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Root-Bernstein R, Huber J, Ziehl A, Pietrowicz M. SARS-CoV-2 and Its Bacterial Co- or Super-Infections Synergize to Trigger COVID-19 Autoimmune Cardiopathies. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:12177. [PMID: 37569555 PMCID: PMC10418384 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241512177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2023] [Revised: 07/20/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Autoimmune cardiopathies (AC) following COVID-19 and vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 occur at significant rates but are of unknown etiology. This study investigated the possible roles of viral and bacterial mimicry, as well as viral-bacterial co-infections, as possible inducers of COVID-19 AC using proteomic methods and enzyme-linked immunoadsorption assays. BLAST and LALIGN results of this study demonstrate that SARS-CoV-2 shares a significantly greater number of high quality similarities to some cardiac protein compared with other viruses; that bacteria such as Streptococci, Staphylococci and Enterococci also display very significant similarities to cardiac proteins but to a different set than SARS-CoV-2; that the importance of these similarities is largely validated by ELISA experiments demonstrating that polyclonal antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19-associated bacteria recognize cardiac proteins with high affinity; that to account for the range of cardiac proteins targeted by autoantibodies in COVID-19-associated autoimmune myocarditis, both viral and bacterial triggers are probably required; that the targets of the viral and bacterial antibodies are often molecularly complementary antigens such as actin and myosin, laminin and collagen, or creatine kinase and pyruvate kinase, that are known to bind to each other; and that the corresponding viral and bacterial antibodies recognizing these complementary antigens also bind to each other with high affinity as if they have an idiotype-anti-idiotype relationship. These results suggest that AC results from SARS-CoV-2 infections or vaccination complicated by bacterial infections. Vaccination against some of these bacterial infections, such as Streptococci and Haemophilus, may therefore decrease AC risk, as may the appropriate and timely use of antibiotics among COVID-19 patients and careful screening of vaccinees for signs of infection such as fever, diarrhea, infected wounds, gum disease, etc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Root-Bernstein
- Department of Physiology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA; (J.H.); (A.Z.); (M.P.)
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Rubenstein PA, Wen KK. Insights into the effects of disease-causing mutations in human actins. Cytoskeleton (Hoboken) 2014; 71:211-29. [PMID: 24574087 DOI: 10.1002/cm.21169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2013] [Revised: 02/13/2013] [Accepted: 02/19/2014] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Mutations in all six actins in humans have now been shown to cause diseases. However, a number of factors have made it difficult to gain insight into how the changes in actin functions brought about by these pathogenic mutations result in the disease phenotype. These include the presence of multiple actins in the same cell, limited accessibility to pure mutant material, and complexities associated with the structures and their component cells that manifest the diseases. To try to circumvent these difficulties, investigators have turned to the use of model systems. This review describes these various approaches, the initial results obtained using them, and the insight they have provided into allosteric mechanisms that govern actin function. Although results so far have not explained a particular disease phenotype at the molecular level, they have provided valuable insight into actin function at the mechanistic level which can be utilized in the future to delineate the molecular bases of these different actinopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter A Rubenstein
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa
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Mechanochemitry: a molecular biomechanics view of mechanosensing. Ann Biomed Eng 2013; 42:388-404. [PMID: 24006131 DOI: 10.1007/s10439-013-0904-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2013] [Accepted: 08/28/2013] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Molecular biomechanics includes two themes: the study of mechanical aspects of biomolecules and the study of molecular biology of the cell using mechanical tools. The two themes are interconnected for obvious reasons. The present review focuses on one of the interconnected areas-the mechanical regulation of molecular interaction and conformational change. Recent conceptual developments are summarized, including catch bonds, regulation of molecular interaction by the history of force application, and cyclic mechanical reinforcement. These studies elucidate the mechanochemistry of some of the candidate mechanosensing molecules, thereby providing a natural connection to mechanobiology.
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Actin depolymerization under force is governed by lysine 113:glutamic acid 195-mediated catch-slip bonds. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2013; 110:5022-7. [PMID: 23460697 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1218407110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
As a key element in the cytoskeleton, actin filaments are highly dynamic structures that constantly sustain forces. However, the fundamental question of how force regulates actin dynamics is unclear. Using atomic force microscopy force-clamp experiments, we show that tensile force regulates G-actin/G-actin and G-actin/F-actin dissociation kinetics by prolonging bond lifetimes (catch bonds) at a low force range and by shortening bond lifetimes (slip bonds) beyond a threshold. Steered molecular dynamics simulations reveal force-induced formation of new interactions that include a lysine 113(K113):glutamic acid 195 (E195) salt bridge between actin subunits, thus suggesting a molecular basis for actin catch-slip bonds. This structural mechanism is supported by the suppression of the catch bonds by the single-residue replacements K113 to serine (K113S) and E195 to serine (E195S) on yeast actin. These results demonstrate and provide a structural explanation for actin catch-slip bonds, which may provide a mechanoregulatory mechanism to control cell functions by regulating the depolymerization kinetics of force-bearing actin filaments throughout the cytoskeleton.
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Ravenscroft G, Jackaman C, Sewry CA, McNamara E, Squire SE, Potter AC, Papadimitriou J, Griffiths LM, Bakker AJ, Davies KE, Laing NG, Nowak KJ. Actin nemaline myopathy mouse reproduces disease, suggests other actin disease phenotypes and provides cautionary note on muscle transgene expression. PLoS One 2011; 6:e28699. [PMID: 22174871 PMCID: PMC3235150 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0028699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2011] [Accepted: 11/14/2011] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Mutations in the skeletal muscle α-actin gene (ACTA1) cause congenital myopathies including nemaline myopathy, actin aggregate myopathy and rod-core disease. The majority of patients with ACTA1 mutations have severe hypotonia and do not survive beyond the age of one. A transgenic mouse model was generated expressing an autosomal dominant mutant (D286G) of ACTA1 (identified in a severe nemaline myopathy patient) fused with EGFP. Nemaline bodies were observed in multiple skeletal muscles, with serial sections showing these correlated to aggregates of the mutant skeletal muscle α-actin-EGFP. Isolated extensor digitorum longus and soleus muscles were significantly weaker than wild-type (WT) muscle at 4 weeks of age, coinciding with the peak in structural lesions. These 4 week-old mice were ~30% less active on voluntary running wheels than WT mice. The α-actin-EGFP protein clearly demonstrated that the transgene was expressed equally in all myosin heavy chain (MHC) fibre types during the early postnatal period, but subsequently became largely confined to MHCIIB fibres. Ringbinden fibres, internal nuclei and myofibrillar myopathy pathologies, not typical features in nemaline myopathy or patients with ACTA1 mutations, were frequently observed. Ringbinden were found in fast fibre predominant muscles of adult mice and were exclusively MHCIIB-positive fibres. Thus, this mouse model presents a reliable model for the investigation of the pathobiology of nemaline body formation and muscle weakness and for evaluation of potential therapeutic interventions. The occurrence of core-like regions, internal nuclei and ringbinden will allow analysis of the mechanisms underlying these lesions. The occurrence of ringbinden and features of myofibrillar myopathy in this mouse model of ACTA1 disease suggests that patients with these pathologies and no genetic explanation should be screened for ACTA1 mutations.
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MESH Headings
- Actins/metabolism
- Animals
- Behavior, Animal
- Disease Models, Animal
- Gene Expression
- Green Fluorescent Proteins/metabolism
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred C57BL
- Mice, Transgenic
- Muscle Contraction/physiology
- Muscle Fibers, Skeletal/pathology
- Muscle Fibers, Skeletal/ultrastructure
- Muscle, Skeletal/metabolism
- Muscle, Skeletal/pathology
- Muscle, Skeletal/physiopathology
- Muscle, Skeletal/ultrastructure
- Myopathies, Nemaline/pathology
- Myopathies, Nemaline/physiopathology
- Myosin Heavy Chains/metabolism
- Phenotype
- Recombinant Fusion Proteins/metabolism
- Transgenes/genetics
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Affiliation(s)
- Gianina Ravenscroft
- Centre for Medical Research, The University of Western Australia, Western Australian Institute for Medical Research, Nedlands, Australia
- Physiology, School of Biomedical, Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Connie Jackaman
- Centre for Medical Research, The University of Western Australia, Western Australian Institute for Medical Research, Nedlands, Australia
| | - Caroline A. Sewry
- Wolfson Centre for Inherited Neuromuscular Diseases, Robert Jones & Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital, Oswestry, United Kingdom
| | - Elyshia McNamara
- Centre for Medical Research, The University of Western Australia, Western Australian Institute for Medical Research, Nedlands, Australia
| | - Sarah E. Squire
- MRC Functional Genetics Unit, Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Allyson C. Potter
- MRC Functional Genetics Unit, Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - John Papadimitriou
- School of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Lisa M. Griffiths
- Neuropathology, Royal Perth Hospital and PathWest Anatomical Pathology, Perth, Australia
| | - Anthony J. Bakker
- Physiology, School of Biomedical, Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Kay E. Davies
- MRC Functional Genetics Unit, Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Nigel G. Laing
- Centre for Medical Research, The University of Western Australia, Western Australian Institute for Medical Research, Nedlands, Australia
| | - Kristen J. Nowak
- Centre for Medical Research, The University of Western Australia, Western Australian Institute for Medical Research, Nedlands, Australia
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Hild G, Bugyi B, Nyitrai M. Conformational dynamics of actin: effectors and implications for biological function. Cytoskeleton (Hoboken) 2010; 67:609-29. [PMID: 20672362 PMCID: PMC3038201 DOI: 10.1002/cm.20473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2010] [Accepted: 07/15/2010] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Actin is a protein abundant in many cell types. Decades of investigations have provided evidence that it has many functions in living cells. The diverse morphology and dynamics of actin structures adapted to versatile cellular functions is established by a large repertoire of actin-binding proteins. The proper interactions with these proteins assume effective molecular adaptations from actin, in which its conformational transitions play essential role. This review attempts to summarise our current knowledge regarding the coupling between the conformational states of actin and its biological function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gábor Hild
- Department of Biophysics, University of Pécs, Faculty of Medicine, Pécs, Szigeti str. 12, H-7624, Hungary
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