Chronic Inflammation, Oxidative Stress and Metabolic Plasticity: Three Players Driving the Pro-Tumorigenic Microenvironment in Malignant Mesothelioma.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a lethal and rare cancer, even if its incidence has continuously increased all over the world. Asbestos exposure leads to the development of mesothelioma through multiple mechanisms, including chronic inflammation, oxidative stress with reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and persistent aberrant signaling. Together, these processes, over the years, force normal mesothelial cells' transformation. Chronic inflammation supported by "frustrated" macrophages exposed to asbestos fibers is also boosted by the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, growth factors, damage-associated molecular proteins (DAMPs), and the generation of ROS. In addition, the hypoxic microenvironment influences MPM and immune cells' features, leading to a significant rewiring of metabolism and phenotypic plasticity, thereby supporting tumor aggressiveness and modulating infiltrating immune cell responses. This review provides an overview of the complex tumor-host interactions within the MPM tumor microenvironment at different levels, i.e., soluble factors, metabolic crosstalk, and oxidative stress, and explains how these players supporting tumor transformation and progression may become potential and novel therapeutic targets in MPM.

Protein Mass Fingerprinting and Antioxidant Power of Hemp Seeds in Relation to Plant Cultivar and Environment.

Cannabis sativa (hemp) seeds are considered a functional food for their favorable contents of essential fatty acids, proteins and antioxidants. Beyond phenolics and carotenoids, the bioactivity of proteins has recently been investigated. However, plant genotype and environmental conditions can affect quantity and quality of macronutrients and phytochemicals in seeds, influencing their nutraceutical properties. In this study, the effects of plant variety and seed origin on the protein profile and antioxidant activity of hemp seeds were evaluated. Seeds from two cultivars, Secuieni Jubileu and Finola, were harvested from a mountain field located in Italy and compared with reference seeds used for sowing. Albumin and globulin extracts were obtained using the Osborne method and their antioxidant power was assayed (DPPH and ABTS methods). A matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry method was developed for protein fingerprinting analysis. Albumins from seeds of the mountain site showed higher radical scavenging activity and compounds of lower molecular weight than reference seeds, suggesting a role of proteins in the observed bioactivity. The MALDI-TOF method discriminated samples according to origin and variety, highlighting changes in the protein profile and identifying signals which could be used as markers of hemp cultivars.

SIRT1 at the crossroads of AKT1 and ERß in malignant pleural mesothelioma cells.

In this report, we show that malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) patients whose tumors express high levels of AKT1 exhibit a significantly worse prognosis, whereas no significant correlation with AKT3 expression is observed. We provide data that establish a phosphorylation independent role of AKT1 in affecting MPM cell shape and anchorage independent cell growth in vitro and highlight the AKT1 isoform-specific nature of these effects.We describe that AKT1 activity is inhibited by the loss of SIRT1-mediated deacetylation and identify, by mass spectrometry, 11 unique proteins that interact with acetylated AKT1.Our data demonstrate a role of the AKT1/SIRT1/FOXM1 axis in the expression of the tumor suppressor ERß. We further demonstrate an inhibitory feedback loop by ERß, activated by the selective agonist KB9520, on this axis both in vitro and in vivo.Our data broaden the current knowledge of ERß and AKT isoform-specific functions that could be valuable in the design of novel and effective therapeutic strategies for MPM.

Natural Killer (NK)/melanoma cell interaction induces NK-mediated release of chemotactic High Mobility Group Box-1 (HMGB1) capable of amplifying NK cell recruitment.

In this study we characterize a new mechanism by which Natural Killer (NK) cells may amplify their recruitment to tumors. We show that NK cells, upon interaction with melanoma cells, can release a chemotactic form of High Mobility Group Box-1 (HMGB1) protein capable of attracting additional activated NK cells. We first demonstrate that the engagement of different activating NK cell receptors, including those mainly involved in tumor cell recognition can induce the active release of HMGB1. Then we show that during NK-mediated tumor cell killing two HMGB1 forms are released, each displaying a specific electrophoretic mobility possibly corresponding to a different redox status. By the comparison of normal and perforin-defective NK cells (which are unable to kill target cells) we demonstrate that, in NK/melanoma cell co-cultures, NK cells specifically release an HMGB1 form that acts as chemoattractant, while dying tumor cells passively release a non-chemotactic HMGB1. Finally, we show that Receptor for Advanced Glycation End products is expressed by NK cells and mediates HMGB1-induced NK cell chemotaxis. Proteomic analysis of NK cells exposed to recombinant HMGB1 revealed that this molecule, besides inducing immediate chemotaxis, also promotes changes in the expression of proteins involved in the regulation of the cytoskeletal network. Importantly, these modifications could be associated with an increased motility of NK cells. Thus, our findings allow the definition of a previously unidentified mechanism used by NK cells to amplify their response to tumors, and provide additional clues for the emerging role of HMGB1 in immunomodulation and tumor immunity.

Structural roles of the active site iron(III) ions in catechol 1,2-dioxygenases and differential secondary structure changes in isoenzymes A and B from Acinetobacter radioresistens S13.

The reversible active site metal ion removal process for two catechol 1,2-dioxygenase isoenzymes (IsoA and IsoB) isolated from Acinetobacter radioresistens S13 has been monitored using circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopic techniques. IsoA and IsoB are homodimers, containing one iron(III) ion per subunit. Their amino acid sequence identity is 48.4%. Previous experiments suggested that structural diversities could be responsible for the differential thermal and pH stabilities of the two isoenzymes and of their distinct demetallation kinetics. The far-UV CD spectra of IsoA and IsoB catechol 1,2-dioxygenases from A. radioresistens S13 provide information on their secondary structures. IsoB appears to have a content of alpha-helices higher than IsoA. Upon metal ion removal, both proteins reversibly lose part of their secondary structure following distinct pathways. CD spectra simulations allowed us to estimate the content of alpha-helices, beta-sheets, and turns for each isoenzyme and to monitor the secondary structure rearrangements. The metal ion withdrawal has large influence on the secondary structure: in particular a significant reduction of alpha-helices content is observed for both isoenzymes. Intrinsic fluorescence emission spectra clearly support such results, adding information on the local environment changes of the tryptophan residues. The positioning of Trp250 in IsoB has been shown to be of particular interest for monitoring the local structure changes occurring upon metal ion removal. For the first time these studies allow to underline the role of active site iron ions on dioxygenases folding and stability, further evidencing the differences in structural assembling between the two isoenzymes from A. radioresistens S13.

Effects of surface hydrophobicity on the catalytic iron ion retention in the active site of two catechol 1,2-dioxygenase isoenzymes.

The different behaviour of two isozymes (IsoA and IsoB) of catechol 1,2-dioxygenase (C 1,20) from Acinetobacter radioresistens S13 on a hydrophobic interaction, Phenyl-Sepharose chromatographic column, prompted us to investigate the role of superficial hydrophobicity on structural-functional aspects for such class of enzymes. The interaction of 8-anilino-1-naphtalenesulphonate (ANS), a fluorescent probe known to bind to hydrophobic sites in proteins, revealed that the two isoenzymes have a markedly different hydrophobicity degree although a similar number of hydrophobic superficial sites were estimated (2.65 for IsoA and 2.18 for IsoB). ANS is easily displaced by adding the substrates catechol or 3-methylcatechol to the adduct, suggesting that the binding sites are in the near surroundings of the catalytic clefts. The analysis of the hydropathy profiles and the possible superficial cavities allowed to recognize the most feasible region for ANS binding. The lower hydrophobicity detected in the near surroundings of the catalytic pocket of IsoB supports its peculiarity to lose the catalytic metal ions more easily than IsoA. As previously suggested for other metalloenzymes, the presence of more hydrophilic and/or smaller residues near to the active site of IsoB is expected to increase the metal ligands mobility thus increasing the metal ion dissociation rate constants, estimated to be 0.078 h(-1) and 0.670 h(-1) for IsoA and IsoB respectively.