Expression pattern of the CXCL12/CXCR4-CXCR7 trio in Kaposi sarcoma skin lesions.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have independently implicated the chemokine CXCL12 and its receptors, CXCR4 and CXCR7, in the pathophysiology of Kaposi sarcoma (KS). OBJECTIVES: We investigated whether the CXCL12/CXCR4-CXCR7 protein trio could constitute KS biomarkers. METHODS: Endothelial and spindle cells positive for CXCL12/CXCR4-CXCR7, human herpesvirus-8 latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA), Ki67 antigen (proliferation) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were quantitated in skin lesions from patients with AIDS-associated KS, patients with classic KS and patients with angiomas, using immunohistochemistry and quantitative image analysis (16, 21 and 20 skin lesions, respectively). Plasma CXCL12 concentrations were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay from 20 patients with AIDS-KS, 12 HIV-infected patients without KS and 13 healthy donors' samples. RESULTS: Cells positive for CXCL12, CXCR4, CXCR7, LANA, Ki67 and VEGF were significantly enriched in patients with AIDS-associated KS and classic KS vs. angiomas (P < 0·001), and in nodular vs. macular/papular KS lesions (P < 0·05). CXCL12, CXCR4 and CXCR7 detection correlated with LANA, Ki67 and VEGF detection (r > 0·4; P < 0·05). However, plasma CXCL12 concentrations did not differ between patients with AIDS-associated KS, HIV-infected patients without KS, and healthy donors. CONCLUSIONS: The CXCL12/CXCR4-CXCR7 trio is upregulated in KS and correlates with KS pathophysiological markers and the severity of skin lesions. Histological assessment of the CXCL12 axis could serve as a valuable biomarker for KS diagnosis and progression.

Intestinal microbiota contributes to individual susceptibility to alcoholic liver disease.

OBJECTIVE: There is substantial inter-individual diversity in the susceptibility of alcoholics to liver injury. Alterations of intestinal microbiota (IM) have been reported in alcoholic liver disease (ALD), but the extent to which they are merely a consequence or a cause is unknown. We aimed to demonstrate that a specific dysbiosis contributes to the development of alcoholic hepatitis (AH). DESIGN: We humanised germ-free and conventional mice using human IM transplant from alcoholic patients with or without AH. The consequences on alcohol-fed recipient mice were studied. RESULTS: A specific dysbiosis was associated with ALD severity in patients. Mice harbouring the IM from a patient with severe AH (sAH) developed more severe liver inflammation with an increased number of liver T lymphocyte subsets and Natural Killer T (NKT) lymphocytes, higher liver necrosis, greater intestinal permeability and higher translocation of bacteria than mice harbouring the IM from an alcoholic patient without AH (noAH). Similarly, CD45+ lymphocyte subsets were increased in visceral adipose tissue, and CD4(+)T and NKT lymphocytes in mesenteric lymph nodes. The IM associated with sAH and noAH could be distinguished by differences in bacterial abundance and composition. Key deleterious species were associated with sAH while the Faecalibacterium genus was associated with noAH. Ursodeoxycholic acid was more abundant in faeces from noAH mice. Additionally, in conventional mice humanised with the IM from an sAH patient, a second subsequent transfer of IM from an noAH patient improved alcohol-induced liver lesions. CONCLUSIONS: Individual susceptibility to ALD is substantially driven by IM. It may, therefore, be possible to prevent and manage ALD by IM manipulation.

Oocyte in-vitro maturation: BCL2 mRNA content in cumulus cells reflects oocyte competency.

BCL2-associated X protein (BAX) and B-cell leukaemia/lymphoma gene-2 (BCL2), which are, respectively, pro- and anti-apoptotic proteins of the BCL2 gene family, participate in the mitochondria-dependent apoptosis pathway. A correlation between low incidence of apoptosis in cumulus cells and oocyte maturation has previously been suggested in ovarian stimulation. However, little is known in unprimed ovaries. These authors have investigated whether BAX and BCL2 expression in cumulus cells affects the competency of in-vitro matured oocytes. We have studied 100 cumulus-oocyte-complexes (COC) recovered from unprimed ovaries of 13 women diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and undergoing in-vitro maturation (IVM) with their informed consent. COC were matured for 24 h in a specific maturation medium and the cumulus was stripped from the oocyte. BAX and BCL2 mRNA content was measured in each COC using real-time polymerase chain reaction. We found that BCL2 mRNA expression was significantly higher in cumulus cells associated with mature oocytes than those associated with immature oocytes while BAX mRNA concentrations did not vary in cumulus cells. Regarding fertilization, higher BCL2 mRNA content was found in cumulus cells enclosing fertilized oocytes (0.140 versus 0.075; P = 0.03). These results suggest that BCL2 expression is strongly associated with the ability of oocytes to complete nuclear maturation and to be fertilized.

Chronic heart rate reduction by ivabradine prevents endothelial dysfunction in dyslipidaemic mice.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: High resting heart rate is a predictor for total and cardiovascular mortality independent of other risk factors in patients with coronary artery disease. We tested the hypothesis that a reduction of resting heart rate with the cardiac pacemaker I(f) current inhibitor ivabradine prevents the endothelial dysfunction associated with dyslipidaemia. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: Three-month-old dyslipidaemic (DL) male mice expressing the human ApoB-100 were assigned or not (DL, n=16), to treatment for 3 months with ivabradine (10 mg kg(-1) d(-1), n=17). Wild-type C57Bl/6 mice (WT, n=15) were used as controls. Heart rate was measured at 3, 4.5 and 6 months. Dilatation to acetylcholine (ACh) of isolated cerebral and renal arteries was investigated at 6 months. KEY RESULTS: Heart rate remained stable in anaesthetized WT mice, increased (25%, P<0.05) with age in DL mice but was limited (11%, P<0.05) by ivabradine. At 6 months, left ventricular maximal pressure was similar in all groups. The minimal and end-diastolic left ventricular pressures were increased (P<0.05) in DL (10.2+/-1.0 and 18.7+/-1.4 mm Hg) compared to WT (-0.4+/-0.7 and 6.3+/-1.0 mm Hg) and reduced (P<0.05) by ivabradine (4.2+/-1.3 and 11.5+/-1.5 mm Hg). ACh-induced maximal dilatation was impaired (P<0.05) in renal and cerebral arteries isolated from DL compared to WT (56+/-7 versus 83+/-3% in renal arteries; 22+/-2 versus 42+/-2% in cerebral arteries). Ivabradine completely prevented (P<0.05) this dysfunction in renal and cerebral arteries. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Selective heart rate reduction with ivabradine limits cardiac dysfunction and prevents the renovascular and cerebrovascular endothelial dysfunction associated with dyslipidaemia.

Search for rigid sub domains in DNA from molecular dynamics simulations.

A strategy is presented for searching which atoms can be regrouped within rigid sub-units during the time course of Molecular Dynamics simulations of biopolymers. The root mean square fluctuations of the interatomic distances are used as a criterion. The number of rigid sub-units which are found depends on the tolerance rc for the definition of a rigid body, i.e. until which value the fluctuations can be neglected. The method is applied to two self-complementary oligonucleotides belonging to the B-form family which give identical results. With rc = 0.027 nm each nucleotide may be described as 3 rigid sub-units: the sugar ring, the base and the backbone (PO4 + C5' atoms). With rc = 0.01 nm, the same sub-units are obtained except that C5' can no more be regrouped with the PO4 atoms. It is shown that the variation of the coulombic potential owing to the deformation of the sub-units during the time course of the simulation is on the same order of magnitude as the inaccuracy due to the choice of the force field parameters.

Selectively 13C-enriched DNA: evidence from 13C1' relaxation rate measurements of an internal dynamics sequence effect in the lac operator.

In order to study some internal dynamic processes of the lac operator sequence, the 13C-labeled duplex 5'd(C0G1C2T3C4A5C6A7A8T9T10).d(A10A9T8T7G6T5G4A3G2C1G0)3' was used. The spreading of both the 1H1' and 13C1' resonances brought about an excellent dispersion of the 1H1'-13C1' correlations. The spin-lattice relaxation parameters R(Cz), R(Cx,y) and R(Hz --> Cz) were measured for each residue of the two complementary strands, except for the 3'-terminal residues which were not labeled. Variation of the relaxation rates was found along the sequence. These data were analyzed in the context of the model-free formalism proposed by Lipari and Szabo [(1982) J. Am. Chem. Soc., 104, 4546-4570] and extended to three parameters by Clore et al. [(1990) Biochemistry, 29, 7387-7401; and (1990) J. Am. Chem. Soc., 112, 4989-4991]. A careful analysis using a least-squares program showed that our data must be interpreted in terms of a three-parameter spectral density function. With this approach, the global correlation time was found to be the same for each residue. All the C1'-H1' fragments exhibited both slow (tau s = 1.5 ns) and fast (tau f = 20 ps) restricted libration motions (Ss2 = 0.74 to 1.0 and Sf2 = 0.52 to 0.96). Relaxation processes were described as governed by the motion of the sugar relative to the base and in terms of bending of the whole duplex. The possible role played by the special structure of the AATT sequence is discussed. No evident correlation was found between the amplitude motions of the complementary residues. The 5'-terminal residues showed large internal motions (S2 = 0.5), which describe the fraying of the double helix. Global examination of the microdynamical parameters Sf2 and Ss2 along the nucleotide sequence showed that the adenine residues exhibit more restricted fast internal motions (Sf2 = 0.88 to 0.96) than the others, whereas the measured relaxation rates of the four nucleosides in solution were mainly of dipolar origin. Moreover, the fit of both R(Cz) and R(Hz --> Cz) experimental relaxation rates using an only global correlation time for all the residues, gave evidence of a supplementary relaxation pathway affecting R(Cx,y) for the purine residues in the (5' --> 3') G4A3 and A10A9T8T7 sequences. This relaxation process was analyzed in terms of exchange stemming from motions of the sugar around the glycosidic bond on the millisecond time scale. It should be pointed out that these residues gave evidence of close contacts with the protein in the complex with the lac operator [Boelens et al. (1987) J. Mol. Biol., 193, 213-216] and that these motions could be implied in the lac-operator-lac-repressor recognition process.

Selectively 13C-enriched DNA: dynamics of the C1'-H1' vector in d(CGCAAATTTGCG)2.

In order to examine the internal dynamic processes of the dodecamer d(CGCAAATTTGCG)2, the 13C-enriched oligonucleotide has been synthesized. The three central thymines were selectively 13C-labeled at the C1' position and their spin-lattice relaxation parameters R(CZ), R(CX,Y), R(HZ-->CZ), R(2HZCZ), R(2HZCX,Y) and R(HZC) were measured. Density functions were computed for two models of internal motions. Comparisons of the experimental data were made with spin-lattice relaxation rates rather than with the density functions, whose values were altered by accumulation of the uncertainties of each relaxation rate measurement. The spin-lattice relaxation rates were computed with respect to the motions of the sugar around the C1'-N1 bond. A two-state jump model between the anti- and syn-conformations with P(anti)/P(syn) = 91/9 or a restricted rotation model with delta chi = 28 degrees and an internal diffusion coefficient of 30 x 10(7) s-1 gave a good fit with the experimental data. Twist, tilt or roll base motions have little effect on 13C1' NMR relaxation. Simulation of spin-relaxation rates with the data obtained at several temperatures between 7 and 32 degrees C, where the dodecamer is double stranded, shows that the internal motion amplitude is independent of the temperature within this range, as expected for internal motion. Using the strong correlation which exists in a B-DNA structure between the chi and delta angle, we suggest that the change in the glycosidic angle value should be indicative of a sugar puckering between the C1'-exo and C2'-endo conformations.