Mammalian myristoyl CoA: protein N-myristoyltransferase

Myristoyl CoA:Protein N-myristoyltransferase (NMT) is the enzyme which catalyses the covalent transfer of myristate from myristoyl CoA to the amino-terminal glycine residue of protein substrates. Although NMT is ubiquitous in eukaryotic cells, the enzyme levels and cellular distribution vary among tissues. In this article, we describe the properties of mammalian NMT(s) with reference to subcellular distribution, molecular weights, substrate specificity and the possible involvement of NMT in pathological processes. The cytosolic fraction of bovine brain contains multiple forms of NMT activity whereas bovine spleen contains only a single form. In bovine brain and spleen, the cytosol contained majority of NMT activity. In contrast, rabbit colon and rat liver NMT activity was predominantly particulate. Regional differences in NMT activity have been observed in both rabbit intestine and bovine brain. Results from our laboratory along with the existing knowledge, provide evidence for the existence of tissue specific isozymes of NMT.     

A non‐canonical rhodopsin‐mediated insulin receptor signaling pathway in retinal photoreceptor neurons

We previously reported a ligand‐independent and rhodopsin‐dependent insulin receptor (IR) neuroprotective signaling pathway in both rod and cone photoreceptor cells, which is activated through protein–protein interaction. Our previous studies were performed with either retina or isolated rod or cone outer segment preparations and the expression of IR signaling proteins were examined. The isolation of outer segments with large portions of the attached inner segments is a technical challenge. Optiprep? density gradient medium has been used to isolate the cells and subcellular organelles, Optiprep? is a non‐ionic iodixanol‐based medium with a density of 1.320 g/mL. We employed this method to examine the expression of IR and its signaling proteins, and activation of one of the downstream effectors of the IR in isolated photoreceptor cells. Identification of the signaling complexes will be helpful for therapeutic targeting in disease conditions.     

Decreased expression of high-molecular-weight calmodulin-binding protein and its correlation with apoptosis in ischemia-reperfused rat heart

A cardiac high-molecular-weight calmodulin-binding protein (HMWCaMBP) was previously identified as a homologue of the calpain inhibitor, calpastatin. In the present study, we investigated the expression of HMWCaMBP and calpains in rat heart after ischemia and reperfusion. Western blot analysis of normal rat heart extract with a polyclonal antibody raised against bovine HMWCaMBP indicated a prominent immunoreactive band of 140kDa. Both the expression and the activity of HMWCaMBP were decreased by ischemia reperfusion. Immunohistochemical studies showed strong-to-moderate HMWCaMBP immunoreactivity in normal heart and poor immunoreactivity in ischemia-reperfused heart muscle. However, the expression of micro-calpain and m-calpain in ischemia-reperfused heart was increased as compared to normal heart. The calpain inhibitory activity of ischemia-reperfused heart tissues was significantly lower as compared to normal heart tissues. The pre-ischemic and post-ischemic perfusion of hearts with a cell-permeable calpain inhibitor suppressed the increase in calpain expression but increased the HMWCaMBP expression. In-vitro HMWCaMBP was proteolyzed by micro-calpain and m-calpain. We also measured apoptosis in normal and ischemia-reperfused tissues. An increase in the number of apoptotic bodies was observed with increased duration of ischemia and reperfusion. Bcl-2 expression did not change in any of the groups, whereas Bax expression increased with ischemia-reperfusion and correlated well with the degree of apoptosis. Our findings suggest that HMWCaMBP may sequester calpains from its substrates in the normal myocardium, but it is susceptible to proteolysis by calpains during ischemia-reperfusion. Thus, decreased expression of HMWCaMBP may play an important role in myocardial injury.     

Filamin 2 (FLN2): A muscle-specific sarcoglycan interacting protein

Mutations in genes encoding for the sarcoglycans, a subset of proteins within the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex, produce a limb-girdle muscular dystrophy phenotype; however, the precise role of this group of proteins in the skeletal muscle is not known. To understand the role of the sarcoglycan complex, we looked for sarcoglycan interacting proteins with the hope of finding novel members of the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex. Using the yeast two-hybrid method, we have identified a skeletal muscle-specific form of filamin, which we term filamin 2 (FLN2), as a gamma- and delta-sarcoglycan interacting protein. In addition, we demonstrate that FLN2 protein localization in limb-girdle muscular dystrophy and Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients and mice is altered when compared with unaffected individuals. Previous studies of filamin family members have determined that these proteins are involved in actin reorganization and signal transduction cascades associated with cell migration, adhesion, differentiation, force transduction, and survival. Specifically, filamin proteins have been found essential in maintaining membrane integrity during force application. The finding that FLN2 interacts with the sarcoglycans introduces new implications for the pathogenesis of muscular dystrophy.     

Whole Cell Formaldehyde Cross-Linking Simplifies Purification of Mitochondrial Nucleoids and Associated Proteins Involved in Mitochondrial Gene Expression

Mitochondrial DNA/protein complexes (nucleoids) appear as discrete entities inside the mitochondrial network when observed by live-cell imaging and immunofluorescence. This somewhat trivial observation in recent years has spurred research towards isolation of these complexes and the identification of nucleoid-associated proteins. Here we show that whole cell formaldehyde crosslinking combined with affinity purification and tandem mass-spectrometry provides a simple and reproducible method to identify potential nucleoid associated proteins. The method avoids spurious mitochondrial isolation and subsequent multifarious nucleoid enrichment protocols and can be implemented to allow for label-free quantification (LFQ) by mass-spectrometry. Using expression of a Flag-tagged Twinkle helicase and appropriate controls we show that this method identifies many previously identified nucleoid associated proteins. Using LFQ to compare HEK293 cells with and without mtDNA, but both expressing Twinkle-FLAG, identifies many proteins that are reduced or absent in the absence of mtDNA. This set not only includes established mtDNA maintenance proteins but also many proteins involved in mitochondrial RNA metabolism and translation and therefore represents what can be considered an mtDNA gene expression proteome. Our data provides a very valuable resource for both basic mitochondrial researchers as well as clinical geneticists working to identify novel disease genes on the basis of exome sequence data.     

Rhodopsin-regulated Insulin Receptor Signaling Pathway in Rod Photoreceptor Neurons

The retina is an integral part of the central nervous system and retinal cells are known to express insulin receptors (IR), although their function is not known. This article describes recent studies that link the photoactivation of rhodopsin to tyrosine phosphorylation of the IR and subsequent activation of phosphoinositide 3-kinase, a neuron survival factor. Our studies suggest that the physiological role of this process is to provide neuroprotection of the retina against light damage by activating proteins that protect against stress-induced apoptosis. We focus mainly on our recently identified regulation of the IR pathway through the G-protein-coupled receptor rhodopsin. Various mutant and knockout proteins of phototransduction cascade have been used to study the light-induced activation of the retinal IR. Our studies suggest that rhodopsin may have additional previously uncharacterized signaling functions in photoreceptors.     

Early behavioral changes and quantitative analysis of neuropathological features in murine prion disease: Stereological analysis in the albino Swiss mice model

Behavioral and neuropathological changes have been widely investigated in murine prion disease but stereological based unbiased estimates of key neuropathological features have not been carried out. After injections of ME7 infected (ME7) or normal brain homogenates (NBH) into dorsal CA1 of albino Swiss mice and C57BL6, we assessed behavioral changes on hippocampal-dependent tasks. We also estimated by optical fractionator at 15 and 18 weeks post-injections (w.p.i.) the total number of neurons, reactive astrocytes, activated microglia and perineuronal nets (PN) in the polymorphic layer of dentate gyrus (PolDG), CA1 and septum in albino Swiss mice. On average, early behavioral changes in albino Swiss mice start four weeks later than in C57BL6. Cluster and discriminant analysis of behavioral data in albino Swiss mice revealed that four of nine subjects start to change their behavior at 12 w.p.i. and reach terminal stage at 22 w.p.i and the remaining subjects start at 22 w.p.i. and reach terminal stage at 26 w.p.i. Biotinylated dextran-amine BDA-tracer experiments in mossy fiber pathway confirmed axonal degeneration and stereological data showed that early astrocytosis, microgliosis and reduction in the perineuronal nets are independent of a change in the number of neuronal cell bodies. Statistical analysis revealed that the septal region had greater levels of neuroinflammation and extracellular matrix damage than CA1. This stereological and multivariate analysis at early stages of disease in an outbred model of prion disease provided new insights connecting behavioral changes and neuroinflammation and seems to be important to understand the mechanisms of prion disease progression.Key words: prion disease, optical fractionator, neuropathology, behavioral changes, albino Swiss mice     

RNA reveals a succession of active fungi during the decay of Norway spruce logs

Current knowledge of the succession of fungi in decaying wood is mostly based on fruit bodies and in vitro culture. Here, we investigated the changing community of metabolically active fungi during the decomposition of fallen Picea abies logs by directly extracting and barcode sequencing precursor rRNA. We also compared rRNA-derived amplicons of the 18S and ITS regions in 21 isolates and discuss the use of RNA as a marker of metabolically active fungi. The richness of active fungi, revealed as separated bands in DGGE, peaked in logs at an advanced stage of decay. Soft-rot fungi were common in the early stages but white- and brown-rot fungi became dominant as decay progressed. Ectomycorrhizal fungi were detected at an early stage, and they became the most abundant group in the late stages of succession. A comparison of rRNA-derived amplicons revealed that although ITS was detected in the form of precursor rRNA, introns within 18S rDNA were already spliced. As such, rRNA- and rDNA-derived amplicons would yield different profiles of active and total communities if profiling method is affected by amplicon length.     

Involvement of insulin/phosphoinositide 3-kinase/Akt signal pathway in 17 beta-estradiol-mediated neuroprotection

In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that 17beta-estradiol (betaE2) is a neuroprotectant in the retina, using two experimental approaches: 1) hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2))-induced retinal neuron degeneration in vitro, and 2) light-induced photoreceptor degeneration in vivo. We demonstrated that both betaE2 and 17alpha-estradiol (alphaE2) significantly protected against H(2)O(2)-induced retinal neuron degeneration; however, progesterone had no effect. betaE2 transiently increased the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) activity, when phosphoinositide 4,5-bisphosphate and [(32)gammaATP] were used as substrate. Phospho-Akt levels were also transiently increased by betaE2 treatment. Addition of the estrogen receptor antagonist tamoxifen did not reverse the protective effect of betaE2, whereas the PI3K inhibitor LY294002 inhibited the protective effect of betaE2, suggesting that betaE2 mediates its effect through some PI3K-dependent pathway, independent of the estrogen receptor. Pull-down experiments with glutathione S-transferase fused to the N-Src homology 2 domain of p85, the regulatory subunit of PI3K, indicated that betaE2 and alphaE2, but not progesterone, identified phosphorylated insulin receptor beta-subunit (IRbeta) as a binding partner. Pretreatment with insulin receptor inhibitor, HNMPA, inhibited IRbeta activation of PI3K. Systemic administration of betaE2 significantly protected the structure and function of rat retinas against light-induced photoreceptor cell degeneration and inhibited photoreceptor apoptosis. In addition, systemic administration of betaE2 activated retinal IRbeta, but not the insulin-like growth factor receptor-1, and produced a transient increase in PI3K activity and phosphorylation of Akt in rat retinas. The results show that estrogen has retinal neuroprotective properties in vivo and in vitro and suggest that the insulin receptor/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway is involved in estrogen-mediated retinal neuroprotection.