Miho Sumiyoshi

Placenta Expressing the Greatest Quantity of Bisphenol A Receptor ERRγ among the Human Reproductive Tissues: Predominant Expression of Type-1 ERRγ Isoform

Estrogen-related receptor gamma (ERRgamma), one of the 48 human nuclear receptors, has a fully active conformation with no ligand. We recently demonstrated that ERRgamma binds strongly bisphenol A (BPA), one of the nastiest endocrine disruptors, and thus retaining ERRgammas high basal constitutive activity. A report that BPA accumulates in the human maternal-fetal placental unit has led us to hypothesize that a large amount of ERRgamma might exist in the human placenta. Here we report evidence that placenta indeed expresses ERRgamma exceptionally strongly. We first ascertained the presence of nine different ERRgamma mRNA variants and the resulting three ERRgamma protein isoforms. By real-time PCR, we estimated the relative amount of ERRgamma mRNA using total RNA extracts from human reproductive tissues. Placenta was found to express ERRgamma extremely highly. Among the three ERRgamma protein isoforms, placenta exclusively expresses the type-1 isoform, which possesses additional 23-mer amino-acid residues at the N-terminus of the ordinary ERRgamma. This N-terminal elongation was found to elevate by approximately 50% the basal constitutive activity of ERRgamma, as evidenced in the luciferase reporter gene assay. The present results suggest that BPA accumulates in the placenta by binding to ERRgamma.

Intestinal myofibroblast TRPC6 channel may contribute to stenotic fibrosis in Crohn's disease.

Background:Intestinal fibrosis is a frequent complication of Crohns disease (CD) and often leads to detrimental stricture formation. Myofibroblasts play active roles in mediating fibrotic changes in various tissues. We investigated whether transient receptor potential channels in intestinal myofibroblasts are involved in CD-associated intestinal fibrosis. Methods:An intestinal myofibroblast cell line (InMyoFibs) was stimulated with transforming growth factor-&bgr;1 (TGF-&bgr;1) to model excessive fibrosis. Biopsy samples from nonstenotic or stenotic intestinal regions from patients with CD were used for quantitative comparisons of transient receptor potential channel and fibrosis-associated factor expression levels. Results:TGF-&bgr;1 treatment transformed spindle-shaped InMyoFibs into filament-shaped cells with enhanced &agr;-actin stress fiber formation, transient receptor potential canonical (TRPC) 4 and TRPC6 messenger RNA and protein expression, and basal- and agonist-induced Ca2+ influxes. TGF-&bgr;1 also enhanced the formation of TRPC6/smooth muscle &agr;-actin, TRPC6/N-cadherin, and TRPC4/N-cadherin coimmunoprecipitates. Inhibition of TRPC6 in InMyoFibs by RNA interference or dominant-negative mutations suppressed TGF-&bgr;1-induced Ca2+ influxes, stress fiber formation, and smooth muscle &agr;-actin expression, but increased COL1A1, interleukin (IL)-10, and IL-11 expression, as well as Smad-2, ERK, and p38-MAPK phosphorylation. Similar increases in phosphorylation levels were observed with TRPC and calcineurin inhibitors. In stenotic areas in patients with CD, TRPC6, ACTA2 (smooth muscle &agr;-actin), CDH2 (N-cadherin), COL1A1, IL-10, and IL-11 were significantly increased. Conclusions:These results suggest that augmented Ca2+ influxes due to TRPC6 upregulation facilitate stress fiber formation and strengthen cell–cell interactions by negatively regulating the synthesis of antifibrotic factors in TGF-&bgr;1-treated myofibroblasts. Similar changes observed in stenotic areas of patients with CD suggest the therapeutic significance of targeting TRPC6.

A Circadian Neuropeptide PDF in the Honeybee, Apis mellifera: cDNA Cloning and Expression of mRNA

Pigment-dispersing factor (PDF) is a pacemaker hormone regulating the locomotor rhythm in insects. In the present study, we cloned the cDNAs encoding the Apis PDF precursor protein, and found that there are at least seven different pdf mRNAs yielded by an alternative splicing site and five alternative polyadenylation sites in the 5′UTR and 3′UTR regions. The amino acid sequence of Apis PDF peptide has a characteristic novel amino acid residue, aspargine (Asn), at position 17. Quantitative real-time PCR of total and 5′UTR insertion-type pdf mRNAs revealed, for the first time, that the expression levels change in a circadian manner with a distinct trough at the beginning of night in LD conditions, and at the subjective night under DD conditions. In contrast, the expression level of 5′UTR deletion-type pdf mRNAs was about half of that of the insertion type, and the expression profile failed to show a circadian rhythm. As the expression profile of the total pdf mRNA exhibited a circadian rhythm, transcription regulated at the promoter region was supposed to be controlled by some of the clock components. Whole mount in situ hybridization revealed that 14 lateral neurons at the frontal margin of the optic lobe express these mRNA isoforms. PDF expressing cells examined with a newly produced antibody raised against Apis PDF were also found to have a dense supply of axon terminals in the optic lobes and the central brain.

Significant contribution of TRPC6 channel-mediated Ca(2+) influx to the pathogenesis of Crohn's disease fibrotic stenosis.

Intestinal fibrosis is an intractable complication of Crohns disease (CD), and, when occurring excessively, causes severe intestinal obstruction that often necessitates surgical resection. The fibrosis is characterized by an imbalance in the turnover of extracellular matrix (ECM) components, where intestinal fibroblasts/myofibroblasts play active roles in ECM production, fibrogenesis and tissue remodeling, which eventually leads to the formation of stenotic lesions. There is however a great paucity of knowledge about how intestinal fibrosis initiates and progresses, which hampers the development of effective pharmacotherapies against CD. Recently, we explored the potential implications of transient receptor potential (TRP) channels in the pathogenesis of intestinal fibrosis, since they are known to act as cellular stress sensors/transducers affecting intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis/dynamics, and are involved in a broad spectrum of cell pathophysiology including inflammation and tissue remodeling. In this review, we will place a particular emphasis on the intestinal fibroblast/myofibroblast TRPC6 channel to discuss its modulatory effects on fibrotic responses and therapeutic potential for anti-fibrotic treatment against CD-related stenosis.

Daikenchuto (Da-Jian-Zhong-Tang) ameliorates intestinal fibrosis by activating myofibroblast transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 channel

AIM To investigate the anti-fibrotic effects of the traditional oriental herbal medicine Daikenchuto (DKT) associated with transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) channels in intestinal myofibroblasts. METHODS Inflammatory and fibrotic changes were detected in a 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS) chronic colitis model of wild-type and TRPA1-knockout (TRPA1-KO) mice via pathological staining and immunoblotting analysis. Ca2+ imaging experiments examined the effects of DKT and its components/ingredients on intestinal myofibroblast (InMyoFib) cell TRPA1 channel function. Pro-fibrotic factors and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1-associated signaling were tested in an InMyoFib cell line by qPCR and immunoblotting experiments. Samples from non-stenotic and stenotic regions of the intestines of patients with Crohn’s disease (CD) were used for pathological analysis. RESULTS Chronic treatment with TNBS caused more severe inflammation and fibrotic changes in TRPA1-KO than in wild-type mice. A one-week enema administration of DKT reduced fibrotic lesions in wild-type but not in TRPA1-KO mice. The active ingredients of DKT, i.e., hydroxy α-sanshool and 6-shogaol, induced Ca2+ influxes in InMyoFib, and this was antagonized by co-treatment with a selective TRPA1 channel blocker, HC-030031. DKT counteracted TGF-β1-induced expression of Type I collagen and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), which were accompanied by a reduction in the phosphorylation of Smad-2 and p38-mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38-MAPK) and the expression of myocardin. Importantly, 24-h incubation with a DKT active component Japanese Pepper increased the mRNA and protein expression levels of TRPA1 in InMyoFibs, which in turn negatively regulated collagen synthesis. In the stenotic regions of the intestines of CD patients, TRPA1 expression was significantly enhanced. CONCLUSION The effects of DKT on the expression and activation of the TRPA1 channel could be advantageous for suppressing intestinal fibrosis, and benefit inflammatory bowel disease treatment.