Yves Collette

Role of ICAM-3 in the initial interaction of T lymphocytes and APCs

Antigen-independent adhesive interactions between T lymphocytes and antigen-presenting cells (APCs) are essential for scanning for specific antigens on the APC surface and for initiating the immune response. Here we show, through time-lapse imaging of live cells, that the intercellular adhesion molecule 3 (ICAM-3, also known as CD50) is clustered specifically at the region of the T lymphocyte surface that initiates contact with APCs. We describe the role of ICAM-3 in T cell–APC conjugate formation before antigen recognition, in early intracellular signaling and in cytoskeletal rearrangement. Our data indicate that ICAM-3 is important in the initial scanning of the APC surface by T cells and, therefore, in generating the immune response.

Synergistic Activation of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Promoter Activity by NF-κB and Inhibitors of Deacetylases: Potential Perspectives for the Development of Therapeutic Strategies

ABSTRACT The transcription factor NF-κB plays a central role in the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) activation pathway. HIV-1 transcription is also regulated by protein acetylation, since treatment with deacetylase inhibitors such as trichostatin A (TSA) or sodium butyrate (NaBut) markedly induces HIV-1 transcriptional activity of the long terminal repeat (LTR) promoter. Here, we demonstrate that TSA (NaBut) synergized with both ectopically expressed p50/p65 and tumor necrosis factor alpha/SF2 (TNF)-induced NF-κB to activate the LTR. This was confirmed for LTRs from subtypes A through G of the HIV-1 major group, with a positive correlation between the number of κB sites present in the LTRs and the amplitude of the TNF-TSA synergism. Mechanistically, TSA (NaBut) delayed the cytoplasmic recovery of the inhibitory protein IκBα. This coincided with a prolonged intranuclear presence and DNA binding activity of NF-κB. The physiological relevance of the TNF-TSA (NaBut) synergism was shown on HIV-1 replication in both acutely and latently HIV-infected cell lines. Therefore, our results open new therapeutic strategies aimed at decreasing or eliminating the pool of latently HIV-infected reservoirs by forcing viral expression.

Protein–protein interaction inhibition (2P2I) combining high throughput and virtual screening: Application to the HIV-1 Nef protein

Protein–protein recognition is the cornerstone of multiple cellular and pathological functions. Therefore, protein–protein interaction inhibition (2P2I) is endowed with great therapeutic potential despite the initial belief that 2P2I was refractory to small-molecule intervention. Improved knowledge of complex molecular binding surfaces has recently stimulated renewed interest for 2P2I, especially after identification of “hot spots” and first inhibitory compounds. However, the combination of target complexity and lack of starting compound has thwarted experimental results and created intellectual barriers. Here we combined virtual and experimental screening when no previously known inhibitors can be used as starting point in a structure-based research program that targets an SH3 binding surface of the HIV type I Nef protein. High-throughput docking and application of a pharmacophoric filter on one hand and search for analogy on the other hand identified drug-like compounds that were further confirmed to bind Nef in the micromolar range (isothermal titration calorimetry), to target the Nef SH3 binding surface (NMR experiments), and to efficiently compete for Nef–SH3 interactions (cell-based assay, GST pull-down). Initial identification of these compounds by virtual screening was validated by screening of the very same library of compounds in the cell-based assay, demonstrating that a significant enrichment factor was attained by the in silico screening. To our knowledge, our results identify the first set of drug-like compounds that functionally target the HIV-1 Nef SH3 binding surface and provide the basis for a powerful discovery process that should help to speed up 2P2I strategies and open avenues for new class of antiviral molecules.

Dynamic recruitment of the adaptor protein LAT: LAT exists in two distinct intracellular pools and controls its own recruitment

The integral membrane adaptor protein linker for activation of T cells (LAT) couples the T-cell receptor (TCR) with downstream signalling and is essential for T-cell development and activation. Here, we investigate the dynamic distribution of LAT-GFP fusion proteins by time-lapse video imaging of live T lymphocytes interacting with antigen-presenting cells. We show that LAT forms two distinct cellular pools, one at the plasma membrane and one that co-distributes with transferrin-labelled intracellular compartments also containing the TCR/CD3-associated ζ chain. The distribution of LAT between these two pools is dependent on LAT intracytoplasmic residues. Whereas plasma membrane-associated LAT is recruited to immune synapses after a few seconds of cell conjugate formation, the intracellular pool is first polarized and then recruited after a few minutes. We further show that LAT intracytoplasmic amino acid residues, particularly the Tyr136, 175, 195 and 235 residues, are required for its own recruitment to the immune synapse and that a herein-identified juxtamembrane LAT region (amino acids 32-104) is involved in the localization of LAT in intracellular pools and in T-cell signalling. Altogether, our results demonstrate that LAT controls its own recruitment at the immune synapse, where it is required as a scaffold protein for the signalling machinery. The results also suggest that the intracellular pool of LAT might be required for T-cell activation.

Potentiation of tumor necrosis factor-induced NF-kappa B activation by deacetylase inhibitors is associated with a delayed cytoplasmic reappearance of I kappa B alpha.

ABSTRACT Previous studies have implicated acetylases and deacetylases in regulating the transcriptional activity of NF-κB. Here, we show that inhibitors of deacetylases such as trichostatin A (TSA) and sodium butyrate (NaBut) potentiated TNF-induced expression of several natural NF-κB-driven promoters. This transcriptional synergism observed between TNF and TSA (or NaBut) required intact κB sites in all promoters tested and was biologically relevant as demonstrated by RNase protection on two instances of endogenous NF-κB-regulated gene transcription. Importantly, TSA prolonged both TNF-induced DNA-binding activity and the presence of NF-κB in the nucleus. We showed that the p65 subunit of NF-κB was acetylated in vivo. However, this acetylation was weak, suggesting that other mechanisms could be implicated in the potentiated binding and transactivation activities of NF-κB after TNF plus TSA versus TNF treatment. Western blot and immunofluorescence confocal microscopy experiments revealed a delay in the cytoplasmic reappearance of the IκBα inhibitor that correlated temporally with the prolonged intranuclear binding and presence of NF-κB. This delay was due neither to a defect in IκBα mRNA production nor to a nuclear retention of IκBα but was rather due to a persistent proteasome-mediated degradation of IκBα. A prolongation of IκB kinase activity could explain, at least partially, the delayed IκBα cytoplasmic reappearance observed in presence of TNF plus TSA.

Frontline: Characterization of BT3 molecules belonging to the B7 family expressed on immune cells

New members of the B7 family have been recently described as regulators of T cell activation and function. Butyrophilin (BT) has also been related to the B7 family by sequence similarity analyses. We present a new subfamily called BT3, which belongs to the B7/BT family. The BT3 subfamily comprises three members (BT3.1, .2 and .3) that exhibit 95% identity and form a monophylogenetic group along with the BT‐related members. High expression levels of BT3 transcripts were detected in lymphoid tissues (mainly spleen, lymph node and PBL). Using anti‐BT3 mAb we could demonstrate BT3 expression on immune cells including T, B and NK cells, monocytes and dendritic cells as well as hematopoietic precursors and some tumor cell lines. As described earlier for PDL‐1 and ICOS‐L, BT3 molecules are expressed on endothelial cells and up‐regulated upon activation by IFN‐γ or TNF‐α. The BT3.1 counter‐receptor (BT3.1‐R) was analyzed by means of binding experiments using BT3.1‐Ig soluble protein. The BT3.1‐R is not CD28, CTLA‐4, ICOS, PD‐1 or BTLA and seems restricted to some T cell and hematopoietic cell lines. Altogether, these data describe new members of the B7/BT family that may play a role in regulation of the immune response.

1H-13C nuclear magnetic resonance assignment and structural characterization of HIV-1 Tat protein.

Tat is a viral protein essential for activation of the HIV genes and plays an important role in the HIV-induced immunodeficiency. We chemically synthesized a Tat protein (86 residues) with its six glycines C alpha labelled with 13C. This synthetic protein has the full Tat activity. Heteronuclear nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra and NOE back-calculation made possible the sequential assignment of the 86 spin systems. Consequently, 915 NMR restraints were identified and 272 of them turned out to be long range ([i-j] > 4), providing structural information on the whole Tat protein. The poor spectral dispersion of Tat NMR spectra does not allow an accurate structure to be determined as for other proteins studied by 2D NMR. Nevertheless, we were able to determine the folding for Tat protein at a 1-mM protein concentration in a 100 mM, pH 4.5 phosphate buffer. The two main Tat functional regions, the basic region and the cysteine-rich region, are well exposed to solvent while a part of the N-terminal region and the C-terminal region constitute the core of Tat Bru. The basic region adopts an extended structure while the cysteine-rich region is made up of two loops. Resolution of this structure was determinant to develop a drug design approach against Tat. The chemical synthesis of the drugs allowed the specific binding and the inhibition of Tat to be verified.

The Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor Abexinostat Induces Cancer Stem Cells Differentiation in Breast Cancer with Low Xist Expression

Purpose: Cancer stem cells (CSC) are the tumorigenic cell population that has been shown to sustain tumor growth and to resist conventional therapies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the potential of histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) as anti-CSC therapies. Experimental Design: We evaluated the effect of the HDACi compound abexinostat on CSCs from 16 breast cancer cell lines (BCL) using ALDEFLUOR assay and tumorsphere formation. We performed gene expression profiling to identify biomarkers predicting drug response to abexinostat. Then, we used patient-derived xenograft (PDX) to confirm, in vivo, abexinostat treatment effect on breast CSCs according to the identified biomarkers. Results: We identified two drug-response profiles to abexinostat in BCLs. Abexinostat induced CSC differentiation in low-dose sensitive BCLs, whereas it did not have any effect on the CSC population from high-dose sensitive BCLs. Using gene expression profiling, we identified the long noncoding RNA Xist (X-inactive specific transcript) as a biomarker predicting BCL response to HDACi. We validated that low Xist expression predicts drug response in PDXs associated with a significant reduction of the breast CSC population. Conclusions: Our study opens promising perspectives for the use of HDACi as a differentiation therapy targeting the breast CSCs and identified a biomarker to select patients with breast cancer susceptible to responding to this treatment. Clin Cancer Res; 19(23); 6520–31. ©2013 AACR.

Protective mitochondrial transfer from bone marrow stromal cells to acute myeloid leukemic cells during chemotherapy

Here we demonstrate that in a niche-like coculture system, cells from both primary and cultured acute myeloid leukemia (AML) sources take up functional mitochondria from murine or human bone marrow stromal cells. Using different molecular and imaging approaches, we show that AML cells can increase their mitochondrial mass up to 14%. After coculture, recipient AML cells showed a 1.5-fold increase in mitochondrial adenosine triphosphate production and were less prone to mitochondrial depolarization after chemotherapy, displaying a higher survival. This unidirectional transfer enhanced by some chemotherapeutic agents required cell-cell contacts and proceeded through an endocytic pathway. Transfer was greater in AML blasts compared with normal cord blood CD34(+) cells. Finally, we demonstrate that mitochondrial transfer was observed in vivo in an NSG immunodeficient mouse xenograft model and also occurred in human leukemia initiating cells and progenitors. As mitochondrial transfer provides a clear survival advantage following chemotherapy and a higher leukemic long-term culture initiating cell potential, targeting mitochondrial transfer could represent a future therapeutic target for AML treatment.

A Role for the Neuronal Protein Collapsin Response Mediator Protein 2 in T Lymphocyte Polarization and Migration

The semaphorin-signaling transducer collapsin response mediator protein 2 (CRMP2) has been identified in the nervous system where it mediates Sema3A-induced growth cone navigation. In the present study, we provide first evidence that CRMP2 is present in the immune system and plays a critical role in T lymphocyte function. CRMP2 redistribution at the uropod in polarized T cells, a structural support of lymphocyte motility, suggests that it may regulate T cell migration. This was evidenced in primary T cells by small-interfering RNA-mediated CRMP2 gene silencing and blocking Ab, as well as CRMP2 overexpression in Jurkat T cells tested in a chemokine- and semaphorin-mediated transmigration assay. Expression analysis in PBMC from healthy donors showed that CRMP2 is enhanced in cell subsets bearing the activation markers CD69+ and HLA-DR+. Heightened expression in T lymphocytes of patients suffering from neuroinflammatory disease with enhanced T cell-transmigrating activity points to a role for CRMP2 in pathogenesis. The elucidation of the signals and mechanisms that control this pathway will lead to a better understanding of T cell trafficking in physiological and pathological situations.