Disruption of a cystine transporter downregulates expression of genes involved in sulfur regulation and cellular respiration.

Cystine and cysteine are important molecules for pathways such as redox signaling and regulation, and thus identifying cellular deficits upon deletion of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae cystine transporter Ers1p allows for a further understanding of cystine homeostasis. Previous complementation studies using the human ortholog suggest yeast Ers1p is a cystine transporter. Human CTNS encodes the protein Cystinosin, a cystine transporter that is embedded in the lysosomal membrane and facilitates the export of cystine from the lysosome. When CTNS is mutated, cystine transport is disrupted, leading to cystine accumulation, the diagnostic hallmark of the lysosomal storage disorder cystinosis. Here, we provide biochemical evidence for Ers1p-dependent cystine transport. However, the accumulation of intracellular cystine is not observed when the ERS1 gene is deleted from ers1-Δ yeast, supporting the existence of modifier genes that provide a mechanism in ers1-Δ yeast that prevents or corrects cystine accumulation. Upon comparison of the transcriptomes of isogenic ERS1+ and ers1-Δ strains of S. cerevisiae by DNA microarray followed by targeted qPCR, sixteen genes were identified as being differentially expressed between the two genotypes. Genes that encode proteins functioning in sulfur regulation, cellular respiration, and general transport were enriched in our screen, demonstrating pleiotropic effects of ers1-Δ. These results give insight into yeast cystine regulation and the multiple, seemingly distal, pathways that involve proper cystine recycling.

Osmotic stress changes the expression and subcellular localization of the Batten disease protein CLN3.

Juvenile CLN3 disease (formerly known as juvenile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis) is a fatal childhood neurodegenerative disorder caused by mutations in the CLN3 gene. CLN3 encodes a putative lysosomal transmembrane protein with unknown function. Previous cell culture studies using CLN3-overexpressing vectors and/or anti-CLN3 antibodies with questionable specificity have also localized CLN3 in cellular structures other than lysosomes. Osmoregulation of the mouse Cln3 mRNA level in kidney cells was recently reported. To clarify the subcellular localization of the CLN3 protein and to investigate if human CLN3 expression and localization is affected by osmotic changes we generated a stably transfected BHK (baby hamster kidney) cell line that expresses a moderate level of myc-tagged human CLN3 under the control of the human ubiquitin C promoter. Hyperosmolarity (800 mOsm), achieved by either NaCl/urea or sucrose, dramatically increased the mRNA and protein levels of CLN3 as determined by quantitative real-time PCR and Western blotting. Under isotonic conditions (300 mOsm), human CLN3 was found in a punctate vesicular pattern surrounding the nucleus with prominent Golgi and lysosomal localizations. CLN3-positive early endosomes, late endosomes and cholesterol/sphingolipid-enriched plasma membrane microdomain caveolae were also observed. Increasing the osmolarity of the culture medium to 800 mOsm extended CLN3 distribution away from the perinuclear region and enhanced the lysosomal localization of CLN3. Our results reveal that CLN3 has multiple subcellular localizations within the cell, which, together with its expression, prominently change following osmotic stress. These data suggest that CLN3 is involved in the response and adaptation to cellular stress.

Skeletal muscle gene expression after myostatin knockout in mature mice.

There is much interest in developing anti-myostatin agents to reverse or prevent muscle atrophy in adults, so it is important to characterize the effects of reducing myostatin activity after normal muscle development. For assessment of the effect of loss of myostatin signaling on gene expression in muscle, RNA from mice with postdevelopmental myostatin knockout was analyzed with oligonucleotide microarrays. Myostatin was undetectable in muscle within 2 wk after Cre recombinase activation in 4-month-old male mice with floxed myostatin genes. Three months after myostatin depletion, muscle mass had increased 26% (vs. 2% after induction of Cre activity in mice with normal myostatin genes), at which time the expression of several hundred genes differed in knockout and control mice at nominal P < 0.01. In contrast to previously reported effects of constitutive myostatin knockout, postdevelopmental knockout did not downregulate expression of genes encoding slow isoforms of contractile proteins or genes encoding proteins involved in energy metabolism. Several collagen genes were expressed at 20-50% lower levels in the myostatin-deficient muscles, which had approximately 25% less collagen than normal muscles as reflected by hydroxyproline content. Most of the other genes affected by myostatin depletion have not been previously linked to myostatin signaling. Gene set enrichment analysis suggested that Smads are not the only transcription factors with reduced activity after myostatin depletion. These data reinforce other evidence that myostatin regulates collagen production in muscle and demonstrate that many of the previously reported effects of constitutive myostatin deficiency do not occur when myostatin is knocked out in mature muscles.