The caspase-cleaved form of LYN mediates a psoriasis-like inflammatory syndrome in mice.

We showed previously that Lyn is a substrate for caspases, a family of cysteine proteases, involved in the regulation of apoptosis and inflammation. Here, we report that expression of the caspase-cleaved form of Lyn (LynDeltaN), in mice, mediates a chronic inflammatory syndrome resembling human psoriasis. Genetic ablation of TNF receptor 1 in a LynDeltaN background rescues a normal phenotype, indicating that LynDeltaN mice phenotype is TNF-alpha-dependent. The predominant role of T cells in the disease occurring in LynDeltaN mice was highlighted by the distinct improvement of LynDeltaN mice phenotype in a Rag1-deficient background. Using pan-genomic profiling, we also established that LynDeltaN mice show an increased expression of STAT-3 and inhibitory members of the NFkappaB pathway. Accordingly, LynDeltaN alters NFkappaB activity underlying a link between inhibition of NFkappaB and LynDeltaN mice phenotype. Finally, analysis of Lyn expression in human skin biopsies of psoriatic patients led to the detection of Lyn cleavage product whose expression correlates with the activation of caspase 1. Our data identify a new role for Lyn as a regulator of psoriasis through its cleavage by caspases.

Exosomal lipids from membrane organization to biomarkers: Focus on an endolysosomal-specific lipid.

The term extracellular vesicles (EVs) has been recommended to describe various membrane-bound vesicles secreted by most living cells and found in various biological fluids. They gained growing interest as mediators of cell-cell communication and for their roles in different patho-physiological processes. In addition, they were recently considered as disease biomarkers and new drug delivery systems. However, it is still difficult to link a biological function to a specific EV population among the heterogenous EV mixture secreted in the extracellular space due to limitations of optimal isolation methods. EV classification according to their size as small (<200 nm) and large (>200 nm) vesicles is also completed by the identification of selected proteins, nucleic acids and lipids. In this review, we summarized briefly knowledge about the composition and role of EV lipids that received less attention compared to their protein and nucleic acid content. Lipids are not only essential structural components of EVs, but can give important information on their biogenesis. Especially, we discussed our recent data showing the utility of bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate (BMP), a specific endolysosomal lipid marker, that could sign the endosomal origin of small EVs, classically named as exosomes.

Use of Nanovesicles from Orange Juice to Reverse Diet-Induced Gut Modifications in Diet-Induced Obese Mice.

We have determined whether orange juice-derived nanovesicles (ONVs) could be used for the treatment of obesity-associated intestinal complications. ONVs were characterized by lipidomic, metabolomic, electron microscopy. In vitro, intestinal barriers (IBs = Caco-2+HT-29-MTX) were treated with ONVs and co-cultured with adipocytes to monitor IB fat release. In vivo, obesity was induced with a high-fat, high-sucrose diet (HFHSD mice) for 12 weeks. Then, half of HFHSD mice were gavaged with ONVs. One-month ONV treatment did not modify HFHSD-induced insulin resistance but reversed diet-induced gut modifications. In the jejunum, ONVs increased villi size, reduced triglyceride content, and modulated mRNA levels of genes involved in immune response (tumor necrosis factor [TNF]-α and interleukin [IL]-1ß), barrier permeability (CLDN1, OCLN, ZO1), fat absorption, and chylomicron release. ONVs targeted microsomal triglyceride transfer protein (MTP) and angiopoietin-like protein-4 (ANGPTL4), two therapeutic targets to reduce plasma lipids and inflammation in gastrointestinal diseases. Interestingly, ONV treatment did not aggravate liver steatosis, as MTP mRNA was increased in the liver. Therefore, ONVs protected both intestine and the liver from fat overload associated with the HFHSD. As ONVs concentrated amino acids and bioactive lipids versus orange juice, which are deficient in obese patients, the use of ONVs as a dietary supplement could bring physiological relevant compounds in the jejunum to accelerate the restoration of intestinal functions during weight loss in obese patients.

Bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate, a new lipid signature of endosome-derived extracellular vesicles.

Bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate (BMP), also known as lysobisphosphatidic acid (LBPA), is a phospholipid specifically enriched in the late endosome-lysosome compartment playing a crucial role for the fate of endocytosed components. Due to its presence in extracellular fluids during diseases associated with endolysosomal dysfunction, it is considered as a possible biomarker of disorders such as genetic lysosomal storage diseases and cationic amphiphilic drug-induced phospholipidosis. However, there is no true validation of this biomarker in human studies, nor a clear identification of the carrier of this endolysosome-specific lipid in biofluids. The present study demonstrates that in absence of any sign of renal failure, BMP, especially all docosahexaenoyl containing species, are significantly increased in the urine of patients treated with the antiarrhythmic drug amiodarone. Such urinary BMP increase could reflect a generalized drug-induced perturbation of the endolysosome compartment as observed in vitro with amiodarone-treated human macrophages. Noteworthy, BMP was associated with extracellular vesicles (EVs) isolated from human urines and extracellular medium of human embryonic kidney HEK293 cells and co-localizing with classical EV protein markers CD63 and ALIX. In the context of drug-induced endolysosomal dysfunction, increased BMP-rich EV release could be useful to remove excess of undigested material. This first human pilot study not only reveals BMP as a urinary biomarker of amiodarone-induced endolysosomal dysfunction, but also highlights its utility to prove the endosomal origin of EVs, also named as exosomes. This peculiar lipid already known as a canonical late endosome-lysosome marker, may be thus considered as a new lipid marker of urinary exosomes.

NF-kappaB inhibition triggers death of imatinib-sensitive and imatinib-resistant chronic myeloid leukemia cells including T315I Bcr-Abl mutants.

The Bcr-Abl inhibitor imatinib is the current first-line therapy for all newly diagnosed chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Nevertheless, resistance to imatinib emerges as CML progresses to an acute deadly phase implying that physiopathologically relevant cellular targets should be validated to develop alternative therapeutic strategies. The NF-kappaB transcription factor that exerts pro-survival actions is found abnormally active in numerous hematologic malignancies. In the present study, using Bcr-Abl-transfected BaF murine cells, LAMA84 human CML cell line and primary CML, we show that NF-kappaB is active downstream of Bcr-Abl. Pharmacological blockade of NF-kappaB by the IKK2 inhibitor AS602868 prevented survival of BaF cells expressing either wild-type, M351T or T315I imatinib-resistant mutant forms of Bcr-Abl both in vitro and in vivo using a mouse xenograft model. AS602868 also affected the survival of LAMA84 cells and of an imatinib-resistant variant. Importantly, the IKK2 inhibitor strongly decreased in vitro survival and ability to form hematopoietic colonies of primary imatinib resistant CML cells including T315I cells. Our data strongly support the targeting of NF-kappaB as a promising new therapeutic opportunity for the treatment of imatinib resistant CML patients in particular in the case of T315I patients. The T315I mutation escapes all currently used Bcr-Abl inhibitors and is likely to become a major clinical problem as it is associated with a poor clinical outcome.

Imatinib mesylate-resistant human chronic myelogenous leukemia cell lines exhibit high sensitivity to the phytoalexin resveratrol.

Imatinib is successfully used in the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), and the main mechanisms of resistance in refractory patients are now partially understood. In the present study, we investigated the mechanism of action of resveratrol in imatinib-sensitive (IM-S) and -resistant (IM-R) CML cell lines. Resveratrol induced loss of viability and apoptosis in IM-S and IM-R in a time- and dose-dependent fashion. Inhibition of cell viability was detected for concentrations of resveratrol as low as 5 microM, and the IC(50) values for viability, clonogenic assays, apoptosis, and erythroid differentiation were in the 10-25 microM range. The effect of imatinib and resveratrol was additive in IM-S but not in IM-R clones in which the resveratrol effect was already maximal. The effect of resveratrol on apoptosis was partially rescued by zVAD-fmk, suggesting a caspase-independent contribution. Resveratrol action was independent of BCR-ABL expression and phosphorylation, and in agreement was additive to BCR-ABL silencing. Finally, phytoalexin inhibited the growth of BaF3 cells expressing mutant BCR-ABL proteins found in resistant patients, including the multiresistant T315I mutation. Our findings show that resveratrol induces apoptosis, caspase-independent death, and differentiation that collectively contribute to the specific elimination of CML cells. Resveratrol should provide therapeutic benefits in IM-R patients and in other hematopoietic malignancies.

Tyrosine phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrates during ischemia/reperfusion-induced apoptosis in rat liver.

BACKGROUND: Phosphoregulation of signal transduction pathways is a complex series of reactions that may modulate the cellular response to ischemia-reperfusion (I-R). The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of normothermic liver I/R-induced apoptosis on phosphorylation and activation of signal proteins in tyrosine kinase pathways. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In rats, a segmental normothermic ischemia of the liver was induced for 120 min. Liver apoptosis was determined using terminal deoxynucleotide-transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick end labeling assay, and activity of caspases-3 and -7 was determined by fluorescence. Liver tyrosine phosphorylation of proteins was examined by Western blot analysis. RESULTS: Normothermic I-R resulted in increased in vivo caspases-3 and -7 activity and in liver apoptosis. Shc tyrosine phosphorylation and activation of ERK1/2 were increased after reperfusion, while tyrosine phosphorylation of IRS-1 and activation of PKB/Akt were decreased. CONCLUSIONS: Normothermic liver I-R leads to increased apoptosis and to modifications in protein tyrosine phosphorylation pathways.

Lysosomal acid ceramidase ASAH1 controls the transition between invasive and proliferative phenotype in melanoma cells.

Phenotypic plasticity and subsequent generation of intratumoral heterogeneity underly key traits in malignant melanoma such as drug resistance and metastasis. Melanoma plasticity promotes a switch between proliferative and invasive phenotypes characterized by different transcriptional programs of which MITF is a critical regulator. Here, we show that the acid ceramidase ASAH1, which controls sphingolipid metabolism, acted as a rheostat of the phenotypic switch in melanoma cells. Low ASAH1 expression was associated with an invasive behavior mediated by activation of the integrin alphavbeta5-FAK signaling cascade. In line with that, human melanoma biopsies revealed heterogeneous staining of ASAH1 and low ASAH1 expression at the melanoma invasive front. We also identified ASAH1 as a new target of MITF, thereby involving MITF in the regulation of sphingolipid metabolism. Together, our findings provide new cues to the mechanisms underlying the phenotypic plasticity of melanoma cells and identify new anti-metastatic targets.

Caspase 1/11 Deficiency or Pharmacological Inhibition Mitigates Psoriasis-Like Phenotype in Mice.

Inflammatory caspases, activated within the inflammasome, are responsible for the maturation and secretion of IL-1ß/IL-18. Although their expression in psoriasis was shown several years ago, little is known about the role of inflammatory caspases in the context of psoriasis. Here, we confirmed that caspases 1, 4, and 5 are activated in lesional skin from psoriasis patients. We showed in three psoriasis-like models that inflammatory caspases are activated, and accordingly, caspase 1/11 invalidation or pharmacological inhibition by Ac-YVAD-CMK (i.e., Ac-Tyr-Val-Ala-Asp-chloromethylketone) injection induced a decrease in ear thickness, erythema, scaling, inflammatory cytokine expression, and immune cell infiltration in mice. We observed that keratinocytes were primed to secrete IL-1ß when cultured in conditions mimicking psoriasis. Generation of chimeric mice by bone marrow transplantation was carried out to decipher the respective contribution of keratinocytes and/or immune cells in the activation of inflammatory caspases during psoriasis-like inflammatory response. Our data showed that the presence of caspase 1/11 in the immune system is sufficient for a fully inflammatory response, whereas the absence of caspase 1/11 in keratinocytes/fibroblasts had no impact. In summary, our study indicates that inflammatory caspases activated in immune cells are implicated in psoriasis pathogenesis.

The oncogenic tyrosine kinase Lyn impairs the pro-apoptotic function of Bim.

Phosphorylation of Ser/Thr residues is a well-established modulating mechanism of the pro-apoptotic function of the BH3-only protein Bim. However, nothing is known about the putative tyrosine phosphorylation of this Bcl-2 family member and its potential impact on Bim function and subsequent Bax/Bak-mediated cytochrome c release and apoptosis. As we have previously shown that the tyrosine kinase Lyn could behave as an anti-apoptotic molecule, we investigated whether this Src family member could directly regulate the pro-apoptotic function of Bim. In the present study, we show that Bim is phosphorylated onto tyrosine residues 92 and 161 by Lyn, which results in an inhibition of its pro-apoptotic function. Mechanistically, we show that Lyn-dependent tyrosine phosphorylation of Bim increases its interaction with anti-apoptotic members such as Bcl-xL, therefore limiting mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization and subsequent apoptosis. Collectively, our data uncover one molecular mechanism through which the oncogenic tyrosine kinase Lyn negatively regulates the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway, which may contribute to the transformation and/or the chemotherapeutic resistance of cancer cells.

BCL-B (BCL2L10) is overexpressed in patients suffering from multiple myeloma (MM) and drives an MM-like disease in transgenic mice.

Multiple myeloma (MM) evolves from a premalignant condition known as monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS). However, the factors underlying the malignant transformation of plasmocytes in MM are not fully characterized. We report here that Eµ-directed expression of the antiapoptotic Bcl-B protein in mice drives an MM phenotype that reproduces accurately the human disease. Indeed, with age, Eµ-bcl-b transgenic mice develop the characteristic features of human MM, including bone malignant plasma cell infiltration, a monoclonal immunoglobulin peak, immunoglobulin deposit in renal tubules, and highly characteristic bone lytic lesions. In addition, the tumors are serially transplantable in irradiated wild-type mice, underlying the tumoral origin of the disease. Eµ-bcl-b plasmocytes show increased expression of a panel of genes known to be dysregulated in human MM pathogenesis. Treatment of Eµ-bcl-b mice with drugs currently used to treat patients such as melphalan and VELCADE efficiently kills malignant plasmocytes in vivo. Finally, we find that Bcl-B is overexpressed in plasmocytes from MM patients but neither in MGUS patients nor in healthy individuals, suggesting that Bcl-B may drive MM. These findings suggest that Bcl-B could be an important factor in MM disease and pinpoint Eµ-bcl-b mice as a pertinent model to validate new therapies in MM.

Cleavage of Mcl-1 by caspases impaired its ability to counteract Bim-induced apoptosis.

Mcl-1 is an antiapoptotic member of the Bcl-2 family that can promote cell viability. We report here that Mcl-1 is a new substrate for caspases during induction of apoptosis. Mcl-1 cleavage occurs after Asp127 and Asp157 and generates four fragments of 24, 19, 17 and 12 kDa in both intact cells and in vitro, an effect prevented by selective caspase inhibitors. As a consequence, the resulting protein that lacks the first 127 or 157 amino acids contains only the BH1-BH3 domains of Bcl-2 family members. Mutation of Asp127 and Asp157 abolishes the generation of the 24 and 12 kDa fragments and that of the 19 and 17 kDa fragments, respectively. Interestingly, when expressed in HeLa cells Mcl-1 wt and Mcl-1 Delta127 showed a markedly different intracellular distribution. Mcl-1 wt colocalized with alpha-Tubulin near the internal face of the plasma membrane, while Mcl-1 Delta127 coassociated with Bim-EL at the mitochondrial level. Coimmunoprecipitation experiments also demonstrated that Mcl1 Delta127 exhibited increased binding to Bim when compared to Mcl-1 wt. Finally, Mcl-1 wt unlike Mcl-1 Delta127 inhibited Bim-EL-induced caspase activation. Altogether, our findings demonstrate that cleavage of Mcl-1 by caspases modifies its subcellular localization, increases its association with Bim and inhibits its antiapoptotic function.

Phosphorylation of Bim-EL by Erk1/2 on serine 69 promotes its degradation via the proteasome pathway and regulates its proapoptotic function.

Bim is a proapoptotic member of the Bcl-2 family that shares only the BH3 domain with this family. Three Bim proteins Bim-EL, Bim-L and Bim-S are synthesized from the same transcript. We report here that Bim-EL when phosphorylated by Erk1/2 is rapidly degraded via the proteasome pathway. Using different cellular models we evidence that serine 69 is both necessary and sufficient for Erk1/2-mediated phosphorylation and degradation of Bim-EL. In K562 cells, Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate activates Erk1/2 and consequently increases Bim-EL phosphorylation and degradation by the proteasome, resulting in cell survival, while the Bcr-Abl inhibitor imatinib abrogates Bim-EL phosphorylation and degradation and induces caspase activation and apoptosis. We also show that Bim-EL(S69G) promotes apoptosis more efficiently than Bim-EL-WT in K562 cells. Altogether, our findings demonstrate that phosphorylation of Bim-EL by Erk1/2 on serine 69 selectively leads to its proteasomal degradation and therefore represents a new and important mechanism of Bim regulation.

Autophagy and liver ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Liver ischemia-reperfusion (I-R) injury occurs during liver resection, liver transplantation, and hemorrhagic shock. The main mode of liver cell death after warm and/or cold liver I-R is necrosis, but other modes of cell death, as apoptosis and autophagy, are also involved. Autophagy is an intracellular self-digesting pathway responsible for removal of long-lived proteins, damaged organelles, and malformed proteins during biosynthesis by lysosomes. Autophagy is found in normal and diseased liver. Although depending on the type of ischemia, warm and/or cold, the dynamic process of liver I-R results mainly in adenosine triphosphate depletion and in production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), leads to both, a local ischemic insult and an acute inflammatory-mediated reperfusion injury, and results finally in cell death. This process can induce liver dysfunction and can increase patient morbidity and mortality after liver surgery and hemorrhagic shock. Whether autophagy protects from or promotes liver injury following warm and/or cold I-R remains to be elucidated. The present review aims to summarize the current knowledge in liver I-R injury focusing on both the beneficial and the detrimental effects of liver autophagy following warm and/or cold liver I-R.

Resistance to sunitinib in renal clear cell carcinoma results from sequestration in lysosomes and inhibition of the autophagic flux.

Metastatic renal cell carcinomas (mRCC) are highly vascularized tumors that are a paradigm for the treatment with antiangiogenesis drugs targeting the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway. The available drugs increase the time to progression but are not curative and the patients eventually relapse. In this study we have focused our attention on the molecular mechanisms leading to resistance to sunitinib, the first line treatment of mRCC. Because of the anarchic vascularization of tumors the core of mRCC tumors receives only suboptimal concentrations of the drug. To mimic this in vivo situation, which is encountered in a neoadjuvant setting, we exposed sunitinib-sensitive mRCC cells to concentrations of sunitinib below the concentration of the drug that gives 50% inhibition of cell proliferation (IC50). At these concentrations, sunitinib accumulated in lysosomes, which downregulated the activity of the lysosomal protease CTSB (cathepsin B) and led to incomplete autophagic flux. Amino acid deprivation initiates autophagy enhanced sunitinib resistance through the amplification of autolysosome formation. Sunitinib stimulated the expression of ABCB1 (ATP-binding cassette, sub-family B [MDR/TAP], member 1), which participates in the accumulation of the drug in autolysosomes and favor its cellular efflux. Inhibition of this transporter by elacridar or the permeabilization of lysosome membranes with Leu-Leu-O-methyl (LLOM) resensitized mRCC cells that were resistant to concentrations of sunitinib superior to the IC50. Proteasome inhibitors also induced the death of resistant cells suggesting that the ubiquitin-proteasome system compensates inhibition of autophagy to maintain a cellular homeostasis. Based on our results we propose a new therapeutic approach combining sunitinib with molecules that prevent lysosomal accumulation or inhibit the proteasome.

The blocking of capacitative calcium entry by 2-aminoethyl diphenylborate (2-APB) and carboxyamidotriazole (CAI) inhibits proliferation in Hep G2 and Huh-7 human hepatoma cells.

Calcium entry is a component of the processes regulating the proliferative phenotype of some types of cancer. In non-excitable cells, capacitative calcium entry (CCE) and non-capacitative calcium entry (NCCE) are thought to be the main pathways of Ca2+ influx into cells. Thus, blocking calcium entry may prevent normal and pathological cell proliferation and there is evidence to suggest that molecules blocking calcium entry also have antiproliferative properties. Carboxyamidotriazole (CAI), a novel inhibitor of the non-voltage-dependent calcium entry has been shown to have such properties in model systems in vitro and in vivo. We used Hep G2 and Huh-7 human hepatoma cells to investigate the effects of calcium entry blockers on cell proliferation. CAI (10 microM) and 2-APB (20 microM) completely blocked CCE in thapsigargin-treated Huh-7, and CAI and 2-APB inhibited cell proliferation with IC50 of 4.5 and 43 microM, respectively. The plateau phase of the [Ca2+]i increases triggered by 10% FCS were abolished in the absence of external Ca2+ and in the presence of CAI or 2-APB. We, therefore, suggest that CCE is the main pathway involved in regulation of the processes leading to cell proliferation.

The small heat shock protein B8 (HSPB8) confers resistance to bortezomib by promoting autophagic removal of misfolded proteins in multiple myeloma cells.

Velcade is one of the inescapable drug to treat patient suffering from multiple myeloma (MM) and resistance to this drug represents a major drawback for patients. However, the mechanisms underlying velcade resistance remain incompletely understood. We derived several U266 MM cell clones that resist to velcade. U266-resistant cells were resistant to velcade-induced cell death but exhibited a similar sensitivity to various proapoptotic stimuli. Careful analysis of proteosomal subunits and proteasome enzymatic activities showed that neither the composition nor the activity of the proteasome was affected in velcade-resistant cells. Elimination of velcade-induced poly-ubiquitinated proteins and protein aggregates was drastically stimulated in the resistant cells and correlated with increased cell survival. Inhibition of the lysosomal activity in velcade-resistant cells resulted in an increase of cell aggregates and decrease survival, indicating that aggregates are eliminated through lysosomal degradation. In addition, pangenomic profiling of velcade-sensitive and resistant cells showed that the small heat shock protein HSPB8 was overexpressed in resistant cells. Finally, gain and loss of function experiment demonstrated that HSPB8 is a key factor for velcade resistance. In conclusion, HSPB8 plays an important role for the elimination of aggregates in velcade-resistant cells that contributes to their enhanced survival.

Severe thymic atrophy in a mouse model of skin inflammation accounts for impaired TNFR1 signaling.

Transgenic mice expressing the caspase-cleaved form of the tyrosine kinase Lyn (LynΔN) develop a TNFα-dependent skin disease that accurately recapitulates human psoriasis. Participation of lymphocytes in this disease was confirmed by backcrossing LynΔN mice on a Rag-1 deficient background. The present study was therefore conducted to analyze whether modification of lymphocyte homeostasis does occur and participate in the phenotype of LynΔN mice. We show here that LynΔN mice consistently exhibit thymic atrophy that correlates with both a net decrease in the CD4+/CD8+ Double Positive (DP) and an increase in Single Positive (SP) thymocyte sub-populations, but also display an increase of splenic mature B cell. Interestingly, a normal immune phenotype was rescued in a TNFR1 deficient background. Finally, none of these immune alterations was detected in newborn mice before the onset of inflammation. Therefore, we conclude that chronic inflammation can induce thymic atrophy and perturb spleen homeostasis in LynΔN mice through the increased production of TNFα, LTß and TNFR1 signaling.

The anti-apoptotic Bcl-B protein inhibits BECN1-dependent autophagic cell death.

Bcl-2 family members are key modulators of apoptosis that have recently been shown to also regulate autophagy. It has been previously reported that Bcl-2 and Bcl-X(L) bind and inhibit BECN1, an essential mediator of autophagy. Bcl-B is an anti-apoptotic member of the Bcl-2 family that possesses the four BH (Bcl-2 homology) domains (BH1, BH2, BH3 and BH4) and a predicted C-terminal trans-membrane domain. Although the anti-apoptotic properties of Bcl-B are well characterized, its physiological function remains to be established. In the present study, we first established that Bcl-B interacts with the BH3 domain of BECN1. We also showed that Bcl-B overexpression reduces autophagy triggered by a variety of pro-autophagic stimuli. This impairment of autophagy was closely related to the capacity of Bcl-B to bind to BECN1. Importantly, we have demonstrated that Bcl-B knockdown triggers autophagic cell death and sensitizes cells to amino acid starvation. The cell death induced by Bcl-B knockdown was partially dependent on components of the autophagy machinery (LC3; BECN1; ATG5). These findings reveal a new role of Bcl-B in the regulation of autophagy.