Enhancement of Immune Functions by Limosilactobacillus reuteri KBL346: In Vitro and In Vivo Studies.

Lactobacilli have been widely used as probiotics because of their benefits for intestinal health and physiological functions. Among a variety of Lactobacillus genera, Limosilactobacillus reuteri has been studied for its ability to exert anti-inflammatory functions and its role in controlling metabolic disorders, as well as the production of the antimicrobial compound reuterin. However, the effects and mechanisms of L. reuteri on enhancing immune responses in the immunosuppressed states have been relatively understudied. In this study, we isolated an immunomodulatory strain, namely, L. reuteri KBL346 (KBL346), from a fecal sample of a 3-month-old infant in Korea. We evaluated the immunostimulatory activity and hematopoietic function of KBL346 in macrophages and cyclophosphamide (CPA)-induced immunosuppressed mice. KBL346 increased the phagocytic activity against Candida albicans MYA-4788 in macrophages, and as biomarkers for this, increased secretions of nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) were confirmed. Also, the secretions of innate cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-6) were increased. In CPA-induced immunosuppressed mice, KBL346 at a dosage of 1010 CFU/kg protected against spleen injury and suppressed levels of immune-associated parameters, including NK cell activity, T and B lymphocyte proliferation, CD4+ and CD8+ T cell abundance, cytokines, and immunoglobulins in vivo. The effects were comparable or superior to those in the Korean red ginseng positive control group. Furthermore, the safety assessment of KBL346 as a probiotic was conducted by evaluating its antibiotic resistance, hemolytic activity, cytotoxicity, and metabolic characteristics. This study demonstrated the efficacy and safety of KBL346, which could potentially be used as a supplement to enhance the immune system.

Synthesis and Charge Transport of Polymer Nanocomposite of Polyaniline: Polystyrene Sulfonate.

We demonstrate the preparation of water-dispersible polyaniline:polystyrene sulfonate (PANI:PSS), which was doped with camphorsulfonic acid (CSA) and co-doped with poly (4-styrenesulfonic acid) (PSS). The proper formation of the PANI and PANI:PSS was verified by FTIR measurements. The synthesized samples were further characterized via UV-vis spectroscopy. The intensive study on the current density (J)-voltage (V) characteristics within the temperature range (143-303 K) of the synthesized sample was performed systematically. The electrical study shows that the doping of PANI with CSA as a dopant and PSS as a co-dopant significantly improves the overall semi-conducting property of PANI. The detailed analysis of the current density (J)-voltage (V) curve at various temperatures reveals the electrical conduction behavior, which follows the trap-dependent space-charge limited conduction (SCLC) mechanism.

Improvement of d-Lactic Acid Production in Saccharomyces cerevisiae Under Acidic Conditions by Evolutionary and Rational Metabolic Engineering.

Microbial lactic acid (LA) production under acidic fermentation conditions is favorable to reduce the production cost, but circumventing LA toxicity is a major challenge. A d-LA-producing Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain JHY5610 is generated by expressing d-lactate dehydrogenase gene (Lm. ldhA) from Leuconostoc mesenteroides, while deleting genes involved in ethanol production (ADH1, ADH2, ADH3, ADH4, and ADH5), glycerol production (GPD1 and GPD2), and degradation of d-LA (DLD1). Adaptive laboratory evolution of JHY5610 lead to a strain JHY5710 having higher LA tolerance and d-LA-production capability. Genome sequencing of JHY5710 reveal that SUR1I245S mutation increases LA tolerance and d-LA-production, whereas a loss-of-function mutation of ERF2 only contributes to increasing d-LA production. Introduction of both SUR1I245S and erf2Δ mutations into JHY5610 largely mimic the d-LA-production capability of JHY5710, suggesting that these two mutations, which could modulate sphingolipid production and protein palmitoylation, are mainly responsible for the improved d-LA production in JHY5710. JHY5710 is further improved by deleting PDC1 encoding pyruvate decarboxylase and additional integration of Lm. ldhA gene. The resulting strain JHY5730 produce up to 82.6 g L-1 of d-LA with a yield of 0.83 g g-1 glucose and a productivity of 1.50 g/(L · h) in fed-batch fermentation at pH 3.5.

CK2-dependent phosphorylation positively regulates stress-induced activation of Msn2 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

CK2 is a highly conserved Ser/Thr protein kinase involved in a large number of cellular processes. Here, we demonstrate that CK2-dependent phosphorylation positively regulates Msn2/4, the general stress response transcriptional activators in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, in response to various types of environmental stress conditions. CK2 overexpression elicits hyperactivation of Msn2/4, whereas deletion of one of the CK2 catalytic subunits, especially CKA2, leads to reduced transcriptional activity of Msn2/4 in response to glucose starvation, H2O2, and lactic acid. The CKA2 deletion mutant also shows increased stress sensitivity. CK2 phosphorylates Ser194 and Ser638 in Msn2 and replacement of Ser638 with alanine leads to reduced Msn2 activity upon stress and reduced tolerance to H2O2 and lactic acid. CKA2 deletion mutant shows shorter nuclear retention time of Msn2 upon lactic acid stress, suggesting that CK2 might regulate nuclear localization of Msn2. However, Msn2S194A, S638A mutant shows normal nuclear import and export patterns upon stress, suggesting that CK2 might positively regulate the general stress response not only by direct phosphorylation of Msn2/4, but also by regulating cellular translocation machinery.

Betaine reduces cellular melanin content via suppression of microphthalmia-associated transcription factor in B16-F1 murine melanocytes.

Long-term topical skin care by traditional anti-melanogenic agents can raise several safety concerns. An understanding of the molecular mechanisms of active compounds on melanogenesis is, therefore, necessary to address pigmentation issues. Here we revealed that stimulation with 1 mM betaine, an abundant component in rice bran, significantly reduced 21% of intracellular melanin content by suppressing tyrosinase activity and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) expression in B16-F1 murine melanocytes. The expression of MITF was suppressed at both mRNA and protein levels by 43 and 44%, respectively. Subsequently, the betaine-stimulated melanocytes showed inhibition of PKA-CREB signaling axis but activation of extracellular-signal-regulated kinase and AKT-GSK3ß signaling pathways. This inhibition and activation led to downregulation of MITF expression at both the transcriptional and post-translational levels to suppress melanin synthesis. These findings collectively suggested that betaine is a potential anti-melanogenic compound for functional foods and cosmetics.

Intramolecular and Intermolecular Interactions in Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Alucone Films Grown by Molecular Layer Deposition.

Investigation of molecular interactions in polymeric films is crucial for understanding and engineering multiscale physical phenomena correlated to device function and performance, but this often involves a compromise between theoretical and experimental data, because of poor film uniformity. Here, we report the intramolecular and intermolecular interactions inside the ultrathin and conformal hybrid organic-inorganic alucone films grown by molecular layer deposition, based on sequential and self-limiting surface reactions. Varying the carbon chain length of organic precursors, which affects their molecular flexibility, caused intramolecular interactions such as double reactions by bending of the molecular backbone, resulting in formation of hole vacancies in the films. Furthermore, intermolecular interactions in alucone polymeric films are dependent on the thermal kinetics of molecules, leading to binding failures and cross-linking at low and high growth temperatures, respectively. We illustrate these key interactions and identify molecular geometries and potential energies by density functional theory calculations.

Controlled Growth of Rubrene Nanowires by Eutectic Melt Crystallization.

Organic semiconductors including rubrene, Alq3, copper phthalocyanine and pentacene are crystallized by the eutectic melt crystallization. Those organic semiconductors form good eutectic systems with the various volatile crystallizable additives such as benzoic acid, salicylic acid, naphthalene and 1,3,5-trichlorobenzene. Due to the formation of the eutectic system, organic semiconductors having originally high melting point (Tm > 300 °C) are melted and crystallized at low temperature (Te = 40.8-133 °C). The volatile crystallizable additives are easily removed by sublimation. For a model system using rubrene, single crystalline rubrene nanowires are prepared by the eutectic melt crystallization and the eutectic-melt-assisted nanoimpinting (EMAN) technique. It is demonstrated that crystal structure and the growth direction of rubrene can be controlled by using different volatile crystallizable additives. The field effect mobility of rubrene nanowires prepared using several different crystallizable additives are measured and compared.

CK2-dependent inhibitory phosphorylation is relieved by Ppt1 phosphatase for the ethanol stress-specific activation of Hsf1 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Ethanol, the major fermentation product of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, has long been known as an inducer of heat shock response, but the underlying mechanisms by which ethanol activates heat shock transcription factor (HSF) are not well understood. We demonstrate that CK2-dependent phosphorylation on S608 is an ethanol stress-specific repression mechanism of Hsf1, which does not affect the basal or heat-induced activity of Hsf1. This repression is relieved by dephosphorylation by Ppt1 which directly interacts with Hsf1 via its tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) domain. In response to ethanol stress, PPT1 deletion and CK2 overexpression exert synergistic inhibitory effects on Hsf1 activation, whereas Hsf1(S608A) mutant shows enhanced activation. Therefore, regulation of the Hsf1 S608 phosphorylation status by reciprocal actions of CK2 and Ppt1 might play an important role to determine Hsf1 sensitivity towards ethanol stress.

Single-crystal poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) nanowires with ultrahigh conductivity.

We developed single-crystal poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiopene) (PEDOT) nanowires with ultrahigh conductivity using liquid-bridge-mediated nanotransfer printing with vapor phase polymerization. The single-crystal PEDOT nanowires are formed from 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) monomers that are self-assembled and crystallized during vapor phase polymerization process within nanoscale channels of a mold having FeCl3 catalysts. These PEDOT nanowires, aligned according to the pattern in the mold, are then directly transferred to specific positions on a substrate to generate a nanowire array by a direct printing process. The PEDOT nanowires have closely packed single-crystalline structures with orthorhombic lattice units. The conductivity of the single-crystal PEDOT nanowires is an average of 7619 S/cm with the highest up to 8797 S/cm which remarkably exceeds literature values of PEDOT nanostructures/thin films. Such distinct conductivity enhancement of single-crystal PEDOT nanowires can be attributed to improved carrier mobility in PEDOT nanowires. To demonstrate usefulness of single-crystal PEDOT nanowires, we fabricated an organic nanowire field-effect transistor array contacting the ultrahigh conductive PEDOT nanowires as metal electrodes.

Metabolic engineering of Saccharomyces cerevisiae for the production of 2-phenylethanol via Ehrlich pathway.

2-Phenylethanol (2-PE), a fragrance compound with a rose-like odor, is widely used in perfumery and cosmetics. Here, we report the first metabolic engineering approach for 2-PE production in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. 2-PE can be produced from the catabolism of L-phenylalanine via Ehrlich pathway, consisting of transamination to phenylpyruvate by Aro9, decarboxylation to phenylacetaldehyde by Aro10, and reduction to 2-PE by alcohol dehydrogenases. We demonstrated that Ald3 is mainly responsible for phenylacetaldehyde oxidation, competing with 2-PE production. ALD3 deletion strain overexpressing ARO9 and ARO10 both by episomal overexpression and by induction of the endogenous genes through overexpression of Aro80 transcription factor, produced 4.8 g/L 2-PE in a medium containing 10 g/L L-phenylalanine as a sole nitrogen source. Considering the cytotoxicity of 2-PE, this production titer is almost the upper limit that can be reached in batch cultures, suggesting the great potential of this yeast strain for 2-PE production. 2-PE production was further increased by applying two-phase fermentation method with polypropylene glycol 1200 as an extractant, reaching 6.1 g/L 2-PE in organic phase with the molar yield of 82.5%, which is about ninefold increase compared with wild type.

Rim15-dependent activation of Hsf1 and Msn2/4 transcription factors by direct phosphorylation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Rim15 kinase, a downstream effector of PKA and TORC1 signaling pathways, initiates the quiescent program upon nutrient starvation via induction of genes whose expression depends on transcription factors Msn2, Msn4, and Gis1. Here, we demonstrate that Rim15 also induces expression of Hsf1 target genes upon glucose depletion by both transcriptional activation and stabilization of the transcripts. Rim15 phosphorylates Hsf1 in vitro, suggesting that Rim15 might directly activate Hsf1. In addition, Igo1 and Igo2, Rim15 substrate proteins involved in mRNA stabilization, regulate mRNA levels of Hsf1 target genes. We also show that Rim15 can phosphorylate Msn2, but not Gis1, in vitro, implying different mechanisms for the activation of these transcription factors.

Dual inhibition of γ-oryzanol on cellular melanogenesis: inhibition of tyrosinase activity and reduction of melanogenic gene expression by a protein kinase A-dependent mechanism.

The in vitro effects on melanogenesis of γ-oryzanol (1), a rice bran-derived phytosterol, were investigated. The melanin content in B16F1 cells was significantly and dose-dependently reduced (-13% and -28% at 3 and 30 µM, respectively). Tyrosinase enzyme activity was inhibited by 1 both in a cell-free assay and when analyzed based on the measurement of cellular tyrosinase activity. Transcriptome analysis was performed to investigate the biological pathways altered by 1, and it was found that gene expression involving protein kinase A (PKA) signaling was markedly altered. Subsequent analyses revealed that 1 stimulation in B16 cells reduced cytosolic cAMP concentrations, PKA activity (-13% for cAMP levels and -40% for PKA activity), and phosphorylation of the cAMP-response element binding protein (-57%), which, in turn, downregulated the expression of microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF; -59% for mRNA and -64% for protein), a key melanogenic gene transcription factor. Accordingly, tyrosinase-related protein 1 (TRP-1; -69% for mRNA and -82% for protein) and dopachrome tautomerase (-51% for mRNA and -92% for protein) in 1-stimulated B16F1 cells were also downregulated. These results suggest that 1 has dual inhibitory activities for cellular melanogenesis by inhibiting tyrosinase enzyme activity and reducing MITF and target genes in the PKA-dependent pathway.

Momilactione B inhibits protein kinase A signaling and reduces tyrosinase-related proteins 1 and 2 expression in melanocytes.

Momilactone B (MB) is a terpenoid phytoalexin present in rice bran that exhibits several biological activities. MB reduced the melanin content in B16 melanocytes melanin content and inhibited tyrosinase activities. Using transcriptome analysis, the genes involved in protein kinase A (PKA) signaling were found to be markedly altered. B16 cells stimulated with MB had decreased concentrations of cAMP protein kinase A activity, and cAMP-response element-binding protein which is a key transcription factor for microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) expression. Accordingly, the expression of MITF and its target genes, which are essential for melanogenesis, were reduced. MB thus exhibits anti-melanogenic effects by repressing tyrosinase enzyme activity and inhibiting the PKA signaling pathway which, in turn, decreases melanogenic gene expression.

Cytotoxicity of, and innate immune response to, size-controlled polypyrrole nanoparticles in mammalian cells.

Monodisperse polypyrrole (PPy) nanoparticles with five different diameters (20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 nm) were fabricated via chemical oxidation polymerization in order to evaluate size-dependent cytotoxicity. The cellular uptake of PPy nanoparticles in human lung fibroblasts (IMR90) and mouse alveolar macrophages (J774A.1) was observed by transmission electron microscopy. The nanoparticles were internalized into the IMR90 via endocytosis. In the J774A.1, the nanoparticles were entered via phagocytosis and endocytosis. Endocytosed nanoparticles were transported to lysosome via endosome-network. The cytotoxicity and innate immune response of PPy-treated cells were systematically investigated by viability assay, oxidative stress, apoptosis/necrosis, and expression of costimulatory molecules. The viability, oxidative stress, and apoptosis/necrosis of PPy-treated cells revealed size- and dose-dependency. Because of phagocytosis, PPy treatment had more adverse effects on the J774A.1 than the IMR90. Innate immune response of PPy-treated macrophages was measured by the expression of costimulatory molecules on surface of the cells. The expression of costimulatory molecules involved in Th1 response (CD40 and CD80) was lightly up-regulated and the other costimulatory molecule related in Th2 response (CD86) was less expressed than a negative control. These findings may provide better nanotoxicological information of polymer nanomaterials, and support the further development of PPy nanoparticles in bioelectronic applications.

Cellular uptake, cytotoxicity, and innate immune response of silica-titania hollow nanoparticles based on size and surface functionality.

Silica-titania hollow nanoparticles (HNPs) with uniform diameters of 25, 50, 75, 100, and 125 nm were fabricated by dissolution and redeposition method in order to evaluate size dependent cellular response. Surface-modified HNPs with cationic, anionic, and neutral functional group were prepared by silane treatment. We systematically investigated cellular internalization, toxicity, and innate immune response of HNPs in human breast cancer (SK-BR-3) and mouse alveolar macrophage (J774A.1) cells. Size- and surface functionality-dependent cellular uptake of HNPs was investigated by fluorescence labeling (fluorescein isothiocyanate), inductively coupled plasma-emission spectroscopy, and ultrastructural resolution using transmission electron microscopy. Viability, reactive oxygen species, and apoptosis/necrosis of HNP-treated J774A.1 revealed the size-dependent phenomenon. Innate immune response of HNP-treated macrophages was measured by three cytokines such as interleukin-1, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor α. Among the HNPs of different sizes, 50-nm HNPs demonstrated the highest toxic influence on macrophages. Among the HNPs with surface functionalities, cationic HNPs demonstrated the most toxic effect on J774A.1 and the highest uptake efficiency. The toxicity results of HNP-treated macrophages were consistent with the cellular internalization efficiency. These findings provide size- and surface functionality-dependent nanotoxicity and uptake of HNPs, and lead to HNPs for bioapplications such as drug delivery and imaging probe.

Yeast Yak1 kinase, a bridge between PKA and stress-responsive transcription factors, Hsf1 and Msn2/Msn4.

Hsf1 and Msn2/Msn4 transcription factors in Saccharomyces cerevisiae play important roles in cellular homeostasis by activating gene expression in response to multiple stresses including heat shock, oxidative stress and nutrient starvation. Although it has been known that nuclear import of Msn2 is inhibited by PKA-dependent phosphorylation, the mechanism for PKA-dependent regulation of Hsf1 is not well understood. Here we demonstrate that Yak1 kinase, which is under the negative control of PKA, activates both Hsf1 and Msn2 by phosphorylation when PKA activity is lowered by glucose depletion or by overexpressing Pde2 that hydrolyses cAMP. We show that Yak1 directly phosphorylates Hsf1 in vitro, leading to the increase in DNA binding activity of Hsf1. We also demonstrate that Yak1 phosphorylates Msn2 in vitro, but does not affect DNA binding activity of Msn2 or nuclear localization of Msn2 upon glucose depletion. These results suggest a central role for Yak1 in mediating PKA-dependent inhibition of Hsf1 and Msn2/Msn4.