Cu,Zn-Superoxide Dismutase Increases Toxicity of Mutant and Zinc-deficient Superoxide Dismutase by Enhancing Protein Stability

When replete with zinc and copper, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)-associated mutant SOD proteins can protect motor neurons in culture from trophic factor deprivation as efficiently as wild-type SOD. However, the removal of zinc from either mutant or wild-type SOD results in apoptosis of motor neurons through a copper- and peroxynitrite-dependent mechanism. It has also been shown that motor neurons isolated from transgenic mice expressing mutant SODs survive well in culture but undergo apoptosis when exposed to nitric oxide via a Fas-dependent mechanism. We combined these two parallel approaches for understanding SOD toxicity in ALS and found that zinc-deficient SOD-induced motor neuron death required Fas activation, whereas the nitric oxide-dependent death of G93A SOD-expressing motor neurons required copper and involved peroxynitrite formation. Surprisingly, motor neuron death doubled when Cu,Zn-SOD protein was either delivered intracellularly to G93A SOD-expressing motor neurons or co-delivered with zinc-deficient SOD to nontransgenic motor neurons. These results could be rationalized by biophysical data showing that heterodimer formation of Cu,Zn-SOD with zinc-deficient SOD prevented the monomerization and subsequent aggregation of zinc-deficient SOD under thiol-reducing conditions. ALS mutant SOD was also stabilized by mutating cysteine 111 to serine, which greatly increased the toxicity of zinc-deficient SOD. Thus, stabilization of ALS mutant SOD by two different approaches augmented its toxicity to motor neurons. Taken together, these results are consistent with copper-containing zinc-deficient SOD being the elusive “partially unfolded intermediate” responsible for the toxic gain of function conferred by ALS mutant SOD.     

Ghrelin 对缺氧复氧状态下脂肪间充质干细胞保护作用的研究

目的:探讨缺氧复氧损伤环境下Ghrelin对脂肪来源的间充质干细胞(AD-MSCs)的保护作用,以寻求AD-MSCs心肌内移植的有利因素。方法:采用胶原酶消化法分离小鼠AD-MSCs,流式细胞术鉴定其标志。建立缺氧/复氧细胞模型,分3组:①对照组;②缺氧/复氧组(H/R);③H/R+Ghrelin(浓度分别为10-9、10-8、10-7mol/L)干预组。MTT法测定各组细胞增殖,TUNEL法检测细胞凋亡。结果:流式细胞术结果显示AD-MSCs CD44及CD90阳性,CD34、CD45阴性。AD-MSCs MTT分析显示在缺氧环境中,Ghrelin相比于单纯H/R组能够显著促进AD-MSCs的存活与增殖,并抑制其凋亡(P<0.05)。结论:Ghrelin可以明显提高缺氧复氧环境下AD-MSCs的生存与增殖,抑制缺氧诱导的凋亡发生,有望为心肌梗死的干细胞移植治疗创造新的有利因素。     

Ghrelin对缺氧复氧状态下脂肪间充质干细胞保护作用的研究

目的：探讨缺氧复氧损伤环境下Ghrelin对脂肪来源的间充质干细胞（AD-MSCs）的保护作用,以寻求AD-MSCs心肌内移植的有利因素。方法：采用胶原酶消化法分离小鼠AD-MSCs,流式细胞术鉴定其标志。建立缺氧/复氧细胞模型,分3组：①对照组;②缺氧/复氧组（H/R）;③H/R＋Ghrelin（浓度分别为10-9、10-8、10-7mol/L）干预组。MTT法测定各组细胞增殖,TUNEL法检测细胞凋亡。结果：流式细胞术结果显示AD-MSCs CD44及CD90阳性,CD34、CD45阴性。AD-MSCs MTT分析显示在缺氧环境中,Ghrelin相比于单纯H/R组能够显著促进AD-MSCs的存活与增殖,并抑制其凋亡（P〈0.05）。结论：Ghrelin可以明显提高缺氧复氧环境下AD-MSCs的生存与增殖,抑制缺氧诱导的凋亡发生,有望为心肌梗死的干细胞移植治疗创造新的有利因素。     

Occurrence of Cu,Zn-Superoxide Dismutase in the Intrathylakoid Space of Spinach Chloroplasts

Thylakoids obtained from intact spinach chloroplasts showedno superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, but Cu,Zn- and Mn-SODactivities were detected in the presence of Triton X-100. Thylakoidmembranes and the lumen fraction were separated by centrifugationafter treatment of the thylakoids with a Yeda pressure cell.Cu,Zn-SOD was found in the lumen fraction. Mn-SOD was detectedin the thylakoid fraction only after addition of 1% Triton X-100.Antibody against spinach Cu,Zn-SOD did not interact with thelatent Cu,Zn-SOD in the thylakoids unless Triton was added.These results indicate that Cu,Zn-SOD occurs in the lumen inaddition to the stroma of spinach chloroplasts, and Mn-SOD bindsto the thylakoid membranes. (Received February 29, 1984; Accepted May 28, 1984)     

脂肪间充质干细胞的分离培养、多向分化及其应用前景

脂肪组织几乎遍布于动物体全身,在整个生命过程中有极强的可塑性. 近年研究表明,运用相似的分离方法,可从人、小鼠、大鼠、兔和猪等物种脂肪组织中分离获得脂肪间充质干细胞. 与骨髓来源的间充质干细胞相比,它具有相似的表面标记和分化潜能;在合适的诱导条件下,这种细胞能分别向3个胚层的细胞分化,如成肌细胞、心肌细胞、软骨细胞、成骨细胞、脂肪细胞、神经细胞、血管内皮细胞和肝细胞等;脂肪间充质干细胞具有来源丰富,取材安全方便和扩增速率高的特点,使其在细胞治疗和组织工程方面具有更广阔的应用前景.     

Activation of Cu,Zn-Superoxide Dismutase in the Absence of Oxygen and the Copper Chaperone CCS

Eukaryotic Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutases (SOD1s) are generally thought to acquire the essential copper cofactor and intramolecular disulfide bond through the action of the CCS copper chaperone. However, several metazoan SOD1s have been shown to acquire activity in vivo in the absence of CCS, and the Cu,Zn-SOD from Caenorhabditis elegans has evolved complete independence from CCS. To investigate SOD1 activation in the absence of CCS, we compared and contrasted the CCS-independent activation of C. elegans and human SOD1 to the strict CCS-dependent activation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae SOD1. Using a yeast expression system, both pathways were seen to acquire copper derived from cell surface transporters and compete for the same intracellular pool of copper. Like CCS, CCS-independent activation occurs rapidly with a preexisting pool of apo-SOD1 without the need for new protein synthesis. The two pathways, however, strongly diverge when assayed for the SOD1 disulfide. SOD1 molecules that are activated without CCS exhibit disulfide oxidation in vivo without oxygen and under copper-depleted conditions. The strict requirement for copper, oxygen, and CCS in disulfide bond oxidation appears exclusive to yeast SOD1, and we find that a unique proline at position 144 in yeast SOD1 is responsible for this disulfide effect. CCS-dependent and -independent pathways also exhibit differential requirements for molecular oxygen. CCS activation of SOD1 requires oxygen, whereas the CCS-independent pathway is able to activate SOD1s even under anaerobic conditions. In this manner, Cu,Zn-SOD from metazoans may retain activity over a wide range of physiological oxygen tensions.Oxygen is essential for aerobic respiration, but reactive byproducts of oxygen metabolism, such as the superoxide anion, can damage cellular molecules, including proteins, DNA, and lipids (1–3). SOD1s (copper- and zinc-containing superoxide dismutases) provide the primary defense against superoxide damage by catalytically removing it through a disproportionation reaction (4). This reaction involves redox cycling at the copper active site (5). SOD1s require several post-translational modifications to form an active molecule. Copper and zinc are bound by the enzyme, and an intramolecular disulfide bond is formed between two conserved cysteine residues. Although the zinc ion and disulfide bond are not directly involved in the disproportionation reaction, these modifications are required for proper stability and formation of the active site (6–10). The presence of an intramolecular disulfide bond is intriguing, given the fact that the cytosol favors reduced thiols.The activity of SOD1s in vivo is largely controlled through the aforementioned post-translational modifications. Most of what is currently known about activation of SOD1 in vivo has emerged through studies of the bakers'' yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae SOD1. Here insertion of the catalytic copper requires the action of the copper chaperone for SOD³ (CCS) (11). CCS physically interacts with SOD1 to deliver the copper ion and catalyze the disulfide bond formation in an oxygen-dependent manner (12–15). In fact, S. cerevisiae SOD1 (ySOD1) is completely dependent on CCS for insertion of the catalytic copper and oxidation of the disulfide bond (11, 15, 16).Although ySOD1 is dependent on CCS for activity, other eukaryotic SOD1s are not. Mouse and human SOD1 (hSOD1), when expressed in CCS^−/− mouse fibroblasts and in ccs1Δ yeast, still retain some SOD1 activity (17–19). Moreover, the genome for the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans does not contain a CCS-like gene, yet harbors several Cu,Zn-SODs. Previous studies with C. elegans SOD-1 (wSOD-1) have shown that this SOD is activated completely independently of CCS (20). Together, these studies present a strong case for a second SOD1 activation mechanism independent of CCS.There must be inherent differences in SOD1 sequences that dictate whether the enzyme uses CCS or the CCS-independent pathway or both. Through targeted mutagenesis, sequences near the C terminus have been previously identified as being important (19). Yeast SOD1 contains dual prolines at positions 142 and 144, which when mutated in combination allow for CCS-independent activation. Conversely, hSOD1 and wSOD-1 contain non-proline residues at these positions, and if dual prolines are introduced, then CSS-independent activation is blocked (19, 20). How this pair of prolines influences SOD1 activation is not understood.It is interesting that nature has developed two activation mechanisms for such a key enzyme in oxidative stress protection, and these are not likely to be redundant. It was previously predicted that the two pathways draw upon distinct sources of copper (19), since the addition of the catalytic copper ion is limiting for enzyme activation. However, since disulfide oxidation is also limiting for enzyme activity, it is possible that the two pathways diverge at this level. In the current study, we investigate the requirements and regulation of the CCS-dependent and -independent SOD1 activation pathways. Our results strongly indicate that the two pathways do not diverge at the level of upstream copper transporter sources or the kinetics of copper incorporation into SOD1 but rather at the level of disulfide bond formation. Copper is required for CCS-mediated disulfide bond oxidation in yeast SOD1, whereas SOD1s that can be activated without CCS show no such requirement for copper in disulfide oxidation. Moreover, oxygen is required for enzyme activation through CCS, but the CCS-independent pathway is able to bypass the need for molecular oxygen. This allows for significant SOD1 activity to be found at a variety of oxygen concentrations by utilizing two activation pathways.     

Mutation-dependent Polymorphism of Cu,Zn-Superoxide Dismutase Aggregates in the Familial Form of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

More than 100 different mutations in Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase (SOD1) are linked to a familial form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (fALS). Pathogenic mutations facilitate fibrillar aggregation of SOD1, upon which significant structural changes of SOD1 have been assumed; in general, however, a structure of protein aggregate remains obscure. Here, we have identified a protease-resistant core in wild-type as well as fALS-causing mutant SOD1 aggregates. Three different regions within an SOD1 sequence are found as building blocks for the formation of an aggregate core, and fALS-causing mutations modulate interactions among these three regions to form a distinct core, namely SOD1 aggregates exhibit mutation-dependent structural polymorphism, which further regulates biochemical properties of aggregates such as solubility. Based upon these results, we propose a new pathomechanism of fALS in which mutation-dependent structural polymorphism of SOD1 aggregates can affect disease phenotypes.     

人脐带间充质干细胞对CCl4诱导肝纤维化的治疗作用研究

目的：探讨人脐带间充质干细胞（UC-MSC）治疗肝纤维化的可行性。方法：采用CCL腹腔注射小鼠制备肝纤维化模型,分别于第4、10周给予尾静脉注射移植UC-MSC进行治疗,检测治疗后血清学指标的改变和病理变化,观察UC-MSC对肝纤维化的疗效。结果：4周和10周进行治疗均可改善肝功能,减轻纤维化程度。结论：UC-MSC对CCl4诱导的肝纤维化具有一定的疗效。     

Metal-Free ALS Variants of Dimeric Human Cu,Zn-Superoxide Dismutase Have Enhanced Populations of Monomeric Species

Amino acid replacements at dozens of positions in the dimeric protein human, Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1) can cause amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Although it has long been hypothesized that these mutations might enhance the populations of marginally-stable aggregation-prone species responsible for cellular toxicity, there has been little quantitative evidence to support this notion. Perturbations of the folding free energy landscapes of metal-free versions of five ALS-inducing variants, A4V, L38V, G93A, L106V and S134N SOD1, were determined with a global analysis of kinetic and thermodynamic folding data for dimeric and stable monomeric versions of these variants. Utilizing this global analysis approach, the perturbations on the global stability in response to mutation can be partitioned between the monomer folding and association steps, and the effects of mutation on the populations of the folded and unfolded monomeric states can be determined. The 2- to 10-fold increase in the population of the folded monomeric state for A4V, L38V and L106V and the 80- to 480-fold increase in the population of the unfolded monomeric states for all but S134N would dramatically increase their propensity for aggregation through high-order nucleation reactions. The wild-type-like populations of these states for the metal-binding region S134N variant suggest that even wild-type SOD1 may also be prone to aggregation in the absence of metals.     

经血源子宫内膜干细胞培养、鉴定及体外分化潜能的研究

现阶段干细胞的来源常具有侵入性,该文旨在研究新来源于经血的经血源子宫内膜干细胞（menstrual blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells,MenSCs）的基本生物学特性及分化潜能。采用密度梯度法从女性经血中分离MenSCs,测定MenSCs群体倍增时间,流式细胞仪鉴定细胞表面抗原,免疫荧光法检测MenSCs nestin阳性表达情况,体外验证其成骨成脂分化潜能。结果表明,MenSCs具有典型的梭状结构,细胞倍增时间为32.2 h,均一地高表达CD29、CD90及CD105,不表达CD14、CD45、HLA-DR。免疫荧光表明,MenSCs为nestin阳性。MenSCs成脂诱导后,油红O染色为阳性。成骨诱导前期诱导组细胞胶原表达量升高,诱导两周后MenSCs形成钙结节,诱导组细胞ALP（alkaline phosphatase）活性连续3周呈上升趋势。以上证明,MenSCs具有来源广泛的优势,具有较高的增殖能力、较低免疫原性、nestin阳性及多向分化潜能等特性,可成为干细胞治疗的理想种子细胞。     

间充质干细胞在疾病治疗中的应用潜力

间充质干细胞（mesenchymal stem cell,MSCs）是衍生自中胚层的多能细胞,可产生多种间充质谱系,包括成骨细胞、脂肪细胞、成软骨细胞和肌细胞。MSCs还具有分泌多种细胞因子的能力,可促进血管生成、上皮再生等,在再生医学领域具有巨大的潜力。研究证实,MSCs可通过分化为多种细胞类型促进组织再生,加速伤口愈合;通过分泌细胞因子改善组织纤维化;还可通过携带载体药物诱导肿瘤细胞的凋亡,抑制肿瘤的发展。然而MSCs的成纤维化潜能和促进肿瘤生长的能力降低了MSCs应用于临床治疗的安全性。总结了MSCs在肿瘤、慢性难愈合伤口、纤维化等疾病发展过程中的作用,并进一步讨论了MSCs在临床相关疾病治疗中的潜在应用价值及挑战,以期为间充质干细胞的临床应用提供参考。     

间充质干细胞治疗产品开发现状与趋势

目的:从产品开发角度分析间充质干细胞治疗产品的发展现状和未来趋势。方法:检索科睿唯安(Clarivate Analytics)的Cortellis数据库的数据,利用定量分析法和对比分析法对检索结果进行分析。结果:目前已有5种间充质干细胞治疗产品上市,9种间充质干细胞治疗产品处于注册及临床Ⅲ期,未来市场上的间充质干细胞治疗产品将呈现快速增长趋势。Mesoblast、FCB等公司在间充质干细胞治疗产品的拥有量上具有优势。间充质干细胞产业内部的商业交易也越来越多,目前共发生包括药物开发及商业化许可、专利资产出售以及早期药物研发合作等12起交易,其中药物开发及商业化许可是最主要的交易模式。尽管中国的间充质干细胞治疗产品研究尚处于起步阶段,但中国的西比曼生物、北科生物等公司已有多款产品处于临床阶段,中国本土的间充质干细胞治疗产品前景可期。结论:虽然间充质干细胞治疗产品市场尚处于起步阶段,但其技术发展快,市场需求大,相关企业产品研发与商品化积极性高,上升潜力巨大。     

Differentiation Potential of Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Stimulation of Nerve Regeneration

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are widely used in experimental research on cell therapy intended for the stimulation of repair processes in damaged tissues and organs. The present review summarizes the results of studies devoted to the possible directions of MSC differentiation after the transplantation of these cells into damaged nerves or special engineered structures of biological and artificial biodegradable materials that join the ends of a damaged nerve (nerve conduits). Data on exogenous MSC differentiation into Schwann cells, pericytes, smooth muscle cells, endotheliocytes, and other cell types are presented. Methods for preliminary MSC differentiation in vitro and examples of beneficial effects of these cells transplanted into damaged conductive nerves on nerve regeneration are given. The fate of exogenous MSCs placed into an unnatural biological niche remains poorly characterized and requires further studies, as emphasized in the review.     

Morphology-Based Prediction of Osteogenic Differentiation Potential of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs) are widely used cell source for clinical bone regeneration. Achieving the greatest therapeutic effect is dependent on the osteogenic differentiation potential of the stem cells to be implanted. However, there are still no practical methods to characterize such potential non-invasively or previously. Monitoring cellular morphology is a practical and non-invasive approach for evaluating osteogenic potential. Unfortunately, such image-based approaches had been historically qualitative and requiring experienced interpretation. By combining the non-invasive attributes of microscopy with the latest technology allowing higher throughput and quantitative imaging metrics, we studied the applicability of morphometric features to quantitatively predict cellular osteogenic potential. We applied computational machine learning, combining cell morphology features with their corresponding biochemical osteogenic assay results, to develop prediction model of osteogenic differentiation. Using a dataset of 9,990 images automatically acquired by BioStation CT during osteogenic differentiation culture of hBMSCs, 666 morphometric features were extracted as parameters. Two commonly used osteogenic markers, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and calcium deposition were measured experimentally, and used as the true biological differentiation status to validate the prediction accuracy. Using time-course morphological features throughout differentiation culture, the prediction results highly correlated with the experimentally defined differentiation marker values (R>0.89 for both marker predictions). The clinical applicability of our morphology-based prediction was further examined with two scenarios: one using only historical cell images and the other using both historical images together with the patient''s own cell images to predict a new patient''s cellular potential. The prediction accuracy was found to be greatly enhanced by incorporation of patients'' own cell features in the modeling, indicating the practical strategy for clinical usage. Consequently, our results provide strong evidence for the feasibility of using a quantitative time series of phase-contrast cellular morphology for non-invasive cell quality prediction in regenerative medicine.     

Membrane Potential Controls Adipogenic and Osteogenic Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Background

Control of stem cell behavior is a crucial aspect of developmental biology and regenerative medicine. While the functional role of electrophysiology in stem cell biology is poorly understood, it has become clear that endogenous ion flows represent a powerful set of signals by means of which cell proliferation, differentiation, and migration can be controlled in regeneration and embryonic morphogenesis.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We examined the membrane potential (V_mem) changes exhibited by human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) undergoing adipogenic (AD) and osteogenic (OS) differentiation, and uncovered a characteristic hyperpolarization of differentiated cells versus undifferentiated cells. Reversal of the progressive polarization via pharmacological modulation of transmembrane potential revealed that depolarization of hMSCs prevents differentiation. In contrast, treatment with hyperpolarizing reagents upregulated osteogenic markers.

Conclusions/Significance

Taken together, these data suggest that the endogenous hyperpolarization is a functional determinant of hMSC differentiation and is a tractable control point for modulating stem cell function.     

Impact of the Uremic Milieu on the Osteogenic Potential of Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs), the precursors of osteoblasts during osteogenesis, play a role in the balance of bone formation and resorption, but their functioning in uremia has not been well defined. To study the effects of the uremic milieu on osteogenic properties, we applied an in vitro assay culturing hMSCs in osteogenic medium supplemented with serum from healthy donors and from uremic patients on hemodialysis. Compared to control, serum from uremic patients induces, in hMSC cultures, a modification of several key regulators of bone remodeling, in particular a reduction of the ratio Receptor Activator of Nuclear factor Kappa B Receptor (RANKL) over osteoprotegerin, indicating an adaptive response of the system to favor osteogenesis over osteoclastosis. However, the levels of osteopontin, osteocalcin, and collagen type I, are increased in cell medium, while BMP-2, and alizarin red staining were decreased, pointing to a reduction of bone formation favoring resorption. Selected uremic toxins, such as p-cresylsulfate, p-cresylglucuronide, parathyroid hormone, indoxyl sulfate, asymmetric dimethylarginine, homocysteine, were able to mimic some of the effects of whole serum from uremic patients. Serum from cinacalcet-treated patients antagonizes these effects. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) donors as well as hemodialysis treatment are able to induce beneficial effects. In conclusion, bone modifications in uremia are influenced by the capability of the uremic milieu to alter hMSC osteogenic differentiation. Cinacalcet, H2S donors and a hemodialysis session can ameliorate the hampered calcium deposition.     

Potential of Mesenchymal Stem Cells by Adenovirus-Mediated Erythropoietin Gene Therapy Approaches for Bone Defect

Regeneration of large bone defects is a common clinical problem. Recent studies have shown that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have emerged as a promising alternative to traditional surgical techniques. However, it is still a key question how to enhance the osteogenic potential of MSCs for possible clinical trials. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of adenovirus-mediated erythropoietin (Ad-EPO) transfer on BMSCs, we performed extensive in vitro/in vivo assays in this study. Flow cytometry analysis and the result of MTT showed that EPO could promote BMSCs proliferation. QPCR data demonstrated that EPO increased expressions of Runx2, Sp7, and Col1 in osteoblast at various time points and also increased alkaline phosphatase activity and the calcium deposition. These results indicate that EPO can increase the differentiation of osteoblast. Importantly, in vivo assays clearly demonstrate that EPO can efficiently induce new bone formation in the bone defect model. Our results strongly suggest that EPO can affect osteoblast differentiation and play important roles in bone regeneration leading to an increase in bone formation.     

Chloroplast and Cytosol Isozymes of Cu,Zn-Superoxide Dismutase: Their Characteristic Amino Acid Sequences

lsozymes of CuZn-superoxide dismutase (SOD) were purified from angiosperms (spinach and rice), fern (horsetail) and green alga (Spirogyra). Occurrence of CuZn-SOD was confirmed by its purification in the group of green algae which shows the phragmoplast type of cell division. Purified CuZn-SODS are divided to chloroplast and cytosol types by their cellular localization and immunological properties. Their amino acid compositions, absorption spectra, CD spectra, and sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide also are distinguished from each other. All organisms including Spirogyra contain both types of isozyme. Thus, the divergence of the two types of CuZn-SOD isozyme occurred immediately after its acquisition by the most evolved green algae.

Amino acid sequences of amino-terminal regions of CuZn-SOD isozyrnes from spinach, rice and horsetail were determined and compared with those of CuZn-SODS from other plants. The chloroplast and cytosol isozymes of CuZn-SOD show each characteristic sequences. Sequence differences among the cytosol CuZn-SODS are greater than those among the chloroplast CuZn-SODS. These observations indicate that each type of isozyme had independently evolved after the acquisition of CuZn-SOD.