DLC1 promotes mechanotransductive feedback for YAP via RhoGAP-mediated focal adhesion turnover.

Angiogenesis is a tightly controlled dynamic process demanding a delicate equilibrium between pro-angiogenic signals and factors that promote vascular stability. The spatiotemporal activation of the transcriptional co-factors YAP (herein referring to YAP1) and TAZ (also known WWTR1), collectively denoted YAP/TAZ, is crucial to allow for efficient collective endothelial migration in angiogenesis. The focal adhesion protein deleted-in-liver-cancer-1 (DLC1) was recently described as a transcriptional downstream target of YAP/TAZ in endothelial cells. In this study, we uncover a negative feedback loop between DLC1 expression and YAP activity during collective migration and sprouting angiogenesis. In particular, our study demonstrates that signaling via the RhoGAP domain of DLC1 reduces nuclear localization of YAP and its transcriptional activity. Moreover, the RhoGAP activity of DLC1 is essential for YAP-mediated cellular processes, including the regulation of focal adhesion turnover, traction forces, and sprouting angiogenesis. We show that DLC1 restricts intracellular cytoskeletal tension by inhibiting Rho signaling at the basal adhesion plane, consequently reducing nuclear YAP localization. Collectively, these findings underscore the significance of DLC1 expression levels and its function in mitigating intracellular tension as a pivotal mechanotransductive feedback mechanism that finely tunes YAP activity throughout the process of sprouting angiogenesis.

DLC1 is a direct target of activated YAP/TAZ that drives collective migration and sprouting angiogenesis.

Endothelial YAP/TAZ (YAP is also known as YAP1, and TAZ as WWTR1) signaling is crucial for sprouting angiogenesis and vascular homeostasis. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms that explain how YAP/TAZ control the vasculature remain unclear. This study reveals that the focal adhesion protein deleted-in-liver-cancer 1 (DLC1) is a direct transcriptional target of the activated YAP/TAZ-TEAD complex. We find that substrate stiffening and VEGF stimuli promote expression of DLC1 in endothelial cells. In turn, DLC1 expression levels are YAP and TAZ dependent, and constitutive activation of YAP is sufficient to drive DLC1 expression. DLC1 is needed to limit F-actin fiber formation, integrin-based focal adhesion lifetime and integrin-mediated traction forces. Depletion of endothelial DLC1 strongly perturbs cell polarization in directed collective migration and inhibits the formation of angiogenic sprouts. Importantly, ectopic expression of DLC1 is sufficient to restore migration and angiogenic sprouting in YAP-depleted cells. Together, these findings point towards a crucial and prominent role for DLC1 in YAP/TAZ-driven endothelial adhesion remodeling and collective migration during angiogenesis.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.

Hydrophobic Interactions Contribute to Conformational Stabilization of Endoglycoceramidase II by Mechanism-Based Probes.

Small compound active site interactors receive considerable attention for their ability to positively influence the fold of glycosidases. Endoglycoceramidase II (EGCII) from Rhodococcus sp. is an endo-ß-glucosidase releasing the complete glycan from ceramide in glycosphingolipids. Cleavage of the ß-glycosidic linkage between glucose and ceramide is also catalyzed by glucocerebrosidase (GBA), the exo-ß-glucosidase deficient in Gaucher disease. We demonstrate that established ß-glucoside-configured cyclophellitol-type activity-based probes (ABPs) for GBA also are effective, mechanism-based, and irreversible inhibitors of EGCII. The stability of EGCII is markedly enhanced by formation of covalent complexes with cyclophellitol ABPs substituted with hydrophobic moieties, as evidenced by an increased melting temperature, resistance against tryptic digestion, changes in (15)N-(1)H transverse relaxation optimized spectroscopy spectra of the [(15)N]Leu-labeled enzyme, and relative hydrophobicity as determined by 8-anilino-1-naphthalenesulfonic acid fluorescence. The stabilization of EGCII conformation correlates with the shape and hydrophobicity of the substituents of the ABPs. We conclude that the amphipathic active site binders with aliphatic moieties act as a "hydrophobic zipper" on the flexible EGCII protein structure.

Characterization of Patient-Derived GNAQ Mutated Endothelial Cells from Capillary Malformations.

Capillary malformations (CM) (port-wine stains) are congenital skin lesions that are characterized by dilated capillaries and postcapillary venules. CMs are caused by altered functioning of the vascular endothelium. Somatic genetic mutations have predominantly been identified in the endothelial cells of CMs, providing an opportunity for the development of targeted therapies. However, there is currently limited in-depth mechanistic insight into the pathophysiology and a lack of preclinical research approaches. In a monocenter exploratory study of 17 adult patients with CMs, we found somatic sequence variants in the GNAQ (p.R183Q, p.R183G, or p.Q209R) or GNA11 (p.R183C) genes. We applied an endothelial-selective cell isolation protocol to culture primary endothelial cells from skin biopsies from these patients. We successfully expanded patient-derived cells in culture in 3 of the 17 cases while maintaining endothelial specificity as demonstrated by vascular endothelial-cadherin immunostainings. In addition, we tested the angiogenic capacity of endothelial cells from a patient with a GNAQ (p.R183G) sequence substitution. These proof-of-principle results reveal that primary cells isolated from CMs may represent a functional research model to investigate the role of endothelial somatic mutations in the etiology of CMs, but improved isolation and culture methodologies are urgently needed to advance the field.

Changes in protein dynamics of the DNA repair dioxygenase AlkB upon binding of Fe(2+) and 2-oxoglutarate.

The Escherichia coli DNA repair enzyme AlkB is a 2-oxoglutarate (2OG)-dependent Fe(2+) binding dioxygenase that removes methyl lesions from DNA and RNA. To date, nine human AlkB homologues are known: ABH1 to ABH8 and the obesity-related FTO. Similar to AlkB, these homologues exert their activity on nucleic acids, although for some homologues the biological substrate remains to be identified. 2OG dioxygenases require binding of the cofactors Fe(2+) and 2OG in the active site to form a catalytically competent complex. We present a structural analysis of AlkB using NMR, fluorescence, and CD spectroscopy to show that AlkB is a dynamic protein exhibiting different folding states. In the absence of the cofactors Fe(2+) and 2OG, apoAlkB is a highly dynamic protein. Binding of either Fe(2+) or 2OG alone does not significantly affect the protein dynamics. Formation of a fully folded and catalytically competent holoAlkB complex only occurs when both 2OG and Fe(2+) are bound. These findings provide the first insights into protein folding of 2OG-dependent dioxygenases. A role for protein dynamics in the incorporation of the metal cofactor is discussed.

A junctional PACSIN2/EHD4/MICAL-L1 complex coordinates VE-cadherin trafficking for endothelial migration and angiogenesis.

Angiogenic sprouting relies on collective migration and coordinated rearrangements of endothelial leader and follower cells. VE-cadherin-based adherens junctions have emerged as key cell-cell contacts that transmit forces between cells and trigger signals during collective cell migration in angiogenesis. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms that govern these processes and their functional importance for vascular development still remain unknown. We previously showed that the F-BAR protein PACSIN2 is recruited to tensile asymmetric adherens junctions between leader and follower cells. Here we report that PACSIN2 mediates the formation of endothelial sprouts during angiogenesis by coordinating collective migration. We show that PACSIN2 recruits the trafficking regulators EHD4 and MICAL-L1 to the rear end of asymmetric adherens junctions to form a recycling endosome-like tubular structure. The junctional PACSIN2/EHD4/MICAL-L1 complex controls local VE-cadherin trafficking and thereby coordinates polarized endothelial migration and angiogenesis. Our findings reveal a molecular event at force-dependent asymmetric adherens junctions that occurs during the tug-of-war between endothelial leader and follower cells, and allows for junction-based guidance during collective migration in angiogenesis.

Role of the alpha-glucanase Agn1p in fission-yeast cell separation.

Cell division in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe yields two equal-sized daughter cells. Medial fission is achieved by deposition of a primary septum flanked by two secondary septa within the dividing cell. During the final step of cell division, cell separation, the primary septum is hydrolyzed by an endo-(1,3)-beta-glucanase, Eng1p. We reasoned that the cell wall material surrounding the septum, referred to here as the septum edging, also must be hydrolyzed before full separation of the daughter cells can occur. Because the septum edging contains (1,3)-alpha-glucan, we investigated the cellular functions of the putative (1,3)-alpha-glucanases Agn1p and Agn2p. Whereas agn2 deletion results in a defect in endolysis of the ascus wall, deletion of agn1 leads to clumped cells that remained attached to each other by septum-edging material. Purified Agn1p hydrolyzes (1,3)-alpha-glucan predominantly into pentasaccharides, indicating an endo-catalytic mode of hydrolysis. Furthermore, we show that the transcription factors Sep1p and Ace2p regulate both eng1 and agn1 expression in a cell cycle-dependent manner. We propose that Agn1p acts in concert with Eng1p to achieve efficient cell separation, thereby exposing the secondary septa as the new ends of the daughter cells.

Transcription regulation of the alpha-glucanase gene agn1 by cell separation transcription factor Ace2p in fission yeast.

During the final stage of the cell division cycle in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, transcription factor Ace2p activates expression of genes involved in the separation of newly formed daughter cells, such as agn1+, which encodes the alpha-glucanase Agn1p. The agn1 promoter contains three copies of the nucleotide sequence motif CCAGCC, whose presence seems to correlate with Ace2p-mediated transcription activation. Here, we describe a simple plate-based assay utilizing as a reporter the secreted glucoamylase of Arxula adeninivorans to investigate the function of this motif. We show that not all three repeats, but only the two most proximal to the transcription start point, act as an upstream activating sequence (UAS). Finally, we demonstrate that this UAS is essential for agn1 promoter activity in vivo.

Molecular misreading: the frequency of dinucleotide deletions in neuronal mRNAs for beta-amyloid precursor protein and ubiquitin B.

Human neuronal cells contain mutant beta-amyloid precursor protein (APP) and ubiquitin B (UBB) mRNAs, in which dinucleotide deletions ('Delta') are generated in/around GAGAG-motifs by an unknown mechanism referred to as 'Molecular Misreading.' The encoded frameshifted (+1) proteins accumulate in the neuropathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and in other neurodegenerative and age-related diseases. To measure the concentration of Delta mRNAs, we developed a highly sensitive and specific assay, utilizing peptide nucleic acid-mediated PCR clamping, followed by cloning and colony hybridization with sequence-specific oligonucleotide probes. We found only a few molecules of Delta mRNA/microg of cellular RNA, at levels <10(-5) to 10(-6) x the concentration of WT mRNA, in RNA extracted from: (i) cultured human neuroblastoma cells grown under a variety of conditions, (ii) the frontal half of brains from wild type and XPA(-/-) DNA repair-deficient mice, and (iii) post-mortem temporal cortices from humans. Importantly, in RNA from the temporal cortices of AD and Down Syndrome patients that contain betaAPP+1 and UBB+1 immunoreactive cells, we found the same low levels of Delta mRNA. We infer that the accumulation of +1 proteins in neurons of these patients is not caused by an increase in the concentration of Delta mRNAs.

Frameshifted beta-amyloid precursor protein (APP+1) is a secretory protein, and the level of APP+1 in cerebrospinal fluid is linked to Alzheimer pathology.

Molecular misreading of the beta-amyloid precursor protein (APP) gene generates mRNA with dinucleotide deletions in GAGAG motifs. The resulting truncated and partly frameshifted APP protein (APP+1) accumulates in the dystrophic neurites and the neurofibrillary tangles in the cortex and hippocampus of Alzheimer patients. In contrast, we show here that neuronal cells transfected with APP+1 proficiently secreted APP+1. Because various secretory APP isoforms are present in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), this study aimed to determine whether APP+1 is also a secretory protein that can be detected in CSF. Post-mortem CSF was obtained at autopsy from 50 non-demented controls and 122 Alzheimer patients; all subjects were staged for neuropathology (Braak score). Unexpectedly, we found that the APP+1 level in the CSF of non-demented controls was much higher (1.75 ng/ml) than in the CSF of Alzheimer patients (0.51 ng/ml) (p < 0.001), and the level of APP+1 in CSF was inversely correlated with the severity of the neuropathology. Moreover the earliest neuropathological changes are already reflected in a significant decrease of the APP+1 level in CSF. These data show that APP+1 is normally secreted by neurons, preventing intra-neuronal accumulation of APP+1 in brains of non-demented controls without neurofibrillary pathology.