清道夫受体A在机体防御系统中的作用

清道夫受体A(SR—A)是清道夫膜受体家族成员之一,主要存在于巨噬细胞,最初是作为脂蛋白受体被发现的,可以内吞修饰后的脂蛋白,促使动脉粥样硬化斑块形成。近年研究发现,SR—A还在介导巨噬细胞对内毒素内吞、清除及凋亡细胞的识别、吞噬等机体防御反应中起重要作用。     

动脉粥样硬化与清道夫受体研究进展

动脉粥样硬化是最重大的疾病之一,是心脑血管病的主要病理基础,严重危害人类健康.近年来的研究表明,清道夫受体在胆固醇代谢中起着重要作用.清道夫受体是一类结构多样化的糖蛋白受体,具有广泛的配体谱和功能.已知清道夫受体与动脉粥样硬化、宿主防御、细胞粘附、细胞增殖以及细胞凋亡等均有不同程度的关系.文章就近几年来有关该受体的结构、分布、表达调控及其在动脉粥样硬化中作用作一综述,以探索防治途径.     

A类清道夫受体I型的过量表达对转基因小鼠血脂水平的影响

清道夫受体能结合带负电荷的大分子 ,特别是经过修饰的脂蛋白颗粒 ,与血浆脂质代谢有密切关系。为研究A类清道夫受体的过量表达对血脂代谢的影响 ,首先从小鼠巨噬细胞中经RT PCR获得鼠清道夫受体A类I型 (MSR AI)的表达序列 ,插入到含人清道夫受体基因增强子和金属硫蛋白启动子的真核表达载体中。选择Km×ICR杂交一代为实验小鼠 ,显微注射、移卵后 ,获得转基因小鼠 ,经PCR、Southern杂交鉴定 ,获得完整整合外源DNA序列的首建鼠 4只 ,拷贝数分别为 15、6、2和 4。Northern杂交实验显示A类清道夫受体基因主要在脾脏中表达 ;在金属锌诱导下 ,MSR AI表达有所增高 ,同时血清中甘油三酯水平显著升高 ,胆固醇浓度下降。结果表明A类清道夫受体的过量表达能显著影响血脂水平 ,具体机制需进一步研究。     

巨噬源性泡沫细胞形成过程中的机理研究及其进展

巨噬源性泡沫细胞的形成是动脉粥样病变的关键环节,清道夫受体与胆固醇代谢相关受体在此过程中发挥极其重要的作用。下面就泡沫细胞形成过程中的关键因素及机理做如下综述,并探讨通过调节这些潜在因素和机理,开发靶向药物治疗方法,有效抑制动脉粥样硬化的发生发展。     

动脉粥样硬化早期病变过程CD36的表达与oxLDL的摄取作用

清道夫受体CD36最初被认为是一种血小板膜糖蛋白和一种血栓反应蛋白受体(TSP-1)。近来,CD36也被认为是单核细胞产生的活性氮物质修饰的低密度脂蛋白(LDL)的主要受体,参与包括动脉粥样硬化(AS)在内的许多病理生理过程。该文介绍CD36的生物学特性及其在巨噬细胞源性泡沫细胞形成和AS形成中的作用,以及CD36表达的调控机制。     

清道夫受体A基因的表达和调控研究进展

Ａ类清道夫受体（ＳＲ－Ａ）的表达具有巨噬细胞特异性,这与ＳＲ－Ａ启动子上的ＰＵ．１／Ｓｐｉ－１识别位点有关,ＳＲ－Ａ具有广泛的配体结合活性,在机体的防御,细胞粘附及信息转导等过程中起重要作用,对修饰脂蛋白的介导,内吞可能是动脉粥样硬化斑块形成的重要原因。     

高密度脂蛋白受体(SR-BI)和胆固醇逆转运

近十几年来对小鼠的B类I型清道夫受体(SRBI)的研究,发现它是一种高亲和力的高密度脂蛋白受体,主要在肝脏和类固醇源性组织中表达。该受体能介导胆固醇酯的选择性吸收,在高密度脂蛋白(HDL)的代谢和胆固醇的“逆转运”中起重要作用。动物实验证明SRBI的表达可减少动脉粥样硬化的发生。如果SRBI对人有相似的作用,它将成为一个好的作用靶点用于临床心脑血管疾病的治疗 。     

LOX-1与动脉粥样硬化

氧化低密度脂蛋白(oxidizedlow-densitylipoprotein,Ox-LDL)是修饰脂蛋白中的一种,其与动脉粥样硬化的发生发展密切相关。1997年,Sawamura等在牛主动脉内皮细胞上发现了Ox-LDL的一种新型受体,即植物凝集素样氧化型低密度脂蛋白受体-1(lectin-likeoxidizedlowdensitylipoproteinreceptor-1,LOX-1),其在结构和功能上不同于其他类型的巨噬细胞清道夫受体。该文介绍LOX-1在近几年来的一些研究新进展,及其与动脉粥样硬化发病机制间的相互关系。     

蛋白激酶C抑制剂Staurosporine对A类清道夫受体胞浆域结构去除后功能的影响

A类清道夫受体（scavenger receptor,SR-A）是一种主要位于巨噬细胞膜表面的同源三聚体糖蛋白,能够结合和摄取多种配基并介导内移.在清道夫受体胞浆域有几个潜在的磷酸化位点,有关这些磷酸化位点与受体功能之间的确切关系目前尚所知甚少.为深入探讨A类清道夫受体胞浆域与磷酸化之间的关系,以及受体胞浆域磷酸化对受体功能的影响,实验以含有SR-A cDNA质粒为模板,采用PCR方法扩增不含胞浆域序列的清道夫受体,同时扩增全长清道夫受体作为对照.PCR产物经纯化酶切后,进一步亚克隆到PcDNA3.1/HisB中,测序结果表明,重组产物能够编码正确的氨基酸序列.重组产物经脂质体Lipofectamine(LF2000)介导转化入CHO细胞中,在含G418选择性培养液中培养筛选14天后,分离阳性克隆, 继续培养.采用流式细胞计数仪（FACS）鉴定转化筛选后细胞能否表达具有功能的清道夫受体.结果发现,转化的CHO细胞可以稳定表达SR-A的蛋白质,但受体胞浆域去除后,摄取配基的能力明显弱于全长组（1∶1.337）.用荧光DiI标记乙酰化低密度脂蛋白(DiI-AcLDL),37℃孵育转化细胞5 h后,激光共聚焦显微镜下观察到：全长受体转化组细胞荧光散在分布于细胞膜和细胞器,而去除胞浆域组荧光只局限于细胞膜,说明SR-A胞浆域可能起着介导受体内移的作用.进一步比较蛋白激酶C抑制剂星形孢菌素(staurosporine,STA）对两组细胞受体功能的影响,发现经STA处理后,全长组受体与配基的结合及摄取明显增高,而胞浆域去除后受体不受STA的调控.从而证明磷酸化药物可能是通过改变SR-A胞浆域磷酸化水平而发挥作用,受体胞浆域磷酸化可能决定着受体的内移,并参与调节受体的活性.     

无脊椎动物清道夫受体的免疫调控

在长期进化的过程中,无脊椎动物逐渐形成了受体识别-信号传导-免疫应答为特征的天然免疫体系,以清除凋亡细胞或外界的病原微生物。清道夫受体（SRs）是一类位于细胞表面的跨膜受体,也是一类参与无脊椎动物天然免疫反应的重要模式识别受体。清道夫受体参与免疫反应的异己靶标识别,通过下游信号级联调控抗菌肽合成和吞噬作用。本文综述了无脊椎动物清道夫受体的种类、结构及其参与天然免疫的调控机制,探讨了无脊椎动物清道夫受体研究中尚待解决的问题。     

Diabetes-induced abnormalities in the myocardium

One of the leading causes of mortality in diabetics is myocardial disease. In the past few years this subject has generated a significant amount of interest with the result that myocardial problems associated with diabetes are far better understood. Though originally thought to occur as a result of atherosclerosis, various studies have shown that heart disease can occur in the absence of atherosclerosis, suggesting a diabetic cardiomyopathy. Using diabetic animals, it has been possible to characterize diabetes-induced myocardial abnormalities. Diabetic rat hearts do not respond to conditions of high stress as well as controls. The functional depression is accompanied by altered cardiac enzyme systems. A decrease in myosin ATPase activity which appears to be a result of diabetes-induced hypothyroidism is seen. Also, a depression of sarcoplasmic reticular calcium ATPase, along with a depression of calcium uptake by the SR, is seen in diabetic rat hearts. Na+, K+ ATPase activity has also been shown to be depressed and the depression appears to correlate with depressed atrial contractility. High levels of circulating fats in diabetics may alter the integrity of membranes leading to altered enzyme activities. Insulin treatment has been relatively successful at reversing or preventing myocardial changes in the diabetic rat. Other treatments that have been studied include thyroid hormone treatment, since the depression of myosin ATPase can be corrected by such treatment; and carnitine treatment, as the elevation of long chain acyl carnitines (LCAC) and the resulting depression of calcium uptake in the SR can be so normalized. These treatments have not been successful at normalizing cardiac function. A combination of the two treatments normalized function only partially, suggesting that factors besides myosin ATPase and SR calcium uptake are involved. Other treatments that have been tried include vanadate, methyl palmoxirate, and choline and methionine. Vanadate treatment has proved to be encouraging in that it normalizes both function and hyperglycemia. Methyl palmoxirate, a fatty acid analog, normalized only the elevation of LCAC but did not affect function. Methionine and choline were only partially successful in preventing the functional alterations of diabetic rat hearts. The purpose of the present article is to review our understanding of diabetes-induced myocardial problems and their possible causes. Findings from our laboratory and others are described in which attempts have been made to normalize cardiac function.     

A direct analysis of lamellar x-ray diffraction from hydrated oriented multilayers of fully functional sarcoplasmic reticulum.

The profile structure of functional sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) membranes was investigated by X-ray diffraction methods to a resolution of 10 A. The lamellar diffraction data from hydrated oriented multilayers of SR vesicles showed monotonically increasing widths for higher order lamellar reflections, indicative of simple lattice disorder within the multilayer. A generalized Patterson function analysis, previously developed for treating lamellar diffraction from lattice-disordered multilayers, was used to identify the autocorrelation function of the unit cell electron density profile. Subsequent deconvolution of this autocorrelation function provided the most probable unit cell electron density profile of the SR vesicle membrane pair. The resulting single membrane profile possesses marked asymmetry, suggesting that a major portion of the Ca++ -ATPase resides on the exterior of the vesicle. The electron density profile also suggests that the Ca++-dependent ATPase penetrates into the lipid hydrocarbon core of the SR membrane. Under conditions suitable for X-ray analysis, SR vesicles prepared as partially dehydrated oriented multilayers are shown to conserve most of their ATP-induced Ca++ uptake functionality, as monitored spectrophotometrically with the Ca++ indicator arsenazo III. This has been verified both in resuspensions of SR after centrifugation and slow partial dehydration, and directly in SR multilayers in a partially dehydrated state (20-30 percent water). Therefore, the profile structure of the SR membrane that we have determined may closely resemble that found in vivo.     

Progenitor cells in vascular disease

Stem cell research has the potential to provide solutions to many chronic diseases via the field of regeneration therapy. In vascular biology, endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have been identified as contributing to angiogenesis and hence have therapeutic potential to revascularise ischaemic tissues. EPCs have also been shown to endothelialise vascular grafts and therefore may contribute to endothelial maintenance. EPC number has been shown to be reduced in patients with cardiovascular disease, leading to speculation that atherosclerosis may be caused by a consumptive loss of endothelial repair capacity. Animal experiments have shown that EPCs reendothelialise injured vessels and that this reduces neointimal formation, confirming that EPCs have an atheroprotective effect. Smooth muscle cell accumulation in the neointimal space is characteristic of many forms of atherosclerosis, however the source of these cells is now thought to be from smooth muscle progenitor cells (SMPCs) rather than the adjacent media. There is evidence for the presence of SMPCs in the adventitia of animals and that SMPCs circulate in human blood. There is also data to support SMPCs contributing to neointimal formation but their origin remains unknown. This article will review the roles of EPCs and SMPCs in the development of vascular disease by examining experimental data from in vitro studies, animal models of atherosclerosis and clinical studies.     

A review of CETP and its relation to atherosclerosis

Although the atheroprotective role of HDL cholesterol (HDL-c) is well documented, effective therapeutics to selectively increase plasma HDL-c levels are not yet available. Recent progress in unraveling human HDL metabolism has fuelled the development of strategies to decrease the incidence and progression of coronary artery disease (CAD) by raising HDL-c. In this quest for novel drugs, cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) represents a pivotal target. The role of this plasma protein in HDL metabolism is highlighted by the discovery that genetic CETP deficiency is the main cause of high HDL-c levels in Asian populations. The use of CETP inhibitors to effectively increase HDL-c concentration in humans was recently published and data with regard to the effect on human atherosclerosis are expected shortly. This review discusses the potential of CETP inhibitors to protect against atherosclerosis in the context of the current knowledge of CETP function in both rodents and humans.     

Superficial Femoral Artery Endothelial Responses to a Short-Term Altered Shear Rate Intervention in Healthy Men

In animal and in-vitro models, increased oscillatory shear stress characterized by increased retrograde shear-rate (SR) is associated with acutely decreased endothelial cell function. While previous research suggests a possible detrimental role of elevated retrograde SR on endothelial-function in the brachial artery in humans, little research has been conducted examining arteries in the leg. Examinations of altered shear pattern in the superficial femoral artery (SFA) are important, as this vessel is both prone to atherosclerosis and leg exercise is a common form of activity in humans. Seven healthy men participated; bilateral endothelial-function was assessed via flow-mediated-dilation (FMD) before and after 30-minute unilateral inflations of a thigh blood pressure cuff to either 75 mmHg or 100 mmHg on two separate visits. Inflation of the cuff induced increases in maximum anterograde (p<0.05), maximum retrograde (p<0.01), and oscillatory shear index (OSI) (p<0.001) in the cuffed leg at both inflation pressures. At 100 mmHg the increases in SR were larger in the retrograde than the anterograde direction evidenced by a decrease in mean SR (p<0.01). There was an acute decrease in relative FMD in the cuffed leg alone following inflation to both pressures. These results indicate that in the SFA, altered SR profiles incorporating increased retrograde and OSI influence the attenuation in FMD after a 30-minute unilateral thigh-cuff inflation intervention. Novel information highlighting the importance of OSI calculations and assessments of flow profiles add to current body of knowledge regarding the influence of changes in SR patterns on FMD. Findings from the current study may provide additional insight when designing strategies to combat impaired vascular function in the lower extremity where blood vessels are more prone to atherosclerosis in comparison to the upper extremity.     

Artery regional properties and atherosclerosis susceptibility

White carneau (WC) pigeons develop spontaneous atherosclerosis in contrast to atherosclerosis-resistant show racer (SR) pigeons. In this study, cellular and extracellular components and smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation rates of specific aortic sites were assessed in both breeds of pigeons prior to lesion development. The atherosclerosis-susceptible site of the WC aorta was characterized by larger lumen diameter without accompanying increase in wall thickness, as well as by SMC hypocellularity, increased proteoglycan content and higher elastin content. For both breeds, cells derived from the lesion site had lower proliferation rates compared to proximal aortic control sites. WC cells had greater proliferation rates than SR cells (109% greater at the atherosclerosis-prone site and 133% greater at the control site). Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) increased the proliferation of WC lesion site cells compared to SR cells (79% vs. 35%); whereas, transforming growth factor beta (TGFbeta) reduced growth in SR but not in WC cells. Differences in hemodynamic properties, in cell-matrix, elastin, proteoglycan and proliferation rates of cells and responses to FGF and TGFbeta in cells of the atherosclerosis-prone area have been identified as potential contributors to the enhanced atherosclerosis potential of this site in WC pigeons.     

Effect of actoprotectors on Ca, Mg-dependent ATPase activity in the sarcoplasmatic reticulum of rabbit muscles

The effect of different chemical compounds on Ca, Mg-dependent ATPase (Ca-ATPase) sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) hydrolytic activity as well as their actoprotecting (AP) activity, the ability to increase organism's resistance under muscle stress and antihypoxanthic (AH) activity to increase the organism's survival under conditions of low pressure has been studied. The compounds with AP-activity have been shown to be strong inhibitors of Ca-ATPase SR hydrolytic activity. No correlation between AP-activity of the compounds and their effect on Ca-ATPase SR has been found. The membranotropic activity of actoprotectors has been shown by electronic paramagnetic resonance method. A suggestion has been made to use Ca-ATPase SR as a tested object during the forecasting actoprotecting activity of new chemical compounds.     

Cardio-protective role of Humanin in myocardial ischemia-reperfusion

Mitochondria-derived peptides (MDPs) are bioactive peptides encoded by and secreted from the mitochondria. To date, a few MDPs including humanin, MOTS-c and SHLP1–6, and their diverse biological functions have been identified. The first and most studied MDP is humanin, a 24-amino-acid poly peptide. It was first identified in 2001 in the surviving neurons of patient with Alzheimer's disease, and since then has been well characterized for its neuro-protective effect through inhibition of apoptosis. Over the past two decades, humanin has been reported to play critical roles in aging as well as multiple diseases including metabolic disorders, cardiovascular diseases, and autoimmune disease. Humanin has been shown to modulate multiple biological processes including autophagy, ER stress, cellular metabolism, oxidative stress, and inflammation. A role for humanin has been shown in a wide range of cardiovascular diseases, such as coronary heart disease, atherosclerosis, and myocardial fibrosis. In this minireview, we will summarize the literature demonstrating a role for humanin in cardio-protection following myocardial ischemia-reperfusion induced injury and the potential mechanisms that mediate it.     

SR47063, A potent channel opener,activates KATP and a time-dependent current likely due to potassium accumulation

(i) We studied the effects of a new cromakalim analogue, SR47063, in guinea-pig ventricular cells. The experiments were carried out in whole-cell patch clamp with internal and external solutions supposedly similar to the physiological ones. (ii) SR47063 reversibly activated a time-independent current reversing near the potassium equilibrium potential, and a time-dependent current reversing at a more positive potential. Both currents were blocked by application of glibenclamide. (iii)The time-independent and the time-dependent currents were activating for the same concentration of agonist in every cell, this concentration being very different from cell to cell. (iv) The amplitude of the time-dependent current was shown to depend directly neither on agonist concentration nor on potential, but rather on the amplitude of the current flowing during the prepulse before the test pulse. (v) We conclude that SR47063 is a potent K_ATP channel opener acting at concentrations lower than one micromolar, and that the time-dependent current is likely due to accumulation and depletion of potassium in restricted areas of the cells.The authors wish to thank C. Ojeda and O. Rougler for their helpful comments.