A Novel Interaction of Slug (SNAI2) and Nuclear Actin.

Actin is a protein of central importance to many cellular functions. Its localization and activity are regulated by interactions with a high number of actin-binding proteins. In a yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) screening system, snail family transcriptional repressor 2 (SNAI2 or slug) was identified as a yet unknown potential actin-binding protein. We validated this interaction using immunoprecipitation and analyzed the functional relation between slug and actin. Since both proteins have been reported to be involved in DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair, we focused on their interaction during this process after treatment with doxorubicin or UV irradiation. Confocal microscopy elicits that the overexpression of actin fused to an NLS stabilizes complexes of slug and γH2AX, an early marker of DNA damage repair.

Redox-Mediated Amination of Pyrogallol-Based Polyphenols.

Flavonoids are known to covalently modify amyloidogenic peptides by amination reactions. The underlying coupling process between polyphenols and N-nucleophiles is assessed by several in vitro and in silico approaches. The coupling reaction involves a sequence of oxidative dearomatization, amination, and reductive amination (ODARA) reaction steps. The C6-regioselectivity of the product is confirmed by crystallographic analysis. Under aqueous conditions, the reaction of baicalein with lysine derivatives yields C-N coupling as well as hydrolysis products of transient imine intermediates. The observed C-N coupling reactions work best for flavonoids combining a pyrogallol substructure with an electron-withdrawing group attached to the C4a-position. Thermodynamic properties such as bond dissociation energies also highlight the key role of pyrogallol units for the antioxidant ability. Combining the computed electronic properties and in vitro antioxidant assays suggests that the studied pyrogallol-containing flavonoids act by various radical-scavenging mechanisms working in synergy. Multivariate analysis indicates that a small number of descriptors for transient intermediates of the ODARA process generates a model with excellent performance (r=0.93) for the prediction of cross-coupling yields. The same model has been employed to predict novel antioxidant flavonoid-based molecules as potential covalent inhibitors, opening a new avenue to the design of therapeutically relevant anti-amyloid compounds.

Phyllobilins - Bioactive Natural Products Derived from Chlorophyll - Plant Origins, Structures, Absorption Spectra, and Biomedical Properties.

Phyllobilins are open-chain products of the biological degradation of chlorophyll a in higher plants. Recent studies reveal that phyllobilins exert anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as activities against cancer cells, that contribute to the human health benefits of numerous plants. In general, phyllobilins have been overlooked in phytochemical analyses, and - more importantly - in the analyses of medicinal plant extracts. Nevertheless, over the past three decades, > 70 phyllobilins have been identified upon examination of more than 30 plant species. Eight distinct chromophoric classes of phyllobilins are known: phyllolumibilins (PluBs), phylloleucobilins (PleBs), phylloxanthobilins (PxBs), and phylloroseobilins (PrBs)-each in type-I or type-II groups. Here, we present a database of absorption and fluorescence spectra that has been compiled of 73 phyllobilins to facilitate identification in phytochemical analyses. The spectra are provided in digital form and can be viewed and downloaded at www.photochemcad.com. The present review describes the plant origin, molecular structure, and absorption and fluorescence features of the 73 phyllobilins, along with an overview of key medicinal properties. The review should provide an enabling tool for the community for the straightforward identification of phyllobilins in plant extracts, and the foundation for deeper understanding of these ubiquitous but underexamined plant-derived micronutrients for human health.

A Chlorophyll-Derived Phylloxanthobilin Is a Potent Antioxidant That Modulates Immunometabolism in Human PBMC.

Phyllobilins are natural products derived from the degradation of chlorophyll, which proceeds via a common and strictly controlled pathway in higher plants. The resulting tetrapyrrolic catabolites-the phyllobilins-are ubiquitous in nature; despite their high abundance, there is still a lack of knowledge about their physiological properties. Phyllobilins are part of human nutrition and were shown to be potent antioxidants accounting with interesting physiological properties. Three different naturally occurring types of phyllobilins-a phylloleucobilin, a dioxobilin-type phylloleucobilin and a phylloxanthobilin (PxB)-were compared regarding potential antioxidative properties in a cell-free and in a cell-based antioxidant activity test system, demonstrating the strongest effect for the PxB. Moreover, the PxB was investigated for its capacity to interfere with immunoregulatory metabolic pathways of tryptophan breakdown in human blood peripheral mononuclear cells. A dose-dependent inhibition of tryptophan catabolism to kynurenine was observed, suggesting a suppressive effect on pathways of cellular immune activation. Although the exact mechanisms of immunomodulatory effects are yet unknown, these prominent bioactivities point towards health-relevant effects, which warrant further mechanistic investigations and the assessment of the in vivo extrapolatability of results. Thus, phyllobilins are a still surprisingly unexplored family of natural products that merit further investigation.

Head-to-head comparison of biparametric versus multiparametric MRI of the prostate before robot-assisted transperineal fusion prostate biopsy.

PURPOSE: Prostate biparametric magnetic resonance imaging (bpMRI) including T2-weighted imaging (T2WI) and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) might be an alternative to multiparametric MRI (mpMRI, including dynamic contrast imaging, DCE) to detect and guide targeted biopsy in patients with suspected prostate cancer (PCa). However, there is no upgrading peripheral zone PI-RADS 3 to PI-RADS 4 without DCE in bpMRI. The aim of this study was to evaluate bpMRI against mpMRI in biopsy-naïve men with elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA) scheduled for robot-assisted-transperineal fusion-prostate biopsy (RA-TB). METHODS: Retrospective single-center-study of 563 biopsy-naïve men (from 01/2015 to 09/2018, mean PSA 9.7 ± 6.5 ng/mL) with PI-RADSv2.1 conform mpMRI at 3 T before RA-TB. Clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) was defined as ISUP grade ≥ 2 in any core. Two experienced readers independently evaluated images according to PI-RADSv2.1 criteria (separate readings for bpMRI and mpMRI sequences, 6-month interval). Reference standard was histology from RA-TB. RESULTS: PI-RADS 2 was scored in 5.1% of cases (3.4% cancer/3.4% csPCa), PI-RADS 3 in 16.9% (32.6%/3.2%), PI-RADS 4 in 57.6% (66.1%/58.3%) and PI-RADS 5 in 20.4% of cases (79.1%/74.8%). For mpMRI/bpMRI test comparison, sensitivity was 99.0%/97.1% (p < 0.001), specificity 47.5%/61.2% (p < 0.001), PPV 69.5%/75.1% (p < 0.001) and NPV 97.6%/94.6% (n.s.). csPCa was considered gold standard. 35 cases without cancer were upgraded to PI-RADS 4 (mpMRI) and six PI-RADS 3 cases with csPCa were not upgraded (bpMRI). CONCLUSION: In patients planned for RA-TB with elevated PSA and clinical suspicion for PCa, specificity was higher in bpMRI vs. mpMRI, which could solve constrains regarding time and contrast agent.

Using the yeast three-hybrid system for the identification of small molecule-protein interactions with the example of ethinylestradiol.

Since the first report on a yeast three-hybrid system, several approaches have successfully utilized different setups for discovering targets of small molecule drugs. Compared to broadly applied MS based target identification approaches, the yeast three-hybrid system represents a complementary method that allows for the straightforward identification of direct protein binders of selected small molecules. One major drawback of this system, however, is that the drug has to be taken up by the yeast cells in sufficient concentrations. Here, we report the establishment of a yeast three-hybrid screen in the deletion strain ABC9Δ, which is characterized by being highly permeable to small molecules. We used this system to screen for protein binding partners of ethinylestradiol, a widely used drug mainly for contraception and hormone replacement therapy. We identified procollagen-lysine 2-oxoglutarate 5-dioxygenase 2 (PLOD2 or lysyl hydroxylase, LH2) as a novel direct target and were able to confirm the interaction identified with the yeast three-hybrid system by a complementary method, affinity chromatography, to prove the validity of the hit. Furthermore, we provide evidence for an interaction between the drug and PLOD2 in vitro and in cellulo.

Rising levels of antioxidative phyllobilins in stored agricultural produce and their impact on consumer acceptance.

Consumers often throw away faded greens, because taste and appearance are less appealing compared to fresh ones. We report here a family of antioxidants, the phyllobilins, which increase during storage in iceberg lettuce and cucumber. We show that informing consumers about rising levels of phyllobilins leads to a longer willingness to consume faded lettuce and to an improved health and safety perception.

Tetrapyrrolic Pigments from Heme- and Chlorophyll Breakdown are Actin-Targeting Compounds.

Chlorophyll and heme are among the "pigments of life", tetrapyrrolic structures, without which life on Earth would not be possible. Their catabolites, the phyllobilins and the bilins, respectively, share not only structural features, but also a similar story: Long considered waste products of detoxification processes, important bioactivities for both classes have now been demonstrated. For phyllobilins, however, research on physiological roles is sparse. Here, we introduce actin, the major component of the cytoskeleton, as the first discovered target of phyllobilins and as a novel target of bilins. We demonstrate the inhibition of actin dynamics in vitro and effects on actin and related processes in cancer cells. A direct interaction with G-actin is shown by in silico studies and confirmed by affinity chromatography. Our findings open a new chapter in bioactivities of tetrapyrroles-especially phyllobilins-for which they form the basis for broad implications in plant science, ecology, and physiology.

Phyllobilins as a challenging diverse natural product class: Exploration of pharmacological activities.

Phyllobilins are a group of chlorophyll-derived bilin-type linear tetrapyrroles, generated in the process of chlorophyll breakdown. Since the first phyllobilin was isolated and characterized in 1991, more and more structures of these chlorophyll catabolites were identified alongside the biochemical players involved in chlorophyll breakdown. In the meantime, phyllobilins are known to occur in a large natural structural variety, and new modifications are still being discovered. Phyllobilins have been regarded as products of chlorophyll detoxification for a very long time, hence they have been completely overlooked as a natural product class in terms of their biological role or pharmacological activity. A change of this paradigm, however, is long overdue. Here, we review the current knowledge of the pharmacological activities of phyllobilins and give an overview of the diverse structural modifications, laying the groundwork for analyzing their role(s) as active components in medicinal plants.

A yellow chlorophyll catabolite in leaves of Urtica dioica L.: An overlooked phytochemical that contributes to health benefits of stinging nettle.

Stinging nettle is appreciated for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, which renders the plant a popular ingredient in a healthy diet in form of salads or smoothies. The most common use, presumably, is of dried leaves as ingredient in tea mixtures. The plant's health benefits are attributed primarily to phenolic phytochemicals. Here we describe the characterization and quantification of a phylloxanthobilin (PxB), a yellow chlorophyll catabolite, in nettle tea. Despite their abundance in the plant kingdom, chlorophyll catabolites have been overlooked as phytochemicals and as part of human nutrition. Our investigations of tea reveal that one cup of nettle tea contains about 50 µg of PxB with large variations depending on the supplier. When investigating the bioactivities of PxB, our observations show that PxB has antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities comparable to known bioactive small molecules found in nettle, indicating the phylloxanthobilin to be an overlooked ingredient of nettle tea.

Phyllobilins from Senescence-Associated Chlorophyll Breakdown in the Leaves of Basil (Ocimum basilicum) Show Increased Abundance upon Herbivore Attack.

In view of the common use of the herb basil (Ocimum basilicum) in nutrition and in phytomedicine, the contents of its leaves are of obvious interest. In extracts of fresh yellowish-green basil leaves, phyllobilins (PBs), which are bilin-type catabolites of chlorophyll (Chl), were detected using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Two such PBs, provisionally named Ob-nonfluorescent chlorophyll catabolite (NCC)-40 and Ob-YCC-45, exhibited previously unknown structures that were delineated by a thorough spectroscopic characterization. When basil leaves were infested with aphids or thrips or underwent fungal infections, areas with chlorosis were observed. HPLC analyses of the infested parts of leaves compared to those of the healthy parts showed a significant accumulation of PBs in the infested areas, demonstrating that the senescence-associated pheophorbide a oxygenase/phyllobilin (PAO/PB) pathway is activated by herbivore feeding and fungal infection.

In Search of Bioactivity - Phyllobilins, an Unexplored Class of Abundant Heterocyclic Plant Metabolites from Breakdown of Chlorophyll.

The fate of the green plant pigment chlorophyll (Chl) in de-greening leaves has long been a fascinating biological puzzle. In the course of the last three decades, various bilin-type products of Chl breakdown have been identified, named phyllobilins (PBs). Considered 'mere' leftovers of a controlled biological Chl detoxification originally, the quest for finding relevant bioactivities of the PBs has become a new paradigm. Indeed, the PBs are abundant in senescent leaves, in ripe fruit and in some vegetables, and they display an exciting array of diverse heterocyclic structures. This review outlines briefly which types of Chl breakdown products occur in higher plants, describes basics of their bio-relevant structural and chemical properties and gives suggestions as to 'why' the plants produce vast amounts of uniquely 'decorated' heterocyclic compounds. Clearly, it is worthwhile to consider crucial metabolic roles of PBs in plants, which may have practical consequences in agriculture and horticulture. However, PBs are also part of our plant-based nutrition and their physiological and pharmacological effects in humans are of interest, as well.

Cryptic chlorophyll breakdown in non-senescent green Arabidopsis thaliana leaves.

Chlorophyll (Chl) breakdown is a diagnostic visual process of leaf senescence, which furnishes phyllobilins (PBs) by the PAO/phyllobilin pathway. As Chl breakdown disables photosynthesis, it appears to have no role in photoactive green leaves. Here, colorless PBs were detected in green, non-senescent leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana. The PBs from the green leaves had structures entirely consistent with the PAO/phyllobilin pathway and the mutation of a single Chl catabolic enzyme completely abolished PBs with the particular modification. Hence, the PAO/phyllobilin pathway was active in the absence of visible senescence and expression of genes encoding Chl catabolic enzymes was observed in green Arabidopsis leaves. PBs accumulated to only sub-% amounts compared to the Chls present in the green leaves, excluding a substantial contribution of Chl breakdown from rapid Chl turnover associated with photosystem II repair. Indeed, Chl turnover was shown to involve a Chl a dephytylation and Chl a reconstitution cycle. However, non-recyclable pheophytin a is also liberated in the course of photosystem II repair, and is proposed here to be scavenged and degraded to the observed PBs. Hence, a cryptic form of the established pathway of Chl breakdown is indicated to play a constitutive role in photoactive leaves.

Re-opening the stage for Echinacea research - Characterization of phylloxanthobilins as a novel anti-oxidative compound class in Echinacea purpurea.

BACKGROUND: Phylloxanthobilins are tetrapyrrolic natural products that arise from the degradation of chlorophyll. Phylloxanthobilins have been discovered roughly 10 years ago in the leaves of deciduous trees, and are now considered a compound class with high and still unexplored potential of bioactivities. To date, however, there are no reports on the occurrence of phylloxanthobilins in parts of a medicinal plant used for pharmaceutical preparations. PURPOSE: The relevance of Echinacea purpurea as medicinal plant is undoubtedly high, and a large variety of pharmaceutical preparations is available on the market, mostly for the treatment of the common cold. Nevertheless, its phytochemical profiling has been limited to analysis for previously characterized substances, and this has not explained all its pharmacological efficacies. We therefore set out to investigate the occurrence of phylloxanthobilins in Echinacea purpurea. METHODS: Phylloxanthobilins in leaf extracts of Echinacea purpurea were detected using analytical HPLC. Identified phyllobilins were purified from plant material and characterized by UV/Vis, mass spectrometry, MS/MS, and confirmed by co-injections with previously published phyllobilins from different sources. The anti-oxidant activity of selected isolated phylloxanthobilins was assessed by an in vitro ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay; in addition, the ability to scavenge ROS in cells caused by hydrogen peroxide stimulation was determined by measuring H2DCF-DA fluorescence and by assessing cellular GSH levels. RESULTS: In extracts of Echinacea purpurea leaves, an unprecedented diversity of phylloxanthobilins was detected; surprisingly, not only in senescent yellow leaves, but also in green leaves with no visible chlorophyll degradation. Six phylloxanthobilins were identified and structurally characterized. The uptake of phylloxanthobilins by human endothelial kidney cells was demonstrated. When investigating the anti-oxidative activity of these natural products, a potent in vitro activity was demonstrated; in addition, phylloxanthobilins possess intracellular ROS scavenging ability and can prevent oxidative stress as assessed by total cellular GSH levels. CONCLUSION: Phylloxanthobilins are important constituents of Echinacea purpurea extracts, and our first exploratory studies hint towards promising bioactivities of these natural products, which may be relevant for understanding Echinacea efficacies.

On the Nature of Isomeric Nonfluorescent Chlorophyll Catabolites in Leaves and Fruit - A Study with a Ubiquitous Phylloleucobilin and its Main Isomerization Product.

The typical main products of chlorophyll (Chl) breakdown in higher plants are non-fluorescent, colorless phyllobilins, named phylloleucobilins. These long elusive Chl-catabolites are linear tetrapyrroles, whose structure elucidation has required thorough spectroscopic analyses. Interestingly, in recent LC/MS studies of leaf extracts, isomeric forms of phylloleucobilins were detected. The existence of isomeric phyllobilins may suggest incomplete stereo-selectivity of catabolic processes, or isomerization processes in plant cells or in the analytes. Here we report a study with the phylloleucobilin NCC-1, a basic Chl-catabolite in extracts of leaves and fruit. NCC-1 and its main isomerization product in aqueous solution were identified as 82 -epimers. Formation of 82 -epi-NCC-1 from NCC-1 implies an unstable enol(ate)-intermediate, which reverts to NCC-1 or converts to 82 -epi-NCC-1. Such reversible epimerization reactions are a non-biological in vitro feature of typical phylloleucobilins, and probably also take place in vivo.

A bacterial mutant library as a tool to study the attack of a defensin peptide.

Defensin attack! Here we report the screening of human defensin 5 against the Keio Collection of E. coli strains. The results of this screen further our understanding of how this important hostdefense peptide kills bacteria and how bacteria protect themselves against the attack from the human host.

Yeast three-hybrid screening for identifying anti-tuberculosis drug targets.

Mycobacterium goes yeast: Target deconvolution of anti-tuberculosis drugs can be a very challenging task. Here we report a yeast 3-hybrid system that allows promising small molecules to be screened for protein targets of a pathogen in nontoxic yeast cells. The system employs libraries of randomly fragmented bacterial DNA and offers a technically simple alternative approach for target identification.

Cytochrome P450 CYP89A9 is involved in the formation of major chlorophyll catabolites during leaf senescence in Arabidopsis.

Nonfluorescent chlorophyll catabolites (NCCs) were described as products of chlorophyll breakdown in Arabidopsis thaliana. NCCs are formyloxobilin-type catabolites derived from chlorophyll by oxygenolytic opening of the chlorin macrocycle. These linear tetrapyrroles are generated from their fluorescent chlorophyll catabolite (FCC) precursors by a nonenzymatic isomerization inside the vacuole of senescing cells. Here, we identified a group of distinct dioxobilin-type chlorophyll catabolites (DCCs) as the major breakdown products in wild-type Arabidopsis, representing more than 90% of the chlorophyll of green leaves. The molecular constitution of the most abundant nonfluorescent DCC (NDCC), At-NDCC-1, was determined. We further identified cytochrome P450 monooxygenase CYP89A9 as being responsible for NDCC accumulation in wild-type Arabidopsis; cyp89a9 mutants that are deficient in CYP89A9 function were devoid of NDCCs but accumulated proportionally higher amounts of NCCs. CYP89A9 localized outside the chloroplasts, implying that FCCs occurring in the cytosol might be its natural substrate. Using recombinant CYP89A9, we confirm FCC specificity and show that fluorescent DCCs are the products of the CYP89A9 reaction. Fluorescent DCCs, formed by this enzyme, isomerize to the respective NDCCs in weakly acidic medium, as found in vacuoles. We conclude that CYP89A9 is involved in the formation of dioxobilin-type catabolites of chlorophyll in Arabidopsis.

Structures of chlorophyll catabolites in bananas (Musa acuminata) reveal a split path of chlorophyll breakdown in a ripening fruit.

The disappearance of chlorophyll is a visual sign of fruit ripening. Yet, chlorophyll breakdown in fruit has hardly been explored; its non-green degradation products are largely unknown. Here we report the analysis and structure elucidation of colorless tetrapyrrolic chlorophyll breakdown products in commercially available, ripening bananas (Musa acuminata, Cavendish cultivar). In banana peels, chlorophyll catabolites were found in an unprecedented structural richness: a variety of new fluorescent chlorophyll catabolites (FCCs) and nonfluorescent chlorophyll catabolites (NCCs) were detected. As a rule, FCCs exist only "fleetingly" and are hard to observe. However, in bananas several of the FCCs (named Mc-FCCs) were persistent and carried an ester function at the propionate side-chain. NCCs were less abundant, and exhibited a free propionic acid group, but functional modifications elsewhere. The modifications of NCCs in banana peels were similar to those found in NCCs from senescent leaves. They are presumed to be introduced by enzymatic transformations at the stage of the mostly unobserved, direct FCC-precursors. The observed divergent functional group characteristics of the Mc-FCCs versus those of the Mc-NCCs indicated two major "late" processing lines of chlorophyll breakdown in ripening bananas. The "last common precursor" at the branching point to either the persistent FCCs, or towards the NCCs, was identified as a temporarily abundant "secondary" FCC. The existence of two "downstream" branches of chlorophyll breakdown in banana peels, and the striking accumulation of persistent Mc-FCCs call for attention as to the still-elusive biological roles of the resulting colorless linear tetrapyrroles.

Searching for the protein targets of bioactive molecules.

The identification of all protein targets of a given drug or bioactive molecule within the human body is a prerequisite for an understanding of its beneficial and deleterious activities. Current approaches to reveal protein targets often fail to reveal physiologically relevant interactions. Here we review a recently introduced yeast-based approach for the identification of the binding partners of small molecules. We discuss the advantages and limitations of the approach using the clinically approved drug sulfasalazine as an example.