨噬细胞光镜下观察形态,流式和qPCR检测免疫表型（CD206、Arg-1、TNF-α、iNOS）及炎症因子（CCL22、IL-1β、IL-6、IL-10）表达的改变。组间比较采用单因素方差分析及独立t检验进行统计学分析。 结果MSCs鉴定符合间充质干细胞特性,MSCs-Exo为双层膜囊泡结构,直径在40 ~ 200 nm之间,表达外泌体标志性蛋白CD9、HSP70;光镜下观察各组巨噬细胞形态,加MSCs-Exo及TLR3和TLR4信号通路激活的MSCs-Exo刺激的巨噬细胞呈长梭形,伪足较多;流式检测发现,加MSCs-Exo及TLR3和TLR4信号通路激活的MSCs-Exo刺激的巨噬细胞均高表达CD206（107.2±6.87、102.4±9.83、112.0±9.24 vs 56.0±7.38,F?=?47.234,P均< 0.001）、Arg-1（135.2±6.87、130.2±7.59、203.4±9.07 vs 117.8±9.12,F =109.827,P =?0.009、0.048、0.000）;低表达TNF-α（27.0±5.65、24.6±5.02、25.6±4.15 vs 36.6±7.09,F = 4.882,P = 0.046、0.015、0.017）,而MSCs-Exo刺激的巨噬细胞低表达iNOS（240.2 ± 8.43 vs 308.8±9.88,P < 0.001）;TLR3和TLR4信号通路激活的MSCs-Exo刺激的巨噬细胞iNOS表达差异无统计学意义（P > 0.05）。qPCR检测发现,加MSCs-Exo及TLR3和TLR4信号通路激活的MSCs-Exo刺激的巨噬细胞均高表达CCL22（2.277±0.744、1.570±0.209、1.642±0.443 vs 1.000±0.111,F = 23.654,P = 0.015、0.003、0.031）、IL-10（1.233±0.136、2.426±0.343、1.390±0.155 vs 1.000±0.130,F?= 103.251,P = 0.048、0.000、0.008）,低表达IL-1β（0.383±0.035、0.640±0.143、0.242±0.073 vs 1.000±0.082,F = 12.315,P = 0.000、0.005、0.000）、IL-6（0.386±0.066、0.655±0.046、0.533±0.090 vs 1.000±0.204,F = 30.140,P = 0.001、0.006、0.016）。 结论TLR3和TLR4信号通路激活的MSCs-Exo均能促使巨噬细胞向M2型极化。     

多糖调控p53信号网络研究进展

肿瘤抑制基因p53是目前研究最广泛和系统的抑癌基因之一。p53与其上、下游基因形成复杂的信号网络来发挥功能。p53基因的突变或缺失与多种人类恶性肿瘤的发生、发展密切相关,所以p53基因是目前多种抗肿瘤药物开发的靶点。多糖由于其低毒和抗肿瘤效果成为生物大分子抗肿瘤的研究热点。目前认为,多糖在体内外抗肿瘤机制有两方面:一是通过增强机体免疫力以抑制肿瘤增殖,另一则是激活胞内信号通路,调控肿瘤相关基因表达,诱导肿瘤细胞衰老、细胞周期阻滞与凋亡达到对肿瘤细胞的抑制作用。该文综述了近些年多糖通过调控p53信号网络来发挥其抗肿瘤及抗衰老等作用,为多糖的开发与利用提供参考依据。     

微小RNA-29与恶性肿瘤

miR-29家族是人类重要的miRNA分子,在多数恶性肿瘤中扮演抑癌RNA分子的作用,因而呈现低表达水平,它通过上调抑癌基因表达及调控相关肿瘤信号通路等机制,抑制恶性肿瘤的增殖、分化、侵袭和转移。miR-29家族不仅能作为恶性肿瘤治疗的靶点,而且在肿瘤的诊断及预后评估方面具有重要价值。     

ABCA1介导胆固醇外流及抗炎的信号通路研究进展

ABCA1抗动脉粥样硬化的作用主要通过以下两种途径:介导细胞内胆固醇流出和抑制炎症。载脂蛋白与ABCA1的相互作用可激活多个信号通路,包括JAK2/STAT3、蛋白激酶A(PKA)、Rho家族G蛋白CDC42和蛋白激酶C(PKC)等信号通路。ABCA1通过修饰细胞膜脂筏或直接激活信号通路而介导脂质流出和发挥抗炎功能。对这些信号通路的认识,能为动脉粥样硬化相关疾病提供新的治疗靶点。     

抗肿瘤天然药物抑制STAT3 信号通路的分子机制研究进展

信号转导和转录激活因子3（STAT3）是细胞内重要的信号转导蛋白和转录因子,与肿瘤的发生发展密切相关,抑制其信号通路,可抑制肿瘤生长与转移,故近年来将STAT3 蛋白作为抗肿瘤靶点,开发STAT3 抑制剂,已成为研究热点。概述STAT3 及其信号通路与肿瘤发生、发展和转移的关系以及STAT3 信号通路的主要抑制途径,重点综述抗肿瘤天然药物抑制STAT3 信号通路的分子机制研究进展。     

NOK通过JAK2依赖性方式激活STAT3信号通路

NOK能激活包含JAK-STAT信号通路在内的多种促细胞有丝分裂信号通路.研究发现,在人胚肾细胞(HEK293T)中,NOK与STAT3具有直接的相互作用.进一步的实验表明,NOK能同STAT3蛋白除螺旋结构域及c端结构域外的其他4个结构域发生相互作用,而NOK的胞内区则介导了NOK同STAT3的相互作用.同时,免疫共沉淀实验显示,NOK能与JAK2发生相互作用.重要的是,共同表达NOK与JAK2蛋白对STAT3信号通路能产生一种非常显著的协同激活作用,但当共同表达NOK和JAK2的激酶活性缺失突变体时,并不产生这种协同激活效应.综上,实验结果显示,NOK可能同STAT3和JAK2形成一个复合物,通过JAK2依赖性方式激活STAT3信号通路.     

Human lysyl oxidase-like 2

Lysyl oxidase like-2 (LOXL2) belongs to the lysyl oxidase (LOX) family, which comprises Cu²⁺- and lysine tyrosylquinone (LTQ)-dependent amine oxidases. LOXL2 is proposed to function similarly to LOX in the extracellular matrix (ECM) by promoting crosslinking of collagen and elastin. LOXL2 has also been proposed to regulate extracellular and intracellular cell signaling pathways. Dysregulation of LOXL2 has been linked to many diseases, including cancer, pro-oncogenic angiogenesis, fibrosis and heart diseases. In this review, we will give an overview of the current understandings and hypotheses regarding the molecular functions of LOXL2.     

Body Fluid Exosomes Promote Secretion of Inflammatory Cytokines in Monocytic Cells via Toll-like Receptor Signaling

Tumor-derived exosomes have been shown to induce various immunomodulatory effects. However, the underlying signaling pathways are poorly understood. Here, we analyzed the effects of ex vivo-derived exosomes on monocytic cell differentiation/activation using THP-1 cells as model. We isolated exosomes from various body fluids such as amniotic fluid, liver cirrhosis ascites, and malignant ascites of ovarian cancer patients. We observed that exosomes were internalized by THP-1 cells and induced the production of IL-1β, TNF-α, and IL-6. Analysis of the signaling pathways revealed a fast triggering of NFκB and a delayed activation of STAT3. Pharmacologic and antibody-blocking experiments showed that the initial production of IL-6 was instrumental for subsequent activation of STAT3. Importantly, triggering of cell signaling was not a unique property of tumor exosomes but was also observed with exosomes of noncancerous origin. Exosomal signaling was TLR-dependent as the knockdown of Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and TLR4 blocked NFκB and STAT3 activation. Similar results were obtained with TLR-neutralizing antibodies. Exosomes also triggered the release of cytokines from mouse bone marrow-derived dendritic cells or macrophages. This process was MyD88-dependent, further supporting a role of TLR signaling. Our results suggest that exosomes trigger TLR-dependent signaling pathways in monocytic precursor cells but possibly also in other immune cells. This process could be important for the induction of immunosuppressive mechanisms during cancer progression and inflammatory diseases.     

Lysyl oxidase-like 2 (LOXL2) controls tumor-associated cell proliferation through the interaction with MARCKSL1

Lysyl oxidase-like 2 (LOXL2) is a member of the lysyl oxidase gene family that contributes to the invasiveness and metastasis in tumor progression. However, the role of LOXL2 in cellular signaling is incompletely understood. In this study, we investigated a possible mechanism of LOXL2 function in tumor metastases in vitro, using a human breast carcinoma cell line. Myristoylated alanine-rich C kinase substrate-like 1 (MARCKSL1), a modulator in the regulation of cellular homeostasis, was identified as a LOXL2 interacting protein. We examined the binding domains that are required for the interaction between LOXL2 and MARCKSL1. The scavenger-receptor domain of LOXL2 was shown to interact with the N-terminal domain of MARCKSL1. Luciferase activity was noticeably reduced by the transfection of MARCKSL1 in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, over-expression of LOXL2 activates cell growth by inhibiting MARCKSL1-induced apoptosis. The effect of LOXL2 on cell cycle and apoptosis-related components was also confirmed through the silencing of LOXL2 expression. LOXL2 activates the FAK/Akt/mTOR signaling pathways, and MARCKSL1 suppresses LOXL2-induced oncogenesis. These insights supply evidence that LOXL2 promotes cell proliferation and inhibits apoptotic cell death. Taken together, our results indicate an underlying mechanism for an increase of LOXL2-related activity in breast tumor cells.     

A tissue-specific variant of the human lysyl oxidase-like protein 3 (LOXL3) functions as an amine oxidase with substrate specificity

The human lysyl oxidase-like 3 (LOXL3) encodes a member of the emerging family of lysyl oxidase (LOX) that functions as a copper-dependent amine oxidase. The LOXL3 protein contains four scavenger receptor cysteine-rich domains in the N terminus in addition to the C-terminal characteristic domains of the LOX family, such as a copper binding domain, a cytokine receptor-like domain and residues for the lysyl-tyrosyl quinone cofactor. Using BLASTN searches, we identified a LOXL3 variant LOXL3-sv1 that lacked the sequences corresponding to exons 1, 2, 3, and 5 of LOXL3. LOXL3-sv1 showed an exon-intron structure distinct from LOXL3, additionally containing an 80-bp sequence corresponding to intron 3 of LOXL3 in the 5'-UTR and a 561-bp sequence corresponding to the 3'-flanking genomic region of exon 14 in the 3'-UTR. LOXL3-sv1 was predicted to encode a polypeptide of 392 amino acids that contains the C-terminal domains required for amine oxidase activity but lacks the N-terminal SRCR domains 1, 2, and 3. The recombinant LOXL3-sv1 protein showed a beta-aminopropionitrile-inhibitable amine oxidase activity toward elastin and collagen with substrate specificity. In RT-PCR assays with various human tissues, LOXL3-sv1 and LOXL3 showed distinct expression patterns. Further, luciferase reporter assays revealed a strong promoter element in intron 3 that probably functions as a regulatory region for the expression of LOXL3-sv1. These findings strongly indicate that LOXL3 encodes two variants, LOXL3 and LOXL3-sv1, both of which function as amine oxidases with distinct tissue and substrate specificities from one another.     

Lysyl oxidase activity regulates oncogenic stress response and tumorigenesis

Cellular senescence, a stable proliferation arrest, is induced in response to various stresses. Oncogenic stress-induced senescence (OIS) results in blocked proliferation and constitutes a fail-safe program counteracting tumorigenesis. The events that enable a tumor in a benign senescent state to escape from OIS and become malignant are largely unknown. We show that lysyl oxidase activity contributes to the decision to maintain senescence. Indeed, in human epithelial cell the constitutive expression of the LOX or LOXL2 protein favored OIS escape, whereas inhibition of lysyl oxidase activity was found to stabilize OIS. The relevance of these in vitro observations is supported by in vivo findings: in a transgenic mouse model of aggressive pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), increasing lysyl oxidase activity accelerates senescence escape, whereas inhibition of lysyl oxidase activity was found to stabilize senescence, delay tumorigenesis, and increase survival. Mechanistically, we show that lysyl oxidase activity favors the escape of senescence by regulating the focal-adhesion kinase. Altogether, our results demonstrate that lysyl oxidase activity participates in primary tumor growth by directly impacting the senescence stability.     

Expression and purification of enzymatically active forms of the human lysyl oxidase-like protein 4

The lysyl oxidase-like protein 4 (LOXL4) is the latest member of the emerging family of lysyl oxidases, several of which were shown to function as copper-dependent amine oxidases catalyzing lysine-derived cross-links in extracellular matrix proteins. LOXL4 contains four scavenger receptor cysteine-rich domains in addition to the characteristic domains of the LOX family, including the copper-binding domain, the cytokine receptor-like domain, and the residues of the lysyl-tyrosyl quinone cofactor. In an effort to assess its amine oxidase activity, we expressed LOXL4 as recombinant forms attached with hexa-histidine residues at the carboxyl terminus by using an Escherichia coli expression system. The recombinant proteins were purified with nickel-chelating affinity chromatography and converted into enzymatically active forms by stepwise dialysis. The purified LOXL4 proteins showed beta-aminopropionitrile-inhibitable activity of 0.022-0.032 units/mg toward a nonpeptidyl substrate, benzylamine. These results indicate that LOXL4, with the four scavenger receptor cysteine rich domains, may also function as an active amine oxidase. Availability of the pure and active forms of LOXL4 will be significantly helpful in functional studies related to substrate specificity and crystal structure of this amine oxidase, which should provide significant insights into functional differences within the LOX family members.     

Exosomes from hypoxic endothelial cells have increased collagen crosslinking activity through up‐regulation of lysyl oxidase‐like 2

Exosomes are important mediators of intercellular communication. Additionally, they contain a variety of components capable of interacting with the extracellular matrix (ECM), including integrins, matrix metalloproteinases and members of the immunoglobin superfamily. Despite these observations, research on exosome‐ECM interactions is limited. Here, we investigate whether the exosome‐associated lysyl oxidase family member lysyl oxidase‐like 2 (LOXL2) is involved in ECM remodelling. We found that LOXL2 is present on the exterior of endothelial cell (EC)‐derived exosomes, placing it in direct vicinity of the ECM. It is up‐regulated twofold in EC‐derived exosomes cultured under hypoxic conditions. Intact exosomes from hypoxic EC and LOXL2 overexpressing EC show increased activity in a fluorometric lysyl oxidase enzymatic activity assay as well as in a collagen gel contraction assay. Concordantly, knockdown of LOXL2 in exosome‐producing EC in both normal and hypoxic conditions reduces activity of exosomes in both assays. Our findings show for the first time that ECM crosslinking by EC‐derived exosomes is mediated by LOXL2 under the regulation of hypoxia, and implicate a role for exosomes in hypoxia‐regulated focal ECM remodelling, a key process in both fibrosis and wound healing.