Haptoglobin is an independent marker for disease severity and risk for metabolic complications in hidradenitis suppurativa: A prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic inflammatory disease that is highly correlated with obesity. Haptoglobin serum levels have recently been recognized as an important biomarker linking obesity with chronic inflammation. OBJECTIVE: To compare haptoglobin with previously proposed serum biomarkers for the determination of disease severity in HS patients. For this purpose, disease severity of HS patients was determined by a panel of clinical scores as well as several risk factors, such as weight and smoking habits. METHODS: A prospective, diagnostic accuracy study was performed at the International Centre for Hidradenitis suppurativa/Acne inversa Bochum (ICH). The study included a total of 263 patients, including 131 who had a confirmed diagnosis of HS in Hurley I (n = 16), II (n = 56) and III (n = 59) HS, and 132 healthy controls. The main outcome was to identify serological inflammatory markers for HS disease severity [severe (III) vs. moderate/mild (II/I)] as assessed by Hurley classification. RESULTS: The serum levels of acute phase proteins haptoglobin and CRP, as well as the number of neutrophils in peripheral blood, number of monocytes, the systemic immune-inflammation index and the pan-immune-inflammatory value correlated with disease severity according to established clinical scores (mHSS, SAHS, Hurley, DLQI). HS patients had significantly higher haptologlobin levels compared to healthy controls. Logistic regression analysis revealed haptoglobin as the only independent marker predicting severe HS. CONCLUSION: In this prospective study, we discovered that the serum levels of the acute phase protein haptoglobin levels serve as an independent marker of disease severity in HS. While this presents the first study in the context of HS. Thus, the present data not only yield a highly promising serum marker to be further validated.

The long noncoding RNA glycoLINC assembles a lower glycolytic metabolon to promote glycolysis.

Non-covalent complexes of glycolytic enzymes, called metabolons, were postulated in the 1970s, but the concept has been controversial. Here we show that a c-Myc-responsive long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) that we call glycoLINC (gLINC) acts as a backbone for metabolon formation between all four glycolytic payoff phase enzymes (PGK1, PGAM1, ENO1, and PKM2) along with lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA). The gLINC metabolon enhances glycolytic flux, increases ATP production, and enables cell survival under serine deprivation. Furthermore, gLINC overexpression in cancer cells promotes xenograft growth in mice fed a diet deprived of serine, suggesting that cancer cells employ gLINC during metabolic reprogramming. We propose that gLINC makes a functional contribution to cancer cell adaptation and provide the first example of a lncRNA-facilitated metabolon.

Exogenous and Endogenous Serine Deficiency Exacerbates Hepatic Lipid Accumulation.

Serine is involved in the regulation of hepatic lipid metabolism. However, whether exogenous or endogenous serine deficiency affects lipid accumulation in the liver and related mechanisms is unclear. Here, we investigated the effects of serine deficiency on hepatic fat accumulation in mice fed a serine-deficient diet or in mice supplemented with the D-3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH) inhibitor NCT-503. Both treatments produced an increase in body weight and liver weight and higher triglyceride content in the liver. Both treatments also exacerbated hepatic inflammatory responses and oxidative stress. Importantly, NCT-503 supplementation significantly inhibited PHGDH activity and decreased the serine content in the liver. Dietary serine deficiency significantly affected the colonic microbiota, characterized by a decreased ratio of Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes and decreased proportion of Bifidobacterium. Dietary serine deficiency additionally resulted in significantly decreased colonic and serum acetate and butyrate levels. The collective results indicate that NCT-503 supplementation may contribute to overaccumulation of hepatic lipid, by causing hepatic serine deficiency, while dietary serine deficiency may produce similar outcomes by affecting the gut-microbiota-liver axis.

ATF3 promotes the serine synthesis pathway and tumor growth under dietary serine restriction.

The serine synthesis pathway (SSP) involving metabolic enzymes phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH), phosphoserine aminotransferase 1 (PSAT1), and phosphoserine phosphatase (PSPH) drives intracellular serine biosynthesis and is indispensable for cancer cells to grow in serine-limiting environments. However, how SSP is regulated is not well understood. Here, we report that activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3) is crucial for transcriptional activation of SSP upon serine deprivation. ATF3 is rapidly induced by serine deprivation via a mechanism dependent on ATF4, which in turn binds to ATF4 and increases the stability of this master regulator of SSP. ATF3 also binds to the enhancers/promoters of PHGDH, PSAT1, and PSPH and recruits p300 to promote expression of these SSP genes. As a result, loss of ATF3 expression impairs serine biosynthesis and the growth of cancer cells in the serine-deprived medium or in mice fed with a serine/glycine-free diet. Interestingly, ATF3 expression positively correlates with PHGDH expression in a subset of TCGA cancer samples.

Adult diagnosis of congenital serine biosynthesis defect: A treatable cause of progressive neuropathy.

A woman with ichthyosis, contractures, and progressive neuropathy represents the first case of phosphoserine aminotransferase deficiency diagnosed and treated in an adult. She has novel compound heterozygous mutations in the gene PSAT1. Treatment with high dose oral L-serine completely resolved the ichthyosis. Consideration of this diagnosis is important because early treatment with L-serine repletion can halt progression of neurodegeneration and potentially improve neurological disabilities. As exome sequencing becomes more widely implemented in the diagnostic evaluation of progressive neurodegenerative phenotypes, adult neurologists and geneticists will increasingly encounter later onset manifestations of inborn errors of metabolism classically considered in infancy and early childhood.

Deficits in Prenatal Serine Biosynthesis Underlie the Mitochondrial Dysfunction Associated with the Autism-Linked FMR1 Gene.

Fifty-five to two hundred CGG repeats (called a premutation, or PM) in the 5'-UTR of the FMR1 gene are generally unstable, often expanding to a full mutation (>200) in one generation through maternal inheritance, leading to fragile X syndrome, a condition associated with autism and other intellectual disabilities. To uncover the early mechanisms of pathogenesis, we performed metabolomics and proteomics on amniotic fluids from PM carriers, pregnant with male fetuses, who had undergone amniocentesis for fragile X prenatal diagnosis. The prenatal metabolic footprint identified mitochondrial deficits, which were further validated by using internal and external cohorts. Deficits in the anaplerosis of the Krebs cycle were noted at the level of serine biosynthesis, which was confirmed by rescuing the mitochondrial dysfunction in the carriers' umbilical cord fibroblasts using alpha-ketoglutarate precursors. Maternal administration of serine and its precursors has the potential to decrease the risk of developing energy shortages associated with mitochondrial dysfunction and linked comorbidities.

Characterization of ETFDH and PHGDH Mutations in a Patient with Mild Glutaric Aciduria Type II and Serine Deficiency.

Glutaric aciduria type II (GA-II) is a rare autosomal recessive disease caused by defects in electron transfer flavoprotein (ETF), ultimately causing insufficiencies in multiple acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (MAD). 3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (3-PHGDH) deficiency, is another rare autosomal disorder that appears due to a defect in the synthesis of L-serine amino acid. Several mutations of ETFDH and PHGDH genes have been associated with different forms of GA-II and serine deficiency, respectively. In this study, we report a unique case of GA-II with serine deficiency using biochemical, genetic, and in silico approaches. The proband of Syrian descent had positive newborn screening (NBS) for GA-II. At two years of age, the patient presented with developmental regression, ataxia, and intractable seizures. Results of amino acid profiling demonstrated extremely low levels of serine. Confirmatory tests for GA-II and whole exome sequencing (WES) were performed to determine the etiology of intractable seizure. Sequencing results indicated a previously reported homozygous missense mutation, c.679 C>A (p.Pro227Thr) in the ETFDH gene and a novel missense homozygous mutation c.1219 T>C (p.Ser407Pro) in the PHGDH gene. In silico tools predicted these mutations as deleterious. Here, the clinical and biochemical investigations indicate that ETFDH:p.Pro227Thr and PHGDH:p.Ser407Pro variants likely underlie the pathogenesis of GA-II and serine deficiency, respectively. This study indicates that two rare autosomal recessive disorders should be considered in consanguineous families, more specifically in those with atypical presentation.

Exogenous and Endogenous Sources of Serine Contribute to Colon Cancer Metabolism, Growth, and Resistance to 5-Fluorouracil.

Serine is a nonessential amino acid generated by the sequential actions of phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH), phosphoserine aminotransferase (PSAT1), and phosphoserine phosphatase (PSPH). Increased serine biosynthesis occurs in several cancers and supports tumor growth. In addition, cancer cells can harness exogenous serine to enhance their metabolism and proliferation. Here we tested the relative contributions of exogenous and endogenous sources of serine on the biology of colorectal cancer. In murine tumors, Apc status was identified as a determinant of the expression of genes controlling serine synthesis. In patient samples, PSAT1 was overexpressed in both colorectal adenomas and adenocarcinomas. Combining genetic deletion of PSAT1 with exogenous serine deprivation maximally suppressed the proliferation of colorectal cancer cells and induced profound metabolic defects including diminished nucleotide production. Inhibition of serine synthesis enhanced the transcriptional changes following exogenous serine removal as well as alterations associated with DNA damage. Both loss of PSAT1 and removal of serine from the diet were necessary to suppress colorectal cancer xenograft growth and enhance the antitumor activity of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). Restricting endogenous and exogenous serine in vitro augmented 5-FU-induced cell death, DNA damage, and metabolic perturbations, likely accounting for the observed antitumor effect. Collectively, our results suggest that both endogenous and exogenous sources of serine contribute to colorectal cancer growth and resistance to 5-FU. SIGNIFICANCE: These findings provide insights into the metabolic requirements of colorectal cancer and reveal a novel approach for its treatment. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT: http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/canres/81/9/2275/F1.large.jpg.

Sphingosine kinase 1 downregulation is required for adaptation to serine deprivation.

It has been well-established that cancer cells often display altered metabolic profiles, and recent work has concentrated on how cancer cells adapt to serine removal. Serine can be either taken exogenously or synthesized from glucose, and its regulation forms an important mechanism for nutrient integration. One of the several important metabolic roles for serine is in the generation of bioactive sphingolipids since it is the main substrate for serine palmitoyltransferase, the initial and rate-limiting enzyme in the synthesis of sphingolipids. Previously, serine deprivation has been connected to the action of the tumor suppressor p53, and we have previously published on a role for p53 regulating sphingosine kinase 1 (SK1), an enzyme that phosphorylates sphingosine to form sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P). SK1 is a key enzyme in sphingolipid synthesis that functions in pro-survival and tumor-promoting pathways and whose expression is also often elevated in cancers. Here we show that SK1 was degraded during serine starvation in a time and dose-dependent manner, which led to sphingosine accumulation. This was independent of effects on p53 but required the action of the proteasome. Furthermore, we show that overexpression of SK1, to compensate for SK1 loss, was detrimental to cell growth under conditions of serine starvation, demonstrating that the suppression of SK1 under these conditions is adaptive. Mitochondrial oxygen consumption decreased in response to SK1 degradation, and this was accompanied by an increase in intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). Suppression of ROS with N-acteylcysteine resulted in suppression of the metabolic adaptations and in decreased cell growth under serine deprivation. The effects of SK1 suppression on ROS were mimicked by D-erythro-sphingosine, whereas S1P was ineffective, suggesting that the effects of loss of SK1 were due to the accumulation of its substrate sphingosine. This study reveals a new mechanism for regulating SK1 levels and a link of SK1 to serine starvation as well as mitochondrial function.

Serine restriction alters sphingolipid diversity to constrain tumour growth.

Serine, glycine and other nonessential amino acids are critical for tumour progression, and strategies to limit their availability are emerging as potential therapies for cancer1-3. However, the molecular mechanisms driving this response remain unclear and the effects on lipid metabolism are relatively unexplored. Serine palmitoyltransferase (SPT) catalyses the de novo biosynthesis of sphingolipids but also produces noncanonical 1-deoxysphingolipids when using alanine as a substrate4,5. Deoxysphingolipids accumulate in the context of mutations in SPTLC1 or SPTLC26,7-or in conditions of low serine availability8,9-to drive neuropathy, and deoxysphinganine has previously been investigated as an anti-cancer agent10. Here we exploit amino acid metabolism and the promiscuity of SPT to modulate the endogenous synthesis of toxic deoxysphingolipids and slow tumour progression. Anchorage-independent growth reprogrammes a metabolic network involving serine, alanine and pyruvate that drives the endogenous synthesis and accumulation of deoxysphingolipids. Targeting the mitochondrial pyruvate carrier promotes alanine oxidation to mitigate deoxysphingolipid synthesis and improve spheroid growth, similar to phenotypes observed with the direct inhibition of SPT or ceramide synthesis. Restriction of dietary serine and glycine potently induces the accumulation of deoxysphingolipids while decreasing tumour growth in xenograft models in mice. Pharmacological inhibition of SPT rescues xenograft growth in mice fed diets restricted in serine and glycine, and the reduction of circulating serine by inhibition of phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH) leads to the accumulation of deoxysphingolipids and mitigates tumour growth. The promiscuity of SPT therefore links serine and mitochondrial alanine metabolism to membrane lipid diversity, which further sensitizes tumours to metabolic stress.

Serine Deficiency Exacerbates Inflammation and Oxidative Stress via Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis in D-Galactose-Induced Aging Mice.

Inflammation and oxidative stress play key roles in the process of aging and age-related diseases. Since serine availability plays important roles in the support of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory defense system, we explored whether serine deficiency affects inflammatory and oxidative status in D-galactose-induced aging mice. Male mice were randomly assigned into four groups: mice fed a basal diet, mice fed a serine- and glycine-deficient (SGD) diet, mice injected with D-galactose and fed a basal diet, and mice injected with D-galactose and fed an SGD diet. The results showed that D-galactose resulted in oxidative and inflammatory responses, while serine deficiency alone showed no such effects. However, serine deficiency significantly exacerbated oxidative stress and inflammation in D-galactose-treated mice. The composition of fecal microbiota was affected by D-galactose injection, which was characterized by decreased microbiota diversity and downregulated ratio of Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes, as well as decreased proportion of Clostridium XIVa. Furthermore, serine deficiency exacerbated these changes. Additionally, serine deficiency in combination with D-galactose injection significantly decreased fecal butyric acid content and gene expression of short-chain fatty acid transporters (Slc16a3 and Slc16a7) and receptor (Gpr109a) in the brain. Finally, serine deficiency exacerbated the decrease of expression of phosphorylated AMPK and the increase of expression of phosphorylated NFκB p65, which were caused by D-galactose injection. In conclusion, our results suggested that serine deficiency exacerbated inflammation and oxidative stress in D-galactose-induced aging mice. The involved mechanisms might be partially attributed to the changes in the microbiota-gut-brain axis affected by serine deficiency.

Dietary L-serine confers a competitive fitness advantage to Enterobacteriaceae in the inflamed gut.

Metabolic reprogramming is associated with the adaptation of host cells to the disease environment, such as inflammation and cancer. However, little is known about microbial metabolic reprogramming or the role it plays in regulating the fitness of commensal and pathogenic bacteria in the gut. Here, we report that intestinal inflammation reprograms the metabolic pathways of Enterobacteriaceae, such as Escherichia coli LF82, in the gut to adapt to the inflammatory environment. We found that E. coli LF82 shifts its metabolism to catabolize L-serine in the inflamed gut in order to maximize its growth potential. However, L-serine catabolism has a minimal effect on its fitness in the healthy gut. In fact, the absence of genes involved in L-serine utilization reduces the competitive fitness of E. coli LF82 and Citrobacter rodentium only during inflammation. The concentration of luminal L-serine is largely dependent on dietary intake. Accordingly, withholding amino acids from the diet markedly reduces their availability in the gut lumen. Hence, inflammation-induced blooms of E. coli LF82 are significantly blunted when amino acids-particularly L-serine-are removed from the diet. Thus, the ability to catabolize L-serine increases bacterial fitness and provides Enterobacteriaceae with a growth advantage against competitors in the inflamed gut.

Weanling Offspring of Dams Maintained on Serine-Deficient Diet Are Vulnerable to Oxidative Stress.

Serine plays an important role in the antioxidant defense system. However, the effects of maternal serine deficiency on the antioxidant ability of weanling offspring have not been reported. In the present study, we investigated the oxidative status of offspring of dams that are maintained on serine-deficient diet and subjected to diquat challenge. Individual pregnant animals were randomly divided into two dietary groups, namely, the control diet group and the serine- and glycine-deficient diet group. Samples were collected from weanling offspring at the age of 3 weeks after diquat challenge. Our results showed that maternal serine deficiency did not affect the levels of antioxidant enzymes and reactive oxygen species, as well as the expression of cellular and mitochondrial stress markers (Hspd1 and Hspa1a), which indicated that maternal serine deficiency did not affect basal oxidative status in weanling offspring. However, the weanling offspring were found to be vulnerable to oxidative challenges. Furthermore, our results suggested that the dysfunctional antioxidant system in response to oxidative stress in offspring of dams fed with serine-deficient diet was primarily caused by reduced availability of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate. Furthermore, impairment of the antioxidant defense system caused by maternal serine deficiency was mediated by the Akt/AMPK/Sirt1 pathway. Our results indicated that maternal serine availability is important for maintaining antioxidant defense against oxidative challenge in weanling offspring.

Deoxysphingolipid precursors indicate abnormal sphingolipid metabolism in individuals with primary and secondary disturbances of serine availability.

Patients with primary serine biosynthetic defects manifest with intellectual disability, microcephaly, ichthyosis, seizures and peripheral neuropathy. The underlying pathogenesis of peripheral neuropathy in these patients has not been elucidated, but could be related to a decrease in the availability of certain classical sphingolipids, or to an increase in atypical sphingolipids. Here, we show that patients with primary serine deficiency have a statistically significant elevation in specific atypical sphingolipids, namely deoxydihydroceramides of 18-22 carbons in acyl length. We also show that patients with aberrant plasma serine and alanine levels secondary to mitochondrial disorders also display peripheral neuropathy along with similar elevations of atypical sphingolipids. We hypothesize that the etiology of peripheral neuropathy in patients with primary mitochondrial disorders is related to this elevation of deoxysphingolipids, in turn caused by increased availability of alanine and decreased availability of serine. These findings could have important therapeutic implications for the management of these patients.

Serine Availability Influences Mitochondrial Dynamics and Function through Lipid Metabolism.

Cell proliferation can be dependent on the non-essential amino acid serine, and dietary restriction of serine inhibits tumor growth, but the underlying mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Using a metabolomics approach, we found that serine deprivation most predominantly impacts cellular acylcarnitine levels, a signature of altered mitochondrial function. Fuel utilization from fatty acid, glucose, and glutamine is affected by serine deprivation, as are mitochondrial morphological dynamics leading to increased fragmentation. Interestingly, these changes can occur independently of nucleotide and redox metabolism, two known major functions of serine. A lipidomics analysis revealed an overall decrease in ceramide levels. Importantly, supplementation of the lipid component of bovine serum or C16:0-ceramide could partially restore defects in cell proliferation and mitochondrial fragmentation induced by serine deprivation. Together, these data define a role for serine in supporting mitochondrial function and cell proliferation through ceramide metabolism.

Amino acid synthesis deficiencies.

In recent years the number of disorders known to affect amino acid synthesis has grown rapidly. Nor is it just the number of disorders that has increased: the associated clinical phenotypes have also expanded spectacularly, primarily due to the advances of next generation sequencing diagnostics. In contrast to the "classical" inborn errors of metabolism in catabolic pathways, in which elevated levels of metabolites are easily detected in body fluids, synthesis defects present with low values of metabolites or, confusingly, even completely normal levels of amino acids. This makes the biochemical diagnosis of this relatively new group of metabolic diseases challenging. Defects in the synthesis pathways of serine metabolism, glutamine, proline and, recently, asparagine have all been reported. Although these amino acid synthesis defects are in unrelated metabolic pathways, they do share many clinical features. In children the central nervous system is primarily affected, giving rise to (congenital) microcephaly, early onset seizures and varying degrees of mental disability. The brain abnormalities are accompanied by skin disorders such as cutis laxa in defects of proline synthesis, collodion-like skin and ichthyosis in serine deficiency, and necrolytic erythema in glutamine deficiency. Hypomyelination with accompanying loss of brain volume and gyration defects can be observed on brain MRI in all synthesis disorders. In adults with defects in serine or proline synthesis, spastic paraplegia and several forms of polyneuropathy with or without intellectual disability appear to be the major symptoms in these late-presenting forms of amino acid disorders. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the disorders in amino acid synthesis.

Modulating the therapeutic response of tumours to dietary serine and glycine starvation.

The non-essential amino acids serine and glycine are used in multiple anabolic processes that support cancer cell growth and proliferation (reviewed in ref. 1). While some cancer cells upregulate de novo serine synthesis, many others rely on exogenous serine for optimal growth. Restriction of dietary serine and glycine can reduce tumour growth in xenograft and allograft models. Here we show that this observation translates into more clinically relevant autochthonous tumours in genetically engineered mouse models of intestinal cancer (driven by Apc inactivation) or lymphoma (driven by Myc activation). The increased survival following dietary restriction of serine and glycine in these models was further improved by antagonizing the anti-oxidant response. Disruption of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (using biguanides) led to a complex response that could improve or impede the anti-tumour effect of serine and glycine starvation. Notably, Kras-driven mouse models of pancreatic and intestinal cancers were less responsive to depletion of serine and glycine, reflecting an ability of activated Kras to increase the expression of enzymes that are part of the serine synthesis pathway and thus promote de novo serine synthesis.

When cancer needs what's non-essential.

The non-essential amino acids serine and glycine are critical for proliferative metabolism. A study in Nature now finds that dietary serine and glycine deprivation inhibits growth of some tumours. Whether this dietary intervention is effective depends on both the oncogenic context and tumour tissue of origin.

Starvation- and antibiotics-induced formation of persister cells in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

BACKGROUND: Planktonic stationary and exponential cultures of Pseudomonas aeruginosa are highly resistant to killing by bactericidal antimicrobials because of the presence of persisters, cells that are multidrug tolerant and play a key role in the recalcitrance of biofilm infections. AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the formation of persister cells in P. aeruginosa stationary vs. exponential cultures using different class antimicrobials. METHODS: The susceptibilities of P. aeruginosa PAO1 wild-type and mutant strains to antimicrobials were determined by standard microtiter broth dilution method. In order to determine persister formation, dose- and time-dependent killing experiments were performed with antibiotics. RESULTS: Ceftazidime (Cephalosporin) showed little efficacy against either culture. Stationary-phase cells were more tolerant to imipenem (Carbapenem) than exponential cells, leaving a small fraction of persisters at high imipenem concentration in both populations. Polymyxin B (Polymyxin) appeared to be ineffective at low concentrations against both cell populations. Very high polymyxin B concentration completely eradicated exponential cells and regrowth was seen in a stationary population. Stationary cells were more tolerant to tobramycin (Aminoglycoside) than exponential cells but a higher concentration of tobramycin completely eliminated survivors. Ciprofloxacin (Fluoroquinolone) at a low concentration resulted in killing of both cultures of P. aeruginosa, producing persisters that were invulnerable to killing. CONCLUSIONS: Stationary cells appear to be somewhat more tolerant than exponential cells in all of these assays. We also showed that nutrient deprivation (serine starvation) regulated by stringent and general stress response, contribute to the increased tolerance of P. aeruginosa exponential and stationary planktonic cells via production of persisters.