A revised model of TRAIL-R2 DISC assembly explains how FLIP(L) can inhibit or promote apoptosis.

The long FLIP splice form FLIP(L) can act as both an inhibitor and promoter of caspase-8 at death-inducing signalling complexes (DISCs) formed by death receptors such as TRAIL-R2 and related intracellular complexes such as the ripoptosome. Herein, we describe a revised DISC assembly model that explains how FLIP(L) can have these opposite effects by defining the stoichiometry (with respect to caspase-8) at which it converts from being anti- to pro-apoptotic at the DISC. We also show that in the complete absence of FLIP(L), procaspase-8 activation at the TRAIL-R2 DISC has significantly slower kinetics, although ultimately the extent of apoptosis is significantly greater. This revised model of DISC assembly also explains why FLIP's recruitment to the TRAIL-R2 DISC is impaired in the absence of caspase-8 despite showing that it can interact with the DISC adaptor protein FADD and why the short FLIP splice form FLIP(S) is the more potent inhibitor of DISC-mediated apoptosis.

A theoretical and experimental investigation of the nonlinear acoustic response of acoustic insertion elements.

In a previous paper, a model was developed for the nonlinear acoustic resistance for compact insertion elements. Within the model, two loss coefficients are used to tune the model for each type of element, and data were used to empirically determine these coefficients for an area contraction. This paper extends the nonlinear model, developing expressions based on physical principles for the forward and reverse loss coefficients for both an area contraction and orifice. In addition, experimental data for the acoustic resistance of both elements was taken using an impedance tube. Utilizing the expressions developed, the model compares favorably with the experimental data.

A theoretical investigation of the nonlinear acoustic response of abrupt area contractions.

Acoustic instabilities are frequently the culprit for engine failure. To mitigate these instabilities, an accurate model of the nonlinear acoustic pressure profile of the system is necessary. This study develops a nonlinear model for the acoustic response of an area-contraction. The derivation begins with the unsteady Bernoulli equation which is formed into the pressure drop across the area-contraction. Each acoustic variable is assumed to be time-harmonic and is written as the sum of a steady and fundamental term. Using a Fourier transformation, nonlinear expressions for the pressure drop and impedance are derived as functions of the steady and acoustic velocity. These expressions capture the nonlinearity of the acoustic response when the flow can reverse out of the orifice, i.e., the amplitude of the mean velocity is less than the amplitude of the oscillating acoustic velocity. This impedance model is verified by archive quality acoustic response data from a previous study.

S-Adenosyl Methionine Cofactor Modifications Enhance the Biocatalytic Repertoire of Small Molecule C-Alkylation.

A tandem enzymatic strategy to enhance the scope of C-alkylation of small molecules via the in situ formation of S-adenosyl methionine (SAM) cofactor analogues is described. A solvent-exposed channel present in the SAM-forming enzyme SalL tolerates 5'-chloro-5'-deoxyadenosine (ClDA) analogues modified at the 2-position of the adenine nucleobase. Coupling SalL-catalyzed cofactor production with C-(m)ethyl transfer to coumarin substrates catalyzed by the methyltransferase (MTase) NovO forms C-(m)ethylated coumarins in superior yield and greater substrate scope relative to that obtained using cofactors lacking nucleobase modifications. Establishing the molecular determinants that influence C-alkylation provides the basis to develop a late-stage enzymatic platform for the preparation of high value small molecules.

A Tandem Enzymatic sp2 -C-Methylation Process: Coupling in Situ S-Adenosyl-l-Methionine Formation with Methyl Transfer.

A one-pot, two-step biocatalytic platform for the regiospecfic C-methylation and C-ethylation of aromatic substrates is described. The tandem process utilises SalL (Salinospora tropica) for in situ synthesis of S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM), followed by alkylation of aromatic substrates by the C-methyltransferase NovO (Streptomyces spheroides). The application of this methodology is demonstrated for the regiospecific labelling of aromatic substrates by the transfer of methyl, ethyl and isotopically labelled 13 CH3,13 CD3 and CD3 groups from their corresponding SAM analogues formed in situ.

Systematic methodology for the development of biocatalytic hydrogen-borrowing cascades: application to the synthesis of chiral α-substituted carboxylic acids from α-substituted α,ß-unsaturated aldehydes.

Ene-reductases (ERs) are flavin dependent enzymes that catalyze the asymmetric reduction of activated carbon-carbon double bonds. In particular, α,ß-unsaturated carbonyl compounds (e.g. enals and enones) as well as nitroalkenes are rapidly reduced. Conversely, α,ß-unsaturated esters are poorly accepted substrates whereas free carboxylic acids are not converted at all. The only exceptions are α,ß-unsaturated diacids, diesters as well as esters bearing an electron-withdrawing group in α- or ß-position. Here, we present an alternative approach that has a general applicability for directly obtaining diverse chiral α-substituted carboxylic acids. This approach combines two enzyme classes, namely ERs and aldehyde dehydrogenases (Ald-DHs), in a concurrent reductive-oxidative biocatalytic cascade. This strategy has several advantages as the starting material is an α-substituted α,ß-unsaturated aldehyde, a class of compounds extremely reactive for the reduction of the alkene moiety. Furthermore no external hydride source from a sacrificial substrate (e.g. glucose, formate) is required since the hydride for the first reductive step is liberated in the second oxidative step. Such a process is defined as a hydrogen-borrowing cascade. This methodology has wide applicability as it was successfully applied to the synthesis of chiral substituted hydrocinnamic acids, aliphatic acids, heterocycles and even acetylated amino acids with elevated yield, chemo- and stereo-selectivity. A systematic methodology for optimizing the hydrogen-borrowing two-enzyme synthesis of α-chiral substituted carboxylic acids was developed. This systematic methodology has general applicability for the development of diverse hydrogen-borrowing processes that possess the highest atom efficiency and the lowest environmental impact.

An experimental validation of a nonlinear acoustic resistance model for an acoustically compact area contraction with steady mean flow.

In a previously published paper, a model for the nonlinear acoustic response of an area contraction including bias flow was presented. The model's prediction for the zero-driving resistance grew progressively worse as the steady-flow Mach number increased. This trend suggests that the forward loss coefficients should depend on the steady Mach number. This letter provides an empirical fitting of this Mach number dependence, along with additional validation data for the model. These additional validation data corroborate the model's prediction that the nonlinear impedance is frequency independent. This letter additionally provides an experimental methodology for determining the characteristic length with sample results.

The role of E3 ubiquitin ligases in the development and progression of glioblastoma.

Despite recent advances in our understanding of the disease, glioblastoma (GB) continues to have limited treatment options and carries a dismal prognosis for patients. Efforts to stratify this heterogeneous malignancy using molecular classifiers identified frequent alterations in targetable proteins belonging to several pathways including the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signalling pathways. However, these findings have failed to improve clinical outcomes for patients. In almost all cases, GB becomes refractory to standard-of-care therapy, and recent evidence suggests that disease recurrence may be associated with a subpopulation of cells known as glioma stem cells (GSCs). Therefore, there remains a significant unmet need for novel therapeutic strategies. E3 ubiquitin ligases are a family of >700 proteins that conjugate ubiquitin to target proteins, resulting in an array of cellular responses, including DNA repair, pro-survival signalling and protein degradation. Ubiquitin modifications on target proteins are diverse, ranging from mono-ubiquitination through to the formation of polyubiquitin chains and mixed chains. The specificity in substrate tagging and chain elongation is dictated by E3 ubiquitin ligases, which have essential regulatory roles in multiple aspects of brain cancer pathogenesis. In this review, we begin by briefly summarising the histological and molecular classification of GB. We comprehensively describe the roles of E3 ubiquitin ligases in RTK and MAPK, as well as other, commonly altered, oncogenic and tumour suppressive signalling pathways in GB. We also describe the role of E3 ligases in maintaining glioma stem cell populations and their function in promoting resistance to ionizing radiation (IR) and chemotherapy. Finally, we consider how our knowledge of E3 ligase biology may be used for future therapeutic interventions in GB, including the use of blood-brain barrier permeable proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs).

The SCFSkp2 ubiquitin ligase complex modulates TRAIL-R2-induced apoptosis by regulating FLIP(L).

TRAIL-R2 (DR5) is a clinically-relevant therapeutic target and a key target for immune effector cells. Herein, we identify a novel interaction between TRAIL-R2 and the Skp1-Cullin-1-F-box (SCF) Cullin-Ring E3 Ubiquitin Ligase complex containing Skp2 (SCFSkp2). We find that SCFSkp2 can interact with both TRAIL-R2's pre-ligand association complex (PLAC) and ligand-activated death-inducing signalling complex (DISC). Moreover, Cullin-1 interacts with TRAIL-R2 in its active NEDDylated form. Inhibiting Cullin-1's DISC recruitment using the NEDDylation inhibitor MLN4924 (Pevonedistat) or siRNA increased apoptosis induction in response to TRAIL. This correlated with enhanced levels of the caspase-8 regulator FLIP at the TRAIL-R2 DISC, particularly the long splice form, FLIP(L). We subsequently found that FLIP(L) (but not FLIP(S), caspase-8, nor the other core DISC component FADD) interacts with Cullin-1 and Skp2. Importantly, this interaction is enhanced when FLIP(L) is in its DISC-associated, C-terminally truncated p43-form. Prevention of FLIP(L) processing to its p43-form stabilises the protein, suggesting that by enhancing its interaction with SCFSkp2, cleavage to the p43-form is a critical step in FLIP(L) turnover. In support of this, we found that silencing any of the components of the SCFSkp2 complex inhibits FLIP ubiquitination, while overexpressing Cullin-1/Skp2 enhances its ubiquitination in a NEDDylation-dependent manner. DISC recruitment of TRAF2, previously identified as an E3 ligase for caspase-8 at the DISC, was also enhanced when Cullin-1's recruitment was inhibited, although its interaction with Cullin-1 was found to be mediated indirectly via FLIP(L). Notably, the interaction of p43-FLIP(L) with Cullin-1 disrupts its ability to interact with FADD, caspase-8 and TRAF2. Collectively, our results suggest that processing of FLIP(L) to p43-FLIP(L) at the TRAIL-R2 DISC enhances its interaction with co-localised SCFSkp2, leading to disruption of p43-FLIP(L)'s interactions with other DISC components and promoting its ubiquitination and degradation, thereby modulating TRAIL-R2-mediated apoptosis.

FLIP as a therapeutic target in cancer.

One of the classic hallmarks of cancer is disruption of cell death signalling. Inhibition of cell death promotes tumour growth and metastasis, causes resistance to chemo- and radiotherapies as well as targeted agents, and is frequently due to overexpression of antiapoptotic proteins rather than loss of pro-apoptotic effectors. FLIP is a major apoptosis-regulatory protein frequently overexpressed in solid and haematological cancers, in which its high expression is often correlated with poor prognosis. FLIP, which is expressed as long (FLIP(L)) and short (FLIP(S)) splice forms, achieves its cell death regulatory functions by binding to FADD, a critical adaptor protein which links FLIP to the apical caspase in the extrinsic apoptotic pathway, caspase-8, in a number of cell death regulating complexes, such as the death-inducing signalling complexes (DISCs) formed by death receptors. FLIP also plays a key role (together with caspase-8) in regulating another form of cell death termed programmed necrosis or 'necroptosis', as well as in other key cellular processes that impact cell survival, including autophagy. In addition, FLIP impacts activation of the intrinsic mitochondrial-mediated apoptotic pathway by regulating caspase-8-mediated activation of the pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 family member Bid. It has been demonstrated that FLIP can not only inhibit death receptor-mediated apoptosis, but also cell death induced by a range of clinically relevant chemotherapeutic and targeted agents as well as ionizing radiation. More recently, key roles for FLIP in promoting the survival of immunosuppressive tumour-promoting immune cells have been discovered. Thus, FLIP is of significant interest as an anticancer therapeutic target. In this article, we review FLIP's biology and potential ways of targeting this important tumour and immune cell death regulator.

A biocatalytic method for the chemoselective aerobic oxidation of aldehydes to carboxylic acids.

Herein, we present a study on the oxidation of aldehydes to carboxylic acids using three recombinant aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDHs). The ALDHs were used in purified form with a nicotinamide oxidase (NOx), which recycles the catalytic NAD+ at the expense of dioxygen (air at atmospheric pressure). The reaction was studied also with lyophilised whole cell as well as resting cell biocatalysts for more convenient practical application. The optimised biocatalytic oxidation runs in phosphate buffer at pH 8.5 and at 40 °C. From a set of sixty-one aliphatic, aryl-aliphatic, benzylic, hetero-aromatic and bicyclic aldehydes, fifty were converted with elevated yield (up to >99%). The exceptions were a few ortho-substituted benzaldehydes, bicyclic heteroaromatic aldehydes and 2-phenylpropanal. In all cases, the expected carboxylic acid was shown to be the only product (>99% chemoselectivity). Other oxidisable functionalities within the same molecule (e.g. hydroxyl, alkene, and heteroaromatic nitrogen or sulphur atoms) remained untouched. The reaction was scaled for the oxidation of 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural (2 g), a bio-based starting material, to afford 5-(hydroxymethyl)furoic acid in 61% isolated yield. The new biocatalytic method avoids the use of toxic or unsafe oxidants, strong acids or bases, or undesired solvents. It shows applicability across a wide range of substrates, and retains perfect chemoselectivity. Alternative oxidisable groups were not converted, and other classical side-reactions (e.g. halogenation of unsaturated functionalities, Dakin-type oxidation) did not occur. In comparison to other established enzymatic methods such as the use of oxidases (where the concomitant oxidation of alcohols and aldehydes is common), ALDHs offer greatly improved selectivity.

Structural and Functional Basis of C-Methylation of Coumarin Scaffolds by NovO.

C-methylation of aromatic small molecules by C-methyltransferases (C-MTs) is an important biological transformation that involves C-C bond formation using S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM) as the methyl donor. Here, two advances in the mechanistic understanding of C-methylation of the 8-position of coumarin substrates catalyzed by the C-MT NovO from Streptomyces spheroides are described. First, a crystal structure of NovO reveals the Arg116-Asn117 and His120-Arg121 motifs are essential for coumarin substrate binding. Second, the active-site His120 is responsible for deprotonation of the phenolic 7-hydroxyl group on the coumarin substrate, activating the rate-determining methyl transfer step from SAM. This work expands our mechanistic knowledge of C-MTs, which could be used in the downstream development of engineered biocatalysts for small molecule C-alkylations.

Chemoselective Sequential Click Ligations Directed by Enhanced Reactivity of an Aromatic Ynamine.

Aromatic ynamines or N-alkynylheteroarenes are highly reactive alkyne components in Cu-catalyzed Huisgen [3 + 2] cycloaddition ("click") reactions. This enhanced reactivity enables the chemoselective formation of 1,4-triazoles using the representative aromatic ynamine N-ethynylbenzimidazole in the presence of a competing aliphatic alkyne substrate. The unique chemoselectivity profile of N-ethynylbenzimidazole is further demonstrated by the sequential click ligation of a series of highly functionalized azides using a heterobifunctional diyne, dispelling the need for alkyne protecting groups.

FLIP: A Targetable Mediator of Resistance to Radiation in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Resistance to radiotherapy due to insufficient cancer cell death is a significant cause of treatment failure in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The endogenous caspase-8 inhibitor FLIP is a critical regulator of cell death that is frequently overexpressed in NSCLC and is an established inhibitor of apoptotic cell death induced via the extrinsic death receptor pathway. Apoptosis induced by ionizing radiation (IR) has been considered to be mediated predominantly via the intrinsic apoptotic pathway; however, we found that IR-induced apoptosis was significantly attenuated in NSCLC cells when caspase-8 was depleted using RNA interference (RNAi), suggesting involvement of the extrinsic apoptosis pathway. Moreover, overexpression of wild-type FLIP, but not a mutant form that cannot bind the critical death receptor adaptor protein FADD, also attenuated IR-induced apoptosis, confirming the importance of the extrinsic apoptotic pathway as a determinant of response to IR in NSCLC. Importantly, when FLIP protein levels were downregulated by RNAi, IR-induced cell death was significantly enhanced. The clinically relevant histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors vorinostat and entinostat were subsequently found to sensitize a subset of NSCLC cell lines to IR in a manner that was dependent on their ability to suppress FLIP expression and promote activation of caspase-8. Entinostat also enhanced the antitumor activity of IR in vivo Therefore, FLIP downregulation induced by HDAC inhibitors is a potential clinical strategy to radiosensitize NSCLC and thereby improve response to radiotherapy. Overall, this study provides the first evidence that pharmacological inhibition of FLIP may improve response of NCSLC to IR. Mol Cancer Ther; 15(10); 2432-41. ©2016 AACR.

Enzymatic Menthol Production: One-Pot Approach Using Engineered Escherichia coli.

Menthol isomers are high-value monoterpenoid commodity chemicals, produced naturally by mint plants, Mentha spp. Alternative clean biosynthetic routes to these compounds are commercially attractive. Optimization strategies for biocatalytic terpenoid production are mainly focused on metabolic engineering of the biosynthesis pathway within an expression host. We circumvent this bottleneck by combining pathway assembly techniques with classical biocatalysis methods to engineer and optimize cell-free one-pot biotransformation systems and apply this strategy to the mint biosynthesis pathway. Our approach allows optimization of each pathway enzyme and avoidance of monoterpenoid toxicity issues to the host cell. We have developed a one-pot (bio)synthesis of (1R,2S,5R)-(-)-menthol and (1S,2S,5R)-(+)-neomenthol from pulegone, using recombinant Escherichia coli extracts containing the biosynthetic genes for an "ene"-reductase (NtDBR from Nicotiana tabacum) and two menthone dehydrogenases (MMR and MNMR from Mentha piperita). Our modular engineering strategy allowed each step to be optimized to improve the final production level. Moderate to highly pure menthol (79.1%) and neomenthol (89.9%) were obtained when E. coli strains coexpressed NtDBR with only MMR or MNMR, respectively. This one-pot biocatalytic method allows easier optimization of each enzymatic step and easier modular combination of reactions to ultimately generate libraries of pure compounds for use in high-throughput screening. It will be, therefore, a valuable addition to the arsenal of biocatalysis strategies, especially when applied for (semi)-toxic chemical compounds.

Brønsted acid catalyzed asymmetric aldol reaction: a complementary approach to enamine catalysis.

A syn-enantioselective aldol reaction has been developed using Brønsted acid catalysis based on H(8)-BINOL-derived phosphoric acids. This method affords an efficient synthesis of various beta-hydroxy ketones, some of which could not be synthesized using enamine organocatalysis.