Functional diversity of lysyl hydroxylase 2 in collagen synthesis of human dermal fibroblasts

The pathogenesis of fibrosis, especially involving post-translational modifications of collagen, is poorly understood. Lysyl hydroxylase 2 (long) (LH2 (long)) is thought to play a pivotal role in fibrosis by directing the collagen cross-link pattern. Here we show that LH2 (long) exerts a bimodal function on collagen synthesis in human dermal fibroblasts. Adenoviral-mediated overexpression of LH2 (long) resulted in a mRNA increase of collagen α1(I) but not of fibronectin and fibrillin-1. This was accompanied by a higher mRNA level of prolyl-4-hydroxylase but not of other ER proteins (Bip, Hsp47, LH1, LH3). The collagen mRNA increase led to an elevated collagen synthesis, which was higher in the fraction of extracellularly deposited, cell-associated collagen than in the medium. The cross-link pattern of cell-associated collagen showed an increase of the hydroxylysine-aldehyde-derived cross-link dihydroxylysinonorleucine and a decrease of the lysine-aldehyde-derived component hydroxylysinonorleucine. The helical lysyl hydroxylation of the procollagen molecule was unaltered. The increase of collagen synthesis in fibroblasts overexpressing LH2 (long) was independent from cross-linking as it was also observed in the presence of β-aminopropionitril, a cross-linking inhibitor. Together our data identify LH2 (long) as a bifunctional protein and underscores its potential role in the pathogenesis of fibrosis.     

Identification of HLA-A*0201-presented T cell epitopes derived from the oncofetal antigen-immature laminin receptor protein in patients with hematological malignancies

The oncofetal Ag immature laminin receptor (OFA-iLR) is a potential target molecule for immunotherapeutic studies in several tumor entities, including hematological malignancies. In the present study, we characterize two HLA-A*0201-presented epitopes eliciting strong OFA-iLR peptide-specific human cytotoxic T cell (CTLs) responses in vitro. Both allogeneic HLA-A*0201-matched and autologous CTLs recognized and killed endogenously OFA-iLR-expressing tumor cell lines and primary malignant cells from patients with hemopoietic malignancies in an MHC-restricted fashion but spared nonmalignant hemopoietic cells. Spontaneous OFA-iLR peptide-specific T cell reactivity was detectable in a significant proportion of leukemia patients. Interestingly, in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and multiple myeloma but not in those with acute myeloid leukemia, significant frequencies of OFA peptide-specific CTLs could be detected in an early stage of disease but disappeared in patients with progressive disease. The identification of OFA-iLR-derived peptide epitopes provides a basis for tumor immunological studies and therapeutic vaccination strategies in patients with OFA-iLR-expressing malignancies.     

Mutant Lrp1 knock-in mice generated by recombinase-mediated cassette exchange reveal differential importance of the NPXY motifs in the intracellular domain of LRP1 for normal fetal development

Lrp1 knock-in mice carrying either a wild-type allele or three different mutated alleles encoding the multifunctional endocytic receptor LRP1 were generated by recombinase-mediated cassette exchange (RMCE). Reinsertion by RMCE of a wild-type allele led to a normal pattern and level of gene expression and a completely normal phenotype, indicating that the RMCE procedure itself is neutral with respect to the function of the gene locus. In contrast, reinsertion of mutated LRP1 alleles carrying either inactivating mutations in the proximal NPXY motif (NPTY-->AATA) of the cytoplasmic domain or in the furin cleavage site (RHRR-->AHAA) caused distinctive liver phenotypes: respectively, either a late fetal destruction of the organ causing perinatal death or a selective enlargement of von-Kupffer cell lysosomes reminiscent of a mild lysosomal storage without an apparent negative effect on animal survival. Notably, mutation of the distal NPXY motif overlapping with an YXXL motif (NPVYATL-->AAVAATL) did not cause any obvious pathological effect. The mutations showed no effect on the LRP1 expression level; however, as expected, the proteolytic maturation of LRP1 into its two subunits was significantly impaired, although not completely abolished, in the furin cleavage mutant. These data demonstrate that RMCE is a reliable and efficient approach to generate multiple mutant knock-in alleles for in vivo functional analysis of individual domains or motifs of large multidomain proteins. Its application in Lrp1 reveals dramatically variant phenotypes, of which further characterization will definitively contribute to our understanding of the biology of this multifunctional receptor.     

Reduced brain cholesterol content in arylsulfatase A-deficient mice

Metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD) is a lysosomal storage disorder caused by deficiency in arylsulfatase A (ASA). Concentrations of cholesterol and its metabolites were determined in ASA deficient [ASA(-/-)] mice which serve as an animal model of MLD. We observed a significant reduction in cholesterol content in the brain of adult ASA(-/-) mice when compared to wild-type controls. This was not due to loss of myelin, because ASA(-/-) mice do not demyelinate. Other cholesterol metabolites were not changed significantly in ASA(-/-) mice, except for an increase in lathosterol. Moreover, reduced cholesterol levels were also found in tissue samples from two juvenile MLD cases. Since high cholesterol levels are important for myelination, and various cellular processes, like vesicular trafficking and signal transduction, reduced cholesterol levels might be an important factor in the molecular pathology of MLD.     

FTIR-microspectroscopy of prion-infected nervous tissue

The family of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE), also termed prion diseases, is a group of fatal, neurodegenerative diseases characterized by the accumulation of a misfolded protein, the disease-associated prion protein PrPSc. This glycoprotein differs in secondary structure from its normal, cellular isoform PrPC, which is physiologically expressed mostly by neurons. Scrapie is a prion disease first described in the 18th century in sheep and goats, and has been established as a model in rodents to study the pathogenesis and pathology of prion diseases. Assuming a multitude of molecular parameters change in the tissue in the course of the disease, FTIR microspectroscopy has been proposed as a valuable new method to study and identify prion-affected tissues due to its ability to detect a variety of changes in molecular structure and composition simultaneously. This paper reviews and discusses results from previous FTIR microspectroscopic studies on nervous tissue of scrapie-infected hamsters in the context of histological and molecular alterations known from conventional pathogenesis studies. In particular, data from studies reporting on disease-specific changes of protein structure characteristics, and also results of a recent study on hamster dorsal root ganglia (DRG) are discussed. These data include an illustration on how the application of a brilliant IR synchrotron light source enables the in situ investigation of localized changes in protein structure and composition in nervous cells or tissue due to PrPSc deposition, and a demonstration on how the IR spectral information can be correlated with results of complementary studies using immunohistochemistry and x-ray fluorescence techniques. Using IR microspectroscopy, some neurons exhibited a high accumulation of disease-associated prion protein evidenced by an increased amount of beta-sheet at narrow regions in or around the infected nervous cells. However, not all neurons from terminally diseased hamsters showed PrPSc deposition. Generally, the average spectral differences between all control and diseased DRG spectra are small but consistent as demonstrated by independent experiments. Along with studies on the purified misfolded prion protein, these data suggest that synchrotron FTIR microspectroscopy is capable of detecting the misfolded prion protein in situ without the necessity of immunostaining or purification procedures.     

Structural differences between TSEs strains investigated by FT-IR spectroscopy

Strain diversity in transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) has been suggested to be "enciphered" in the structure of the misfolded prion protein isoform PrP(Sc). We have recently demonstrated the strain typing potential of the FT-IR spectroscopy technique, analyzing four different TSE agents adapted to Syrian hamsters [A. Thomzig, S. Spassov, M. Friedrich, D. Naumann and M. Beekes, Discriminating scrapie and BSE isolates by infrared spectroscopy of pathological prion protein J. Biol. Chem. 279 (2004) 33847-33854.] [1]. In the present paper, we have extended the FT-IR study, exploring the secondary structure, temperature stability, and hydrogen-deuterium exchange characteristics of PrP27-30, from the TSE agents 263K, ME7-H, 22A-H, and BSE-H. The strain differentiation capacity of the FT-IR approach was objectively proven for the first time by multivariate cluster analysis. The second derivative FT-IR spectra obtained from dried protein films or samples hydrated in H(2)O or D(2)O consistently exhibited strain-specific infrared characteristics in the secondary structure sensitive amide I region, complemented by strain dependent spectral traits in the amide II and amide A absorption regions, and the different H/D-exchange behaviour of the various PrP27-30 samples. FT-IR spectra of PrP27-30 samples from 263K, ME7-H and 22A-H exposed to increasing temperature (up to 90 degrees C) showed that a strain-specific response to heat treatment is associated with strain specific thermostability of distinct secondary structure elements, providing additional means for TSEs strain discrimination.     

Song differences between populations of seven subspecies of the African forest weaver Ploceus bicolor Vieillot (Aves: Passeriformes)

We present an analysis of song type differences between populations of seven forest weaver (Ploceus bicolor) subspecies. Phonology and syntax of the melodious parts of song types differ between these populations to the same extent as they differ between population-specific dialects within a subspecies. Phonological and syntactical song features are socially transmitted; they can be transmitted even between representatives of taxonomically different subspecies. The Harsh Call, a complex element embedded in the melody, is of similar structure in populations of four South African subspecies, but shows markedly different characteristics in populations of the subspecies from Kenya and Cameroon. Song differences between populations are suggested to result from cultural drift and geographic isolation. A correspondence between genetically determined morphological structures on the one hand and socially transmitted song structure on the other seems to be a coincidence due to geographic separation.