Rebecca Chinery

Human spasmolytic polypeptide is a cytoprotective agent that stimulates cell migration

BACKGROUND/AIMS Gastric epithelium is attacked by acid, pepsin, and ingested agents. When a mucosal lesion occurs, the defect is rapidly closed by cell migration. Because spasmolytic polypeptide is rapidly produced at sites of injury, we postulated that human spasmolytic polypeptide (hSP) was important in mucosal repair. Recombinant hSP was used to test this hypothesis. METHODS The ulcer healing effect of various doses of hSP administered orally and subcutaneously was examined using an indomethacin (20 mg/kg) restraint rat model of gastric damage. Stability of hSP in gastrointestinal juice was determined using size-exclusion chromatography. The effect of hSP on migration of human colonic carcinoma cell lines HT29 and SW480 was determined using collagen gel invasion and wounded monolayer assays. Proliferation was assessed using [3H]thymidine incorporation and toluidine blue staining. RESULTS Infusions of hSP at 25 and 50 micrograms.kg-1.h-1 subcutaneously decreased gastric damage by about 50% (P < 0.01) without changing acid secretion. Oral hSP was ineffective. hSP was stable in gastrointestinal juice. hSP stimulated migration of HT29 cells but did not affect proliferation and had no effect on SW480 cells. CONCLUSIONS hSP may play a key role in the early stages of mucosal repair by stimulating the initial re-epithelialization by cell migration.

Immunoprecipitation and characterization of a binding protein specific for the peptide, intestinal trefoil factor

Recombinant rat intestinal trefoil factor (rITF) and human spasmolytic polypeptide (hSP) were irreversibly cross-linked to specific binding sites in solubilized rat intestinal epithelial membranes and human adenocarcinoma cells. Analysis of the immunoprecipitates by immunoblotting identified a cross-linked protein complex of approximately 45 kDa, which under reducing conditions appeared as a approximately 28-kDa band and the latter displayed ligand-stimulated phosphorylation of a tyrosine, but not a threonine or serine, residue in the binding complex. [125I]rITF was used to localize binding sites by autoradiography of frozen sections from rat gastrointestinal tissues. A high density of specific [125I]rITF binding sites was present within gastric, colonic, and jejunal mucosal glands. Unlabeled hSP partially inhibited [125I]rITF binding at a concentration of 1 microM when compared with the same concentration of unlabeled rITF. These studies support earlier observations for the existence of trefoil binding sites in the gastrointestinal tract and further suggest that hSP has affinity for the mucosal rITF binding site.

Characterisation of the single copy trefoil peptides intestinal trefoil factor and pS2 and their ability to form covalent dimers

A bacterial recombinant expression system was established to produce biologically active rat Intestinal Trefoil factor (rITF). Characterisation of purified rITF shows that both monomers and dimers can be observed under reducing and non‐reducing conditions, respectively. Site‐directed mutagenesis studies show that Cys57 is necessary for rITF dimer formation. Samples of human gastrointestinal tissue following biopsy also demonstrated the presence of reducible human pS2 and ITF covalent dimers. Three‐dimensional models for pS2 and ITF support the hypothesis that both pS2 and ITF can exist as disulphide‐linked dimers in vivo and that any proposed function for these peptides must take dimer formation into account.

The production and characterization of a new monoclonal antibody to the trefoil peptide human spasmolytic polypeptide

SummaryHuman spasmolytic polypeptide (hSP) is a member of the growing family of trefoil peptides which are expressed in discrete regions of the body, most notably the gastrointestinal tract. Much of the research into the localization of the spasmolytic polypeptide has relied on hybridization in situ to detect its mRNA, due to the absence of a suitable antibody. The aim of the present study was to develop and characterize a monoclonal antibody against the human spasmolytic polypeptide, using a combination of immunohistochemistry and hybridization in situ.After immunoblotting, the antibody detected a 14 kDa protein in gastrointestinal tissue extracts from the stomach and small intestine only. Using immunohistochemistry, human spasmolytic polypeptide showed a distinctive staining pattern in the duodenum which co-localized with its mRNA. The co-localization of the immunoreactive peptide with its mRNA provides good evidence that the antibody truly recognized human spasmolytic polypeptide.

Trefoil Peptide gene expression in small intestinal Crohn's disease and dietary adaptation

We examined the patterns of trefoil peptide gene expression in the ulcer-associated cell lineage (UACL) and mucosa adjacent to Crohns disease in humans and during gastrointestinal adaptation to enteral feeding in rats. In the UACL, human spasmolytic polypeptide (hSP) mRNA and peptide are present in the acinar and proximal duct cells, whereas pS2 mRNA and peptide are found in the distal duct cells and in the surface cells. In mucosa adjacent to UACL, pS2 mRNA and peptide are expressed ectopically by goblet cells and neuroendocrine cells. Intestinal crypts associated with the UACL showed marked neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia. Ultrastructural immunolocalization showed pS2 to be copackaged in the mucous cell and neuroendocrine granules. The copackaging of a secretory protein in both mucous and neuroendocrine granules, which have different functions, is unusual and indicates an important role for pS2 in the secretory process itself or as a ligand delivered to its receptor via multiple routes. We also cloned the newest trefoil peptide, intestinal trefoil factor (ITF), from human and rat intestinal mucosa. Using in situ hybridization we demonstrated its synthesis by normal rat intestinal goblet cells. RNAse protection analysis revealed that the level of mRNA for rat ITF in small and large intestine was affected by the process of enteral feeding. We conclude that trefoil peptides are widely distributed in the intestine in human inflammatory bowel disease and are of considerable potential functional importance.

The gene encoding mouse intestinal trefoil factor: structural organization, partial sequence analysis and mapping to murine chromosome 17q.

Trefoil peptides, a growing family of secretory molecules, have been identified mainly in the gastrointestinal tract of humans, rodents and amphibians. In the present study, the nucleotide sequence of a large portion (81%) of the gene encoding murine intestinal trefoil factor (mITF) and its whole genomic organization were determined. The mITF gene contains three exons distributed over 5 kb of genomic DNA. The genomic sequence is highly conserved, as compared with that of the rat and human ITF, and contains several AP-1-binding sites, the consensus binding site for the transcription factor Sp1, and a sequence homologous to a heat-shock element. Fluorescence in situ hybridization was used to assign ITF to chromosome 17 of the murine genome, a region syntenic with the trefoil gene cluster on human chromosome 21q22.3.

Soy polysaccharide in an enteral diet: Effects on rat intestinal cell proliferation, morphology and metabolic function

The present study was conducted to compare the effect of soy polysaccharide (SP)-supplemented and fibre-free enteral diets and a normal chow diet on intestinal and colonic adaptation of rat gastrointestinal morphometrics and cytokinetics. Results showed that the fibre-free diet caused a significant decrease in various gut parameters, such as cell proliferation, tissue wet weight, and intestinal brush border enzymes, when compared to the normal gut of chow-fed rats. However the SP-supplemented enteral diet resulted in a significant improvement in several parameters in most regions along the gastrointestinal tract, when compared to orally-fed animals. These studies demonstrate that significant changes occur in the intestine as a result of enteral diets, with regional variation. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that SP stimulates crypt cell proliferation which could, in part, hasten recovery from intestinal mucosal damage. The addition of SP to enteral diets seems potentially advantageous.