Kinase activity-independent suppression of p73alpha by AMP-activated kinase alpha (AMPKalpha).

Although p73alpha induces many of the same cellular events as p53, it is structurally distinct from p53 in that it possesses a unique COOH-terminal domain. To dissect the function of this domain, we performed yeast two-hybrid screening of a HeLa cDNA library using residues 552-636 of p73alpha as bait. Among the clones that showed a specific interaction with p73alpha was AMP-activated protein kinase alpha (AMPKalpha). Additional yeast two-hybrid assays indicated that the betagamma-binding domain of AMPKalpha is critical for the interaction with p73alpha. The interaction was further confirmed in vitro by glutathione S-transferase pull-down, and in vivo by immunoprecipitation and immunofluorescence microscopy. Transient coexpression of AMPKalpha resulted in downregulation of the effect of p73alpha, but not of p53, on various p53-responsive promoters. Chromatin immunoprecipitation indicated p73alpha-dependent recruitment of AMPKalpha to the p21WAF1 promoter. Treatment with 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide, an agonist of AMPKalpha, and expression of dominant-negative versions of AMPKalpha revealed that the repression of p73alpha was independent of AMPKalpha kinase activity. In addition, cisplatin-induced growth repression was impaired when AMPKalpha was overexpressed. Upon the knock down of AMPKalpha by siRNA, the induction of p21WAF1 by p73alpha was significantly increased. Taken together, these data indicate that AMPKalpha specifically regulates p73alpha by a direct interaction without affecting its phosphorylation status. From these data, we speculate that AMPKalpha may provide a molecular clue to understand the repressive role of the C-terminus of p73alpha in transcription and DNA damage response.

Transcriptional control of the HERV-H LTR element of the GSDML gene in human tissues and cancer cells.

Long terminal repeats (LTRs) of human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) have been reported to serve as alternative promoters in functional genes. The GSDML (gasdermin-like protein) gene located on human chromosome 17q21 has been found to be an oncogenomic recombination hotspot. Here, we identified the LTR element of HERV-H with reverse orientation as an alternative promoter of the GSDML gene and analyzed its expression pattern in human tissues and cancer cells. A reporter gene assay of the promoter activity of the LTR on the GSDML gene in human cancer cell lines (HCT-116 and HeLa) and a kidney cell line (Cos7) of African green monkey indicated that the LTR promoter with reverse orientation had stronger promoter activity than forward one. The transcripts of this LTR-derived promoter were widely distributed in various human tissues and cancer cells, whereas the transcripts of the cellular promoter were found only in stomach tissues and some cancer cells (HCT116, MCF7, U937, C-33A, and PC3). These findings suggest that the LTR element on the GSDML gene was integrated into the hominoid lineage and acquired the role of transcriptional regulation of human tissues and cancer cells.

Antiproliferative mechanism of retinoid derivatives in ovarian cancer cells.

Retinoid derivatives have been implicated for the growth regulation of ovarian cancer cells. However, the molecular mechanisms are not yet fully defined. To dissect detailed mechanisms of each derivative, four ovarian cancer cells (A2774, PA-1, OVCAR-3, SKOV-3) were treated with all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), 9-cis retinoic acid (9-cis RA), 13-cis RA, or 4-hydroxyphenyl retinamide (4-HPR). When treated with 1 microm, HPR inhibits most effectively the growth of all four cells. Depending on cell types treated, IC(50) values were 0.7-2.7 microm for 4-HPR, and 2.7-9.0 microm for other retinoid derivatives. DNA fragmentation assay indicated that the antiproliferative effect of HPR could be mediated by apoptosis. Transcription assays coupled with transient transfection in OVCAR-3 cells indicated that ATRA, 9-cis RA, and 13-cis RA were active for all RAR/RXR subtypes, whereas 4-HPR was only active for RARgamma. However, 4-HPR exerted the strongest suppression on AP-1 (c-Jun) activity. As expected from AP-1 data, in vitro invasion assays showed that HPR blocked effectively the migration of OVCAR-3 cells. Thus, 4-HPR showed not only more potent antiproliferative activity than any other retinoid derivatives used, but also effectively inhibited the invasion, probably through the suppression of AP-1 activity. Taken together coupled with its selective activity only for RARgamma, these results suggest that 4-HPR could be less toxic, and very effective anticancer drugs for late stage ovarian cancer.

Functional inactivation of p73, a homolog of p53 tumor suppressor protein, by human papillomavirus E6 proteins.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is strongly implicated as a causative agent in the etiology of cervical cancer. Of its gene products, E6 binds to and inactivates p53 tumor suppressor protein by ubiquitin/proteasome-dependent degradation. Recently, p73, a novel family of p53, has been identified and demonstrated, like p53, to activate p21(WAF1). Here we show that p73 is also inactivated by HPV-E6, but ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis is not responsive. Yeast two-hybrid and GST pull-down assays indicate a physical interaction between p73 and either HPV-16 or HPV-11 E6 proteins in vivo and in vitro, respectively. The transactivation domain (amino acid residues 1 to 49) is found to be absolutely required for the interaction. Transient co-expression of E6 significantly inhibits the p73-mdiated activation of p21(WAF1) promoter in a p53-defective C33A cell line. Using Gal4-p73 fusion protein, we demonstrate that E6 inhibition of p73 transactivation function is independent of sequence-specific DNA binding, which is confirmed by a direct electrophoretic mobility shift assay. Moreover, E6 inhibits p73 function by interfering with the activity of the amino-terminal activation domain. Co-transfection of E6 mutants reveals that the same portion of E6 appears to be responsible for the inactivation of p53 and p73 function. However, the inactivation mechanism of p73 is clearly different from that of p53, because p73, unlike p53, is inactivated by both high- and low-risk E6s and is not susceptible to E6-dependent proteolysis. These overall results, consequently, suggest that in addition to the inactivation of p53, the functional interference of p73 by HPV-E6 may, at least in part, contribute to E6-mediated transformation and hyperproliferation of cervical cells.

6,7,8,9-Tetrahydro-3-methyl-1H-pyrano-[4,3-b]quinolin-1-one.

The condensation reaction of 4-amino-6-methyl-2-pyrone with 1-cyclohexenecarboxaldehyde and a catalytic amount of (S)-(+)-10-camphorsulfonic acid in toluene at 358 K gave a 1:2.5 ratio of the title compound, (1) (C13H13NO2), and 7,8,9,10-tetrahydro-1H-pyrano[4,3-c]isoquinoline-1-one, (2). The formation of (2) presumably proceeds through an intermediate imine. Both (1) and (2) show inhibitory activities against acetylcholinesterase and human aldose reductase. Of the three linear-fused rings of (1), both ring A and ring B are planar and the angle between these planes is 0.46 (13) degrees. While the two C atoms of cyclohexane ring C attached to its common atoms with ring B are in the plane of the latter, as expected, the remaining two C atoms of ring C are out of this plane, by 0.342 (4) and -0.402 (3) A, respectively.

Antitumor activity of tricyclic pyrone analogs, a new synthetic class of microtubule de-stabilizing agents, in the murine EMT-6 mammary tumor cell line in vitro.

Novel tricyclic pyrone (TP) analogs synthesized in Hua's laboratory (code names H10, H14 and H16) were tested against a spectrum of known antimitotic drugs for their ability to disrupt microtubule (MT) dynamics, alter the mitotic index, and prevent murine EMT-6 mammary sarcoma cells from synthesizing DNA and proliferating in vitro. At 2-10 microM, H10 inhibits DNA synthesis, tubulin polymerization and tumor cell growth to a greater degree than H14, whereas H16 has no effect. A linear skeleton with a pyridyl ring at C-3 of the A-ring, a pyran B-ring and no alkylation at C-7 of the C-ring is required for the antitumor activity of these TPs. Since H10 mimics the effect of vincristine (VCR), but not that of paclitaxel, on tubulin polymerization, TPs may represent a novel synthetic class of MT de-stabilizing anticancer drugs. H10 is less potent than VCR against tubulin polymerization (IC50: 1.5 microM versus 0.15 microM) and tumor cell proliferation (IC50: 1.5 microM versus 5 nM) but inhibits DNA synthesis (IC50: 10 microM) more effectively than all other MT-disrupting agents tested, except tubulozole-C. Although TPs disrupt DNA synthesis and might affect several phases of the cell cycle, the ability of H10 to increase the percentage of mitotic cells indicates that these novel compounds may be cell cycle-specific anticancer drugs useful for arresting mammalian cells in M-phase.

[Nursing research issues and trends: views from Korea].

The purposes of study was: 1. To identify the direction and scope of research activities in Korean Nursing. 2. To discuss the unique problems present in Korea that warrant nursing research. 3. To delineate the factors that facilitate and/or hinder nursing research in Korea. This study was conducted at six colleges of nursing in Korea. The schools which were selected had doctoral programs at the time, the data were collected in 1990. Four of the schools were located in the metropolitan area of the capital city, Seoul, and two were in two other cities similar in size. The total population of the study was 283 nurses. The instrument for the research was the English version of Research Profile Questionnaire which was translated into Korean by the researchers and was validated in its translation by two professors. A pretest procedure was done before the data collection process. Of the population of 283,210 subjects received the questionnaire and 150 subjects responded (71.4%). Excluding incomplete questionnaires, 141 questionnaires were utilized for data analysis. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Responses to open-ended questions were content analyzed for themes and categories. Results of the study were as follows: Respondents currently involved in nursing research numbered 108 (76.6%), but 33 (23.4%) did not have any research experience. The inexperienced respondents tended to be younger than the experienced subjects and most (60.6%) were employed in hospitals, while 82.4 percent of the experienced nurses were employed in nursing schools. Among the respondents with research experience, 68.5 percent were involved in one to three projects and 31.5 percent were engaged in four or more projects. The experienced nurses indicated that nursing research in Korea is active. On the other hand, the responses of the inexperienced were that nursing research is not active. The most frequently selected research subjects were patients (76.9%, 83 respondents) followed by nurses, healthy persons and nursing students. The relatively high percentage of healthy persons as study subjects, could be explained as a concern of nurses for healthy persons as well as for ill patients. The aforementioned literature review showed a dramatic change in the kinds of study subjects; approximately 33 percent were patients but 25 percent were healthy subjects of various ages. The hospital was the prevailing research setting (67.6%) but at the same time various community settings were used. This is a changing phenomena in nursing research of Korea. Current research designed to build on previous studies amounted to 75 percent; about 39.8 percent were theory and hypothesis generated.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)