肝癌细胞整合素受-配体比与其粘附稳定性的相关性实验研究

整合素与其胞外基质配体间的相互作用对调节细胞的粘附和运动起着重要的作用.肝癌细胞的胞外基质减少,而整合素β1的表达却增高,其比例失衡影响肝癌细胞的粘附与运动行为.作者通过细胞形态学观察、图像分析,微管吸吮和流式细胞仪等手段,对肝癌细胞、正常肝细胞的整合素表达水平、裱衬Fn前后肝癌细胞的运动能力及粘附力进行检测和定量分析,发现肝癌细胞的整合素表达量高于正常肝细胞;肝癌细胞粘附力较正常肝细胞低,迁移速度增快,补充适当浓度胞外配体Fn可使胞外受配体比例恢复到正常肝细胞的整合素表达水平,裱衬Fn后肝癌细胞的粘附力增强,细胞运动能力减弱.这些结果说明胞外配体Fn对肝癌细胞整合素表达有下调作用,肝癌细胞的受.配体比例是影响其粘附和运动的因素之一.     

整合素活化及其介导的黏着斑成熟与肿瘤转移

整合素是一类由α和β两个亚基组成的异源二聚体单次跨膜细胞黏附分子,通过与其对应配体相互作用,介导细胞与细胞、细胞与胞外基质之间的黏附,同时可以将细胞外信号传递至胞内,并招募一系列胞内蛋白与整合素胞内段结合,在细胞膜上形成超分子结构,激活下游信号.整合素的活化进程伴随着其胞外结构域由折叠构象转变为伸展构象以及胞内结构域的...     

用原子力显微技术研究受体-配体间的相互作用

原子力显微镜(AFM)不仅能对纳米生物结构进行实时动态的形态和结构观察,而且还能以10^-12N(pN)的精度对溶液中生物分子表面的相互作用力进行直接测量,逐渐成为一种研究受体-配体间相互作用的良好工具。本简要综述用AFM研究受体-配体间作用力、受体-配体间相互作用的影响因素及对这些因素的处理方法。     

壳聚糖与细菌细胞膜相互作用的分子动力学研究

目的 壳聚糖（chitosan,CS）是一种天然的广谱抗菌活性物质。现有研究表明，壳聚糖与细菌细胞膜的相互作用是其发挥抗菌功能的关键。受限于传统实验技术的表征能力，壳聚糖与细菌细胞膜相互作用的具体机制仍有待研究。本文旨在研究壳聚糖与细菌细胞膜相互作用的分子机制。方法 本研究利用全原子分子动力学模拟技术主要探究了完全脱乙酰化的不同聚合度壳聚糖（八聚糖、十二聚糖和十六聚糖）与革兰氏阴性菌外膜（outer membrane,OM）和革兰氏阳性菌质膜（cytoplasmic membrane,CM）相互作用的动态过程。结果 壳聚糖主要依靠其氨基、碳6位羟基和碳3位羟基与OM和CM的头部极性区发生快速结合。随后壳聚糖末端糖基单元倾向于插入OM内部，深度约1 nm，并与脂质分子脂肪酸链上的羰基形成稳定的氢键相互作用。与之相比，壳聚糖分子难以稳定地插入CM内部。壳聚糖结合对膜结构性质产生影响，主要表现在降低OM和CM的单分子脂质面积，显著减少OM和CM极性区的Ca2+和Na+数目，破坏阳离子介导的脂质间相互作用。结论 本研究证明，壳聚糖带正电的氨基基团是介导其与膜相互作用的关键，并破环脂质间的相互作...     

二氯乙酸钠和氯喹联合整合素亚单位的shRNA的协同抗肿瘤作用

目的:探究二氯乙酸钠、氯喹和表达整合素β3、β5亚单位的shRNA的重组病毒协同抗肿瘤作用。方法:探究二氯乙酸钠、氯喹和表达整合素β3、β5亚单位的shRNA的重组病毒对肝癌细胞株HepG2皮下异种移植瘤生长的影响,通过免疫组化试验检测药物对肿瘤血管生成、肿瘤细胞凋亡、增殖的影响。结果:在小鼠HepG2皮下移植瘤体内试验中可见单用氯喹对肿瘤生长抑制作用明显弱于单用二氯乙酸钠或两者合用,两药联合使用对肝癌细胞株HepG2产生的小鼠皮下移植瘤具有良好的抑制生长作用,并且使得小鼠能够很好地耐受氯喹,荷瘤所致的小鼠体重下降也得到缓解。单用表达整合素β3、β5亚单位的shRNA腺病毒对肿瘤抑制作用弱,合用两个化合物和表达整合素β3、β5亚单位的shRNA腺病毒则对小鼠HepG2移植瘤生长产生持续抑制作用,并减少单用表达整合素β3、β5亚单位的shRNA腺病毒对体重的影响。HE染色结果显示,给药后各组细胞结构被破坏,CD31和Ki67染色显示用药各组同步减少,TUNEL染色显示用药后各组细胞凋亡增加,其中二氯乙酸钠/氯喹/整合素β5和β3 shRNA腺病毒组最为明显,结果表明二氯乙酸钠/氯喹/整合素β5和β3 shRNA腺病毒联用具有显著的抗肿瘤生长作用,其机制是降低肿瘤的微血管密度、抑制肿瘤细胞的增殖和增加肿瘤细胞凋亡。结论:二氯乙酸钠、氯喹和表达整合素亚单位的shRNA的重组病毒进行组合具有协同抗肿瘤作用,为联合用药的设计及应用提供了参考。     

综述: 整合素相关微环境调控肿瘤转移

整合素是肿瘤微环境的重要组成部分,是广泛存在于细胞膜表面的黏附分子,可以识别并结合细胞外基质中相应的配体,参与许多重要的生理过程,包括肿瘤转移．整合素可以促进肿瘤转移的各个阶段,肿瘤微环境也会反过来影响整合素的表达,从而促进癌症的发生发展．     

整合素亲和力调控的机制

整合素是一类重要的细胞表面粘附分子,是由α和β两个亚基组成的异源二聚体跨膜蛋白。整合素作为细胞内外的桥梁,一方面负责介导细胞与细胞、细胞与细胞外基质以及细胞与病原体的相互作用,另一方面可以双向传递跨膜信号,对于免疫反应、免疫细胞的组织定位、凝血、组织愈伤、癌细胞转移以及组织和器官的发育等都至关重要。整合素与配体的结合及其相关的信号转导是受到精确调控的,这个过程伴随着整合素的一系列构象变化。整合素的另外一个特性是其与配体的结合受到二价金属阳离子的调控。本文重点介绍了整合素功能与构象的关系以及金属离子调控整合素功能的分子机制。     

利用原子力显微镜识别成像

细胞膜和细胞内特异蛋白的有效定位与定性,对于了解细胞运动、移植和分化等机制及细胞之间的相互作用非常关键。原子力显微镜灵敏的力学性质在研究生物分子的相互作用和特定分子的免疫识别中得到了广泛的应用,在细胞表面的特异性分子的定位过程中,不像免疫荧光成像一样需要复杂的样品准备,更重要的是能有效地进行特异性和非特异性的识别,并对识别位点可视化。本文从分子识别、功能化探针、基于力-体积成像及与动态力学显微镜结合成像等模式方面,综述了原子力显微镜在生物应用中的识别成像。     

活化/抑制CD59 对T 淋巴细胞增殖的影响

目的：研究活化/抑制CD59 分子对T 细胞增殖的影响。方法：Jurkat细胞分别电转入pSUPER-siCD59 质粒及用CD59 活化 抗体刺激。激光共聚焦显微镜下观察细胞的电转情况及CD59 分子在细胞膜上的分布及表达;MTT 比色法检测细胞的增殖。 Western blot检测CD59 分子表达及T细胞活化相关蛋白ZAP70磷酸化水平。结果：激光共聚焦显微镜下可见电转染细胞表达绿 色荧光,转染效率约为40%。转染pSUPER-siCD59 质粒后CD59荧光强度强度降低,CD59 分子均匀分布于细胞膜与正常Jurkat 细胞分布一致。抗体活化后CD59 在细胞膜成簇状分布。抗体活后细胞增殖速率和磷酸化ZAP70 的蛋白表达水平均高于正常组 （P<0.05）,而细胞电转质粒后则恰恰相反。结论：CD59 通过与信号转导分子的相互作用促进T 细胞活化增殖。     

活化／抑制CD59对T淋巴细胞增殖的影响

目的：研究活化／抑制cD59分子对T细胞增殖的影响。方法：Jurkat细胞分别电转入pSUPER-siCD59质粒及用CD59活化抗体刺激。激光共聚焦显微镜下观察细胞的电转情况及cD59分子在细胞膜上的分布及表达;MTT比色法检测细胞的增殖。Westernblot检测CD59分子表达及T细胞活化相关蛋白ZAP70磷酸化水平。结果：激光共聚焦显微镜下可见电转染细胞表达绿色荧光,转染效率约为40％。转染pSUPER-siCD59质粒后CD59荧光强度强度降低,CD59分子均匀分布于细胞膜与正常Jurkat细胞分布一致。抗体活化后CD59在细胞膜成簇状分布。抗体活后细胞增殖速率和磷酸化ZAP70的蛋白表达水平均高于正常组（P〈0．05）,而细胞电转质粒后则恰恰相反。结论：CD59通过与信号转导分子的相互作用促进T细胞活化增殖。     

Characterization of adhesion properties of the cardiomyocyte integrins and extracellular matrix proteins using atomic force microscopy

Integrins are transmembrane adhesion receptors that play important roles in the cardiovascular system by interacting with the extracellular matrix (ECM). However, direct quantitative measurements of the adhesion properties of the integrins on cardiomyocyte (CM) and their ECM ligands are lacking. In this study, we used atomic force microscopy (AFM) to quantify the adhesion force (peak force and mean force) and binding probability between CM integrins and three main heart tissue ECM proteins, ie, collagen (CN), fibronectin (FN), and laminin (LN). Functionalizing the AFM probes with ECM proteins, we found that the peak force (mean force) was 61.69 ± 5.5 pN (76.54 ± 4.0 pN), 39.26 ± 4.4 pN (59.84 ± 3.6 pN), and 108.31 ± 4.2 pN (129.63 ± 6.0 pN), respectively, for the bond of CN‐integrin, FN‐integrin, and LN‐integrin. The binding specificity between CM integrins and ECM proteins was verified by using monoclonal antibodies, where α₁₀‐ and α₁₁‐integrin bind to CN, α₃‐ and α₅‐integrin bind to FN, and α₃‐ and α₇‐integrin bind to LN. Furthermore, adhesion properties of CM integrins under physiologically high concentrations of extracellular Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ were tested. Additional Ca²⁺ reduced the adhesion mean force to 68.81 ± 4.0 pN, 49.84 ± 3.3 pN, and 119.21 ± 5.8 pN and binding probability to 0.31, 0.34, 0.40 for CN, FN, and LN, respectively, whereas Mg²⁺ caused very minor changes to adhesion properties of CM integrins. Thus, adhesion properties between adult murine CM integrins and its main ECM proteins were characterized, paving the way for an improved understanding of CM mechanobiology.     

Biochemical and mechanical extracellular matrix properties dictate mammary epithelial cell motility and assembly

Biochemical and mechanical cues of the extracellular matrix have been shown to play important roles in cell-matrix and cell-cell interactions. We have experimentally tested the combined influence of these cues to better understand cell motility, force generation, cell-cell interaction, and assembly in an in vitro breast cancer model. MCF-10A non-tumorigenic mammary epithelial cells were observed on surfaces with varying fibronectin ligand concentration and polyacrylamide gel rigidity. Our data show that cell velocity is biphasic in both matrix rigidity and adhesiveness. The maximum cell migration velocity occurs only at specific combination of substrate stiffness and ligand density. We found cell-cell interactions reduce migration velocity. However, the traction forces cells exert onto the substrate increase linearly with both cues, with cells in pairs exerting higher maximum tractions observed over single cells. A relationship between force and motility shows a maximum in single cell velocity not observed in cell pairs. Cell-cell adhesion becomes strongly favored on softer gels with elasticity ≤ 1250 Pascals (Pa), implying the existence of a compliance threshold that promotes cell-cell over cell-matrix adhesion. Finally on gels with stiffness similar to pre-malignant breast tissue, 400 Pa, cells undergo multicellular assembly and division into 3D spherical aggregates on a 2D surface.     

Integrin diversity brings specificity in mechanotransduction

Cells sense and respond to the biochemical and physical properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM) through adhesive structures that bridge the cell cytoskeleton and the surrounding environment. Integrin‐mediated adhesions interact with specific ECM proteins and sense the rigidity of the substrate to trigger signalling pathways that, in turn, regulate cellular processes such as adhesion, motility, proliferation and differentiation. This process, called mechanotransduction, influenced by the involvement of different integrin subtypes and their high ECM–ligand binding specificity, contributes to the cell‐type‐specific mechanical responses. In this review, we describe how the expression of particular integrin subtypes affects cellular adaptation to substrate rigidity. We then explain the role of integrins and associated proteins in mechanotransduction, focusing on their specificity in mechanosensing and force transmission.     

Stabilizing to disruptive transition of focal adhesion response to mechanical forces

Strong mechanical forces can, obviously, disrupt cell–cell and cell–matrix adhesions, e.g., cyclic uniaxial stretch induces instability of cell adhesion, which then causes the reorientation of cells away from the stretching direction. However, recent experiments also demonstrated the existence of force dependent adhesion growth (rather than dissociation). To provide a quantitative explanation for the two seemingly contradictory phenomena, a microscopic model that includes both integrin–integrin interaction and integrin–ligand interaction is developed at molecular level by treating the focal adhesion as an adhesion cluster. The integrin clustering dynamics and integrin–ligand binding dynamics are then simulated within one unified theoretical frame with Monte Carlo simulation. We find that the focal adhesion will grow when the traction force is higher than a relative small threshold value, and the growth is dominated by the reduction of local chemical potential energy by the traction force. In contrast, the focal adhesion will rupture when the traction force exceeds a second threshold value, and the rupture is dominated by the breaking of integrin–ligand bonds. Consistent with the experiments, these results suggest a force map for various responses of cell adhesion to different scales of mechanical force.     

Assaying stem cell mechanobiology on microfabricated elastomeric substrates with geometrically modulated rigidity

We describe the use of a microfabricated cell culture substrate, consisting of a uniform array of closely spaced, vertical, elastomeric microposts, to study the effects of substrate rigidity on cell function. Elastomeric micropost substrates are micromolded from silicon masters comprised of microposts of different heights to yield substrates of different rigidities. The tips of the elastomeric microposts are functionalized with extracellular matrix through microcontact printing to promote cell adhesion. These substrates, therefore, present the same topographical cues to adherent cells while varying substrate rigidity only through manipulation of micropost height. This protocol describes how to fabricate the silicon micropost array masters (~2 weeks to complete) and elastomeric substrates (3 d), as well as how to perform cell culture experiments (1-14 d), immunofluorescence imaging (2 d), traction force analysis (2 d) and stem cell differentiation assays (1 d) on these substrates in order to examine the effect of substrate rigidity on stem cell morphology, traction force generation, focal adhesion organization and differentiation.     

Mechanical anchoring strength of L-selectin, beta2 integrins, and CD45 to neutrophil cytoskeleton and membrane.

The strength of anchoring of transmembrane receptors to cytoskeleton and membrane is important in cell adhesion and cell migration. With micropipette suction, we applied pulling forces to human neutrophils adhering to latex beads that were coated with antibodies to CD62L (L-selectin), CD18 (beta2 integrins), or CD45. In each case, the adhesion frequency between the neutrophil and bead was low, and our Monte Carlo simulation indicates that only a single bond was probably involved in every adhesion event. When the adhesion between the neutrophil and bead was ruptured, it was very likely that receptors were extracted from neutrophil surfaces. We found that it took 1-2 s to extract an L-selectin at a force range of 25-45 pN, 1-4 s to extract a beta2 integrin at a force range of 60-130 pN, and 1-11 s to extract a CD45 at a force range of 35-85 pN. Our results strongly support the conclusion that, during neutrophil rolling, L-selectin is unbound from its ligand when the adhesion between neutrophils and endothelium is ruptured.     

Fibroblast adaptation and stiffness matching to soft elastic substrates

Many cell types alter their morphology and gene expression profile when grown on chemically equivalent surfaces with different rigidities. One expectation of this change in morphology and composition is that the cell’s internal stiffness, governed by cytoskeletal assembly and production of internal stresses, will change as a function of substrate stiffness. Atomic force microscopy was used to measure the stiffness of fibroblasts grown on fibronectin-coated polyacrylamide gels of shear moduli varying between 500 and 40,000 Pa. Indentation measurements show that the cells’ elastic moduli were equal to, or slightly lower than, those of their substrates for a range of soft gels and reached a saturating value at a substrate rigidity of 20 kPa. The amount of cross-linked F-actin sedimenting at low centrifugal force also increased with substrate stiffness. Together with enhanced actin polymerization and cross-linking, active contraction of the cytoskeleton can also modulate stiffness by exploiting the nonlinear elasticity of semiflexible biopolymer networks. These results suggest that within a range of stiffness spanning that of soft tissues, fibroblasts tune their internal stiffness to match that of their substrate, and modulation of cellular stiffness by the rigidity of the environment may be a mechanism used to direct cell migration and wound repair.     

Quantitative analysis of platelet alpha v beta 3 binding to osteopontin using laser tweezers

To determine whether platelet adhesion to surfaces coated with the matrix protein osteopontin requires an agonist-induced increase in the affinity of the integrin alpha v beta 3 for this ligand, we used laser tweezers to measure the rupture force between single alpha v beta 3 molecules on the platelet surface and osteopontin-coated beads. Virtually all platelets stimulated with 10 microM ADP bound strongly to osteopontin, producing rupture forces as great as 100 piconewtons (pN) with a peak at 45-50 pN. By contrast, 90% of unstimulated, resting non-reactive platelets bound weakly to osteopontin, with rupture forces rarely exceeding 30-35 pN. However, approximately 10% of unstimulated platelets, resting reactive platelets, exhibited rupture force distributions similar to stimulated platelets. Moreover, ADP stimulation resulted in a 12-fold increase in the probability of detecting rupture forces >30 pN compared with resting non-reactive platelets. Pre-incubating stimulated platelets with the inhibitory prostaglandin E1, a cyclic RGD peptide, the monoclonal antibody abciximab, or the alpha v beta 3-specific cyclic peptide XJ735 returned force histograms to those of non-reactive platelets. These experiments demonstrate that ADP stimulation increases the strength of the interaction between platelet alpha v beta 3 and osteopontin. Furthermore, they indicate that platelet adhesion to osteopontin-coated surfaces requires an agonist-induced exposure of alpha v beta 3-binding sites for this ligand.     

Influence of type I collagen surface density on fibroblast spreading, motility, and contractility

We examine the relationships of three variables (projected area, migration speed, and traction force) at various type I collagen surface densities in a population of fibroblasts. We observe that cell area is initially an increasing function of ligand density, but that above a certain transition level, increases in surface collagen cause cell area to decline. The threshold collagen density that separates these two qualitatively different regimes, approximately 160 molecules/ microm(2), is approximately equal to the cell surface density of integrin molecules. These results suggest a model in which collagen density induces a qualitative transition in the fundamental way that fibroblasts interact with the substrate. At low density, the availability of collagen binding sites is limiting and the cells simply try to flatten as much as possible by pulling on the few available sites as hard as they can. The force per bond under these conditions approaches 100 pN, approximately equal to the force required for rupture of integrin-peptide bonds. In contrast, at high collagen density adhesion, traction force and motility are limited by the availability of free integrins on the cell surface since so many of these receptors are bound to the surface ligand and the force per bond is very low.