Structure and Regulation of the Movement of Human Myosin VIIA

Human myosin VIIA (HM7A) is responsible for human Usher syndrome type 1B, which causes hearing and visual loss in humans. Here we studied the regulation of HM7A. The actin-activated ATPase activity of full-length HM7A (HM7AFull) was lower than that of tail-truncated HM7A (HM7AΔTail). Deletion of the C-terminal 40 amino acids and mutation of the basic residues in this region (R2176A or K2179A) abolished the inhibition. Electron microscopy revealed that HM7AFull is a monomer in which the tail domain bends back toward the head-neck domain to form a compact structure. This compact structure is extended at high ionic strength or in the presence of Ca²⁺. Although myosin VIIA has five isoleucine-glutamine (IQ) motifs, the neck length seems to be shorter than the expected length of five bound calmodulins. Supporting this observation, the IQ domain bound only three calmodulins in Ca²⁺, and the first IQ motif failed to bind calmodulin in EGTA. These results suggest that the unique IQ domain of HM7A is important for the tail-neck interaction and, therefore, regulation. Cellular studies revealed that dimer formation of HM7A is critical for its translocation to filopodial tips and that the tail domain (HM7ATail) markedly reduced the filopodial tip localization of the HM7AΔTail dimer, suggesting that the tail-inhibition mechanism is operating in vivo. The translocation of the HM7AFull dimer was significantly less than that of the HM7AΔTail dimer, and R2176A/R2179A mutation rescued the filopodial tip translocation. These results suggest that HM7A can transport its cargo molecules, such as USH1 proteins, upon release of the tail-dependent inhibition.     

IL-15-induced IL-10 increases the cytolytic activity of human natural killer cells

Interleukin 10 (IL-10) is a multifunctional cytokine that regulates diverse functions of immune cells. Natural killer (NK) cells express the IL-10 and IL-10 receptor, but little is known about the function of IL-10 on NK cell activation. In this study, we show the expression and role of IL-10 in human NK cells. Among the cytokines tested, IL-15 was the most potent inducer of IL-10, with a maximal peak expression at 5 h after treatment. Furthermore, IL-10 receptor was shown to be expressed in NK cells. IL-10 alone had a significant effect on NK cytotoxicity which additively increased NK cell cytotoxicity in the presence of IL-15. Neutralizing IL-10 with anti-IL-10 antibody suppressed the inductive effect of IL-10 on NK cell cytotoxicity; however, IL-10 had no effect on IFN-γ or TNF-α production or NK cell activatory receptor expression. STAT signals are implicated as a key mediator of IL-10/IL-15 cytotoxicity response. Thus, the effect of IL-10 on NK cells is particularly interesting with regard to the STAT3 signal that was enhanced by IL-10 or IL-15.     

Association between Epstein-Barr virus infection and chemoresistance to docetaxel in gastric carcinoma

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is associated with human cancers such as nasopharyngeal carcinoma, Burkitt’s lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease, and gastric carcinoma (GC). EBV is associated with about 10% of all GC cases globally. EBV-associated GC has distinct features from EBV-negative GC. However, it is still unclear if EBV infection has any effect on GC chemoresistance. Cell proliferation assay, cell cycle analysis, and active caspase Western blot revealed that the EBV-positive GC cell line (AGS-EBV) showed chemoresistance to docetaxel compared to the EBV-negative GC cell line (AGS). Docetaxel treatment increased expression of Bax similarly in AGS and AGS-EBV cell lines. However, Bcl-2 induction was markedly higher in AGS-EBV cells, after docetaxel treatment. Although docetaxel increased the expression of p53 to a similar extent in both cell lines, induction of p21 in AGS-EBV cells was lower than in AGS cells. Furthermore, expression of survivin was higher in AGS-EBV cells than in AGS cells following docetaxel treatment as well as at basal state. EBVlytic gene expression was induced by docetaxel treatment in AGS-EBV cells. The results suggest that EBV infection and lytic induction confers chemoresistance to GC, possibly by regulating cellular and EBV latent and lytic gene expression.     

Unfinished business: efforts to define dual-use research of bioterrorism concern

Biotechnological research poses a special security problem because of the duality between beneficial use and misuse. In order to find a balance between regulating potentially dangerous research and assuring scientific advancement, a number of assessments have tried to define which types of research are especially open to misuse and should therefore be considered dual-use research of special concern requiring rigorous oversight. So far, there has been no common understanding of what such activities are. Here we present a review of 27 assessments focusing on biological dual-use issues published between 1997 and 2008. Dual-use research activities identified by these assessments as being of special concern were compiled and compared. Moreover, from these 27 assessments, the primary research publications explicitly identified as examples of concerning research activities were extracted and analyzed. We extracted a core list of 11 activities of special concern and show that this list does not match with the reasons why primary research publications were identified as being of special concern. Additionally, we note that the 11 activities identified are not easily conducted or replicated, and therefore the likelihood of their being used in a high-tech mass casualty bioterrorism event should be reevaluated.     

Differences of urease activity and expression of associated genes according to gastric topography

Background: We hypothesize that pH difference between acid‐secreting corpus and non‐secreting antrum might influence the activity of H. pylori’s urease and/or related genes. We therefore measured urease activity and the expression of amiE whose encoded protein that hydrolyzes short‐chain amides to produce ammonia. Materials and Methods: Fifty‐four patients were recruited into this study. Each gastroscopic biopsy specimen collected from the antrum and body of each patient was immediately used to measure urease activity using serial changes of urease activity (ammonia levels) during 60 minutes. Probe specific for amiE was labeled with a biotin nick‐translation kit and was used to detect expression of these genes (mRNA) in fresh‐frozen gastroscopic biopsy specimens using fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH). Results: Urease activity at 60 minutes from the gastric antrum and body of all patients infected with H. pylori was 399.5 ± 490.5 and 837.9 ± 1038.9 μg/dL, respectively (p = .004). Urease activity in the antrum was correlated with H. pylori density. Urease activity or H. pylori density in the antrum was significantly correlated with chronic active inflammation; in contrast, this correlation was not found in the gastric body. The expression level of amiE was 1.5 times higher (p < .05) in the gastric body compared with the antrum. Conclusion: Topographically, the urease activity in body was much higher than in antrum. The expression level of amiE was higher in the gastric body compared with the antrum.     

Metabolic flux analysis of CHO cells at growth and non-growth phases using isotopic tracers and mass spectrometry

Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are the main platform for production of biotherapeutics in the biopharmaceutical industry. However, relatively little is known about the metabolism of CHO cells in cell culture. In this work, metabolism of CHO cells was studied at the growth phase and early stationary phase using isotopic tracers and mass spectrometry. CHO cells were grown in fed-batch culture over a period of six days. On days 2 and 4, [1,2-¹³C] glucose was introduced and the labeling of intracellular metabolites was measured by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS) at 6, 12 and 24 h following the introduction of tracer. Intracellular metabolic fluxes were quantified from measured extracellular rates and ¹³C-labeling dynamics of intracellular metabolites using non-stationary ¹³C-metabolic flux analysis (¹³C-MFA). The flux results revealed significant rewiring of intracellular metabolic fluxes in the transition from growth to non-growth, including changes in energy metabolism, redox metabolism, oxidative pentose phosphate pathway and anaplerosis. At the exponential phase, CHO cell metabolism was characterized by a high flux of glycolysis from glucose to lactate, anaplerosis from pyruvate to oxaloacetate and from glutamate to α-ketoglutarate, and cataplerosis though malic enzyme. At the stationary phase, the flux map was characterized by a reduced flux of glycolysis, net lactate uptake, oxidative pentose phosphate pathway flux, and reduced rate of anaplerosis. The fluxes of pyruvate dehydrogenase and TCA cycle were similar at the exponential and stationary phase. The results presented here provide a solid foundation for future studies of CHO cell metabolism for applications such as cell line development and medium optimization for high-titer production of recombinant proteins.     

Production of cephalosporin C using crude glycerol in fed-batch culture of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Acremonium chrysogenum</Emphasis> M35

In this study, cephalosporin C production by Acremonium chrysogenum M35 cultured with crude glycerol instead of rice oil and methionine was investigated. The addition of crude glycerol increased cephalosporin C production by 6-fold in shake-flask culture, and also the amount of cysteine. In fed-batch culture without methionine, crude glycerol resulted only in overall improvement in cephalosporin C production (about 700%). In addition, A. chrysogenum M35 became highly differentiated in fed-batch culture with crude glycerol, compared with the differentiation in batch culture. The results presented here suggest that crude glycerol can replace methionine and plant oil as cysteine and carbon sources during cephalosporin C production by A. chrysogenum M35.     

Monitoring of Na<Superscript>+</Superscript>/K<Superscript>+</Superscript>-ATPase mRNA expression in the cinnamon clownfish, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Amphiprion melanopus</Emphasis>, exposed to an osmotic stress environment: profiles on the effects of exogenous hormone

We examined changes in the expression of Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase mRNA in the gills of the cinnamon clownfish using quantitative real-time PCR in an osmotically changing environment [seawater (35 psu; practical salinity unit, 1 psu ≈ 1‰) → brackish water (17.5 psu) and brackish water with prolactin]. The expression of Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase mRNA in gills was increased after the transfer to brackish water, and the expression was repressed by prolactin treatment. Also, activities of gill Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase and plasma cortisol levels increased after the transfer to brackish water and were repressed in brackish water with prolactin treatment. Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase-immunoreactive cells were almost consistently observed in the gill filaments, but absent from the lamella epithelia. The plasma osmolality level decreased in brackish water, but the level of this parameter increased in brackish water with prolactin treatment during salinity change. These results suggest that the Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase gene plays an important role in osmoregulation in gills, and prolactin improves the hyperosmoregulatory ability of cinnamon clownfish in a brackish water (hypoosmotic) environment.     

Local kallikrein�Ckinin system is involved in podocyte apoptosis under diabetic conditions

The kallikrein-kinin system (KKS) serves as the physiologic counterbalance to the renin-angiotensin system. This study was conducted to examine the changes in the expression of KKS components in podocytes under diabetic conditions and to elucidate the functional role of bradykinin (BK) in diabetes-associated podocyte apoptosis. Thirty-two rats were injected with either diluent (n = 16, C) or with streptozotocin intraperitoneally (n = 16, DM), and 8 rats from each group were treated with BK infusion for 6 weeks. Immortalized mouse podocytes were cultured in media containing 5.6 mmol/l glucose (NG), NG + 10(-7) mol/l AII (AII), or 30 mmol/l glucose (HG) with or without 10(-8) mol/l BK. Urinary albumin excretion was significantly higher in DM rats, and this increase was ameliorated by BK. Not only kininogen, kallikrein, and BK B1- and B2-receptor expression but also BK levels were significantly decreased in DM glomeruli and in cultured podocytes exposed to HG. The changes in the expressions of apoptosis-related molecules and the increase in the number of apoptotic cells in DM glomeruli as well as in HG- and AII-stimulated podocytes were significantly abrogated by BK. The suppressed KSS within podocytes under diabetic condition was associated with podocyte apoptosis, suggesting that BK may be beneficial in preventing podocyte loss in diabetic nephropathy.