Time-dependent changes of LAK cell phenotypes correlate with the secretion of different cytotoxic proteins

A safety consideration of mesenchymal stem cell therapy on COVID-19

Due to the multi-potential differentiation and immunomodulatory function, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been widely used in the therapy of chronic and autoimmune diseases. Recently, the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has grown to be a global public health emergency but no effective drug is available to date. Several studies investigated MSCs therapy for COVID-19 patients. However, it remains unclear whether MSCs could be the host cells of SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2) and whether they might affect the SARS-CoV-2 entry into other cells. Here, we report that human MSCs barely express ACE2 and TMPRSS2, two receptors required for the virus endocytosis, indicating that MSCs are free from SARS-CoV-2 infection. Furthermore, we observed that MSCs were unable to induce the expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 in epithelial cells and macrophages. Importantly, under different inflammatory challenge conditions, implanted human MSCs failed to up-regulate the expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 in the lung tissues of mice. Intriguingly, we showed that a SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus failed to infect MSCs and co-cultured MSCs did not increase the risk of SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus infection in epithelial cells. All these results suggest that human MSCs have no risk of assisting SARS-CoV-2 infection and the use of MSCs as the therapy for COVID-19 patients is feasible and safe.

Innate Immune Protein Tag7 Stimulates the Appearance of Cytotoxic NK Cells after Incubation with Lymphocytes

Tag7 (PGRP-S) is an innate immune protein that is involved in the antibacterial and antitumor defense and stimulates the maturation of cytotoxic lymphocyte subpopulations. It was found that the incubation of lymphocytes with Tag7 for 3 days promotes the appearance of cytotoxic NK cells that are active against a number of tumor cell lines.

Tilorone activates NK cells and cytotoxic lymphocytes that kill HLA-negative tumor cells

Tilorone hydrochloride, a low-molecular-weight synthetic compound, induces interferon production and has been reported to have both antiviral and antitumor activities. Here, we have demonstrated the ability of tilorone to activate NK cells and specific subpopulations of cytotoxic CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes that recognize immune-evasive tumor cells and kill them via the FasL-Fas interaction. We have also performed a comparative analysis of characteristics between lymphocytes activated in the fraction of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) upon treatment with different stimulants of the immune response: tilorone, innate immunity protein Tag7, and cytokine IL-2, a regulator of adaptive immunity. The results show that all the three stimulants, regardless of their nature, activate lymphocytes that are identical with respect to the spectrum of target cells, phenotype, and mechanism of cytotoxic action However, these stimulants induce different mechanisms of lymphocyte activation at early stages of the immune response. © 2018 IUBMB Life, 71(3):376-384, 2019.

FasL on the surface of Tag7 (PGRP-S)-activated lymphocytes induces necroptosis in HLA-negative tumor cells with the involvement of lysosomes and mitochondria

Recently we have found that cytokine IL-2 and innate immunity protein Tag7 activate cytotoxic lymphocytes that kill HLA-negative tumor cells, inducing both apoptosis and necroptosis. Here we decrypt the processes, taking part in necroptosis execution after FasL-Fas interaction. Necroptosis begins with RIPK1 activation and necrosome formation. Subsequent activation of MLKL results in the increase of Ca2+ level in the cell and activation of Ca2+-dependent enzymes causing lysosomal membrane permeabilization and the release of cathepsins to the cytosol. STAT3 translocation to the mitochondria and binding to a component of the respiratory chain complex I causes ROS accumulation. We have shown that transduction of necroptotic signal via TNFR1 and Fas has many common points. It is known that apoptosis plays a major role in physiological cell death; however, under pathological conditions necroptosis is very common. That is why the detailed mechanisms of FasL-Fas necroptosis can help in understanding the processes of elimination of tumor cells that have blocked apoptosis signal transduction.

Tag7 (PGLYRP1) Can Induce an Emergence of the CD3+CD4+CD25+CD127+ Cells with Antitumor Activity

We have shown that in the human peripheral blood cells, the innate immunity protein Tag7 can activate a subpopulation of CD3+CD4+CD25+ cells, which have antitumor activity. These cells can induce lysis of HLA-negative tumor cell lines. The Hsp70 stress molecule on the surface of the tumor cells is used as a recognition target, while the Tag7 protein on the lymphocyte membrane acts as a receptor for Hsp70. We have also demonstrated that this subpopulation of the CD4+CD25+ cells is CD127 positive and hence is not the Treg cells. Our data suggest that this subpopulation of cells is identical to the CD4+CD25+ lymphocytes, which are activated in the leukocyte pool by the IL-2 cytokine.

Innate immunity protein Tag7 (PGRP-S) activates lymphocytes capable of Fasl-Fas-dependent contact killing of virus-infected cells

The innate immunity protein Tag7 (PGRP-S, PGLYRP1) is involved in antimicrobial and antitumor defense. As shown in our previous studies, Tag7 specifically interacts with the major heat shock protein Hsp70 to form a stable Tag7-Hsp70 complex with cytotoxic activity against tumor cells. A stable complex of Tag7 with the calcium-binding protein Mts1 (S100A4) stimulates migration of lymphocytes. Moreover, Tag7 can activate cytotoxic lymphocytes that recognize and kill HLA-negative tumor cells. Here, we have shown that Tag 7 treatment of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) results in activation of different cytotoxic lymphocyte populations-natural killer (NK) cells and CD8⁺ NKG2D⁺ T lymphocytes-that kill Moloney murine leukemia virus (MMLV) infected SC-1 cells using different mechanisms of cell death induction. This mechanism in NK cells is based on the release of granzymes, which activate apoptosis in target cells, while CD8⁺ NKG2D⁺ T lymphocytes recognize the noncanonical MicA antigen on the surface of virus-containing cells and kill them via the FasL-Fas interaction, triggering the apoptotic or necroptotic cell death pathway. Preliminary incubation of PBMCs with virus-infected cells and following incubation with Tag7 results in activation of lymphocytes with a different phenotype. These lymphocytes change the spectrum of target cells and the mechanism of cell death induction, and their interaction with target cells is not species-specific. © 2017 IUBMB Life, 69(12):971-977, 2017.

CD3+ CD8+ NKG2D+ T Lymphocytes Induce Apoptosis and Necroptosis in HLA-Negative Cells via FasL-Fas Interaction

An important problem in cellular immunology is to identify new populations of cytotoxic lymphocytes capable of killing tumor cells that have lost classical components of MHC-machinery and to understand mechanisms of the death of these cells. We have previously found that CD4⁺ CD25⁺ lymphocytes appear in the lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) cell culture, which carry Tag7 (PGRP-S) and FasL proteins on their surface and can kill Hsp70- and Fas-expressing HLA-negative cells. In this work, we have continued to study the mechanisms of killing of the HLA-negative tumor cells, focusing this time on the CD8⁺ lymphocytes. We show that after a tumor antigen contact the IL-2 activated CD8⁺ lymphocytes acquire ability to lyse tumor cells bearing this antigen. However, activation of the CD8⁺ lymphocytes in the absence of antigen causes appearance of a cytotoxic population of CD8⁺ NKG2D⁺ lymphocytes, which are able to lyse HLA-negative cancer cells that have lost the classic mechanism of antigen presentation. These cells recognize the noncanonical MicA antigen on the surface of HLA-negative K562 cells but kill them via the FasL-Fas interaction, as do cytotoxic T lymphocytes. FasL presented on the lymphocyte surface can trigger both apoptosis and necroptosis. Unlike in the case of TNFR1, another cell death receptor, no switching to alternative processes has been observed upon induction of Fas-dependent cell death. It may well be that the apoptotic and necroptotic signals are transduced separately in the latter case, with the ability of FasL⁺ lymphocytes to induce necroptosis allowing them to kill tumor cells that escape apoptosis. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 3359-3366, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

FasL and the NKG2D receptor are required for the secretion of the Tag7/PGRP-S-Hsp70 complex by the cytotoxic CD8+ lymphocytes

Tag7 (PGRP-S or PGLYRP1), while possessing an antimicrobial activity, also exhibits an antitumor effect when in complex with the major heat shock protein Hsp70. The cytotoxic Tag7-Hsp70 complex is secreted by lymphocytes after interaction with the HLA-negative tumors. Previously, we have shown that IL-2 induces formation of the CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ cytotoxic subpopulations of human lymphocytes, which kill tumor cells through the FasL-Fas interaction. Here, we show that only the CD8⁺ T cells are able to secrete the Tag7-Hsp70 complex. For its secretion the same proteins on the surface of the lymphocytes and target cells, which are involved in the contact lysis, are necessary as well. The interaction of Fas receptor with FasL leads to an activation of the Tag7-Hsp70 complex in the lymphocyte membrane fraction, and here FasL acts as a receptor that induces intracellular signaling in lymphocytes. An interaction of the MicA stress ligand with the NKG2D receptor is necessary for the release of this cytotoxic complex. It is possible, that CD8⁺ T lymphocytes interacting with a target cell can both carry out the contact killing of these cells and to secrete the cytotoxic factor. © 2016 IUBMB Life, 69(1):30-36, 2017.

Opposite roles of metastasin (S100A4) in two potentially tumoricidal mechanisms involving human lymphocyte protein Tag7 and Hsp70

We compare the physical and functional interactions between three widespread multifunctional proteins [metastasin (Mts1/S100A4), innate immunity-related Tag7/PGRP-S, and Hsp70] in two experimental models relevant to host-tumor relationships on humoral and cellular levels. (i) Tag7 and Hsp70 in solution or in a lymphocyte make a stable binary complex that is highly cytotoxic for some tumor cells. Here, we show that Mts1 prevents Tag7.Hsp70 assembly in solution, and an excess of Mts1 disrupts the existing Tag7.Hsp70 complex; accordingly, Tag7.Hsp70 cytotoxicity (exemplified with L929 cells) is diminished in the presence of excess Mts1. (ii) Tag7 exposed on a specialized subset of lymphokine-activated killer cells makes specific contact with Hsp70 exposed on some HLA-negative tumor cells, thus enabling FasL/Fas-mediated induction of apoptosis. Here, we show that some CD4(+)CD25(+) cells coexpose Mts1 with Tag7 and FasL, that Mts1 and Tag7 closely contact the same Hsp70 molecule on the target K562 cell (as evidenced by cross-linking), and that killing of such targets is abolished by Mts1-specific antibodies (or selective removal of Mts1-exposing lymphocytes). Thus, this phenotype active against immunoevasive cancerous cells is defined as CD4(+)CD25(+), FasL(+), Tag7(+)Mts1(+) (approximately 0.5% of total lymphocytes in culture). Remarkably, similar effectors with at least the same activity are often found in fresh donor blood samples (approximately 10(4) effectors/mL). Thus, our models suggest that interactions between the three proteins in different situations may have opposite functional outcomes as regards antitumor defense, immune escape, and metastasis.

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes carrying a pattern recognition protein Tag7 can detect evasive, HLA-negative but Hsp70-exposing tumor cells, thereby ensuring FasL/Fas-mediated contact killing

Within the broad problem of host immune surveillance versus tumor immune evasion, a most intriguing question is how the cellular immunity can cope with cancerous cells that have gotten rid of the classical antigen-presenting machinery. One such option stems from (1) the fact that HLA loss is often attended with expression of Hsp70 on the tumor cell surface, and (2) our findings that human lymphocytes express a protein Tag7 (also known as PGRP-S) capable of tight and specific interaction with cognate Hsp70. Here we show that a subpopulation of human CD4(+)CD25(+) lymphocytes, obtained either in culture as lymphokine-activated killers or directly from healthy donors, carry Tag7 and FasL on their surface and can indeed kill the HLA-negative tumor-derived cells K562 and MOLT-4 that expose Hsp70 and Fas. The primary binding of lymphocyte Tag7 to target-cell Hsp70 is very specific (eg, it is blocked by preincubating either cell with minimal peptides from the "partner" protein), and secures cell contact indispensable for subsequent FasL/Fas-triggered apoptosis. Unrelated to natural killer cell action or the putative role of Hsp as an antigen-presenting substitute, this novel mechanism is rather a backup analog of orthodox (CD8(+)) target recognition (Tag7 acting as built-in T-cell receptor and Hsp70 itself as ligand).

Peptidoglycan recognition protein tag7 forms a cytotoxic complex with heat shock protein 70 in solution and in lymphocytes

The peptidoglycan recognition protein Tag7 is shown to form a stable 1:1 complex with the major stress protein Hsp70. Neither protein is cytotoxic by itself, but their complex induces apoptotic death in several tumor-derived cell lines even at subnanomolar concentrations. The minimal part of Hsp70 needed to evoke cytotoxicity is residues 450-463 of its peptide-binding domain, but full cytotoxicity requires its ATPase activity; remarkably, Tag7 liberated from the complex at high ATP is not cytotoxic. The Tag7-Hsp70 complex is produced by tag7-transfected cells and by lymphokine-activated killers, being assembled within the cell and released into the medium through the Golgi apparatus by a mechanism different from the commonly known granule exocytosis. Thus, we demonstrate how a heat shock protein may perform functions clearly distinct from chaperoning or cell rescue and how peptidoglycan recognition proteins may be involved in innate immunity and anti-cancer defense.

Apoptotic and necrotic cytolytic processes induced by membrane associated proteins of LAK cells

Cytolytic processes induced by membrane-associated proteins of human lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) cells with different phenotypes (CD3+, CD16-, CD8+ and CD16+, CD8+, CD3-) were studied using L929 and K562 types of target cells. Independently of the phenotype of effector cells and the type of target cells, total fractions of membrane proteins induced several different cytolytic processes occurring with different rates and involving different mechanisms of genome fragmentation. The membrane fraction induced, irrespective of the phenotype of LAK cells, mostly apoptotic processes in the L929 line. At the same time, cytolytic processes induced in K562 line differed by the mechanisms of DNA fragmentation. An inhibitor of lysosome activation, NH4Cl, and a Ca(2+)-binding reagent, ethylene glycol bis-(beta-aminoethyl ether) N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (EGTA), induced partial inhibition of short-term cytolytic processes (developing within 1-5 h) but did not affect the development of long-term cytolytic processes requiring more than 6-8 h for their development.

Joint cultivation of human erythroblastoid cells and mouse fibroblasts triggers release of a wide spectrum of cytotoxic factors

It has been demonstrated that joint cultivation of human K-562 cells and mouse L-929 cells results in triggering apoptosis in L-929 cells and possibly also in K-562 cells. Analysis of proteins recovered from the culture medium has revealed the presence of three cytotoxic factors including TNF-alpha. This is the first observation of a release of cytotoxic factors by non-lymphoid cells in response to a direct contact with cells of different origin.

Tumor cell cytolysis mediated by valorphin, an opioid-like fragment of hemoglobin beta-chain

Valorphin, an endogenous opioid-like hemoglobin fragment, is cytotoxic for L929 and K562 tumor cells in 10(-7)-10(-13) M concentration range. Because cytolytic effects induced by valorphin in K562 cells are inhibited by naloxone, opioid receptors should be involved in induction of valorphin-mediated tumor cell death. Three distinct cytolytic processes, differing in the onset time and the development time, take place with K562 cells within 10-18 h of incubation with valorphin. All three processes are not associated with apoptotic mechanism of cell death.

Different pathways of the release of cytotoxic proteins in LAK cells

Human LAK cells were shown to release cytotoxic proteins by both Ca(2+)-dependent and Ca(2+)-independent mechanisms. CD3+ CD8+ CD16- and CD16+ CD8+ CD3- LAK cells were co-incubated with target cells in the presence of 4 mM EGTA. Although EGTA inhibited the exocytosis of cytolytic granules, supernatants obtained were cytotoxic for target cells. Cytotoxicity of CD3+ LAK cells and CD16+ LAK cells was due to cytotoxic proteins with MW 75 (p75), 35 (p35) and 22 (p22) kDa. LAK cells were also shown to release cytotoxic proteins by way of continuous secretion. After co-incubation in the absence of target cells LAK cells can secrete cytotoxic proteins with MW 75 (p75), 55 (p55), 38 (p38), 35 (p35), 25 (p25), 22 (p22) and 17 (p17) kDa.

Inhibitory effect of calf fetuin on the cytotoxic activity of LAK cell-derived factors and tumor necrosis factor

A protein-inhibiting LAK cell-mediated cytotoxicity was isolated from a LAK cell-conditioned medium. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of this protein appeared to be identical to fetal calf fetuin. Pure isolated fetuin, as well as commercially available preparations of this protein, were shown to inhibit cytotoxic activity of both cytotoxic proteins released by LAK cells and TNF.

Contribution of membrane-associated cytotoxic proteins to cytolysis of L929 and K562 target cells mediated by LAK cells with different phenotypes

We have demonstrated that the relative contribution of secreted and membrane-associated proteins to the cytotoxicity of LAK cells depended on LAK cell phenotype: the cytotoxicity of CD16+ CD8+ CD3- LAK cells was associated mainly with membrane-bound proteins, and the activity of CD3+ CD8+ CD16- LAK cells was due mainly to secreted soluble proteins. The cytotoxic activity of membrane fractions of LAK cells against cell line L929 was determined by 40-, 32- and 21-kDa proteins for LAK cells bearing NK-specific markers and due to proteins of 34 and 21 kDa in the case of 'CTL-like' LAK-cells.

Both neurotoxin II from venom of Naja naja oxiana and its endogenous analogue induce apoptosis in tumor cells

Both neurotoxin II (NT II from venom of Naja naja oxiana) and 20-30 kDa proteins partially purified from pig brain (NTlm) cross-reacting with antibodies to NT II were cytotoxic for L929 and K562 tumor cells at concentrations of 10(-6)-10(-8) M. Modification of Cys residues significantly reduced cytotoxicity of NT II. Both NT2 and NTlm induced apoptosis in L929 and K562 cells.