The homeodomain protein HOXB13 regulates the cellular response to androgens.

HOXB13 is a member of the homeodomain family of sequence-specific transcription factors and, together with the androgen receptor (AR), plays a critical role in the normal development of the prostate gland. We demonstrate here that, in prostate cancer cells, HOXB13 is a key determinant of the response to androgens. Specifically, it was determined that HOXB13 interacts with the DNA-binding domain of AR and inhibits the transcription of genes that contain an androgen-response element (ARE). In contrast, the AR:HOXB13 complex confers androgen responsiveness to promoters that contain a specific HOXB13-response element. Further, HOXB13 and AR synergize to enhance the transcription of genes that contain a HOX element juxtaposed to an ARE. The profound effects of HOXB13 knockdown on androgen-regulated proliferation, migration, and lipogenesis in prostate cancer cells highlight the importance of the observed changes in gene expression.

Inhibition of prostate cancer cell growth by second-site androgen receptor antagonists.

The impact of ligand binding on nuclear receptor (NR) structure and the ability of target cells to distinguish between different receptor-ligand complexes are key determinants of the pharmacological activity of NR ligands. However, until relatively recently, these mechanistic insights have not been used in a prospective manner to develop screens for NR modulators with specific therapeutic activities. Driven by the need for unique androgen receptor (AR) antagonists that retain activity in hormone-refractory prostate cancer, we developed and applied a conformation-based screen to identify AR antagonists that were mechanistically distinct from existing drugs of this class. Two molecules were identified by using this approach, D36 and D80, which interact with AR in a unique manner and allosterically inhibit AR agonist activity. Unlike the clinically important antiandrogens, casodex and hydroxyflutamide, both D36 and D80 block androgen action in cellular models of hormone-refractory prostate cancer. Mechanistically, these compounds further distinguish themselves from classical AR antagonists in that they do not promote AR nuclear translocation and quantitatively inhibit the association of AR with DNA even under conditions of overexpression. Although the therapeutic potential of these antiandrogens is apparent, it is the demonstration that it is possible, to modulate the interaction of cofactors with agonist-activated AR, using second-site modulators, that has the greatest potential with respect to the therapeutic exploitation of AR and other NRs.

Nicotinamide mononucleotide requires SIRT3 to improve cardiac function and bioenergetics in a Friedreich's ataxia cardiomyopathy model.

Increasing NAD+ levels by supplementing with the precursor nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) improves cardiac function in multiple mouse models of disease. While NMN influences several aspects of mitochondrial metabolism, the molecular mechanisms by which increased NAD+ enhances cardiac function are poorly understood. A putative mechanism of NAD+ therapeutic action exists via activation of the mitochondrial NAD+-dependent protein deacetylase sirtuin 3 (SIRT3). We assessed the therapeutic efficacy of NMN and the role of SIRT3 in the Friedreich's ataxia cardiomyopathy mouse model (FXN-KO). At baseline, the FXN-KO heart has mitochondrial protein hyperacetylation, reduced Sirt3 mRNA expression, and evidence of increased NAD+ salvage. Remarkably, NMN administered to FXN-KO mice restores cardiac function to near-normal levels. To determine whether SIRT3 is required for NMN therapeutic efficacy, we generated SIRT3-KO and SIRT3-KO/FXN-KO (double KO [dKO]) models. The improvement in cardiac function upon NMN treatment in the FXN-KO is lost in the dKO model, demonstrating that the effects of NMN are dependent upon cardiac SIRT3. Coupled with cardio-protection, SIRT3 mediates NMN-induced improvements in both cardiac and extracardiac metabolic function and energy metabolism. Taken together, these results serve as important preclinical data for NMN supplementation or SIRT3 activator therapy in Friedreich's ataxia patients.

Lower brain-derived neurotrophic factor in patients with prader-willi syndrome compared to obese and lean control subjects.

CONTEXT: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) haploinsufficiency is associated with hyperphagia and obesity in both animals and humans. BDNF appears to function downstream of the leptin-melanocortin signaling pathway to control energy balance. The potential role of BDNF in the etiology of the severe hyperphagia associated with PWS has not been previously explored. OBJECTIVE: The aim was to compare BDNF concentrations in subjects with PWS and obese controls (OC) and lean controls (LC). DESIGN AND SETTING: We conducted a cross-sectional study at an outpatient clinical research center. PARTICIPANTS: We studied 13 subjects with PWS [five females and eight males; mean + or - sd: age, 11.0 + or - 4.1 yr; body mass index (BMI)-Z, 2.05 + or - 0.78], 13 OC (eight females, five males; age, 12.3 + or - 2.7 yr; BMI-Z, 2.18 + or - 0.61), and 13 LC (six females, seven males; age, 12.4 + or - 2.6 yr; BMI-Z, -0.57 + or - 0.73). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: BDNF was measured in serum and plasma by ELISA. Analysis of covariance adjusted for age, sex, and BMI-Z. RESULTS: All groups were comparable for age (P = 0.50) and sex distribution (P = 0.49). BMI-Z was comparable between PWS and OC (P = 0.89) and lower in LC (P < 0.001). Adjusted serum BDNF was comparable (P = 0.35) in OC (mean + or - sem: 13.5 + or - 1.2 ng/ml) and LC (19.2 + or - 1.3 ng/ml), but lower in PWS (8.3 + or - 1.2 ng/ml; P = 0.01 vs. OC; P = 0.03 vs. LC). Adjusted plasma BDNF in PWS (217 + or - 130 pg/ml) was lower than OC (422 + or - 126 pg/ml; P = 0.02), but statistically comparable with LC (540 + or - 143 pg/ml; P = 0.10). CONCLUSIONS: Lower BDNF in PWS suggests insufficient central BDNF production because BDNF in peripheral circulation is believed to reflect cerebral BDNF output. Decreased BDNF may be a potential cause for the disordered satiety and morbid obesity associated with PWS. Further studies are needed to confirm this preliminary pilot study in a larger cohort of patients with PWS.

Differential presentation of protein interaction surfaces on the androgen receptor defines the pharmacological actions of bound ligands.

The pharmacological activity of different nuclear receptor ligands is reflected by their impact on receptor structure. Thus, we asked whether differential presentation of protein-protein interaction surfaces on the androgen receptor (AR), a surrogate assay of receptor conformation, could be used in a prospective manner to define the pharmacological activity of bound ligands. To this end, we identified over 150 proteins/polypeptides whose ability to interact with AR is influenced in a differential manner by ligand binding. The most discriminatory of these protein-AR interactions were used to develop a robust compound-profiling tool that enabled the separation of ligands into functionally distinguishable classes. Importantly, the ligands within each class exhibited similar pharmacological activities, a result that highlights the relationship between receptor structure and activity and provides direction for the discovery of novel AR modulators.