Glycolytic ATP fuels phosphoinositide 3-kinase signaling to support effector T helper 17 cell responses.

Aerobic glycolysis-the Warburg effect-converts glucose to lactate via the enzyme lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA) and is a metabolic feature of effector T cells. Cells generate ATP through various mechanisms and Warburg metabolism is comparatively an energy-inefficient glucose catabolism pathway. Here, we examined the effect of ATP generated via aerobic glycolysis in antigen-driven T cell responses. Cd4CreLdhafl/fl mice were resistant to Th17-cell-mediated experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis and exhibited defective T cell activation, migration, proliferation, and differentiation. LDHA deficiency crippled cellular redox balance and inhibited ATP production, diminishing PI3K-dependent activation of Akt kinase and thereby phosphorylation-mediated inhibition of Foxo1, a transcriptional repressor of T cell activation programs. Th17-cell-specific expression of an Akt-insensitive Foxo1 recapitulated the defects seen in Cd4CreLdhafl/fl mice. Induction of LDHA required PI3K signaling and LDHA deficiency impaired PI3K-catalyzed PIP3 generation. Thus, Warburg metabolism augments glycolytic ATP production, fueling a PI3K-centered positive feedback regulatory circuit that drives effector T cell responses.

NBS1 lactylation is required for efficient DNA repair and chemotherapy resistance.

The Warburg effect is a hallmark of cancer that refers to the preference of cancer cells to metabolize glucose anaerobically rather than aerobically1,2. This results in substantial accumulation of lacate, the end product of anaerobic glycolysis, in cancer cells3. However, how cancer metabolism affects chemotherapy response and DNA repair in general remains incompletely understood. Here we report that lactate-driven lactylation of NBS1 promotes homologous recombination (HR)-mediated DNA repair. Lactylation of NBS1 at lysine 388 (K388) is essential for MRE11-RAD50-NBS1 (MRN) complex formation and the accumulation of HR repair proteins at the sites of DNA double-strand breaks. Furthermore, we identify TIP60 as the NBS1 lysine lactyltransferase and the 'writer' of NBS1 K388 lactylation, and HDAC3 as the NBS1 de-lactylase. High levels of NBS1 K388 lactylation predict poor patient outcome of neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and lactate reduction using either genetic depletion of lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA) or stiripentol, a lactate dehydrogenase A inhibitor used clinically for anti-epileptic treatment, inhibited NBS1 K388 lactylation, decreased DNA repair efficacy and overcame resistance to chemotherapy. In summary, our work identifies NBS1 lactylation as a critical mechanism for genome stability that contributes to chemotherapy resistance and identifies inhibition of lactate production as a promising therapeutic cancer strategy.

Engineering Corynebacterium glutamicum for the production of 2,3-butanediol.

BACKGROUND: 2,3-Butanediol is an important bulk chemical with a wide range of applications. In bacteria, this metabolite is synthesised from pyruvate via a three-step pathway involving α-acetolactate synthase, α-acetolactate decarboxylase and 2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase. Thus far, the best producers of 2,3-butanediol are pathogenic strains, hence, the development of more suitable organisms for industrial scale fermentation is needed. Herein, 2,3-butanediol production was engineered in the Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS) organism Corynebacterium glutamicum. A two-stage fermentation process was implemented: first, cells were grown aerobically on acetate; in the subsequent production stage cells were used to convert glucose into 2,3-butanediol under non-growing and oxygen-limiting conditions. RESULTS: A gene cluster, encoding the 2,3-butanediol biosynthetic pathway of Lactococcus lactis, was assembled and expressed in background strains, C. glutamicum ΔldhA, C. glutamicum ΔaceEΔpqoΔldhA and C. glutamicum ΔaceEΔpqoΔldhAΔmdh, tailored to minimize pyruvate-consuming reactions, i.e., to prevent carbon loss in lactic, acetic and succinic acids. Producer strains were characterized in terms of activity of the relevant enzymes in the 2,3-butanediol forming pathway, growth, and production of 2,3-butanediol under oxygen-limited conditions. Productivity was maximized by manipulating the aeration rate in the production phase. The final strain, C. glutamicum ΔaceEΔpqoΔldhAΔmdh(pEKEx2-als,aldB,Ptuf butA), under optimized conditions produced 2,3-butanediol with a 0.66 mol mol(-1) yield on glucose, an overall productivity of 0.2 g L(-1) h(-1) and a titer of 6.3 g L(-1). CONCLUSIONS: We have successfully developed C. glutamicum into an efficient cell factory for 2,3-butanediol production. The use of the engineered strains as a basis for production of acetoin, a widespread food flavour, is proposed.

Highly efficient L-lactate production using engineered Escherichia coli with dissimilar temperature optima for L-lactate formation and cell growth.

UNLABELLED: L-Lactic acid, one of the most important chiral molecules and organic acids, is produced via pyruvate from carbohydrates in diverse microorganisms catalyzed by an NAD+-dependent L-lactate dehydrogenase. Naturally, Escherichia coli does not produce L-lactate in noticeable amounts, but can catabolize it via a dehydrogenation reaction mediated by an FMN-dependent L-lactate dehydrogenase. In aims to make the E. coli strain to produce L-lactate, three L-lactate dehydrogenase genes from different bacteria were cloned and expressed. The L-lactate producing strains, 090B1 (B0013-070, ΔldhA::diflldD::Pldh-ldhLca), 090B2 (B0013-070, ΔldhA::diflldD::Pldh-ldhStrb) and 090B3 (B0013-070, ΔldhA::diflldD::Pldh-ldhBcoa) were developed from a previously developed D-lactate over-producing strain, E. coli strain B0013-070 (ack-ptappspflBdldpoxBadhEfrdA) by: (1) deleting ldhA to block D-lactate formation, (2) deleting lldD to block the conversion of L-lactate to pyruvate, and (3) expressing an L-lactate dehydrogenase (L-LDH) to convert pyruvate to L-lactate under the control of the ldhA promoter. Fermentation tests were carried out in a shaking flask and in a 25-l bioreactor. Strains 090B1, 090B2 or 090B3 were shown to metabolize glucose to L-lactate instead of D-lactate. However, L-lactate yield and cell growth rates were significantly different among the metabolically engineered strains which can be attributed to a variation between temperature optimum for cell growth and temperature optimum for enzymatic activity of individual L-LDH. In a temperature-shifting fermentation process (cells grown at 37°C and L-lactate formed at 42°C), E. coli 090B3 was able to produce 142.2 g/l of L-lactate with no more than 1.2 g/l of by-products (mainly acetate, pyruvate and succinate) accumulated. In conclusion, the production of lactate by E. coli is limited by the competition relationship between cell growth and lactate synthesis. Enzymatic properties, especially the thermodynamics of an L-LDH can be effectively used as a factor to regulate a metabolic pathway and its metabolic flux for efficient L-lactate production. HIGHLIGHTS: The enzymatic thermodynamics was used as a tool for metabolic regulation. Minimizing the activity of L-lactate dehydrogenase in growth phase improved biomass accumulation. Maximizing the activity of L-lactate dehydrogenase improved lactate productivity in production phase.

In silico aided metabolic engineering of Klebsiella oxytoca and fermentation optimization for enhanced 2,3-butanediol production.

Klebsiella oxytoca naturally produces a large amount of 2,3-butanediol (2,3-BD), a promising bulk chemical with wide industrial applications, along with various byproducts. In this study, the in silico gene knockout simulation of K. oxytoca was carried out for 2,3-BD overproduction by inhibiting the formation of byproducts. The knockouts of ldhA and pflB genes were targeted with the criteria of maximization of 2,3-BD production and minimization of byproducts formation. The constructed K. oxytoca ΔldhA ΔpflB strain showed higher 2,3-BD yields and higher final concentrations than those obtained from the wild-type and ΔldhA strains. However, the simultaneous deletion of both genes caused about a 50 % reduction in 2,3-BD productivity compared with K. oxytoca ΔldhA strain. Based on previous studies and in silico investigation that the agitation speed during 2,3-BD fermentation strongly affected cell growth and 2,3-BD synthesis, the effect of agitation speed on 2,3-BD production was investigated from 150 to 450 rpm in 5-L bioreactors containing 3-L culture media. The highest 2,3-BD productivity (2.7 g/L/h) was obtained at 450 rpm in batch fermentation. Considering the inhibition of acetoin for 2,3-BD production, fed-batch fermentations were performed using K. oxytoca ΔldhA ΔpflB strain to enhance 2,3-BD production. Altering the agitation speed from 450 to 350 rpm at nearly 10 g/L of acetoin during the fed-batch fermentation allowed for the production of 113 g/L 2,3-BD, with a yield of 0.45 g/g, and for the production of 2.1 g/L/h of 2,3-BD.

Engineered Bacillus subtilis 168 produces L-malate by heterologous biosynthesis pathway construction and lactate dehydrogenase deletion.

In the present work, Bacillus subtilis was engineered to produce L-malate. Initially, the study revealed that the slight fumarase activity under anaerobic conditions is extremely favourable for L-malate one-step fermentation accumulation. Subsequently, an efficient heterologous biosynthesis pathway formed by Escherichia coli phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase and Saccharomyces cerevisiae malate dehydrogenase was introduced into B. subtilis, which led to 6.04 ± 0.19 mM L-malate production. Finally, the L-malate production was increased 1.5-fold to 9.18 ± 0.22 mM by the deletion of lactate dehydrogenase. Under two-stage fermentation conditions, the engineered B. subtilis produced up to 15.65 ± 0.13 mM L-malate, which was 86.3 % higher than that under anaerobic fermentation conditions. Though the L-malate production by the recombinant was low, this is the first attempt to produce L-malate in engineered B. subtilis and paves the way for further improving L-malate production in B. subtilis.

Transcriptome, proteome, and metabolite analyses of a lactate dehydrogenase-negative mutant of Enterococcus faecalis V583.

A constructed lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)-negative mutant of Enterococcus faecalis V583 grows at the same rate as the wild type but ferments glucose to ethanol, formate, and acetoin. Microarray analysis showed that LDH deficiency had profound transcriptional effects: 43 genes in the mutant were found to be upregulated, and 45 were found to be downregulated. Most of the upregulated genes encode enzymes of energy metabolism or transport. By two-dimensional (2D) gel analysis, 45 differentially expressed proteins were identified. A comparison of transcriptomic and proteomic data suggested that for several proteins the level of expression is regulated beyond the level of transcription. Pyruvate catabolic genes, including the truncated ldh gene, showed highly increased transcription in the mutant. These genes, along with a number of other differentially expressed genes, are preceded by sequences with homology to binding sites for the global redox-sensing repressor, Rex, of Staphylococcus aureus. The data indicate that the genes are transcriptionally regulated by the NADH/NAD ratio and that this ratio plays an important role in the regulatory network controlling energy metabolism in E. faecalis.

Characterization of three lactic acid bacteria and their isogenic ldh deletion mutants shows optimization for YATP (cell mass produced per mole of ATP) at their physiological pHs.

Several lactic acid bacteria use homolactic acid fermentation for generation of ATP. Here we studied the role of the lactate dehydrogenase enzyme on the general physiology of the three homolactic acid bacteria Lactococcus lactis, Enterococcus faecalis, and Streptococcus pyogenes. Of note, deletion of the ldh genes hardly affected the growth rate in chemically defined medium under microaerophilic conditions. However, the growth rate was affected in rich medium. Furthermore, deletion of ldh affected the ability for utilization of various substrates as a carbon source. A switch to mixed acid fermentation was observed during glucose-limited continuous growth and was dependent on the growth rate for S. pyogenes and on the pH for E. faecalis. In S. pyogenes and L. lactis, a change in pH resulted in a clear change in Y(ATP) (cell mass produced per mole of ATP). The pH that showed the highest Y(ATP) corresponded to the pH of the natural habitat of the organisms.

Increased mutation frequency in redox-impaired Escherichia coli due to RelA- and RpoS-mediated repression of DNA repair.

Balancing of reducing equivalents is a fundamental issue in bacterial metabolism and metabolic engineering. Mutations in the key metabolic genes ldhA and pflB of Escherichia coli are known to stall anaerobic growth and fermentation due to a buildup of intracellular NADH. We observed that the rate of spontaneous mutation in E. coli BW25113 (DeltaldhA DeltapflB) was an order of magnitude higher than that in wild-type (WT) E. coli BW25113. We hypothesized that the increased mutation frequency was due to an increased NADH/NAD(+) ratio in this strain. Using several redox-impaired strains of E. coli and different redox conditions, we confirmed a significant correlation (P < 0.01) between intracellular-NADH/NAD(+) ratio and mutation frequency. To identify the genetic basis for this relationship, whole-genome transcriptional profiles were compared between BW25113 WT and BW25113 (DeltaldhA DeltapflB). This analysis revealed that the genes involved in DNA repair were expressed at significantly lower levels in BW25113 (DeltaldhA DeltapflB). Direct measurements of the extent of DNA repair in BW25113 (DeltaldhA DeltapflB) subjected to UV exposure confirmed that DNA repair was inhibited. To identify a direct link between DNA repair and intracellular-redox ratio, the stringent-response-regulatory gene relA and the global-stress-response-regulatory gene rpoS were deleted. In both cases, the mutation frequencies were restored to BW25113 WT levels.

Alterations of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors-2, 4 and α7-nicotinic acetylcholine receptor expression after ischaemia / reperfusion in the rat isolated heart.

1. Cardiac acetylcholine receptors are involved in the negative inotropic effect of the vagus and the protection of the stimulated vagal nerve against myocardial ischaemic injury. Acetylcholine receptors consist of five types of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (M AChR) and several nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR). Notably, ischaemic heart disease is accompanied by substantial withdrawal of vagal activity. However, it is not entirely clear what the changes of M(2,4) AChR and α7-nAChR expression are after cardiac ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. 2. Cardiac functions were continuously recorded in Langendorff mode during 30 min of ischaemia and 60 min of reperfusion. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) leakage was measured. M(2,4) AChRs and α7-nAChR expression were measured by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and western blot. 3. In hearts exposed to I/R injury, left ventricular development pressure, heart rate and ± dP/dt decreased significantly compared with the controls. LDH leakage increased with respect to the controls during reperfusion. 4. In normal hearts, expression of M(2,4) AChR in the left ventricle were lower than in atria and the right ventricle, whereas expression of α7-nAChR was dramatically higher in the left ventricle and right ventricle than the atria. After reperfusion, the mRNA and protein expression of M(2) AChR increased notably in the left and right ventricle, and α7-nAChR was enhanced significantly in the left ventricle. M(4) AChR mRNA expression reduced notably after ischaemia and recovered to the control level after reperfusion in the atria, but the protein level did not change. 5. In conclusion, the increase in M(2) AChR and α7-nAChR after reperfusion might be the compensatory response to myocardial I/R injury, providing new information for treatment of myocardial I/R injury.

Construction and characterization of three lactate dehydrogenase-negative Enterococcus faecalis V583 mutants.

The roles of the two ldh genes of Enterococcus faecalis were studied using knockout mutants. Deletion of ldh-1 causes a metabolic shift from homolactic fermentation to ethanol, formate, and acetoin production, with a high level of formate production even under aerobic conditions. Ldh-2 plays only a minor role in lactate production.

Homo-D-lactic acid fermentation from arabinose by redirection of the phosphoketolase pathway to the pentose phosphate pathway in L-lactate dehydrogenase gene-deficient Lactobacillus plantarum.

Optically pure d-lactic acid fermentation from arabinose was achieved by using the Lactobacillus plantarum NCIMB 8826 strain whose l-lactate dehydrogenase gene was deficient and whose phosphoketolase gene was substituted with a heterologous transketolase gene. After 27 h of fermentation, 38.6 g/liter of d-lactic acid was produced from 50 g/liter of arabinose.

A spontaneous lactate dehydrogenase deficient mutant of Streptococcus rattus for use as a probiotic in the prevention of dental caries.

AIMS: To study the ability of daily applications of Streptococcus rattus strain JH145 to affect the numbers of an implanted Streptococcus mutans strain in a rat model. METHODS AND RESULTS: A spontaneous L(+)-lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)-deficient mutant of Streptococcus rattus, JH146, was isolated by screening on selective medium and compared with a previously isolated spontaneous LDH deficient strain, JH145. Both strains were shown to have single base pair deletion mutations in the structural gene (ldh) for LDH, and reversion frequencies were approximately the same. Animals treated once daily with >or=10(6) CFU (colony forming units) of JH145 showed a statistically significant decrease in the proportion of implanted S. mutans to total cultivable bacteria in oral swab samples. The rate of decrease in S. mutans levels was dose-dependent. No adverse effects were observed by in-life observation of treated animals, and histopathological, haematological and blood chemistry analyses were unremarkable. CONCLUSIONS: The results presented indicate that daily application of JH145, a naturally occurring LDH-deficient variant of S. rattus, can compete with S. mutans for its habitat on the tooth surface. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: S. rattus JH145 has potential as a probiotic for use in the prevention of dental caries.

Lactate dehydrogenase-B is silenced by promoter hypermethylation in human prostate cancer.

In order to identify novel candidates associated with prostate cancer metastasis, we compared the proteomic profile of the poorly metastatic human prostate cancer cell line LNCaP, with its highly metastatic variant LNCaP-LN3, by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. A major protein spot (pI of 5.9 and molecular weight of 37 kDa) was seen in LNCaP cells, but not in LNCaP-LN3 cells and was identified as lactate dehydrogenase-B (LDHB), by tandem mass spectrometry. Furthermore, enzyme kinetic assays and zymography showed a higher LDH enzyme activity in LNCaP cells compared with LNCaP-LN3. Bisulphite-modified DNA sequencing showed promoter hypermethylation in LNCaP-LN3 cells but not in LNCaP, Du145, PC3, CWR22 or BPH45 cells. Treatment of LNCaP-LN3 cells with 5'-azacytidine caused re-expression of LDHB transcripts. In tissues, LDHB promoter hypermethylation occurred at a higher frequency in prostate cancer, 14/ 31 (45%), compared to adjacent nonmalignant or benign tissue, 2/19 (11%) (P < 0.025). Immunohistochemistry showed a higher frequency of LDHB expression in benign or non-malignant tissues, 59/ 73 (81%), compared to cancer cases, 3/53 (6%) (P < 0.001). Absent LDHB expression was also seen in 7/7 (100%) cases of metastatic cancer in bone. Our data are the first to show loss of LDHB expression in prostate cancer, the mechanism of which appears to involve promoter hypermethylation.

Tarui disease and distal glycogenoses: clinical and genetic update.

Phosphofructokinase deficiency (Tarui disease) was the first disorder recognized to directly affect glycolysis. Since the discovery of the disease, in 1965, a wide range of biochemical, physiological and molecular studies have greatly contributed to our knowledge concerning not only phosphofructokinase function in normal muscle but also on the general control of glycolysis and glycogen metabolism. Studies on phosphofructokinase deficiency vastly enriched the field of glycogen storage diseases, making a relevant improvement also in the molecular genetic area. So far, more than one hundred patients have been described with prominent clinical symptoms characterized by muscle cramps, exercise intolerance, rhabdomyolysis and myoglobinuria, often associated with haemolytic anaemia and hyperuricaemia. The muscle phosphofructokinase gene is located on chromosome 12 and about 20 mutations have been described. Other glycogenoses have been recognised in the distal part of the glycolytic pathway: these are infrequent but some may induce muscle cramps, exercise intolerance and rhabdomyolysis. Phosphoglycerate Kinase, Phosphoglycerate Mutase, Lactate Dehydrogenase, beta-Enolase and Aldolase A deficiencies have been described as distal glycogenoses. From the molecular point of view, the majority of these enzyme deficiencies are sustained by "private" mutations.

Deletion of Lactate Dehydrogenase-A in Myeloid Cells Triggers Antitumor Immunity.

Immunometabolism is emerging as a critical determinant of cancer pathophysiology. In this study, we explored the contributions of macrophage-expressed lactate dehydrogenase-A (LDH-A) to tumor formation in a K-Ras murine model of lung carcinoma. Myeloid-specific deletion of LDH-A promoted accumulation of macrophages with a CD86high and MCP-1high M1-like phenotype that suppressed tumor growth. This phenotypic effect was accompanied by reduced VEGF expression and angiogenesis, diminished numbers of PD-L1+ cancer cells, increased numbers of CD3+ T cells, and activation status of CD8+ T cells. Furthermore, it was associated with more pronounced antitumor T-cell immunity via induction of IL17 and IFNγ-producing CD8+ T (Tc17 and Tc1) cells, likely via suppression of lactate-driven PD-L1 expression. Our results suggest that expressions of LDH-A and lactate by macrophage in the tumor microenvironment are major drivers of T-cell immunosuppression, strongly supporting the concept of targeting stromal LDH-A as an effective strategy to blunt tumoral immune escape. Cancer Res; 77(13); 3632-43. ©2017 AACR.

Lactate dehydrogenase activity drives hair follicle stem cell activation.

Although normally dormant, hair follicle stem cells (HFSCs) quickly become activated to divide during a new hair cycle. The quiescence of HFSCs is known to be regulated by a number of intrinsic and extrinsic mechanisms. Here we provide several lines of evidence to demonstrate that HFSCs utilize glycolytic metabolism and produce significantly more lactate than other cells in the epidermis. Furthermore, lactate generation appears to be critical for the activation of HFSCs as deletion of lactate dehydrogenase (Ldha) prevented their activation. Conversely, genetically promoting lactate production in HFSCs through mitochondrial pyruvate carrier 1 (Mpc1) deletion accelerated their activation and the hair cycle. Finally, we identify small molecules that increase lactate production by stimulating Myc levels or inhibiting Mpc1 carrier activity and can topically induce the hair cycle. These data suggest that HFSCs maintain a metabolic state that allows them to remain dormant and yet quickly respond to appropriate proliferative stimuli.

Hereditary lactate dehydrogenase M-subunit deficiency with late-developing pustular psoriasis-like lesions.

Hereditary lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) M-subunit deficiency is very rare and we have found reports of close to a dozen cases in the published work, two of which were associated with pustular psoriasis-like lesions. We report a third case of pustular psoriasis-like eruptions associated with LDH M-subunit deficiency, which occurred 24 years after the diagnosis of LDH M-subunit deficiency. These cases indicate that abnormal activity of LDH can induce pustular psoriatic lesions in the long term. Some patients with symptoms of hereditary LDH M-subunit deficiency have antecedent annular scaly plaque lesions, that resemble psoriatic lesions. We discuss a hypothesis to explain this scenario.