Ulrich Putz

The Tumor Suppressor PTEN Is Exported in Exosomes and Has Phosphatase Activity in Recipient Cells

A tumor suppressor protein with lipid phosphatase activity is carried to target cells in microvesicles. PTEN Goes Traveling The tumor suppressor protein and phosphatase PTEN antagonizes the kinase PI3K, resulting in inhibition of the kinase Akt downstream of PI3K and reduced cellular proliferation. Mutations in PTEN are found in many different tumors. PTEN functions at the cytosolic side of the plasma membrane and in the nucleus, but Putz et al. extend its sphere of influence by showing that it can be secreted from cells in exosomes and taken up by recipient cells, where its functional activity is intact. PTEN-deficient cells that received exosomes bearing PTEN exhibited Akt inhibition and reduced proliferation. Secretion of PTEN from cells required components of the Nedd4 ubiquitination system. Given the role of PTEN in tumor suppression, these results suggest that the delivery of PTEN to tumor cells may provide an effective therapeutic strategy. Exosomes are microvesicles of endosomal origin that are secreted, and their contents (proteins, lipids, DNA, or microRNAs) can alter the physiological states of recipient cells. We demonstrated that phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN), a tumor suppressor protein normally localized in the cytoplasm and nucleus, was secreted in exosomes. Secreted PTEN was internalized by recipient cells with resultant functional activity, which resulted in reduced phosphorylation of the serine and threonine kinase Akt and reduced cellular proliferation. PTEN secretion in exosomes required Ndfip1, an adaptor protein for members of the Nedd4 family of E3 ubiquitin ligases. Without Ndfip1, neither Nedd4-1 nor Nedd4-2 promoted the recruitment of PTEN into exosomes. In addition, lysine 13 within PTEN, which is required for its ubiquitination by Nedd4-1, was required for exosomal transport of PTEN. These results implicate Ndfip1 as a molecular regulator of the exosomal export of PTEN, with consequences for non–cell-autonomous PTEN activity. Thus, we suggest that the ability of PTEN to exert phosphatase activity beyond the cell in which it is produced has implications for PTEN function during development, health, and disease.

EVpedia: a community web portal for extracellular vesicles research

MOTIVATION Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are spherical bilayered proteolipids, harboring various bioactive molecules. Due to the complexity of the vesicular nomenclatures and components, online searches for EV-related publications and vesicular components are currently challenging. RESULTS We present an improved version of EVpedia, a public database for EVs research. This community web portal contains a database of publications and vesicular components, identification of orthologous vesicular components, bioinformatic tools and a personalized function. EVpedia includes 6879 publications, 172 080 vesicular components from 263 high-throughput datasets, and has been accessed more than 65 000 times from more than 750 cities. In addition, about 350 members from 73 international research groups have participated in developing EVpedia. This free web-based database might serve as a useful resource to stimulate the emerging field of EV research. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION The web site was implemented in PHP, Java, MySQL and Apache, and is freely available at http://evpedia.info.

Divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1) regulation by Ndfip1 prevents metal toxicity in human neurons

The regulation of metal ion transport within neurons is critical for normal brain function. Of particular importance is the regulation of redox metals such as iron (Fe), where excess levels can contribute to oxidative stress and protein aggregation, leading to neuronal death. The divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1) plays a central role in the regulation of Fe as well as other metals; hence, failure of DMT1 regulation is linked to human brain pathology. However, it remains unclear how DMT1 is regulated in the brain. Here, we show that DMT1 is regulated by Ndfip1 (Nedd4 family-interacting protein 1), an adaptor protein that recruits E3 ligases to ubiquitinate target proteins. Using human neurons we show the Ndfip1 is upregulated and binds to DMT1 in response to Fe and cobalt (Co) exposure. This interaction results in the ubiquitination and degradation of DMT1, resulting in reduced metal entry. Induction of Ndfip1 expression protects neurons from metal toxicity, and removal of Ndfip1 by shRNAi results in hypersensitivity to metals. We identify Nedd4–2 as an E3 ligase recruited by Ndfip1 for the ubiquitination of DMT1 within human neurons. Comparison of brains from Ndfip1−/− with Ndfip1+/+ mice exposed to Fe reveals that Ndfip1−/− brains accumulate Fe within neurons. Together, this evidence suggests a critical role for Ndfip1 in regulating metal transport in human neurons.

Nedd4 Family-interacting Protein 1 (Ndfip1) Is Required for the Exosomal Secretion of Nedd4 Family Proteins

The ability to remove unwanted proteins is an important cellular feature. Classically, this involves the enzymatic addition of ubiquitin moieties followed by degradation in the proteasome. Nedd4 proteins are ubiquitin ligases important not only for protein degradation, but also for protein trafficking. Nedd4 proteins can bind to target proteins either by themselves or through adaptor protein Ndfip1 (Nedd4 family-interacting protein 1). An alternative mechanism for protein removal and trafficking is provided by exosomes, which are small vesicles (50–90-nm diameter) originating from late endosomes and multivesicular bodies (MVBs). Exosomes provide a rapid means of shedding obsolete proteins and also for cell to cell communication. In the present work, we show that Ndfip1 is detectable in exosomes secreted from transfected cells and also from primary neurons. Compared with control, Ndfip1 increases exosome secretion from transfected cells. Furthermore, while Nedd4, Nedd4-2, and Itch are normally absent from exosomes, expression of Ndfip1 results in recruitment of all three Nedd4 proteins into exosomes. Together, these results suggest that Ndfip1 is important for protein trafficking via exosomes, and provides a mechanism for cargoing passenger proteins such as Nedd4 family proteins. Given the positive roles of Ndfip1/Nedd4 in improving neuronal survival during brain injury, it is possible that exosome secretion provides a novel route for rapid sequestration and removal of proteins during stress.

Ndfip1 regulates nuclear Pten import in vivo to promote neuronal survival following cerebral ischemia

PTEN nuclear entry driven by ubiquitination is mediated by the ligase-interacting protein Ndfip1 and is essential for neuronal survival in mice after cerebral ischemia.

BDNF Exerts Contrasting Effects on Peripheral Myelination of NGF-Dependent and BDNF-Dependent DRG Neurons

Although brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) has been shown to promote peripheral myelination during development and remyelination after injury, the precise mechanisms mediating this effect remain unknown. Here, we determine that BDNF promotes myelination of nerve growth factor-dependent neurons, an effect dependent on neuronal expression of the p75 neurotrophin receptor, whereas BDNF inhibits myelination of BDNF-dependent neurons via the full-length TrkB receptor. Thus, BDNF exerts contrasting effects on Schwann cell myelination, depending on the complement of BDNF receptors that are expressed by different subpopulations of dorsal root ganglion neurons. These results demonstrate that BDNF exerts contrasting modulatory roles in peripheral nervous system myelination, and that its mechanism of action is acutely regulated and specifically targeted to neurons.

Nuclear trafficking of Pten after brain injury leads to neuron survival not death

There is controversy whether accumulation of the tumor suppressor PTEN protein in the cell nucleus under stress conditions such as trauma and stroke causes cell death. A number of in vitro studies have reported enhanced apoptosis in neurons possessing nuclear PTEN, with the interpretation that its nuclear phosphatase activity leads to reduction of the survival protein phospho-Akt. However, there have been no in vivo studies to show that nuclear PTEN in neurons under stress is detrimental. Using a mouse model of injury, we demonstrate here that brain trauma altered the nucleo-cytoplasmic distribution of Pten, resulting in increased nuclear Pten but only in surviving neurons near the lesion. This event was driven by Ndfip1, an adaptor and activator of protein ubiquitination by Nedd4 E3 ligases. Neurons next to the lesion with nuclear PTEN were invariably negative for TUNEL, a marker for cell death. These neurons also showed increased Ndfip1 which we previously showed to be associated with neuron survival. Biochemical assays revealed that overall levels of Pten in the affected cortex were unchanged after trauma, suggesting that Pten abundance globally had not increased but rather Pten subcellular location in affected neurons had changed. Following experimental injury, the number of neurons with nuclear Pten was reduced in heterozygous mice (Ndfip1(+/-)) although lesion volumes were increased. We conclude that nuclear trafficking of Pten following injury leads to neuron survival not death.

Cellular up-regulation of Nedd4 family interacting protein 1 (Ndfip1) using low levels of bioactive cobalt complexes.

The delivery of metal ions using cell membrane-permeable metal complexes represents a method for activating cellular pathways. Here, we report the synthesis and characterization of new [CoIII(salen)(acac)] complexes capable of up-regulating the ubiquitin ligase adaptor protein Ndfip1. Ndfip1 is a neuroprotective protein that is up-regulated in the brain after injury and functions in combination with Nedd4 ligases to ubiquitinate harmful proteins for removal. We previously showed that Ndfip1 can be increased in human neurons using CoCl2 that is toxic at high concentration. Here we demonstrate a similar effect can be achieved by low concentrations of synthetic CoIII complexes that are non-toxic and designed to be activated following cellular entry. Activation is achieved by intracellular reduction of CoIII to CoII leading to release of CoII ions for Ndfip1 up-regulation. The cellular benefit of Ndfip1 up-regulation by CoIII complexes includes demonstrable protection against cell death in SH-SY5Y cells during stress. In vivo, focal delivery of CoIII complexes into the adult mouse brain was observed to up-regulate Ndfip1 in neurons. These results demonstrate that a cellular response pathway can be advantageously manipulated by chemical modification of metal complexes, and represents a significant step of harnessing low concentration metal complexes for therapeutic benefit.

Increased Ndfip1 in the substantia nigra of Parkinsonian brains is associated with elevated iron levels.

Iron misregulation is a central component in the neuropathology of Parkinsons disease. The iron transport protein DMT1 is known to be increased in Parkinsons brains linking functional transport mechanisms with iron accumulation. The regulation of DMT1 is therefore critical to the management of iron uptake in the disease setting. We previously identified post-translational control of DMT1 levels through a ubiquitin-mediated pathway led by Ndfip1, an adaptor for Nedd4 family of E3 ligases. Here we show that loss of Ndfip1 from mouse dopaminergic neurons resulted in misregulation of DMT1 levels and increased susceptibility to iron induced death. We report that in human Parkinsons brains increased iron concentrations in the substantia nigra are associated with upregulated levels of Ndfip1 in dopaminergic neurons containing α-synuclein deposits. Additionally, Ndfip1 was also found to be misexpressed in astrocytes, a cell type normally devoid of this protein. We suggest that in Parkinsons disease, increased iron levels are associated with increased Ndfip1 expression for the regulation of DMT1, including abnormal Ndfip1 activation in non-neuronal cell types such as astrocytes.

PTEN secretion in exosomes.

PTEN was discovered as a membrane-associated tumor suppressor protein nearly two decades ago, but the concept that it can be secreted and taken up by recipient cells is revolutionary. Since then, various laboratories have reported that PTEN is indeed secreted and available for uptake by other cells in at least two different guises. First, PTEN may be packaged and exported within extracellular vesicles (EV) called exosomes. Second, PTEN may also be secreted as a naked protein in a longer isoform called PTEN-long. While the conditions favouring the secretion of PTEN-long remain unknown, PTEN secretion in exosomes is enhanced by the Ndfip1/Nedd4 ubiquitination system. In this report, we describe conditions for packaging PTEN in exosomes and their potential use for mediating non cell-autonomous functions in recipient cells. We suggest that this mode of PTEN transfer may potentially provide beneficial PTEN for tumor suppression, however it may also propagate deleterious versions of mutated PTEN causing tumorigenesis.