Human cytomegalovirus inhibits apoptosis by proteasome-mediated degradation of Bax at endoplasmic reticulum-mitochondrion contacts.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) encodes the UL37 exon 1 protein (pUL37x1), which is the potent viral mitochondrion-localized inhibitor of apoptosis (vMIA), to increase survival of infected cells. HCMV vMIA traffics from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) to ER subdomains, which are physically linked to mitochondria known as mitochondrion-associated membranes (MAM), and to mitochondria. The antiapoptotic function of vMIA is thought to primarily result from its ability to inhibit Bax-mediated permeabilization of the outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM). Here, we establish that vMIA retargets Bax to the MAM as well as to the OMM from immediate early through late times of infection. However, MAM localization of Bax results in its increased ubiquitination and proteasome-mediated degradation. Surprisingly, HCMV infection does not increase OMM-associated degradation (OMMAD) of Bax, even though the ER and mitochondria are physically connected at the MAM. It was recently found that lipid rafts at the plasma membrane can connect extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways and can serve as sites of apoptosome assembly. In transfected permissive human fibroblasts, vMIA mediates, through its cholesterol affinity, association of Bax and apoptosome components with MAM lipid rafts. While Bax association with MAM lipid rafts was detected in HCMV-infected cells, association of apoptosome components was not. These results establish that Bax recruitment to the MAM and its MAM-associated degradation (MAMAD) are a newly described antiapoptotic mechanism used by HCMV infection to increase cell survival for its growth.

Viral mitochondria-localized inhibitor of apoptosis (UL37 exon 1 protein) does not protect human neural precursor cells from human cytomegalovirus-induced cell death.

Congenital human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection can cause severe brain abnormalities. Apoptotic HCMV-infected brain cells have been detected in a congenitally infected infant. In biologically relevant human neural precursor cells (hNPCs), cultured in physiological oxygen tensions, HCMV infection (m.o.i. of 1 or 3) induced cell death within 3 days post-infection (p.i.) and increased thereafter. Surprisingly, its known anti-apoptotic genes, including the potent UL37 exon 1 protein (pUL37x1) or viral mitochondria-localized inhibitor of apoptosis (vMIA), which protects infected human fibroblasts (HFFs) from apoptosis and from caspase-independent, mitochondrial serine protease-mediated cell death, were expressed by 2 days p.i. Consistent with this finding, an HCMV UL37x1 mutant, BADsubstitutionUL37x1 (BADsubUL37x1) induced cell death in hNPCs (m.o.i. = 1) to level which were indistinguishable from parental virus (BADwild-type)-infected hNPCs. Surprisingly, although BADsubUL37x1 is growth defective in permissive HFFs, it produced infectious progeny in hNPCs with similar kinetics and to levels comparable to BADwild-type-infected hNPCs (m.o.i. = 1). While delayed at a lower multiplicity (m.o.i. = 0.3), the BADsubUL37x1 mutant reached similar levels to revertant within 12 days, in contrast to its phenotype in HFFs. The inability of pUL37x1/vMIA to protect hNPCs from HCMV-induced cell death did not result from impaired trafficking as pUL37x1/vMIA trafficked efficiently to mitochondria in transfected hNPCs and in HCMV-infected hNPCs. These results establish that pUL37x1/vMIA, although protective in permissive HFFs, does not protect HCMV-infected hNPCs from cell death under physiologically relevant oxygen tensions. They further suggest that pUL37x1/vMIA is not essential for HCMV growth in hNPCs and has different cell type-specific roles.

Selective reduction of graft-versus-host disease-mediating human T cells by ex vivo treatment with soluble Fas ligand.

Previous work done in our laboratory, using mouse models, showed that soluble Fas ligand (sFasL) can efficiently delete donor anti-host T cells during their activation against irradiated host cells in MLCs. In the mouse models, this ex vivo sFasL treatment abrogated graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) while sparing donor T cells with antitumor reactivity. The present work was performed with human cells, to extend our work toward reduction of clinical GVHD. PBMC responders from a given individual (first party) were stimulated in vitro with irradiated PBMC stimulators from a second person (second party), in the presence of sFasL. In control MLCs without sFasL, alloreacting T cells began to up-regulate Fas (CD95) detectably and became sensitive to Fas-mediated apoptosis by as early as day 1-2. In MLCs containing sFasL, there were greatly reduced numbers of alloreacting CD3(+)CFSE(lo) cells, activation Ag-expressing CD4(hi) and CD8(hi) cells, IFN-gamma-producing CD4(+) and CD8(+) cells, and CD8(+)CD107a(+) CTLs. Furthermore, mice transplanted with the ex vivo sFasL/MLR-treated cells had prolonged time to fatal GVHD in an in vivo xenogeneic GVHD model. Responder cells harvested from primary MLCs containing sFasL had reduced proliferation in response to second party cells, but proliferated in response to CMV Ags, PHA, and third party cells. In addition, sFasL/MLR-treated cell populations contained influenza-specific T cells, CD4(+)FOXP3(+) T cells, and CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells. These data indicate that this ex vivo sFasL/MLR depletion of alloreacting human donor anti-host T cells was efficient and selective.

HIV-1 TAR miRNA protects against apoptosis by altering cellular gene expression.

BACKGROUND: RNA interference is a gene regulatory mechanism that employs small RNA molecules such as microRNA. Previous work has shown that HIV-1 produces TAR viral microRNA. Here we describe the effects of the HIV-1 TAR derived microRNA on cellular gene expression. RESULTS: Using a variation of standard techniques we have cloned and sequenced both the 5' and 3' arms of the TAR miRNA. We show that expression of the TAR microRNA protects infected cells from apoptosis and acts by down-regulating cellular genes involved in apoptosis. Specifically, the microRNA down-regulates ERCC1 and IER3, protecting the cell from apoptosis. Comparison to our cloned sequence reveals possible target sites for the TAR miRNA as well. CONCLUSION: The TAR microRNA is expressed in all stages of the viral life cycle, can be detected in latently infected cells, and represents a mechanism wherein the virus extends the life of the infected cell for the purpose of increasing viral replication.

Kruppel-like factor 4 is essential for inflammatory monocyte differentiation in vivo.

Several members of the Kruppel-like factor (KLF) family of transcription factors play important roles in differentiation, survival, and trafficking of blood and immune cell types. We demonstrate in this study that hematopoietic cells from KLF4(-/-) fetal livers (FL) contained normal numbers of functional hematopoietic progenitor cells, were radioprotective, and performed as well as KLF4(+/+) cells in competitive repopulation assays. However, hematopoietic "KLF4(-/-) chimeras" generated by transplantation of KLF4(-/-) fetal livers cells into lethally irradiated wild-type mice completely lacked circulating inflammatory (CD115(+)Gr1(+)) monocytes, and had reduced numbers of resident (CD115(+)Gr1(-)) monocytes. Although the numbers and function of peritoneal macrophages were normal in KLF4(-/-) chimeras, bone marrow monocytic cells from KLF4(-/-) chimeras expressed lower levels of key trafficking molecules and were more apoptotic. Thus, our in vivo loss-of-function studies demonstrate that KLF4, previously shown to mediate proinflammatory signaling in human macrophages in vitro, is essential for differentiation of mouse inflammatory monocytes, and is involved in the differentiation of resident monocytes. In addition, inducible expression of KLF4 in the HL60 human acute myeloid leukemia cell line stimulated monocytic differentiation and enhanced 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate induced macrophage differentiation, but blocked all-trans-retinoic acid induced granulocytic differentiation of HL60 cells. The inflammation-selective effects of loss-of-KLF4 and the gain-of-KLF4-induced monocytic differentiation in HL60 cells identify KLF4 as a key regulator of monocytic differentiation and a potential target for translational immune modulation.

CD34+ hematopoietic stem-progenitor cell microRNA expression and function: a circuit diagram of differentiation control.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a recently identified class of epigenetic elements consisting of small noncoding RNAs that bind to the 3' untranslated region of mRNAs and down-regulate their translation to protein. miRNAs play critical roles in many different cellular processes including metabolism, apoptosis, differentiation, and development. We found 33 miRNAs expressed in CD34+ hematopoietic stem-progenitor cells (HSPCs) from normal human bone marrow and mobilized human peripheral blood stem cell harvests. We then combined these data with human HSPC mRNA expression data and with miRNA-mRNA target predictions, into a previously undescribed miRNA:mRNA interaction database called the Transcriptome Interaction Database. The in silico predictions from the Transcriptome Interaction Database pointed to miRNA control of hematopoietic differentiation through translational control of mRNAs critical to hematopoiesis. From these predictions, we formulated a model for miRNA control of stages of hematopoiesis in which many of the genes specifying hematopoietic differentiation are expressed by HSPCs, but are held in check by miRNAs until differentiation occurs. We validated miRNA control of several of these target mRNAs by demonstrating that their translation in fact is decreased by miRNAs. Finally, we chose miRNA-155 for functional characterization in hematopoiesis, because we predicted that it would control both myelopoiesis and erythropoiesis. As predicted, miRNA-155 transduction greatly reduced both myeloid and erythroid colony formation of normal human HSPCs.