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Papadopoulos D, Shihan M, Scheiner-Bobis G. Physiological implications of DHEAS-induced non-classical steroid hormone signaling. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2018; 179:73-78. [PMID: 29017935 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2017.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2017] [Revised: 09/28/2017] [Accepted: 10/03/2017] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
In the spermatogenic cell line GC-2, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), activates the Src/Ras/c-Raf/Erk1/2/CREB(ATF-1) signaling cascade. Since DHEAS is present in the gonads, and since spermatogenesis and maturation of spermatogonia to haploid spermatozoa requires activation of Erk1/2, the triggering of these signaling events by DHEAS might have physiological relevance. In the Sertoli cell line TM4, DHEAS-induces activation of Erk1/2, CREB, and ATF-1, stimulates expression of claudin-3 and claudin-5 and augments transepithelial resistance, indicating the formation of tight junctions between adjacent Sertoli cells. Thus, by influencing the formation and dynamics of tight junctions at the blood-testis barrier, which protects germ cells from cells of the immune system, DHEAS might play a crucial role in the regulation and maintenance of male fertility. In bEnd.3 brain-derived endothelial cells, DHEAS stimulates the expression of zonula occludens-1 and claudin-3 and promotes tight junction formation between neighboring cells, which at the blood-brain barrier protects the brain from harmful factors and cells. If DHEAS supports the integrity of the blood-brain barrier also in vivo, the current findings might lead to new strategies for the prevention or treatment of neurological disorders associated with barrier defects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimitrios Papadopoulos
- Institut für Veterinär-Physiologie und -Biochemie, Fachbereich Veterinärmedizin, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Germany
| | - Mazen Shihan
- Institut für Veterinär-Physiologie und -Biochemie, Fachbereich Veterinärmedizin, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Germany
| | - Georgios Scheiner-Bobis
- Institut für Veterinär-Physiologie und -Biochemie, Fachbereich Veterinärmedizin, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Germany.
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Papadopoulos D, Dietze R, Shihan M, Kirch U, Scheiner-Bobis G. Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate Stimulates Expression of Blood-Testis-Barrier Proteins Claudin-3 and -5 and Tight Junction Formation via a Gnα11-Coupled Receptor in Sertoli Cells. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0150143. [PMID: 26938869 PMCID: PMC4777551 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0150143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2015] [Accepted: 02/09/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) is a circulating sulfated steroid considered to be a pro-androgen in mammalian physiology. Here we show that at a physiological concentration (1 μM), DHEAS induces the phosphorylation of the kinase Erk1/2 and of the transcription factors CREB and ATF-1 in the murine Sertoli cell line TM4. This signaling cascade stimulates the expression of the tight junction (TJ) proteins claudin-3 and claudin-5. As a consequence of the increased expression, tight junction connections between neighboring Sertoli cells are augmented, as demonstrated by measurements of transepithelial resistance. Phosphorylation of Erk1/2, CREB, or ATF-1 is not affected by the presence of the steroid sulfatase inhibitor STX64. Erk1/2 phosphorylation was not observed when dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) was used instead of DHEAS. Abrogation of androgen receptor (AR) expression by siRNA did not affect DHEAS-stimulated Erk1/2 phosphorylation, nor did it change DHEAS-induced stimulation of claudin-3 and claudin-5 expression. All of the above indicate that desulfation and conversion of DHEAS into a different steroid hormone is not required to trigger the DHEAS-induced signaling cascade. All activating effects of DHEAS, however, are abolished when the expression of the G-protein Gnα11 is suppressed by siRNA, including claudin-3 and -5 expression and TJ formation between neighboring Sertoli cells as indicated by reduced transepithelial resistance. Taken together, these results are consistent with the effects of DHEAS being mediated through a membrane-bound G-protein-coupled receptor interacting with Gnα11 in a signaling pathway that resembles the non-classical signaling pathways of steroid hormones. Considering the fact that DHEAS is produced in reproductive organs, these findings also suggest that DHEAS, by acting as an autonomous steroid hormone and influencing the formation and dynamics of the TJ at the blood-testis barrier, might play a crucial role for the regulation and maintenance of male fertility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimitrios Papadopoulos
- Institut für Veterinär-Physiologie und -Biochemie, Fachbereich Veterinärmedizin, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Giessen, Germany
| | - Raimund Dietze
- Institut für Veterinär-Physiologie und -Biochemie, Fachbereich Veterinärmedizin, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Giessen, Germany
| | - Mazen Shihan
- Institut für Veterinär-Physiologie und -Biochemie, Fachbereich Veterinärmedizin, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Giessen, Germany
| | - Ulrike Kirch
- Institut für Veterinär-Physiologie und -Biochemie, Fachbereich Veterinärmedizin, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Giessen, Germany
| | - Georgios Scheiner-Bobis
- Institut für Veterinär-Physiologie und -Biochemie, Fachbereich Veterinärmedizin, Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen, Giessen, Germany
- * E-mail:
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Vukicevic V, Rubin de Celis MF, Pellegata NS, Bornstein SR, Androutsellis-Theotokis A, Ehrhart-Bornstein M. Adrenomedullary progenitor cells: Isolation and characterization of a multi-potent progenitor cell population. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2015; 408:178-84. [PMID: 25575455 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2014.12.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2014] [Revised: 12/25/2014] [Accepted: 12/27/2014] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The adrenal is a highly plastic organ with the ability to adjust to physiological needs by adapting hormone production but also by generating and regenerating both adrenocortical and adrenomedullary tissue. It is now apparent that many adult tissues maintain stem and progenitor cells that contribute to their maintenance and adaptation. Research from the last years has proven the existence of stem and progenitor cells also in the adult adrenal medulla throughout life. These cells maintain some neural crest properties and have the potential to differentiate to the endocrine and neural lineages. In this article, we discuss the evidence for the existence of adrenomedullary multi potent progenitor cells, their isolation and characterization, their differentiation potential as well as their clinical potential in transplantation therapies but also in pathophysiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vladimir Vukicevic
- Division of Molecular Endocrinology, Medical Clinic III, Carl Gustav Carus University Clinic, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Maria Fernandez Rubin de Celis
- Division of Molecular Endocrinology, Medical Clinic III, Carl Gustav Carus University Clinic, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Natalia S Pellegata
- Institute of Pathology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Stefan R Bornstein
- Medical Clinic III, Carl Gustav Carus University Clinic, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany; Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Andreas Androutsellis-Theotokis
- Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany; Division of Stem Cell Biology, Medical Clinic III, Carl Gustav Carus University Clinic, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Monika Ehrhart-Bornstein
- Division of Molecular Endocrinology, Medical Clinic III, Carl Gustav Carus University Clinic, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany; Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden, Technische Universität Dresden, 01307 Dresden, Germany.
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Shihan M, Kirch U, Scheiner-Bobis G. Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate mediates activation of transcription factors CREB and ATF-1 via a Gα11-coupled receptor in the spermatogenic cell line GC-2. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-MOLECULAR CELL RESEARCH 2013; 1833:3064-3075. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamcr.2013.08.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2013] [Revised: 08/16/2013] [Accepted: 08/19/2013] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Adrenarche and middle childhood. HUMAN NATURE-AN INTERDISCIPLINARY BIOSOCIAL PERSPECTIVE 2012; 22:327-49. [PMID: 22388879 DOI: 10.1007/s12110-011-9120-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Middle childhood, the period from 6 to 12 years of age, is defined socially by increasing autonomy and emotional regulation, somatically by the development of anatomical structures for subsistence, and endocrinologically by adrenarche, the adrenal production of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). Here I suggest that DHEA plays a key role in the coordinated development of the brain and body beginning with middle childhood, via energetic allocation. I argue that with adrenarche, increasing levels of circulating DHEA act to down-regulate the release of glucose into circulation and hence limit the supply of glucose which is needed by the brain for synaptogenesis. Furthermore, I suggest the antioxidant properties of DHEA may be important in maintaining synaptic plasticity throughout middle childhood within slow-developing areas of the cortex, including the insula, thamalus, and anterior cingulate cortex. In addition, DHEA may play a role in the development of body odor as a reliable social signal of behavioral changes associated with middle childhood.
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Shen X, Liu L, Yin F, Ma H, Zou S. Effect of dehydroepiandrosterone on cell growth and mitochondrial function in TM-3 cells. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2012; 177:177-86. [PMID: 22465782 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2012.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2012] [Revised: 03/05/2012] [Accepted: 03/07/2012] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), a major steroid hormone, decreases with age, and this reduction has been shown to be associated with physical health. In the present study, the effect of DHEA on cell growth and mitochondrial function was investigated using TM-3 cells, a Leydig cell line. The growth of TM-3 cells exposed to 100 μM DHEA for 24h was inhibited due to cell cycle arrest, primarily in the S and G2/M phases, and this effect was caused by decreased activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) and reduced expression of cyclinA and cyclinB mRNA. A novel finding was that DHEA improved TM-3 cell viability in a markedly time-dependent manner. Although no differences were observed in the configuration or number of TM-3 cell mitochondria following DHEA treatment, mitochondrial membrane permeability and the activity of succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) increased subsequent to 24h treatment of cells with 100 μM DHEA. Overall, the data demonstrate that DHEA inhibited TM-3 cell growth by decreasing G6PD activity and the expression of cyclin mRNAs, whereas it improved TM-3 cell viability by increasing mitochondrial membrane permeability and the activity of SDH. This could be one of mechanisms of DHEA exerts its biological function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuehuai Shen
- Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology and Biochemistry, College of Veterinary Medicine, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
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Chung KF, Qin N, Androutsellis-Theotokis A, Bornstein SR, Ehrhart-Bornstein M. Effects of dehydroepiandrosterone on proliferation and differentiation of chromaffin progenitor cells. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2011; 336:141-8. [PMID: 21130143 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2010.11.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2010] [Revised: 11/24/2010] [Accepted: 11/24/2010] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Dehydroepiandrosterone producing adrenocortical zona reticularis and the adrenal medulla are in direct contact and are highly intermingled in many species. This results in potentially strong paracrine influences of high local dehydroepiandrosterone concentrations on the adrenal medulla. Dehydroepiandrosterone has neuroprotective properties and increases neural stem cell proliferation and neurogenesis. Therefore, we aimed to establish its effects on chromaffin progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation. Previously, we successfully isolated chromaffin progenitors from bovine adrenal medulla in spherical cultures, so-called chromospheres. Seven days treatment of chromospheres with dehydroepiandrosterone at high concentrations (100 μM) hampered proliferation of chromaffin progenitors. Under differentiation conditions, dehydroepiandrosterone in the presence of retinoic acid, increased tyrosine hydroxylase and decreased dopamine-β-hydroxylase mRNA expression. In addition, there was a tendency to increase dopamine contents. Dehydroepiandrosterone/retinoic acid is therefore suggested to induce dopaminergic differentiation from chromaffin progenitor cells. Furthermore, the high dehydroepiandrosterone concentrations present in the fetal and adult adrenal may play an important role in adrenomedullary cell proliferation and differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kuei-Fang Chung
- Medical Clinic III, Carl Gustav Carus University Medical School, Dresden University of Technology, Dresden, Germany
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Ziegler CG, Langbein H, Krug AW, Ludwig B, Eisenhofer G, Ehrhart-Bornstein M, Bornstein SR. Direct effect of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) on PC-12 cell differentiation processes. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2011; 336:149-55. [PMID: 21195131 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2010.12.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2010] [Revised: 12/03/2010] [Accepted: 12/21/2010] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate is classically seen as an inactive reservoir for the production of dehydroepiandrosterone. Steroid sulfatase is the enzyme that catalyzes the hydrolysis of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate to dehydroepiandrosterone, which can then be further metabolized to other steroid hormones. Recent studies, however, indicate that dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate can mediate biological effects without being converted to dehydroepiandrosterone. This study aims to evaluate whether dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate itself influences the differentiation of PC-12 cells or if its desulfation to dehydroepiandrosterone is required. dehydroepiandrosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate both influence the differentiation of chromaffin PC-12 cells. Blocking steroid sulfatase activity and thereby the conversion of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate to dehydroepiandrosterone by the enzyme blocker estrone sulfamate showed that the effect of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate is independent of its conversion to dehydroepiandrosterone. Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, similar to dehydroepiandrosterone, reduced nerve growth factor-induced neurite outgrowth of PC-12 cells and the expression of synaptosomal-associated membrane protein of 25 kDa, increased the expression of chromogranin A and significantly increased dopamine release of PC-12 cells. In addition, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, dehydroepiandrosterone and membrane impermeable dehydroepiandrosterone-BSA all significantly reduced NGF-induced MAPK ERK1/2 signaling after 5 min. In summary, this study provides evidence that dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, independent of its conversion to dehydroepiandrosterone, directs PC-12 cells' differentiation to a neuroendocrine direction. Furthermore, employing membrane-impermeable dehydroepiandrosterone-BSA indicates the involvement of plasma-membrane bound receptors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian G Ziegler
- Carl Gustav Carus University Hospital, Medical Clinic III, University of Dresden, Fetscherstr. 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany.
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