Hiroaki Higashitsuji

Reduced stability of retinoblastoma protein by gankyrin, an oncogenic ankyrin-repeat protein overexpressed in hepatomas.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common cancers in Asia and Africa, where hepatitis virus infection and exposure to specific liver carcinogens are prevalent. Although inactivation of some tumor suppressor genes such as p53 and p16INK4Ahas been identified, no known oncogene is commonly activated in hepatocellular carcinomas. Here we have isolated genes overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinomas by cDNA subtractive hybridization, and identified an oncoprotein consisting of six ankyrin repeats (gankyrin). The expression of gankyrin was increased in all 34 hepatocellular carcinomas studied. Gankyrin induced anchorage-independent growth and tumorigenicity in NIH/3T3 cells. Gankyrin bound to the product of the retinoblastoma gene (RB1), increasing its phosphorylation and releasing the activity of the transcription factor E2F-1. Gankyrin accelerated the degradation of RB1 in vitro and in vivo, and was identical to or interacted with a subunit of the 26S proteasome. These results demonstrate the importance of ubiquitin–proteasome pathway in the regulation of cell growth and oncogenic transformation, and indicate that gankyrin overexpression contributes to hepatocarcinogenesis by destabilizing RB1.

Cloning and characterization of human CIRP (cold-inducible RNA-binding protein) cDNA and chromosomal assignment of the gene.

Cold stress induces in microorganisms the synthesis of several proteins that are involved in various cellular processes such as transcription, translation and recombination. Recently, the cold-inducible RNA-binding protein (Cirp) was found to be induced in rodent cells by mild cold stress (32 degrees C). Cirp consists of an N-terminal RNA-binding domain and a C-terminal Gly-rich domain, and plays an essential role in cold-induced suppression of cell proliferation. We report here the cloning of a cDNA encoding an 18-kDa protein with 95.3% identity in an amino-acid sequence to that of mouse Cirp. The human CIRP gene has been mapped to the chromosomal locus 19p13.3 by fluorescence in-situ hybridization. CIRP mRNA is constitutively expressed in all cell lines examined, including K562, HepG2, NC65, HeLa, T24, and NEC8 cells. In all of them, the levels of CIRP mRNA and protein were increased within 12 h after a temperature down-shift from 37 degrees C to 32 degrees C. These results demonstrated that CIRP is a cold-shock protein in human cells. Identification of CIRP may provide a clue to the regulatory mechanisms of cold responses in human cells.

A Novel hsp110-related Gene, apg-1, That Is Abundantly Expressed in the Testis Responds to a Low Temperature Heat Shock Rather than the Traditional Elevated Temperatures

We isolated a novel hsp110-related gene, apg-1, from a testis cDNA library. The apg-1 transcripts were constitutively expressed in the testicular germ cells and, in some degree, most tissues examined. In a mouse TAMA26 Sertoli cell line, apg-1 transcripts were induced in 2 h by a temperature shift from 32 to 39°C, but not by a shift from 37 to 42°C, the traditional heat stress, or a shift from 32 to 42°C. The heat response pattern of hsp110 expression was similar to that of apg-1. Although induction of a hsp70 transcript was observed in 2 h by a shift from 32 to 39°C, the induction was more apparent by a shift from 37 to 42°C or from 32 to 42°C. Essentially similar differential response patterns were observed among these genes in NIH/3T3 fibroblasts as well. The nuclear run-on assay and the native gel mobility shift assay demonstrated that, by the 32 to 39°C temperature shift, the apg-1 gene was transcriptionally activated, and heat shock factor 1 bound to the heat shock elements in the 5′-flanking region of the apg-1 gene. These results demonstrated that expressions of apg-1, hsp110, and hsp70 could be heat-induced at a temperature lower than the traditional elevated temperatures in somatic cells of both testis and nontestis origin and suggest that the mechanisms regulating the transcript levels of apg-1 and hsp110 are different from those of hsp70. Furthermore, the constitutive expression in germ cells suggests that APG-1 plays a specific role in spermatogenesis as well as in stress response.

Membrane-type matrix metalloproteinase-1(MT1-MMP) gene is overexpressed in highly invasive hepatocellular carcinomas

Abstract Background/Aims: The matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family play important roles in the invasion of cancer cells by degrading the extracellular matrices. The current study was designed to determine the expression pattern of membrane-type matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MT1-MMP) in hepatocellular carcinomas and its participation in invasion potential. Methods: MT1-MMP mRNA expression was examined in 25 human hepatocellular carcinoma specimens using Northern blot, and the correlation to clinico-pathological features was evaluated. In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry were performed to study the localization and the cells responsible for the production. Results: Northern blot analysis revealed high levels of MT1-MMP mRNA, expression in tumorous portions in all cases, whereas in non-tumorous portions moderate or faint expression was evident in 22/25 cases. In 21/25 cases, the expression levels in tumorous portion were higher than those in non-tumorous portion. In particular, hepatocellular carcinoma with capsule infiltration demonstrated significantly higher expression than those without ( p In situ hybridization and immunohistochemical study revealed MT1-MMP transcripts and proteins in cancer cells and stromal cells, respectively. MT1-MMP positive cells were preferentially observed in the invading border of tumor nests. The MMP-2 transcript showed a similar pattern to that of MT1-MMP by in situ hybridization. Conclusion: The present study showed that the MT1-MMP gene is strongly expressed in hepatocellular carcinoma cells and is involved in the invasion potential of hepatocellular carcinoma, and also that MT1-MMP may be one of the key molecules responsible for the invasion potential of hepatocellular carcinoma. Furthermore, the evidence suggests that MT1-MMP and MMP-2 cooperate in the process of cancer invasion.

Effects of ischemia and H2O2 on the cold stress protein CIRP expression in rat neuronal cells

Expression of CIRP (cold-inducible RNA-binding protein) is inducible at 32 degrees C in cultured fibroblasts. Because ischemia is known to induce expression of heat shock proteins, its effect on the CIRP expression was examined using the rat transient forebrain ischemia model. The isolated rat CIRP cDNA encoded amino acids 100% identical in its sequence to mouse CIRP. Northern blot analysis revealed that the CIRP transcripts were ubiquitously expressed in various tissues. In situ hybridization histochemistry of normal rat brain revealed the expression of CIRP in neurons in the hippocampus and the cerebral cortex among others. In the hippocampus of postischemic rats, CIRP mRNA level decreased from 3-6 h after the onset of reperfusion, while it did not change in the cerebral cortex. When PC12 pheochromocytoma cells were cultured at 32 degrees C, the CIRP mRNA level was increased. The presence of H2O2 in the culture media inhibited dose dependently this induction as well as constitutive expression, suggesting that the effect of brain ischemia on CIRP expression is related to generation of reactive oxygen species. Further studies are necessary to clarify the roles played by cold shock proteins in the hypothermic therapy of brain damages.

Pathogenic role of Kupffer cell activation in the reperfusion injury of cold-preserved liver.

The present study was designed to investigate the possible participation of Kupffer cells in the development of reperfusion injury of the cold-stored liver graft. In the cold preservation of Kupffer cells with Euro-Collins solution, the proportion of asialo-GM1-positive cells was significantly increased at 12 and 24 hr of storage, and the TNF alpha-producing activity in these cells was approximately fivefold greater than control. Northern blot analysis demonstrated that TNF alpha mRNA was remarkably elevated in the reperfusion of the cold-preserved liver, although that of the prereperfused graft was only slightly induced. The reperfusion experiments of the cold-stored liver graft showed that addition of anti-TNF alpha antibody to the perfusate suppressed the elevation of the effluent levels of GOT and LDH significantly, and that pretreatment with a Kupffer cell inhibitor, gadolinium chloride, inhibited the increase of these enzymes in the effluents almost completely. Histological study revealed deposition of a fibrinlike substance in the sinusoid and the central veins extensively in the reperfused liver graft, whereas no apparent deposition was observed in the gadolinium-pretreated liver. Thus, the present study showed that Kupffer cells were primed by cold preservation with Euro-Collins solution, and then activated when the reperfusion was done. It seems likely that the Kupffer cell activation induced by cold preservation/reperfusion plays a major role in reperfusion injury with sinusoidal microcirculatory disturbance, and that TNF alpha is responsible for the impairment of the reperfused liver graft.

A novel protein overexpressed in hepatoma accelerates export of NF-κB from the nucleus and inhibits p53-dependent apoptosis

NF-kappa B is a transcription factor that can protect from or contribute to apoptosis. Here we report identification of HSCO that binds to NF-kappa B and inhibits apoptosis. HSCO mRNA was overexpressed in 20 of 30 hepatocellular carcinomas analyzed. Overexpression of HSCO inhibited caspase 9 activation and apoptosis induced by DNA damaging agents, while it augmented apoptosis induced by TNFalpha. Like I kappa B alpha, HSCO inhibited NF-kappa B activity and abrogated p53-induced apoptosis. However, the underlying mechanism was different. HSCO is a nuclear-cytoplasmic shuttling protein, bound to RelA NF-kappa B, and HSCO sequestered it in the cytoplasm by accelerating its export from the nucleus. These results suggest that overexpression of HSCO suppresses p53-induced apoptosis by preventing nuclear localization of NF-kappa B during signaling and thus contributes to hepatocarcinogenesis.

The oncoprotein gankyrin negatively regulates both p53 and RB by enhancing proteasomal degradation.

Ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis mediates selective destruction of various cell cycle regulators, transcription factors and tumor suppressors. Gankyrin, a seven ankyrin-repeat protein, was originally identified as an oncoprotein commonly overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinomas and independently as a protein associated with the 19S regulatory complex of the 26S proteasome. Gankyrin also binds to CDK4 and the tumor suppressor RB, and accelerates phosphorylation and proteasomal degradation of RB. Recently, we have shown that gankyrin has an anti-apoptotic activity in cells exposed to DNA-damaging agents. Gankyrin binds to MDM2, a major E3 ubiquitin ligase for p53, and increases ubiquitylation and degradation of p53. Gankyrin increases activities of CDK4 and MDM2, and facilitates targeting of polyubiquitylated proteins to the 26S proteasome. Furthermore, inhibition of gankyrin induces apoptosis in cancer cells. Therefore, gankyrin is a promising target for potential anticancer therapeutic agents.

Association of gankyrin protein expression with early clinical stages and insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 5 expression in human hepatocellular carcinoma†

Gankyrin (also known as PSMD10) is a liver oncoprotein that interacts with multiple proteins including MDM2 and accelerates degradation of the tumor suppressors p53 and Rb. We produced a monoclonal anti‐gankyrin antibody and immunohistochemically assessed the clinicopathological significance of gankyrin overexpression in 43 specimens of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Specific cytoplasmic staining for gankyrin was observed in 62.8% (27/43) of HCCs, which was significantly associated with low TNM stage (P = 0.004), no capsular invasion (P = 0.018), no portal venous invasion (P = 0.008), and no intrahepatic metastasis (P = 0.012). The cumulative survival rate of patients with gankyrin‐positive HCC was significantly higher than that with gankyrin‐negative HCC (P = 0.037). p53 and MDM2 were positively stained by antibodies in 30.2% and 23.3%, respectively, of HCCs, but neither was inversely associated with gankyrin expression. In the Huh‐7 human HCC cell line, overexpression of gankyrin up‐regulated expression of insulin‐like growth factor binding protein 5 (IGFBP‐5), whereas suppression of gankyrin expression by siRNA down‐regulated it. Supression of IGFBP‐5 expression inhibited proliferation of Huh‐7 cells as well as U‐2 OS osteosarcoma cells. In HCC specimens, positive staining for IGFBP‐5 was observed by immunohistochemistry in 41.9% (18/43), and the level of expression was significantly correlated with that of gankyrin (rho = 0.629, P < 0.001). Conclusion: These results suggest that gankyrin plays an oncogenic role(s) mainly at the early stages of human hepatocarcinogenesis, and that IGFBP‐5 inducible by gankyrin overexpression may be involved in it. (HEPATOLOGY 2008.)

MDM2 is a novel E3 ligase for HIV-1 Vif

The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) Vif plays a crucial role in the viral life cycle by antagonizing a host restriction factor APOBEC3G (A3G). Vif interacts with A3G and induces its polyubiquitination and subsequent degradation via the formation of active ubiquitin ligase (E3) complex with Cullin5-ElonginB/C. Although Vif itself is also ubiquitinated and degraded rapidly in infected cells, precise roles and mechanisms of Vif ubiquitination are largely unknown. Here we report that MDM2, known as an E3 ligase for p53, is a novel E3 ligase for Vif and induces polyubiquitination and degradation of Vif. We also show the mechanisms by which MDM2 only targets Vif, but not A3G that binds to Vif. MDM2 reduces cellular Vif levels and reversely increases A3G levels, because the interaction between MDM2 and Vif precludes A3G from binding to Vif. Furthermore, we demonstrate that MDM2 negatively regulates HIV-1 replication in non-permissive target cells through Vif degradation. These data suggest that MDM2 is a regulator of HIV-1 replication and might be a novel therapeutic target for anti-HIV-1 drug.