Generation of a ZEB2 deficient human iPSC line (KICRi002A-4).

The transcription factor ZEB2 is essential for early embryonic development. Using CRISPR/Cas9, we generated a ZEB2 deficient human iPSC cell line (KICRi002A-4), carrying a homozygous 790 bp deletion in ZEB2 that involves part of exon 5, intron 5 and part of exon 6. The deletion leads to markedly reduced levels of a truncated ZEB2 transcript. No ZEB2 protein was detected by immunopreciptation. The iPSC line expressed pluripotency markers and showed a capacity to differentiate into the three germ layers in vitro. Assessment of genomic integrity revealed a normal karyotype without detectable OFF-target editing. The iPSC line KICRi002A-4 thus offers a valuable resource to study the role of ZEB2 for the commitment and differentiation of various human cell lineages.

The E3 Ubiquitin Ligase TRIM21 Regulates Basal Levels of PDGFRß.

Activation of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptors α and ß (PDGFRα and PDGFRß) at the cell surface by binding of PDGF isoforms leads to internalization of receptors, which affects the amplitude and kinetics of signaling. Ubiquitination of PDGF receptors in response to ligand stimulation is mediated by the Casitas b-lineage lymphoma (Cbl) family of ubiquitin ligases, promoting internalization and serving as a sorting signal for vesicular trafficking of receptors. We report here that another E3 ligase, i.e., tripartite motif-containing protein 21 (TRIM21), contributes to the ubiquitination of PDGFRß in human primary fibroblasts AG1523 and the osteosarcoma cell line U2OS and regulates basal levels of PDGFRß. We found that siRNA-mediated depletion of TRIM21 led to decreased ubiquitination of PDGFRß in response to PDGF-BB stimulation, while internalization from the cell surface and the rate of ligand-induced degradation of the receptor were not affected. Moreover, induction of TRIM21 decreased the levels of PDGFRß in serum-starved cells, and even more in growing cells, in the absence of PDGF stimulation. Consistently, siRNA knockdown of TRIM21 caused accumulation of the total amount of PDGFRß, both in the cytoplasm and on the cell surface, without affecting mRNA levels of the receptor. We conclude that TRIM21 acts post-translationally and maintains basal levels of PDGFRß, thus suggesting that ubiquitination of PDGFRß by TRIM21 may direct a portion of receptor for degradation in growing cells in a ligand-independent manner.

SUMOylation of PDGF receptor α affects signaling via PLCγ and STAT3, and cell proliferation.

BACKGROUND: The platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) family of ligands exerts their cellular effects by binding to α- and ß-tyrosine kinase receptors (PDGFRα and PDGFRß, respectively). SUMOylation is an important posttranslational modification (PTM) which regulates protein stability, localization, activation and protein interactions. A mass spectrometry screen has demonstrated SUMOylation of PDGFRα. However, the functional role of SUMOylation of PDGFRα has remained unknown. RESULTS: In the present study, we validated that PDGFRα is SUMOylated on lysine residue 917 as was previously reported using a mass spectrometry approach. Mutation of lysine residue 917 to arginine (K917R) in PDGFRα substantially decreased SUMOylation, indicating that this amino acid residue is a major SUMOylation site. Whereas no difference in the stability of wild-type and mutant receptor was observed, the K917R mutant PDGFRα was less ubiquitinated than wild-type PDGFRα. The internalization and trafficking of the receptor to early and late endosomes were not affected by the mutation, neither was the localization of the PDGFRα to Golgi. However, the K917R mutant PDGFRα showed delayed activation of PLC-γ and enhanced activation of STAT3. Functional assays showed that the mutation of K917 of PDGFRα decreased cell proliferation in response to PDGF-BB stimulation. CONCLUSIONS: SUMOylation of PDGFRα decreases ubiquitination of the receptor and affects ligand-induced signaling and cell proliferation.

Effects of 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and tacalcitol on cell signaling and anchorage-independent growth in T98G and U251 glioblastoma cells.

The active hormonal form of vitamin D, 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, is reported to have 1000s of biological targets. The growth-suppressive properties of 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and its synthetic analogs have attracted interest for the development of treatment and/or prevention of cancer. We examined effects of 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and the vitamin D analog tacalcitol on signaling pathways and anchorage-independent growth in T98G and U251 glioblastoma cells. Assay of signaling proteins important for cellular growth indicated suppression of p70-S6 kinase levels by 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and tacalcitol in T98G cells, whereas the levels of PLCγ, a target for phospholipid signaling, was slightly increased. Activation of STAT3, an important regulator of malignancy, was suppressed by 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and tacalcitol in T98G and U251 cells. However, despite the close structural similarity of these compounds, suppression was stronger by tacalcitol (1α,24-dihydroxyvitamin D3), indicating that even minor modifications of a vitamin D analog can impact its effects on signaling. Experiments using soft agar colony formation assay in T98G and U251 cells revealed significant suppression by 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and tacalcitol on anchorage-independent growth, a property for cancer invasion and metastasis known to correlate with tumorigenicity. These findings indicate that vitamin D and its analogs may be able to counteract the oncogenic transformation, invasion and metastatic potential of glioblastoma and prompt further study of these compounds in the development of improved therapy for brain cancer.

Deubiquitinating enzymes USP4 and USP17 finetune the trafficking of PDGFRß and affect PDGF-BB-induced STAT3 signalling.

Interaction of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) isoforms with their receptors results in activation and internalization of receptors, with a concomitant activation of downstream signalling pathways. Ubiquitination of PDGFRs serves as a mark to direct the internalization and sorting of the receptors. By overexpressing a panel of deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs), we found that USP17 and USP4 efficiently deubiquitinate PDGF receptor ß (PDGFRß) and are able to remove both Lys63 and Lys48-linked polyubiquitin chains from the receptor. Deubiquitination of PDGFRß did not affect its stability, but regulated the timing of its trafficking, whereby USP17 prolonged the presence of the receptor at the cell surface, while USP4 affected the speed of trafficking towards early endosomes. Induction of each of the DUBs in BJhTERT fibroblasts and U2OS osteosarcoma cells led to prolonged and/or shifted activation of STAT3 in response to PDGF-BB stimulation, which in turn led to increased transcriptional activity of STAT3. Induction of USP17 promoted acute upregulation of the mRNA expression of STAT3-inducible genes STAT3, CSF1, junB and c-myc, while causing long-term changes in the expression of myc and CDKN1A. Deletion of USP17 was lethal to fibroblasts, while deletion of USP4 led to a decreased proliferative response to stimulation by PDGF-BB. Thus, USP17- and USP4-mediated changes in ubiquitination of PDFGRß lead to dysregulated signalling and transcription downstream of STAT3, resulting in defects in the control of cell proliferation.

Structure-based discovery of novel small molecule inhibitors of platelet-derived growth factor-B.

Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) is a family of growth factors with mitogenic and chemotactic activity. However, uncontrolled and overactivated PDGF signaling has been implicated in a variety of diseases, such as cancers and atherosclerosis. In this context, inhibition of PDGF-PDGFR signaling is of paramount importance in progression of such diseases. The purpose of the current study was to identify novel PDGF-B inhibitors using virtual screening methods. To this end, a combination of molecular modeling techniques such as molecular docking and dynamics simulation, as well as drug likeness filtering criteria, was applied to select anti-PDGF peptidomimetic candidates based on crystallography solved structure of an anti-PDGF-B monoclonal antibody named, MOR8457. In vitro biological assays of the selected compounds revealed two of them being active at micromolar IC50 concentrations. The presented work can provide a framework for systematic peptidomimetic identification for anti-PDGF-B agents from large chemical libraries.

PDGFRß translocates to the nucleus and regulates chromatin remodeling via TATA element-modifying factor 1.

Translocation of full-length or fragments of receptors to the nucleus has been reported for several tyrosine kinase receptors. In this paper, we show that a fraction of full-length cell surface platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptor ß (PDGFRß) accumulates in the nucleus at the chromatin and the nuclear matrix after ligand stimulation. Nuclear translocation of PDGFRß was dependent on PDGF-BB-induced receptor dimerization, clathrin-mediated endocytosis, ß-importin, and intact Golgi, occurring in both normal and cancer cells. In the nucleus, PDGFRß formed ligand-inducible complexes with the tyrosine kinase Fer and its substrate, TATA element-modifying factor 1 (TMF-1). PDGF-BB stimulation decreased TMF-1 binding to the transcriptional regulator Brahma-related gene 1 (Brg-1) and released Brg-1 from the SWI-SNF chromatin remodeling complex. Moreover, knockdown of TMF-1 by small interfering RNA decreased nuclear translocation of PDGFRß and caused significant up-regulation of the Brg-1/p53-regulated cell cycle inhibitor CDKN1A (encoding p21) without affecting PDGFRß-inducible immediate-early genes. In conclusion, nuclear interactions of PDGFRß control proliferation by chromatin remodeling and regulation of p21 levels.

The PDGF/PDGFR pathway as a drug target.

Platelet-derived growth factors (PDGF) promotes cell proliferation, survival and migration, primarily of cells of mesenchymal origin. Dysfunction of PDGF signaling has been observed in a wide array of pathological conditions, such as cancer, fibrosis, neurological conditions and atherosclerosis. Reported abnormalities of the PDGF pathway include overexpression or amplification of PDGF receptors (PDGFRs), gain of function point mutations or activating chromosomal translocations. Current development of therapeutic drugs often aims at producing compounds that specifically target interaction between PDGFs and their receptors by specific DNA aptamers and ligand traps, or downregulate PDGFRs with blocking antibodies, or inhibit tyrosine kinase activity of PDGFRs with small molecules. In this review, we discuss some of the approaches taken to interfere with PDGF signaling, review a panel of existing therapeutic drugs, and consider clinically successful cases and remaining challenges.

Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-induced activation of Erk5 MAP-kinase is dependent on Mekk2, Mek1/2, PKC and PI3-kinase, and affects BMP signaling.

Platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB) binds to its tyrosine kinase receptors (PDGFRs) and stimulates mitogenicity and survival of cells of mesenchymal origin. Activation of PDGFRs initiates a number of downstream signaling pathways, including phosphatidyl 3'-inositol kinase (PI3-kinase), phospholipase Cγ and MAP kinase pathways. In this report, we show that Erk5 MAP kinase is activated in response to PDGF-BB in the smooth muscle cell line MOVAS in a manner dependent on Mekk2, Mek1/2, Mek5, PI3-kinase and protein kinase C (PKC). The co-operation of Mek1/2 and Mekk2 in the activation of Erk5, suggests a close co-regulation between the Erk1/2 and Erk5 MAP kinase pathways. Furthermore, we found that classical PKCs are important for Erk5 activation. In addition, we found that PKCζ interacts with Erk5 and may exert a negative feed-back effect. We observed no nuclear accumulation of Erk5 in response to PDGF-BB stimulation, however, we identified a mechanism by which cytoplasmic Erk5 influences gene expression; Erk5 was essential for PDGF-BB-mediated Smad1/5/8 signaling by stimulating release and/or activation of bone morphogenetic protein(s) (BMPs). Thus, PDGF-BB-induced Erk5 activation involves parallel stimulatory and inhibitory pathways and promotes Smad1/5/8 signaling.

NR4A1 promotes PDGF-BB-induced cell colony formation in soft agar.

The fibroblast mitogen platelet-derived growth factor -BB (PDGF-BB) induces a transient expression of the orphan nuclear receptor NR4A1 (also named Nur77, TR3 or NGFIB). The aim of the present study was to investigate the pathways through which NR4A1 is induced by PDGF-BB and its functional role. We demonstrate that in PDGF-BB stimulated NIH3T3 cells, the MEK1/2 inhibitor CI-1040 strongly represses NR4A1 expression, whereas Erk5 downregulation delays the expression, but does not block it. Moreover, we report that treatment with the NF-κB inhibitor BAY11-7082 suppresses NR4A1 mRNA and protein expression. The majority of NR4A1 in NIH3T3 was found to be localized in the cytoplasm and only a fraction was translocated to the nucleus after continued PDGF-BB treatment. Silencing NR4A1 slightly increased the proliferation rate of NIH3T3 cells; however, it did not affect the chemotactic or survival abilities conferred by PDGF-BB. Moreover, overexpression of NR4A1 promoted anchorage-independent growth of NIH3T3 cells and the glioblastoma cell lines U-105MG and U-251MG. Thus, whereas NR4A1, induced by PDGF-BB, suppresses cell growth on a solid surface, it increases anchorage-independent growth.