RESUMO
Human membrane cofactor protein (MCP, CD46) is a ubiquitously expressed protein known to protect cells from complement attack. Interestingly, when we examined the expression of mouse CD46, which we recently cloned, the message was found only in testis and the protein was found on the inner acrosomal membrane of sperm. In order to elucidate the function of CD46, we produced mice carrying a null mutation in the CD46 gene by using homologous recombination. Despite the absence of CD46, the mice were healthy and both sexes were fertile. However, to our surprise, the fertilizing ability of males appeared to be facilitated by disruption of the CD46 gene, as the average number of pups born from CD46(-/-) males was significantly greater than that of wild-type males. It was also revealed that the incidence of the spontaneous acrosome reaction doubled in CD46(-/-) sperm compared to that in wild-type sperm. It was assumed that this increase caused the heightened fertilizing ability found in CD46(-/-) sperm. These data suggest that CD46 may have some role in regulating sperm acrosome reaction.
Assuntos
Reação Acrossômica/genética , Acrossomo/metabolismo , Antígenos CD/genética , Glicoproteínas de Membrana/deficiência , Glicoproteínas de Membrana/genética , Espermatozoides/fisiologia , Animais , Antígenos CD/biossíntese , Complemento C3/metabolismo , Feminino , Fertilidade/genética , Marcação de Genes , Glicosilação , Proteínas de Fluorescência Verde , Proteínas Luminescentes/biossíntese , Proteínas Luminescentes/genética , Masculino , Proteína Cofatora de Membrana , Glicoproteínas de Membrana/biossíntese , Camundongos , Camundongos Mutantes , Camundongos Transgênicos , Contagem de Espermatozoides , Espermatozoides/metabolismo , Espermatozoides/patologia , Testículo/metabolismoRESUMO
Mouse cells ubiquitously express CRRY, which is a functional orthologue of human decay-accelerating factor (DAF; CD55) and membrane cofactor protein (MCP; CD46), and thus protects cells from homologous complement. NIH3T3 cells expressed minute levels of mouse CD46 (mCD46) mRNA but barely produced mCD46 protein. mCD46 message and protein levels were markedly increased during mouse cytomegalovirus (mCMV) infection. Consistently, mCD46-expressing cells became resistant to mouse complement; primary-cultured fibroblasts from mCD46 gene-disrupted mice showed no increase in protection, resulting in complement-dependent cytolysis. Thus, the marked up-regulation of mCD46 in mouse fibroblast cells/cell lines by mCMV infection participates in host cell protection from complement. By mCD46 promoter deletion assay, the region necessary for induction of the promoter activity by mCMV infection was shown to be restricted to a sequence of 19 bp, which was homologous to the corresponding portion in human CD46, and the promoter regions of early-inducible human CMV UL36 and human herpesvirus 6 UL29. The results were confirmed by mutation analysis of this 19-bp region. We designated this sequence as the CMV-responsive element (CMVRE). Electrophoretic mobility shift assay demonstrated the existence of a CMVRE-binding factor, expression of which was significantly increased after mCMV infection. Thus, mCMV up-regulates the gene expression of mCD46 via CMVRE and CMVRE-binding factor, resulting in mCD46 protein expression on mCMV-infected cells. Since both the membrane and soluble mCD46retained complement regulatory activity, mCD46 induced by mCMV infection may act as a regulator of systemic complement activation. This represents a unique strategy of mCMV survival in host cells with sufficient replication by circumventing host complement attack.
Assuntos
Antígenos CD/genética , Proteínas do Sistema Complemento/fisiologia , Glicoproteínas de Membrana/genética , Muromegalovirus/imunologia , Regiões Promotoras Genéticas , Elementos de Resposta , Células 3T3 , Animais , Antígenos CD/biossíntese , Sequência de Bases , Ensaio de Desvio de Mobilidade Eletroforética , Proteína Cofatora de Membrana , Glicoproteínas de Membrana/biossíntese , Camundongos , Dados de Sequência MolecularRESUMO
Two sublines of the benzpyrene-induced mouse hepatoma cell line, G-1 and G-5, showed low and high metastatic ability, respectively, to the lung. We produced a polyclonal antibody (pAb) against RAE-1alpha. Five isoforms of RAE-1 have been identified to date, and this pAb recognized all isoforms and was named anti-"pan" RAE-1 pAb. The level of RAE-1 was approximately 5-fold higher in G-5 than in G-1, which was almost RAE-1-negative, as determined using anti-pan RAE-1 pAb. Expression levels of other markers including MHC class I (MHC-I) and Qa-1b were very low and indistinguishable in these sublines. NK-mediated cytotoxicity was determined with these sublines; G-5 was highly susceptible to NK-mediated cytolysis, while G-1 was relatively resistant. The NK-mediated G-5 > G-1 killing profile was diminished if the G-5 cells were pretreated with F(ab)(2)(') of anti-pan RAE-1 pAb. G-1, when transfected with Rae-1alpha cDNA, acquired NK-responsiveness similar to that of G-5. These and additional data using mouse cell lines with low MHC-I levels and various RAE-1 levels also demonstrated that RAE-1 level is critically associated with NK-susceptibility in tumor cells.