Margery A. Connelly

SCAVENGER RECEPTOR BI AND CHOLESTEROL TRAFFICKING

Scavenger receptor BI (SR-BI) mediates the selective uptake of HDL cholesteryl ester into steroidogenic cells and the liver and is a major determinant of the plasma HDL concentration in the mouse. Recent studies indicate that SR-BI also alters the metabolism of apolipoprotein B-containing particles and influences the development of atherosclerosis in several animal models. These results and the similar pattern of SR-BI expression in humans emphasize that it is important to learn how this receptor influences lipoprotein metabolism and atherosclerosis in people.

Scavenger Receptor Class B, Type I, Mediates Selective Uptake of Low Density Lipoprotein Cholesteryl Ester

Scavenger receptor, class B, type I (SR-BI) is a cell-surface glycoprotein that mediates selective uptake of high density lipoprotein cholesteryl ester (CE) without the concomitant uptake and degradation of the particle. We have investigated the endocytic and selective uptake of low density lipoprotein (LDL)-CE by SR-BI using COS-7 cells transiently transfected with mouse SR-BI. Analysis of lipoprotein uptake data showed a concentration-dependent LDL-CE-selective uptake when doubly labeled LDL particles were incubated with SR-BI-expressing COS-7 cells. In contrast to vector-transfected cells, SR-BI-expressing COS-7 cells showed marked increases in LDL cell association and CE uptake by the selective uptake pathway, but only a modest increase in CE uptake by the endocytic pathway. SR-BI-mediated LDL-CE-selective uptake exceeded LDL endocytic uptake by 50–100-fold. SR-BI-mediated LDL-CE-selective uptake was not inhibited by the proteoglycan synthesis inhibitor,p-nitrophenyl-β-d-xylopyranoside or by the sulfation inhibitor sodium chlorate, indicating that SR-BI-mediated LDL-CE uptake occurs independently of LDL interaction with cell-surface proteoglycan. Analyses with subclones of Y1 adrenocortical cells showed that LDL-CE-selective uptake was proportional to the level of SR-BI expression. Furthermore, antibody directed to the extracellular domain of SR-BI blocked LDL-CE-selective uptake in adrenocortical cells. Thus, in cells that normally express SR-BI and in transfected COS-7 cells SR-BI mediates the efficient uptake of LDL-CE via the selective uptake mechanism. These results suggest that SR-BI may influence the metabolism of apoB-containing lipoproteins in vivo by mediating LDL-CE uptake into SR-BI-expressing cells.

Functional Isoforms of IκB Kinase α (IKKα) Lacking Leucine Zipper and Helix-Loop-Helix Domains Reveal that IKKα and IKKβ Have Different Activation Requirements

ABSTRACT The activity of the NF-κB family of transcription factors is regulated principally by phosphorylation and subsequent degradation of their inhibitory IκB subunits. Site-specific serine phosphorylation of IκBs by two IκB kinases (IKKα [also known as CHUK] and IKKβ) targets them for proteolysis. IKKα and -β have a unique structure, with an amino-terminal serine-threonine kinase catalytic domain and carboxy-proximal helix-loop-helix (HLH) and leucine zipper-like (LZip) amphipathic α-helical domains. Here, we describe the properties of two novel cellular isoforms of IKKα: IKKα-ΔH and IKKα-ΔLH. IKKα-ΔH and IKKα-ΔLH are differentially spliced isoforms of the IKKα mRNA lacking its HLH domain and both its LZip and HLH domains, respectively. IKKα is the major RNA species in most murine cells and tissues, except for activated T lymphocytes and the brain, where the alternatively spliced isoforms predominate. Remarkably, IKKα-ΔH and IKKα-ΔLH, like IKKα, respond to tumor necrosis factor alpha stimulation to potentiate NF-κB activation in HEK293 cells. A mutant, catalytically inactive form of IKKα blocked IKKα-, IKKα-ΔH-, and IKKα-ΔLH-mediated NF-κB activation. Akin to IKKα, its carboxy-terminally truncated isoforms associated with the upstream activator NIK (NF-κB-inducing kinase). In contrast to IKKα, IKKα-ΔLH failed to associate with either itself, IKKα, IKKβ, or NEMO-IKKγ-IKKAP1, while IKKα-ΔH complexed with IKKβ and IKKα but not with NEMO. Interestingly, each IKKα isoform rescued HEK293 cells from the inhibitory effects of a dominant-negative NEMO mutant, while IKKα could not. IKKα-ΔCm, a recombinant mutant of IKKα structurally akin to IKKα-ΔLH, was equally functional in these assays, but in sharp contrast, IKKβ-ΔCm, a structurally analogous mutant of IKKβ, was inactive. Our results demonstrate that the functional roles of seemingly analogous domains in IKKα and IKKβ need not be equivalent and can also exhibit different contextual dependencies. The existence of cytokine-inducible IKKα-ΔH and IKKα-ΔLH isoforms illustrates potential modes of NF-κB activation, which are not subject to the same in vivo regulatory constraints as either IKKα or IKKβ.