Kenneth J. Mandell

The second loop of occludin is required for suppression of Raf1-induced tumor growth

Tight junctions (TJs) regulate epithelial cell polarity and paracellular permeability. Loss of functional TJs is commonly associated with epithelial cell-derived cancers. Raf1-mediated transformation of rat salivary gland epithelial cells (Pa4-Raf1) induces transcriptional downregulation of the TJ protein occludin and forced re-expression of occludin rescues polarized phenotype of epithelial cells. In the present study, we used this model to examine how specific structural modifications in the occludin protein affect its function in vitro and influence tumor growth in vivo. Our results revealed that neither the C-terminal nor the N-terminal half of occludin alone were sufficient to rescue cells from transformation by Raf1. However, forced expression of an occludin mutant lacking the first extracellular loop was sufficient to rescue cells from Raf1-mediated transformation. Interestingly, forced expression of an occludin mutant lacking the second extracellular loop did not rescue the epithelial phenotype in vitro nor did it prevent tumor growth in vivo. These results demonstrate that the TJ protein occludin has a potent inhibitory effect on the Raf1-mediated tumorigenesis, and the second extracellular loop of occludin appears to be critical for this function.

Raf 1 represses expression of the tight junction protein occludin via activation of the zinc-finger transcription factor slug

Although dysregulation of tight junction (TJ) proteins is observed in epithelial malignancy, their participation in epithelial transformation is poorly understood. Recently we demonstrated that expression of oncogenic Raf 1 in Pa4 epithelial cells disrupts TJs and induces an oncogenic phenotype by downregulating expression of the TJ protein, occludin. Here we report the mechanism by which Raf 1 regulates occludin expression. Raf 1 inhibited occludin transcription by repressing a minimal segment of the occludin promoter in concert with upregulation of the transcriptional repressor, Slug without influencing the well-documented transcriptional repressor, Snail. Overexpression of Slug in Pa4 cells recapitulated the effect of Raf 1 on occludin expression, and depletion of Slug by small interfering RNA abrogated the effect of Raf 1 on occludin. Finally, chromatin immunoprecipitation assays and site-directed mutagenesis demonstrated a direct interaction between Slug and an E-box within the minimal Raf 1-responsive segment of the occludin promoter. These findings support a role of Slug in mediating Raf 1-induced transcriptional repression of occludin and subsequent epithelial to mesenchymal transition.

Cis-dimerization mediates function of junctional adhesion molecule A.

Junctional adhesion molecule-A (JAM-A) is a transmembrane component of tight junctions that has been proposed to play a role in regulating epithelial cell adhesion and migration, yet mechanistic structure-function studies are lacking. Although biochemical and structural studies indicate that JAM-A forms cis-homodimers, the functional significance of dimerization is unclear. Here, we report the effects of cis-dimerization-defective JAM-A mutants on epithelial cell migration and adhesion. Overexpression of dimerization-defective JAM-A mutants in 293T cells inhibited cell spreading and migration across permeable filters. Similar inhibition was observed with using dimerization-blocking antibodies. Analyses of cells expressing the JAM-A dimerization-defective mutant proteins revealed diminished beta1 integrin protein but not mRNA levels. Further analyses of beta1 protein localization and expression after disruption of JAM-A dimerization suggested that internalization of beta1 integrin precedes degradation. A functional link between JAM-A and beta1 integrin was confirmed by restoration of cell migration to control levels after overexpression of beta1 integrin in JAM-A dimerization-defective cells. Last, we show that the functional effects of JAM dimerization require its carboxy-terminal postsynaptic density 95/disc-large/zonula occludins-1 binding motif. These results suggest that dimerization of JAM-A regulates cell migration and adhesion through indirect mechanisms involving posttranscriptional control of beta1 integrin levels.

Peptide-mediated inhibition of neutrophil transmigration by blocking CD47 interactions with signal regulatory protein alpha.

CD47, a cell surface transmembrane Ig superfamily member, is an extracellular ligand for signal regulatory protein (SIRPα). Interactions between CD47 and SIRPα regulate many important immune cell functions including neutrophil (PMN) transmigration. Here we report identification of a novel function-blocking peptide, CERVIGTGWVRC, that structurally mimics an epitope on CD47 and binds to SIRPα. The CERVIGTGWVRC sequence was identified by panning phage display libraries on the inhibitory CD47 mAb, C5D5. In vitro PMN migration assays demonstrated that peptide CERVIGTGWVRC specifically inhibited PMN migration across intestinal epithelial monolayers and matrix in a dose-dependent fashion. Further studies using recombinant proteins indicated that the peptide specifically blocks CD47 and SIRPα binding in a dose-dependent fashion. Protein binding assays using SIRPα domain-specific recombinant proteins demonstrated that this peptide directly bound to the distal-most Ig loop of SIRPα, the same loop where CD47 binds. In summary, these findings support the relevance of CD47-SIRPα interactions in regulation of PMN transmigration and provide structural data predicting the key residues involved on the surface of CD47. Such peptide reagents may be useful for studies on experimental models of inflammation and provide a template for the design of anti-inflammatory agents.

Interaction of ICAM-1 with β2-integrin CD11c/CD18 : Characterization of a peptide ligand that mimics a putative binding site on domain D4 of ICAM-1

The integrin CD11c/CD18 plays a role in leukocyte and cell matrix adhesion and is highly expressed in certain hematopoietic malignancies. To better characterize ligand binding properties, we panned random peptide phage‐display libraries over purified CD11c/CD18. We identified a phage expressing the circular peptide C‐GRWSGWPADL‐C. C‐GRWSGWPADL‐C phage bound specifically to CD11c/CD18 expressing monocytes but not CD11c/CD18 negative lymphocytes and showed 5 × 103‐fold higher binding to purified CD11c/CD18 than control phage, without binding to CD11b/CD18. Peptide sequence analysis revealed a similar sequence in domain D5 of ICAM‐1 and an alternative, phase‐shifted motif in domain D4. Surface plasmon resonance experiments demonstrated direct interaction of ICAM‐1 and CD11c/CD18. A soluble fusion protein containing the extracellular domain of ICAM‐1 abolished C‐GRWSGWPADL‐C phage binding to CD11c/CD18. Moreover, synthetic monomeric circular peptide C‐GRWSGWPADL‐C bound specifically to CD11c/CD18 and inhibited ICAM‐1 binding. Its rather low binding affinity and inability to displace pentavalent C‐GRWSGWPADL‐C phage from CD11c/CD18 suggests that a multimeric display of the selected peptide is essential for high affinity binding. Using ICAM‐1 deletion constructs, we showed that domain D4 is required for interaction with CD11c/CD18, suggesting that C‐GRWSGWPADL‐C phage binds specifically to CD11c/CD18 by structurally mimicking the interaction site on D4 of ICAM‐1.