Phytochemical composition of Potentilla anserina L. analyzed by an integrative GC-MS and LC-MS metabolomics platform

Potentilla anserina L. (Rosaceae) is known for its beneficial effects of prevention of pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS). For this reason P. anserina is processed into many food supplements and pharmaceutical preparations. Here we analyzed hydroalcoholic reference extracts and compared them with various extracts of different pharmacies using an integrative metabolomics platform comprising GC-MS and LC-MS analysis and software toolboxes for data alignment (MetMAX Beta 1.0) and multivariate statistical analysis (COVAIN 1.0). Multivariate statistics of the integrated GC-MS and LC-MS data showed strong differences between the different plant extract formulations. Different groups of compounds such as chlorogenic acid, kaempferol 3-O-rutinoside, acacetin 7-O-rutinoside, and genistein were reported for the first time in this species. The typical fragmentation pathway of the isoflavone genistein confirmed the identification of this active compound that was present with different abundances in all the extracts analyzed. As a result we have revealed that different extraction procedures from different vendors produce different chemical compositions, e.g. different genistein concentrations. Consequently, the treatment may have different effects. The integrative metabolomics platform provides the highest resolution of the phytochemical composition and a mean to define subtle differences in plant extract formulations.     

Serum proteomic signature of human chagasic patients for the identification of novel potential protein biomarkers of disease

Chagas disease is initiated upon infection by Trypanosoma cruzi. Among the health consequences is a decline in heart function, and the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying this manifestation are not well understood. To explore the possible mechanisms, we employed IgY LC10 affinity chromatography in conjunction with ProteomeLab PF2D and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis to resolve the proteome signature of high and low abundance serum proteins in chagasic patients. MALDI-TOF MS/MS analysis yielded 80 and 14 differentially expressed proteins associated with cardiomyopathy of chagasic and other etiologies, respectively. The extent of oxidative stress-induced carbonyl modifications of the differentially expressed proteins (n = 26) was increased and coupled with a depression of antioxidant proteins. Functional annotation of the top networks developed by ingenuity pathway analysis of proteome database identified dysregulation of inflammation/acute phase response signaling and lipid metabolism relevant to production of prostaglandins and arachidonic acid in chagasic patients. Overlay of the major networks identified prothrombin and plasminogen at a nodal position with connectivity to proteome signature indicative of heart disease (i.e., thrombosis, angiogenesis, vasodilatation of blood vessels or the aorta, and increased permeability of blood vessel and endothelial tubes), and inflammatory responses (e.g., platelet aggregation, complement activation, and phagocyte activation and migration). The detection of cardiac proteins (myosin light chain 2 and myosin heavy chain 11) and increased levels of vinculin and plasminogen provided a comprehensive set of biomarkers of cardiac muscle injury and development of clinical Chagas disease in human patients. These results provide an impetus for biomarker validation in large cohorts of clinically characterized chagasic patients.     

Oxidative toxicity in diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease: mechanisms behind ROS/ RNS generation

Reactive oxidative species (ROS) toxicity remains an undisputed cause and link between Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). Patients with both AD and T2DM have damaged, oxidized DNA, RNA, protein and lipid products that can be used as possible disease progression markers. Although the oxidative stress has been anticipated as a main cause in promoting both AD and T2DM, multiple pathways could be involved in ROS production. The focus of this review is to summarize the mechanisms involved in ROS production and their possible association with AD and T2DM pathogenesis and progression. We have also highlighted the role of current treatments that can be linked with reduced oxidative stress and damage in AD and T2DM.     

NETosis occurs independently of neutrophil serine proteases

Neutrophils are primary host innate immune cells defending against pathogens. One proposed mechanism by which neutrophils prevent the spread of pathogens is NETosis, the extrusion of cellular DNA resulting in neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). The protease neutrophil elastase (NE) has been implicated in the formation of NETs through proteolysis of nuclear proteins leading to chromatin decondensation. In addition to NE, neutrophils contain three other serine proteases that could compensate if the activity of NE was neutralized. However, whether they do play such a role is unknown. Thus, we deployed recently described specific inhibitors against all four of the neutrophil serine proteases (NSPs). Using specific antibodies to the NSPs along with our labeled inhibitors, we show that catalytic activity of these enzymes is not required for the formation of NETs. Moreover, the NSPs that decorate NETs are in an inactive conformation and thus cannot participate in further catalytic events. These results indicate that NSPs play no role in either NETosis or arming NETs with proteolytic activity.     

Bacterial Hha-like proteins facilitate incorporation of horizontally transferred DNA

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT), non-hereditary transfer of genetic material between organisms, accounts for a significant proportion of the genetic variability in bacteria. In Gram negative bacteria, the nucleoid-associated protein H-NS silences unwanted expression of recently acquired foreign DNA. This, in turn, facilitates integration of the incoming genes into the regulatory networks of the recipient cell. Bacteria belonging to the family Enterobacteriaceae express an additional protein, the Hha protein that, by binding to H-NS, potentiates silencing of HGT DNA. We provide here an overview of Hha-like proteins, including their structure and function, as well as their evolutionary relationship. We finally present available information suggesting that, by expressing Hha-like proteins, bacteria such as Escherichia coli facilitate HGT incorporation and hence, the impact of HGT in their genetic diversity.     

Postovulatory aging of oocytes decreases reproductive fitness and longevity of offspring.

We analyzed the long-term effects of postovulatory aging of mouse oocytes on reproductive fitness and longevity of offspring. Hybrid (C57BL/6JIco x CBA/JIco) parental generation (F0) females were artificially inseminated at 13 h (approximately 1 h postovulation) or 22 h (approximately 10 h postovulation) after GnRH injection. Reproductive fitness of first generation (F1) females was tested from the age of 28 wk until the end of their reproductive life. In males, the testing period ranged from the age of 2 yr until their natural death. Experimental F1 females exhibited longer between-labor intervals, decreased frequency of litters, and lower total number of litters and offspring born. Experimental second generation (F2) pups displayed teratogenic defects, higher preweaning mortality, and decreased body weight at weaning. Incidence of infertility was higher in experimental F1 males, which translated into lower total number of offspring born when compared with the control group. Life expectancy of F1 offspring was decreased in the experimental group. These results clearly show that postovulatory aging of mouse oocytes decreases reproductive fitness and longevity of offspring.     

Memory in the grip of emotions and stress: a necessarily harmful impact?

While intense negative events are vividly recalled, information learned during stressful situations is poorly remembered. These differential effects of emotions and stress on memory have been attributed to the physiological manifestations generated during those affective states. Intense emotional and stressful events trigger the secretion of catecholamines and of glucocorticoids, in particular. These hormones would be modulatory agents of memory functions. In the first part of this paper, we review the specific effects emotions and stress have on memory. We then summarize the psychological and biological determinants responsible for these effects. Finally, we discuss different methodological issues that could explain the discrepancy found between the impact of emotions and stress on memory. Defining more precisely the effects emotion and stress have on memory will lead to a better comprehension of the cognitive problems that characterize patients dealing with emotional turmoil, such as patients suffering from depression or post-traumatic stress disorder.     

Liver glycogen phosphorylase is upregulated in glioblastoma and provides a metabolic vulnerability to high dose radiation

Channelling of glucose via glycogen, known as the glycogen shunt, may play an important role in the metabolism of brain tumours, especially in hypoxic conditions. We aimed to dissect the role of glycogen degradation in glioblastoma (GBM) response to ionising radiation (IR). Knockdown of the glycogen phosphorylase liver isoform (PYGL), but not the brain isoform (PYGB), decreased clonogenic growth and survival of GBM cell lines and sensitised them to IR doses of 10–12 Gy. Two to five days after IR exposure of PYGL knockdown GBM cells, mitotic catastrophy and a giant multinucleated cell morphology with senescence-like phenotype developed. The basal levels of the lysosomal enzyme alpha-acid glucosidase (GAA), essential for autolysosomal glycogen degradation, and the lipidated forms of gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor-associated protein-like (GABARAPL1 and GABARAPL2) increased in shPYGL U87MG cells, suggesting a compensatory mechanism of glycogen degradation. In response to IR, dysregulation of autophagy was shown by accumulation of the p62 and the lipidated form of GABARAPL1 and GABARAPL2 in shPYGL U87MG cells. IR increased the mitochondrial mass and the colocalisation of mitochondria with lysosomes in shPYGL cells, thereby indicating reduced mitophagy. These changes coincided with increased phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase 2, slower ATP generation in response to glucose loading and progressive loss of oxidative phosphorylation. The resulting metabolic deficiencies affected the availability of ATP required for mitosis, resulting in the mitotic catastrophy observed in shPYGL cells following IR. PYGL mRNA and protein levels were higher in human GBM than in normal human brain tissues and high PYGL mRNA expression in GBM correlated with poor patient survival. In conclusion, we show a major new role for glycogen metabolism in GBM cancer. Inhibition of glycogen degradation sensitises GBM cells to high-dose IR indicating that PYGL is a potential novel target for the treatment of GBMs.Subject terms: Cancer metabolism, CNS cancer     

The snoGloBe interaction predictor reveals a broad spectrum of C/D snoRNA RNA targets

Box C/D small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) are a conserved class of RNA known for their role in guiding ribosomal RNA 2′-O-ribose methylation. Recently, C/D snoRNAs were also implicated in regulating the expression of non-ribosomal genes through different modes of binding. Large scale RNA–RNA interaction datasets detect many snoRNAs binding messenger RNA, but are limited by specific experimental conditions. To enable a more comprehensive study of C/D snoRNA interactions, we created snoGloBe, a human C/D snoRNA interaction predictor based on a gradient boosting classifier. SnoGloBe considers the target type, position and sequence of the interactions, enabling it to outperform existing predictors. Interestingly, for specific snoRNAs, snoGloBe identifies strong enrichment of interactions near gene expression regulatory elements including splice sites. Abundance and splicing of predicted targets were altered upon the knockdown of their associated snoRNA. Strikingly, the predicted snoRNA interactions often overlap with the binding sites of functionally related RNA binding proteins, reinforcing their role in gene expression regulation. SnoGloBe is also an excellent tool for discovering viral RNA targets, as shown by its capacity to identify snoRNAs targeting the heavily methylated SARS-CoV-2 RNA. Overall, snoGloBe is capable of identifying experimentally validated binding sites and predicting novel sites with shared regulatory function.     

Vergleichende Untersuchung der Proteinasen zweier Bacillus-Arten (Bacillus subtilis und Bacillus cereus)

Ohne ZusammenfassungTeil der Dissertation, Universität Frankfurt am Main 1958.