Huayun Deng

GPCRs regulate the assembly of a multienzyme complex for purine biosynthesis

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) transmit exogenous signals to the nucleus, promoting a myriad of biological responses via multiple signaling pathways in both normal and cancer cells. However, little is known about the response in cytosolic metabolic pathways to GPCR-mediated signaling. Here, we applied fluorescent live-cell imaging and label-free dynamic mass redistribution assays to study whether purine metabolism is associated with GPCR signaling. By screening a library of GPCR ligands in conjunction with live-cell imaging of a metabolic multienzyme complex for de novo purine biosynthesis, the purinosome, we demonstrated that the activation of endogenous Gαi-coupled receptors correlates with purinosome assembly/disassembly in native HeLa cells. Given the implications of GPCRs in mitogenic signaling as well as the purinosome in controlling metabolic flux via de novo purine biosynthesis, we hypothesize that regulation of purinosome assembly/disassembly may represent one of downstream events of mitogenic GPCR signaling in human cancer cells.

Spatial colocalization and functional link of purinosomes with mitochondria

Spatial control of cellular enzymes Purine is a building block of DNA and also a component of ATP that is used as an energy source in the cell. Enzymes involved in purine biosynthesis organize into dynamic bodies called purinosomes. French et al. found that purinosomes colocalize with mitochondria, organelles that generate ATP (see the Perspective by Ma and Jones). Dysregulation of mitochondria caused an increase in the number of purinosomes. This suggests a synergy, with the purinosomes supplying the purine required for ATP production and in turn using ATP in the biosynthetic pathway. A master regulator of cellular metabolism, mTOR, appears to mediate the association of purinosomes and mitochondria. This could make purine and ATP synthesis responsive to changes in the metabolic needs of the cell. Science, this issue p. 733; see also p. 670 Intracellular bodies composed of purine biosynthetic enzymes exhibit an mTOR-mediated association with mitochondria. [Also see Perspective by Ma and Jones] Purine biosynthetic enzymes organize into dynamic cellular bodies called purinosomes. Little is known about the spatiotemporal control of these structures. Using super-resolution microscopy, we demonstrated that purinosomes colocalized with mitochondria, and these results were supported by isolation of purinosome enzymes with mitochondria. Moreover, the number of purinosome-containing cells responded to dysregulation of mitochondrial function and metabolism. To explore the role of intracellular signaling, we performed a kinome screen using a label-free assay and found that mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) influenced purinosome assembly. mTOR inhibition reduced purinosome-mitochondria colocalization and suppressed purinosome formation stimulated by mitochondria dysregulation. Collectively, our data suggest an mTOR-mediated link between purinosomes and mitochondria, and a general means by which mTOR regulates nucleotide metabolism by spatiotemporal control over protein association.

Discovery of 2-(4-methylfuran-2(5H)-ylidene)malononitrile and thieno[3,2-b]thiophene-2-carboxylic acid derivatives as G protein-coupled receptor 35 (GPR35) agonists.

Screening with dynamic mass redistribution (DMR) assays in a native cell line HT-29 led to identification of two novel series of chemical compounds, 2-(4-methylfuran-2(5H)-ylidene)malononitrile and thieno[3,2-b]thiophene-2-carboxylic acid derivatives, as GPR35 agonists. Of these, 2-(3-cyano-5-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-4,5-dimethylfuran-2(5H)-ylidene)malononitrile (YE120) and 6-bromo-3-methylthieno[3,2-b]thiophene-2-carboxylic acid (YE210) were found to be the two most potent GPR35 agonists with an EC50 of 32.5 ± 1.7 nM and 63.7 ± 4.1 nM, respectively. Both agonists exhibited better potency than that of zaprinast, a known GPR35 agonist. DMR antagonist assays, knockdown of GPR35 with interference RNA, receptor internalization assays, and Tango β-arrestin translocation assays confirmed that the agonist activity of these ligands is specific to GPR35. The present study provides novel chemical series as a starting point for further investigations of GPR35 biology and pharmacology.

Multiple tyrosine metabolites are GPR35 agonists

Both kynurenic acid and 2-acyl lysophosphatidic acid have been postulated to be the endogenous agonists of GPR35. However, controversy remains whether alternative endogenous agonists exist. The molecular targets accounted for many nongenomic actions of thyroid hormones are mostly unknown. Here we report the agonist activity of multiple tyrosine metabolites at the GPR35. Tyrosine metabolism intermediates that contain carboxylic acid and/or catechol functional groups were first selected. Whole cell dynamic mass redistribution (DMR) assays enabled by label-free optical biosensor were then used to characterize their agonist activity in native HT-29. Molecular assays including β-arrestin translocation, ERK phosphorylation and receptor internalization confirmed that GPR35 functions as a receptor for 5,6-dihydroxyindole-2-carboxylic acid, 3,3′,5′-triiodothyronine, 3,3′,5-triiodothyronine, gentisate, rosmarinate, and 3-nitrotyrosine. These results suggest that multiple tyrosine metabolites are alternative endogenous ligands of GPR35, and GPR35 may represent a druggable target for treating certain diseases associated with abnormality of tyrosine metabolism.

Tyrphostin analogs are GPR35 agonists

GPR35 is an orphan G protein‐coupled receptor that is not well‐characterized. Here we employ dynamic mass redistribution (DMR) assays to discover new GPR35 agonists. DMR assays identified tyrphostin analogs as GPR35 agonists, which were confirmed with receptor internalization, Tango β‐arrestin translocation, and extracellular‐signal‐regulated kinase phosphorylation assays. These agonists provide pharmacological tools to study the biology and function of GPR35.

Probing biochemical mechanisms of action of muscarinic M3 receptor antagonists with label-free whole cell assays.

Binding kinetics of drugs is increasingly recognized to be important for their in vivo efficacy and safety profiles. However, little is known about the effect of drug binding kinetics on receptor signaling in native cells. Here we used label-free whole cell dynamic mass redistribution (DMR) assays under persistent and duration-controlled stimulation conditions to investigate the influence of the binding kinetics of four antagonists on the signaling of endogenous muscarinic M3 receptor in native HT-29 cells. Results showed that DMR assays under different conditions differentiated the biochemical mechanisms of action of distinct M3 antagonists. When co-stimulated with acetylcholine, tiotropium, a relatively slow binding antagonist, was found to selectively block the late signaling of the receptor, suggesting that acetylcholine attains its binding equilibrium faster than tiotropium does, thereby still being able to initiate its rapid response until the antagonist draws up and fully blocks the signaling. Furthermore, DMR assays under microfluidics allowed estimation of the residence times of these antagonists acting at the receptor in native cells, which were found to be the determining factor for the blockage efficiency of M3 receptor signaling under duration-controlled conditions. This study demonstrates that DMR assays can be used to elucidate the functional consequence of kinetics-driven antagonist occupancy in native cells.

Label-free cell phenotypic assessment of the biased agonism and efficacy of agonists at the endogenous muscarinic M3 receptors.

INTRODUCTION Efficacy describes the property of a ligand that enables the receptor to change its behavior towards the host cell, while biased agonism defines the ability of a ligand to differentially activate some of the vectorial pathways over others mediated through the receptor. However, little is known about the molecular basis defining the efficacy of ligands at G protein-coupled receptors. Here we characterize the biased agonism and cell phenotypic efficacy of seven agonists at the endogenous muscarinic M3 receptors in six different cell lines including HT-29, PC-3, HeLa, SF268, CCRF-CEM and HCT-15 cells. METHODS Quantitative real-time PCR and multiple label-free whole cell dynamic mass redistribution (DMR) assays were used to determine the functional muscarinic receptors in each cell line. DMR pathway deconvolution assay was used to determine the pathway biased activity of the muscarinic agonists. Operational agonism model was used to quantify the pathway bias, while macro-kinetic data reported in literature was used to analyze the biochemical mechanism of action of these agonists. RESULTS Quantitative real-time PCR and ligand pharmacology studies showed that all the native cell lines endogenously express functional M3 receptors. Furthermore, different agonists triggered distinct DMR signals in a specific cell line as well as in different cell lines. DMR pathway deconvolution using known G protein modulators revealed that the M3 receptor in all the six cell lines signals through multiple G protein-mediated pathways, and certain agonists display biased agonism in a cell line-dependent manner. The whole cell efficacy and potency of these agonists were found to be sensitive to the assay time as well as the cell background. Correlation analysis suggested that the whole cell efficacy of agonists is correlated well with their macro-dissociation rate constants. DISCUSSION This study implicates that the endogenous M3 receptors are coupled to multiple pathways, and the muscarinic agonists can display distinct biased agonism and whole cell phenotypic efficacy.

Discovery of Natural Phenols as G Protein-Coupled Receptor-35 (GPR35) Agonists.

We report the discovery and characterization of natural phenols as G protein-coupled receptor-35 (GPR35) agonists. Pharmacological characterization using label-free dynamic mass redistribution and Tango β-arrestin translocation assays revealed that GPR35-active natural phenols are divergent in their biased agonism.

Label-free phenotypic profiling identified D-luciferin as a GPR35 agonist.

Fluorescent and luminescent probes are essential to both in vitro molecular assays and in vivo imaging techniques, and have been extensively used to measure biological function. However, little is known about the biological activity, thus potential interferences with the assay results, of these probe molecules. Here we show that D-luciferin, one of the most widely used bioluminescence substrates, is a partial agonist for G protein-coupled receptor-35 (GPR35). Label-free phenotypic profiling using dynamic mass redistribution (DMR) assays showed that D-luciferin led to a DMR signal in native HT-29 cells, whose characteristics are similar to those induced by known GPR35 agonists including zaprinast and pamoic acid. DMR assays further showed that D-luciferin is a partial agonist competitive to several known GPR35 agonists and antagonists. D-luciferin was found to cause the phosphorylation of ERK that was suppressed by known GPR35 antagonists, and also result in β-arrestin translocation signal but with low efficacy. These results not only suggest that D-luciferin is a partial agonist of GPR35, but also will evoke careful interpretation of biological data obtained using molecular and in vivo imaging assays when these probe molecules are used.

Label-free cell phenotypic profiling decodes the composition and signaling of an endogenous ATP-sensitive potassium channel

Current technologies for studying ion channels are fundamentally limited because of their inability to functionally link ion channel activity to cellular pathways. Herein, we report the use of label-free cell phenotypic profiling to decode the composition and signaling of an endogenous ATP-sensitive potassium ion channel (KATP) in HepG2C3A, a hepatocellular carcinoma cell line. Label-free cell phenotypic agonist profiling showed that pinacidil triggered characteristically similar dynamic mass redistribution (DMR) signals in A431, A549, HT29 and HepG2C3A, but not in HepG2 cells. Reverse transcriptase PCR, RNAi knockdown, and KATP blocker profiling showed that the pinacidil DMR is due to the activation of SUR2/Kir6.2 KATP channels in HepG2C3A cells. Kinase inhibition and RNAi knockdown showed that the pinacidil activated KATP channels trigger signaling through Rho kinase and Janus kinase-3, and cause actin remodeling. The results are the first demonstration of a label-free methodology to characterize the composition and signaling of an endogenous ATP-sensitive potassium ion channel.