Genotoxicity and mutagenicity assessment of food contaminant mixtures present in the French diet.

Through diet, people are exposed simultaneously to a variety of contaminants (e.g. heavy metals, mycotoxins, pesticides) that could have combined adverse effects on human health. A previous study identified six main mixtures of food contaminants to which French adult consumers are exposed. These complex mixtures are comprised of 11 to 19 chemicals that have numerous toxic properties. In the present study, we investigated the genotoxic effects of these food contaminants, as single molecules and in mixtures that reflect their occurrence in the French diet, using the γH2AX assay in two human cell lines (HepG2, LS-174 T). Results of detailed analysis of the 49 individual contaminants (including 21 tested in this study) demonstrated a positive genotoxic response to 14 contaminants in HepG2 and 12 in LS-174 T cells. Next, our results indicated that two mixtures out of six triggered significant γH2AX induction after 24 hr of treatment, at concentrations for which individual compounds did not induce any DNA damage, suggesting more than additive interactions between chemicals. γH2AX positive mixtures were then tested for mutagenicity with the innovative in vitro PIG-A assay in HepG2 cells coupled with the soft agar colony formation assay. The two γH2AX positive mixtures led to a significant increase in the frequency of PIG-A GPI-deficient cells and in the number of colonies formed in soft agar. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that two mixtures of contaminants present in the French diet induce genotoxicity and mutagenicity, and that the combined effects of single molecules present in these mixtures are likely not additive, highlighting potential problems for hazard assessment of mixtures. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. 59:742-754, 2018. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

From single-strand breaks to double-strand breaks during S-phase: a new mode of action of the Escherichia coli Cytolethal Distending Toxin.

The Cytolethal Distending Toxin (CDT) is a genotoxin produced by several pathogenic bacteria. It is generally admitted that CDT induces double-strand breaks (DSB) and cell cycle arrest in G2/M-phase, in an ATM-dependent manner. Most of these results were obtained at high dose (over 1 µg ml(-1) ) of CDT and late after treatment (8-24 h). We provide here evidence that the Escherichia coli CDT (EcCDT) - at low dose (50 pg ml(-1) or LD50) and early after treatment (3-6 h) - progressively induces DNA DSB, mostly in S-phase. DSB formation is related to the single-strand breaks induction by CDT, converted into DSB during the S-phase. We also show that homologous recombination is mobilized to these S-phase-associated DSB. This model unveils a new mechanism for CDT genotoxicity that may play a role in cells partly deficient in homologous recombination.

RalB GTPase-mediated activation of the IkappaB family kinase TBK1 couples innate immune signaling to tumor cell survival.

The monomeric RalGTPases, RalA and RalB are recognized as components of a regulatory framework supporting tumorigenic transformation. Specifically, RalB is required to suppress apoptotic checkpoint activation, the mechanistic basis of which is unknown. Reported effector proteins of RalB include the Sec5 component of the exocyst, an octameric protein complex implicated in tethering of vesicles to membranes. Surprisingly, we find that the RalB/Sec5 effector complex directly recruits and activates the atypical IkappaB kinase family member TBK1. In cancer cells, constitutive engagement of this pathway, via chronic RalB activation, restricts initiation of apoptotic programs typically engaged in the context of oncogenic stress. Although dispensable for survival in a nontumorigenic context, this pathway helps mount an innate immune response to virus exposure. These observations define the mechanistic contribution of RalGTPases to cancer cell survival and reveal the RalB/Sec5 effector complex as a component of TBK1-dependent innate immune signaling.

The WASP/Las17p-interacting protein Bzz1p functions with Myo5p in an early stage of endocytosis.

The formation of actin filaments is crucial for endocytosis and other interrelated cellular phenomena such as motility, polarized morphogenesis, and cytokinesis. In this paper we have investigated the role of the WASP/Las17-interacting protein Bzz1p in endocytosis and trafficking to the vacuole. We and others have recently shown that Bzz1p is an actin patch protein that interacts directly with Las17p via a SH3-polyproline interaction. Bzz1p functions with type I myosins to restore polarity of the actin cytoskeleton after NaCl stress. In an in vitro bead assay, GST-Bzz1p fusion protein triggers a functional actin polymerization machinery through its two C-terminal SH3 domains. In this paper we implicate Bzz1p with the type I myosins both in fluid-phase and in the internalization step of receptor-mediated endocytosis. As deduced from their localization as GFP fusions, the vacuolar delivery of endocytic and biosynthetic cargoes as well as the multivesicular body pathway appear unaffected. We further elucidate Bzz1p direct participation in actin polymerization by demonstrating that each of the SH3 domains of Bzz1p individually is able to trigger actin polymerization in a cell-free system dependent on Arp2/3, Las17p, Vrp1p, and the type I myosins. Taken together, our results show that Bzz1p participates, essentially via its SH3 domains, in early steps of endocytosis together with known actin nucleation activators.

SH3 domain-containing proteins and the actin cytoskeleton in yeast.

SH3 (Src homology-3) domains are involved in protein-protein interactions through proline-rich domains. Many SH3-containing proteins are implicated in actin cytoskeleton organization. The aim of our ongoing work is to study the functions of the SH3-containing proteins in actin cytoskeleton regulation. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae proteome includes 29 SH3 domains distributed in 25 proteins. We have examined the direct involvement of these SH3 domains in actin polymerization using an in vitro polymerization assay on GST (glutathione S-transferase)-SH3-coated beads. As expected, not all SH3 domains show polymerization activity, and many recruit distinct partners as assessed by microscopy and pull-down experiments. One such partner, Las17p, the yeast homologue of WASP (Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein), was assayed because it stimulates actin nucleation via the Arp2/3 (actin-related protein 2/3) complex. Ultimately, proteins involved in specific biological processes, such as membrane trafficking, may also be recruited by some of these SH3 domains, shedding light on the SH3-containing proteins and actin cytoskeleton functions in these processes.

RLIP76, an effector of the GTPase Ral, interacts with the AP2 complex: involvement of the Ral pathway in receptor endocytosis.

RLIP76 is a modular protein that was identified as a putative effector of Ral, a GTPase activated during Ras signaling. To explore further the contribution of the Ral-RLIP76 pathway to Ras signaling, we have looked for partners of RLIP76. Mu2, the medium chain of the AP2 complex is shown to interact with RLIP76. We show also that in vivo endogenous AP2 and RLIP76 form a complex and that this in vivo interaction is independent of cells being stimulated by a growth factor. Furthermore, RLIP76 differentiates AP2 from AP1 in vivo as RLIP76 differentiates mu2 from mu1 in vitro and in two hybrid assays. We show that activated Ral interferes with both tranferrin receptor endocytosis and epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor endocytosis in HeLa cells. We propose a model where the Ral-RLIP76 pathway connects signal transduction and endocytosis through interaction on one hand between the Ras-Ral pathway and RLIP, on the other hand between RLIP and proteins belonging to the endocytotic machinery.

Interaction of the Grb7 adapter protein with Rnd1, a new member of the Rho family.

Grb7 is a member of a family of molecular adapters which are able to contribute positively but also negatively to signal transduction and whose precise roles remain obscure. Rnd1 is a member of the Rho family, but, as opposed to usual GTPases, it is constitutively bound to GTP. We show here that Rnd1 and Grb7 interact, in two-hybrid assays, in vitro, and in pull-down experiments performed with SK-BR3, a breast cancer cell line that overexpresses Grb7. This interaction involves switch II loop of Rnd1, a region crucial for guanine nucleotide exchange in all GTPases, and a Grb7 SH2 domain, a region crucial for Grb7 interaction with several activated receptors. The contribution of the interaction between Rnd1 and Grb7 to their respective functions and properties is discussed.

Effector recognition by the small GTP-binding proteins Ras and Ral.

The Ral effector protein RLIP76 (also called RIP/RalBP1) binds to Ral.GTP via a region that shares no sequence homology with the Ras-binding domains of the Ser/Thr kinase c-Raf-1 and the Ral-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factors. Whereas the Ras-binding domains have a similar ubiquitin-like structure, the Ral-binding domain of RLIP was predicted to comprise a coiled-coil region. In order to obtain more information about the specificity and the structural mode of the interaction between Ral and RLIP, we have performed a sequence space and a mutational analysis. The sequence space analysis of a comprehensive nonredundant assembly of Ras-like proteins strongly indicated that positions 36 and 37 in the core of the effector region are tree-determinant positions for all subfamilies of Ras-like proteins and dictate the specificity of the interaction of these GTPases with their effector proteins. Indeed, we could convert the specific interaction with Ras effectors and RLIP by mutating these residues in Ras and Ral. We therefore conclude that positions 36 and 37 are critical for the discrimination between Ras and Ral effectors and that, despite the absence of sequence homology between the Ral-binding and the Ras-binding domains, their mode of interaction is most probably similar.