An insect farnesyl phosphatase homologous to the N-terminal domain of soluble epoxide hydrolase

In insects, farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP) is converted to juvenile hormone (JH) via a conserved pathway consisting of isoprenoid-derived metabolites. The first step of this pathway is presumed to be hydrolysis of FPP to farnesol in the ring gland. Based on alignment of putative phosphatases from Drosophila melanogaster with the phosphatase domain of soluble epoxide hydrolase, Phos2680 and Phos15739 with conserved phosphatase motifs were identified, cloned and purified. Both D. melanogaster phosphatases hydrolyzed para-nitrophenyl phosphate, however, Phos15739 also hydrolyzed FPP with a K_cat/K_m of 2.1 × 10⁵ M⁻¹ s⁻¹. RT-PCR analysis revealed that Phos15739 was expressed in the ring gland and its expression was correlated with JHIII titer during development of D. melanogaster. N-acetyl-S-geranylgeranyl-l-cysteine was found to be a potent inhibitor of Phos15739 with an IC₅₀ value of 4.4 μM. Thus, our data identify Phos15739 as a FPP phosphatase that likely catalyzes the hydrolysis of FPP to farnesol in D. melanogaster.     

Regulation of cardiolipin biosynthesis by fatty acid transport protein-1 IN HEK 293 cells

Cardiolipin (CL) is a major phospholipid involved in energy metabolism mammalian mitochondria and fatty acid transport protein-1 (FATP-1) is a fatty acid transport protein that may regulate the intracellular level of fatty acyl-Coenzyme A's. Since fatty acids are required for oxidative phosphorylation via mitochondrial oxidation, we examined the effect of altering FATP-1 levels on CL biosynthesis. HEK-293 mock- and FATP-1 siRNA transfected cells or mock and FATP-1 expressing cells were incubated for 24 h with 0.1 mM oleic acid bound to albumin (1:1 molar ratio) then incubated for 24 h with 0.1 mM [1,3-³H]glycerol and radioactivity incorporated into CL determined. FATP-1 siRNA transfected cells exhibited reduced FATP-1 mRNA and increased incorporation of [1,3-³H]glycerol into CL (2-fold, p < 0.05) compared to controls indicating elevation in de novo CL biosynthesis. The reason for this was an increase in [1,3-³H]glycerol uptake and increase in activity and mRNA expression of the CL biosynthetic enzymes. In contrast, expression of FATP-1 resulted a reduction in incorporation of [1,3-³H]glycerol into CL (65%, p < 0.05) indicating reduced CL synthesis. [1,3-³H]Glycerol uptake was unaltered whereas activity of cytidine-5′-diphosphate-1,2-diacyl-sn-glycerol synthetase (CDS) and CDS-2 mRNA expression were reduced in FATP-1 expressing cells compared to control. In addition, in vitro CDS activity was reduced by exogenous addition of oleoyl-Coenzyme A. The data indicate that CL de novo biosynthesis may be regulated by FATP-1 through CDS-2 expression in HEK 293 cells.     

The addition of tumor necrosis factor plus beta interferon induces a novel synergistic antiviral state against poxviruses in primary human fibroblasts

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and members of the interferon (IFN) family have been shown to independently inhibit the replication of a variety of viruses. In addition, previous reports have shown that treatment with various combinations of these antiviral cytokines induces a synergistic antiviral state that can be significantly more potent than addition of any of these cytokines alone. The mechanism of this cytokine synergy and its effects on global gene expression, however, are not well characterized. Here, we use DNA microarray analysis to demonstrate that treatment of uninfected primary human fibroblasts with TNF plus IFN-β induces a distinct synergistic state characterized by significant perturbations of several hundred genes which are coinduced by the individual cytokines alone, as well as the induction of more than 850 novel host cell genes. This synergy is mediated directly by the two ligands, not by intermediate secreted factors, and is necessary and sufficient to completely block the productive replication and spread of myxoma virus in human fibroblasts. In contrast, the replication of two other poxviruses, vaccinia virus and tanapox virus, are only partially inhibited in these cells by the synergistic antiviral state, whereas the spread of both of these viruses to neighboring cells was efficiently blocked. Taken together, our data indicate that the combination of TNF and IFN-β induces a novel synergistic antiviral state that is highly distinct from that induced by either cytokine alone.     

Secreted Versus Membrane-anchored Collagenases: RELATIVE ROLES IN FIBROBLAST-DEPENDENT COLLAGENOLYSIS AND INVASION*

Fibroblasts degrade type I collagen, the major extracellular protein found in mammals, during events ranging from bulk tissue resorption to invasion through the three-dimensional extracellular matrix. Current evidence suggests that type I collagenolysis is mediated by secreted as well as membrane-anchored members of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) gene family. However, the roles played by these multiple and possibly redundant, degradative systems during fibroblast-mediated matrix remodeling is undefined. Herein, we use fibroblasts isolated from Mmp13^−/−, Mmp8^−/−, Mmp2^−/−, Mmp9^−/−, Mmp14^−/− and Mmp16^−/− mice to define the functional roles for secreted and membrane-anchored collagenases during collagen-resorptive versus collagen-invasive events. In the presence of a functional plasminogen activator-plasminogen axis, secreted collagenases arm cells with a redundant collagenolytic potential that allows fibroblasts harboring single deficiencies for either MMP-13, MMP-8, MMP-2, or MMP-9 to continue to degrade collagen comparably to wild-type fibroblasts. Likewise, Mmp14^−/− or Mmp16^−/− fibroblasts retain near-normal collagenolytic activity in the presence of plasminogen via the mobilization of secreted collagenases, but only Mmp14 (MT1-MMP) plays a required role in the collagenolytic processes that support fibroblast invasive activity. Furthermore, by artificially tethering a secreted collagenase to the surface of Mmp14^−/− fibroblasts, we demonstrate that localized pericellular collagenolytic activity differentiates the collagen-invasive phenotype from bulk collagen degradation. Hence, whereas secreted collagenases arm fibroblasts with potent matrix-resorptive activity, only MT1-MMP confers the focal collagenolytic activity necessary for supporting the tissue-invasive phenotype.In the postnatal state, fibroblasts are normally embedded in a self-generated three-dimensional connective tissue matrix composed largely of type I collagen, the major extracellular protein found in mammals (1–3). Type I collagen not only acts as a structural scaffolding for the associated mesenchymal cell populations but also regulates gene expression and cell function through its interactions with collagen binding integrins and discoidin receptors (2, 4). Consistent with the central role that type I collagen plays in defining the structure and function of the extracellular matrix, the triple-helical molecule is resistant to almost all forms of proteolytic attack and can display a decades-long half-life in vivo (4–6). Nonetheless, fibroblasts actively remodel type I collagen during wound healing, inflammation, or neoplastic states (2, 7–13).To date type I collagenolytic activity is largely confined to a small subset of fewer than 10 proteases belonging to either the cysteine proteinase or matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)² gene families (4, 14–18). As all collagenases are synthesized as inactive zymogens, complex proteolytic cascades involving serine, cysteine, metallo, and aspartyl proteinases have also been linked to collagen turnover by virtue of their ability to mediate the processing of the pro-collagenases to their active forms (13, 15, 19). After activation, each collagenase can then cleave native collagen within its triple-helical domain, thus precipitating the unwinding or “melting” of the resulting collagen fragments at physiologic temperatures (4, 15). In turn, the denatured products (termed gelatin) are susceptible to further proteolysis by a broader class of “gelatinases” (4, 15). Collagen fragments are then either internalized after binding to specific receptors on the cell surface or degraded to smaller peptides with potent biological activity (20–24).Previous studies by our group as well as others have identified MMPs as the primary effectors of fibroblast-mediated collagenolysis (20, 25, 26). Interestingly, adult mouse fibroblasts express at least six MMPs that can potentially degrade type I collagen, raising the possibility of multiple compensatory networks that are designed to preserve collagenolytic activity (25). Four of these collagenases belong to the family of secreted MMPs, i.e. MMP-13, MMP-8, MMP-2, and MMP-9, whereas the other two enzymes are members of the membrane-type MMP subgroup, i.e. MMP-14 (MT1-MMP) and MMP-16 (MT3-MMP) (13, 27–29). From a functional perspective, the specific roles that can be assigned to secreted versus membrane-anchored collagenases remain undefined. As such, fibroblasts were isolated from either wild-type mice or mice harboring loss-of-function deletions in each of the major secreted and membrane-anchored collagenolytic genes, and the ability of the cells to degrade type I collagen was assessed. Herein, we demonstrate that fibroblasts mobilize either secreted or membrane-anchored MMPs to effectively degrade type I collagen in qualitatively and quantitatively distinct fashions. However, under conditions where fibroblasts use either secreted and membrane-anchored MMPs to exert quantitatively equivalent collagenolytic activity, only MT1-MMP plays a required role in supporting a collagen-invasive phenotype. These data establish a new paradigm wherein secreted collagenases are functionally limited to bulk collagenolytic processes, whereas MT1-MMP uniquely arms the fibroblast with a focalized degradative activity that mediates subjacent collagenolysis as well as invasion.     

NLRP3/Cryopyrin Is Necessary for Interleukin-1�� (IL-1��) Release in Response to Hyaluronan, an Endogenous Trigger of Inflammation in Response to Injury

Inflammation under sterile conditions is a key event in autoimmunity and following trauma. Hyaluronan, a glycosaminoglycan released from the extracellular matrix after injury, acts as an endogenous signal of trauma and can trigger chemokine release in injured tissue. Here, we investigated whether NLRP3/cryopyrin, a component of the inflammasome, participates in the inflammatory response to injury or the cytokine response to hyaluronan. Mice with a targeted deletion in cryopyrin showed a normal increase in Cxcl2 in response to sterile injuries but had decreased inflammation and release of interleukin-1β (IL-1β). Similarly, the addition of hyaluronan to macrophages derived from cryopyrin-deficient mice increased release of Cxcl2 but did not increase IL-1β release. To define the mechanism of hyaluronan-mediated activation of cryopyrin, elements of the hyaluronan recognition process were studied in detail. IL-1β release was inhibited in peritoneal macrophages derived from CD44-deficient mice, in an MH-S macrophage cell line treated with antibodies to CD44, or by inhibitors of lysosome function. The requirement for CD44 binding and hyaluronan internalization could be bypassed by intracellular administration of hyaluronan oligosaccharides (10–18-mer) in lipopolysaccharide-primed macrophages. Therefore, the action of CD44 and subsequent hyaluronan catabolism trigger the intracellular cryopyrin → IL-1β pathway. These findings support the hypothesis that hyaluronan works through IL-1β and the cryopyrin system to signal sterile inflammation.Inflammation, as defined by changes in vascular permeability and leukocyte recruitment, is an essential step for the control of microbial invasion. Specific microbial products trigger this process through a diverse array of innate immune pattern recognition receptors. However, an inflammatory response independent of infection is also an important process for maintenance of biological homeostasis. For example, normal wound healing requires a controlled inflammatory response to enable the recruitment of monocytes and the release of growth factors required for repair. This response can occur in the absence of microbial stimuli. Furthermore, inflammation and the release of proinflammatory mediators is also associated with many diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn disease (1). These diseases are not well understood in terms of their triggers but rather are described by the subsequent release of proinflammatory mediators. Identification of the triggers of sterile inflammation represents an important goal with immediate diagnostic and therapeutic significance.Recent work has begun to elucidate pathways of inflammation that occur in the absence of microbial stimuli. Stress signals such as heat-shock proteins, intracellular components of necrotic cells not normally seen by immune cells, and components of the extracellular matrix have all been implicated as endogenous triggers of injury (2–4). Among this group is the glycosaminoglycan hyaluronan (HA),⁶ an important structural component of the extracellular matrix that is also a common component of bacterial surfaces. HA is synthesized at the cell surface and typically exists as a high molecular mass polymer greater than 10⁶ Da and composed of repeating disaccharide units of N-acetylglucosamine and glucuronic acid (5, 6). Unlike other glycosaminoglycans such as heparan sulfate or chondroitin sulfates that encode specific activity by use of a diverse disaccharide sequence, HA is not sulfated or epimerized, and only changes in HA size, concentration, and location affect function.We have previously developed murine models of sterile injury to identify the innate elements that recognize and mediate sterile inflammation (7). Our results demonstrated that (a) the initiation of a sterile intrinsic inflammatory process is dependent on TLR4 activation, (b) sterile injury induces HA accumulation at the injured site, and (c) sterile intrinsic inflammation resembles signaling events that are activated by HA. Furthermore, we have defined a novel alternative recognition complex for HA that involves TLR4, MD-2, and CD44 (7). Taken together with other work associating HA and innate pattern recognition (4, 8–10), these observations have provided new insight into mechanisms responsible for sterile inflammation.Recently, the NLR (nucleotide-binding domain and leucine rich repeat-containing) family has been extensively analyzed as a group of intracellular pattern recognition receptors (11). NLRs have a leucine-rich repeat that recognizes pathogen-associated molecular patterns including bacterial cell wall components and viral nucleic acids. NOD2 and NLR family, pyrin containing 3 (NLRP3)/cryopyrin are two of the best characterized NLRs. NOD2 recognizes the bacterial peptidoglycan-derived molecule muramyl dipeptide and activates the NF-κB pathway to induce inflammatory responses (12). Mutations of the NOD2 gene were identified in individuals with chronic inflammatory disorders such as Crohn disease (13, 14) and Blau syndrome (15). Mouse knockin mutants of NOD2, which have the same mutation in NOD2 as human patients with Crohn disease, showed elevated proinflammatory cytokines following muramyl dipeptide challenge or dextran sodium sulfate-induced bowel inflammation (16). NLRP3, also known as cyropyrin, CIAS1, NALP3, PYPAF1, forms an “inflammasome” with ASC (apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD) and caspase-1 to convert pro-IL-1β to active IL-1β (17). Mutations in NLRP3 were identified in individuals with familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome (FCAS), Muckle-Wells syndrome, and neonatal onset multisystem inflammatory disease (18–20). These individuals have recurrent or chronic inflammatory symptoms, including fever, arthritis, and a urticaria-like eruption characterized by neutrophilic infiltration. In FCAS, symptoms can be elicited by cold provocation by a mechanism that appears to be mediated through the skin (15, 21).Because disorders associated with mutations in NLRP3 are examples of inflammation under sterile conditions and HA has been shown to be a trigger of sterile inflammation, we sought to further understand the mechanism of the response to HA by examining the role of cryopyrin during injury and after exposure to HA. Our results show that cryopyrin and IL-1β are integral to sterile inflammation and the response to HA. These observations provide new insight into the function of HA as a “danger signal” of injury.     

Human T Cell Leukemia Virus Reactivation with Progression of Adult T-Cell Leukemia-Lymphoma

Background

Human T-cell leukemia virus-associated adult T-cell leukemia-lymphoma (ATLL) has a very poor prognosis, despite trials of a variety of different treatment regimens. Virus expression has been reported to be limited or absent when ATLL is diagnosed, and this has suggested that secondary genetic or epigenetic changes are important in disease pathogenesis.

Methods and Findings

We prospectively investigated combination chemotherapy followed by antiretroviral therapy for this disorder. Nineteen patients were prospectively enrolled between 2002 and 2006 at five medical centers in a phase II clinical trial of infusional chemotherapy with etoposide, doxorubicin, and vincristine, daily prednisone, and bolus cyclophosphamide (EPOCH) given for two to six cycles until maximal clinical response, and followed by antiviral therapy with daily zidovudine, lamivudine, and alpha interferon-2a for up to one year. Seven patients were on study for less than one month due to progressive disease or chemotherapy toxicity. Eleven patients achieved an objective response with median duration of response of thirteen months, and two complete remissions. During chemotherapy induction, viral RNA expression increased (median 190-fold), and virus replication occurred, coincident with development of disease progression.

Conclusions

EPOCH chemotherapy followed by antiretroviral therapy is an active therapeutic regimen for adult T-cell leukemia-lymphoma, but viral reactivation during induction chemotherapy may contribute to treatment failure. Alternative therapies are sorely needed in this disease that simultaneously prevent virus expression, and are cytocidal for malignant cells.

Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov {"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT00041327","term_id":"NCT00041327"}}NCT00041327     

Apicoplast and mitochondrion in gametocytogenesis of Plasmodium falciparum

Live cell imaging of human malaria parasites Plasmodium falciparum during gametocytogenesis revealed that the apicoplast does not grow, whereas the mitochondrion undergoes remarkable morphological development. A close connection of the two organelles is consistently maintained. The apicoplast and mitochondrion are not components of the male gametes, suggesting maternal inheritance.     

Enemy release does not increase performance of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cirsium</Emphasis> <Emphasis Type="Italic">arvense</Emphasis> in New Zealand

Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop. (Californian, Canada, or creeping thistle) is an exotic perennial herb indigenous to Eurasia that successfully established in New Zealand (NZ) approximately 130 years ago. Presently, C. arvense is considered one of the worst invasive weeds in NZ arable and pastoral productions systems. A mechanism commonly invoked to explain the apparent increased vigour of introduced weeds is release from natural enemies. The enemy-release hypothesis (ERH) predicts that plants in an introduced range should experience reduced herbivory, particularly from specialists, and that release from this natural enemy pressure facilitates increased plant performance in the introduced range. In 2007, surveys were carried out in 13 populations in NZ (7 in the North Island and 6 in the South Island) and in 12 populations in central Europe to quantify and compare growth characteristics of C. arvense in its native versus introduced range. Altitude and mean annual precipitation for each population were used as covariates in an attempt to explain differences or similarities in plant traits among ranges. All plant traits varied significantly among populations within a range. Shoot dry weight was greater in the South Island compared to Europe, which is in line with the prediction of increased plant performance in the introduced range; however, this was explained by environmental conditions. Contrary to expectations, the North Island was not different from Europe for all plant traits measured, and after adjustment for covariates showed decreased shoot density and dry weight compared to the native range. Therefore, environmental factors appear to be more favourable for growth of C. arvense in both the North and South Islands. In accordance with the ERH, there was significantly greater endophagous herbivory in the capitula and stems of shoots in Europe compared to both NZ ranges. In NZ, capitulum attack from Rhinocyllus conicus was found only in the North Island, and no stem-mining attack was found anywhere in NZ. Thus, although C. arvense experiences significantly reduced natural enemy pressure in both the North and South Islands of NZ there is no evidence that it benefits from this enemy release.