Coronin 1A depletion protects endothelial cells from TNFα-induced apoptosis by modulating p38β expression and activation

Microglial cannabinoid receptor type 1 mediates social memory deficits in mice produced by adolescent THC exposure and 16p11.2 duplication

Adolescent cannabis use increases the risk for cognitive impairments and psychiatric disorders. Cannabinoid receptor type 1 (Cnr1) is expressed not only in neurons and astrocytes, but also in microglia, which shape synaptic connections during adolescence. However, the role of microglia in mediating the adverse cognitive effects of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the principal psychoactive constituent of cannabis, is not fully understood. Here, we report that in mice, adolescent THC exposure produces microglial apoptosis in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), which was exacerbated in a model of 16p11.2 duplication, a representative copy number variation (CNV) risk factor for psychiatric disorders. These effects are mediated by microglial Cnr1, leading to reduction in the excitability of mPFC pyramidal-tract neurons and deficits in social memory in adulthood. Our findings suggest the microglial Cnr1 may contribute to adverse effect of cannabis exposure in genetically vulnerable individuals.

Microglial cannabinoid receptor type 1 mediates social memory deficits produced by adolescent THC exposure and 16p11.2 duplication

Adolescent cannabis use increases the risk for cognitive impairments and psychiatric disorders. Cannabinoid receptor type 1 (Cnr1) is expressed not only in neurons and astrocytes, but also in microglia, which shape synaptic connections during adolescence. Nonetheless, until now, the role of microglia in mediating the adverse cognitive effects of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the principal psychoactive constituent of cannabis, has been unexplored. Here, we report that adolescent THC exposure produces microglial apoptosis in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), which was exacerbated in the mouse model of 16p11.2 duplication, a representative copy number variation (CNV) risk factor for psychiatric disorders. These effects are mediated by microglial Cnr1, leading to reduction in the excitability of mPFC pyramidal-tract neurons and deficits in social memory in adulthood. Our findings highlight the importance of microglial Cnr1 to produce the adverse effect of cannabis exposure in genetically vulnerable individuals.

One-Week Dynamic Changes in Cardiac Proteomes After Cardiac Radioablation in Experimental Rat Model

Background

Recently, stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) has been adopted to non-invasively treat catheter ablation-refractory ventricular tachycardia (VT). VT episodes have been dramatically reduced after SABR, within weeks; however the underlying mechanisms of these clinical effects and potential mediators of early anti-arrhythmic effect remain unclear.

Methods

In this study, cardiac tissue was harvested from non-irradiated control (0 Gy), conventional irradiated control (2 Gy), and radioablative test (25 Gy) rat groups after 3 and 7 days of irradiation. The samples were proteomically analyzed to identify the differentially expressed proteins (DEP) between different groups. Validation experiments were performed similar to validation in profiling where Data independent acquisition and parallel reaction monitoring methods were used. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD030878.

Results

Functional enrichment analysis of 25 Gy sample showed that among the downregulated proteins, “intracellular signal transduction” and “cell to cell adhesion” proteins were significantly affected at day 3 while “Ras protein signal transduction,” “GTPase regulation,” and “actin filament-based process” proteins were majorly affected at day 7. GO analysis demonstrated that most of the upregulated proteins belonged to the classes “cellular stress response,” “endomembranal organization,” or “endoplasmic reticulum stress response” at day 3. At day 7, 42 proteins, mainly associated with response to drug, organic substance, or radiation, were specifically upregulated in 25 Gy. DEP analysis of cardiac conduction showed Ryr2 and Cav1 upregulation and Cacna2d2, Gja3, Scnb2, and Kcnn3 downregulation in the 25 Gy group compared to 0 Gy. In validation experiments, four proteins (Gsta1, Myot, Ephx1, and Capg) were repeatedly detected with 25 Gy-specific patterns at day 7.

Conclusions

25 Gy single fractional irradiation induces considerable cardiac proteome changes within the first 7 days, distinct from 2 Gy. Several candidate proteins displayed 25 Gy-specific changes and were related to oxidative stress-induced innate response or cardiac remodeling processes. Future studies should explore the specific role of these proteins upon cardiac radioablation.

Transcriptional analysis of gasoline engine exhaust particulate matter 2.5-exposed human umbilical vein endothelial cells reveals the different gene expression patterns related to the cardiovascular diseases

Particulate matter (PM) causes several diseases, including cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Previous studies compared the gene expression patterns in airway epithelial cells and keratinocytes exposed to PM. However, analysis of differentially expressed gene (DEGs) in endothelial cells exposed to PM2.5 (diameter less than 2.5 μm) from fossil fuel combustion has been limited. Here, we exposed human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) to PM2.5 from combustion of gasoline, performed RNA-seq analysis, and identified DEGs. Exposure to the IC50 concentrations of gasoline engine exhaust PM2.5 (GPM) for 24 h yielded 1081 (up-regulation: 446, down-regulation: 635) DEGs. The most highly up-regulated gene is NGFR followed by ADM2 and NUPR1. The most highly down-regulated gene is TNFSF10 followed by GDF3 and EDN1. Gene Ontology enrichment analysis revealed that GPM regulated genes involved in cardiovascular system development, tube development and circulatory system development. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes and Reactome pathway analyses showed that genes related to cytokine–cytokine receptor interactions and cytokine signaling in the immune system were significantly affected by GPM. We confirmed the RNA-seq data of some highly altered genes by qRT-PCR and showed the induction of NGFR, ADM2 and IL-11 at a protein level, indicating that the observed gene expression patterns were reliable. Given the adverse effects of PM2.5 on CVDs, our findings provide new insight into the importance of several DEGs and pathways in GPM-induced CVDs.

Serum Exosomes and Their miRNA Load-A Potential Biomarker of Lung Cancer

Early detection of lung cancer in screening programs is a rational way to reduce mortality associated with this malignancy. Low-dose computed tomography, a diagnostic tool used in lung cancer screening, generates a relatively large number of false-positive results, and its complementation with molecular biomarkers would greatly improve the effectiveness of such programs. Several biomarkers of lung cancer based on different components of blood, including miRNA signatures, were proposed. However, only a few of them have been positively validated in the context of early cancer detection yet, which imposes a constant need for new biomarker candidates. An emerging source of cancer biomarkers are exosomes and other types of extracellular vesicles circulating in body fluids. Hence, different molecular components of serum/plasma-derived exosomes were tested and showed different levels in lung cancer patients and healthy individuals. Several studies focused on the miRNA component of these vesicles. Proposed signatures of exosome miRNA had promising diagnostic value, though none of them have yet been clinically validated. These signatures involved a few dozen miRNA species overall, including a few species that recurred in different signatures. It is worth noting that all these miRNA species have cancer-related functions and have been associated with lung cancer progression. Moreover, a few of them, including known oncomirs miR-17, miR-19, miR-21, and miR-221, appeared in multiple miRNA signatures of lung cancer based on both the whole serum/plasma and serum/plasma-derived exosomes.

Discovery of potential plasma protein biomarkers for acute myocardial infarction via proteomics

Background

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is an acute disease with high mortality and seriously threatens human health. The identification of new effective biological markers for AMI is a prerequisite for treatment. Most proteomic studies have focused on atherosclerotic plaques, vascular cells, monocytes and platelets in the blood; however, the concentration of these factors in plasma is low, making it difficult to measure the complexity of plasma components. Moreover, some studies have examined the plasma protein of patients with acute coronary syndrome with histochemistry; however, the results are not consistent. Therefore, it is necessary to further investigate the differential proteins in the plasma of patients with AMI via proteomics to identify new biomarkers of AMI.

Methods

In this study, immunodepletion of high-abundance plasma proteins followed by an isobaric tagging for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ)-based quantitative proteomic approach was used to analyze plasma samples from 5 control individuals and 10 AMI patients.

Results

Four hundred sixty-eight proteins were identified from two samples, and 33 proteins were differentially expressed in AMI patients compared to the controls. Among the 33 proteins, 12 proteins showed a ≥1.5-fold change between AMI and control samples. These proteins included fatty acid binding protein 3 (FABP3, ratio =6.36), creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB ratio =4.89), adenylate kinase1 (AK1 ratio =4.16), pro-platelet basic protein (PPBP ratio =3.29), creatine kinase (CK ratio =2.88), platelet factor 4 (PF4 ratio =2.62), peptidyl prolyl isomerase Cyclophilin A (PPIA ratio =2.05), Cofilin-1 (CFL1 ratio =1.81), coronin1A (CORO1A ratio =1.71), protein kinase M (PKM ratio =1.63), ribonuclease inhibitor (RNH1, ratio =1.67), and triose phosphate isomerase (TPI1 ratio =1.56). By contrast, there was a decrease of 19 proteins, such as adiponectin (ADIPOQ ratio =0.70), insulin-like growth factor binding protein6 (IGFBP6 ratio =0.70), Dickkopf-related protein 3 (DKK3 ratio =0.70) and complement 4B (C4B ratio =0.68). The most over-represented term was regulation of cell proliferation in the cellular component category of Gene Ontology (GO). The top 3 biological process terms were regulation of cell proliferation, response to wounding and wound healing. These proteins included immune proteins, blood coagulation proteins, lipid metabolism proteins, cytoskeleton proteins, energy metabolism proteins, gene regulation proteins, myocutaneous proteins, and myocardial remodeling proteins and were highly connected with each other, which indicates that the functional network of these processes contribute to the pathophysiology of AMI.

Conclusions

In conclusion, the present quantitative proteomic study identified novel AMI biomarker candidates and might provide fundamental information for the development of an AMI biomarker.

Cellular and pathophysiological consequences of Arp2/3 complex inhibition: role of inhibitory proteins and pharmacological compounds

The actin-related protein complex 2/3 (Arp2/3) generates branched actin networks important for many cellular processes such as motility, vesicular trafficking, cytokinesis, and intercellular junction formation and stabilization. Activation of Arp2/3 requires interaction with actin nucleation-promoting factors (NPFs). Regulation of Arp2/3 activity is achieved by endogenous inhibitory proteins through direct binding to Arp2/3 and competition with NPFs or by binding to Arp2/3-induced actin filaments and disassembly of branched actin networks. Arp2/3 inhibition has recently garnered more attention as it has been associated with attenuation of cancer progression, neurotoxic effects during drug abuse, and pathogen invasion of host cells. In this review, we summarize current knowledge on expression, inhibitory mechanisms and function of endogenous proteins able to inhibit Arp2/3 such as coronins, GMFs, PICK1, gadkin, and arpin. Moreover, we discuss cellular consequences of pharmacological Arp2/3 inhibition.

Inhibition of hsa-miR-6086 protects human umbilical vein endothelial cells against TNFα-induced proliferation inhibition and apoptosis via CDH5

MiRNAs are considered as a novel class of biomarkers or treatment targets for cardiovascular diseases. Hsa-miR-6086, a novel mi-RNA, was reported to be downregulated during the differentiation of human embryonic stem cells into endothelial cells (ECs). Interestingly, CDH5 (cadherin 5), encoding a classical cadherin of the cadherin superfamily, is a cellular marker of ECs and has been reported to be a target of hsa-miR-6086. However, the role of hsa-miR-6086 in ECs is virtually unknown. Herein, we report that hsa-miR-6086 was markedly induced by TNFα stimulation in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), whereas CDH5 expression was greatly reduced. Importantly, TNFα-induced suppression of CDH5 expression was largely prevented by inhibiting hsa-miR-6086, and hsa-miR-6086 mimic greatly decrease CDH5 expression in HUVECs, suggesting that the induction of hsa-miR-6086 is responsible for CDH5 downregulation by TNFα. In addition, restoration of CDH5 expression level by either inhibiting hsa-miR-6086 or exogenously expressing CDH5 cDNA that is not affected by hsa-miR-6086 protected HUVECs against TNFα-induced apoptosis and cell growth inhibition. Taken together, our study reveals that hsa-miR-6086 is induced by TNFα and mediates TNFα-induced HUVEC growth inhibition through downregulating CDH5 expression. Hence, hsa-miR-6086 might be a new target for treating TNFα-induced endothelial dysfunction.

Binding of coronin 1B to TβRI negatively regulates the TGFβ1 signaling pathway

Coronin 1B is an actin-binding protein that regulates several actin-dependent cellular processes including migration and endocytosis. However, the role of coronin 1B in the tumor growth factor (TGF)β signaling pathway is largely unknown. Here, we investigated whether coronin 1B affects the TGFβ signaling cascade and found that coronin 1B negatively regulates the TGFβ signaling pathway. Immunoprecipitation and glutathione-S-transferase-pulldown assays revealed that coronin 1B directly associated with TGFβ receptor I (TβRI). Overexpression of coronin 1B inhibited the TGFβ1-induced interaction between TβRI and Smad2/3 in plasmid-transfected HEK293T cells. Coronin 1B was basally bound to TβRI in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), but TGFβ1 stimulation did not affect their association, suggesting constitutive binding between coronin 1B and TβRI. Overexpression of coronin 1B suppressed TGFβ1-induced activation of a Smad-binding element-luciferase reporter construct and a plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI)-1 promoter-luciferase reporter construct in HEK293T cells. By contrast, depletion of coronin 1B by siRNA transfection increased TGFβ1-induced Smad2/3 phosphorylation and PAI-1 expression in VSMCs. These results suggest that coronin 1B regulates the TGFβ1 signaling cascade by constitutively interacting with TβRI and inhibiting the binding of Smad2/3 to TβRI in response to TGFβ1 stimulation.

The disease-linked Glu-26-Lys mutant version of Coronin 1A exhibits pleiotropic and pathway-specific signaling defects

Coronin 1A is involved in cell shape dynamics and Rac1 GTPase signaling. Loss-of-function mutations in the Coro1A gene promote severe immunodeficiency. An immunodeficiency-linked Coro1A point mutant is described that becomes dysfunctional due to changes in actin-binding, actin-remodeling, and signaling activities.

Coronin 1A (Coro1A) is involved in cytoskeletal and signaling events, including the regulation of Rac1 GTPase– and myosin II–dependent pathways. Mutations that generate truncated or unstable Coro1A proteins cause immunodeficiencies in both humans and rodents. However, in the case of the peripheral T-cell–deficient (Ptcd) mouse strain, the immunodeficiency is caused by a Glu-26-Lys mutation that targets a surface-exposed residue unlikely to affect the intramolecular architecture and stability of the protein. Here we report that this mutation induces pleiotropic effects in Coro1A protein, including the exacerbation of Coro1A-dependent actin-binding and -bundling activities; the formation of large meshworks of Coro1A^E26K-decorated filaments endowed with unusual organizational, functional, and staining properties; and the elimination of Coro1A functions associated with both Rac1 and myosin II signaling. By contrast, it does not affect the ability of Coro1A to stimulate the nuclear factor of activated T-cells (NF-AT). Coro1A^E26K is not a dominant-negative mutant, indicating that its pathological effects are derived from the inability to rescue the complete loss of the wild-type counterpart in cells. These results indicate that Coro1A^E26K behaves as either a recessive gain-of-function or loss-of-function mutant protein, depending on signaling context and presence of the wild-type counterpart in cells.