Differences in amino acid residues in the binding pockets dictate substrate specificities of mouse senescence marker protein-30, human paraoxonase1, and squid diisopropylfluorophosphatase.

Senescence marker protein-30 (SMP-30) is a candidate enzyme that can function as a catalytic bioscavenger of organophosphorus (OP) nerve agents. We purified SMP-30 from mouse (Mo) liver and compared its hydrolytic activity towards various esters, lactones, and G-type nerve agents with that of human paraoxonase1 (Hu PON1) and squid diisopropylfluorophosphatase (DFPase). All three enzymes contain one or two metal ions in their active sites and fold into six-bladed ß-propeller structures. While Hu PON1 hydrolyzed a variety of lactones, the only lactone that was a substrate for Mo SMP-30 was d-(+)-gluconic acid δ-lactone. Squid DFPase was much more efficient at hydrolyzing DFP and G-type nerve agents as compared to Mo SMP-30 or Hu PON1. The K(m) values for DFP were in the following order: Mo SMP-30>Hu PON1>squid DFPase, suggesting that the efficiency of DFP hydrolysis may be related to its binding in the active sites of these enzymes. Thus, homology modeling and docking were used to simulate the binding of DFP and selected δ-lactones in the active sites of Hu SMP-30, Hu PON1, and squid DFPase. Results from molecular modeling studies suggest that differences in metal-ligand coordinations, the hydrophobicity of the binding pockets, and limited space in the binding pocket due to the presence of a loop, are responsible for substrate specificities of these enzymes.

Characteristics of radio frequency-sputtered ZnS on the flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate.

Zinc sulfide (ZnS) thin film was deposited on the flexible polyethylene-terephtalate (PET) polymer substrate by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering system. ZnS film has a critical thickness range affecting crystal structure where it shows preferred orientation with intensity peak of X-ray diffractometer at 28.4 degrees for ZnS thinner than 200 nm while hexagonal wurtzite and cubic zinc-blend (101) are co-existed for film thicker than 200 nm. Optical band gap energy (Eg) decreases with increasing RF-powers, resulting from increase in film thickness. Eg of ZnS films on PET is 3.68-3.86 eV, which is lower than that of ZnS on the rigid substrate by 0.27-0.28 eV. This is attributed to amount of incorporated oxygen to ZnS material as well as residual strain and disorder of grain boundary. Transmittance of ZnS on PET degrades due to surface defects and complex internal structure. Energy dispersive spectroscopy reveals out that ZnS film does not have a unity of Zn to S ratio, but it is close to stoichiometric composition with increasing thickness.

RF-magnetron sputtered kesterite Cu2ZnSnS4 thin film using single quaternary sputtering target prepared by sintering process.

Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin film applicable to an absorber material in compound thin film solar cells was deposited by a single quaternary sputtering target containing four components--Cu, Zn, Sn, and S-and its material properties were investigated. A single quaternary sputtering target was fabricated by sequential powder mixing/ball milling, pressure moulding, and a sintering process. An as-fabricated pellet or sputter target sintered at 500 degrees C-700 degrees C showed relevant peaks associated with CZTS phases. However, acceptable density as a sputter target (> 90% of ideal density) was attained up to a sintering temperature of only 500 degrees C due to thermal expansion. Unlike other metallic precursor approaches, there was no volume expansion after sulfurization. The sulfurized CZTS film contained CZTS phases including some secondary phases such as SnS or SnS2 depending on the film thickness. This result was attributed to the different sputtering yields of the constituents in the sputter target. Optical E(g) decreased with increasing deposition time. The E(g) attained was 1.488 eV, well-matched to the reported CZTS data. The carrier concentration, resistivity, and mobility of the CZTS film were 1.29 x 10(17) cm(-3), 1.2 x 10(-1) omega x cm and 5.44 cm(-3) N x sec, respectively, showing suitability for absorber layer applications.

Ginsenoside Rg3 attenuates microglia activation following systemic lipopolysaccharide treatment in mice.

Neuroinflammation, characterized by activation of microglia and expression of major inflammatory mediators, contributes to neuronal damage in addition to acute and chronic central nervous system (CNS) disease progression. The present study investigated the immune modulatory effects of ginsenoside Rg3, a principle active ingredient in Panax ginseng, on pro-inflammatory cytokines and microglia activation in brain tissue induced by systemic lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment in C57BL/6 mice. Systemic LPS treatment induces immediate microglia activation in the brain. Based on this information, ginsenoside Rg3 was treated orally with 10, 20, and 30 mg/kg 1 h prior to the LPS (3 mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p.)) injection. Ginsenoside Rg3 at 20 and 30 mg/kg oral doses significantly attenuated up-regulation of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1ß) and IL-6 mRNA in brain tissue at 4 h after LPS injection. Morphological activation of microglia and Iba1 protein expression by systemic LPS injection were reduced with ginsenoside Rg3 (30 mg/kg) treatment. In addition, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression in brain tissue were also attenuated with oral treatment of ginsenoside Rg3 at 30 mg/kg. These results indicate that ginsenoside Rg3 plays a modulatory role in neuroinflammation. This study shows that ginsenoside Rg3 attenuates microglia activation using an in vivo animal model.

Uteroglobin represses allergen-induced inflammatory response by blocking PGD2 receptor-mediated functions.

Uteroglobin (UG) is an antiinflammatory protein secreted by the epithelial lining of all organs communicating with the external environment. We reported previously that UG-knockout mice manifest exaggerated inflammatory response to allergen, characterized by increased eotaxin and Th2 cytokine gene expression, and eosinophil infiltration in the lungs. In this study, we uncovered that the airway epithelia of these mice also express high levels of cyclooxygenase (COX)-2, a key enzyme for the production of proinflammatory lipid mediators, and the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) contain elevated levels of prostaglandin D2. These effects are abrogated by recombinant UG treatment. Although it has been reported that prostaglandin D2 mediates allergic inflammation via its receptor, DP, neither the molecular mechanism(s) of DP signaling nor the mechanism by which UG suppresses DP-mediated inflammatory response are clearly understood. Here we report that DP signaling is mediated via p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase, p44/42 mitogen-activated protein kinase, and protein kinase C pathways in a cell type-specific manner leading to nuclear factor-kappaB activation stimulating COX-2 gene expression. Further, we found that recombinant UG blocks DP-mediated nuclear factor-kappaB activation and suppresses COX-2 gene expression. We propose that UG is an essential component of a novel innate homeostatic mechanism in the mammalian airways to repress allergen-induced inflammatory responses.

A strategy for the production of soluble human senescence marker protein-30 in Escherichia coli.

Senescence marker protein-30 (SMP30) has been reported to hydrolyze diisopropyl fluorophosphate (DFP), a surrogate compound of chemical warfare nerve agents. Thus, SMP30 has the potential to be useful as a prophylactic against chemical warfare nerve agent toxicity. Our efforts to generate human SMP30 in bacteria using a variety of expression vectors invariably resulted in insoluble and inactive preparations. In this study, properly folded and active recombinant human SMP30 (rHuSMP30) was produced in Escherichia coli by coexpressing it with molecular chaperones in a combined strategy. The coexpression of rHuSMP30 with GroES/GroEL/Tf at 15 degrees C, combined with the addition of a membrane fluidizer, increased osmolytes, and a two-step expression resulted in the highest enhancement of solubility and DFPase activity. Our results pave the way for exploring the use of rHuSMP30 against organophosphate and nerve agent toxicity.

Application of the isoniazid assay in dried blood spots using the ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

OBJECTIVES: Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of anti-tuberculosis (TB) drugs is important for proper treatment of TB. Dried blood spots (DBSs) are widely used for TDM because of their several advantages. Rifampicin and pyrazinamide assays with DBSs have already been developed. However, isoniazid (INH) assay for capillary DBSs have not been reported because of INH instability. We developed an ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) method for measuring INH concentrations in venous and capillary DBSs. METHODS: Each DBS was analyzed on an UPLC system. INH and internal standard (IS) concentrations were determined by multiple-reaction monitoring in positive ion mode. Analytical performances, including precision, linearity, and comparison of different types of specimens were determined. Further, the stability of INH in venous DBSs was tested. RESULTS: INH and IS were clearly separated in the UPLC-MS/MS system without matrix effect. Within-run precision and between-day precision were 2.68-8.02% and 2.54-5.45%, respectively. INH concentrations in venous DBS showed proportional bias compared with those in plasma (Slope: 0.8704) with good correlation. INH concentration in capillary DBS was slightly but not significantly higher than that in venous DBS. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of our study show that the analytical performance of this novel method for capillary and venous DBSs was clinically acceptable for the TDM of INH.

Interaction of uteroglobin with lipocalin-1 receptor suppresses cancer cell motility and invasion.

Cellular migration and invasion are critical for important biological processes including cancer metastasis. We previously reported that uteroglobin (UG), a multifunctional secreted protein, binds to several cell types inhibiting migration and invasion [G.C. Kundu, A.K. Z. Zhang Mandal, G. Mantile-Selvaggi, A.B. Mukherjee (1998) Uteroglobin (UG) suppresses extracellular matrix invasion by normal and cancer cells that express the high affinity UG-binding proteins. J Biol Chem. 273: 22819-22824]. More recently, we reported that HTB-81 adenocarcinoma cells, which do not bind UG, are refractory to UG-mediated inhibition of migration and invasion [Z. Zhang, G.C. Kundu, D. Panda, A.K. Mandal et al. (1999) Loss of transformed phenotype in cancer cells by overexpression of the uteroglobin gene. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 96, 3963-3968]. Since UG shares several biological properties with lipocalin-1 that mediates some of its biological effects via its receptor (Lip-1R), we sought to determine whether UG might interact with Lip-1R and inhibit migration and invasion of HTB-81 cells. To address this question, we first transfected COS-1 cells, which do not bind UG, with a Lip-1R-cDNA construct and performed binding assays using 125I-human UG (hUG). The results show that hUG binds Lip-1R on these cells with high specificity. Further, transfection of HTB-81 cells with the same construct yielded 125I-hUG binding with high affinity (Kd=18 nM) and specificity. The hUG-Lip-1R interaction was further confirmed by transfecting HTB-81, HTB-30 and HTB-174 cells, which are refractory to UG-binding, with a green fluorescent protein (GFP)-Lip-1R-cDNA construct and testing for Lip-1R-hUG colocalization by fluorescence microscopy. Finally, we demonstrate that Lip-1R-hUG interaction on Lip-1R transfected HTB-81 cells renders them fully responsive to hUG-mediated inhibition of migration and invasion. Taken together, these results suggest that Lip-1R is at least one of the UG-binding proteins through which UG exerts anti-motility and anti-invasive effects.

Neutral ceramidase gene: role in regulating ceramide-induced apoptosis.

The sphingolipid, ceramide, is a natural dietary constituent and a potent mediator of apoptosis. If left undegraded, it may induce apoptosis and cause disruption of cellular integrity. A potential mechanism to prevent ceramide-induced apoptosis in various organs may involve ceramidases that facilitate the degradation of ceramide. In this study, we first isolated and characterized the murine neutral ceramidase (N-CDase) gene, mapped its chromosomal location and determined its developmental and organ-specific expression. Then we used cultured mesangial cells as our in vitro model and mouse gastrointestinal (GI) tract as the in vivo model to determine the effects of an inhibitor of N-CDase, D-erythro-MAPP, to delineate whether N-CDase plays a role in preventing ceramide-induced apoptosis. Our results show that: (i) the structure of the murine neutral ceramidase gene is virtually identical to that of the human gene; (ii) it is localized on chromosome 19 at bands C2-C3 that is syntenic to human chromosome 10q24-26; (iii) N-CDase expression is developmentally regulated and it is expressed at high levels in cultured mesangial cells and in specific regions of the mouse small intestine; (iv) inhibition of N-CDase by D-erythro-MAPP leads to increased ceramide levels and consequent apoptosis in cultured mesangial cells; (v) mice treated with D-erythro-MAPP alone also caused apoptosis in the small intestine; and (vi) mice treated with D-erythro-MAPP prior to feeding C2 ceramide manifest markedly elevated levels of apoptosis in the GI tract raising the possibility that neutral ceramidase plays a detoxifying role against inadvertent stimulation of ceramide-induced apoptosis in organs that come in contact with this sphingolipid. We propose that N-CDase is an essential component of an innate detoxifying mechanism to prevent ceramide-induced apoptosis.

Characteristics and prevalence of intrapulmonary shunt detected by contrast echocardiography with harmonic imaging in liver transplant candidates.

We investigated the prevalence and characteristics of intrapulmonary shunt using contrast echocardiography with harmonic imaging in 130 liver transplant candidates. We found a high prevalence of intrapulmonary shunts and a significant correlation between the degree of intrapulmonary shunt and the Child-Pugh classification score.

Protective effects of recombinant kunitz-domain 1 of human tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 against 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide toxicity in vitro.

OBJECTIVE: Sulfur mustard is a well-known blistering chemical warfare agent that has been investigated for its toxicological mechanisms and an efficacious antidote. Since sulfur mustard injury involves dermal:epidermal separation, proteolytic enzymes were suspected to be involved for this separation and eventual blister development. Therefore, protease inhibitors could be of therapeutic utility against sulfur mustard injury. In this study, the effects of Kunitz-domain 1 of human tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 were evaluated against the toxic effects of 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide, a surrogate agent of sulfur mustard. Tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 is a 32-kDa serine protease inhibitor produced by a variety of cell types including human epidermal keratinocytes, fibroblasts, and endothelial cells. It consists of 3 Kunitz-domains and the first Kunitz-domain contains the putative P(1) residue (arginine at position 24) responsible for protease inhibitory activity. METHODS: Recombinant wild-type and R24Q mutant Kunitz-domain 1s were expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. The purified proteins were refolded, and their effects were tested in an in vitro human epidermal keratinocyte cell wounding assay. RESULTS: Wild-type but not R24Q Kunitz-domain 1 inhibited the amidolytic activity of trypsin and plasmin. Wild-type Kunitz-domain 1 was stable for 4 weeks at 42 degrees C and for more than 8 weeks at room temperature. Wild-type Kunitz-domain 1 significantly improved wound healing of unexposed and 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide-exposed cells without influencing cell proliferation. Although R24Q Kunitz-domain 1 lacked trypsin and plasmin inhibitory activity, it promoted wound closure of untreated and 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide-treated cells but to a much lesser degree. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that wild-type Kunitz-domain 1 of human tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 can be developed as a medical countermeasure against sulfur mustard cutaneous injury.

Protective effects of recombinant kunitz-domain 1 of human tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 against 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide toxicity in vitro.

OBJECTIVE: Sulfur mustard is a well-known blistering chemical warfare agent that has been investigated for its toxicological mechanisms and an efficacious antidote. Since sulfur mustard injury involves dermal:epidermal separation, proteolytic enzymes were suspected to be involved for this separation and eventual blister development. Therefore, protease inhibitors could be of therapeutic utility against sulfur mustard injury. In this study, the effects of Kunitz-domain 1 of human tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 were evaluated against the toxic effects of 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide, a surrogate agent of sulfur mustard. Tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 is a 32-kDa serine protease inhibitor produced by a variety of cell types including human epidermal keratinocytes, fibroblasts, and endothelial cells. It consists of 3 Kunitz-domains and the first Kunitz-domain contains the putative P(1) residue (arginine at position 24) responsible for protease inhibitory activity. METHODS: Recombinant wild-type and R24Q mutant Kunitz-domain 1s were expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. The purified proteins were refolded, and their effects were tested in an in vitro human epidermal keratinocyte cell wounding assay. RESULTS: Wild-type but not R24Q Kunitz-domain 1 inhibited the amidolytic activity of trypsin and plasmin. Wild-type Kunitz-domain1 was stable for 4 weeks at 42 degrees C and for more than 8 weeks at room temperature. Wild-type Kunitz-domain 1 significantly improved wound healing of unexposed and 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide-exposed cells without influencing cell proliferation. Although R24Q Kunitz-domain 1 lacked trypsin and plasmin inhibitory activity, it promoted wound closure of untreated and 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide-treated cells but to a much lesser degree. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that wild-type Kunitz-domain 1 of human tissue factor pathway inhibitor-2 can be developed as a medical countermeasure against sulfur mustard cutaneous injury.

Production of lysophosphatidylcholine by cPLA2 in the brain of mice lacking PPT1 is a signal for phagocyte infiltration.

In the majority of neurodegenerative storage disorders, neuronal death in the brain is followed by infiltration of phagocytic cells (e.g. activated microglia, astroglia and macrophages) for the efficient removal of cell corpses. However, it is increasingly evident that these phagocytes may also cause death of adjoining viable neurons contributing to rapid progression of neurodegeneration. Infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (INCL) is a devastating, neurodegenerative, lysosomal storage disorder caused by inactivating mutations in the palmitoyl-protein thioesterase-1 (PPT1) gene. PPT1 catalyzes the cleavage of thioester linkages in S-acylated (palmitoylated) proteins and its deficiency leads to abnormal accumulation of thioesterified polypeptides (ceroid) in lysosomes causing INCL pathogenesis. PPT1-knockout (PPT1-KO) mice mimic the clinical and pathological features of human INCL including rapid neuronal death by apoptosis and phagocyte infiltration. We previously reported that in PPT1-KO mice, the neurons undergo endoplasmic reticulum stress activating unfolded protein response, which mediates caspase-12 activation and apoptosis. However, the molecular mechanism(s) by which the phagocytic cells are recruited in the PPT1-KO mouse brain remains poorly understood. We report here that increased production of lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC), catalyzed by the activation of cytosolic phospholipase A(2) (cPLA(2)) in the PPT1-KO mouse brain, is a 'lipid signal' for phagocyte recruitment. We also report that an age-dependent increase in LPC levels in the PPT1-KO mouse brain positively correlates with elevated expression of the genes characteristically associated with phagocytes. We propose that increased cPLA(2)-catalyzed LPC production in the brain is at least one of the mechanisms that mediate phagocyte infiltration contributing to INCL neuropathology.

Analysis of a uteroglobin gene polymorphism in childhood Henoch-Schonlein purpura.

Uteroglobin (UG) is a pleiotropic protein with anti-inflammatory properties. Mice rendered genetically incapable of expressing UG develop a form of renal disease that closely resembles human IgA nephropathy (IgAN). Furthermore, a single nucleotide polymorphism in the UG gene (A38G) has been associated with rapid progression of human IgAN. We examined whether the A38G polymorphism is associated with childhood Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP), a form of vasculitis associated with IgAN-like renal disease. We examined the prevalence of the A38G polymorphism in 34 children with HSP and in 38 ethnically matched controls. Only one patient had clinically evident renal involvement. As compared with controls, the prevalence of the 38G allele was slightly increased in children with HSP, but this increase was not statistically significant. Our results do not support a role for UG in susceptibility to childhood HSP in the population studied. Larger studies involving more patients with renal disease will be necessary to define whether UG is associated with increased risk for HSP nephritis.

Palmitoyl-protein thioesterase-1 deficiency mediates the activation of the unfolded protein response and neuronal apoptosis in INCL.

Numerous proteins undergo modification by palmitic acid (S-acylation) for their biological functions including signal transduction, vesicular transport and maintenance of cellular architecture. Although palmitoylation is an essential modification, these proteins must also undergo depalmitoylation for their degradation by lysosomal proteases. Palmitoyl-protein thioesterase-1 (PPT1), a lysosomal enzyme, cleaves thioester linkages in S-acylated proteins and removes palmitate residues facilitating the degradation of these proteins. Thus, inactivating mutations in the PPT1 gene cause infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (INCL), a devastating neurodegenerative storage disorder of childhood. Although rapidly progressing brain atrophy is the most dramatic pathological manifestation of INCL, the molecular mechanism(s) remains unclear. Using PPT1-knockout (PPT1-KO) mice that mimic human INCL, we report here that the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) in the brain cells of these mice is structurally abnormal. Further, we demonstrate that the level of growth-associated protein-43 (GAP-43), a palmitoylated neuronal protein, is elevated in the brains of PPT1-KO mice. Moreover, forced expression of GAP-43 in PPT1-deficient cells results in the abnormal accumulation of this protein in the ER. Consistent with these results, we found evidence for the activation of unfolded protein response (UPR) marked by elevated levels of phosphorylated translation initiation factor, eIF2alpha, increased expression of chaperone proteins such as glucose-regulated protein-78 and activation of caspase-12, a cysteine proteinase in the ER, mediating caspase-3 activation and apoptosis. Our results, for the first time, link PPT1 deficiency with the activation of UPR, apoptosis and neurodegeneration in INCL and identify potential targets for therapeutic intervention in this uniformly fatal disease.

Uteroglobin suppresses SCCA gene expression associated with allergic asthma.

Uteroglobin (UG), the founding member of the Secretoglobin superfamily, is a potent anti-inflammatory protein constitutively expressed at a high level in the airway epithelia of all mammals. We previously reported that the lungs of UG-knock-out (UG-KO) mice express elevated levels of Th2 cytokines (e.g. interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13), which are augmented by allergen sensitization and challenge leading to exaggerated airway inflammation. Notably, these responses are suppressed by recombinant UG treatment (Mandal, A. K., Zhang, Z., Ray, R., Choi, M. S., Chowdhury, B., Pattabiraman, N., and Mukherjee, A. B. (2004) J. Exp. Med. 199, 1317-1330). Recent reports indicate that human orthologs of murine squamous cell carcinoma antigen-2 (SCCA-2/serpinb3a), a serine protease-inhibitor, are overexpressed in the airways of asthmatic patients. We report here that compared with wild type littermates, UG-KO mouse lungs express markedly elevated levels of SCCA-2 mRNA and protein, which are augmented by allergen-challenge. Most importantly, these effects are abrogated by recombinant UG treatment. We further demonstrate that treatment of cultured human bronchial epithelial cells with IL-4 or IL-13 stimulates phosphorylation of STAT-1 and STAT-6 leading to SCCA-1 (SERPINB3) and SCCA-2 (SERPINB4) gene expression. We propose that: (i) IL-4- and IL-13-stimulated SCCA gene expression is mediated via STAT-1 and STAT-6 activation, and (ii) by suppressing the production, and most likely by interfering with the signaling of these cytokines, UG inhibits SCCA gene expression associated with airway inflammation in asthma.

IFN-gamma stimulates the expression of a novel secretoglobin that regulates chemotactic cell migration and invasion.

IFNs are a family of cytokines that alert the immune system against viral infections of host cells. The IFNs (IFN-alpha, IFN-beta, and IFN-gamma) interact with specific cellular receptors and stimulate the production of second messengers, leading to the expression of antiviral and immunomodulatory proteins. We report in this study that IFN-gamma stimulates the expression of a novel gene that encodes a protein with 30% amino acid sequence identity with uteroglobin, the founding member of the newly formed Secretoglobin (SCGB) superfamily. We named this protein IFN-gamma-inducible SCGB (IIS), because its expression in lymphoblast cells is augmented by IFN-gamma treatment. IIS is expressed in virtually all tissues, and the highest level of expression is detectable in lymph nodes, tonsil, cultured lymphoblasts, and the ovary. Interestingly, although the expression of IIS mRNA is not significantly different in resting lymphoid cells, it is markedly elevated in activated CD8(+) and CD19(+) cells. Furthermore, treatment of lymphoblast cells with IIS antisense phosphorothioate (S)-oligonucleotides prevents chemotactic migration and invasion. Taken together, these results raise the possibility that this novel SCGB has immunological functions.