Sun Hee Kim

NHERF2 Specifically Interacts with LPA2 Receptor and Defines the Specificity and Efficiency of Receptor-Mediated Phospholipase C-β3 Activation

ABSTRACT Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) activates a family of cognate G protein-coupled receptors and is involved in various pathophysiological processes. However, it is not clearly understood how these LPA receptors are specifically coupled to their downstream signaling molecules. This study found that LPA2, but not the other LPA receptor isoforms, specifically interacts with Na+/H+ exchanger regulatory factor2 (NHERF2). In addition, the interaction between them requires the C-terminal PDZ domain-binding motif of LPA2 and the second PDZ domain of NHERF2. Moreover, the stable expression of NHERF2 potentiated LPA-induced phospholipase C-β (PLC-β) activation, which was markedly attenuated by either a mutation in the PDZ-binding motif of LPA2 or by the gene silencing of NHERF2. Using its second PDZ domain, NHERF2 was found to indirectly link LPA2 to PLC-β3 to form a complex, and the other PLC-β isozymes were not included in the protein complex. Consistently, LPA2-mediated PLC-β activation was specifically inhibited by the gene silencing of PLC-β3. In addition, NHERF2 increases LPA-induced ERK activation, which is followed by cyclooxygenase-2 induction via a PLC-dependent pathway. Overall, the results suggest that a ternary complex composed of LPA2, NHERF2, and PLC-β3 may play a key role in the LPA2-mediated PLC-β signaling pathway.

Luteolin inhibits the nuclear factor-κB transcriptional activity in Rat-1 fibroblasts

Abstract Flavonoids are natural polyphenolic compounds that have anti-inflammatory, cytoprotective and anticarcinogenic effects. In this study, we investigated the effects of several flavonoids on nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) activation by using luciferase reporter gene assay. Among the flavonoids examined, luteolin showed the most potent inhibition on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated NF-κB transcriptional activity in Rat-1 fibroblasts. Luteolin did not inhibit either IκBα degradation or NF-κB nuclear translocation, DNA binding or phosphorylation by LPS. However, luteolin prevented LPS-stimulated interaction between the p65 subunit of NF-κB and the transcriptional coactivator CBP. In addition, a specific PKA inhibitor that blocked the phosphorylation of CREB and c-Jun by luteolin partially reversed the inhibitory effect of luteolin on NF-κB·CBP complex formation and NF-κB transcriptional activity by LPS. These data imply that inhibition of NF-κB transcriptional activity by luteolin may occur through competition with transcription factors for coactivator that is available in limited amounts. Taken together, this study provides a molecular basis for the understanding of the anti-inflammatory effects of luteolin.

The incidence, risk factors and prognostic implications of venous thromboembolism in patients with gastric cancer

Summary.u2002 Background: Data on venous thromboembolism (VTE) in gastric cancer (GC) are very scarce. Objective: To investigate the incidence, risk factors and prognostic implications of VTE in Asian GC patients. Methods: Prospective databases containing clinical information on GC patients (nu2003=u20032,085) were used. Results: The 2‐year cumulative incidences of all VTE events were 0.5%, 3.5% and 24.4% in stages I, II–IV(M0) and IV(M1), respectively. Advanced stage, older age and no major surgery were independent risk factors for developing VTE. When the VTE cases were classified into extremity venous thrombosis (EVT), pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) or intra‐abdominal venous thrombosis (IVT), IVTs (62%) were more common than EVTs (21%) or PTEs (17%). Although peri‐operative pharmacologic thromboprophylaxis was not routinely administered, the VTE incidence after major surgery was only 0.2%. During chemotherapy, EVT/PTE developed more frequently than IVT (54% vs. 19%); however, during untreated or treatment‐refractory periods, IVT developed more frequently than EVT/PTE (69% vs. 36%). In multivariate models, the development of EVT/PTE was a significant predictor of early death when compared with no occurrence of VTE (Pu2003<u20030.05). However, IVT did not affect survival. Conclusion: This is the largest study that specially focused on VTE in GC and the VTE incidence in Asian GC patients was first demonstrated. Considering the low incidence of post‐operative VTE development, the necessity of peri‐operative pharmacologic thromboprophylaxis should be evaluated separately in Asian patients. The clinical situation of the development of EVT/PTE and IVT differed. Only EVT/PTE had an adverse effect on survival and IVT had no prognostic significance.

Thiram and ziram stimulate non-selective cation channel and induce apoptosis in PC12 cells.

The neurotoxicity of dithiocarbamates has been previously reported, however, the detailed mechanism underlying the neurotoxicity is still not fully understood. Among the dithiocarbamates, we investigated thiram and ziram in a neuronal-like pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells. Thiram and ziram strongly induced cell death in both dose- and time-dependent manners with the LC(50) of 0.3 and 2 microM, respectively. The cell death showed typical apoptotic features, such as DNA fragmentation and an increase of subdiploidy nuclei. Interestingly, both thiram and ziram induced rapid and sustained increases of intracellular Ca(2+) in PC12 cells, which were almost completely blocked by flufenamic acid (FFA), an inhibitor of non-selective cation channel. BAPTA-AM, an intracellular Ca(2+) chelator, inhibited the thiram- and ziram-induced apoptotic cell death. These results suggest that thiram and ziram induce apoptotic neuronal cell death by Ca(2+) influx through non-selective cation channels. The present study may provide a clue for understanding the mechanism of neurotoxicity of thiram and ziram.

Subtype-specific role of phospholipase C-β in bradykinin and LPA signaling through differential binding of different PDZ scaffold proteins

Among phospholipase C (PLC) isozymes (beta, gamma, delta, epsilon, zeta and eta), PLC-beta plays a key role in G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR)-mediated signaling. PLC-beta subtypes are often overlapped in their distribution, but have unique knock-out phenotypes in organism, suggesting that each subtype may have the different role even within the same type of cells. In this study, we examined the possibility of the differential coupling of each PLC-beta subtype to GPCRs, and explored the molecular mechanism underlying the specificity. Firstly, we found that PLC-beta1 and PLC-beta 3 are activated by bradykinin (BK) or lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), respectively. BK-triggered phosphoinositides hydrolysis and subsequent Ca(2+) mobilization were abolished specifically by PLC-beta1 silencing, whereas LPA-triggered events were by PLC-beta 3 silencing. Secondly, we showed the evidence that PDZ scaffold proteins is a key mediator for the selective coupling between PLC-beta subtype and GPCR. We found PAR-3 mediates physical interaction between PLC-beta1 and BK receptor, while NHERF2 does between PLC-beta 3 and LPA(2) receptor. Consistently, the silencing of PAR-3 or NHERF2 blunted PLC signaling induced by BK or LPA respectively. Taken together, these data suggest that each subtype of PLC-beta is selectively coupled to GPCR via PDZ scaffold proteins in given cell types and plays differential role in the signaling of various GPCRs.

Phospholipase Cγ1 negatively regulates growth hormone signalling by forming a ternary complex with Jak2 and protein tyrosine phosphatase-1B

Growth hormone binds to its membrane receptor (GHR), whereby it regulates many cellular functions, including proliferation, differentiation and chemotaxis. However, although the activation of growth hormone-mediated signalling is well understood, the precise mechanism responsible for its regulation has not been elucidated. Here, we demonstrate that phospholipase Cγ1 (PLCγ1) modulates the action of growth hormone-mediated signalling by interacting with tyrosine kinase Jak2 (janus kinase 2) in a growth hormone-dependent manner. In the absence of PLCγ1 (PLCγ1−/−), growth hormone-induced JAK2 and STAT5 phosphorylation significantly increased in mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs). Furthermore, the re-expression of PLCγ1 reduced growth hormone-induced Jak2 activation. Growth hormone-induced Jak2 phosphorylation was enhanced by siRNA-specific knockdown of PLCγ1. Interestingly, PLCγ1 physically linked Jak2 and protein tyrosine phosphatase-1B (PTP-1B) by binding to both using different domains, and this process was implicated in the modulation of cytokine signalling through Jak2. In addition, in PLCγ1−/− MEFs, growth hormone-dependent c-Fos activation was upregulated and growth hormone-induced proliferation was potentiated. These results suggest that PLCγ1 has a key function in the regulation of growth hormone-mediated signalling by negatively regulating Jak2 activation.

A myristoylated pseudosubstrate peptide of PKC-ζ induces degranulation in HMC-1 cells independently of PKC-ζ activity

Mast cells play a central role in allergic disease and host defense against several pathogens through the release of various bioactive compounds via degranulation. In this study, we found that a myristoylated pseudosubstrate of PKC-zeta (zeta-PS; myristoyl-SIYRRGARRWRKL, a PKC-zeta inhibitor) regulates mast cell degranulation. zeta-PS increased [Ca+2]i level at nanomolar concentrations in a PKC-zeta activity-independent manner in HMC-1 cells. Moreover, zeta-PS-induced [Ca+2]i generation was completely abrogated by phospholipase C (PLC), IP3 receptor or Galpha i/o inhibitor and zeta-PS potently induced degranulation in HMC-1 cells which was significantly inhibited by pretreating PLC inhibitors or a calcium chelator. Therefore, our results suggest that zeta-PS can induce degranulation in HMC-1 cells by triggering the calcium signal via a PKC-zeta-independent but Galpha i/o, PLC and IP3-dependent pathways.

Inhibition of phospholipase C-β1-mediated signaling by O-GlcNAc modification

Here we report inhibition of phospholipase C‐β1 (PLC‐β1)‐mediated signaling by post‐translational glycosylation with β‐N‐acetylglucosamine (O‐GlcNAc modification). In C2C12 myoblasts, isoform‐specific knock‐down experiments using siRNA showed that activation of bradykinin (BK) receptor led to stimulation of PLC‐β1 and subsequent intracellular Ca2+ mobilization. In C2C12 myotubes, O‐GlcNAc modification of PLC‐β1 was markedly enhanced in response to treatment with glucosamine (GlcNH2), an inhibitor of O‐GlcNAase (PUGNAc) and hyperglycemia. This was associated with more than 50% inhibition of intracellular production of IP3 and Ca2+ mobilization in response to BK. Since the abundance of PLC‐β1 remained unchanged, these data suggest that O‐GlcNAc modification of PLC‐β1 led to inhibition of its activity. Moreover, glucose uptake stimulated by BK was significantly blunted by treatment with PUGNAc. These data support the notion that O‐GlcNAc modification negatively modulates the activity of PLC‐β1. J. Cell. Physiol.

Endothelial Deletion of Phospholipase D2 Reduces Hypoxic Response and Pathological Angiogenesis

Objective— Aberrant regulation of the proliferation, survival, and migration of endothelial cells (ECs) is closely related to the abnormal angiogenesis that occurs in hypoxia-induced pathological situations, such as cancer and vascular retinopathy. Hypoxic conditions and the subsequent upregulation of hypoxia-inducible factor-1&agr; and target genes are important for the angiogenic functions of ECs. Phospholipase D2 (PLD2) is a crucial signaling mediator that stimulates the production of the second messenger phosphatidic acid. PLD2 is involved in various cellular functions; however, its specific roles in ECs under hypoxia and in vivo angiogenesis remain unclear. In the present study, we investigated the potential roles of PLD2 in ECs under hypoxia and in hypoxia-induced pathological angiogenesis in vivo. Approach and Results— Pld2 knockout ECs exhibited decreased hypoxia-induced cellular responses in survival, migration, and thus vessel sprouting. Analysis of hypoxia-induced gene expression revealed that PLD2 deficiency disrupted the upregulation of hypoxia-inducible factor-1&agr; target genes, including VEGF, PFKFB3, HMOX-1, and NTRK2. Consistent with this, PLD2 contributed to hypoxia-induced hypoxia-inducible factor-1&agr; expression at the translational level. The roles of PLD2 in hypoxia-induced in vivo pathological angiogenesis were assessed using oxygen-induced retinopathy and tumor implantation models in endothelial-specific Pld2 knockout mice. Pld2 endothelial-specific knockout retinae showed decreased neovascular tuft formation, despite a larger avascular region. Tumor growth and tumor blood vessel formation were also reduced in Pld2 endothelial-specific knockout mice. Conclusions— Our findings demonstrate a novel role for endothelial PLD2 in the survival and migration of ECs under hypoxia via the expression of hypoxia-inducible factor-1&agr; and in pathological retinal angiogenesis and tumor angiogenesis in vivo.

The androgenic anabolic steroid tetrahydrogestrinone produces dioxin-like effects via the aryl hydrocarbon receptor

For a long time, athletes have used androgenic anabolic steroids (AASs) in an inappropriate and veiled manner with the aim of improving exercise performance or for cosmetic purposes. Abuse of AASs triggers adverse effects such as hepatocarcinogenesis, heart attacks, and aggressive behavior. However, AAS-induced toxicity is not completely understood at the molecular level. In the present study, we showed, by performing a dioxin response element (DRE)-luciferase reporter gene assay, that tetrahydrogestrinone (THG), a popular and potent androgen receptor agonist, has dioxin-like effects. In addition, we showed that THG increased cytochrome P-450 1A1 (CYP1A1) mRNA and protein levels, and enzyme activity. The gene encoding CYP1A1 is involved in phase 1 xenobiotic metabolism and a target gene of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). Using the AhR antagonist CH-223191, we also examined whether the effects of THG on DRE activation depended on AhR. Our results suggest that synthetic anabolic steroids may have dioxin-like side effects that can disturb endocrine systems and may cause other side effects including cancer through AhR.