Alessandra Rufini

GD3 ganglioside directly targets mitochondria in a bcl-2-controlled fashion

Lipid and glycolipid diffusible mediators are involved in the intracellular progression and amplification of apoptotic signals. GD3 ganglioside is rapidly synthesized from accumulated ceramide after the clustering of death‐inducing receptors and triggers apoptosis. Here we show that GD3 induces dissipation of ΔΨm and swelling of isolated mitochondria, which results in the mitochondrial release of cytochrome c, apoptosis inducing factor, and caspase 9. Soluble factors released from GD3‐treated mitochondria are sufficient to trigger DNA fragmentation in isolated nuclei. All these effects can be blocked by cyclosporin A, suggesting that GD3 is acting at the level of the permeability transition pore complex. We found that endogenous GD3 accumulates within mitochondria of cells undergoing apoptosis after ceramide exposure. Accordingly, suppression of GD3 synthase (ST8) expression in intact cells substantially prevents ceramide‐induced ΔΨm dissipation, indicating that endogenously synthesized GD3 induces mitochondrial changes in vivo. Finally, enforced expression of bcl‐2 significantly prevents GD3‐induced mitochondrial changes, caspase 9 activation, and apoptosis. These results show that mitochondria are a key destination for apoptogenic GD3 ganglioside along the lipid pathway to programmed cell death and indicate that relevant GD3 targets are under bcl‐2 control.—Rippo, M. R., Malisan, F., Ravagnan, L., Tomassini, B., Condo, I., Costantini, P., Susin, S. A., Rufini, A., Todaro, M., Kroemer, G., Testi, R. GD3 ganglioside directly targets mitochondria in a bcl‐2‐controlled fashion. FASEB J. 14, 2047–2054 (2000)

Src kinase phosphorylates Caspase-8 on Tyr380: a novel mechanism of apoptosis suppression

We identified Caspase‐8 as a new substrate for Src kinase. Phosphorylation occurs on Tyr380, situated in the linker region between the large and the small subunits of human Procaspase‐8, and results in downregulation of Caspase‐8 proapoptotic function. Src activation triggers Caspase‐8 phosphorylation on Tyr380 and impairs Fas‐induced apoptosis. Accordingly, Src failed to protect Caspase‐8‐defective human cells in which a Caspase‐8‐Y380F mutant is expressed from Fas‐induced cell death. Remarkably, Src activation upon EGF‐receptor stimulation triggers endogenous Caspase‐8 phosphorylation and prevents Fas‐induced apoptosis. Tyr380 is phosphorylated also in human colon cancers where Src is aberrantly activated. These data provide the first evidence for a direct role of tyrosine phosphorylation in the control of caspases and reveal a new mechanism through which tyrosine kinases inhibit apoptosis and participate in tumor progression.

Acetylation Suppresses the Proapoptotic Activity of GD3 Ganglioside

GD3 synthase is rapidly activated in different cell types after specific apoptotic stimuli. De novo synthesized GD3 accumulates and contributes to the apoptotic program by relocating to mitochondrial membranes and inducing the release of apoptogenic factors. We found that sialic acid acetylation suppresses the proapoptotic activity of GD3. In fact, unlike GD3, 9-O-acetyl-GD3 is completely ineffective in inducing cytochrome c release and caspase-9 activation on isolated mitochondria and fails to induce the collapse of mitochondrial transmembrane potential and cellular apoptosis. Moreover, cells which are resistant to the overexpression of the GD3 synthase, actively convert de novo synthesized GD3 to 9-O-acetyl-GD3. The coexpression of GD3 synthase with a viral 9-O-acetyl esterase, which prevents 9-O-acetyl-GD3 accumulation, reconstitutes GD3 responsiveness and apoptosis. Finally, the expression of the 9-O-acetyl esterase is sufficient to induce apoptosis of glioblastomas which express high levels of 9-O-acetyl-GD3. Thus, sialic acid acetylation critically controls the proapoptotic activity of GD3.

Caspase-Dependent Cleavage of c-Abl Contributes to Apoptosis

ABSTRACT The nonreceptor tyrosine kinase c-Abl may contribute to the regulation of apoptosis. c-Abl activity is induced in the nucleus upon DNA damage, and its activation is required for execution of the apoptotic program. Recently, activation of nuclear c-Abl during death receptor-induced apoptosis has been reported; however, the mechanism remains largely obscure. Here we show that c-Abl is cleaved by caspases during tumor necrosis factor- and Fas receptor-induced apoptosis. Cleavage at the very C-terminal region of c-Abl occurs mainly in the cytoplasmic compartment and generates a 120-kDa fragment that lacks the nuclear export signal and the actin-binding region but retains the intact kinase domain, the three nuclear localization signals, and the DNA-binding domain. Upon caspase cleavage, the 120-kDa fragment accumulates in the nucleus. Transient-transfection experiments show that cleavage of c-Abl may affect the efficiency of Fas-induced cell death. These data reveal a novel mechanism by which caspases can recruit c-Abl to the nuclear compartment and to the mammalian apoptotic program.

Frataxin participates to the hypoxia-induced response in tumors

Defective expression of frataxin is responsible for the degenerative disease Friedreichs ataxia. Frataxin is a protein required for cell survival since complete knockout is lethal. Frataxin protects tumor cells against oxidative stress and apoptosis but also acts as a tumor suppressor. The molecular bases of this apparent paradox are missing. We therefore sought to investigate the pathways through which frataxin enhances stress resistance in tumor cells. We found that frataxin expression is upregulated in several tumor cell lines in response to hypoxic stress, a condition often associated with tumor progression. Moreover, frataxin upregulation in response to hypoxia is dependent on hypoxia-inducible factors expression and modulates the activation of the tumor-suppressor p53. Importantly, we show for the first time that frataxin is in fact increased in human tumors in vivo. These results show that frataxin participates to the hypoxia-induced stress response in tumors, thus implying that modulation of its expression could have a critical role in tumor cell survival and/or progression.

Deregulation of Proteasome Function Induces Abl-mediated Cell Death by Uncoupling p130CAS and c-CrkII

Cell migration and survival are coordinately regulated through activation of c-Abl (Abl) family tyrosine kinases. Activated Abl phosphorylates tyrosine 221 of c-CrkII (Crk; Crk-Y221-P), which prevents Crk from binding to the docking protein p130CAS (CAS). Disruption of CAS-Crk binding blocks downstream effectors of the actin cytoskeleton and focal adhesion assembly, inhibits cell migration, and disrupts survival signals leading to apoptosis. Here we show that inhibition of the 26 S proteasome and ubiquitination facilitates Abl-mediated Crk-Y221-P, leading to disassembly of CAS-Crk complexes in cells. Surprisingly, inhibition of these molecular interactions does not perturb cell migration but rather specifically induces apoptosis. Furthermore, we demonstrate that attachment to an extracellular matrix plays a key role in regulating the apoptotic machinery through caspase-mediated cleavage of Abl and Crk-Y221-P. Our findings indicate that regulated protein degradation by the proteasome specifically controls cell death through regulation of Abl-mediated Crk Tyr221 phosphorylation and assembly of the CAS-Crk signaling scaffold.

E3 Ligase RNF126 Directly Ubiquitinates Frataxin, Promoting Its Degradation: Identification of a Potential Therapeutic Target for Friedreich Ataxia

Summary Friedreich ataxia (FRDA) is a severe genetic neurodegenerative disease caused by reduced expression of the mitochondrial protein frataxin. To date, there is no therapy to treat this condition. The amount of residual frataxin critically affects the severity of the disease; thus, attempts to restore physiological frataxin levels are considered therapeutically relevant. Frataxin levels are controlled by the ubiquitin-proteasome system; therefore, inhibition of the frataxin E3 ligase may represent a strategy to achieve an increase in frataxin levels. Here, we report the identification of the RING E3 ligase RNF126 as the enzyme that specifically mediates frataxin ubiquitination and targets it for degradation. RNF126 interacts with frataxin and promotes its ubiquitination in a catalytic activity-dependent manner, both in vivo and in vitro. Most importantly, RNF126 depletion results in frataxin accumulation in cells derived from FRDA patients, highlighting the relevance of RNF126 as a new therapeutic target for Friedreich ataxia.

Src inhibitors modulate frataxin protein levels

Defective expression of frataxin is responsible for the inherited, progressive degenerative disease Friedreichs Ataxia (FRDA). There is currently no effective approved treatment for FRDA and patients die prematurely. Defective frataxin expression causes critical metabolic changes, including redox imbalance and ATP deficiency. As these alterations are known to regulate the tyrosine kinase Src, we investigated whether Src might in turn affect frataxin expression. We found that frataxin can be phosphorylated by Src. Phosphorylation occurs primarily on Y118 and promotes frataxin ubiquitination, a signal for degradation. Accordingly, Src inhibitors induce accumulation of frataxin but are ineffective on a non-phosphorylatable frataxin-Y118F mutant. Importantly, all the Src inhibitors tested, some of them already in the clinic, increase frataxin expression and rescue the aconitase defect in frataxin-deficient cells derived from FRDA patients. Thus, Src inhibitors emerge as a new class of drugs able to promote frataxin accumulation, suggesting their possible use as therapeutics in FRDA.

Biophysical characterisation of the recombinant human frataxin precursor

Friedreichs ataxia is a disease caused by a decrease in the levels of expression or loss of functionality of the mitochondrial protein frataxin (FXN). The development of an active and stable recombinant variant of FXN is important for protein replacement therapy. Although valuable data about the mature form FXN81‐210 has been collected, not enough information is available about the conformation of the frataxin precursor (FXN1‐210). We investigated the conformation, stability and function of a recombinant precursor variant (His6‐TAT‐FXN1‐210), which includes a TAT peptide in the N‐terminal region to assist with transport across cell membranes. His6‐TAT‐FXN1‐210 was expressed in Escherichia coli and conditions were found for purifying folded protein free of aggregation, oxidation or degradation, even after freezing and thawing. The protein was found to be stable and monomeric, with the N‐terminal stretch (residues 1–89) mostly unstructured and the C‐terminal domain properly folded. The experimental data suggest a complex picture for the folding process of full‐length frataxin in vitro: the presence of the N‐terminal region increased the tendency of FXN to aggregate at high temperatures but this could be avoided by the addition of low concentrations of GdmCl. The purified precursor was translocated through cell membranes. In addition, immune response against His6‐TAT‐FXN1‐210 was measured, suggesting that the C‐terminal fragment was not immunogenic at the assayed protein concentrations. Finally, the recognition of recombinant FXN by cellular proteins was studied to evaluate its functionality. In this regard, cysteine desulfurase NFS1/ISD11/ISCU was activated in vitro by His6‐TAT‐FXN1‐210. Moreover, the results showed that His6‐TAT‐FXN1‐210 can be ubiquitinated in vitro by the recently identified frataxin E3 ligase RNF126, in a similar way as the FXN1‐210, suggesting that the His6‐TAT extension does not interfere with the ubiquitination machinery.