Capitalizing on tumor genotyping: towards the design of mutation specific inhibitors of phosphoinsitide-3-kinase

PI3Ks catalyze the phosphorylation of the inositol hydroxyls of phosphoinositide membrane components. The changes in phosphorylation of the inositides recruit proteins to the plasma membrane that initiate important signaling cascades. PI3Kα, one of the class IA PI3Ks, is highly mutated in cancers. All mutations analyzed result in an increase in enzymatic activity. The structures of this enzyme determined by X-ray diffraction, provide a framework for analyzing the possible structural effect of these mutations and their effect on the enzymatic activity. Many of the mutations occur at domain interfaces where they can affect domain interactions and relieve the inhibition of the wild-type enzyme by the nSH2 domain of p85. This mechanism is analogous to the mechanism of physiological activation by activated tyrosine-kinase receptors in which the phosphorylated tyrosine of the receptor (or their substrates) dislodges the nSH2 from its inhibitory position in the complex by competing with its binding to a loop in the helical domain. Other mutations in the kinase domain can directly affect the conformation of the catalytic site. One mutation, His1047Arg, uses a completely different mechanism: it changes the conformation of the C-terminal loop in such a way that it increases the interaction of the enzyme with the membrane, granting increased access to the phosphoinositide substrates. Taking advantage of the reliance of some cancers on the increased activity of mutated PI3Kα, will require the development of isoform-specific, mutant-specific inhibitors. The structural, biochemical and physiological data that are becoming available for PI3Ks are an important first step in this direction.     

Epitope-specific CD8+ T lymphocytes cross-recognize mutant simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) sequences but fail to contain very early evolution and eventual fixation of epitope escape mutations during SIV infection

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) evade containment by CD8(+) T lymphocytes through focused epitope mutations. However, because of limitations in the numbers of viral sequences that can be sampled, traditional sequencing technologies have not provided a true representation of the plasticity of these viruses or the intensity of CD8(+) T lymphocyte-mediated selection pressure. Moreover, the strategy by which CD8(+) T lymphocytes contain evolving viral quasispecies has not been characterized fully. In the present study we have employed ultradeep 454 pyrosequencing of virus and simultaneous staining of CD8(+) T lymphocytes with multiple tetramers in the SIV/rhesus monkey model to explore the coevolution of virus and the cellular immune response during primary infection. We demonstrated that cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL)-mediated selection pressure on the infecting virus was manifested by epitope mutations as early as 21 days following infection. We also showed that CD8(+) T lymphocytes cross-recognized wild-type and mutant epitopes and that these cross-reactive cell populations were present at a time when mutant forms of virus were present at frequencies of as low as 1 in 22,000 sequenced clones. Surprisingly, these cross-reactive cells became enriched in the epitope-specific CD8(+) T lymphocyte population as viruses with mutant epitope sequences largely replaced those with epitope sequences of the transmitted virus. These studies demonstrate that mutant epitope-specific CD8(+) T lymphocytes that are present at a time when viral mutant epitope sequences are detected at extremely low frequencies fail to contain the later accumulation and fixation of the mutant epitope sequences in the viral quasispecies.     

Pathogen-induced inflammatory environment controls effector and memory CD8+ T cell differentiation

In response to infection, CD8(+) T cells integrate multiple signals and undergo an exponential increase in cell numbers. Simultaneously, a dynamic differentiation process occurs, resulting in the formation of short-lived effector cells (SLECs; CD127(low)KLRG1(high)) and memory precursor effector cells (CD127(high)KLRG1(low)) from an early effector cell that is CD127(low)KLRG1(low) in phenotype. CD8(+) T cell differentiation during vesicular stomatitis virus infection differed significantly than during Listeria monocytogenes infection with a substantial reduction in early effector cell differentiation into SLECs. SLEC generation was dependent on Ebi3 expression. Furthermore, SLEC differentiation during vesicular stomatitis virus infection was enhanced by administration of CpG-DNA, through an IL-12-dependent mechanism. Moreover, CpG-DNA treatment enhanced effector CD8(+) T cell functionality and memory subset distribution, but in an IL-12-independent manner. Population dynamics were dramatically different during secondary CD8(+) T cell responses, with a much greater accumulation of SLECs and the appearance of a significant number of CD127(high)KLRG1(high) memory cells, both of which were intrinsic to the memory CD8(+) T cell. These subsets persisted for several months but were less effective in recall than memory precursor effector cells. Thus, our data shed light on how varying the context of T cell priming alters downstream effector and memory CD8(+) T cell differentiation.     

Design, synthesis and SAR of indazole and benzoisoxazole containing 4-azetidinyl-1-aryl-cyclohexanes as CCR2 antagonists

A novel series of 4-azetidinyl-1-aryl-cyclohexanes containing indazole or benzoisoxazole moiety have been identified as potent CCR2 antagonists with high selectivity versus hERG.     

De novo CNVs in bipolar disorder: recurrent themes or new directions?

In this issue of Neuron, Malhotra and colleagues report an enrichment of de novo copy number variants in bipolar disorder and schizophrenia when compared with those of controls. The study highlights the importance of a genetic model involving rare and disruptive variants to further our understanding of complex neuropsychiatric traits.     

Identification and comparative analysis of accessory gland proteins in Orthoptera.

Accessory reproductive gland proteins (Acps) in Drosophila evolve quickly and appear to play an important role in ensuring the fertilization success of males. Moreover, Acps are thought to be involved in establishing barriers to fertilization between closely related species. While accessory glands are known to occur in the males of many insect groups, the proteins that are passed on to females by males during mating have not been well characterized outside of Drosophila. To gain a better understanding of these proteins, we characterized ESTs from the accessory glands of two cricket species, Allonemobius fasciatus and Gryllus firmus. Using an expressed sequence tag (EST) approach, followed by bioinformatic and evolutionary analyses, we found that many proteins are secreted and, therefore, available for transfer to the female during mating. Further, we found that most ESTs are novel, showing little sequence similarity between taxa. Evolutionary analyses suggest that cricket proteins are subject to diversifying selection and indicate that Allonemobius is much less polymorphic than Gryllus. Despite rapid nucleotide sequence divergence, there appears to be functional conservation of protein classes among Drosophila and cricket taxa.     

Activation of PI3Kα by physiological effectors and by oncogenic mutations: structural and dynamic effects

PI3Kα, a heterodimeric lipid kinase, catalyzes the conversion of phosphoinositide-4,5-bisphosphate (PIP₂) to phosphoinositide-3,4,5-trisphosphate (PIP₃), a lipid that recruits to the plasma membrane proteins that regulate signaling cascades that control key cellular processes such as cell proliferation, carbohydrate metabolism, cell motility, and apoptosis. PI3Kα is composed of two subunits, p110α and p85, that are activated by binding to phosphorylated receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) or their substrates. The gene coding for p110α, PIK3CA, has been found to be mutated in a large number of tumors; these mutations result in increased PI3Kα kinase activity. The structure of the complex of p110α with a fragment of p85 containing the nSH2 and the iSH2 domains has provided valuable information about the mechanisms underlying the physiological activation of PI3Kα and its pathological activation by oncogenic mutations. This review discusses information derived from x-ray diffraction and theoretical calculations regarding the structural and dynamic effects of mutations in four highly mutated regions of PI3K p110α, as well as the proposed mechanisms by which these mutations increase kinase activity. During the physiological activation of PI3Kα, the phosphorylated tyrosine of RTKs binds to the nSH2 domain of p85, dislodging an inhibitory interaction between the p85 nSH2 and a loop of the helical domain of p110α. Several of the oncogenic mutations in p110α activate the enzyme by weakening this autoinhibitory interaction. These effects involve structural changes as well as changes in the dynamics of the enzyme. One of the most common p110α mutations, H1047R, activates PI3Kα by a different mechanism: it increases the interaction of the enzyme with the membrane, maximizing the access of the PI3Kα to its substrate PIP₂, a membrane lipid.