Epigenetic factors up-regulate expression of myelin proteins in the dysmyelinating jimpy mutant mouse

Proteolipid protein (PLP) is a major structural component of central nervous system (CNS) myelin. Evidence exists that PLP or the related splice variant DM-20 protein may also play a role in early development of oligodendrocytes (OLs), the cells that form CNS myelin. There are several naturally occurring mutations of the PLP gene that have been used to study the roles of PLP both in myelination and in OL differentiation. The PLP mutation in the jimpy (jp) mouse has been extensively characterized. These mutants produce no detectable PLP and exhibit an almost total lack of CNS myelin. Additionally, most OLs in affected animals die prematurely, before producing myelin sheaths. We have studied cultures of jp CNS in order to understand whether OL survival and myelin formation require production of normal PLP. When grown in primary cultures, jp OLs mimic the relatively undifferentiated phenotype of jp OLs in vivo. They produce little myelin basic protein (MBP), never immunostain for PLP, and rarely elaborate myelin-like membranes. We report here that jp OLs grown in medium conditioned by normal astrocytes synthesize MBP and incorporate it into membrane expansions. Some jp OLs grown in this way stain with PLP antibodies, including an antibody to a peptide sequence specific for the mutant jp PLP. This study shows that: (1) an absence of PLP does not necessarily lead to dysmyelination or OL death; (2) OLs are capable of translating at least a portion of the predicted jp PLP; (3) the abnormal PLP made in the cultured jp cells is not toxic to OLs. These results also highlight the importance of environmental factors in controlling OL phenotype. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Effects of triiodothyronine on the synthesis of sulfolipids by oligodendrocyte-enriched glial cultures

Glial cultures were obtained from the brains of 1-week-old rats and were grown in a chemically defined, serum-free medium. We investigated the development of oligodendrocytes in these cultures and the synthesis of sulfolipids in the presence and absence of triiodothyronine (T3) in the medium: (1) In the presence of T3, the incorporation of [35S]sulfate into sulfolipids exhibited a developmental profile which is comparable to that found in the developing brain in vivo. A sharp peak of sulfolipid synthesis was observed at day 5 in vitro, which is equivalent to day 12 after birth. As observed in vivo, the percentage of label incorporated into sulfogalactosyldiradylglycerols decreased with time in culture. (2) Addition of T3 to the medium stimulated sulfolipid synthesis by oligodendrocytes in a dose-related manner (optimal T3 concentration, 30 nM). The hormone also enhanced the rates of cholesterogenesis and lipogenesis but to a lesser extent than sulfolipid synthesis. (3) The temporary omission of T3 from the medium resulted in lower rates of sulfolipid synthesis that could not be restored by readdition of T3. This inhibitory effect was most pronounced if the hormone was omitted from the medium on days 2 and 3 in culture. (4) Omission of T3 also resulted in the development of fewer oligodendrocytes in the cultures. Our results show that T3 is essential for the development of oligodendrocytes in our neurone-free culture system. They also indicate that the stimulation of myelination by thyroid hormones can, at least partially, be explained as a direct effect of T3 on oligodendrocytes, independent of an effect of T3 on neuronal growth.     

The demonstration by transplantation of the very restricted remyelinating potential of post-mitotic oligodendrocytes

To examine the remyelinating ability of post-mitotic oligodendrocytes, we subjected cell preparations derived from neonatal and adult rats to 40 Grays of X-irradiation to remove mitotically active cells and injected them into areas of demyelination in which the inherent ability to generate remyelinating cells had been inhibited. The extensive remyelination seen following implantation of non-irradiated neonatal and adult cells was almost completely abolished when the transplanted cell suspension was exposed to 40 Grays of X-irradiation, demonstrating that effective remyelination requires the generation of cells by mitosis. Radiation-resistant and therefore non-dividing oligodendrocytes were detected in areas of demyelination following transplantation of neonatal cultures and oligodendrocyte preparations derived from the adult nervous system. However, the pattern of myelin formation associated with the radiation-resistant oligodendrocytes from the two sources was different. Following implantation of X-irradiated neonatal cultures, a small number of oligodendrocytes could be found within the area of demyelination, and although these cells formed sheets of myelin membrane, they did not form myelin sheaths. After implantation of X-irradiated adult cells, in addition to the aberrant myelin formation seen with the neonatal cells, some myelin sheaths were observed. Our findings confirm that effective remyelination requires cell division and suggest that there may be diverse populations of radiation-resistant oligodendrocytes in the adult nervous system, some of which can form myelin sheaths and others of which can only make myelin sheets. Important for the interpretation of our previous studies is the demonstration here that 40 Grays of X-irradiation per se does not inhibit oligodendrocytes from remyelinating axons.     

Evidence that an RGD-dependent receptor mediates the binding of oligodendrocytes to a novel ligand in a glial-derived matrix

A simple adhesion assay was used to measure the interaction between rat oligodendrocytes and various substrata, including a matrix secreted by glial cells. Oligodendrocytes bound to surfaces coated with fibronectin, vitronectin and a protein component of the glial matrix. The binding of cells to all of these substrates was inhibited by a synthetic peptide (GRGDSP) modeled after the cell-binding domain of fibronectin. The component of the glial matrix responsible for the oligodendrocyte interaction is a protein which is either secreted by the glial cells or removed from serum by products of these cultures; serum alone does not promote adhesion to the same extent as the glial-derived matrix. The interaction of cells with this glial-derived matrix requires divalent cations and is not mediated by several known RGD-containing extracellular proteins, including fibronectin, vitronectin, thrombospondin, type I and type IV collagen, and tenascin.     

Investigations on myelinogenesisin vitro: I. The occurrence of endogenous protein kinase and its role in the phosphorylation of myelin basic proteins in “Myelin-like membranes” isolated from cerebral cell cultures

The presence of a protein kinase capable of phosphorylating endogenous as well as exogenously added myelin basic proteins has been demonstrated in a myelin-like membrane fraction isolated from reaggregating and surface adhering, primary cultures of cells dissociated from embryonic mouse brain. Only the large and small components of myelin basic proteins were found to be phosphorylated when myelin-like membrane fraction was incubated with [-³²P]ATP. The protein kinase endogenous to the myelin-like membrane fraction was mainly of the cyclic AMP independent type. There was very little cyclic AMP dependent or cyclic GMP dependent protein kinase activities in this myelin-like fraction. Although the myelin basic proteins were the only endogenous proteins phosphorylated, protein kinase of the myelin-like membrane was capable of catalyzing the phosphorylation of exogenous substrates, such as histones.     

Myelin-specific proteins and glycolipids in rat Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes in culture

We have used antibodies to identify Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes and to study the expression of myelin-specific glycolipids and proteins in these cells isolated from perinatal rats. Our findings suggest that only Schwann cells which have been induced to myelinate make detectable amounts of galactocerebroside (GC), sulfatide, myelin basic protein (BP), or the major peripheral myelin glycoprotein (P0). When rat Schwann cells were cultured, they stopped making detectable amounts of these myelin molecules, even when the cells were associated with neurites in short-term explant cultures of dorsal root ganglion. In contrast, oligodendrocytes in dissociated cell cultures of neonatal optic nerve, corpus callosum, or cerebellum continued to make GC, sulfatide and BP for many weeks, even in the absence of neurons. These findings suggest that while rat Schwann cells require a continuing signal from appropriate axons to make detectable amounts of myelin- specific glycolipids and proteins, oligodendrocytes do not. Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes also displayed very different morphologies in vitro which appeared to reflect their known differences in myelinating properties in vivo. Since these characteristic morphologies are maintained when Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes were grown together in mixed cultures and in the absence of neurons, we concluded that they are intrinsic properties of these two different myelin- forming cells.     

Assembly of myelin by association of proteolipid protein with cholesterol- and galactosylceramide-rich membrane domains

Myelin is a specialized membrane enriched in glycosphingolipids and cholesterol that contains a limited spectrum of proteins. We investigated the assembly of myelin components by oligodendrocytes and analyzed the role of lipid-protein interactions in this process. Proteolipid protein (PLP), the major myelin protein, was recovered from cultured oligodendrocytes from a low-density CHAPS-insoluble membrane fraction (CIMF) enriched in myelin lipids. PLP associated with the CIMF after leaving the endoplasmic reticulum but before exiting the Golgi apparatus, suggesting that myelin lipid and protein components assemble in the Golgi complex. The specific association of PLP with myelin lipids in CIMF was supported by the finding that it was efficiently cross-linked to photoactivable cholesterol, but not to phosphatidylcholine, which is underrepresented in both myelin and CIMF. Furthermore, depletion of cholesterol or inhibition of sphingolipid synthesis in oligodendrocytes abolished the association of PLP with CIMF. Thus, PLP may be recruited to myelin rafts, represented by CIMF, via lipid-protein interactions. In contrast to oligodendrocytes, after transfection in BHK cells, PLP is absent from isolated CIMF, suggesting that PLP requires specific lipids for raft association. In mice deficient in the enzyme ceramide galactosyl transferase, which cannot synthesize the main myelin glycosphingolipids, a large fraction of PLP no longer associates with rafts. Formation of a cholesterol- and galactosylceramide-rich membrane domain (myelin rafts) may be critical for the sorting of PLP and assembly of myelin in oligodendrocytes.     

Microtubule alterations in cultured taiep rat oligodendrocytes lead to deficits in myelin membrane formation

The taiep rat is a myelin mutant in which hypomyelination and progressive demyelination of the CNS are accompanied by an accumulation of microtubules within oligodendrocytes. To investigate whether and how the myelin defects were caused by microtubule abnormalities, we have established a taiep oligodendrocyte culture system in which mutant cells produce abnormally high levels of tubulin and microtubule-associated proteins and exhibit myelin defects. The studies show that abnormal microtubule accumulation and tight microtubule bundles developed in the taiep oligodendrocytes, with a higher ratio of minus-end-distal to plus-end-distal microtubules in their processes. Initially, in culture, immature taiep oligodendrocytes which have higher levels of tubulin than controls extend roughly twice as much membrane sheet as controls. The membrane sheets of the mature taiep oligodendrocytes which display the microtubule accumulation, however, grew much less rapidly compared to controls. By the fifth day in culture, a majority of the taiep oligodendrocytes had ceased the expansion of their membrane sheets and in some cases the sheets retracted. The levels of the myelin proteins, proteolipid protein and myelin-associated glycoprotein, were also markedly diminished in the mature taiep oligodendrocytes. Treatment with the microtubule depolymerizing drug nocodazole prevented not only the accumulation of microtubules but also restored the normal distribution of proteolipid proteins within the taiep oligodendrocytes. These data demonstrate that myelin synthesis in the oligodendrocyte cultures relies on the formation of a normal microtubule array, and the microtubule abnormalities are directly responsible for the myelin deficit in the taiep oligodendrocytes.     

Proliferation of oligodendrocytes is stimulated after their adhesion on a matrix made up of a nerve lectin, CSL

It is shown that oligodendrocytes (myelin producing cells in the central nervous system) can adhere to a substratum constituted by an endogenous cerebellar soluble lectin (CSL) adsorbed on plastic Petri dishes. This adhesion induces a rapid and important proliferation of cultured oligodendrocytes.     

Emergence of three myelin proteins in oligodendrocytes cultured without neurons

Oligodendrocytes, the myelin-forming cells of the central nervous system, were cultured from newborn rat brain and optic nerve to allow us to analyze whether two transmembranous myelin proteins, myelin-associated glycoprotein (MAG) and proteolipid protein (PLP), were expressed together with myelin basic protein (MBP) in defined medium with low serum and in the absence of neurons. Using double label immunofluorescence, we investigated when and where these three myelin proteins appeared in cells expressing galactocerebroside (GC), a specific marker for the oligodendrocyte membrane. We found that a proportion of oligodendrocytes derived from brain and optic nerve invariably express MBP, MAG, and PLP about a week after the emergence of GC, which occurs around birth. In brain-derived oligodendrocytes, MBP and MAG first emerge between the fifth and the seventh day after birth, followed by PLP 1 to 2 d later. All three proteins were confined to the cell body at that time, although an extensive network of GC positive processes had already developed. Each protein shows a specific cytoplasmic localization: diffuse for MBP, mostly perinuclear for MAG, and particulate for PLP. Interestingly, MAG, which may be involved in glial-axon interactions, is the first myelin protein detected in the processes at approximately 10 d after birth. MBP and PLP are only seen in these locations after 15 d. All GC-positive cells express the three myelin proteins by day 19. Simultaneously, numerous membrane and myelin whorls accumulate along the oligodendrocyte surface. The sequential emergence, cytoplasmic location, and peak of expression of these three myelin proteins in vitro follow a pattern similar to that described in vivo and, therefore, are independent of continuous neuronal influences. Such cultures provide a convenient system to study factors regulating expression of myelin proteins.     

Endothelial cells interact with the core protein of basement membrane perlecan through beta 1 and beta 3 integrins: an adhesion modulated by glycosaminoglycan

Aortic endothelial cells adhere to the core protein of murine perlecan, a heparan sulfate proteoglycan present in endothelial basement membrane. We found that cell adhesion was partially inhibited by beta 1 integrin-specific mAb and almost completely blocked by a mixture of beta 1 and alpha v beta 3 antibodies. Furthermore, adhesion was partially inhibited by a synthetic peptide containing the perlecan domain III sequence LPASFRGDKVTSY (c-RGD) as well as by GRGDSP, but not by GRGESP. Both antibodies contributed to the inhibition of cell adhesion to immobilized c-RGD whereas only beta 1-specific antibody blocked residual cell adhesion to proteoglycan core in the presence of maximally inhibiting concentrations of soluble RGD peptide. A fraction of endothelial surface-labeled detergent lysate bound to a core affinity column and 147-, 116-, and 85-kD proteins were eluted with NaCl and EDTA. Polyclonal anti-beta 1 and anti-beta 3 integrin antibodies immunoprecipitated 116/147 and 85/147 kD surface-labeled complexes, respectively. Cell adhesion to perlecan was low compared to perlecan core, and cell adhesion to core, but not to immobilized c-RGD, was selectively inhibited by soluble heparin and heparan sulfates. This inhibition by heparin was also observed with laminin and fibronectin and, in the case of perlecan, was found to be independent of heparin binding to substrate. These data support the hypothesis that endothelial cells interact with the core protein of perlecan through beta 1 and beta 3 integrins, that this binding is partially RGD- independent, and that this interaction is selectively sensitive to a cell-mediated effect of heparin/heparan sulfates which may act as regulatory ligands.     

Cyclic AMP Induction of the Myelin Enzyme 2'',3''-Cyclic Nucleotide 3''-Phosphohydrolase in Rat Oligodendrocytes

Cyclic AMP (cAMP) is known to induce the activity of the myelin enzyme 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphohydrolase (CNP; EC 3.1.4.37) in C6 rat glioma cells. This report shows that CNP is also inducible in oligodendrocytes explanted from 1-day-old rat cerebrum and grown in tissue culture. Induction was observed after a 1-day treatment with 1 mM N6, O2-dibutyryl cyclic AMP (dbcAMP) and was maximal after 5 days, reaching 200-240% of control. Induction was observed both in mixed cerebral cell cultures containing oligodendrocytes and astrocytes, and in purified cultures of oligodendrocytes prepared by a differential shakeoff procedure. Addition of dbcAMP to the cultures 3-9 days after the cells were explanted from rat brain induced CNP activity, but no induction was observed when dbcAMP treatment was begun 13 or more days after explanation. These results demonstrate that one component of myelin, CNP, is inducible in oligodendrocytes by a cAMP-mediated mechanism, and suggest a role for cAMP in the regulation of the myelin-associated functions of oligodendrocytes.     

Cultured oligodendrocytes. A role for cell-substratum interaction in phenotypic expression

Oligodendrocytes can be maintained in two states: nonattached; we call these cells B3.f; morphologically they resemble freshly isolated cells; attached; we refer to the latter as B3.fA. Profound morphological, ultrastructural, and biochemical changes take place upon adhesion to a competent surface (Szuchet, S., Yim, S. H., and Monsma, S. (1983) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 80, 7019-7023). Here we present evidence that the transition from B3.f to B3.fA has important consequences for the expression of myelinogenic properties by these cells. We have examined the incorporation of [3H]leucine, [35S]methionine, and [35S]cysteine into polypeptide chains by B3.f and B3.fA cells from 3 days after isolation up to 8 weeks in culture. Specific antisera against myelin and cytoskeletal proteins were used to identify the newly synthesized proteins. Our results indicate that: overall incorporation expressed as cpm/mg of protein remains essentially constant and independent of the state of adhesion or time in culture; B3.f cells keep a low profile in the synthesis of the major myelin proteins but have a high uptake of precursors into 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase, actin, and tubulin; adhesion of oligodendrocytes to a polylysine substratum activates the synthesis and phosphorylation of myelin basic protein, and the synthesis and acylation of proteolipid protein and DM-20; over time in culture there is an increased synthesis and accumulation of these proteins and of myelin-associated glycoprotein. We conclude that B3.f cells exhibit a behavior that is distinct from that of B3.fA cells. Our results are consistent with the notion that upon adhesion to a substratum, oligodendrocytes undergo a transition from myelin-maintaining cells (B3.f) to that of myelin-forming cells (B3.fA). This conclusion is substantiated by the finding of myelin membranes in these cultures.     

The identity of a myelin-like fraction isolated from developing brain

1. A myelin-like membrane fraction was isolated from developing rat brain by a new method. 2. The chemical composition and morphology of the fraction are described. 3. The myelin-like fraction is similar to myelin in characteristic enzyme activity but differs in the absence of basic protein and cerebrosides. No similarity to other subcellular fractions was observed. 4. It is suggested that the myelin-like fraction is a stage in the formation of compact myelin from glial plasma membrane. 5. ;Early' myelin consists of the myelin-like and compact myelin fractions from developing brain.     

RGD peptides may only temporarily inhibit cell adhesion to fibronectin

When human fibroblasts were cultured on fibronectin for 4 h in the presence of 0.5 mg/ml of the GRGDSP peptide derived from the fibronectin cell-binding site, they adhered and spread normally and organized talin and integrin alpha 5 and beta 1 subunits into focal adhesions. When the adherent cells were quantitated as a function of time, submaximal peptide concentrations were found to delay cell adhesion on fibronectin, but they had no effect on the maximum. When the cells were plated on vitronectin, however, even relatively low peptide concentrations lowered the maximal amount of cells adhering and abolished cell spreading. The results suggest a different mechanism for cell adhesion on fibronectin and vitronectin.     

Biochemical changes in the developing rat central nervous system due to hyperthermia

Rat embryos at 10 days of gestation were exposed to 43 degrees C for 8 minutes by submerging the exteriorized right uterine horn in heated saline solution and then reinserting the uterine horn into the abdominal cavity. At 15 days, the fetuses were removed, and cells from the cerebral hemispheres were dissociated and grown as primary cultures. Embryos from the left uterine horn served as controls. No morphological changes were observed between the cultures of cells from control and heat-exposed embryos at different days in culture. However, exposure of embryos to hyperthermia at 10 days significantly affected the developmental pattern of activities of acetylcholine esterase associated with cholinergic neurons and of 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide phosphohydrolase associated with oligodendrocytes and myelin membrane formation. These results suggest that hyperthermia at 10 days of gestation in the rat may lead to an impairment in the development of neurons and oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system.     

Down-regulation of polysialic acid is required for efficient myelin formation

Oligodendrocyte precursor cells modify the neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) by the attachment of polysialic acid (PSA). Upon further differentiation into mature myelinating oligodendrocytes, however, oligodendrocyte precursor cells down-regulate PSA synthesis. In order to address the question of whether this down-regulation is a necessary prerequisite for the myelination process, transgenic mice expressing the polysialyltransferase ST8SiaIV under the control of the proteolipid protein promoter were generated. In these mice, postnatal down-regulation of PSA in oligodendrocytes was abolished. Most NCAM-120, the characteristic NCAM isoform in oligodendrocytes, carried PSA in the transgenic mice at all stages of postnatal development. Polysialylated NCAM-120 partially co-localized with myelin basic protein and was present in purified myelin. The permanent expression of PSA-NCAM in oligodendrocytes led to a reduced myelin content in the forebrains of transgenic mice during the period of active myelination and in the adult animal. In situ hybridizations indicated a significant decrease in the number of mature oligodendrocytes in the forebrain. Thus, down-regulation of PSA during oligodendrocyte differentiation is a prerequisite for efficient myelination by mature oligodendrocytes. Furthermore, myelin of transgenic mice exhibited structural abnormalities like redundant myelin and axonal degeneration, indicating that the down-regulation of PSA is also necessary for myelin maintenance.     

Compartmentation of Fyn kinase with glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored molecules in oligodendrocytes facilitates kinase activation during myelination.

In many cell types, glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored proteins are sequestered in detergent-resistant membrane rafts. These are plasma membrane microdomains enriched in glycosphingolipids and cholesterol and are suggested to be platforms for cell signaling. Concomitant with the synthesis of myelin glycosphingolipids, maturing oligodendrocytes progressively associate GPI-anchored proteins, including the adhesion molecules NCAM 120 and F3, in rafts. Here we show that these microdomains include Fyn and Lyn kinases. Both kinases are maximally active in myelin prepared from young animals, correlating with early stages of myelination. In the rafts, Fyn kinase is tightly associated with NCAM 120 and F3. In contrast, in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells lacking rafts or in raft-free membrane domains of more mature cells, F3 does not associate with Fyn. The addition of anti-F3 antibodies to oligodendrocytes results in stimulation of Fyn kinase specifically in rafts. Compartmentation of oligodendrocyte GPI-anchored proteins in rafts is thus a prerequisite for association with Fyn, permitting kinase activation. Interaction of oligodendrocyte F3 with axonal ligands such as L1 and ensuing kinase activation may play a crucial role in initiating myelination.     

The role of the arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-directed cellular binding to type I collagen and rat mesenchymal cells in colorectal tumour differentiation

The relationship between the adhesion of five human colorectal carcinoma cell lines to extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins, namely type I collagen, type IV collagen, fibronectin, laminin and basement membrane extract (Matrigel), and the ability of these cells to express morphological differentiation when grown in a basement membrane extract (Matrigel) or on normal rat mesenchymal cells has been examined. Two cell lines, SW1222 and HRA-19, organised into glandular structures, with well-defined polarity when cultured on both substrata as well as in three-dimensional (3D) collagen gel culture as previously shown. The remaining three cell lines (SW620, SW480 and HT29) grew as loose aggregates or as they would normally grow on tissue culture plastic. Addition to the culture medium of a hexapeptide, containing the cell-matrix recognition sequence arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD), inhibited attachment and glandular formation of SW1222 and HRA-19 when these cells were grown on living mesenchymal cells, but not in Matrigel. The morphological differentiation of HRA-19 cells in 3D-collagen was also inhibited by the same RGD-containing peptide, as previously shown for SW1222 cells. Attachment of the remaining three cell lines was inhibited on mesenchyme but not in Matrigel, further supporting the specificity of the peptide effect on epithelial-mesenchymal binding. In conclusion we have shown that colorectal tumour cells are able to bind ECM proteins and that the cellular binding is an essential step in the induction of the morphological differentiation seen on living mesenchymal cells, in basement membrane extracts and in type I collagen gel.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)