Donatella Ponti

The Potential of GMP-Compliant Platelet Lysate to Induce a Permissive State for Cardiovascular Transdifferentiation in Human Mediastinal Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Human adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs) are considered eligible candidates for cardiovascular stem cell therapy applications due to their cardiac transdifferentiation potential and immunotolerance. Over the years, the in vitro culture of ADMSCs by platelet lysate (PL), a hemoderivate containing numerous growth factors and cytokines derived from platelet pools, has allowed achieving a safe and reproducible methodology to obtain high cell yield prior to clinical administration. Nevertheless, the biological properties of PL are still to be fully elucidated. In this brief report we show the potential ability of PL to induce a permissive state of cardiac-like transdifferentiation and to cause epigenetic modifications. RTPCR results indicate an upregulation of Cx43, SMA, c-kit, and Thy-1 confirmed by immunofluorescence staining, compared to standard cultures with foetal bovine serum. Moreover, PL-cultured ADMSCs exhibit a remarkable increase of both acetylated histones 3 and 4, with a patient-dependent time trend, and methylation at lysine 9 on histone 3 preceding the acetylation. Expression levels of p300 and SIRT-1, two major regulators of histone 3, are also upregulated after treatment with PL. In conclusion, PL could unravel novel biological properties beyond its routine employment in noncardiac applications, providing new insights into the plasticity of human ADMSCs.

Molecular cloning of a bombinin gene from Bombina orientalis: detection of NF-κB and NF-IL6 binding sites in its promoter

The sequence of a gene from Bombina orientalis was determined which codes for antibacterial peptides. The gene comprises two exons separated by a large intron. Exon 1 codes for the signal peptide, while exon 2 contains the genetic information for two identical bombinins and one bombinin H. The promoter region of the bombinin gene contains putative recognition sites for nuclear factors, such as NFκB and NF‐IL6. In vivo experiments on B. orientalis have shown that a short contact with bacteria is sufficient to induce a marked increase in the amount of antibacterial peptides in the skin secretion of frogs. This increase was suppressed by pretreatment with glucocorticoids. In the latter case, a significant increase of IκBα in the secretion is also detectable.

An amphibian antimicrobial peptide variant expressed in Nicotiana tabacum confers resistance to phytopathogens.

Esculentin-1 is a 46-residue antimicrobial peptide present in skin secretions of Rana esculenta. It is effective against a wide variety of micro-organisms, including plant pathogens with negligible effects on eukaryotic cells. As a possible approach to enhance plant resistance, a DNA coding for esculentin-1, with the substitution Met-28Leu, was fused at the C-terminal end of the leader sequence of endopolygalacturonase-inhibiting protein, under the control of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter region, and introduced into Nicotiana tabacum. The antimicrobial peptide was isolated from the intercellular fluids of healthy leaves of transgenic plants, suggesting that it was properly processed, secreted outside cells and accumulated in the intercellular spaces. The morphology of transgenic plants was unaffected. Challenging these plants with bacterial or fungal phytopathogens demonstrated enhanced resistance up to the second generation. Moreover, transgenic plants displayed insecticidal properties.

Multiple Isoforms of Arabidopsis Casein Kinase I Combine Conserved Catalytic Domains with Variable Carboxyl-Terminal Extensions

Three cDNA clones encoding isoforms of casein kinase I (CKI) were isolated from Arabidopsis thaliana. One full-length clone, designated CKI1, contained an open reading frame of 1371 bp encoding a protein of 51,949 D with an isoelectric point of 9.7. In addition to the highly conserved catalytic domain (of about 300 amino acids), the Arabidopsis CKI isoforms contain 150 to 180 amino acid carboxyl-terminal extensions, which show among themselves a lower level of sequence conservation. These extensions do not show any sequence similarity to nonplant CKI isoforms, such as rat testis CKI[delta], which is their closest isolated homolog, or to yeast CKI isoforms. Three additional isoforms of Arabidopsis CKI were found in the data bases of expressed sequence tags and/or were isolated serendipitously in nonspecific screening procedures by others. One of them also shows a carboxyl-terminal extension, but of only 80 amino acids. Casein kinase activity was detected in the soluble fraction of Escherichia coli strains expressing the CKI1 protein. This activity showed the crucial properties of CKI, including the ability to phosphorylate the D4 peptide, a specific substrate of CKI, and inhibition by N-(2-aminoethyl)-5-chloroisoquinoline-8-sulfonamide, a specific CKI inhibitor. Like several recombinant CKI isoforms from yeast, CKI1 was able to phosphorylate tyrosine-containing acidic polymers.

The Inhibition of KCa3.1 Channels Activity Reduces Cell Motility in Glioblastoma Derived Cancer Stem Cells

In the present study we evaluated the expression of the intermediate conductance calcium-activated potassium (KCa3.1) channel in human glioblastoma stem-like cells (CSCs) and investigated its role in cell motility. While the KCa3.1 channel is not expressed in neuronal- and glial-derived tissues of healthy individuals, both the KCa3.1 mRNA and protein are present in the glioblastoma tumor population, and are significantly enhanced in CSCs derived from both established cell line U87MG and a primary cell line, FCN9. Consistent with these data, voltage-independent and TRAM-34 sensitive potassium currents imputable to the KCa3.1 channel were recorded in the murine GL261 cell line and several primary human glioblastoma cells lines. Moreover, a significantly higher KCa3.1 current was recorded in U87MG-CD133 positive cells as compared to the U87MG-CD133 negative subpopulation. Further, we found that the tumor cell motility is strongly associated with KCa3.1 channel expression. Blockade of the KCa3.1 channel with the specific inhibitor TRAM-34 has in fact a greater impact on the motility of CSCs (reduction of 75%), which express a high level of KCa3.1 channel, than on the FCN9 parental population (reduction of 32%), where the KCa3.1 channel is expressed at lower level. Similar results were also observed with the CSCs derived from U87MG. Because invasion of surrounding tissues is one of the main causes of treatment failure in glioblastoma, these findings can be relevant for future development of novel cancer therapeutic drugs.

The HIV Tat protein affects processing of ribosomal RNA precursor

BackgroundInside the cell, the HIV Tat protein is mainly found in the nucleus and nucleolus. The nucleolus, the site of ribosome biogenesis, is a highly organized, non-membrane-bound sub-compartment where proteins with a high affinity for nucleolar components are found. While it is well known that Tat accumulates in the nucleolus via a specific nucleolar targeting sequence, its function in this compartment it still unknown.ResultsTo clarify the significance of the Tat nucleolar localization, we induced the expression of the protein during oogenesis in Drosophila melanogaster strain transgenic for HIV-tat gene. Here we show that Tat localizes in the nucleoli of Drosophila oocyte nurse cells, where it specifically co-localizes with fibrillarin. Tat expression is accompanied by a significant decrease of cytoplasmic ribosomes, which is apparently related to an impairment of ribosomal rRNA precursor processing. Such an event is accounted for by the interaction of Tat with fibrillarin and U3 snoRNA, which are both required for pre-rRNA maturation.ConclusionOur data contribute to understanding the function of Tat in the nucleolus, where ribosomal RNA synthesis and cell cycle control take place. The impairment of nucleolar pre-rRNA maturation through the interaction of Tat with fibrillarin-U3snoRNA complex suggests a process by which the virus modulates host response, thus contributing to apoptosis and protein shut-off in HIV-uninfected cells.

M2 receptor activation inhibits cell cycle progression and survival in human glioblastoma cells

Muscarinic receptors, expressed in several primary and metastatic tumours, appear to be implicated in their growth and propagation. In this work we have demonstrated that M2 muscarinic receptors are expressed in glioblastoma human specimens and in glioblastoma cell lines. Moreover, we have characterized the effects of the M2 agonist arecaidine on cell growth and survival both in two different glioblastoma cell lines (U251MG and U87MG) and in primary cultures obtained from different human biopsies. Cell growth analysis has demonstrated that the M2 agonist arecaidine strongly decreased cell proliferation in both glioma cell lines and primary cultures. This effect was dose and time dependent. FACS analysis has confirmed cell cycle arrest at G1/S and at G2/M phase in U87 cells and U251 respectively. Cell viability analysis has also shown that arecaidine induced severe apoptosis, especially in U251 cells. Chemosensitivity assays have, moreover, shown arecaidine and temozolomide similar effects on glioma cell lines, although IC50 value for arecaidine was significantly lower than temozolomide. In conclusion, we report for the first time that M2 receptor activation has a relevant role in the inhibition of glioma cell growth and survival, suggesting that M2 may be a new interesting therapeutic target to investigate for glioblastoma therapy.

Altered calcium regulation in isolated cardiomyocytes from Egr-1 knock-out mice

Early growth response-1 one gene (Egr-1), one of the immediate early response genes, plays an important role in the adaptive response of the myocardium to hypertrophic stimuli. We aimed to investigate the effects of Egr-1 deletion on cardiac function. Egr-1 knock-out (Egr-1(-/-)) homozygous mice were employed to evaluate the electrophysiological and molecular properties of left ventricular cardiomyocytes (VCM) by using patch-clamp technique, intracellular calcium measurements, real-time PCR, and Western blot. Action potential was prolonged and diastolic potential was positive-shifted in VCMs isolated from Egr-1(-/-) mice, in comparison with those from their wild-type (WT) littermates. The calcium content of the sarcoplasmic reticulum was reduced and the decay time for steady-state calcium transient slowed down. Serca2, Ryr, L-type Ca(2+)-channel, and PLB mRNA expression were reduced in Egr-1(-/-) mice compared with the controls. Moreover, Serca2 protein was reduced, while the amount of Ncx1 protein was increased in Egr-1(-/-) hearts compared with those of the WT littermates. Furthermore, genes involved in heart development (GATA-4, TGF-β) and in Egr-1 regulation (Nab1, Nab2) were down regulated in Egr-1(-/-) mice. These results suggest that Egr-1 plays a pivotal role in regulating excitation-contraction coupling in cardiac myocytes.

M2 muscarinic receptors inhibit cell proliferation in human glioblastoma cell lines

AIMS In the present work we investigated the expression of M2 muscarinic receptor subtype in two glioblastoma cell lines and its role in the control of cell proliferation. MAIN METHODS The M2 receptor transcript and protein expression was studied using RT-PCR and western blot analysis. (3)[H]-thymidine incorporation was used to evaluate cell proliferation in the presence or in the absence of M(2) agonist arecaidine. KEY FINDINGS We demonstrated that M(2) receptor is expressed in both cell lines, although U251 cells show a higher expression level, compared to U87 cells. The activation of M(2) receptors by the agonist arecaidine decreases cell growth in a dose and time dependent manner. The anti-proliferative effect of arecaidine is also confirmed by the significant decrease of (3)[H]-thymidine incorporation in both cell lines. Moreover the M2 antagonist gallamine counteracts the arecaidine effects confirming M2 receptor involvement in glioma cell growth inhibition. SIGNIFICANCE These data suggest a role for M2 receptors in the inhibition of glioma cell proliferation and the possibility of exploiting these receptors as new promising tools for glioblastoma therapy.

Sensitivity to cisplatin in primary cell lines derived from human glioma correlates with levels of EGR-1 expression

BackgroundLess than 30% of malignant gliomas respond to adjuvant chemotherapy. Here, we have asked whether variations in the constitutive expression of early-growth response factor 1 (EGR-1) predicted acute cytotoxicity and clonogenic cell death in vitro, induced by six different chemotherapics.Materials and methodsCytotoxicity assays were performed on cells derived from fresh tumor explants of 18 human cases of malignant glioma. In addition to EGR-1, tumor cultures were investigated for genetic alterations and the expression of cancer regulating factors, related to the p53 pathway.ResultsWe found that sensitivity to cisplatin correlates significantly with levels of EGR-1 expression in tumors with wild-type p53/INK4a/p16 status.ConclusionIncreased knowledge of the mechanisms regulating EGR-1 expression in wild-type p53/INK4a/p16 cases of glioma may help in the design of new chemotherapeutic strategies for these tumors.