PIP4K2A as a negative regulator of PI3K in PTEN-deficient glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most malignant brain tumor with profound genomic alterations. Tumor suppressor genes regulate multiple signaling networks that restrict cellular proliferation and present barriers to malignant transformation. While bona fide tumor suppressors such as PTEN and TP53 often undergo inactivation due to mutations, there are several genes for which genomic deletion is the primary route for tumor progression. To functionally identify putative tumor suppressors in GBM, we employed in vivo RNAi screening using patient-derived xenograft models. Here, we identified PIP4K2A, whose functional role and clinical relevance remain unexplored in GBM. We discovered that PIP4K2A negatively regulates phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) signaling via p85/p110 component degradation in PTEN-deficient GBMs and specifically targets p85 for proteasome-mediated degradation. Overexpression of PIP4K2A suppressed cellular and clonogenic growth in vitro and impeded tumor growth in vivo. Our results unravel a novel tumor-suppressive role of PIP4K2A for the first time and support the feasibility of combining oncogenomics with in vivo RNAi screen.

Down-regulated TMED10 in Alzheimer disease induces autophagy via ATG4B activation.

Several studies have shown that dysfunction of macroautophagy/autophagy is associated with many human diseases, including neurodegenerative disease and cancer. To explore the molecular mechanisms of autophagy, we performed a cell-based functional screening with SH-SY5Y cells stably expressing GFP-LC3, using an siRNA library and identified TMED10 (transmembrane p24 trafficking protein 10), previously known as the γ-secretase-modulating protein, as a novel regulator of autophagy. Further investigations revealed that depletion of TMED10 induced the activation of autophagy. Interestingly, protein-protein interaction assays showed that TMED10 directly binds to ATG4B (autophagy related gene 4B cysteine peptidase), and the interaction is diminished under autophagy activation conditions such as rapamycin treatment and serum deprivation. In addition, inhibition of TMED10 significantly enhanced the proteolytic activity of ATG4B for LC3 cleavage. Importantly, the expression of TMED10 in AD (Alzheimer disease) patients was considerably decreased, and downregulation of TMED10 increased amyloid-ß (Aß) production. Treatment with Aß increased ATG4B proteolytic activity as well as dissociation of TMED10 and ATG4B. Taken together, our results suggest that the AD-associated protein TMED10 negatively regulates autophagy by inhibiting ATG4B activity.Abbreviations: Aß: amyloid-ß; AD: Alzheimer disease; ATG: autophagy related; BECN1: beclin 1; BiFC: bimolecular fluorescence complementation; CD: cytosolic domain; GFP: green fluorescent protein; GLUC: Gaussia luciferase; IP: immunoprecipitation; MAP1LC3/LC3: microtubule associated protein 1 light chain 3; LD: luminal domain; PD: Parkinson disease; ROS: reactive oxygen species; siRNA: small interfering RNA; SNP: single-nucleotide polymorphisms; TD: transmembrane domain; TMED10: transmembrane p24 trafficking protein 10; VC: C terminus of Venus fluorescent protein; VN: N terminus of Venus fluorescent protein.

Up-regulation of UVRAG by HDAC1 Inhibition Attenuates 5FU-induced Cell Death in HCT116 Colorectal Cancer Cells.

The ultraviolent irradiation resistance-associated gene (UVRAG), a component of the Beclin 1/autophagy-related 6 complex, regulates the autophagy initiation step and functions in the DNA-damage response. UVRAG is frequently mutated in various cancer types, and mutations of UVRAG increase sensitivity to chemotherapy by impairing DNA-damage repair. In this study, we addressed the epigenetic regulation of UVRAG in colorectal cancer cells. UVRAG expression was increased in cells treated with histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors, such as valproic acid and suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid. Down-regulation of HDAC1 enhanced UVRAG expression in colorectal cancer cells. In addition, both chemical and genetic inhibition of HDAC1 reduced the activation of caspase-3 and cytotoxicity in 5-fluorouracil (5FU)-treated cancer cells. In contrast, UVRAG overexpression inhibited caspase activation and cell death in 5FU-treated cells. Taken together, our findings suggest that up-regulation of UVRAG by HDAC1 inhibition potentiates DNA-damage-mediated cell death in colorectal cancer cells.

microRNA-200a-3p enhances mitochondrial elongation by targeting mitochondrial fission factor.

Mitochondria play pivotal roles in the ATP production, apoptosis and generation of reactive oxygen species. Although dynamic regulation of mitochondria morphology is a critical step to maintain cellular homeostasis, the regulatory mechanisms are not yet fully elucidated. In this study, we identified miR-200a-3p as a novel regulator of mitochondrial dynamics by targeting mitochondrial fission factor (MFF). We demonstrated that the ectopic expression of miR-200a-3p enhanced mitochondrial elongation, mitochondrial ATP synthesis, mitochondrial membrane potential and oxygen consumption rate. These results indicate that miR-200a-3p positively regulates mitochondrial elongation by downregulating MFF expression. [BMB Reports 2017; 50(4): 214-219].

Polypyrimidine tract-binding protein 1-mediated down-regulation of ATG10 facilitates metastasis of colorectal cancer cells.

Autophagy plays complex roles in tumor initiation and development, and the expression of autophagy-related genes (ATGs) is differentially regulated in various cancer cells, depending on their environment. In this study, we analyzed the expressional relationship between polypyrimidine tract-binding protein 1 (PTBP1) and ATG10 in metastatic colorectal cancer. PTBP1 is associated with tumor metastasis in primary colorectal tumors and colorectal cancer liver metastasis (CLM) tissues. In addition, PTPB1 directly interacts with mRNA of ATG10, and regulates ATG10 expression level in colorectal cancer cells. Ectopic expression of PTBP1 decreased ATG10 expression, whereas down-regulation of PTBP1 increased ATG10 level. In contrast to PTBP1, expression of ATG10 was decreased in CLM tissues. Knock down of ATG10 promoted cell migration and invasion of colorectal cancer cells. Moreover, depletion of ATG10 modulated epithelial-mesenchymal transition-associated proteins in colorectal cancer cells: N-cadherin, TCF-8/ZEB1, and CD44 were up-regulated, whereas E-cadherin was down-regulated. Taken together, our findings suggest that expression of ATG10 negatively regulated by PTBP1 is associated with metastasis of colorectal cancer cells.

Primary Cilia Negatively Regulate Melanogenesis in Melanocytes and Pigmentation in a Human Skin Model.

The primary cilium is an organelle protruding from the cell body that senses external stimuli including chemical, mechanical, light, osmotic, fluid flow, and gravitational signals. Skin is always exposed to the external environment and responds to external stimuli. Therefore, it is possible that primary cilia have an important role in skin. Ciliogenesis was reported to be involved in developmental processes in skin, such as keratinocyte differentiation and hair formation. However, the relation between skin pigmentation and primary cilia is largely unknown. Here, we observed that increased melanogenesis in melanocytes treated with a melanogenic inducer was inhibited by a ciliogenesis inducer, cytochalasin D, and serum-free culture. However, these inhibitory effects disappeared in GLI2 knockdown cells. In addition, activation of sonic hedgehog (SHH)-smoothened (Smo) signaling pathway by a Smo agonist, SAG inhibited melanin synthesis in melanocytes and pigmentation in a human skin model. On the contrary, an inhibitor of primary cilium formation, ciliobrevin A1, activated melanogenesis in melanocytes. These results suggest that skin pigmentation may be regulated partly by the induction of ciliogenesis through Smo-GLI2 signaling.

Inhibition of never in mitosis A (NIMA)-related kinase-4 reduces survivin expression and sensitizes cancer cells to TRAIL-induced cell death.

The tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis inducing ligand (TRAIL) preferentially induces apoptosis in cancer cells. However, many tumors are resistant to TRAIL-induced apoptosis, and resistance mechanisms are not fully understood. To identify novel regulatory molecules of TRAIL resistance, we screened a siRNA library targeting the human kinome, and NEK4 (NIMA-related kinase-4) was identified. Knockdown of NEK4 sensitized TRAIL-resistant cancer cells and in vivo xenografts to cell death. In contrast, over expression of NEK4 suppressed TRAIL-induced cell death in TRAIL-sensitive cancer cells. In addition, loss of NEK4 resulted in decrease of the anti-apoptotic protein survivin, but an increase in apoptotic cell death. Interestingly, NEK4 was highly upregulated in tumor tissues derived from patients with lung cancer and colon cancer. These results suggest that inhibition of NEK4 sensitizes cancer cells to TRAIL-induced apoptosis by regulation of survivin expression.

O-GlcNAcylation of ATG4B positively regulates autophagy by increasing its hydroxylase activity.

Autophagy is a catabolic degradation process and maintains cellular homeostasis. And autophagy is activated in response to various stress conditions. Although O-GlcNAcylation functions a sensor for nutrient and stress, the relationship between O-GlcNAcylation and autophagy is largely unknown. Here, we identified that ATG4B is novel target for O-GlcNAcylation under metabolic stress condition. Treatment with PugNAc, an O-GlcNAcase inhibitor increased activation of autophagy in SH-SY5Y cells. Both bimolecular fluorescence complementation and immunoprecipitation assay indicated that OGT directly interacts with ATG4B in SH-SY5Y cells. We also found that the O-GlcNAcylated ATG4B was increased in autophagy activation conditions, and down-regulation of OGT reduces O-GlcNAcylation of ATG4B under low glucose condition. Furthermore, the proteolytic activity of ATG4B for LC3 cleavage was enhanced in PugNAc-treated cells. Taken together, these results imply that O-GlcNAcylation of ATG4B regulates autophagy activation by increasing its proteolytic activity under metabolic stress condition.

Heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 post-transcriptionally regulates Drp1 expression in neuroblastoma cells.

Excessive mitochondrial fission is associated with the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases. Dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1) possesses specific fission activity in the mitochondria and peroxisomes. Various post-translational modifications of Drp1 are known to modulate complex mitochondrial dynamics. However, the post-transcriptional regulation of Drp1 remains poorly understood. Here, we show that the heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 (hnRNP A1) regulates Drp1 expression at the post-transcriptional level. hnRNP A1 directly interacts with Drp1 mRNA at its 3'UTR region, and enhances translation potential without affecting mRNA stability. Down-regulation of hnRNP A1 induces mitochondrial elongation by reducing Drp1 expression. Moreover, depletion of hnRNP A1 suppresses 3-NP-mediated mitochondrial fission and dysfunction. In contrast, over-expression of hnRNP A1 promotes mitochondrial fragmentation by increasing Drp1 expression. Additionally, hnRNP A1 significantly exacerbates 3-NP-induced mitochondrial dysfunction and cell death in neuroblastoma cells. Interestingly, treatment with 3-NP induces subcellular translocation of hnRNP A1 from the nucleus to the cytoplasm, which accelerates the increase in Drp1 expression in hnRNP A1 over-expressing cells. Collectively, our findings suggest that hnRNP A1 controls mitochondrial dynamics by post-transcriptional regulation of Drp1.

Conditioned Media from Human Umbilical Cord Blood-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Inhibits Melanogenesis by Promoting Proteasomal Degradation of MITF.

Human umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUCB-MSCs) secrete various beneficial molecules, which have anti-apoptotic activity and cell proliferation. However, the effect of hUCB-MSCs in melanogenesis is largely unclear. In this study, we show that conditioned media (CM) derived from hUCB-MSCs inhibit melanogenesis by regulating microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) expression via the ERK signalling pathway. Treatment of hUCB-MSC-CM strongly inhibited the alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone-induced hyperpigmentation in melanoma cells as well as melanocytes. Treatment of hUCB-MSC-CM induced ERK1/2 activation in melanocytes. In addition, inhibition of ERK1/2 suppressed the anti-pigmentation activity of the hUCB-MSC-CM in melanocytes and in vitro artificial skin models. We also found that the expression of MITF was appreciably diminished while expression of phosphorylated MITF, which leads to its proteasomal degradation, was increased in cells treated with hUCB-MSC-CM. These results suggested that hUCB-MSC-CM significantly suppresses melanin synthesis via MITF degradation by the ERK pathway activation.

Suppression of Cpn10 increases mitochondrial fission and dysfunction in neuroblastoma cells.

To date, several regulatory proteins involved in mitochondrial dynamics have been identified. However, the precise mechanism coordinating these complex processes remains unclear. Mitochondrial chaperones regulate mitochondrial function and structure. Chaperonin 10 (Cpn10) interacts with heat shock protein 60 (HSP60) and functions as a co-chaperone. In this study, we found that down-regulation of Cpn10 highly promoted mitochondrial fragmentation in SK-N-MC and SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells. Both genetic and chemical inhibition of Drp1 suppressed the mitochondrial fragmentation induced by Cpn10 reduction. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in 3-NP-treated cells was markedly enhanced by Cpn10 knock down. Depletion of Cpn10 synergistically increased cell death in response to 3-NP treatment. Furthermore, inhibition of Drp1 recovered Cpn10-mediated mitochondrial dysfunction in 3-NP-treated cells. Moreover, an ROS scavenger suppressed cell death mediated by Cpn10 knockdown in 3-NP-treated cells. Taken together, these results showed that down-regulation of Cpn10 increased mitochondrial fragmentation and potentiated 3-NP-mediated mitochondrial dysfunction in neuroblastoma cells.

Mitochondrial dynamics regulate melanogenesis through proteasomal degradation of MITF via ROS-ERK activation.

Mitochondrial dynamics control mitochondrial functions as well as their morphology. However, the role of mitochondrial dynamics in melanogenesis is largely unknown. Here, we show that mitochondrial dynamics regulate melanogenesis by modulating the ROS-ERK signaling pathway. Genetic and chemical inhibition of Drp1, a mitochondrial fission protein, increased melanin production and mitochondrial elongation in melanocytes and melanoma cells. In contrast, down-regulation of OPA1, a mitochondria fusion regulator, suppressed melanogensis but induced massive mitochondrial fragmentation in hyperpigmented cells. Consistently, treatment with CCCP, a mitochondrial fission chemical inducer, also efficiently repressed melanogenesis. Furthermore, we found that ROS production and ERK phosphorylation were increased in cells with fragmented mitochondria. And inhibition of ROS or ERK suppressed the antimelanogenic effect of mitochondrial fission in α-MSH-treated cells. In addition, the activation of ROS-ERK pathway by mitochondrial fission induced phosphorylation of serine73 on MITF accelerating its proteasomal degradation. In conclusion, mitochondrial dynamics may regulate melanogenesis by modulating ROS-ERK signaling pathway.

Autophagy induced by resveratrol suppresses α-MSH-induced melanogenesis.

Autophagy degrades cellular components and organelles through a cooperative process involving autophagosomes and lysosomes. Although autophagy is known to mainly regulate the turnover of cellular components, the role of autophagy in melanogenesis has not been well addressed. Here, we show that inhibition of autophagy suppresses the antimelanogenesis activity of resveratrol (RSV), a well-known antimelanogenic agent. RSV strongly increased autophagy in melanocytes. However, the depletion of ATG5 significantly suppressed RSV-mediated antimelanogenesis as well as RSV-induced autophagy in melanocytes. Moreover, suppression of ATG5 retrieved the RSV-mediated downregulation of tyrosinase and TRP1 in α-MSH-treated cells. Most importantly, electron microscopy analysis revealed that autophagosomes engulfed melanin or melanosomes after combined treatment of α-MSH and RSV. Taken together, these results suggest that RSV-mediated autophagy regulates melanogenesis.

Down-regulation of mortalin exacerbates Aß-mediated mitochondrial fragmentation and dysfunction.

Mitochondrial dynamics greatly influence the biogenesis and morphology of mitochondria. Mitochondria are particularly important in neurons, which have a high demand for energy. Therefore, mitochondrial dysfunction is strongly associated with neurodegenerative diseases. Until now various post-translational modifications for mitochondrial dynamic proteins and several regulatory proteins have explained complex mitochondrial dynamics. However, the precise mechanism that coordinates these complex processes remains unclear. To further understand the regulatory machinery of mitochondrial dynamics, we screened a mitochondrial siRNA library and identified mortalin as a potential regulatory protein. Both genetic and chemical inhibition of mortalin strongly induced mitochondrial fragmentation and synergistically increased Aß-mediated cytotoxicity as well as mitochondrial dysfunction. Importantly we determined that the expression of mortalin in Alzheimer disease (AD) patients and in the triple transgenic-AD mouse model was considerably decreased. In contrast, overexpression of mortalin significantly suppressed Aß-mediated mitochondrial fragmentation and cell death. Taken together, our results suggest that down-regulation of mortalin may potentiate Aß-mediated mitochondrial fragmentation and dysfunction in AD.

ARP101 inhibits α-MSH-stimulated melanogenesis by regulation of autophagy in melanocytes.

Autophagy is a cooperative process between autophagosomes and lysosomes that degrades cellular organelles. Although autophagy regulates the turnover of cellular components, its role in melanogenesis is not clearly established. Previously, we reported that ARP101 induces autophagy in various cancer cells. Here, we show that ARP101 inhibits melanogenesis by regulation of autophagy. ARP101 inhibited α-MSH-stimulated melanin synthesis and suppressed the expression of tyrosinase and TRP1 in immortalized mouse melanocytes. ARP101 also induced autophagy in melanocytes. Knockdown of ATG5 reduced both anti-melanogenic activity and autophagy mediated by ARP101 in α-MSH treated melanocytes. Electron microscopy analysis further revealed that autophagosomes engulf melanin or melanosome in α-MSH and ARP101-treated cells. Collectively, our results suggest that ARP101 inhibits α-MSH-stimulated melanogenesis through the activation of autophagy in melanocytes.

Autophagy mediates anti-melanogenic activity of 3'-ODI in B16F1 melanoma cells.

Autophagy is a cellular degradation process for cellular aggregates and unneeded cellular compartments including damaged mitochondria, ER, and peroxisomes. Melanosome is cellular organelle that is the cellular site of generation, storage and transports of melanin in melanocytes. Despite potential importance of autophagy, the role of autophagy in melanogenesis and melanosome autophagy are largely unknown. In here, we identified 3'-hydroxydaidzein (3'-ODI) as an autophagy inducer from a phytochemical library screening. Treatment with 3'-ODI significantly reduced α-MSH-mediated melanogenesis but efficiently increased autophagy both in melanoma cells and melanocytes. Furthermore, inhibition of autophagy significantly reduced the anti-melanogenic effects of 3'-ODI in α-MSH-stimulated melanoma cells. Taken together, these results suggest that autophagy mediates anti-melanogenic activity of 3'-ODI.

Down-Regulation of Survivin by Nemadipine-A Sensitizes Cancer Cells to TRAIL-Induced Apoptosis.

The tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) is a member of the tumor necrosis factor family of cytokines. TRAIL selectively induces apoptotic cell death in various tumors and cancer cells, but it has little or no toxicity in normal cells. Agonism of TRAIL receptors has been considered to be a valuable cancer-therapeutic strategy. However, more than 85% of primary tumors are resistant to TRAIL, emphasizing the importance of investigating how to overcome TRAIL resistance. In this report, we have found that nemadipine-A, a cell-permeable L-type calcium channel inhibitor, sensitizes TRAIL-resistant cancer cells to this ligand. Combination treatments using TRAIL with nemadipine-A synergistically induced both the caspase cascade and apoptotic cell death, which were blocked by a pan caspase inhibitor (zVAD) but not by autophagy or a necrosis inhibitor. We further found that nemadipine-A, either alone or in combination with TRAIL, notably reduced the expression of survivin, an inhibitor of the apoptosis protein (IAP) family of proteins. Depletion of survivin by small RNA interference (siRNA) resulted in increased cell death and caspase activation by TRAIL treatment. These results suggest that nemadipine-A potentiates TRAIL-induced apoptosis by down-regulation of survivin expression in TRAIL resistant cells. Thus, combination of TRAIL with nemadipine-A may serve a new therapeutic scheme for the treatment of TRAIL resistant cancer cells, suggesting that a detailed study of this combination would be useful.

Down-regulated expression of ATG5 in colorectal cancer.

The role of autophagy in tumor development is paradoxical. Although some genetic evidence has indicated that autophagy has as a tumor suppressor function, it also provides some advantages to tumors under metabolic stress conditions. Autophagy is regulated by several autophagy-related gene (ATG) proteins. In mammals, 16 different ATG genes have been identified. To investigate the clinicopathological role of ATG5 in colorectal cancer, we firstly investigated its expression in patients with sporadic colorectal cancer. Expression analysis revealed ATG5 to be strongly down-regulated in colorectal cancer (38/40 patients). Interestingly, immunohistochemical analysis of colorectal cancer tissues indicated that increased ATG5 expression is associated with lymphovascular invasion (p=0.035). The findings in our limited clinical cohort indicate that ATG5 could be a potential prognostic or diagnostic biomarker.

Sertindole, a potent antagonist at dopamine D2 receptors, induces autophagy by increasing reactive oxygen species in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells.

Autophagy is associated with cell survival and cell death. Autophagy is implicated in the pathophysiology of various human diseases. In order to identify autophagy regulatory molecules, we screened a chemical drug library in SH-SY5Y cells and selected Sertindole as a potent autophagy inducer. Sertindole was developed as an antipsychotic drug for Schizophrenia. Sertindole treatment highly induced the formation of autophagosomes as well as LC3 conversion. Subsequently, Sertindole-induced autophagy was efficiently suppressed by down regulation of ATG5. Sertindole also increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, which contributes to autophagy-associated cell death in neuroblastoma cells. ROS scavengers such as N-acetylcysteine and Trolox suppressed not only ROS generation but also autophagy activation by Sertindole. These results suggest Sertindole induces autophagy and autophagy-associated cell death by ROS production in neuroblastoma cells.

Suppression of autophagy exacerbates Mefloquine-mediated cell death.

Mefloquine is an effective treatment drug for malaria. However, it can cause several adverse side effects, and the precise mechanism associated with the adverse neurological effects of Mefloquine is not clearly understood. In this study, we investigated the effect of Mefloquine on autophagy in neuroblastoma cells. Mefloquine treatment highly induced the formation of autophagosomes and the conversion of LC3I into LC3II. Moreover, Mefloquine-induced autophagy was efficiently suppressed by an autophagy inhibitor and by down regulation of ATG6. The autophagy was also completely blocked in ATG5 deficient mouse embryonic fibroblast cells. Moreover, suppression of autophagy significantly intensified Mefloquine-mediated cytotoxicity in SH-SY5Y cells. Our findings suggest that suppression of autophagy may exacerbate Mefloquine toxicity in neuroblastoma cells.