Thrombopoietic-mesenchymal interaction that may facilitate both endochondral ossification and platelet maturation via CCN2

CCN2 plays a central role in the development and growth of mesenchymal tissue and promotes the regeneration of bone and cartilage in vivo. Of note, abundant CCN2 is contained in platelets, which is thought to play an important role in the tissue regeneration process. In this study, we initially pursued the possible origin of the CCN2 in platelets. First, we examined if the CCN2 in platelets was produced by megakaryocyte progenitors during differentiation. Unexpectedly, neither megakaryocytic CMK cells nor megakaryocytes that had differentiated from human haemopoietic stem cells in culture showed any detectable CCN2 gene expression or protein production. Together with the fact that no appreciable CCN2 was detected in megakaryocytes in vivo, these results suggest that megakaryocytes themselves do not produce CCN2. Next, we suspected that mesenchymal cells situated around megakaryocytes in the bone marrow were stimulated by the latter to produce CCN2, which was then taken up by platelets. To evaluate this hypothesis, we cultured human chondrocytic HCS-2/8 cells with medium conditioned by differentiating megakaryocyte cultures, and then monitored the production of CCN2 by the cells. As suspected, CCN2 production by HCS-2/8 was significantly enhanced by the conditioned medium. We further confirmed that human platelets were able to absorb/uptake exogenous CCN2 in vitro. These findings indicate that megakaryocytes secrete some unknown soluble factor(s) during differentiation, which factor stimulates the mesenchymal cells to produce CCN2 for uptake by the platelets. We also consider that, during bone growth, such thrombopoietic-mesenchymal interaction may contribute to the hypertrophic chondrocyte-specific accumulation of CCN2 that conducts endochondral ossification.     

Microsomal enzymes of cholesterol biosynthesis from lanosterol. Purification and characterization of delta 7-sterol 5-desaturase of rat liver microsomes

Microsomal delta 7-sterol 5-desaturase of cholesterol biosynthesis is a multienzyme system which catalyzes the introduction of the delta 5-bond into delta 7-cholestenol to form 7-dehydrocholesterol. The detergent-solubilized 5-desaturase has been purified more than 70-fold and resolved from electron carriers and other rat liver microsomal enzymes of sterol biosynthesis by chromatography on DEAE-Sephacel, CM-Sepharose, and immobilized cytochrome b5; the 5-desaturase had not been fully resolved from cytochrom b5 reductase in earlier work. A functional electron transport system for the 5-desaturase has been reconstituted by combining the purified 5-desaturase and electron carriers with egg phosphatidylcholine liposomes. Optimizations of conditions for reconstitution have been obtained; both cytochrome b5 and NADH-cytochrome b5 reductase serve as electron carriers. A pyridine nucleotide-dependent flavoprotein is required and the requirement can be satisfied with either purified cytochrome b5 reductase or cytochrome P-450 reductase. Cyanide and iron-chelators strikingly inhibit the 5-desaturase activity, thus suggesting that 5-desaturase is a metalloenzyme as are other well-characterized cytochrome b5-dependent oxidases. 5-Desaturase is resolved from 4-methyl sterol oxidase activity of cholesterol biosynthesis by chromatography on the immobilized cytochrome b5. This resolution of the two oxidases not only indicates that introduction of the delta 5-bond and oxidation of 4 alpha-methyl groups are catalyzed by different terminal oxidases, but resolution affords enzymes of sufficient purity to carry out reconstitution experiments. A novel assay based on substrate-dependent increments of oxidation of alpha-NADH has been developed for measurement of 5-desaturase activity. Measurement of stoichiometry of 5-desaturase demonstrates that for each equivalent of cis-desaturation of delta 7-cholestenol, 1 eq of NADH is consumed. Along with strict dependence upon oxygen, this observation confirms, as suggested by previous workers, that the 5-desaturation is catalyzed by a mixed function oxidase rather than a dehydrogenase.     

Phosphorylation by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase of a human platelet Mr 22,000 GTP-binding protein (smg p21) having the same putative effector domain as the ras gene products

We have purified to near homogeneity a Mr 22,000 GTP-binding protein from human platelet membranes and identified it as the smg-21 gene product (smg p21), having the same putative effector domain as the ras gene products, which we have purified to near homogeneity from bovine brain membranes and characterized. This purified human platelet smg p21 was phosphorylated by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase. About one mol of phosphate was maximally incorporated into one mol of the protein. Only serine residue was phosphorylated. Both the guanosine 5'-(3-O-thio)-triphosphate (GTP gamma S)-bound and GDP-bound forms were phosphorylated with the same reaction velocity. The phosphorylation of smg p21 affected neither its GTP gamma S-binding nor GTPase activity. Human platelet smg p21 was not phosphorylated by protein kinase C. A Mr 24,000 GTP-binding protein partially purified from human platelet membranes was not phosphorylated by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase or protein kinase C.     

Microinjection of smg/rap1/Krev-1 p21 into Swiss 3T3 cells induces DNA synthesis and morphological changes.

Microinjection of either Ki-rasVal-12 p21 or the GDP-bound form of Ki-ras p21 plus smg GDP dissociation stimulator (GDS), a stimulatory GDP/GTP exchange protein for Ki-ras p21, smg/rap1/Krev-1 p21, and rho p21, into quiescent Swiss 3T3 cells induced DNA synthesis irrespective of the presence or absence of insulin. The guanosine 5'-(3-O-thio)triphosphate (GTP gamma S)-bound form of smg p21B or the GDP-bound form of smg p21B plus smg GDS also induced DNA synthesis but only in the presence of insulin. Either the GDP-bound form of Ki-ras p21 or the same form of smg p21B alone was inactive, but smg GDS alone was slightly active only in the presence of insulin. The morphology of the cells was analyzed by scanning electron, phase-contrast, and confocal laser scanning microscopies. Ki-rasVal-12 p21 induced membrane ruffling irrespective of the presence or absence of insulin. The GTP gamma S-bound form of smg p21B showed the same effect only in the presence of insulin. Either the GDP-bound form of Ki-ras p21, the same form of smg p21B, or smg GDS alone was inactive. Upon microinjection of Ki-rasVal-12 p21, stress fibers markedly decreased and the cells became round and piled up. In contrast, upon microinjection of the GTP gamma S-bound form of smg p21B, stress fibers did not markedly decrease and the cells neither became round nor piled up. These results indicate that both ras p21 and smg p21 are mitogenic in Swiss 3T3 cells but that their actions are slightly different.     

The 1st step initiation essential for allergen‐specific IgE antibody production upon the 2nd step: Induction of non‐specific IgE+ small B cells containing secondly‐sensitized allergen‐specific ones in mice firstly‐sensitized with an allergen

There was a significant amount of non‐specific, but not of allergen (e.g., papain, mite feces and four kinds of pollen)‐specific, IgE antibodies (Abs) in the sera of normal mice. An i.n. injection of each allergen without adjuvant into mice caused an increase in total IgE Ab titers with a similar time course in the serum. However, the stage of initiation of allergy varied from allergen to allergen. Submandibular lymph node cells from normal mice contained papain‐, but not mite feces‐ or pollen‐specific IgE⁺ cells and an i.n. injection of papain induced papain‐specific IgE Abs in the serum. In contrast, one (i.n.) or two (i.n. and s.c) injections of mite feces induced neither mite feces‐specific IgE⁺ cells in the lymph nodes nor mite feces‐specific IgE Abs in the serum. I.n. sensitization with cedar pollen induced cedar pollen‐specific IgE⁺ small B cells in the lymph nodes on Day 10, when non‐specific IgE Ab titers reached a peak in the serum, implying induction of related allergen‐specific IgE⁺ small cells as well. In fact, a second (s.c.) injection of ragweed (or cedar) pollen into mice sensitized i.n. once with cedar (or ragweed) pollen, but not with mite feces, induced a large amount of ragweed (or cedar) pollen‐specific IgE Abs in the serum. These results indicate that when firstly‐sensitized non‐specific IgE⁺ small B cells in mouse lymph nodes include some secondly‐sensitized allergen‐specific ones, mice produce IgE Abs specific for the secondly‐injected allergen.