Haiyan Zhu

Proteinase 3–dependent caspase-3 cleavage modulates neutrophil death and inflammation

Caspase-3-mediated spontaneous death in neutrophils is a prototype of programmed cell death and is critical for modulating physiopathological inflammatory responses; however, the underlying regulatory pathways remain ill defined. Here we determined that in aging neutrophils, the cleavage and activation of caspase-3 is independent of the canonical caspase-8- or caspase-9-mediated pathway. Instead, caspase-3 activation was mediated by serine protease proteinase 3 (PR3), which is present in the cytosol of aging neutrophils. Specifically, PR3 cleaved procaspase-3 at a site upstream of the canonical caspase-9 cleavage site. In mature neutrophils, PR3 was sequestered in granules and released during aging via lysosomal membrane permeabilization (LMP), leading to procaspase-3 cleavage and apoptosis. Pharmacological inhibition or knockdown of PR3 delayed neutrophil death in vitro and consistently delayed neutrophil death and augmented neutrophil accumulation at sites of inflammation in a murine model of peritonitis. Adoptive transfer of both WT and PR3-deficient neutrophils revealed that the delayed death of neutrophils lacking PR3 is due to an altered intrinsic apoptosis/survival pathway, rather than the inflammatory microenvironment. The presence of the suicide protease inhibitor SERPINB1 counterbalanced the protease activity of PR3 in aging neutrophils, and deletion of Serpinb1 accelerated neutrophil death. Taken together, our results reveal that PR3-mediated caspase-3 activation controls neutrophil spontaneous death.

Myeloid Cell-Derived Reactive Oxygen Species Externally Regulate the Proliferation of Myeloid Progenitors in Emergency Granulopoiesis

The cellular mechanisms controlling infection-induced emergency granulopoiesis are poorly defined. Here we found that reactive oxygen species (ROS) concentrations in the bone marrow (BM) were elevated during acute infection in a phagocytic NADPH oxidase-dependent manner in myeloid cells. Gr1(+) myeloid cells were uniformly distributed in the BM, and all c-kit(+) progenitor cells were adjacent to Gr1(+) myeloid cells. Inflammation-induced ROS production in the BM played a critical role in myeloid progenitor expansion during emergency granulopoiesis. ROS elicited oxidation and deactivation of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN), resulting in upregulation of PtdIns(3,4,5)P3 signaling in BM myeloid progenitors. We further revealed that BM myeloid cell-produced ROS stimulated proliferation of myeloid progenitors via a paracrine mechanism. Taken together, our results establish that phagocytic NADPH oxidase-mediated ROS production by BM myeloid cells plays a critical role in mediating emergency granulopoiesis during acute infection.

A novel small-molecule tumor necrosis factor α inhibitor attenuates inflammation in a hepatitis mouse model.

Background: Most commercial TNFα inhibitors are biomacromolecules. Results: A lead compound named C87 was identified using computer-aided drug design and could attenuate murine acute hepatitis. Conclusion: C87 was one of the first effective small-molecule inhibitors of TNFα identified to date. Significance: The study highlights the effectiveness of combining virtual screening with functional assays for developing novel small-molecule TNFα inhibitors. Overexpression of tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα) is a hallmark of many inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and septic shock and hepatitis, making it a potential therapeutic target for clinical interventions. To explore chemical inhibitors against TNFα activity, we applied computer-aided drug design combined with in vitro and cell-based assays and identified a lead chemical compound, (E)-4-(2-(4-chloro-3-nitrophenyl) (named as C87 thereafter), which directly binds to TNFα, potently inhibits TNFα-induced cytotoxicity (IC50 = 8.73 μm) and effectively blocks TNFα-triggered signaling activities. Furthermore, by using a murine acute hepatitis model, we showed that C87 attenuates TNFα-induced inflammation, thereby markedly reducing injuries to the liver and improving animal survival. Thus, our results lead to a novel and highly specific small-molecule TNFα inhibitor, which can be potentially used to treat TNFα-mediated inflammatory diseases.

Cigarette smoke (CS) and nicotine delay neutrophil spontaneous death via suppressing production of diphosphoinositol pentakisphosphate

Diphosphoinositol pentakisphosphate (InsP7), a higher inositol phosphate containing energetic pyrophosphate bonds, is beginning to emerge as a key cellular signaling molecule. However, the various physiological and pathological processes that involve InsP7 are not completely understood. Here we report that cigarette smoke (CS) extract and nicotine reduce InsP7 levels in aging neutrophils. This subsequently leads to suppression of Akt deactivation, a causal mediator of neutrophil spontaneous death, and delayed neutrophil death. The effect of CS extract and nicotine on neutrophil death can be suppressed by either directly inhibiting the PtdIns(3,4,5)P3/Akt pathway, or increasing InsP7 levels via overexpression of InsP6K1, an inositol hexakisphosphate (InsP6) kinase responsible for InsP7 production in neutrophils. Delayed neutrophil death contributes to the pathogenesis of CS-induced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Therefore, disruption of InsP6K1 augments CS-induced neutrophil accumulation and lung damage. Taken together, these results suggest that CS and nicotine delay neutrophil spontaneous death by suppressing InsP7 production and consequently blocking Akt deactivation in aging neutrophils. Modifying neutrophil death via this pathway provides a strategy and therapeutic target for the treatment of tobacco-induced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

G-CSF maintains controlled neutrophil mobilization during acute inflammation by negatively regulating CXCR2 signaling

Luo et al. report that CXCR2 ligands are responsible for rapid neutrophil mobilization during early-stage acute inflammation and that G-CSF suppresses this mobilization by negatively regulating CXCR2-mediated intracellular signaling.

Extracellular Acidification Acts as a Key Modulator of Neutrophil Apoptosis and Functions.

In human pathological conditions, the acidification of local environment is a frequent feature, such as tumor and inflammation. As the pH of microenvironment alters, the functions of immune cells are about to change. It makes the extracellular acidification a key modulator of innate immunity. Here we detected the impact of extracellular acidification on neutrophil apoptosis and functions, including cell death, respiratory burst, migration and phagocytosis. As a result, we found that under the acid environment, neutrophil apoptosis delayed, respiratory burst inhibited, polarization augmented, chemotaxis differed, endocytosis enhanced and bacteria killing suppressed. These findings suggested that extracellular acidification acts as a key regulator of neutrophil apoptosis and functions.

Reactive Oxygen Species–Producing Myeloid Cells Act as a Bone Marrow Niche for Sterile Inflammation–Induced Reactive Granulopoiesis

Both microbial infection and sterile inflammation augment bone marrow (BM) neutrophil production, but whether the induced accelerated granulopoiesis is mediated by a common pathway and the nature of such a pathway are poorly defined. We recently established that BM myeloid cell–derived reactive oxygen species (ROS) externally regulate myeloid progenitor proliferation and differentiation in bacteria-elicited emergency granulopoiesis. In this article, we show that BM ROS levels are also elevated during sterile inflammation. Similar to in microbial infection, ROS were mainly generated by the phagocytic NADPH oxidase in Gr1+ myeloid cells. The myeloid cells and their ROS were uniformly distributed in the BM when visualized by multiphoton intravital microscopy, and ROS production was both required and sufficient for sterile inflammation–elicited reactive granulopoiesis. Elevated granulopoiesis was mediated by ROS-induced phosphatase and tensin homolog oxidation and deactivation, leading to upregulated PtdIns(3,4,5)P3 signaling and increased progenitor cell proliferation. Collectively, these results demonstrate that, although infection-induced emergency granulopoiesis and sterile inflammation–elicited reactive granulopoiesis are triggered by different stimuli and are mediated by distinct upstream signals, the pathways converge to NADPH oxidase–dependent ROS production by BM myeloid cells. Thus, BM Gr1+ myeloid cells represent a key hematopoietic niche that supports accelerated granulopoiesis in infective and sterile inflammation. This niche may be an excellent target in various immune-mediated pathologies or immune reconstitution after BM transplantation.

Correction: Extracellular Acidification Acts as a Key Modulator of Neutrophil Apoptosis and Functions

The Funding section is incorrect. The correct funding information is as follows: This study was supported by grants from the National Basic Research Program of China (2012CB966403 and 2015CB964903), the Chinese National Natural Science Foundation (31271484, 31471116, and 31171431), and the Tianjin Natural Science Foundation (12JCZDJC24600).

一种新型 TNFa 抑制剂可显著减弱肝炎模型小鼠的发病

Background: Most commercial TNFα inhibitors are biomacromolecules. Results: A lead compound named C87 was identified using computer-aided drug design and could attenuate murine acute hepatitis. Conclusion: C87 was one of the first effective small-molecule inhibitors of TNFα identified to date. Significance: The study highlights the effectiveness of combining virtual screening with functional assays for developing novel small-molecule TNFα inhibitors. Overexpression of tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα) is a hallmark of many inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and septic shock and hepatitis, making it a potential therapeutic target for clinical interventions. To explore chemical inhibitors against TNFα activity, we applied computer-aided drug design combined with in vitro and cell-based assays and identified a lead chemical compound, (E)-4-(2-(4-chloro-3-nitrophenyl) (named as C87 thereafter), which directly binds to TNFα, potently inhibits TNFα-induced cytotoxicity (IC50 = 8.73 μm) and effectively blocks TNFα-triggered signaling activities. Furthermore, by using a murine acute hepatitis model, we showed that C87 attenuates TNFα-induced inflammation, thereby markedly reducing injuries to the liver and improving animal survival. Thus, our results lead to a novel and highly specific small-molecule TNFα inhibitor, which can be potentially used to treat TNFα-mediated inflammatory diseases.