Simultaneous substrate and ubiquitin modification recognition by bispecific antibodies enables detection of ubiquitinated RIP1 and RIP2.

Ubiquitination is a posttranslational modification that is crucial for the dynamic regulation of diverse signaling pathways. To enhance our understanding of ubiquitination-mediated signaling, we generated a new class of bispecific antibodies that combine recognition of ubiquitination substrates and specific polyubiquitin linkages. RIP1-K63 and RIP1-linear (Lin) linkage polyubiquitin bispecific antibodies detected linkage-specific ubiquitination of the proinflammatory kinase RIP1 in cells and in tissues and revealed RIP1 ubiquitination by immunofluorescence. Similarly, ubiquitination of the RIP1-related kinase RIP2 with K63 or linear linkages was specifically detected with the RIP2-K63 and RIP2-Lin bispecific antibodies, respectively. Furthermore, using the RIP2-K63 and RIP2-Lin bispecific antibodies, we found prominent K63-linked and linear RIP2 ubiquitination in samples from patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. We also developed a bispecific antibody (K63-Lin) that simultaneously recognizes K63-linked and linear ubiquitination of components of various signaling pathways. Together, these bispecific antibodies represent a new class of reagents with the potential to be developed for the detection of inflammatory biomarkers.

XIAP deletion sensitizes mice to TNF-induced and RIP1-mediated death.

XIAP is a caspase-inhibitory protein that blocks several cell death pathways, and mediates proper activation of inflammatory NOD2-RIP2 signaling. XIAP deficiency in patients with inflammatory diseases such as Crohn's disease, or those needing allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation, is associated with a worse prognosis. In this study, we show that XIAP absence sensitizes cells and mice to LPS- and TNF-mediated cell death without affecting LPS- or TNF-induced NF-κB and MAPK signaling. In XIAP deficient mice, RIP1 inhibition effectively blocks TNF-stimulated cell death, hypothermia, lethality, cytokine/chemokine release, intestinal tissue damage and granulocyte migration. By contrast, inhibition of the related kinase RIP2 does not affect TNF-stimulated events, suggesting a lack of involvement for the RIP2-NOD2 signaling pathway. Overall, our data indicate that in XIAP's absence RIP1 is a critical component of TNF-mediated inflammation, suggesting that RIP1 inhibition could be an attractive option for patients with XIAP deficiency.

Structures of autoinhibited and polymerized forms of CARD9 reveal mechanisms of CARD9 and CARD11 activation.

CARD9 and CARD11 drive immune cell activation by nucleating Bcl10 polymerization, but are held in an autoinhibited state prior to stimulation. Here, we elucidate the structural basis for this autoinhibition by determining the structure of a region of CARD9 that includes an extensive interface between its caspase recruitment domain (CARD) and coiled-coil domain. We demonstrate, for both CARD9 and CARD11, that disruption of this interface leads to hyperactivation in cells and to the formation of Bcl10-templating filaments in vitro, illuminating the mechanism of action of numerous oncogenic mutations of CARD11. These structural insights enable us to characterize two similar, yet distinct, mechanisms by which autoinhibition is relieved in the course of canonical CARD9 or CARD11 activation. We also dissect the molecular determinants of helical template assembly by solving the structure of the CARD9 filament. Taken together, these findings delineate the structural mechanisms of inhibition and activation within this protein family.

Diverse ubiquitin linkages regulate RIP kinases-mediated inflammatory and cell death signaling.

Members of the RIP kinase family are key regulators of inflammation and cell death signaling implicated in maintaining immune responses and proper tissue homeostasis. Increasing evidence points to post-translational modifications of RIP1, RIP2 and RIP3 as being critical for regulating their function. Ubiquitination and the E3 ligases, such as inhibitors of apoptosis (IAP) proteins and LUBAC, that direct substrate selectivity as well as the deubiquitinating enzymes, such as A20 and OTULIN, that reverse these modifications dictate the outcome of RIP kinase signaling. Perturbation of the tightly regulated RIP1, RIP2 and RIP3 ubiquitination can lead to signaling disbalance in TNF, TLR and NOD1/2-controlled pathways and result in severe human pathologies. In this review, we focus on the biological function of ubiquitin-modifying enzymes in the context of RIP1, RIP2 and RIP3 signaling. We also discuss the impact of deregulated ubiquitin networks in RIP1, RIP2 and RIP3 signaling pathways on human health.

IAP antagonization promotes inflammatory destruction of vascular endothelium.

In this study, we show for the first time that the therapeutic antagonization of inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAPs) inhibits B16 melanoma growth by disrupting tumor vasculature. Specifically, the treatment of mice bearing B16 melanoma with an IAP antagonist compound A (Comp A) inhibits tumor growth not by inducing direct cytotoxicity against B16 cells but rather by a hitherto unrecognized antiangiogenic activity against tumor vessels. Our detailed analysis showed that Comp A treatment induces NF-κB activity in B16 tumor cells and facilitates the production of TNF. In the presence of Comp A, endothelial cells (ECs) become highly susceptible to TNF and undergo apoptotic cell death. Accordingly, the antiangiogenic and growth-attenuating effects of Comp A treatment were completely abolished in TNF-R knockout mice. This novel targeting approach could be of clinical value in controlling pathological neoangiogenesis under inflammatory condition while sparing blood vessels under normal condition.

BID-dependent release of mitochondrial SMAC dampens XIAP-mediated immunity against Shigella.

The X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP) is a potent caspase inhibitor, best known for its anti-apoptotic function in cancer. During apoptosis, XIAP is antagonized by SMAC, which is released from the mitochondria upon caspase-mediated activation of BID. Recent studies suggest that XIAP is involved in immune signaling. Here, we explore XIAP as an important mediator of an immune response against the enteroinvasive bacterium Shigella flexneri, both in vitro and in vivo. Our data demonstrate for the first time that Shigella evades the XIAP-mediated immune response by inducing the BID-dependent release of SMAC from the mitochondria. Unlike apoptotic stimuli, Shigella activates the calpain-dependent cleavage of BID to trigger the release of SMAC, which antagonizes the inflammatory action of XIAP without inducing apoptosis. Our results demonstrate how the cellular death machinery can be subverted by an invasive pathogen to ensure bacterial colonization.

Embelin inhibits endothelial mitochondrial respiration and impairs neoangiogenesis during tumor growth and wound healing.

In the normal quiescent vasculature, only 0.01% of endothelial cells (ECs) are proliferating. However, this proportion increases dramatically following the angiogenic switch during tumor growth or wound healing. Recent evidence suggests that this angiogenic switch is accompanied by a metabolic switch. Here, we show that proliferating ECs increasingly depend on mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OxPhos) for their increased energy demand. Under growth conditions, ECs consume three times more oxygen than quiescent ECs and work close to their respiratory limit. The increased utilization of the proton motif force leads to a reduced mitochondrial membrane potential in proliferating ECs and sensitizes to mitochondrial uncoupling. The benzoquinone embelin is a weak mitochondrial uncoupler that prevents neoangiogenesis during tumor growth and wound healing by exhausting the low respiratory reserve of proliferating ECs without adversely affecting quiescent ECs. We demonstrate that this can be exploited therapeutically by attenuating tumor growth in syngenic and xenograft mouse models. This novel metabolic targeting approach might be clinically valuable in controlling pathological neoangiogenesis while sparing normal vasculature and complementing cytostatic drugs in cancer treatment.

Ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase-L1 potentiates cancer chemosensitivity by stabilizing NOXA.

The BH3-only protein NOXA represents one of the critical mediators of DNA-damage-induced cell death. In particular, its involvement in cellular responses to cancer chemotherapy is increasingly evident. Here, we identify a strategy of cancer cells to escape genotoxic chemotherapy by increasing proteasomal degradation of NOXA. We show that the deubiquitylating enzyme UCH-L1 is a key regulator of NOXA turnover, which protects NOXA from proteasomal degradation by removing Lys(48)-linked polyubiquitin chains. In the majority of tumors from patients with melanoma or colorectal cancer suffering from high rates of chemoresistance, NOXA fails to accumulate because UCH-L1 expression is epigenetically silenced. Whereas UCH-L1/NOXA-positive tumor samples exhibit increased sensitivity to genotoxic chemotherapy, downregulation of UCH-L1 or inhibition of its deubiquitylase activity resulted in reduced NOXA stability and resistance to genotoxic chemotherapy in both human and C. elegans cells. Our data identify the UCH-L1/NOXA interaction as a therapeutic target for overcoming cancer chemoresistance.