c-Myb Inhibits Myoblast Fusion

Satellite cells represent a heterogeneous population of stem and progenitor cells responsible for muscle growth, repair and regeneration. We investigated whether c-Myb could play a role in satellite cell biology because our previous results using satellite cell-derived mouse myoblast cell line C2C12 showed that c-Myb was expressed in growing cells and downregulated during differentiation. We detected c-Myb expression in activated satellite cells of regenerating muscle. c-Myb was also discovered in activated satellite cells associated with isolated viable myofiber and in descendants of activated satellite cells, proliferating myoblasts. However, no c-Myb expression was detected in multinucleated myotubes originated from fusing myoblasts. The constitutive expression of c-Myb lacking the 3′ untranslated region (3′ UTR) strongly inhibited the ability of myoblasts to fuse. The inhibition was dependent on intact c-Myb transactivation domain as myoblasts expressing mutated c-Myb in transactivation domain were able to fuse. The absence of 3′ UTR of c-Myb was also important because the expression of c-Myb coding region with its 3′ UTR did not inhibit myoblast fusion. The same results were repeated in C2C12 cells as well. Moreover, it was documented that 3′ UTR of c-Myb was responsible for downregulation of c-Myb protein levels in differentiating C2C12 cells. DNA microarray analysis of C2C12 cells revealed that the expression of several muscle-specific genes was downregulated during differentiation of c-Myb-expressing cells, namely: ACTN2, MYH8, TNNC2, MYOG, CKM and LRRN1. A detailed qRT-PCR analysis of MYOG, TNNC2 and LRRN1 is presented. Our findings thus indicate that c-Myb is involved in regulating the differentiation program of myogenic progenitor cells as its expression blocks myoblast fusion.     

Chemotactic function of skin fibroblasts in patients with amyloidosis

Chemotaxis of cultivated fibroblasts, obtained from patients with amyloidosis, chronic glomerulonephritis and healthy volunteers, was investigated. Fibroblast migration toward donor serum and serum from patients with amyloidosis was measured using Boyden chamber's technique. As "zero" chemoattractant Hank's solution was used. It was shown, that chemotactic index (CI) was independent from cell density. Significant CI depression of fibroblasts from patients with amyloidosis toward donor serum in contrast to fibroblasts from patients with chronic glomerulonephritis and healthy volunteers was shown. The depression of chemotactic function was the same with fibroblasts from patients with different variants of amyloidosis and different stages of amyloid nephropathy and was stable in several cell generations. The results obtained suggest the existence of primary hereditary variant (variants) of chemotactic function, which may lead to the development of amyloidosis in certain conditions.     

Origin and function of tumor stroma fibroblasts

Tumor development is critically dependent on the formation of a supporting stroma consisting of neovasculature, inflammatory cells and activated fibroblasts. Activated fibroblasts present a heterogeneous cell population not only in regard to the expression of marker molecules but also to their origin and molecular signaling properties. The plasticity of this cell type is pointed out by the multiple transdifferentiation events that lead to the generation of activated fibroblasts which can arise from resting fibroblasts, epithelial and endothelial cells as well as from mesenchymal stem cells. Cellular in vitro and in vivo experiments have changed the perspective of fibroblasts from passive “bystanders” in the tumor microenvironment to that of important drivers of tumor progression. Here, we describe the multiple origins of fibroblast recruitment to the tumor tissue as well as the function of activated fibroblasts during tumor initiation, progression, metastasis and anti-VEGF resistance. The identification of markers present in activated fibroblasts as well as a better understanding how these cells influence other tumor compartments has led to the clinical development of anti-tumor therapies.     

c-Myb is an evolutionary conserved miR-150 target and miR-150/c-Myb interaction is important for embryonic development

Human c-Myb proto-oncogene is highly expressed in hematopoietic progenitors as well as leukemia and certain solid tumor. However, the regulatory mechanisms of its expression and biological functions remain largely unclear. Recently, c-Myb has been shown to be targeted by microRNA-150 (miR-150) which thereby controls B cell differentiation in mice. In this study, we demonstrated that c-Myb is an evolutionary conserved target of miR-150 in human and zebrafish, using reporter assays. Ectopic expression of miR-150 in breast cancer and leukemic cells repressed endogenous c-Myb at both messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein levels. Among several leukemia cell lines, primary leukemia cells, and normal lymphocytes, expression levels of miR-150 inversely correlated with c-Myb. The miR-150 overexpression or c-Myb silencing in zebrafish zygotes led to similar and serious phenotypic defects in zebrafish, and the phenotypic aberrations induced by miR-150 could be reversed by coinjection of c-Myb mRNA. Our findings suggest that c-Myb is an evolutionally conserved target of miR-150 and miR-150/c-Myb interaction is important for embryonic development and possibly oncogenesis.     

Mitochondrial function in oncogene-transfected rat fibroblasts isolated from multicellular spheroids

Twomitochondrion-specific fluorochromes,10-N-nonyl acridineorange (NAO) and rhodamine 123 (Rh123), were used todetermine the mechanism responsible for alterations in energymetabolism of transformed rat embryo fibroblast cells isolated fromdifferent locations within multicellular spheroids. Accumulation ofRh123 depends on intact mitochondrial membrane potential, whereas NAO is taken up by mitochondria independently of their function and thusrepresents mitochondrial distribution only. A reproducible selectivedissociation procedure was used to isolate cells from differentlocations within the spheroids. After isolation, cells weresimultaneously stained with one mitochondrial stain and the DNA dyeHoechst 33342, and several parameters, including cell volume, weremonitored via multilaser-multiparameter flow cytometry. Our dataclearly show a decrease in the uptake of Rh123 in cells from theperiphery to the inner regions of the tumor spheroids, reflecting apersistent alteration in mitochondrial function. However, NAO stainingexperiments showed no reduction in the total mitochondrial mass perunit cell volume. Because cells were exposed to stain under uniformconditions after isolation from the spheroid, these data indicate thatdownregulation of mitochondrial function is associated with cellquiescence rather than a transient effect of reduced nutrientavailability. This result, which is in accordance with data from twoother cell lines (EMT6 and 9L), might reflect a general phenomenon inmulticellular spheroids, supporting the hypothesis that quiescent cellsin the innermost viable spheroid layer stably reduce theirmitochondrial function, presumably to compensate for lower nutrientsupply and/or decreased energy demand.

     

Mutant Parkin impairs mitochondrial function and morphology in human fibroblasts

Background

Mutations in Parkin are the most common cause of autosomal recessive Parkinson disease (PD). The mitochondrially localized E3 ubiquitin-protein ligase Parkin has been reported to be involved in respiratory chain function and mitochondrial dynamics. More recent publications also described a link between Parkin and mitophagy.

Methodology/Principal Findings

In this study, we investigated the impact of Parkin mutations on mitochondrial function and morphology in a human cellular model. Fibroblasts were obtained from three members of an Italian PD family with two mutations in Parkin (homozygous c.1072delT, homozygous delEx7, compound-heterozygous c.1072delT/delEx7), as well as from two relatives without mutations. Furthermore, three unrelated compound-heterozygous patients (delEx3-4/duplEx7-12, delEx4/c.924C>T and delEx1/c.924C>T) and three unrelated age-matched controls were included. Fibroblasts were cultured under basal or paraquat-induced oxidative stress conditions. ATP synthesis rates and cellular levels were detected luminometrically. Activities of complexes I-IV and citrate synthase were measured spectrophotometrically in mitochondrial preparations or cell lysates. The mitochondrial membrane potential was measured with 5,5′,6,6′-tetrachloro-1,1′,3,3′-tetraethylbenzimidazolylcarbocyanine iodide. Oxidative stress levels were investigated with the OxyBlot technique. The mitochondrial network was investigated immunocytochemically and the degree of branching was determined with image processing methods. We observed a decrease in the production and overall concentration of ATP coinciding with increased mitochondrial mass in Parkin-mutant fibroblasts. After an oxidative insult, the membrane potential decreased in patient cells but not in controls. We further determined higher levels of oxidized proteins in the mutants both under basal and stress conditions. The degree of mitochondrial network branching was comparable in mutants and controls under basal conditions and decreased to a similar extent under paraquat-induced stress.

Conclusions

Our results indicate that Parkin mutations cause abnormal mitochondrial function and morphology in non-neuronal human cells.     

Phenylalanyl synthetase function in cultured fibroblasts from subjects with progeria.

Since progeria cells contain a diversity of altered proteins, some aspects of phenylalanyl synthetase function were examined in semipurified extracts of cultured skin fibroblasts using mixed rabbit tRNA as acceptor. No significant differences were found in the Km and Vmax for phenylalanine or ATP in progeria cells compared with controls. Initial velocities of both progeria and control synthetases were lower at late passage owing to either reduced enzyme content or reduced catalytic efficiency. Reverse phase 5 chromatography of tRNAs acylated by progeria and control synthetases gave a single peak of labeled phenylalanine tRNA in all cases with no secondary peaks evident. Total activity of phenylalanyl synthetase in progeria cells was similar to that of control cells at early passage while late-passage control cells had lower specific activities of these synthetases per unit protein.     

Lysosomal function in the degradation of defective collagen in cultured lung fibroblasts

Human fibroblasts when induced to make nonhelical , defective collagen have mechanisms for degrading up to 30% of their newly synthesized collagen intracellularly prior to secretion. To determine if at least a portion of the degradation of defective collagen occurs by lysosomes, extracts of cultured HFL-1 fibroblasts were examined for proteinases capable of degrading denatured type I [3H]procollagen. The majority of the proteolytic activity against denatured [3H]-procollagen had a pH optimum of 3.5-4; it was stimulated by dithiothreitol and inhibited 95% by leupeptin, 10% by pepstatin, and 98% by leupeptin and pepstatin together. Extracts of purified lysosomes from the fibroblasts were active in degrading denatured [3H]procollagen and were completely inhibited by leupeptin and pepstatin. To demonstrate directly that human lung fibroblasts can translocate a portion of their defective collagen to lysosomes, cultured cells were incubated with cis-4-hydroxyproline and labeled with [14C]proline to cause the cells to make nonhelical [14C]procollagen. About 3% of the total intracellular hydroxy[14C]proline was found in lysosomes. If, however, the cells were also treated with NH4Cl, an inhibitor of lysosomal function, 18% of the intracellular hydroxy[14C]proline was found in lysosomes. These results demonstrate that cultured human lung fibroblasts induced to make defective collagen are capable of shunting a portion of such collagen to their lysosomes for intracellular degradation.     

The importance of the linker connecting the repeats of the c-Myb oncoprotein may be due to a positioning function.

The DNA-binding domain of the oncoprotein c-Myb consists of three imperfect tryptophan-rich repeats, R1, R2 and R3. Each repeat forms an independent mini-domain with a helix-turn-helix related motif and they are connected by linkers containing highly conserved residues. The location of the linker between two DNA-binding units suggests a function analogous to a dimerisation motif with a critical role in positioning the recognition helices of each mini-domain. Mutational analysis of the minimal DNA-binding domain of chicken c-Myb (R2 and R3), revealed that besides the recognition helices of each repeat, the linker connecting them was of critical importance in maintaining specific DNA-binding. A comparison of several linker sequences from different Myb proteins revealed a highly conserved motif of four amino acids in the first half of the linker: LNPE (L138 to E141 in chicken c-Myb R2R3). Substitution of residues within this sequence led to reduced stability of protein-DNA complexes and even loss of DNA-binding. The two most affected mutants showed increased accessibility to proteases, and fluorescence emission spectra and quenching experiments revealed greater average exposure of tryptophans which suggests changes in conformation of the proteins. From the structure of R2R3 we propose that the LNPE motif provides two functions: anchorage to the first repeat (through L) and determination of the direction of the bridge to the next repeat (through P).     

Transactivation of the human c-myc gene by c-Myb.

We analyse the contribution of six Myb-binding sites in the upstream c-myc sequences to transactivation by co-transfection assays. Surprisingly, deletion of the six Myb-binding sites did not influence the transactivation of c-myc by c-Myb protein. Instead, the strongest transactivation was observed with a c-myc reporter plasmid which contains only 450 bp of exon 1 including the c-myc promoter P2. An exchange of the DNA binding domain of c-Myb by that of GAL4 led only to small transactivation effects indicating that the DNA binding domain of c-Myb is essential for transactivation of the c-myc gene. These results suggest either an indirect transactivation mechanism of the c-myc gene by c-Myb proteins or a role of the DNA binding domain for additional effects than DNA binding.     

VIP and CRF reduce ADAMTS expression and function in osteoarthritis synovial fibroblasts

ADAMTS (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs) family is known to play an important role in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA), working on aggrecan degradation or altering the integrity of extracellular matrix (ECM). Thus, the main purpose of our study was to define the role of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and corticotrophin‐releasing factor (CRF), as immunoregulatory neuropeptides, on ADAMTS production in synovial fibroblasts (SF) from OA patients and healthy donors (HD). OA‐ and HD‐SF were stimulated with pro‐inflammatory mediators and treated with VIP or CRF. Both neuropeptides decreased ADAMTS‐4, ‐5, ‐7 and ‐12 expressions, aggrecanase activity, glycosaminoglycans (GAG), and cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP) degradation after stimulation with fibronectin fragments (Fn‐fs) in OA‐SF. After stimulation with interleukin‐1β, VIP reduced ADAMTS‐4 and ‐5, and both neuropeptides decreased ADAMTS‐7 production and COMP degradation. Moreover, VIP and CRF reduced Runx2 and β‐catenin activation in OA‐SF. Our data suggest that the role of VIP and CRF on ADAMTS expression and cartilage degradation could be related to the OA pathology since scarce effects were produced in HD‐SF. In addition, their effects might be greater when a degradation loop has been established, given that they were higher after stimulation with Fn‐fs. Our results point to novel OA therapies based on the use of neuropeptides, since VIP and CRF are able to stop the first critical step, the loss of cartilage aggrecan and the ECM destabilization during joint degradation.     

Antioxidant function of corneal ALDH3A1 in cultured stromal fibroblasts

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 3A1 (ALDH3A1) is highly expressed in epithelial cells and stromal keratocytes of mammalian cornea and is believed to play an important role in cellular defense. To explore a potential protective role against oxidative damage, a rabbit corneal fibroblastic cell line (TRK43) was stably transfected with the human ALDH3A1 and subjected to oxidative stress induced by H(2)O(2), mitomycin C (MMC), or etoposide (VP-16). ALDH3A1-transfected cells were more resistant to H(2)O(2,) MMC, and VP-16 compared to the vector-transfected cells. All treatments induced apoptosis only in vector-transfected cells, which was associated with increased levels of 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (4-HNE)-adducted proteins. Treatment with H(2)O(2) resulted in a rise in reduced glutathione (GSH) levels in all groups but was more pronounced in the ALDH3A1-expressing cells. Treatment with the DNA-damaging agents led to GSH depletion in control groups, although the depletion was significantly less in ALDH3A1-expressing cells. Increased carbonylation of ALDH3A1 but not significant decline in enzymatic activity was observed after all treatments. In conclusion, our results suggest that ALDH3A1 may act to protect corneal cells against cellular oxidative damage by metabolizing toxic lipid peroxidation products (e.g., 4-HNE), maintaining cellular GSH levels and redox balance, and operating as an antioxidant.     

Stable, detyrosinated microtubules function to localize vimentin intermediate filaments in fibroblasts

Separate populations of microtubules (MTs) distinguishable by their level of posttranslationally modified tubulin subunits and by their stability in vivo have been described. In polarized 3T3 cells at the edge of an in vitro wound, we have found a striking preferential coalignment of vimentin intermediate filaments (IFs) with detyrosinated MTs (Glu MTs) rather than with the bulk of the MTs, which were tyrosinated MTs (Tyr MTs). Vimentin IFs were not stabilizing the Glu MTs since collapse of the IF network to a perinuclear location, induced by microinjection of monoclonal anti-IF antibody, had no noticeable effect on the array of Glu MTs. To test whether Glu MTs may affect the organization of IFs we regrew MTs in cells that had been treated with nocodazole to depolymerize all the MTs and to collapse IFs; the reextension of IFs into the lamella lagged behind the rapid regrowth of Tyr MTs, but was correlated with the slower reformation of Glu MTs. Similar realignment of IFs with newly formed Glu MTs was observed in serum-starved cells treated with either serum or taxol to induce the formation of Glu MTs. Next, we microinjected affinity purified antibodies specific for Glu tubulin (polyclonal SG and monoclonal 4B8) and specific for Tyr tubulin (polyclonal W2 and monoclonal YL1/2) into 3T3 cells. Both injected SG and 4B8 antibodies labeled the subset of endogenous Glu MTs; W2 and YL1/2 antibodies labeled virtually all of the cytoplasmic MTs. Injection of SG or 4B8 resulted in the collapse of IFs to a perinuclear region. This collapse was comparable to that observed after complete MT depolymerization by nocodazole. Injection of W2, YL1/2, or nonspecific control IgGs did not result in collapse of the IFs. Taken together, these results show that Glu MTs localize IFs in migrating 3T3 fibroblasts and suggest that detyrosination of tubulin acts as a signal for the recruitment of vimentin IFs to MTs.     

Reversible inhibition of nucleolar function in fibroblasts treated in vitro with adriamycin]

In chick embryo fibroblasts treated in vitro with adriamycin, the mitotic activity is strongly depressed, the nucleoli are altered, nucleolar RNA synthesis is inhibited and the RNA content is lowered. These effects can be concomitantly and spontaneously reversible, but the mitotic activity does not resume.