Sterol structure dependence of insulin receptor and insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor activation.

The plasma membrane is a dynamic environment with a complex composition of lipids, proteins, and cholesterol. Areas enriched in cholesterol and sphingolipids are believed to form lipid rafts, domains of highly ordered lipids. The unique physical properties of these domains have been proposed to influence many cellular processes. Here, we demonstrate that the activation of insulin receptor (IR) and insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R) depends critically on the structures of membrane sterols. IR and IGF1R autophosphorylation in vivo was inhibited by cholesterol depletion, and autophosphorylation was restored by the replacement with exogenous cholesterol. We next screened a variety of sterols for effects on IR activation. The ability of sterols to support IR autophosphorylation was strongly correlated to the propensity of the sterols to form ordered domains. IR autophosphorylation was fully restored by the incorporation of ergosterol, dihydrocholesterol, 7-dehydrocholesterol, lathosterol, desmosterol, and allocholesterol, partially restored by epicholesterol, and not restored by lanosterol, coprostanol, and 4-cholesten-3-one. These data support the hypothesis that the ability to form ordered domains is sufficient for a sterol to support ligand-induced activation of IR and IGF1R in intact mammalian cells.

A versatile insulin analog with high potency for both insulin and insulin-like growth factor 1 receptors: Structural implications for receptor binding.

Insulin and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) are closely related hormones involved in the regulation of metabolism and growth. They elicit their functions through activation of tyrosine kinase-type receptors: insulin receptors (IR-A and IR-B) and IGF-1 receptor (IGF-1R). Despite similarity in primary and three-dimensional structures, insulin and IGF-1 bind the noncognate receptor with substantially reduced affinity. We prepared [d-HisB24, GlyB31, TyrB32]-insulin, which binds all three receptors with high affinity (251 or 338% binding affinity to IR-A respectively to IR-B relative to insulin and 12.4% binding affinity to IGF-1R relative to IGF-1). We prepared other modified insulins with the aim of explaining the versatility of [d-HisB24, GlyB31, TyrB32]-insulin. Through structural, activity, and kinetic studies of these insulin analogs, we concluded that the ability of [d-HisB24, GlyB31, TyrB32]-insulin to stimulate all three receptors is provided by structural changes caused by a reversed chirality at the B24 combined with the extension of the C terminus of the B chain by two extra residues. We assume that the structural changes allow the directing of the B chain C terminus to some extra interactions with the receptors. These unusual interactions lead to a decrease of dissociation rate from the IR and conversely enable easier association with IGF-1R. All of the structural changes were made at the hormones' Site 1, which is thought to interact with the Site 1 of the receptors. The results of the study suggest that merely modifications of Site 1 of the hormone are sufficient to change the receptor specificity of insulin.

Pharmacophore modeling for identification of anti-IGF-1R drugs and in-vitro validation of fulvestrant as a potential inhibitor.

Insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-1R) is an important therapeutic target for breast cancer treatment. The alteration in the IGF-1R associated signaling network due to various genetic and environmental factors leads the system towards metastasis. The pharmacophore modeling and logical approaches have been applied to analyze the behaviour of complex regulatory network involved in breast cancer. A total of 23 inhibitors were selected to generate ligand based pharmacophore using the tool, Molecular Operating Environment (MOE). The best model consisted of three pharmacophore features: aromatic hydrophobic (HyD/Aro), hydrophobic (HyD) and hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA). This model was validated against World drug bank (WDB) database screening to identify 189 hits with the required pharmacophore features and was further screened by using Lipinski positive compounds. Finally, the most effective drug, fulvestrant, was selected. Fulvestrant is a selective estrogen receptor down regulator (SERD). This inhibitor was further studied by using both in-silico and in-vitro approaches that showed the targeted effect of fulvestrant in ER+ MCF-7 cells. Results suggested that fulvestrant has selective cytotoxic effect and a dose dependent response on IRS-1, IGF-1R, PDZK1 and ER-α in MCF-7 cells. PDZK1 can be an important inhibitory target using fulvestrant because it directly regulates IGF-1R.

Converting Insulin-like Growth Factors 1 and 2 into High-Affinity Ligands for Insulin Receptor Isoform A by the Introduction of an Evolutionarily Divergent Mutation.

Insulin-like growth factors 1 and 2 (IGF-1 and -2, respectively) are protein hormones involved not only in normal growth and development but also in life span regulation and cancer. They exert their functions mainly through the IGF-1R or by binding to isoform A of the insulin receptor (IR-A). The development of IGF-1 and IGF-2 antagonists is of great clinical interest. Mutations of A4 and A8 sites of human insulin lead to disproportionate effects on hormone IR binding and activation. Here, we systematically modified IGF-1 sites 45, 46, and 49 and IGF-2 sites 45 and 48, which correspond, or are close, to insulin sites A4 and A8. The IGF-1R and IR-A binding and autophosphorylation potencies of these analogues were characterized. They retained the main IGF-1R-related properties, but the hormones with His49 in IGF-1 and His48 in IGF-2 showed significantly higher affinities for IR-A and for IR-B, being the strongest IGF-1- and IGF-2-like binders of these receptors ever reported. All analogues activated IR-A and IGF-1R without major discrepancies in their binding affinities. This study revealed that IR-A and IGF-1R contain specific sites, likely parts of their so-called sites 2', which can interact differently with specifically modified IGF analogues. Moreover, a clear importance of IGF-2 site 44 for effective hormone folding was also observed. These findings may facilitate novel and rational engineering of new hormone analogues for IR-A and IGF-1R studies and for potential medical applications.

How ligand binds to the type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor.

Human type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor is a homodimeric receptor tyrosine kinase that signals into pathways directing normal cellular growth, differentiation and proliferation, with aberrant signalling implicated in cancer. Insulin-like growth factor binding is understood to relax conformational restraints within the homodimer, initiating transphosphorylation of the tyrosine kinase domains. However, no three-dimensional structures exist for the receptor ectodomain to inform atomic-level understanding of these events. Here, we present crystal structures of the ectodomain in apo form and in complex with insulin-like growth factor I, the latter obtained by crystal soaking. These structures not only provide a wealth of detail of the growth factor interaction with the receptor's primary ligand-binding site but also indicate that ligand binding separates receptor domains by a mechanism of induced fit. Our findings are of importance to the design of agents targeting IGF-1R and its partner protein, the human insulin receptor.

Controlled dimerization of insulin-like growth factor-1 and insulin receptors reveals shared and distinct activities of holo and hybrid receptors.

Breast cancer development and progression are influenced by insulin-like growth factor receptor 1 (IGF1R) and insulin receptor (InsR) signaling, which drive cancer phenotypes such as cell growth, proliferation, and migration. IGF1R and InsR form IGF1R/InsR hybrid receptors (HybRs) consisting of one molecule of IGF1R and one molecule of InsR. The specific signaling and functions of HybR are largely unknown, as HybR is activated by both IGF1 and insulin, and no cellular system expresses HybR in the absence of holo-IGF1R or holo-InsR. Here we studied the role of HybR by constructing inducible chimeric receptors and compared HybR signaling with that of holo-IGF1R and holo-InsR. We cloned chemically inducible chimeric IGF1R and InsR constructs consisting of the extracellular domains of the p75 nerve growth factor receptor fused to the intracellular ß subunit of IGF1R or InsR and a dimerization domain. Dimerization with the drugs AP20187 or AP21967 allowed specific and independent activation of holo-IGF1R, holo-InsR, or HybR, resulting in activation of the PI3K pathway. Holo-IGF1R and HybR both promoted cell proliferation and glucose uptake, whereas holo-InsR only promoted glucose uptake, and only holo-IGF1R showed anti-apoptotic effects. We also found that the three receptors differentially regulated gene expression: holo-IGF1R and HybR up-regulated EGR3; holo-InsR specifically down-regulated JUN and BCL2L1; holo-InsR down-regulated but HybR up-regulated HK2; and HybR specifically up-regulated FHL2, ITGA6, and PCK2. Our findings suggest that, when expressed and activated in mammary epithelial cells, HybR acts in a manner similar to IGF1R and support further investigation of the role of HybR in breast cancer.

Interactions of quercetin with receptor tyrosine kinases associated with human lung carcinoma.

Lung cancer is a deadly form of cancer with high morbidity and mortality rates. Deregulated receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are frequently associated with the formation and development of lung carcinoma. Quercetin is a major dietary flavonoid that has been shown to induce cell growth inhibition and apoptosis in human lung cancer cell lines. In the current study, four major overexpressed RTKs - EGFR, FGFR1, IGF1R and c-Met - involved in human lung cancer were investigated. Molecular docking was employed to identify the binding orientation and inhibitory potential of quercetin in these RTKs. Quercetin bound to the ATP binding pocket of these kinases exhibited good binding scores and interactions by establishing hydrogen, hydrophobic and π-π interactions with the hinge region and the DFG motif in the activation loop. Thus, quercetin could be further explored as a platform for developing specific or polypharmacological compounds targeting overexpressed RTKs in lung cancer.

Nuclear insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor phosphorylates proliferating cell nuclear antigen and rescues stalled replication forks after DNA damage.

We have previously shown that the insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-1R) translocates to the cell nucleus, where it binds to enhancer-like regions and increases gene transcription. Further studies have demonstrated that nuclear IGF-1R (nIGF-1R) physically and functionally interacts with some nuclear proteins, i.e. the lymphoid enhancer-binding factor 1 (Lef1), histone H3, and Brahma-related gene-1 proteins. In this study, we identified the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) as a nIGF-1R-binding partner. PCNA is a pivotal component of the replication fork machinery and a main regulator of the DNA damage tolerance (DDT) pathway. We found that IGF-1R interacts with and phosphorylates PCNA in human embryonic stem cells and other cell lines. In vitro MS analysis of PCNA co-incubated with the IGF-1R kinase indicated tyrosine residues 60, 133, and 250 in PCNA as IGF-1R targets, and PCNA phosphorylation was followed by mono- and polyubiquitination. Co-immunoprecipitation experiments suggested that these ubiquitination events may be mediated by DDT-dependent E2/E3 ligases (e.g. RAD18 and SHPRH/HLTF). Absence of IGF-1R or mutation of Tyr-60, Tyr-133, or Tyr-250 in PCNA abrogated its ubiquitination. Unlike in cells expressing IGF-1R, externally induced DNA damage in IGF-1R-negative cells caused G1 cell cycle arrest and S phase fork stalling. Taken together, our results suggest a role of IGF-1R in DDT.

Next generation sequencing-based mutation screening of 86 patients with idiopathic short stature.

Although mutations in ACAN, FGFR3, NPR2, and SHOX typically lead to skeletal dysplasia, and mutations in GHRHR, GH1, GHR, STAT5B, IGF1, IGFALS, and IGF1R usually underlie hormonal defects of the growth hormone (GH)-insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) axis, such mutations have also been identified in patients with idiopathic short stature (ISS). Of these, SHOX abnormalities are known to account for a certain percentage of ISS cases, whereas the frequency of mutations in the other 10 genes in ISS cohorts remains unknown. Here, we performed next-generation sequencing-based mutation screening of the 10 genes in 86 unrelated Japanese ISS patients without SHOX abnormalities. We searched for rare protein-altering variants. The functional significance of the identified variants was assessed by in silico analyses. Consequently, we identified 18 heterozygous rare variants in 19 patients, including four probable damaging variants in ACAN, six pathogenicity-unknown variants in FGFR3, GHRHR, GHR, and IGFALS, and eight possible benign variants. Pathogenic variants in NPR2, GH1, and IGF1 were absent from our cohort. Unlike previously reported patients with ACAN mutations, our four patients with ACAN variants manifested non-specific short stature with age-appropriate or mildly delayed bone ages, and had parents of normal stature. These results indicate that ACAN mutations can underlie ISS without characteristic skeletal features, and that such mutations are possibly associated with de novo occurrence or low penetrance. In addition, our data imply that mutations in FGFR3, NPR2, and GH-IGF1 axis genes play only limited roles in the etiology of ISS.

The insulin and IGF1 receptor kinase domains are functional dimers in the activated state.

The insulin receptor (IR) and insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF1R) are highly related receptor tyrosine kinases with a disulfide-linked homodimeric architecture. Ligand binding to the receptor ectodomain triggers tyrosine autophosphorylation of the cytoplasmic domains, which stimulates catalytic activity and creates recruitment sites for downstream signalling proteins. Whether the two phosphorylated tyrosine kinase domains within the receptor dimer function independently or cooperatively to phosphorylate protein substrates is not known. Here we provide crystallographic, biophysical and biochemical evidence demonstrating that the phosphorylated kinase domains of IR and IGF1R form a specific dimeric arrangement involving an exchange of the juxtamembrane region proximal to the kinase domain. In this dimer, the active position of α-helix C in the kinase N lobe is stabilized, which promotes downstream substrate phosphorylation. These studies afford a novel strategy for the design of small-molecule IR agonists as potential therapeutic agents for type 2 diabetes.

Virtual screening of specific insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R) inhibitors from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) molecular database.

Insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R) is an attractive drug target for cancer therapy and research on IGF1R inhibitors has had success in clinical trials. A particular challenge in the development of specific IGF1R inhibitors is interference from insulin receptor (IR), which has a nearly identical sequence. A few potent inhibitors that are selective for IGF1R have been discovered experimentally with the aid of computational methods. However, studies on the rapid identification of IGF1R-selective inhibitors using virtual screening and confidence-level inspections of ligands that show different interactions with IGF1R and IR in docking analysis are rare. In this study, we established virtual screening and binding-mode prediction workflows based on benchmark results of IGF1R and several kinase receptors with IGF1R-like structures. We used comprehensive analysis of the known complexes of IGF1R and IR with their binding ligands to screen specific IGF1R inhibitors. Using these workflows, 17 of 139,735 compounds in the NCI (National Cancer Institute) database were identified as potential specific inhibitors of IGF1R. Calculations of the potential of mean force (PMF) with GROMACS were further conducted for three of the identified compounds to assess their binding affinity differences towards IGF1R and IR.

Synthesis of aryl-heteroaryl ureas (AHUs) based on 4-aminoquinoline and their evaluation against the insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF-1R).

The insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF-1R) is a receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) involved in all stages of the development and propagation of breast and other cancers. The inhibition of IGF-1R by small molecules remains a promising strategy to treat cancer. Herein, we explore SAR around previously characterized lead compound (1), which is an aryl-heteroaryl urea (AHU) consisting of 4-aminoquinaldine and a substituted aromatic ring system. A library of novel AHU compounds was prepared based on derivatives of the 4-aminoquinoline heterocycle (including various 2-substituted derivatives, and naphthyridines). The compounds were screened for in vitro inhibitory activity against IGF-1R, and several compounds with improved activity (3-5 microM) were identified. Furthermore, a computational docking study was performed, which identifies a fairly consistent lowest energy mode of binding for the more-active set of inhibitors in this series, while the less-active inhibitors do not adopt a consistent mode of binding.

Characterization of inhibitory anti-insulin-like growth factor receptor antibodies with different epitope specificity and ligand-blocking properties: implications for mechanism of action in vivo.

Therapeutic antibodies directed against the type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF-1R) have recently gained significant momentum in the clinic because of preliminary data generated in human patients with cancer. These antibodies inhibit ligand-mediated activation of IGF-1R and the resulting down-stream signaling cascade. Here we generated a panel of antibodies against IGF-1R and screened them for their ability to block the binding of both IGF-1 and IGF-2 at escalating ligand concentrations (>1 microm) to investigate allosteric versus competitive blocking mechanisms. Four distinct inhibitory classes were found as follows: 1) allosteric IGF-1 blockers, 2) allosteric IGF-2 blockers, 3) allosteric IGF-1 and IGF-2 blockers, and 4) competitive IGF-1 and IGF-2 blockers. The epitopes of representative antibodies from each of these classes were mapped using a purified IGF-1R library containing 64 mutations. Most of these antibodies bound overlapping surfaces on the cysteine-rich repeat and L2 domains. One class of allosteric IGF-1 and IGF-2 blocker was identified that bound a separate epitope on the outer surface of the FnIII-1 domain. Using various biophysical techniques, we show that the dual IGF blockers inhibit ligand binding using a spectrum of mechanisms ranging from highly allosteric to purely competitive. Binding of IGF-1 or the inhibitory antibodies was associated with conformational changes in IGF-1R, linked to the ordering of dynamic or unstructured regions of the receptor. These results suggest IGF-1R uses disorder/order within its polypeptide sequence to regulate its activity. Interestingly, the activity of representative allosteric and competitive inhibitors on H322M tumor cell growth in vitro was reflective of their individual ligand-blocking properties. Many of the antibodies in the clinic likely adopt one of the inhibitory mechanisms described here, and the outcome of future clinical studies may reveal whether a particular inhibitory mechanism leads to optimal clinical efficacy.

Characterization of the receptor for insulin-like growth factor on Leishmania promastigotes.

Insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I constitutively present in the skin is one of the first growth factors that Leishmania parasites encounter after transmission to the vertebrate host. We have previously shown that IGF-I is a potent growth-promoting factor for Leishmania parasites. IGF-I binds specifically to a single-site putative receptor at the parasite membrane, triggering a cascade of phosphorylation reactions. In the present article we characterize the receptor for IGF-I on Leishmania (Leishmania) mexicana promastigotes. The receptor is a monomeric glycoprotein with a molecular mass of 65 kDa and is antigenically related to the alpha chain of human type 1 IGF-I receptor. Upon IGF-I stimulation the receptor undergoes autophosphorylation on tyrosine residues with activation of its signaling pathway. Activation of the IGF-I receptor also leads to phosphorylation of an 185-kDa molecule that is homologous to the substrate of the insulin receptor present in human cells, the insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS-1).

Structural domains of the insulin receptor and IGF receptor required for dimerisation and ligand binding.

We investigated structural requirements for dimerisation and ligand binding of insulin/IGF receptors. Soluble receptor fragments consisting of N-terminal domains (L1/CYS/L2, L1/CYS/L2/F0) or fibronectin domains (F0/F1/F2, F1/F2) were expressed in CHO cells. Fragments containing F0 or F1 domains were secreted as disulphide-linked dimers, and those consisting of L1/CYS/L2 domains as monomers. None of these proteins bound ligand. However, when a peptide of 16 amino acids from the alpha-subunit C-terminus was fused to the C-terminus of L1/CYS/L2, the monomeric insulin and IGF receptor constructs bound their respective ligands with affinity only 10-fold lower than native receptors.

Prolonged activation of ERK2 by epidermal growth factor and other growth factors requires a functional insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor.

We have investigated the activation of ERK2, a serine/threonine kinase necessary for transmission of mitogenic signals, in cells derived from mouse embryos homozygous for a null mutation of the insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1R gene (R- cells) and from wild-type littermates (W cells), respectively. Stimulation of quiescent W cells with IGF-1, epidermal growth factor (EGF), or with a combination growth factors induced both a maximal transient and a prolonged activation of ERK2, whereas platelet-derived growth factor or a combination of platelet-derived growth factor and EGF resulted only in transient activation of ERK2. In contrast, stimulation of R cells with IGF-1, EGF, or combinations of growth factors resulted in a transient and submaximal activation of ERK2. Reintroduction of a wild-type human IGF-1R or of a C-terminus IGF-1R mutant, but not of a juxtamembrane mutant IGF-1R, into R- cells was able to restore ERK2 activation to wild-type levels. Thus, prolonged ERK2 activation in mouse embryo fibroblasts stimulated with purified growth factors is largely dependent on a signal generated by the IGF-1R.

The insulin receptor: from protein sequence to structure.

Sequences of the insulin receptor (IR), the type-I insulin-like growth-factor receptor (IGFR) and the insulin-receptor-related receptor show that they belong to a homologous family but, until recently, have given few clues about their structures. Three repeats of fibronectin type III have been identified close to the membrane. Although the N-terminal L1, Cys-rich and L2 domains of the IGFR have been identified from their sequences and their structures determined by X-ray crystallography, little is known of their relative positions in the complete receptor in vivo. Here, we ask what can be learnt further from the analysis of sequences, about the structure, organization and function of the extracellular regions of the IR family.

The insulin-like growth factor-I receptor signaling pathways are important for tumorigenesis and inhibition of apoptosis.

The biological actions of the insulin-like growth factors IGF-I and IGF-II are mediated by their activation of the IGF-IR, a transmembrane tyrosine kinase linked to the ras-raf-MAPK cascade. Functional IGF-IRs are required for the cell to progress through the cell cycle. Most importantly, cells lacking this receptor cannot be transformed by any of a number of dominant oncogenes, a finding that proves that the presence of the IGF-IR is important for the development of a malignant phenotype. Consistent with this role, the IGF-IR displays a potent antiapoptotic effect, both in vitro and in vivo. Because of its key role in the transformation process, the IGF-IR is actively studied as a potential therapeutic target in different types of neoplastic growth.

IGF-I: a mitogen also involved in differentiation processes in mammalian cells.

The main source of insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) postnatally is the liver, under growth hormone stimulation, although IGF-I is already present in embryonic tissues and in fetal serum, when its expression is independent of growth hormone. The extracellular alpha-subunit of the IGF-I receptor (IGF-IR) contains an IGF-I binding domain, and the beta-subunit possesses tyrosine kinase activity, which is greatly enhanced when IGF-I binds to the alpha-subunit and leads to its autophosphorylation. Insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS-1) is the most well characterized cellular substrate for IGF-I, containing at least 20 potential tyrosine phosphorylation sites. The tyrosine phosphorylated form of IRS-1 acts as a docking protein by associating SH2-containing proteins including the p85 regulatory subunit of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (P13-kinase), the protein tyrosine phosphatase SH-PTP2, the SH2- and SH3-containing adaptor protein Nck and the growth factor receptor-bound protein-2 (Grb2/Sem5) protein. Grb2 is found associated with mSOS, a GTP/GDP exchange factor involved in converting the inactive Ras-GDP to the active Ras-GTP. The p85 regulatory subunit of PI3-kinase can be also a direct in vitro substrate of the IGF-IR. Although IRS-1 is the major substrate of the IGF-IR, there is another early phosphotyrosine substrate termed SHC, which also activates Ras via Grb2-mSos complex. Activation of p21-Ras induces a serine/threonine kinase cascade leading to the activation of MAP-kinases. The importance of IGF-I as a mitogen throughout development has been clearly demonstrated in IGF-I and IGF-IR knockout mouse studies and also in transgenic mice over-expressing IGF-I. IGF-I is a mitogen in many cell types in culture such as T lymphocytes, chondrocytes or osteoblasts and it is considered to be a progression factor in mouse fibroblasts. IGF-I is also involved in muscle, neurons and adipogenic differentiation of mesenchymal cells. However, IGF-I induces proliferation and differentiation in fetal brown adipocytes, suggesting that both cellular processes are not necessarily mutually exclusive in fetal cells.