Ferrous Iron Induces Nrf2 Expression in Mouse Brain Astrocytes to Prevent Neurotoxicity

Free radical damage caused by ferrous iron is involved in the pathogenesis of secondary brain injury after intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). NF‐E2‐related factor 2 (Nrf2), a major phase II gene regulator that binds to antioxidant response element, represents an important cellular cytoprotective mechanism against oxidative damage. We hypothesized that Nrf2 might protect astrocytes from damage by Fe²⁺. Therefore, we examined cytotoxicity in primary astrocytes induced by iron overload and evaluated the effects of Fe²⁺ on Nrf2 expression. The results demonstrated that 24‐h Fe²⁺ exposure exerted time‐ and concentration‐dependent cytotoxicity in astrocytes. Furthermore, Fe²⁺ exposure in astrocytes resulted in time‐ and concentration‐dependent increases in Nrf2 expression, which preceded Fe²⁺ toxicity. Nrf2‐specific siRNA further knocked down Nrf2 levels, resulting in greater Fe²⁺‐induced astrocyte cytotoxicity. These data indicate that induction of Nrf2 expression could serve as an adaptive self‐defense mechanism, although it is insufficient to completely protect primary astrocytes from Fe²⁺‐induced neurotoxicity.     

Extracellular expression, purification, and characterization of a winter flounder antifreeze polypeptide from Escherichia coli

HPLC6 is the major component of liver-type antifreeze polypeptides (AFPs) from the winter flounder, Pleuronectes americanus. To facilitate mutagenesis studies of this protein, a gene encoding the 37-amino acid mature polypeptide was chemically synthesized and cloned into the Tac cassette immediately after the bacterial ompA leader sequence for direct excretion of the AFP into the culture medium. Escherichia coli transformant with the construct placIQpar8AF was cultured in M9 medium. The recombinant AFP (rAFP) was detected by a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). After IPTG induction, a biologically active rAFP was expressed. The majority of the rAFP was excreted into the culture medium with only trace amounts trapped in the periplasmic space and cytoplasm. After 18 h of induction, the accumulated rAFP in the culture medium amounted to about 16 mg/L. The excreted AFP was purified from the culture medium by a single-step reverse-phase HPLC. Mass spectrometric and amino acid composition analyses confirmed the identity of the purified product. The rAFP, which lacked amidation at the C-terminal, was about 70% active when compared to the amidated wild-type protein, thus confirming the importance of C-terminal cap structure in protein stability and function.     

Quantitative Förster resonance energy transfer analysis for kinetic determinations of SUMO-specific protease

Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) technology has been widely used in biological and biomedical research, and it is a very powerful tool for elucidating protein interactions in either dynamic or steady state. SUMOylation (the process of SUMO [small ubiquitin-like modifier] conjugation to substrates) is an important posttranslational protein modification with critical roles in multiple biological processes. Conjugating SUMO to substrates requires an enzymatic cascade. Sentrin/SUMO-specific proteases (SENPs) act as an endopeptidase to process the pre-SUMO or as an isopeptidase to deconjugate SUMO from its substrate. To fully understand the roles of SENPs in the SUMOylation cycle, it is critical to understand their kinetics. Here, we report a novel development of a quantitative FRET-based protease assay for SENP1 kinetic parameter determination. The assay is based on the quantitative analysis of the FRET signal from the total fluorescent signal at acceptor emission wavelength, which consists of three components: donor (CyPet–SUMO1) emission, acceptor (YPet) emission, and FRET signal during the digestion process. Subsequently, we developed novel theoretical and experimental procedures to determine the kinetic parameters, k_cat, K_M, and catalytic efficiency (k_cat/K_M) of catalytic domain SENP1 toward pre-SUMO1. Importantly, the general principles of this quantitative FRET-based protease kinetic determination can be applied to other proteases.     

Aristolochic acid I induced autophagy extenuates cell apoptosis via ERK 1/2 pathway in renal tubular epithelial cells

Autophagy is a lysosomal degradation pathway that is essential for cell survival and tissue homeostasis. However, limited information is available about autophagy in aristolochic acid (AA) nephropathy. In this study, we investigated the role of autophagy and related signaling pathway during progression of AAI-induced injury to renal tubular epithelial cells (NRK52E cells). The results showed that autophagy in NRK52E cells was detected as early as 3-6 hrs after low dose of AAI (10 μM) exposure as indicated by an up-regulated expression of LC3-II and Beclin 1 proteins. The appearance of AAI-induced punctated staining of autophagosome-associated LC3-II upon GFP-LC3 transfection in NRK52E cells provided further evidence for autophagy. However, cell apoptosis was not detected until 12 hrs after AAI treatment. Blockade of autophagy with Wortmannin or 3-Methyladenine (two inhibitors of phosphoinositede 3-kinases) or small-interfering RNA knockdown of Beclin 1 or Atg7 sensitized the tubular cells to apoptosis. Treatment of NRK52E cells with AAI caused a time-dependent increase in extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) activity, but not c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and p38. Pharmacological inhibition of ERK1/2 phosphorylation with U0126 resulted in a decreased AAI-induced autophagy that was accompanied by an increased apoptosis. Taken together, our study demonstrated for the first time that autophagy occurred earlier than apoptosis during AAI-induced tubular epithelial cell injury. Autophagy induced by AAI via ERK1/2 pathway might attenuate apoptosis, which may provide a protective mechanism for cell survival under AAI-induced pathological condition.     

Developability studies before initiation of process development

Monoclonal antibodies constitute a robust class of therapeutic proteins. Their stability, resistance to stress conditions and high solubility have allowed the successful development and commercialization of over 40 antibody-based drugs. Although mAbs enjoy a relatively high probability of success compared with other therapeutic proteins, examples of projects that are suspended due to the instability of the molecule are not uncommon. Developability assessment studies have therefore been devised to identify early during process development problems associated with stability, solubility that is insufficient to meet expected dosing or sensitivity to stress. This set of experiments includes short-term stability studies at 2−8 þC, 25 þC and 40 þC, freeze-thaw studies, limited forced degradation studies and determination of the viscosity of high concentration samples. We present here three case studies reflecting three typical outcomes: (1) no major or unexpected degradation is found and the study results are used to inform early identification of degradation pathways and potential critical quality attributes within the Quality by Design framework defined by US Food and Drug Administration guidance documents; (2) identification of specific degradation pathway(s) that do not affect potency of the molecule, with subsequent definition of proper process control and formulation strategies; and (3) identification of degradation that affects potency, resulting in program termination and reallocation of resources.     

20(S)-Protopanaxadiol Inhibition of Progression and Growth of Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer

Castration-resistant progression of prostate cancer after androgen deprivation therapies remains the most critical challenge in the clinical management of prostate cancer. Resurgent androgen receptor (AR) activity is an established driver of castration-resistant progression, and upregulation of the full-length AR (AR-FL) and constitutively-active AR splice variants (AR-Vs) has been implicated to contribute to the resurgent AR activity. We reported previously that ginsenoside 20(S)-protopanaxadiol-aglycone (PPD) can reduce the abundance of both AR-FL and AR-Vs. In the present study, we further showed that the effect of PPD on AR expression and target genes was independent of androgen. PPD treatment resulted in a suppression of ligand-independent AR transactivation. Moreover, PPD delayed castration-resistant regrowth of LNCaP xenograft tumors after androgen deprivation and inhibited the growth of castration-resistant 22Rv1 xenograft tumors with endogenous expression of AR-FL and AR-Vs. This was accompanied by a decline in serum prostate-specific antigen levels as well as a decrease in AR levels and mitoses in the tumors. Notably, the 22Rv1 xenograft tumors were resistant to growth inhibition by the next-generation anti-androgen enzalutamide. The present study represents the first to show the preclinical efficacy of PPD in inhibiting castration-resistant progression and growth of prostate cancer. The findings provide a rationale for further developing PPD or its analogues for prostate cancer therapy.     

Research progress on the immune mechanism of the silkworm Bombyx mori

The silkworm Bombyx mori L., representing an important economic insect and one of the best models for studying insect immunity, possesses an efficient and sophisticated innate immune system against invasive microorganisms. The innate immune system basically includes humoural immunity and cellular immunity. The humoural immunity, which functions via molecules including humoural factors, lysozymes, phenoloxidase, hemolin, lectins and, in particular, antimicrobial peptides, plays a central role in eliminating the invading pathogens. The cellular immunity is primarily carried out and mediated by plasmatocytes and granular cells of haemocytes in the haemolymph, usually followed by melanization. Additionally, apoptosis, a primary viral defence for insects lacking adaptive immunity, comprises an important part of the silkworm immune system. Currently, there is still the lack of a comprehensive and systematic understanding of the molecular mechanisms of silkworm immunity. We review the latest research progress on silkworm immune mechanisms, including phenoloxidase‐dependent melanization and apoptosis, which is conducive to improving our understanding of the silkworm immune mechanism, clarifying the relationship of various immune mechanisms, and also providing a theoretical basis and reference for the future research of insect immunity.     

Genetic polymorphism of glutathione S-transferase T1 and the risk of colorectal cancer: A meta-analysis

Background: Studies investigating the association between genetic polymorphism of glutathione S-transferase T1 (GSTT1) and risk of colorectal cancer have reported conflicting results. In order to clarify the effect of GSTT1 polymorphism on the risk of developing colorectal cancer, we carried out a meta-analysis using published data to obtain more precise estimates of risk. Methods: Electronic searches of PubMed and EMBASE were conducted to select studies for this meta-analysis. Papers were included if they were observational studies investigating the association between GSTT1 polymorphism and colorectal cancer risk. The principal outcome measure was the odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) for the risk of colorectal cancer associated with GSTT1 null genotype. Results: We identified 30 eligible studies, which included 7635 cases and 12,911 controls. The combined results based on all studies showed that there was a statistically significant link between GSTT1 null genotype and colorectal cancer risk (OR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.03–1.40). In the analysis of ethnic groups, we observed distinct differences associated with GSTT1 null genotype, the pooled odds ratios for the GSTT1 polymorphism were 1.32 in Caucasians (95% CI = 1.09–1.58) and 1.03 in Asians (95% CI = 0.81–1.32). As far as concerned the interaction between GSTT1 genotype and colorectal cancer risk in relation to smoking history, there was no increase in risk for smokers or nonsmokers with the GSTT1 null genotype (smokers: OR = 1.13, 95% CI = 0.80–1.60, nonsmokers: OR = 0.99, 95% CI = 0.71–1.38). When stratifying by the location of colorectal cancer, we found that there was a statistically significant link in rectal cancer (OR = 1.50, 95% CI = 1.09–2.07), but not in colon cancer (OR = 1.33, 95% CI = 0.94–1.88). No associations could be detected between null GSTT1 polymorphism and age, sex, tumor stage and differentiation. Conclusion: Our current study demonstrates that GSTT1 null genotype is associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer, specifically, among Caucasians.     

AMPK regulates homeostasis of invasion and viability in trophoblasts by redirecting glucose metabolism: Implications for pre‐eclampsia

Pre‐eclampsia (PE) is deemed an ischemia‐induced metabolic disorder of the placenta due to defective invasion of trophoblasts during placentation; thus, the driving role of metabolism in PE pathogenesis is largely ignored. Since trophoblasts undergo substantial glycolysis, this study aimed to investigate its function and regulatory mechanism by AMPK in PE development. Metabolomics analysis of PE placentas was performed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Trophoblast‐specific AMPKα1‐deficient mouse placentas were generated to assess morphology. A mouse PE model was established by Reduced Uterine Perfusion Pressure, and placental AMPK was modulated by nanoparticle‐delivered A769662. Trophoblast glucose uptake was measured by 2‐NBDG and 2‐deoxy‐d‐[³H] glucose uptake assays. Cellular metabolism was investigated by the Seahorse assay and GC–MS.PE complicated trophoblasts are associated with AMPK hyperactivation due not to energy deficiency. Thereafter, AMPK activation during placentation exacerbated PE manifestations but alleviated cell death in the placenta. AMPK activation in trophoblasts contributed to GLUT3 translocation and subsequent glucose metabolism, which were redirected into gluconeogenesis, resulting in deposition of glycogen and accumulation of phosphoenolpyruvate; the latter enhanced viability but compromised trophoblast invasion. However, ablation of AMPK in the mouse placenta resulted in decreased glycogen deposition and structural malformation. These data reveal a novel homeostasis between invasiveness and viability in trophoblasts, which is mechanistically relevant for switching between the ‘go’ and ‘grow’ cellular programs.

Pre‐eclampsia (PE) is associated with trophoblast AMPK hyperactivation, presumably due to LKB1 phosphorylation, and glucose uptake is consequently increased via trafficking of GLUT3 from the cytosol to the plasma membrane. Such translocation enhances glycolytic flux and redirects glucose metabolic intermediates into gluconeogenesis, resulting in PEP accumulation, which not only benefits cell survival but also suppresses invasion by repressing MMPs, and thus in turn modulates switching between the ‘go’ and ‘grow’ cellular programs.