Molecular characterizations of glioblastoma, targeted therapy, and clinical results to date.

During the last decade, extensive multiplatform genome-wide analysis has yielded a wealth of knowledge regarding the genetic and molecular makeup of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). These profiling studies support the emerging view that GBM comprises a group of highly heterogeneous tumor types, each with its own distinct molecular and genetic signatures. This heterogeneity complicates the process of defining reliable intertumor/intratumor biological states, which will ultimately be needed for classifying tumors and for designing effective customized therapies that target resultant disease pathways. The increased understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of GBM has brought the hope and expectation that such knowledge will lead to better and more rational therapies directed toward specific molecular targets. To date, however, these expectations have largely been unrealized. This review discusses some of the principal genetic and epigenetic aberrations found in GBM that appear promising for targeted therapies now and in the near future, and it offers suggestions for future directions concerning the rather disappointing results of clinical trials to date.

Arf6 controls retromer traffic and intracellular cholesterol distribution via a phosphoinositide-based mechanism.

Small GTPases play a critical role in membrane traffic. Among them, Arf6 mediates transport to and from the plasma membrane, as well as phosphoinositide signalling and cholesterol homeostasis. Here we delineate the molecular basis for the link between Arf6 and cholesterol homeostasis using an inducible knockout (KO) model of mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs). We find that accumulation of free cholesterol in the late endosomes/lysosomes of Arf6 KO MEFs results from mistrafficking of Niemann-Pick type C protein NPC2, a cargo of the cation-independent mannose-6-phosphate receptor (CI-M6PR). This is caused by a selective increase in an endosomal pool of phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate (PI4P) and a perturbation of retromer, which controls the retrograde transport of CI-M6PR via sorting nexins, including the PI4P effector SNX6. Finally, reducing PI4P levels in KO MEFs through independent mechanisms rescues aberrant retromer tubulation and cholesterol mistrafficking. Our study highlights a phosphoinositide-based mechanism for control of cholesterol distribution via retromer.

Deletion of DDB1 in mouse brain and lens leads to p53-dependent elimination of proliferating cells.

DDB1, a component of the Cul4 ubiquitin ligase complex, promotes protein ubiquitination in diverse cellular functions, including nuclear excision repair, regulation of the cell cycle, and DNA replication. To investigate its physiological significance, we generated mice with null and floxed alleles of the DDB1 gene. Here we report that null mutation of DDB1 caused early embryonic lethality, while conditional inactivation of the gene in brain and lens led to neuronal and lens degeneration, brain hemorrhages, and neonatal death. These defects stemmed from a selective elimination of nearly all proliferating neuronal progenitor cells and lens epithelial cells by apoptosis. The cell death was preceded by aberrant accumulation of cell cycle regulators and increased genomic instability and could be partially rescued by removal of the tumor suppressor protein p53. Our results indicate that DDB1 plays an essential role in maintaining viability and genomic integrity of dividing cells.

Bacterial induction of TNF-alpha converting enzyme expression and IL-6 receptor alpha shedding regulates airway inflammatory signaling.

Airway epithelial cells have a major role in initiating inflammation in response to bacterial pathogens. Through the immediate induction of CXCL8 and cytokine expression, polymorphonuclear cells are mobilized and activated to eradicate the infecting organisms. However, the influx of polymorphonuclear cells and the effects of their toxic exoproducts impede respiratory function. We postulated that respiratory epithelial cells must also participate in the regulation of their own proinflammatory signaling. Both Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were found to potently activate IL-6 expression immediately upon contact with epithelial cells, and by 1 h induced TNF-alpha converting enzyme (TACE) transcription. By 4 h of bacterial exposure, TACE colocalized with IL-6Ralpha on the apical surface of airway cells, and by 24 h, soluble IL-6Ralpha accumulated in the cell culture supernatant. Epithelial IL-6 and soluble IL-6Ralpha were shown to participate in trans-signaling, interacting with membrane-associated gp130 to activate CCL-2 expression and inhibit additional CXCL8 production. Thus, bacteria are physiological activators of TACE expression, which provides a mechanism to regulate inflammatory signaling that is initiated by airway epithelial cells.