Signal Transduction Cascades Regulating Fungal Development and Virulence

Cellular differentiation, mating, and filamentous growth are regulated in many fungi by environmental and nutritional signals. For example, in response to nitrogen limitation, diploid cells of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae undergo a dimorphic transition to filamentous growth referred to as pseudohyphal differentiation. Yeast filamentous growth is regulated, in part, by two conserved signal transduction cascades: a mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade and a G-protein regulated cyclic AMP signaling pathway. Related signaling cascades play an analogous role in regulating mating and virulence in the plant fungal pathogen Ustilago maydis and the human fungal pathogens Cryptococcus neoformans and Candida albicans. We review here studies on the signaling cascades that regulate development of these and other fungi. This analysis illustrates both how the model yeast S. cerevisiae can serve as a paradigm for signaling in other organisms and also how studies in other fungi provide insights into conserved signaling pathways that operate in many divergent organisms.     

Histidine Phosphotransfer Proteins in Fungal Two-Component Signal Transduction Pathways

The histidine phosphotransfer (HPt) protein Ypd1 is an important participant in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae multistep two-component signal transduction pathway and, unlike the expanded histidine kinase gene family, is encoded by a single gene in nearly all model and pathogenic fungi. Ypd1 is essential for viability in both S. cerevisiae and in Cryptococcus neoformans. These and other aspects of Ypd1 biology, combined with the availability of structural and mutational data in S. cerevisiae, suggest that the essential interactions between Ypd1 and response regulator domains would be a good target for antifungal drug development. The goal of this minireview is to summarize the wealth of data on S. cerevisiae Ypd1 and to consider the potential benefits of conducting related studies in pathogenic fungi.     

GPI微域与信号转导

许多真核细胞膜表面蛋白 (例如ＣＤ1 4、ＣＤ1 6ｂ、ＣＤ2 4、ＣＤ48、ＣＤ5 2、ＣＤ5 9、ＣＤ5 5 /ＤＡＦ、ＣＤ5 8 /ＬＦＡ 3、ＣＤ6 6、ＣＤ6 7、ＣＤ73、ＣＤ87、ＣＤ90 /Ｔｈｙ 1、ＣＤ1 5 7、Ｌｙ 6等 )通过糖基磷脂酰肌醇(ｇｌｙｃｏｓｙｌｐｈｏｓｐｈａｔｉｄｙｌｉｎｏｓｉｔｏｌ,ＧＰＩ)锚着于细胞膜上 ,称为ＧＰＩ锚定蛋白 (ＧＰＩ ａｎｃｈｏｒｅｄｐｒｏｔｅｉｎｓ,ＧＰＩ ＡＰ) ,它们没有跨膜区和胞内部分 ,不能直接与胞内发生联系。但用特异性抗体结合这些结构上不同的膜蛋白或膜糖鞘脂 (ｇｌｙｃｏｓｐｈｉｎｇｏｌｉｐｉ…     

Further Evidence Supporting a Role for Gs Signal Transduction in Severe Malaria Pathogenesis

With the functional demonstration of a role in erythrocyte invasion by Plasmodium falciparum parasites, implications in the aetiology of common conditions that prevail in individuals of African origin, and a wealth of pharmacological knowledge, the stimulatory G protein (Gs) signal transduction pathway presents an exciting target for anti-malarial drug intervention. Having previously demonstrated a role for the G-alpha-s gene, GNAS, in severe malaria disease, we sought to identify other important components of the Gs pathway. Using meta-analysis across case-control and family trio (affected child and parental controls) studies of severe malaria from The Gambia and Malawi, we sought evidence of association in six Gs pathway candidate genes: adenosine receptor 2A (ADORA2A) and 2B (ADORA2B), beta-adrenergic receptor kinase 1 (ADRBK1), adenylyl cyclase 9 (ADCY9), G protein beta subunit 3 (GNB3), and regulator of G protein signalling 2 (RGS2). Our study amassed a total of 2278 cases and 2364 controls. Allele-based models of association were investigated in all genes, and genotype and haplotype-based models were investigated where significant allelic associations were identified. Although no significant associations were observed in the other genes, several were identified in ADORA2A. The most significant association was observed at the rs9624472 locus, where the G allele (∼20% frequency) appeared to confer enhanced risk to severe malaria [OR = 1.22 (1.09–1.37); P = 0.001]. Further investigation of the ADORA2A gene region is required to validate the associations identified here, and to identify and functionally characterize the responsible causal variant(s). Our results provide further evidence supporting a role of the Gs signal transduction pathway in the regulation of severe malaria, and request further exploration of this pathway in future studies.     

Using NMR Metabolomics to Investigate Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle-dependent Signal Transduction in Staphylococcus epidermidis

Staphylococcus epidermidis is a skin-resident bacterium and a major cause of biomaterial-associated infections. The transition from residing on the skin to residing on an implanted biomaterial is accompanied by regulatory changes that facilitate bacterial survival in the new environment. These regulatory changes are dependent upon the ability of bacteria to “sense” environmental changes. In S. epidermidis, disparate environmental signals can affect synthesis of the biofilm matrix polysaccharide intercellular adhesin (PIA). Previously, we demonstrated that PIA biosynthesis is regulated by tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle activity. The observations that very different environmental signals result in a common phenotype (i.e. increased PIA synthesis) and that TCA cycle activity regulates PIA biosynthesis led us to hypothesize that S. epidermidis is “sensing” disparate environmental signals through the modulation of TCA cycle activity. In this study, we used NMR metabolomics to demonstrate that divergent environmental signals are transduced into common metabolomic changes that are “sensed” by metabolite-responsive regulators, such as CcpA, to affect PIA biosynthesis. These data clarify one mechanism by which very different environmental signals cause common phenotypic changes. In addition, due to the frequency of the TCA cycle in diverse genera of bacteria and the intrinsic properties of TCA cycle enzymes, it is likely the TCA cycle acts as a signal transduction pathway in many bacteria.     

JNK信号转导与细胞凋亡

JNK是一类MAPK蛋白,介导细胞的信号转导,通过启动细胞中的胱天蛋白酶家族蛋白激酶,诱导细胞凋亡。本文主要就JNK信号转导在细胞凋亡中的作用及其机制进行阐述。     

Signal Transduction by a Fungal NOD-Like Receptor Based on Propagation of a Prion Amyloid Fold

In the fungus Podospora anserina, the [Het-s] prion induces programmed cell death by activating the HET-S pore-forming protein. The HET-s β-solenoid prion fold serves as a template for converting the HET-S prion-forming domain into the same fold. This conversion, in turn, activates the HET-S pore-forming domain. The gene immediately adjacent to het-S encodes NWD2, a Nod-like receptor (NLR) with an N-terminal motif similar to the elementary repeat unit of the β-solenoid fold. NLRs are immune receptors controlling cell death and host defense processes in animals, plants and fungi. We have proposed that, analogously to [Het-s], NWD2 can activate the HET-S pore-forming protein by converting its prion-forming region into the β-solenoid fold. Here, we analyze the ability of NWD2 to induce formation of the β-solenoid prion fold. We show that artificial NWD2 variants induce formation of the [Het-s] prion, specifically in presence of their cognate ligands. The N-terminal motif is responsible for this prion induction, and mutations predicted to affect the β-solenoid fold abolish templating activity. In vitro, the N-terminal motif assembles into infectious prion amyloids that display a structure resembling the β-solenoid fold. In vivo, the assembled form of the NWD2 N-terminal region activates the HET-S pore-forming protein. This study documenting the role of the β-solenoid fold in fungal NLR function further highlights the general importance of amyloid and prion-like signaling in immunity-related cell fate pathways.     

谷胱甘肽化修饰与氧化还原信号转导

蛋白质谷胱甘肽化（S-glutathionylation）是一种重要的翻译后修饰方式,氧化还原信号转导途径的很多相关分子都可受到谷胱甘肽化的调节,尤其是一些重要的蛋白激酶和转录因子。因此蛋白质的谷胱甘肽化修饰日益引起人们的重视。人们推测,谷胱甘肽化可能是细胞内氧化还原信号转导的一种重要机制。     

光受体及光信号转导

植物在进化过程中形成了对环境信号反应的能力,光是植物生长发育中的一个重要的环境信号.植物为了更好地生长和发育形成了精密的光信号接收和转导系统.本文介绍近年来光信号接收即光受体和光信号的转导研究进展.     

Reconstruction of Cellular Signal Transduction Networks Using Perturbation Assays and Linear Programming

Perturbation experiments for example using RNA interference (RNAi) offer an attractive way to elucidate gene function in a high throughput fashion. The placement of hit genes in their functional context and the inference of underlying networks from such data, however, are challenging tasks. One of the problems in network inference is the exponential number of possible network topologies for a given number of genes. Here, we introduce a novel mathematical approach to address this question. We formulate network inference as a linear optimization problem, which can be solved efficiently even for large-scale systems. We use simulated data to evaluate our approach, and show improved performance in particular on larger networks over state-of-the art methods. We achieve increased sensitivity and specificity, as well as a significant reduction in computing time. Furthermore, we show superior performance on noisy data. We then apply our approach to study the intracellular signaling of human primary nave CD4⁺ T-cells, as well as ErbB signaling in trastuzumab resistant breast cancer cells. In both cases, our approach recovers known interactions and points to additional relevant processes. In ErbB signaling, our results predict an important role of negative and positive feedback in controlling the cell cycle progression.     

应用基因芯片筛选鼻咽癌信号转导相关基因

目的：建立具有组织特异性的鼻咽癌基因表达谱,筛选鼻咽癌中信号转导相关基因。方法：采用深圳微芯公司基于玻片的包含8046个人类基因的基因芯片,检测7例鼻咽癌组织及1例鼻咽炎组织,初步获得鼻咽癌异常表达基因;结合GO分类从异常表达的基因中筛选信号转导相关基因,以Biocarta信号通路数据库查询筛选基因相关转导信号通路信息。结果：在鼻咽癌组织独得1241个异常用表达基因,其中高表达基因871个,低表达基因343个。发现28个差异表达基因与细胞的信号转导相关,其中表达上调的21个,表达下调的7个。结论：成功建立了具有组织特异性的鼻咽癌基因表达谱,初步获得了鼻咽癌信号转导相关基因。     

植物水分胁迫信号识别与转导

植物对水分胁迫信号作出反应,需要经过信号的识别,转导和胞间信使传递等过程,该文从胁迫感觉,第二信使系统及蛋白质可逆磷酸化等方面,介绍了植物细胞对水分胁迫（原初 ）信号和胁迫信号分子（脱落酸）识别转导的研究进展。     

Novel Approaches to Drug Discovery in Signal Transduction

Cover illustration: This issue of BTJ contains three special articles featuring novel approaches to drug discovery in signal transduction. On the one hand side, there is a focus on cell-based assays for GPCRs – one of the main drug targets and technologies for label-free cell-based assays. On the other hand, it is shown how computational approaches are important to predict binding activity of chemical structures and thus support drug discovery. Image@Photodisc/Getty images.     

蛋白质组学方法在细胞内信号转导研究中的应用

蛋白质组学的新技术为我们研究细胞内的信号转导过程提供了更广泛和崭新的思路,它克服了传统技术的局限性,实现了对蛋白的高通量分析。简要综述了蛋白质组学技术在信号转导过程中信号分子的确定、定量,磷酸化等翻译后修饰的识别,以及蛋白质之间相互作用研究等方面的应用。     

心肌营养素-1及其信号转导

心肌营养素 1(Cardiotrophin 1,CT 1)是细胞因子IL 6家族成员,它能够诱导心肌细胞肥大,刺激心脏和神经细胞的存活,具有广泛的生物学作用.其生物活性通过多种信号转导途径实现.     

植物的系统素及其信号转导

介绍了有关植物中系统素的最新研究进展 ,并对系统素信号转导模型作了改进和完善