Peter Nollau

CEA-Related Cell Adhesion Molecule 1: A Potent Angiogenic Factor and a Major Effector of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor

CEA-related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1) exhibits angiogenic properties in in vitro and in vivo angiogenesis assays. CEACAM1 purified from granulocytes and endothelial cell media as well as recombinant CEACAM1 expressed in HEK293 cells stimulate proliferation, chemotaxis, and capillary-like tube formation of human microvascular endothelial cells. They increase vascularization of chick chorioallantoic membrane and potentiate the effects of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)165. VEGF165 increases CEACAM1 expression both on the mRNA and the protein level. VEGF165-induced endothelial tube formation is blocked by a monoclonal CEACAM1 antibody. These data suggest that CEACAM1 is a major effector of VEGF in the early microvessel formation. Since CEACAM1 is expressed in tumor microvessels but not in large blood vessels, CEACAM1 may be a target for the inhibition of tumor angiogenesis.

Detection of K-ras mutations in stools of patients with colorectal cancer by mutant-enriched PCR

Mutant‐enriched PCR was applied to the detection of mutations at codons 12 and 13 of K‐ras genes in the stools of patients with colorectal cancer. Mutations were analyzed in stool samples obtained prior to surgery. Resected tumor specimens were screened for K‐ras mutations by PCR‐mediated RFLP analysis. Using normal stool samples, assay conditions were adjusted to optimal sensitivity and specificity. The following specimens were included in the study: 16 stool samples corresponding to carcinomas in which K‐ras mutations had been identified; 7 randomly selected stool samples corresponding to carcinomas which were negative for K‐ras mutations; 1 stool sample from a patient with non‐Hodgkins lymphoma. In 13 of the 16 stool samples (81%) corresponding to tumors in which K‐ras mutations had been identified previously, K‐ras mutations were detected. In 2 of the 7 stool samples corresponding to tumors in which K‐ras mutations had not been detected by previous PCR‐mediated RFLP analysis, K‐ras mutations were also present. Reanalyses of the tumors corresponding to these 2 positive stool samples by mutant‐enriched PCR revealed a K‐ras mutation in one of the tumors. The stool and tumor of the patient with non‐Hodgkins lymphoma were negative for K‐ras mutations. DNA sequence analysis revealed that, for each of the K‐ras mutations identified in stool samples, identical base substitutions were present in the corresponding tumor tissue. The results indicate that tumor cells harboring K‐ras mutations can be detected in the stools of patients with colorectal cancer by mutant‐enriched PCR with high sensitivity and specificity. Because of the simplicity of the technique, it may be suitable for screening of stool samples for mutations of the K‐ras gene.

Approaching clinical proteomics: current state and future fields of application in fluid proteomics

Recent developments in proteomics technology offer new opportunities for clinical applications in hospital or specialized laboratories including the identification of novel biomarkers, monitoring of disease, detecting adverse effects of drugs, and environmental hazards. Advanced spectrometry technologies and the development of new protein array formats have brought these analyses to a standard, which now has the potential to be used in clinical diagnostics. Besides standardization of methodologies and distribution of proteomic data into public databases, the nature of the human body fluid proteome with its high dynamic range in protein concentrations, its quantitation problems, and its extreme complexity present enormous challenges. Molecular cell biology (cytomics) with its link to proteomics is a new fast moving scientific field, which addresses functional cell analysis and bioinformatic approaches to search for novel cellular proteomic biomarkers or their release products into body fluids that provide better insight into the enormous biocomplexity of disease processes and are suitable for patient stratification, therapeutic monitoring, and prediction of prognosis. Experience from studies of in vitro diagnostics and especially in clinical chemistry showed that the majority of errors occurs in the preanalytical phase and the setup of the diagnostic strategy. This is also true for clinical proteomics where similar preanalytical variables such as inter‐ and intra‐assay variability due to biological variations or proteolytical activities in the sample will most likely also influence the results of proteomics studies. However, before complex proteomic analysis can be introduced at a broader level into the clinic, standardization of the preanalytical phase including patient preparation, sample collection, sample preparation, sample storage, measurement, and data analysis is another issue which has to be improved. In this report, we discuss the recent advances and applications that fulfill the criteria for clinical proteomics with the focus on cellular proteomics (cytoproteomics) as related to preanalytical and analytical standardization and to quality control measures required for effective implementation of these technologies and analytes into routine laboratory testing to generate novel actionable health information. It will then be crucial to design and carry out clinical studies that can eventually identify novel clinical diagnostic strategies based on these techniques and validate their impact on clinical decision making.

CEACAM1 Enhances Invasion and Migration of Melanocytic and Melanoma Cells

Expression of the cell adhesion molecule CEACAM1 in melanomas is an independent factor for the risk of metastasis with a predictive value superior to that of tumor thickness. We have previously shown that CEACAM1 co-localizes at the tumor-stroma interface of invading melanoma masses with integrin beta(3) and that these two adhesion molecules interact via the CEACAM1 cytoplasmic domain. To address the functional consequences of CEACAM1 expression, we investigated invasion and migration of melanocytic and melanoma cells that stably express CEACAM1 using two different in vitro systems. Here, we demonstrate that CEACAM1 expression markedly enhances cell invasion and migration. The enhanced invasion and migration of CEACAM1-transfected cells was dependent on the presence of Tyr-488 within the full-length cytoplasmic CEACAM1 domain. Treatment with anti-CEACAM monoclonal antibodies blocked CEACAM1-enhanced cell invasion and cell migration in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, the enhanced invasion and migration of CEACAM1-transfected melanoma cells was blocked by integrin-antagonizing RGD peptides. Expression of integrin beta(3) induces the up-regulation of CEACAM1 in melanocytic MEL6 cells. These results strengthen the view that CEACAM1 and alpha(v)beta(3) integrin are functionally interconnected with respect to the invasive growth of melanomas.

SCAI acts as a suppressor of cancer cell invasion through the transcriptional control of β 1 -integrin

Gene expression reprogramming governs cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation and cell migration through the complex and tightly regulated control of transcriptional cofactors that exist in multiprotein complexes. Here we describe SCAI (suppressor of cancer cell invasion), a novel and highly conserved protein that regulates invasive cell migration through three-dimensional matrices. SCAI acts on the RhoA–Dia1 signal transduction pathway and localizes in the nucleus, where it binds and inhibits the myocardin-related transcription factor MAL by forming a ternary complex with serum response factor (SRF). Genome-wide expression analysis surprisingly reveals that one of the strongest upregulated genes after suppression of SCAI is β1-integrin. Decreased levels of SCAI are tightly correlated with increased invasive cell migration, and SCAI is downregulated in several human tumours. Functional analysis of the β1-integrin gene strongly argues that SCAI is a novel transcriptional cofactor that controls gene expression downstream of Dia1 to dictate changes in cell invasive behaviour.

Profiling the Global Tyrosine Phosphorylation State

Protein tyrosine kinases and protein tyrosine phosphatases play a key role in cell signaling, and the recent success of specific tyrosine kinase inhibitors in cancer treatment strongly validates the clinical relevance of basic research on tyrosine phosphorylation. Functional profiling of the tyrosine phosphoproteome is likely to lead to the identification of novel targets for drug discovery and provide a basis for novel molecular diagnostic approaches. The ultimate aim of current mass spectrometry-based phosphoproteomic approaches is the comprehensive characterization of the phosphoproteome. However, current methods are not yet sensitive enough for routine detection of a large percentage of tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins, which are generally of low abundance. In this article, we discuss alternative methods that exploit Src homology 2 (SH2) domains for profiling the tyrosine phosphoproteome. SH2 domains are small protein modules that bind specifically to tyrosine-phosphorylated peptides; there are more than 100 SH2 domains in the human genome, and different SH2 domains bind to different classes of tyrosine-phosphorylated ligands. These domains play a critical role in the propagation of signals in the cell, mediating the relocalization and complex formation of proteins in response to changes in tyrosine phosphorylation. We have developed an SH2 profiling method based on far-Western blotting, in which a battery of SH2 domains is used to probe the global state of tyrosine phosphorylation. Application to the classification of human malignancies suggests that this approach has potential as a molecular diagnostic tool. We also describe ongoing efforts to modify and improve SH2 profiling, including the development of a multiplexed assay system that will allow high-throughput functional profiling of the tyrosine phosphoproteome.

Profiling the global tyrosine phosphorylation state by Src homology 2 domain binding

Reversible tyrosine phosphorylation plays a crucial role in signal transduction, regulating many biological functions including proliferation, differentiation, and motility. The comprehensive characterization of the tyrosine phosphorylation state of a cell is of great interest for understanding the mechanisms that underlie signaling; however, current methods for analyzing tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins in crude protein extracts provide limited information, or are laborious and require relatively large amounts of protein. We have developed a simple, rapid, and flexible competitive binding assay based on the far-Western blot technique, in which a battery of Src homology 2 domain probes is used to detect patterns of specific tyrosine-phosphorylated sites. We demonstrate that distinct profiles of tyrosine phosphorylation can be detected with high sensitivity and specificity and low background. This proteomic approach can be used to rapidly profile the global tyrosine phosphorylation state of any cell of interest and has obvious applications as a molecular diagnostic tool, for example in the classification of tumors. The general strategy we describe here is not limited to Src homology 2 domains and could be used to profile the binding sites for any class of protein interaction domain.

Time-resolved characterization of cAMP/PKA-dependent signaling reveals that platelet inhibition is a concerted process involving multiple signaling pathways

One of the most important physiological platelet inhibitors is endothelium-derived prostacyclin which stimulates the platelet cyclic adenosine monophosphate/protein kinase A (cAMP/PKA)-signaling cascade and inhibits virtually all platelet-activating key mechanisms. Using quantitative mass spectrometry, we analyzed time-resolved phosphorylation patterns in human platelets after treatment with iloprost, a stable prostacyclin analog, for 0, 10, 30, and 60 seconds to characterize key mediators of platelet inhibition and activation in 3 independent biological replicates. We quantified over 2700 different phosphorylated peptides of which 360 were significantly regulated upon stimulation. This comprehensive and time-resolved analysis indicates that platelet inhibition is a multipronged process involving different kinases and phosphatases as well as many previously unanticipated proteins and pathways.

Resistance to anti-CD19/CD3 BiTE in acute lymphoblastic leukemia may be mediated by disrupted CD19 membrane trafficking

The CD19 antigen is a promising target for immunotherapy of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), but CD19- relapses remain a major challenge in about 10% to 20% of patients. Here, we analyzed 4 CD19- ALL relapses after treatment with the CD19/CD3 bispecific T-cell engager (BiTE) blinatumomab. Three were on-drug relapses, with the CD19- escape variant first detected after only 2 treatment courses. In 1 patient, the CD19- clone appeared as a late relapse 19 months after completion of blinatumomab treatment. All 4 cases showed a cellular phenotype identical to the primary diagnosis except for CD19 negativity. This argued strongly in favor of an isolated molecular event and against a common lymphoid CD19- progenitor cell or myeloid lineage shift driving resistance. A thorough molecular workup of 1 of the cases with early relapse confirmed this hypothesis by revealing a disrupted CD19 membrane export in the post-endoplasmic reticulum compartment as molecular basis for blinatumomab resistance.

Quantitative multiplexed profiling of cellular signaling networks using phosphotyrosine-specific DNA-tagged SH2 domains

Deciphering global signaling networks is of great importance for the detailed understanding of cellular signaling processes controlling many important biological functions. Among signaling processes, tyrosine phosphorylation has a central role. At present, adequate techniques for the global characterization of the tyrosine phosphoproteome are lacking, particularly for the analysis of small amounts of protein. By combining the power of PCR amplification with the unique properties of Src homology region 2 (SH2) domains to specifically recognize tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins, we developed a new proteomic approach, termed oligonucleotide-tagged multiplex assay (OTM). For OTM, multiple SH2 domains are labeled by domain-specific oligonucleotide tags, applied as probes to complex protein mixtures in a multiplex reaction and phosphotyrosine-specific interactions are quantified by PCR. Using OTM we reproducibly quantified differential states of tyrosine phosphorylation with high sensitivity and specificity in small amounts of whole cellular extracts as demonstrated for various tumor cell lines and human leukemia samples.