Application of multianalyte microphysiometry to characterize macrophage metabolic responses to oxidized LDL and effects of an apoA-1 mimetic

Multianalyte Physiological Microanalytical Devices

Advances in scientific instrumentation have allowed experimentalists to evaluate well-known systems in new ways and to gain insight into previously unexplored or poorly understood phenomena. Within the growing field of multianalyte physiometry (MAP), microphysiometers are being developed that are capable of electrochemically measuring changes in the concentration of various metabolites in real time. By simultaneously quantifying multiple analytes, these devices have begun to unravel the complex pathways that govern biological responses to ischemia and oxidative stress while contributing to basic scientific discoveries in bioenergetics and neurology. Patients and clinicians have also benefited from the highly translational nature of MAP, and the continued expansion of the repertoire of analytes that can be measured with multianalyte microphysiometers will undoubtedly play a role in the automation and personalization of medicine. This is perhaps most evident with the recent advent of fully integrated noninvasive sensor arrays that can continuously monitor changes in analytes linked to specific disease states and deliver a therapeutic agent as required without the need for patient action.

A microfluidic optical platform for real-time monitoring of pH and oxygen in microfluidic bioreactors and organ-on-chip devices

There is a growing interest to develop microfluidic bioreactors and organ-on-chip platforms with integrated sensors to monitor their physicochemical properties and to maintain a well-controlled microenvironment for cultured organoids. Conventional sensing devices cannot be easily integrated with microfluidic organ-on-chip systems with low-volume bioreactors for continual monitoring. This paper reports on the development of a multi-analyte optical sensing module for dynamic measurements of pH and dissolved oxygen levels in the culture medium. The sensing system was constructed using low-cost electro-optics including light-emitting diodes and silicon photodiodes. The sensing module includes an optically transparent window for measuring light intensity, and the module could be connected directly to a perfusion bioreactor without any specific modifications to the microfluidic device design. A compact, user-friendly, and low-cost electronic interface was developed to control the optical transducer and signal acquisition from photodiodes. The platform enabled convenient integration of the optical sensing module with a microfluidic bioreactor. Human dermal fibroblasts were cultivated in the bioreactor, and the values of pH and dissolved oxygen levels in the flowing culture medium were measured continuously for up to 3 days. Our integrated microfluidic system provides a new analytical platform with ease of fabrication and operation, which can be adapted for applications in various microfluidic cell culture and organ-on-chip devices.

Prostaglandin E2 Regulation of Macrophage Innate Immunity

Globally, maternal and fetal health is greatly impacted by extraplacental inflammation. Group B Streptococcus (GBS), a leading cause of chorioamnionitis, is thought to take advantage of the uterine environment during pregnancy in order to cause inflammation and infection. In this study, we demonstrate the metabolic changes of murine macrophages caused by GBS exposure. GBS alone prompted a delayed increase in lactate production, highlighting its ability to redirect macrophage metabolism from aerobic to anaerobic respiration. This production of lactate is thought to aid in the development and propagation of GBS throughout the surrounding tissue. Additionally, this study shows that PGE2 priming was able to exacerbate lactate production, shown by the rapid and substantial lactate increases seen upon GBS exposure. These data provide a novel model to study the role of GBS exposure to macrophages with and without PGE2 priming.

IL4 receptor α mediates enhanced glucose and glutamine metabolism to support breast cancer growth

The type II interleukin-4 receptor (IL4R) is expressed in human breast cancer, and in murine models thereof. It is activated by interleukin-4 (IL4), a cytokine produced predominantly by immune cells. Previously, we showed that expression of IL4Rα, a signaling component of IL4R, mediates enhanced metastatic growth through promotion of tumor cell survival and proliferation. In lymphocytes, these processes are supported by increased glucose and glutamine metabolism, and B lymphocyte survival is dependent upon IL4/IL4R-induced glucose metabolism. However, it is unknown whether IL4R-mediated metabolic reprogramming could support tumor growth. Here, we show that IL4Rα expression increases proliferation thus enhancing primary mammary tumor growth. In vitro, IL4-enhanced glucose consumption and lactate production in 4T1 cells was mediated by IL4Rα. Expression of the glucose transporter GLUT1 increased in response to IL4 in vitro, and enhanced GLUT1 expression was associated with the presence of IL4Rα in 4T1 mammary tumors in vivo. Although IL4 treatment did not induce changes in glucose metabolism in MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells, it increased expression of the main glutamine transporter, ASCT2, and enhanced glutamine consumption in both MDA-MB-231 and 4T1 cells. Pharmacologic inhibition of glutamine metabolism with compound 968 blocked IL4/IL4Rα-increased cell number in both cell lines. Our results demonstrate that IL4R mediates enhanced glucose and glutamine metabolism in 4T1 cancer cells, and that IL4-induced growth is supported by IL4/IL4R-enhanced glutamine metabolism in both human and murine mammary cancer cells. This highlights IL4Rα as a possible target for effective breast cancer therapy.

The relevance and potential roles of microphysiological systems in biology and medicine

Microphysiological systems (MPS), consisting of interacting organs-on-chips or tissue-engineered, 3D organ constructs that use human cells, present an opportunity to bring new tools to biology, medicine, pharmacology, physiology, and toxicology. This issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine describes the ongoing development of MPS that can serve as in-vitro models for bone and cartilage, brain, gastrointestinal tract, lung, liver, microvasculature, reproductive tract, skeletal muscle, and skin. Related topics addressed here are the interconnection of organs-on-chips to support physiologically based pharmacokinetics and drug discovery and screening, and the microscale technologies that regulate stem cell differentiation. The initial motivation for creating MPS was to increase the speed, efficiency, and safety of pharmaceutical development and testing, paying particular regard to the fact that neither monolayer monocultures of immortal or primary cell lines nor animal studies can adequately recapitulate the dynamics of drug-organ, drug-drug, and drug-organ-organ interactions in humans. Other applications include studies of the effect of environmental toxins on humans, identification, characterization, and neutralization of chemical and biological weapons, controlled studies of the microbiome and infectious disease that cannot be conducted in humans, controlled differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells into specific adult cellular phenotypes, and studies of the dynamics of metabolism and signaling within and between human organs. The technical challenges are being addressed by many investigators, and in the process, it seems highly likely that significant progress will be made toward providing more physiologically realistic alternatives to monolayer monocultures or whole animal studies. The effectiveness of this effort will be determined in part by how easy the constructs are to use, how well they function, how accurately they recapitulate and report human pharmacology and toxicology, whether they can be generated in large numbers to enable parallel studies, and if their use can be standardized consistent with the practices of regulatory science.

Apolipoprotein A-I mimetics

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

To summarize recent publications in the field of apolipoprotein mimetics.

RECENT FINDINGS

Apolipoprotein mimetic peptides continue to show efficacy in a number of animal models of disease and demonstrate properties that make them attractive as potential therapeutic agents. A number of new apolipoprotein mimetics have been described recently. A major site of action of apolipoprotein mimetic peptides was found to be in the small intestine in which they decrease the levels of proinflammatory bioactive lipids. A major problem related to the use of apolipoprotein mimetic peptides is their cost, particularly those that need to be generated by solid phase synthesis with chemical addition of end-blocking groups. Novel approaches to apolipoprotein mimetic therapy have emerged recently that show promise in overcoming these barriers.

SUMMARY

Despite the recent failure of therapies designed to raise HDL-cholesterol in humans, an approach to therapy using mimetics of HDL and its components continues to show promise.