Early onset of senescence and imbalanced epidermal homeostasis across the decades in photoexposed human skin: Fingerprints of inflammaging.

Inflammaging is a theory of ageing which purports that low-level chronic inflammation leads to cellular dysfunction and premature ageing of surrounding tissue. Skin is susceptible to inflammaging because it is the first line of defence from the environment, particularly solar radiation. To better understand the impact of ageing and photoexposure on epidermal biology, we performed a system biology-based analysis of photoexposed face and arm, and photoprotected buttock sites, from women between the ages of 20s to 70s. Biopsies were analysed by histology, transcriptomics, and proteomics and skin surface biomarkers collected from tape strips. We identified morphological changes with age of epidermal thinning, rete ridge pathlength loss and stratum corneum thickening. The SASP biomarkers IL-8 and IL-1RA/IL1-α were consistently elevated in face across age and cis/trans-urocanic acid were elevated in arms and face with age. In older arms, the DNA damage response biomarker 53BP1 showed higher puncti numbers in basal layers and epigenetic ageing were accelerated. Genes associated with differentiation and senescence showed increasing expression in the 30s whereas genes associated with hypoxia and glycolysis increased in the 50's. Proteomics comparing 60's vs 20's confirmed elevated levels of differentiation and glycolytic-related proteins. Representative immunostaining for proteins of differentiation, senescence and oxygen sensing/hypoxia showed similar relationships. This system biology-based analysis provides a body of evidence that young photoexposed skin is undergoing inflammaging. We propose the presence of chronic inflammation in young skin contributes to an imbalance of epidermal homeostasis that leads to a prematurely aged appearance during later life.

Arterial "inflammaging" drives vascular calcification in children on dialysis.

Children on dialysis have a cardiovascular mortality risk equivalent to older adults in the general population, and rapidly develop medial vascular calcification, an age-associated pathology. We hypothesized that premature vascular ageing contributes to calcification in children with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD). Vessels from children with Stage 5 CKD with and without dialysis had evidence of increased oxidative DNA damage. The senescence markers p16 and p21 were also increased in vessels from children on dialysis. Treatment of vessel rings ex vivo with calcifying media increased oxidative DNA damage in vessels from children with Stage 5 CKD, but not in those from healthy controls. Vascular smooth muscle cells cultured from children on dialysis exhibited persistent DNA damage, impaired DNA damage repair, and accelerated senescence. Under calcifying conditions vascular smooth muscle cells from children on dialysis showed increased osteogenic differentiation and calcification. These changes correlated with activation of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), an inflammatory phenotype characterized by the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines and growth factors. Blockade of ataxia-telangiectasia mutated (ATM)-mediated DNA damage signaling reduced both inflammation and calcification. Clinically, children on dialysis had elevated circulating levels of osteogenic SASP factors that correlated with increased vascular stiffness and coronary artery calcification. These data imply that dysregulated mineral metabolism drives vascular "inflammaging" by promoting oxidative DNA damage, premature senescence, and activation of a pro-inflammatory SASP. Drugs that target DNA damage signaling or eliminate senescent cells may have the potential to prevent vascular calcification in patients with advanced CKD.

Lamin A/C and emerin regulate MKL1-SRF activity by modulating actin dynamics.

Laminopathies, caused by mutations in the LMNA gene encoding the nuclear envelope proteins lamins A and C, represent a diverse group of diseases that include Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy (EDMD), dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, and Hutchison-Gilford progeria syndrome. Most LMNA mutations affect skeletal and cardiac muscle by mechanisms that remain incompletely understood. Loss of structural function and altered interaction of mutant lamins with (tissue-specific) transcription factors have been proposed to explain the tissue-specific phenotypes. Here we report in mice that lamin-A/C-deficient (Lmna(-/-)) and Lmna(N195K/N195K) mutant cells have impaired nuclear translocation and downstream signalling of the mechanosensitive transcription factor megakaryoblastic leukaemia 1 (MKL1), a myocardin family member that is pivotal in cardiac development and function. Altered nucleo-cytoplasmic shuttling of MKL1 was caused by altered actin dynamics in Lmna(-/-) and Lmna(N195K/N195K) mutant cells. Ectopic expression of the nuclear envelope protein emerin, which is mislocalized in Lmna mutant cells and also linked to EDMD and DCM, restored MKL1 nuclear translocation and rescued actin dynamics in mutant cells. These findings present a novel mechanism that could provide insight into the disease aetiology for the cardiac phenotype in many laminopathies, whereby lamin A/C and emerin regulate gene expression through modulation of nuclear and cytoskeletal actin polymerization.

Medial Arterial Calcification: An Overlooked Player in Peripheral Arterial Disease.

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is a global health issue that is becoming more prevalent in an aging world population. Diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney disease are also on the increase, and both are associated with accelerated vascular calcification and an unfavorable prognosis in PAD. These data challenge the traditional athero-centric view of PAD, instead pointing toward a disease process complicated by medial arterial calcification. Like atherosclerosis, aging is a potent risk factor for medial arterial calcification, and accelerated vascular aging may underpin the devastating manifestations of PAD, particularly in patients prone to calcification. Consequently, this review will attempt to dissect the relationship between medial arterial calcification and atherosclerosis in PAD and identify common as well as novel risk factors that may contribute to and accelerate progression of PAD. In this context, we focus on the complex interplay between oxidative stress, DNA damage, and vascular aging, as well as the unexplored role of neuropathy.

Nuclear mechanics in disease.

Over the past two decades, the biomechanical properties of cells have emerged as key players in a broad range of cellular functions, including migration, proliferation, and differentiation. Although much of the attention has focused on the cytoskeletal networks and the cell's microenvironment, relatively little is known about the contribution of the cell nucleus. Here, we present an overview of the structural elements that determine the physical properties of the nucleus and discuss how changes in the expression of nuclear components or mutations in nuclear proteins can not only affect nuclear mechanics but also modulate cytoskeletal organization and diverse cellular functions. These findings illustrate that the nucleus is tightly integrated into the surrounding cellular structure. Consequently, changes in nuclear structure and composition are highly relevant to normal development and physiology and can contribute to many human diseases, such as muscular dystrophy, dilated cardiomyopathy, (premature) aging, and cancer.

Nicotinamide Prevents UVB- and Oxidative Stress‒Induced Photoaging in Human Primary Keratinocytes.

Nicotinamide (NAM), a NAM adenine dinucleotide precursor, is known for its benefits to skin health. Under standard culture conditions, NAM delays the differentiation and enhances the proliferation of human primary keratinocytes, leading to the maintenance of stem cells. In this study, we investigated the effects of NAM on photoaging in two-dimensional human primary keratinocyte cultures and three-dimensional organotypic epidermal models. In both models, we found that UVB irradiation and hydrogen peroxide induced human primary keratinocyte premature terminal differentiation and senescence. In three-dimensional organotypics, the phenotype was characterized by a thickening of the granular layer expressing filaggrin and loricrin, but thinning of the epidermis overall. NAM limited premature differentiation and ameliorated senescence, as evidenced by the maintenance of lamin B1 levels in both models, with decreased lipofuscin staining and reduced IL-6/IL-8 secretion in three-dimensional models, compared to those in UVB-only controls. In addition, DNA damage observed after irradiation was accompanied by a decline in energy metabolism, whereas both effects were partially prevented by NAM. Our data thus highlight the protective effects of NAM against photoaging and oxidative stress in the human epidermis and pinpoint DNA repair and energy metabolism as crucial underlying mechanisms.

Faces of cellular senescence in skin aging.

The skin is comprised of different cell types with different proliferative capacities. Skin aging occurs with chronological age and upon exposure to extrinsic factors such as photodamage. During aging, senescent cells accumulate in different compartments of the human skin, leading to impaired skin physiology. Diverse skin cell types may respond differently to senescence-inducing stimuli and it is not clear how this results in aging-associated skin phenotypes and pathologies. This review aims to examine and provide an overview of current evidence of cellular senescence in the skin. We will focus on cellular characteristics and behaviour of different skin cell types undergoing senescence in the epidermis and dermis, with a particular focus on the complex interplay between mitochondrial dysfunction, autophagy and DNA damage pathways. We will also examine how the dermis and epidermis cope with the accumulation of DNA damage during aging.

DNA damage during mitosis invokes a JNK-mediated stress response that leads to cell death.

Mitotic catastrophe is a phenomenon displayed by cells undergoing aberrant mitosis to eliminate cells that fail to repair the errors. Why and how mitotic catastrophe would lead to cell death remains to be resolved and the answer will prove valuable in design of better therapeutic agents that specifically target such cells in mitosis. The antibiotic actinomycin D has been shown to induce chromosomal lesions in lower order organisms as well as in human interphase cells. Relatively few studies have been conducted to elucidate molecular events in the context of mitotic DNA damage. We have previously established a model of mitotic catastrophe in human HeLa cells induced by actinomycin D. Here, we show that actinomycin D induce cellular stress via DNA damage during mitosis. The higher order packing of chromosomes during mitosis might impede efficient DNA repair. gammaH2AX serves as a marker for DNA repair and active JNK interacts with gammaH2AX in actinomycin D-treated mitotic extracts. We believe JNK might be in part, responsible for the phosphorylation of H2AX and thereby, facilitate the propagation of a positive signal for cell death, when repair is not achieved. The mitotic cell activates JNK-mediated cell death response that progresses through a caspase cascade downstream of the mitochondria. In the mean time, remaining checkpoint signals may be sufficient to put a restraining hand on entry into anaphase and the cell eventually dies in mitosis.

Perturbation of the chromosomal binding of RCC1, Mad2 and survivin causes spindle assembly defects and mitotic catastrophe.

Mitotic catastrophe is a form of cell death that results from aberrant mitosis. Currently, the mechanisms involved in this form of cell death remain poorly understood. We found that actinomycin D induces mitotic catastrophe with severe spindle assembly defects. We have studied the nature of three groups of chromosome binding proteins in mitotic cells treated with actinomycin D. We found that actinomycin D reduced the binding affinity of RCC1 to the mitotic chromosome, which led to a reduction of RanGTP level. In addition, Mad2 was not concentrated at the kinetochores, indicating that the mitotic spindle checkpoint was affected. Furthermore, the localization of survivin was altered in cells. These data suggested that chromosomal binding of the mitotic regulators such as RCC1, Mad2 and survivin is essential for mitotic progression. Mitotic chromosomes not only carry the genetic material needed for the newly synthesized daughter cells, but also serve as docking sites for some of the mitotic regulators. Perturbation of their binding to the mitotic chromosome by actinomycin D could affect their functions in regulating mitotic progression thus leading to severe spindle defects and mitotic catastrophe.

Muscle tensions merge to cause a DNA replication crisis.

In this issue, Wang et al. (2018. J. Cell Biol. https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.201708137) show that disruption to different mechanical domains of muscle cells converge at the linker of nucleoskeleton to cytoskeleton complex to affect DNA endoreplication potentially via barrier to autointegration factor-mediated epigenetic mechanisms.

Late-onset transient adrenal insufficiency in preterm twins with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome: A case report.

RATIONALE: Late-onset transient adrenal insufficiency with circulatory collapse is a rare condition that occurs in preterm infants. Although the incidence of late-onset transient adrenal insufficiency in preterm infants has been reported in Japan, reports from Western countries are lacking. In addition, no study has investigated the effect of twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) in monozygotic twins. PATIENT CONCERNS: A pair of extremely low birth weight twins presented with TTTS. DIAGNOSES: Both twins developed late-onset adrenal insufficiency with oliguria, hypotension, hyponatremia, and pulmonary edema at a postnatal age of 24 days and 51 days, respectively. INTERVENTION: Temporary administration of intravenous hydrocortisone was initiated. OUTCOMES: Their symptoms improved dramatically and they survived the event without any neurologic sequelae after 3 years of follow-up. LESSONS: Late-onset circulatory collapse may occur, especially in extremely preterm infants, even at 2 months after birth. Hydrocortisone therapy is an effective treatment to rescue circulatory collapse caused by adrenal insufficiency in preterm infants and may not affect long-term neuromotor and cognitive outcomes.

Identification of cellular membrane proteins interacting with hepatitis B surface antigen using yeast split-ubiquitin system.

Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) is the major component of the envelope of hepatitis B virus (HBV). As a resident membrane protein in the endoplasmic reticulum, it plays a key role in the viral morphogenesis. Little is known about cellular proteins that interact with HBsAg and thereby contributing to HBV morphogenesis. Using the yeast split-ubiquitin system, a number of cellular membrane proteins have been isolated in this study. These include a resident protein of endoplasmic reticulum (thioredoxin-related transmembrane protein 2), an adaptor protein involved in clathrin-mediated endocytosis and HIV-mediated downregulation of CD4, and a co-receptor of coxsakie B virus. The significance of our findings is suggested by the identification of cellular membrane proteins interacting with other virus proteins. Further functional analysis of these HBsAg- interacting cellular membrane proteins should shed new insights on their role in HBV morphogenesis.

Novel insights into the disease etiology of laminopathies.

Laminopathies are a heterogeneous group of diseases that are caused by mutations in the nuclear envelope proteins lamins A and C. Laminopathies include dilated cardiomyopathy, Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy, and familial partial lipodystrophy. Despite their near-ubiquitous expression, most laminopathies involve highly tissue-specific phenotypes, often affecting skeletal and cardiac muscle. The underlying mechanism(s) remain incompletely understood. We recently reported that altered actin dynamics in lamin A/C-deficient and mutant cells disturb nuclear shuttling of the transcriptional co-activator MKL1, which is critical for cardiac function. Expression of the inner nuclear membrane protein emerin rescues MKL1 translocation through modulating actin dynamics. Here, we elaborate on these findings, discuss new insights into the role of nuclear actin in MKL1activity, and demonstrate that primary human skin fibroblasts from a patient with dilated cardiomyopathy have impaired MKL1 nuclear translocation. These findings further strengthen the relevance of impaired MKL1 signaling as a potential contributor to the disease mechanism in laminopathies.

Apoptotic histone modification inhibits nuclear transport by regulating RCC1.

A number of signalling pathways have been identified that regulate apoptosis, but the mechanism that initiates apoptosis remains incompletely understood. We have found that the nuclear RanGTP level is diminished during the early stages of apoptosis, which correlates with immobilization of RCC1 on the chromosomes. Furthermore, the expression of phosphomimetic histone H2B or caspase-activated Mst1 immobilizes RCC1 and causes reduction of nuclear RanGTP levels, which leads to inactivation of the nuclear transport machinery. As a consequence, nuclear localization signal (NLS)-containing proteins, including NF-kappaB-p65, remain bound to importins alpha and beta in the cytoplasm. Knocking down Mst1 allows resumption of nuclear transport and the nuclear entry of NF-kappaB-p65, which have important roles in rescuing cells from apoptosis. Therefore, we propose that RCC1 reads the histone code created by caspase-activated Mst1 to initiate apoptosis by reducing the level of RanGTP in the nucleus.