A novel radioresistant mechanism of galectin-1 mediated by H-Ras-dependent pathways in cervical cancer cells

Galectin-1 is a lectin recognized by galactoside-containing glycoproteins, and is involved in cancer progression and metastasis. The role of galectin-1 in radiosensitivity has not previously been investigated. Therefore, this study tests whether galectin-1 is involved in the radiosensitivity mediated by the H-Ras signaling pathway using cervical carcinoma cell lines. A knockdown of galectin-1 expression in HeLa cells decreased clonogenic survival following irradiation. The clonogenic survival increased in both HeLa and C33A cells with galectin-1 overexpression. The overexpression or knockdown of galectin-1 did not alter radiosensitivity, whereas H-Ras was silenced in both cell lines. Whereas K-Ras was knocked down, galectin-1 restored the radiosensitivity in HeLa cells and C33A cells. The knockdown of galectin-1 increased the high-dose radiation-induced cell death of HeLa cells transfected by constitutively active H-Ras. The knockdown of galectin-1 inhibited the radiation-induced phosphorylation of Raf-1 and ERK in HeLa cells. Overexpression of galectin-1 enhanced the phosphorylation of Raf-1 and ERK in C33A cells following irradiation. Galectin-1 decreased the DNA damage detected using comet assay and γ-H2AX in both cells following irradiation. These findings suggest that galectin-1 mediates radioresistance through the H-Ras-dependent pathway involved in DNA damage repair.     

H-Ras Nanocluster Stability Regulates the Magnitude of MAPK Signal Output

H-Ras is a binary switch that is activated by multiple co-factors and triggers several key cellular pathways one of which is MAPK. The specificity and magnitude of downstream activation is achieved by the spatio-temporal organization of the active H-Ras in the plasma membrane. Upon activation, the GTP bound H-Ras binds to Galectin-1 (Gal-1) and becomes transiently immobilized in short-lived nanoclusters on the plasma membrane from which the signal is propagated to Raf. In the current study we show that stabilizing the H-Ras-Gal-1 interaction, using bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC), leads to prolonged immobilization of H-Ras.GTP in the plasma membrane which was measured by fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP), and increased signal out-put to the MAPK module. EM measurements of Raf recruitment to the H-Ras.GTP nanoclusters demonstrated that the enhanced signaling observed in the BiFC stabilized H-Ras.GTP nanocluster was attributed to increased H-Ras immobilization rather than to an increase in Raf recruitment. Taken together these data demonstrate that the magnitude of the signal output from a GTP-bound H-Ras nanocluster is proportional to its stability.     

Suppression of integrin activation by activated Ras or Raf does not correlate with bulk activation of ERK MAP kinase

The rapid modulation of ligand-binding affinity ("activation") is a central property of the integrin family of cell adhesion receptors. The Ras family of small GTP-binding proteins and their downstream effectors are key players in regulating integrin activation. H-Ras can suppress integrin activation in fibroblasts via its downstream effector kinase, Raf-1. In contrast, to H-Ras, a closely related small GTP-binding protein R-Ras has the opposite activity, and promotes integrin activation. To gain insight into the regulation of integrin activation by Ras GTPases, we created a series of H-Ras/R-Ras chimeras. We found that a 35-amino acid stretch of H-Ras was required for full suppressive activity. Furthermore, the suppressive chimeras were weak activators of the ERK1/2 MAP kinase pathway, suggesting that the suppression of integrin activation may be independent of the activation of the bulk of ERK MAP kinase. Additional data demonstrating that the ability of H-Ras or Raf-1 to suppress integrin activation was unaffected by inhibition of bulk ERK1/2 MAP kinase activation supported this hypothesis. Thus, the suppression of integrin activation is a Raf kinase induced regulatory event that can be mediated independently of bulk activation of the ERK MAP-kinase pathway.     

Advanced Glycation End Products Affect Osteoblast Proliferation and Function by Modulating Autophagy Via the Receptor of Advanced Glycation End Products/Raf Protein/Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase/Extracellular Signal-regulated Kinase Kinase/Extracellular Signal-regulated Kinase (RAGE/Raf/MEK/ERK) Pathway

The interaction between advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and receptor of AGEs (RAGE) is associated with the development and progression of diabetes-associated osteoporosis, but the mechanisms involved are still poorly understood. In this study, we found that AGE-modified bovine serum albumin (AGE-BSA) induced a biphasic effect on the viability of hFOB1.19 cells; cell proliferation was stimulated after exposure to low dose AGE-BSA, but cell apoptosis was stimulated after exposure to high dose AGE-BSA. The low dose AGE-BSA facilitates proliferation of hFOB1.19 cells by concomitantly promoting autophagy, RAGE production, and the Raf/MEK/ERK signaling pathway activation. Furthermore, we investigated the effects of AGE-BSA on the function of hFOB1.19 cells. Interestingly, the results suggest that the short term effects of low dose AGE-BSA increase osteogenic function and decrease osteoclastogenic function, which are likely mediated by autophagy and the RAGE/Raf/MEK/ERK signal pathway. In contrast, with increased treatment time, the opposite effects were observed. Collectively, AGE-BSA had a biphasic effect on the viability of hFOB1.19 cells in vitro, which was determined by the concentration of AGE-BSA and treatment time. A low concentration of AGE-BSA activated the Raf/MEK/ERK signal pathway through the interaction with RAGE, induced autophagy, and regulated the proliferation and function of hFOB1.19 cells.     

Oncogenic Ras leads to Rho activation by activating the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway and decreasing Rho-GTPase-activating protein activity

Transformation by oncogenic Ras requires signaling through Rho family proteins including RhoA, but the mechanism(s) whereby oncogenic Ras regulates the activity of RhoA is (are) unknown. We examined the effect of Ras on RhoA activity in NIH 3T3 cells either stably transfected with H-Ras(V12) under control of an inducible promoter or transiently expressing the activated H-Ras. Using a novel method to quantitate enzymatically the GTP bound to Rho, we found that expression of the oncogenic Ras increased Rho activity approximately 2-fold. Increased Rho activity was associated with increased plasma membrane binding of RhoA and decreased activity of the Rho/Ras-regulated p21(WAF1/CIP1) promoter. RhoA activation by oncogenic Ras could be explained by a decrease in cytosolic p190 Rho-GAP activity and translocation of p190 Rho-GAP from the cytosol to a detergent-insoluble cytoskeletal fraction. Pharmacologic inhibition of the Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK pathway prevented Ras-induced activation of RhoA and translocation of p190 Rho-GAP; expression of constitutively active Raf-1 kinase or MEK was sufficient to induce p190 Rho-GAP translocation. We conclude that in NIH 3T3 cells oncogenic Ras activates RhoA through the Raf/MEK/ERK pathway by decreasing the cytosolic activity and changing the subcellular localization of p190 Rho-GAP.     

Exosomes derived from human mesenchymal stem cells confer drug resistance in gastric cancer

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) play an important role in chemoresistance. Exosomes have been reported to modify cellular phenotype and function by mediating cell-cell communication. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether exosomes derived from MSCs (MSC-exosomes) are involved in mediating the resistance to chemotherapy in gastric cancer and to explore the underlying molecular mechanism. We found that MSC-exosomes significantly induced the resistance of gastric cancer cells to 5-fluorouracil both in vivo and ex vivo. MSC-exosomes antagonized 5-fluorouracil-induced apoptosis and enhanced the expression of multi-drug resistance associated proteins, including MDR, MRP and LRP. Mechanistically, MSC-exosomes triggered the activation of calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinases (CaM-Ks) and Raf/MEK/ERK kinase cascade in gastric cancer cells. Blocking the CaM-Ks/Raf/MEK/ERK pathway inhibited the promoting role of MSC-exosomes in chemoresistance. Collectively, MSC-exosomes could induce drug resistance in gastric cancer cells by activating CaM-Ks/Raf/MEK/ERK pathway. Our findings suggest that MSC-exosomes have profound effects on modifying gastric cancer cells in the development of drug resistance. Targeting the interaction between MSC-exosomes and cancer cells may help improve the efficacy of chemotherapy in gastric cancer.     

Diabetic retinopathy and signaling mechanism for activation of matrix metalloproteinase-9

In the pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy, H-Ras (a small molecular weight G-protein) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP9) act as pro-apoptotic, accelerating the apoptosis of retinal capillary cells, a phenomenon that predicts its development and the activation of MMP9 is under the control of H-Ras. The goal of this study is to elucidate the cellular mechanism by which H-Ras activates MMP9 culminating in the development of diabetic retinopathy. Using isolated retinal endothelial cells, the effect of regulation of H-Ras downstream signaling cascade, Raf-1, MEK, and ERK, was investigated on glucose-induced activation of MMP9. In vitro results were confirmed in the retina obtained from diabetic mice manipulated for MMP9 gene, and also in the retinal microvasculature obtained from human donors with diabetic retinopathy. Regulation of Raf-1/MEK/ERK by their specific siRNAs and pharmacologic inhibitors prevented glucose-induced activation of MMP9 in retinal endothelial cells. In MMP9-KO mice, diabetes had no effect on retinal MMP9 activation, and H-Ras/Raf-1/MEK signaling cascade remained normal. Similarly, donors with diabetic retinopathy had increased MMP9 activity in their retinal microvessels, the site of histopathology associated with diabetic retinopathy, and this was accompanied by activated H-Ras signaling pathway (Raf-1/ERK). Collectively, these results suggest that Ras/Raf-1/MEK/ERK cascade has an important role in the activation of retinal MMP9 resulting in the apoptosis of its capillary cells. Understanding the upstream mechanism responsible for the activation of MMP9 should help identify novel molecular targets for future pharmacological interventions to inhibit the development/progression of diabetic retinopathy.     

A human protein selected for interference with Ras function interacts directly with Ras and competes with Raf1.

The overexpression of some human proteins can cause interference with the Ras signal transduction pathway in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The functional block is located at the level of the effector itself, since these proteins do not suppress activating mutations further downstream in the same pathway. We now demonstrate, with in vivo and in vitro experiments, that the protein encoded by one human cDNA (clone 99) can interact directly with yeast Ras2p and with human H-Ras protein, and we have named this gene rin1 (Ras interaction/interference). The interaction between Ras and Rin1 is enhanced when Ras is bound to GTP. Rin1 is not able to interact with either an effector mutant or a dominant negative mutant of H-Ras. Thus, Rin1 displays a human H-Ras interaction profile that is the same as that seen for Raf1 and yeast adenylyl cyclase, two known effectors of Ras. Moreover, Raf1 directly competes with Rin1 for binding to H-Ras in vitro. Unlike Raf1, however, the Rin1 protein resides primarily at the plasma membrane, where H-Ras is localized. These data are consistent with Rin1 functioning in mammalian cells as an effector or regulator of H-Ras.     

Activation of the Raf/MAP kinase cascade by the Ras-related protein TC21 is required for the TC21-mediated transformation of NIH 3T3 cells

TC21 is a member of the Ras superfamily of small GTP-binding proteins and, like Ras, has been implicated in the regulation of growth-stimulating pathways. Point mutations introduced into TC21 based on equivalent H-Ras oncogenic mutations are transforming in cultured cells, and oncogenic mutations in TC21 have been isolated from several human tumours. The mechanism of TC21 signalling in transformation is poorly understood. While activation of the serine/threonine kinases Raf-1 and B-Raf has been implicated in signalling pathways leading to transformation by H-Ras, it has been argued that TC21 does not activate Raf-1 or B-Raf. Since the Raf-signalling pathway is important in transformation by other Ras proteins, we assessed whether the Raf pathway is important to transformation by TC21. Raf-1 and B-Raf are constitutively active in TC21-transformed cells and the ERK/MAPK cascade is required for the maintenance of the transformed state. We demonstrate that oncogenic V23 TC21, like Ras, interacts with Raf-1 and B-Raf (but not with A-Raf), resulting in the translocation of the Raf proteins to the plasma membrane and in their activation. Furthermore, using point mutations in the effector loop of TC21, we show that the interaction of TC21 with Raf-1 is crucial for transformation.     

Raf-Induced Cell Cycle Progression in Human TF-1 Hematopoietic Cells

Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK is a crucial pathway regulating cell cycle progression, apoptosis, and drug resistance. The Ras oncogene is frequently mutated in human cancer, which can result in the activation of the downstream Raf/MEK/ERK cascade leading to cell cycle progression in the absence of a growth stimulus. Raf-induced proliferation has been observed in hematopoietic cells. However, the mechanisms by which Raf affects cell cycle progression are not well described. To investigate the importance of Raf/MEK/ERK signaling in human hematopoietic cell growth, the effects of three different Raf genes, A-Raf, B-Raf and Raf-1, on cell cycle progression and regulatory gene expression were examined in TF-1 cells transformed to grow in response to b-estradiol-regulated DRaf:ER genes. Raf activation increased the expression of cyclin A, cyclin D, cyclin E, and p21Cip1, which are associated with G1 progression. Activated DRaf-1:ER and DA-Raf:ER but not DB-Raf:ER increased Cdk2 and Cdk4 kinase activity. The regulatory role of p16Ink4a, a potent Cdk4 kinase inhibitor, on the kinase activity of Cdk2 and Cdk4 was also examined. Raf induced p16Ink4a suppressor but this did not eliminate Cdk4 kinase activity. These results indicate that human hematopoietic cells transformed to grow in response to activated Raf can be used to elucidate the mechanisms by which various cell cycle regulatory molecules effect cell cycle progression. Furthermore, the differences that the various Raf isoforms have on Cdk4 activity and other cell cycle regulatory molecules can be determined in these cells.

Key Words:

Cell cycle, Raf, p21Cip1, p27Kip1, Cyclins, Cdks, Hematopoietic cells     

Inhibition of ubiquitin-specific protease 13-mediated degradation of Raf1 kinase by Spautin-1 has opposing effects in naïve and primed pluripotent stem cells

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are progenitor cells that retain the ability to differentiate into various cell types and are necessary for tissue repair. Improving cell culture conditions to maintain the pluripotency of ESCs in vitro is an urgent problem in the field of regenerative medicine. Here, we reveal that Spautin-1, a specific small-molecule inhibitor of ubiquitin-specific protease (USP) family members USP10 and USP13, promotes the maintenance of self-renewal and pluripotency of mouse ESCs in vitro. Functional studies reveal that only knockdown of USP13, but not USP10, is capable of mimicking the function of Spautin-1. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that USP13 physically interacts with, deubiquitinates, and stabilizes serine/threonine kinase Raf1 and thereby sustains Raf1 protein at the posttranslational level to activate the FGF/MEK/ERK prodifferentiation signaling pathway in naïve mouse ESCs. In contrast, in primed mouse epiblast stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells, the addition of Spautin-1 had an inhibitory effect on Raf1 levels, but USP13 overexpression promoted self-renewal. The addition of an MEK inhibitor impaired the effect of USP13 upregulation in these cells. These findings provide new insights into the regulatory network of naïve and primed pluripotency.     

Epidermal Growth Factor-dependent Activation of the Extracellular Signal-regulated Kinase Pathway by DJ-1 Protein through Its Direct Binding to c-Raf Protein

DJ-1 is an oncogene and also a causative gene for familial Parkinson disease. DJ-1 has various functions, and the oxidative status of cysteine at position 106 (Cys-106) is crucial for determination of the activation level of DJ-1. Although DJ-1 requires activated Ras for its oncogenic activity and although it activates the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway, a cell growth pathway downstream of Ras, the precise mechanism underlying activation of the ERK pathway by DJ-1 is still not known. In this study, we found that DJ-1 directly bound to the kinase domain of c-Raf but not to Ras and that Cys-106 mutant DJ-1 bound to c-Raf more weakly than did wild-type DJ-1. Co-localization of DJ-1 with c-Raf in the cytoplasm was enhanced in epidermal growth factor (EGF)-treated cells. Knockdown of DJ-1 expression attenuated the phosphorylation level of c-Raf in EGF-treated cells, resulting in reduced activation of MEK and ERK1/2. Although EGF-treated DJ-1 knock-out cells also showed attenuated c-Raf activation, reintroduction of wild-type DJ-1, but not C106S DJ-1, into DJ-1 knock-out cells restored c-Raf activation in a DJ-1 binding activity in a c-Raf-dependent manner. DJ-1 was not responsible for activation of c-Raf in phorbol myristate acetate-treated cells. Furthermore, DJ-1 stimulated self-phosphorylation activity of c-Raf in vitro, but DJ-1 was not a target for Raf kinase. Oxidation of Cys-106 in DJ-1 was not affected by EGF treatment. These findings showed that DJ-1 is a positive regulator of the EGF/Ras/ERK pathway through targeting c-Raf.     

Binding activity of H-Ras is necessary for in vivo inhibition of ASK1 activity

H-Ras is well known as one of the essential components of Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK cascade, which is a critical prosurvival signaling mechanism in most eukaryotic cells. Ras targets Raf/MEK/ERK cascade by integrating and transmitting extracellular signals from growth factor receptors to Raf, leading to the propagation of signals to modulate a serious of cellular survival events. Apoptosis signal-regulating kinasel (ASK1) serves as a general mediator of cell death because it is responsive to a variety of death signals. In this study, we found that H-Ras interacted with ASK1 to cause the inhibition of both ASK1 activity and ASKl-induced apoptosis in vivo, which was reversed only partially by addition of RafS621 A, an antagonist of Raf, whereas MEK inhibitor, PD98059, and PI3K inhibitor, LY294002, did not disturb the inhibitory effect of H-Ras on ASK-1-induced apoptosis. Furthermore, by means of immunoprecipitate and kinase assays, we demonstrated that the interaction between H-Ras and ASK1 as well as the inhibition of ASKI activity were dependent on the binding activity of H-Ras. These results suggest that a novel mechanism may be involved in H-Rasmediated cell survival in addition to the well established MEK/ERK and PI3K/Akt kinase-dependent enhancement of cell survival.     

Acquisition of chemoresistance in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma cells by activation of AKT and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2

Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) is an aggressive malignant tumor and is refractory to conventional chemotherapy. The aim of this study is therefore to elucidate the mechanism of chemoresistance in ICC which is not fully understood. We generated cisplatin resistant ICC cells via long term exposure to cisplatin and found that these cells are also resistant to 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and gemcitabine. The chemoresistant cells showed enhanced Bcl-2 expression and reduced Bax expression compared to parental ICC cells. In addition, the resistant cells showed enhanced activation of AKT and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2. Inhibition of AKT activation by phosphoinocitide 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor LY294002 resulted in reduced Bcl-2 expression and enhanced Bax expression and thus induced apoptosis in the resistant cells, whereas inhibition of ERK1/2 activation by mitogen-activated protein kinase (MEK) inhibitor U0126 did not induce apoptosis without affecting the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax but decreased cell growth. Moreover, the inhibition of AKT or ERK1/2 sensitized the resistant cells to cisplatin and therefore resulted in greatly enhanced cisplatin-induced apoptosis and growth inhibition in the cells. The results indicate that AKT and ERK1/2 signaling mediate chemoresistance in the cells and could be important therapeutic targets for overcoming chemoresistance in ICC.     

Raf-induced cell cycle progression in human TF-1 hematopoietic cells

Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK is a crucial pathway regulating cell cycle progression, apoptosis, and drug resistance. The Ras oncogene is frequently mutated in human cancer, which can result in the activation of the downstream Raf/MEK/ERK cascade leading to cell cycle progression in the absence of a growth stimulus. Raf-induced proliferation has been observed in hematopoietic cells. However, the mechanisms by which Raf affects cell cycle progression are not well described. To investigate the importance of Raf/MEK/ERK signaling in human hematopoietic cell growth, the effects of three different Raf genes, A-Raf, B-Raf and Raf-1, on cell cycle progression and regulatory gene expression were examined in TF-1 cells transformed to grow in response to beta-estradiol-regulated DeltaRaf:ER genes. Raf activation increased the expression of cyclin A, cyclin D, cyclin E, and p21(Cip1), which are associated with G(1) progression. Activated DeltaRaf-1:ER and DeltaA-Raf:ER but not DeltaB-Raf:ER increased Cdk2 and Cdk4 kinase activity. The regulatory role of p16(Ink4a), a potent Cdk4 kinase inhibitor, on the kinase activity of Cdk2 and Cdk4 was also examined. Raf induced p16(Ink4a) suppressor but this did not eliminate Cdk4 kinase activity. These results indicate that human hematopoietic cells transformed to grow in response to activated Raf can be used to elucidate the mechanisms by which various cell cycle regulatory molecules effect cell cycle progression. Furthermore, the differences that the various Raf isoforms have on Cdk4 activity and other cell cycle regulatory molecules can be determined in these cells.