THE ENIGMATIC EARLY CAMBRIAN SALANYGOLINA– A STEM GROUP OF RHYNCHONELLIFORM CHILEATE BRACHIOPODS?

Abstract:  New material of the enigmatic brachiopod Salanygolina obliqua Ushatinskaya from the Early Cambrian of Mongolia shows that it has a colleplax – a triangular plate – in the umbonal perforation, which is enlarged by resorption. This structure is otherwise only known from the equally enigmatic Palaeozoic orders Chileida and Dictyonellida (Rhynchonelliformea, Chileata). The colleplax in Salanygolina is here considered to be homologous with that of the chileates. Salanygolina is also provided with a ridge-like pseudodeltidium, which is another chileate feature. Other characters of Salanygolina , like the radial arrangement of adductor muscle scars and postero-medially placed internal oblique muscles are characteristic of chileates, but also found in the paterinates. In contrast, mixoperipheral dorsal valves with low rudimentary interareas are well known in paterinates, but not yet recorded from chileates. Thus, Salanygolina shows a mosaic combination of morphologic characters, known both from the paterinates and chileates, indicating that it may represent a stem group of the rhynchonelliform chileate brachiopods. The laminar phosphatic secondary shell of Salanygolina is composed of closely packed and nearly identical hexagonal prisms, oriented with their long axis normal to the laminae in a honeycomb pattern. The prism walls appear to have originally been composed of organic membranes and might represent precursors of the organic sheaths of calcite fibers that are typical of calcitic shells with a fibrous microstructure.     

Phosphorylation of NDRG1 is temporally and spatially controlled during the cell cycle

The tumour metastasis suppressor, N-myc Downstream Regulated Gene (NDRG) 1, is a by the protein kinases SGK1 and GSK3β, but the relevance of its phosphorylation remains unclear. Analysis of HCT116 cells, either proficient or deficient for p53 revealed NDRG1 protein expression and phosphorylation by SGK1 was increased basally in p53-deficient cells. Treatment with the cell cycle inhibitors, aphidicolin or nocodazole also revealed increased NDRG1 phosphorylation in p53-deficient cells. Finally, phosphorylated NDRG1 was found to co-localise with γ-tubulin on centromeres and also to the cleavage furrow during cytokinesis. Taken together, this work demonstrates that NDRG1 phosphorylation, by the protein kinase SGK1, is temporally and spatially controlled during the cell cycle, suggesting a role for NDRG1 in successful mitosis.     

Combining disease models to test for gene-environment interaction in nuclear families

It is useful to have robust gene-environment interaction tests that can utilize a variety of family structures in an efficient way. This article focuses on tests for gene-environment interaction in the presence of main genetic and environmental effects. The objective is to develop powerful tests that can combine trio data with parental genotypes and discordant sibships when parents' genotypes are missing. We first make a modest improvement on a method for discordant sibs (discordant on phenotype), but the approach does not allow one to use families when all offspring are affected, e.g., trios. We then make a modest improvement on a Mendelian transmission-based approach that is inefficient when discordant sibs are available, but can be applied to any nuclear family. Finally, we propose a hybrid approach that utilizes the most efficient method for a specific family type, then combines over families. We utilize this hybrid approach to analyze a chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder dataset to test for gene-environment interaction in the Serpine2 gene with smoking. The methods are freely available in the R package fbati.     

DnaA protein DNA-binding domain binds to Hda protein to promote inter-AAA+ domain interaction involved in regulatory inactivation of DnaA

Chromosomal replication is initiated from the replication origin oriC in Escherichia coli by the active ATP-bound form of DnaA protein. The regulatory inactivation of DnaA (RIDA) system, a complex of the ADP-bound Hda and the DNA-loaded replicase clamp, represses extra initiations by facilitating DnaA-bound ATP hydrolysis, yielding the inactive ADP-bound form of DnaA. However, the mechanisms involved in promoting the DnaA-Hda interaction have not been determined except for the involvement of an interaction between the AAA+ domains of the two. This study revealed that DnaA Leu-422 and Pro-423 residues within DnaA domain IV, including a typical DNA-binding HTH motif, are specifically required for RIDA-dependent ATP hydrolysis in vitro and that these residues support efficient interaction with the DNA-loaded clamp·Hda complex and with Hda in vitro. Consistently, substitutions of these residues caused accumulation of ATP-bound DnaA in vivo and oriC-dependent inhibition of cell growth. Leu-422 plays a more important role in these activities than Pro-423. By contrast, neither of these residues is crucial for DNA replication from oriC, although they are highly conserved in DnaA orthologues. Structural analysis of a DnaA·Hda complex model suggested that these residues make contact with residues in the vicinity of the Hda AAA+ sensor I that participates in formation of a nucleotide-interacting surface. Together, the results show that functional DnaA-Hda interactions require a second interaction site within DnaA domain IV in addition to the AAA+ domain and suggest that these interactions are crucial for the formation of RIDA complexes that are active for DnaA-ATP hydrolysis.     

Crystal structure of the human N-Myc downstream-regulated gene 2 protein provides insight into its role as a tumor suppressor

Considerable attention has recently been paid to the N-Myc downstream-regulated gene (NDRG) family because of its potential as a tumor suppressor in many human cancers. Primary amino acid sequence information suggests that the NDRG family proteins may belong to the α/β-hydrolase (ABH) superfamily; however, their functional role has not yet been determined. Here, we present the crystal structures of the human and mouse NDRG2 proteins determined at 2.0 and 1.7 Å resolution, respectively. Both NDRG2 proteins show remarkable structural similarity to the ABH superfamily, despite limited sequence similarity. Structural analysis suggests that NDRG2 is a nonenzymatic member of the ABH superfamily, because it lacks the catalytic signature residues and has an occluded substrate-binding site. Several conserved structural features suggest NDRG may be involved in molecular interactions. Mutagenesis data based on the structural analysis support a crucial role for helix α6 in the suppression of TCF/β-catenin signaling in the tumorigenesis of human colorectal cancer, via a molecular interaction.     

Engineered bivalent ligands to bias ErbB receptor-mediated signaling and phenotypes

The ErbB receptor family is dysregulated in many cancers, and its therapeutic manipulation by targeted antibodies and kinase inhibitors has resulted in effective chemotherapies. However, many malignancies remain refractory to current interventions. We describe a new approach that directs ErbB receptor interactions, resulting in biased signaling and phenotypes. Due to known receptor-ligand affinities and the necessity of ErbB receptors to dimerize to signal, bivalent ligands, formed by the synthetic linkage of two neuregulin-1β (NRG) moieties, two epidermal growth factor (EGF) moieties, or an EGF and a NRG moiety, can potentially drive homotypic receptor interactions and diminish formation of HER2-containing heterodimers, which are implicated in many malignancies and are a prevalent outcome of stimulation by native, monovalent EGF, or NRG. We demonstrate the therapeutic potential of this approach by showing that bivalent NRG (NN) can bias signaling in HER3-expressing cancer cells, resulting in some cases in decreased migration, inhibited proliferation, and increased apoptosis, whereas native NRG stimulation increased the malignant potential of the same cells. Hence, this new approach may have therapeutic relevance in ovarian, breast, lung, and other cancers in which HER3 has been implicated.     

Structures of the Leishmania infantum polymerase beta

Protozoans of the genus Leishmania, the pathogenic agent causing leishmaniasis, encode the family X DNA polymerase Li Pol β. Here, we report the first crystal structures of Li Pol β. Our pre- and post-catalytic structures show that the polymerase adopts the common family X DNA polymerase fold. However, in contrast to other family X DNA polymerases, the dNTP-induced conformational changes in Li Pol β are much more subtle. Moreover, pre- and post-catalytic structures reveal that Li Pol β interacts with the template strand through a nonconserved, variable region known as loop3. Li Pol β Δloop3 mutants display a higher catalytic rate, catalytic efficiency and overall error rates with respect to WT Li Pol β. These results further demonstrate the subtle structural variability that exists within this family of enzymes and provides insight into how this variability underlies the substantial functional differences among their members.     

NDRG2通过调控CD24影响肝癌细胞侵袭能力的研究

目的：阐明NDRG2（N-Myc downstream-regulated gene2）在肝癌细胞中对CD24的调控及其对乳腺癌细胞侵袭能力的影响。方法：Western blot检测低转移性的肝癌细胞Huh7、高转移性的肝癌细胞系MHCC97h及正常人肝细胞系L-02中NDRG2和CD24的表达;通过腺病毒载体上调MHCC97h细胞中NDRG2的水平,或利用siRNA下调Huh7细胞中NDRG2的表达,检测CD24的变化以及细胞侵袭能力的改变。结果：MHCC97h细胞中NDRG2基因和蛋白的表达水平低于Huh7细胞,而CD24的表达水平高于Huh7细胞;在MHCC97h细胞中上调NDRG2可以抑制CD24的表达并抑制其侵袭能力,而在Huh7细胞中下调NDRG2的表达可以提高CD24的水平及细胞的侵袭能力。结论：NDRG2可能通过影响CD24参与调控肝癌细胞的侵袭能力。