Golgi complex disassembly caused by light-activated calphostin C involves MAPK and PKA

Golgi-Targeting Anticancer Natural Products

The Golgi apparatus plays an important role in maintaining cell homeostasis by serving as a biosynthetic center for glycans, lipids and post-translationally modified proteins and as a sorting center for vesicular transport of proteins to specific destinations. Moreover, it provides a signaling hub that facilitates not only membrane trafficking processes but also cellular response pathways to various types of stresses. Altered signaling at the Golgi apparatus has emerged as a key regulator of tumor growth and survival. Among the small molecules that can specifically perturb or modulate Golgi proteins and organization, natural products with anticancer property have been identified as powerful chemical probes in deciphering Golgi-related pathways and, in particular, recently described Golgi stress response pathways. In this review, we highlight a set of Golgi-targeting natural products that enabled the characterization of the Golgi-mediated signaling events leading to cancer cell death and discuss the potential for selectively exploiting these pathways for the development of novel chemotherapeutic agents.

Golgin-84-associated Golgi fragmentation triggers tau hyperphosphorylation by activation of cyclin-dependent kinase-5 and extracellular signal-regulated kinase

Tau hyperphosphorylation is a critical event in Alzheimer's disease, in which the neuronal Golgi fragmentation occurs earlier than tau hyperphosphorylation. However, the intrinsic link between Golgi impairment and tau pathology is missing. By electron microscopy and western blotting, we observed in the present study that the neuronal Golgi fragmentation was increased age-dependently with a correlated tau hyperphosphorylation in the brains of C57BL/6 mice aged from 4 to 16 months. Simultaneously, golgin-84 and Golgi reassembly stacking protein 65, 2 important Golgi matrix proteins, were decreased in the brains of elder mice. Further studies in HEK293/tau cells showed that Golgi-disturbing agents, brefeldin A and nocodazole induced tau hyperphosphorylation. Knockdown of golgin-84, not Golgi reassembly stacking protein 65, by small interfering RNA was sufficient to induce tau hyperphosphorylation, while over-expressing golgin-84 arrested the brefeldin A-induced Golgi fragmentation and tau hyperphosphorylation. Finally, we demonstrated that cyclin-dependent kinase-5 and extracellular signal-regulated kinase were activated after golgin-84 knockdown, and simultaneous inhibition of these kinases abolished the golgin-84 deficit-induced tau hyperphosphorylation. These data suggest Golgi fragmentation could be an upstream event triggering tau hyperphosphorylation through golgin-84 deficit-induced activation of cyclin-dependent kinase-5 and extracellular signal-regulated kinase.

MAPK scaffolding by BIT1 in the Golgi complex modulates stress resistance

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is an essential organelle whose major functions are to ensure proper secretory protein folding and trafficking. These mechanisms involve the activation of specific ER-resident molecular machines, which might be regulated by their membranous environments. Based on this observation, we aimed to characterize the proteome of ER-membrane microdomains to identify new components of the ER that have a role in secretory pathway-associated functions. Using this approach with dog pancreatic rough microsomes, we found that mitochondrial Bcl-2 inhibitor of transcription (BIT1) localized in the early secretory pathway and accumulated in the Golgi complex. Using both a chimeric protein of the luminal and transmembrane domains of ER-resident TRAPalpha and the cytosolic domain of BIT1, and silencing of BIT1 expression, we perturbed endogenous BIT1 oligomerization and localization to the Golgi. This led to enhanced ERK signaling from the Golgi complex, which resulted in improved stress resistance. This work provides the first evidence for the existence of ER microdomains that are involved in the regulation of BIT1 structure and trafficking, and identifies BIT1 as a negative regulator of the ERK-MAPK signaling pathway in the Golgi.

Killing of cancer cells by the photoactivatable protein kinase C inhibitor, calphostin C, involves induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress

Calphostin C (cal-C) is a photoactivatable inhibitor that binds to the regulatory domain of protein kinase C (PKC) and to other proteins that contain diacylglycerol/phorbol ester binding sites. Cal-C is cytotoxic against many types of cancer cells, yet the basis for this activity remains poorly understood. Here, we show that one of the earliest effects of cal-C is an impairment of glycoprotein export from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), accompanied by formation of ER-derived vacuoles. Vacuolization of the ER is correlated with induction of an ER stress response that includes activation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase and protein kinase R-like ER kinase, as well as increased expression of CCAAT/enhancer binding protein homologous transcription factor (CHOP; GADD153). These effects of cal-C are not mimicked by staurosporine, an inhibitor of PKC catalytic activity, indicating that ER stress is due to interaction of cal-C with targets other than PKC. In conjunction with the induction of ER stress, breast carcinoma cells undergo caspase-dependent cell death with early activation of caspases 9 and 7 and cleavage of poly(ADP-ribose)polymerase. Reduction of CHOP expression by short hairpin RNA decreases the sensitivity of the cells to cal-C, suggesting that induction of apoptosis by cal-C is related, at least in part, to ER stress triggered by disruption of ER morphology and transport function. Antineoplastic drugs that work by inducting ER stress have shown promise in preclinical and clinical trials. Thus, the present findings raise the possibility that cal-C may be useful for photodynamic therapy based on induction of ER stress in some forms of cancer.

Morphological alteration of Golgi apparatus and subcellular compartmentalization of TGF-beta1 in Golgi apparatus in gerbils following transient forebrain ischemia

Golgi apparatus (GA) is a very important organelle involved in the metabolism of numerous proteins. TGF-beta1 plays an important role in supporting neuronal survival after ischemic insults. Little is known, however, about the morphological alteration of GA and subcellular compartmentalization of TGF-beta1 in brain after ischemia. Therefore, our present study was designed to check for GA morphological alterations and TGF-beta1 subcellular localization. GA immunoreactivities were examined in the somatosensory cortex of gerbils after 10 min transient forebrain ischemia. Confocal Immunofluorographs of TGF-beta1 and TGN38 were also taken. Results indicated that no fragmentation of GA was found in gerbils of norm, shams and 6, 24 and 72 h postocclusion, but some of the cortical cells showed fragmentation of GA in gerbils 7 days postocclusion. TGF-beta1 was colocalized with TGN38, a marker molecule for the GA. We conclude that there was morphological alterations of GA and TGF-beta1 was present in GA in the somatosensory cortex after 10 min ischemia.