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Su Y, Shea J, DeStephanis D, Su Z. Transcriptomic Analysis of the Spatiotemporal Axis of Oogenesis and Fertilization in C. elegans. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.06.03.597235. [PMID: 38895354 PMCID: PMC11185608 DOI: 10.1101/2024.06.03.597235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/21/2024]
Abstract
The oocyte germline of the C. elegans hermaphrodite presents a unique model to study the formation of oocytes. However, the size of the model animal and difficulties in retrieval of specific stages of the germline have obviated closer systematic studies of this process throughout the years. Here, we present a transcriptomic level analysis into the oogenesis of C. elegans hermaphrodites. We dissected a hermaphrodite gonad into seven sections corresponding to the mitotic distal region, the pachytene, the diplotene, the early diakinesis region and the 3 most proximal oocytes, and deeply sequenced the transcriptome of each of them along with that of the fertilized egg using a single-cell RNA-seq protocol. We identified specific gene expression events as well as gene splicing events in finer detail along the oocyte germline and provided novel insights into underlying mechanisms of the oogenesis process. Furthermore, through careful review of relevant research literature coupled with patterns observed in our analysis, we attempt to delineate transcripts that may serve functions in the interaction between the germline and cells of the somatic gonad. These results expand our knowledge of the transcriptomic space of the C. elegans germline and lay a foundation on which future studies of the germline can be based upon.
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Haque R, Kurien SP, Setty H, Salzberg Y, Stelzer G, Litvak E, Gingold H, Rechavi O, Oren-Suissa M. Sex-specific developmental gene expression atlas unveils dimorphic gene networks in C. elegans. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4273. [PMID: 38769103 PMCID: PMC11106331 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48369-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Sex-specific traits and behaviors emerge during development by the acquisition of unique properties in the nervous system of each sex. However, the genetic events responsible for introducing these sex-specific features remain poorly understood. In this study, we create a comprehensive gene expression atlas of pure populations of hermaphrodites and males of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans across development. We discover numerous differentially expressed genes, including neuronal gene families like transcription factors, neuropeptides, and G protein-coupled receptors. We identify INS-39, an insulin-like peptide, as a prominent male-biased gene expressed specifically in ciliated sensory neurons. We show that INS-39 serves as an early-stage male marker, facilitating the effective isolation of males in high-throughput experiments. Through complex and sex-specific regulation, ins-39 plays pleiotropic sexually dimorphic roles in various behaviors, while also playing a shared, dimorphic role in early life stress. This study offers a comparative sexual and developmental gene expression database for C. elegans. Furthermore, it highlights conserved genes that may underlie the sexually dimorphic manifestation of different human diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rizwanul Haque
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Sonu Peedikayil Kurien
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Hagar Setty
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Yehuda Salzberg
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Gil Stelzer
- Department of Life Sciences Core Facilities, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Einav Litvak
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Hila Gingold
- Department of Neurobiology, Wise Faculty of Life Sciences & Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Oded Rechavi
- Department of Neurobiology, Wise Faculty of Life Sciences & Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Meital Oren-Suissa
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
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3
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Stanton D, Justin HS, Reitzel AM. Step in Time: Conservation of Circadian Clock Genes in Animal Evolution. Integr Comp Biol 2022; 62:1503-1518. [PMID: 36073444 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icac140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2022] [Revised: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 09/02/2022] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Over the past few decades, the molecular mechanisms responsible for circadian phenotypes of animals have been studied in increasing detail in mammals, some insects, and other invertebrates. Particular circadian proteins and their interactions are shared across evolutionary distant animals, resulting in a hypothesis for the canonical circadian clock of animals. As the number of species for which the circadian clockwork has been described increases, the circadian clock in animals driving cyclical phenotypes becomes less similar. Our focus in this review is to develop and synthesize the current literature to better understand the antiquity and evolution of the animal circadian clockwork. Here, we provide an updated understanding of circadian clock evolution in animals, largely through the lens of conserved genes characterized in the circadian clock identified in bilaterian species. These comparisons reveal extensive variation within the likely composition of the core clock mechanism, including losses of many genes, and that the ancestral clock of animals does not equate to the bilaterian clock. Despite the loss of these core genes, these species retain circadian behaviors and physiology, suggesting novel clocks have evolved repeatedly. Additionally, we highlight highly conserved cellular processes (e.g., cell division, nutrition) that intersect with the circadian clock of some animals. The conservation of these processes throughout the animal tree remains essentially unknown, but understanding their role in the evolution and maintenance of the circadian clock will provide important areas for future study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Stanton
- Department of Animal Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32608, USA
| | - Hannah S Justin
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte NC 28223, USA
| | - Adam M Reitzel
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte NC 28223, USA
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4
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Kang HM, Lee J, Lee YJ, Park Y, Lee E, Shin AY, Han J, Lee HS, Lee JS, Lee KW. Transcriptional and toxic responses to saxitoxin exposure in the marine copepod Tigriopus japonicus. CHEMOSPHERE 2022; 309:136464. [PMID: 36122751 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2022] [Revised: 08/28/2022] [Accepted: 09/12/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Saxitoxin (STX) is a highly toxic marine neurotoxin produced by phytoplankton and a growing threat to ecosystems worldwide due to the spread of toxic algae. Although STX is an established sodium channel blocker, the overall profile of transcriptional levels in STX-exposed organisms has yet to be described. Here, we describe a toxicity assay and transcriptome analysis of the copepod Tigriopus japonicus exposed to STX. The half-maximal lethal concentration of STX was 12.35 μM, and a rapid mortality slope was evident at concentrations between 12 and 13 μM. STX induced changes in swimming behavior among the copepods after 10 min of exposure. In transcriptome analysis, gene ontology revealed that the genes involved in nervous system and gene expression were highly enriched. In addition, the congenital neurological disorder and nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2-mediated oxidative stress pathways were identified to be the most significant in network analysis and toxicity pathway analysis, respectively. This study provides valuable information about the effects of STX and related transcriptional responses in T. japonicus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hye-Min Kang
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - Jihoon Lee
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - Yeon-Ju Lee
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - Yeun Park
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - Euihyeon Lee
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - A-Young Shin
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - Jeonghoon Han
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - Hyi-Seung Lee
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - Jong Seok Lee
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea
| | - Kyun-Woo Lee
- Marine Biotechnology Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, Busan, 49111, South Korea.
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5
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Regulation of Developmental Cell Death in the Animal Kingdom: A Critical Analysis of Epigenetic versus Genetic Factors. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23031154. [PMID: 35163078 PMCID: PMC8835556 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23031154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2021] [Revised: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 01/19/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The present paper proposes a new level of regulation of programmed cell death (PCD) in developing systems based on epigenetics. We argue against the traditional view of PCD as an altruistic “cell suicide” activated by specific gene-encoded signals with the function of favoring the development of their neighboring progenitors to properly form embryonic organs. In contrast, we propose that signals and local tissue interactions responsible for growth and differentiation of the embryonic tissues generate domains where cells retain an epigenetic profile sensitive to DNA damage that results in its subsequent elimination in a fashion reminiscent of what happens with scaffolding at the end of the construction of a building. Canonical death genes, including Bcl-2 family members, caspases, and lysosomal proteases, would reflect the downstream molecular machinery that executes the dying process rather than being master cell death regulatory signals.
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Rapti G. A perspective on C. elegans neurodevelopment: from early visionaries to a booming neuroscience research. J Neurogenet 2021; 34:259-272. [PMID: 33446023 DOI: 10.1080/01677063.2020.1837799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The formation of the nervous system and its striking complexity is a remarkable feat of development. C. elegans served as a unique model to dissect the molecular events in neurodevelopment, from its early visionaries to the current booming neuroscience community. Soon after being introduced as a model, C. elegans was mapped at the level of genes, cells, and synapses, providing the first metazoan with a complete cell lineage, sequenced genome, and connectome. Here, I summarize mechanisms underlying C. elegans neurodevelopment, from the generation and diversification of neural components to their navigation and connectivity. I point out recent noteworthy findings in the fields of glia biology, sex dimorphism and plasticity in neurodevelopment, highlighting how current research connects back to the pioneering studies by Brenner, Sulston and colleagues. Multifaceted investigations in model organisms, connecting genes to cell function and behavior, expand our mechanistic understanding of neurodevelopment while allowing us to formulate emerging questions for future discoveries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia Rapti
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Unit of Developmental Biology, Heidelberg, Germany
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7
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Park L, Luth ES, Jones K, Hofer J, Nguyen I, Watters KE, Juo P. The Snail transcription factor CES-1 regulates glutamatergic behavior in C. elegans. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0245587. [PMID: 33529210 PMCID: PMC7853468 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0245587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Regulation of AMPA-type glutamate receptor (AMPAR) expression and function alters synaptic strength and is a major mechanism underlying synaptic plasticity. Although transcription is required for some forms of synaptic plasticity, the transcription factors that regulate AMPA receptor expression and signaling are incompletely understood. Here, we identify the Snail family transcription factor ces-1 in an RNAi screen for conserved transcription factors that regulate glutamatergic behavior in C. elegans. ces-1 was originally discovered as a selective cell death regulator of neuro-secretory motor neuron (NSM) and I2 interneuron sister cells in C. elegans, and has almost exclusively been studied in the NSM cell lineage. We found that ces-1 loss-of-function mutants have defects in two glutamatergic behaviors dependent on the C. elegans AMPA receptor GLR-1, the mechanosensory nose-touch response and spontaneous locomotion reversals. In contrast, ces-1 gain-of-function mutants exhibit increased spontaneous reversals, and these are dependent on glr-1 consistent with these genes acting in the same pathway. ces-1 mutants have wild type cholinergic neuromuscular junction function, suggesting that they do not have a general defect in synaptic transmission or muscle function. The effect of ces-1 mutation on glutamatergic behaviors is not due to ectopic cell death of ASH sensory neurons or GLR-1-expressing neurons that mediate one or both of these behaviors, nor due to an indirect effect on NSM sister cell deaths. Rescue experiments suggest that ces-1 may act, in part, in GLR-1-expressing neurons to regulate glutamatergic behaviors. Interestingly, ces-1 mutants suppress the increased reversal frequencies stimulated by a constitutively-active form of GLR-1. However, expression of glr-1 mRNA or GFP-tagged GLR-1 was not decreased in ces-1 mutants suggesting that ces-1 likely promotes GLR-1 function. This study identifies a novel role for ces-1 in regulating glutamatergic behavior that appears to be independent of its canonical role in regulating cell death in the NSM cell lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lidia Park
- Department of Developmental, Molecular and Chemical Biology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Graduate Program in Cell, Developmental and Molecular Biology, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Eric S. Luth
- Department of Biology, Simmons University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Kelsey Jones
- Department of Developmental, Molecular and Chemical Biology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Julia Hofer
- Department of Developmental, Molecular and Chemical Biology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Irene Nguyen
- Department of Biology, Simmons University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Katherine E. Watters
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Peter Juo
- Department of Developmental, Molecular and Chemical Biology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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8
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Valandro F, Menguer PK, Cabreira-Cagliari C, Margis-Pinheiro M, Cagliari A. Programmed cell death (PCD) control in plants: New insights from the Arabidopsis thaliana deathosome. PLANT SCIENCE : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL PLANT BIOLOGY 2020; 299:110603. [PMID: 32900441 DOI: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2020.110603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2020] [Revised: 05/28/2020] [Accepted: 07/14/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Programmed cell death (PCD) is a genetically controlled process that leads to cell suicide in both eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms. In plants PCD occurs during development, defence response and when exposed to adverse conditions. PCD acts controlling the number of cells by eliminating damaged, old, or unnecessary cells to maintain cellular homeostasis. Unlike in animals, the knowledge about PCD in plants is limited. The molecular network that controls plant PCD is poorly understood. Here we present a review of the current mechanisms involved with the genetic control of PCD in plants. We also present an updated version of the AtLSD1 deathosome, which was previously proposed as a network controlling HR-mediated cell death in Arabidopsis thaliana. Finally, we discuss the unclear points and open questions related to the AtLSD1 deathosome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fernanda Valandro
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Genética e Biologia Molecular, Departamento de Genética, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), RS, Brazil.
| | - Paloma Koprovski Menguer
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Celular e Molecular, Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), RS, Brazil.
| | | | - Márcia Margis-Pinheiro
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Celular e Molecular, Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), RS, Brazil.
| | - Alexandro Cagliari
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ambiente e Sustentabilidade, Universidade Estadual do Rio Grande do Sul, RS, Brazil; Universidade Estadual do Rio Grande do Sul (UERGS), RS, Brazil.
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9
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PIG-1 MELK-dependent phosphorylation of nonmuscle myosin II promotes apoptosis through CES-1 Snail partitioning. PLoS Genet 2020; 16:e1008912. [PMID: 32946434 PMCID: PMC7527206 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1008912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2020] [Revised: 09/30/2020] [Accepted: 07/29/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The mechanism(s) through which mammalian kinase MELK promotes tumorigenesis is not understood. We find that the C. elegans orthologue of MELK, PIG-1, promotes apoptosis by partitioning an anti-apoptotic factor. The C. elegans NSM neuroblast divides to produce a larger cell that differentiates into a neuron and a smaller cell that dies. We find that in this context, PIG-1 MELK is required for partitioning of CES-1 Snail, a transcriptional repressor of the pro-apoptotic gene egl-1 BH3-only. pig-1 MELK is controlled by both a ces-1 Snail- and par-4 LKB1-dependent pathway, and may act through phosphorylation and cortical enrichment of nonmuscle myosin II prior to neuroblast division. We propose that pig-1 MELK-induced local contractility of the actomyosin network plays a conserved role in the acquisition of the apoptotic fate. Our work also uncovers an auto-regulatory loop through which ces-1 Snail controls its own activity through the formation of a gradient of CES-1 Snail protein. Apoptosis is critical for the elimination of ‘unwanted’ cells. What distinguishes wanted from unwanted cells in developing animals is poorly understood. We report that in the C. elegans NSM neuroblast lineage, the level of CES-1, a Snail-family member and transcriptional repressor of the pro-apoptotic gene egl-1, contributes to this process. In addition, we demonstrate that C. elegans PIG-1, the orthologue of mammalian proto-oncoprotein MELK, plays a critical role in controlling CES-1Snail levels. Specifically, during NSM neuroblast division, PIG-1MELK controls partitioning of CES-1Snail into one but not the other daughter cell thereby promoting the making of one wanted and one unwanted cell. Furthermore, we present evidence that PIG-1MELK acts prior to NSM neuroblast division by locally activating the actomyosin network.
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Activity-Dependent Regulation of the Proapoptotic BH3-Only Gene egl-1 in a Living Neuron Pair in Caenorhabditis elegans. G3-GENES GENOMES GENETICS 2019; 9:3703-3714. [PMID: 31519744 PMCID: PMC6829140 DOI: 10.1534/g3.119.400654] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The BH3-only family of proteins is key for initiating apoptosis in a variety of contexts, and may also contribute to non-apoptotic cellular processes. Historically, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has provided a powerful system for studying and identifying conserved regulators of BH3-only proteins. In C. elegans, the BH3-only protein egl-1 is expressed during development to cell-autonomously trigger most developmental cell deaths. Here we provide evidence that egl-1 is also transcribed after development in the sensory neuron pair URX without inducing apoptosis. We used genetic screening and epistasis analysis to determine that its transcription is regulated in URX by neuronal activity and/or in parallel by orthologs of Protein Kinase G and the Salt-Inducible Kinase family. Because several BH3-only family proteins are also expressed in the adult nervous system of mammals, we suggest that studying egl-1 expression in URX may shed light on mechanisms that regulate conserved family members in higher organisms.
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Velmurugan BK, Chang R, Marthandam Asokan S, Chang C, Day C, Lin Y, Lin Y, Kuo W, Huang C. A minireview of E4BP4/NFIL3 in heart failure. J Cell Physiol 2018; 233:8458-8466. [DOI: 10.1002/jcp.26790] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2018] [Accepted: 04/30/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bharath Kumar Velmurugan
- Toxicology and Biomedicine Research Group, Faculty of Applied Sciences Ton Duc Thang University Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam
| | - Ruey‐Lin Chang
- College of Chinese Medicine, School of Post‐Baccalaureate Chinese Medicine China Medical University Taichung Taiwan
| | | | - Chih‐Fen Chang
- Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Cardiology Taichung Armed Force Taichung General Hospital Taichung Taiwan
| | | | - Yueh‐Min Lin
- Department of Pathology Changhua Christian Hospital Changhua Taiwan
- Department of Medical Technology, Jen‐Teh Junior College of Medicine Nursing and Management Miaoli Taiwan
| | - Yuan‐Chuan Lin
- Graduate Institute of Basic Medical Science China Medical University Taichung Taiwan
| | - Wei‐Wen Kuo
- Department of Biological Science and Technology China Medical University Taichung Taiwan
| | - Chih‐Yang Huang
- Graduate Institute of Basic Medical Science China Medical University Taichung Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Chinese Medical Science China Medical University Taichung Taiwan
- Department of Biological Science and Technology Asia University Taichung Taiwan
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12
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Chen BC, Shibu MA, Kuo CH, Shen CY, Chang-Lee SN, Lai CH, Chen RJ, Yao CH, Viswanadha VP, Liu JS, Chen WK, Huang CY. E4BP4 inhibits AngII-induced apoptosis in H9c2 cardiomyoblasts by activating the PI3K-Akt pathway and promoting calcium uptake. Exp Cell Res 2018; 363:227-234. [PMID: 29331388 DOI: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2018.01.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2017] [Revised: 01/06/2018] [Accepted: 01/09/2018] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
The bZIP transcription factor E4BP4 is a survival factor that is known to be elevated in diseased heart and promote cell survival. In this study the role of E4BP4 on angiotensin-II (AngII)-induced apoptosis has been examined in in vitro cell model. H9c2 cardiomyoblast cells that overexpressed E4BP4 were exposed to AngII to observe the cardio-protective effects of E4BP4 on hypertension related apoptosis. The results from TUNEL assays revealed that E4BP4 significantly attenuated AngII-induced apoptosis. Further analysis by Western blot and RT-PCR showed that E4BP4 inhibited AngII-induced IGF-II mRNA expression and cleavage of caspase-3 through the PI3K-Akt pathway. In addition, E4BP4 enhanced calcium reuptake into the sacroplasmic reticulum by down-regulating PP2A and by up-regulating the phosphorylation of PKA and PLB proteins. Our findings indicate that E4BP4 functions as a survival factor in cardiomyoblasts by inhibiting IGF-II transcription and by regulating calcium cycling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bih-Cheng Chen
- School of Post-Baccalaureate Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | | | - Chia-Hua Kuo
- Laboratory of Exercise Biochemistry, University of Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Yao Shen
- Department of Nursing, Meiho University, Pingtung, Taiwan
| | - Shu Nu Chang-Lee
- Department of Healthcare Administration, Asia University, Taiwan
| | - Chao-Hung Lai
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Armed Force Taichung, General Hospital, Taichung 41152, Taiwan
| | - Ray-Jade Chen
- Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chun-Hsu Yao
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Science, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | | | - Jian-Shen Liu
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, China Medical University Beigang Hospital, Yunlin County, Taiwan; Department of Emergency Medicine, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Wei-Kung Chen
- School of Post-Baccalaureate Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Chih-Yang Huang
- Graduate Institute of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan; Department of Health and Nutrition Biotechnology, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan; Graduate Institute of Chinese Medical Science, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
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13
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Wei H, Yan B, Gagneur J, Conradt B. Caenorhabditis elegans CES-1 Snail Represses pig-1 MELK Expression To Control Asymmetric Cell Division. Genetics 2017; 206:2069-2084. [PMID: 28652378 PMCID: PMC5560807 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.117.202754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2017] [Accepted: 06/16/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Snail-like transcription factors affect stem cell function through mechanisms that are incompletely understood. In the Caenorhabditis elegans neurosecretory motor neuron (NSM) neuroblast lineage, CES-1 Snail coordinates cell cycle progression and cell polarity to ensure the asymmetric division of the NSM neuroblast and the generation of two daughter cells of different sizes and fates. We have previously shown that CES-1 Snail controls cell cycle progression by repressing the expression of cdc-25.2 CDC25. However, the mechanism through which CES-1 Snail affects cell polarity has been elusive. Here, we systematically searched for direct targets of CES-1 Snail by genome-wide profiling of CES-1 Snail binding sites and identified >3000 potential CES-1 Snail target genes, including pig-1, the ortholog of the oncogene maternal embryonic leucine zipper kinase (MELK). Furthermore, we show that CES-1 Snail represses pig-1 MELK transcription in the NSM neuroblast lineage and that pig-1 MELK acts downstream of ces-1 Snail to cause the NSM neuroblast to divide asymmetrically by size and along the correct cell division axis. Based on our results we propose that by regulating the expression of the MELK gene, Snail-like transcription factors affect the ability of stem cells to divide asymmetrically and, hence, to self-renew. Furthermore, we speculate that the deregulation of MELK contributes to tumorigenesis by causing cells that normally divide asymmetrically to divide symmetrically instead.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hai Wei
- Center for Integrated Protein Science Munich - CIPSM, Department Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Bo Yan
- Center for Integrated Protein Science Munich - CIPSM, Department Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Julien Gagneur
- Gene Center Munich, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Barbara Conradt
- Center for Integrated Protein Science Munich - CIPSM, Department Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
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14
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Programmed Cell Death During Caenorhabditis elegans Development. Genetics 2017; 203:1533-62. [PMID: 27516615 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.115.186247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2016] [Accepted: 04/22/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Programmed cell death is an integral component of Caenorhabditis elegans development. Genetic and reverse genetic studies in C. elegans have led to the identification of many genes and conserved cell death pathways that are important for the specification of which cells should live or die, the activation of the suicide program, and the dismantling and removal of dying cells. Molecular, cell biological, and biochemical studies have revealed the underlying mechanisms that control these three phases of programmed cell death. In particular, the interplay of transcriptional regulatory cascades and networks involving multiple transcriptional regulators is crucial in activating the expression of the key death-inducing gene egl-1 and, in some cases, the ced-3 gene in cells destined to die. A protein interaction cascade involving EGL-1, CED-9, CED-4, and CED-3 results in the activation of the key cell death protease CED-3, which is tightly controlled by multiple positive and negative regulators. The activation of the CED-3 caspase then initiates the cell disassembly process by cleaving and activating or inactivating crucial CED-3 substrates; leading to activation of multiple cell death execution events, including nuclear DNA fragmentation, mitochondrial elimination, phosphatidylserine externalization, inactivation of survival signals, and clearance of apoptotic cells. Further studies of programmed cell death in C. elegans will continue to advance our understanding of how programmed cell death is regulated, activated, and executed in general.
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The Caenorhabditis elegans Excretory System: A Model for Tubulogenesis, Cell Fate Specification, and Plasticity. Genetics 2017; 203:35-63. [PMID: 27183565 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.116.189357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2015] [Accepted: 03/07/2016] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The excretory system of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is a superb model of tubular organogenesis involving a minimum of cells. The system consists of just three unicellular tubes (canal, duct, and pore), a secretory gland, and two associated neurons. Just as in more complex organs, cells of the excretory system must first adopt specific identities and then coordinate diverse processes to form tubes of appropriate topology, shape, connectivity, and physiological function. The unicellular topology of excretory tubes, their varied and sometimes complex shapes, and the dynamic reprogramming of cell identity and remodeling of tube connectivity that occur during larval development are particularly fascinating features of this organ. The physiological roles of the excretory system in osmoregulation and other aspects of the animal's life cycle are only beginning to be explored. The cellular mechanisms and molecular pathways used to build and shape excretory tubes appear similar to those used in both unicellular and multicellular tubes in more complex organs, such as the vertebrate vascular system and kidney, making this simple organ system a useful model for understanding disease processes.
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Teuliere J, Garriga G. Size Matters: How C. elegans Asymmetric Divisions Regulate Apoptosis. Results Probl Cell Differ 2017; 61:141-163. [PMID: 28409303 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-53150-2_6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/08/2022]
Abstract
Apoptosis is a form of programmed cell death used by metazoans to eliminate abnormal cells, control cell number, and shape the development of organs. The use of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as a model for the study of apoptosis has led to important insights into how cells die and how their corpses are removed. Eighty percent of these apoptotic cell deaths occur during nervous system development and in daughters of neuroblasts that divide asymmetrically. Pioneering work defined a conserved apoptosis pathway that is initiated in C. elegans by the BH3-only protein EGL-1 and that leads to the activation of the caspase CED-3. While the execution of the apoptotic fate is well understood, much less is known about the mechanisms that specify the apoptotic fate of particular cells. In some cells fated to die, this regulation occurs at the level of the egl-1 gene transcription, and investigators have identified several lineage-specific transcription factors that both positively and negatively regulate egl-1. In this review, we focus on a second set of molecules that appear to influence apoptosis by controlling the position of the cleavage plane in divisions that produce apoptotic cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jerome Teuliere
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Gian Garriga
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.
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17
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Wang X, Yang C. Programmed cell death and clearance of cell corpses in Caenorhabditis elegans. Cell Mol Life Sci 2016; 73:2221-36. [PMID: 27048817 PMCID: PMC11108496 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-016-2196-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2016] [Accepted: 03/18/2016] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Programmed cell death is critical to the development of diverse animal species from C. elegans to humans. In C. elegans, the cell death program has three genetically distinguishable phases. During the cell suicide phase, the core cell death machinery is activated through a protein interaction cascade. This activates the caspase CED-3, which promotes numerous pro-apoptotic activities including DNA degradation and exposure of the phosphatidylserine "eat me" signal on the cell corpse surface. Specification of the cell death fate involves transcriptional activation of the cell death initiator EGL-1 or the caspase CED-3 by coordinated actions of specific transcription factors in distinct cell types. In the cell corpse clearance stage, recognition of cell corpses by phagocytes triggers several signaling pathways to induce phagocytosis of apoptotic cell corpses. Cell corpse-enclosing phagosomes ultimately fuse with lysosomes for digestion of phagosomal contents. This article summarizes our current knowledge about programmed cell death and clearance of cell corpses in C. elegans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaochen Wang
- National Institute of Biological Sciences, No. 7 Science Park Road, Zhongguancun Life Science Park, Beijing, 102206, China.
| | - Chonglin Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 1 West Beichen Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100101, China.
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Chakraborty S, Lambie EJ, Bindu S, Mikeladze-Dvali T, Conradt B. Engulfment pathways promote programmed cell death by enhancing the unequal segregation of apoptotic potential. Nat Commun 2015; 6:10126. [PMID: 26657541 PMCID: PMC4682117 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms10126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2015] [Accepted: 11/04/2015] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Components of the conserved engulfment pathways promote programmed cell death in Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) through an unknown mechanism. Here we report that the phagocytic receptor CED-1 mEGF10 is required for the formation of a dorsal–ventral gradient of CED-3 caspase activity within the mother of a cell programmed to die and an increase in the level of CED-3 protein within its dying daughter. Furthermore, CED-1 becomes enriched on plasma membrane regions of neighbouring cells that appose the dorsal side of the mother, which later forms the dying daughter. Therefore, we propose that components of the engulfment pathways promote programmed cell death by enhancing the polar localization of apoptotic factors in mothers of cells programmed to die and the unequal segregation of apoptotic potential into dying and surviving daughters. Our findings reveal a novel function of the engulfment pathways and provide a better understanding of how apoptosis is initiated during C. elegans development. Programed cell death occurs in a stereotypic fashion during C. elegans development, and it is thought that engulfment promotes programmed cell death. Here the authors present evidence that a signaling function of the conserved engulfment pathways, not the process of engulfment itself, promotes apoptotic cell death.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sayantan Chakraborty
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Center for Integrated Protein Science Munich-CIPSM, LMU Biocenter, Planegg-Martinsried 82152, Germany
| | - Eric J Lambie
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Center for Integrated Protein Science Munich-CIPSM, LMU Biocenter, Planegg-Martinsried 82152, Germany
| | - Samik Bindu
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Center for Integrated Protein Science Munich-CIPSM, LMU Biocenter, Planegg-Martinsried 82152, Germany.,Department of Surgery Cardiac &Thoracic Surgery The University of Chicago Biological Sciences, 5841 S. Maryland Ave., Chicago, Illinosis 60637, USA
| | - Tamara Mikeladze-Dvali
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Center for Integrated Protein Science Munich-CIPSM, LMU Biocenter, Planegg-Martinsried 82152, Germany
| | - Barbara Conradt
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Center for Integrated Protein Science Munich-CIPSM, LMU Biocenter, Planegg-Martinsried 82152, Germany
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Duque-Afonso J, Smith KS, Cleary ML. Conditional Expression of E2A-HLF Induces B-Cell Precursor Death and Myeloproliferative-Like Disease in Knock-In Mice. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0143216. [PMID: 26588248 PMCID: PMC4654581 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2015] [Accepted: 11/02/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Chromosomal translocations are driver mutations of human cancers, particularly leukemias. They define disease subtypes and are used as prognostic markers, for minimal residual disease monitoring and therapeutic targets. Due to their low incidence, several translocations and their biological consequences remain poorly characterized. To address this, we engineered mouse strains that conditionally express E2A-HLF, a fusion oncogene from the translocation t(17;19) associated with 1% of pediatric B-cell precursor ALL. Conditional oncogene activation and expression were directed to the B-cell compartment by the Cre driver promoters CD19 or Mb1 (Igα, CD79a), or to the hematopoietic stem cell compartment by the Mx1 promoter. E2A-HLF expression in B-cell progenitors induced hyposplenia and lymphopenia, whereas expression in hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells was embryonic lethal. Increased cell death was detected in E2A-HLF expressing cells, suggesting the need for cooperating genetic events that suppress cell death for B-cell oncogenic transformation. E2A-HLF/Mb1.Cre aged mice developed a fatal myeloproliferative-like disorder with low frequency characterized by leukocytosis, anemia, hepatosplenomegaly and organ-infiltration by mature myelocytes. In conclusion, we have developed conditional E2A-HLF knock-in mice, which provide an experimental platform to study cooperating genetic events and further elucidate translational biology in cross-species comparative studies.
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MESH Headings
- Animals
- Antigens, CD19/genetics
- Antigens, CD19/metabolism
- Basic-Leucine Zipper Transcription Factors/genetics
- Basic-Leucine Zipper Transcription Factors/metabolism
- CD79 Antigens/genetics
- CD79 Antigens/metabolism
- Cell Death/genetics
- Cell Transformation, Neoplastic/genetics
- Cell Transformation, Neoplastic/metabolism
- Cell Transformation, Neoplastic/pathology
- Disease Models, Animal
- Gene Expression
- Gene Knock-In Techniques
- Genetic Engineering
- Hepatomegaly/genetics
- Hepatomegaly/metabolism
- Hepatomegaly/pathology
- Humans
- Integrases/genetics
- Integrases/metabolism
- Mice
- Mice, Transgenic
- Myxovirus Resistance Proteins/genetics
- Myxovirus Resistance Proteins/metabolism
- Oncogene Proteins, Fusion/genetics
- Oncogene Proteins, Fusion/metabolism
- Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/genetics
- Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/metabolism
- Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/pathology
- Precursor Cells, B-Lymphoid/metabolism
- Precursor Cells, B-Lymphoid/pathology
- Promoter Regions, Genetic
- Splenomegaly/genetics
- Splenomegaly/metabolism
- Splenomegaly/pathology
- Translocation, Genetic
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesús Duque-Afonso
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America
| | - Kevin S. Smith
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America
| | - Michael L. Cleary
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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20
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Abstract
Cell death is a common and important feature of animal development, and cell death defects underlie many human disease states. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has proven fertile ground for uncovering molecular and cellular processes controlling programmed cell death. A core pathway consisting of the conserved proteins EGL-1/BH3-only, CED-9/BCL2, CED-4/APAF1, and CED-3/caspase promotes most cell death in the nematode, and a conserved set of proteins ensures the engulfment and degradation of dying cells. Multiple regulatory pathways control cell death onset in C. elegans, and many reveal similarities with tumor formation pathways in mammals, supporting the idea that cell death plays key roles in malignant progression. Nonetheless, a number of observations suggest that our understanding of developmental cell death in C. elegans is incomplete. The interaction between dying and engulfing cells seems to be more complex than originally appreciated, and it appears that key aspects of cell death initiation are not fully understood. It has also become apparent that the conserved apoptotic pathway is dispensable for the demise of the C. elegans linker cell, leading to the discovery of a previously unexplored gene program promoting cell death. Here, we review studies that formed the foundation of cell death research in C. elegans and describe new observations that expand, and in some cases remodel, this edifice. We raise the possibility that, in some cells, more than one death program may be needed to ensure cell death fidelity.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Shai Shaham
- Laboratory of Developmental Genetics, The Rockefeller University, New York, USA.
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Yan B, Memar N, Gallinger J, Conradt B. Coordination of cell proliferation and cell fate determination by CES-1 snail. PLoS Genet 2013; 9:e1003884. [PMID: 24204299 PMCID: PMC3814331 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1003884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2012] [Accepted: 09/03/2013] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The coordination of cell proliferation and cell fate determination is critical during development but the mechanisms through which this is accomplished are unclear. We present evidence that the Snail-related transcription factor CES-1 of Caenorhabditis elegans coordinates these processes in a specific cell lineage. CES-1 can cause loss of cell polarity in the NSM neuroblast. By repressing the transcription of the BH3-only gene egl-1, CES-1 can also suppress apoptosis in the daughters of the NSM neuroblasts. We now demonstrate that CES-1 also affects cell cycle progression in this lineage. Specifically, we found that CES-1 can repress the transcription of the cdc-25.2 gene, which encodes a Cdc25-like phosphatase, thereby enhancing the block in NSM neuroblast division caused by the partial loss of cya-1, which encodes Cyclin A. Our results indicate that CDC-25.2 and CYA-1 control specific cell divisions and that the over-expression of the ces-1 gene leads to incorrect regulation of this functional ‘module’. Finally, we provide evidence that dnj-11 MIDA1 not only regulate CES-1 activity in the context of cell polarity and apoptosis but also in the context of cell cycle progression. In mammals, the over-expression of Snail-related genes has been implicated in tumorigenesis. Our findings support the notion that the oncogenic potential of Snail-related transcription factors lies in their capability to, simultaneously, affect cell cycle progression, cell polarity and apoptosis and, hence, the coordination of cell proliferation and cell fate determination. Animal development is a complex process and requires the coordination in space and time of various processes. These processes include the controlled production of cells, also referred to as ‘cell proliferation’, and the adoption by cells of specific fates, also referred to as ‘cell fate determination’. The observation that uncontrolled cell proliferation and cell fate determination contribute to conditions such as cancer, demonstrates that a precise coordination of these processes is not only important for development but for the prevention of disease throughout life. Snail-related transcription factors have previously been shown to be involved in the regulation of cell proliferation and cell fate determination. For example, the Caenorhabditis elegans Snail-related protein CES-1 affects cell fate determination in a specific cell lineage, the NSM (neurosecretory motorneuron) lineage. We now present evidence that CES-1 also controls cell proliferation in this lineage. Within a short period of time, CES-1 therefore coordinates cell proliferation and cell fate determination in one and the same lineage. Based on this finding, we propose that CES-1 is an important coordinator that is involved in the precise control - in space (NSM lineage) and time (<150 min) - of processes that are critical for animal development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Yan
- Center for Integrated Protein Science, Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
- Department of Genetics, MCB Graduate Program, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Nadin Memar
- Center for Integrated Protein Science, Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Julia Gallinger
- Department of Genetics, MCB Graduate Program, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
| | - Barbara Conradt
- Center for Integrated Protein Science, Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
- * E-mail:
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22
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de Nooij JC, Doobar S, Jessell TM. Etv1 inactivation reveals proprioceptor subclasses that reflect the level of NT3 expression in muscle targets. Neuron 2013; 77:1055-68. [PMID: 23522042 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2013.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/02/2013] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
The organization of spinal reflex circuits relies on the specification of distinct classes of proprioceptive sensory neurons (pSN), but the factors that drive such diversity remain unclear. We report here that pSNs supplying distinct skeletal muscles differ in their dependence on the ETS transcription factor Etv1 for their survival and differentiation. The status of Etv1-dependence is linked to the location of proprioceptor muscle targets: pSNs innervating hypaxial and axial muscles depend critically on Etv1 for survival, whereas those innervating certain limb muscles are resistant to Etv1 inactivation. The level of NT3 expression in individual muscles correlates with Etv1-dependence and the loss of pSNs triggered by Etv1 inactivation can be prevented by elevating the level of muscle-derived NT3-revealing a TrkC-activated Etv1-bypass pathway. Our findings support a model in which the specification of aspects of pSN subtype character is controlled by variation in the level of muscle NT3 expression and signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joriene C de Nooij
- Department of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Kavli Institute for Brain Science, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA
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23
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Abstract
Programmed cell death (PCD) plays a fundamental role in animal development and tissue homeostasis. Abnormal regulation of this process is associated with a wide variety of human diseases, including immunological and developmental disorders, neurodegeneration, and cancer. Here, we provide a brief historical overview of the field and reflect on the regulation, roles, and modes of PCD during animal development. We also discuss the function and regulation of apoptotic proteins, including caspases, the key executioners of apoptosis, and review the nonlethal functions of these proteins in diverse developmental processes, such as cell differentiation and tissue remodeling. Finally, we explore a growing body of work about the connections between apoptosis, stem cells, and cancer, focusing on how apoptotic cells release a variety of signals to communicate with their cellular environment, including factors that promote cell division, tissue regeneration, and wound healing.
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24
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TMBIM3/GRINA is a novel unfolded protein response (UPR) target gene that controls apoptosis through the modulation of ER calcium homeostasis. Cell Death Differ 2012; 19:1013-26. [PMID: 22240901 DOI: 10.1038/cdd.2011.189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Transmembrane BAX inhibitor motif-containing (TMBIM)-6, also known as BAX-inhibitor 1 (BI-1), is an anti-apoptotic protein that belongs to a putative family of highly conserved and poorly characterized genes. Here we report the function of TMBIM3/GRINA in the control of cell death by endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. Tmbim3 mRNA levels are strongly upregulated in cellular and animal models of ER stress, controlled by the PERK signaling branch of the unfolded protein response. TMBIM3/GRINA synergies with TMBIM6/BI-1 in the modulation of ER calcium homeostasis and apoptosis, associated with physical interactions with inositol trisphosphate receptors. Loss-of-function studies in D. melanogaster demonstrated that TMBIM3/GRINA and TMBIM6/BI-1 have synergistic activities against ER stress in vivo. Similarly, manipulation of TMBIM3/GRINA levels in zebrafish embryos revealed an essential role in the control of apoptosis during neuronal development and in experimental models of ER stress. These findings suggest the existence of a conserved group of functionally related cell death regulators across species beyond the BCL-2 family of proteins operating at the ER membrane.
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25
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Erdélyi P, Borsos E, Takács-Vellai K, Kovács T, Kovács AL, Sigmond T, Hargitai B, Pásztor L, Sengupta T, Dengg M, Pécsi I, Tóth J, Nilsen H, Vértessy BG, Vellai T. Shared developmental roles and transcriptional control of autophagy and apoptosis in Caenorhabditis elegans. J Cell Sci 2011; 124:1510-8. [PMID: 21502138 DOI: 10.1242/jcs.080192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Autophagy is a lysosome-mediated self-degradation process of eukaryotic cells that, depending on the cellular milieu, can either promote survival or act as an alternative mechanism of programmed cell death (PCD) in terminally differentiated cells. Despite the important developmental and medical implications of autophagy and the main form of PCD, apoptosis, orchestration of their regulation remains poorly understood. Here, we show in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, that various genetic and pharmacological interventions causing embryonic lethality trigger a massive cell death response that has both autophagic and apoptotic features. The two degradation processes are also redundantly required for normal development and viability in this organism. Furthermore, the CES-2-like basic region leucine-zipper (bZip) transcription factor ATF-2, an upstream modulator of the core apoptotic cell death pathway, is able to directly regulate the expression of at least two key autophagy-related genes, bec-1/ATG6 and lgg-1/ATG8. Thus, the two cell death mechanisms share a common method of transcriptional regulation. Together, these results imply that under certain physiological and pathological conditions, autophagy and apoptosis are co-regulated to ensure the proper morphogenesis and survival of the developing organism. The identification of apoptosis and autophagy as compensatory cellular pathways in C. elegans might help us to understand how dysregulated PCD in humans can lead to diverse pathologies, including cancer, neurodegeneration and diabetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Péter Erdélyi
- Department of Genetics, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest H-1117, Hungary
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26
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Abstract
Cancer is a complex disease in which cells have circumvented normal restraints on tissue growth and have acquired complex abnormalities in their genomes, posing a considerable challenge to identifying the pathways and mechanisms that drive fundamental aspects of the malignant phenotype. Genetic analyses of the normal development of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans have revealed evolutionarily conserved mechanisms through which individual cells establish their fates, and how they make and execute the decision to survive or undergo programmed cell death. The pathways identified through these studies have mammalian counterparts that are co-opted by malignant cells. Effective cancer drugs now target some of these pathways, and more are likely to be discovered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malia B Potts
- Departments of Pediatrics and Molecular Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, 75390-9148, USA
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27
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Weng YJ, Hsieh DJY, Kuo WW, Lai TY, Hsu HH, Tsai CH, Tsai FJ, Lin DY, Lin JA, Huang CY, Tung KC. E4BP4 is a cardiac survival factor and essential for embryonic heart development. Mol Cell Biochem 2010; 340:187-94. [PMID: 20186462 DOI: 10.1007/s11010-010-0417-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2009] [Accepted: 02/10/2010] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The bZIP transcription factor E4BP4, has been demonstrated to be a survival factor in pro-B lymphocytes. GATA factors play important roles in transducing the IL-3 survival signal and transactivating the downstream survival gene, E4BP4. In heart, GATA sites are essential for proper transcription of several cardiac genes, and GATA-4 is a mediator of cardiomyocyte survival. However, the role E4BP4 plays in heart is still poorly understood. In this study, Dot-blot hybridization assays using Dig-labeled RNA probes revealed that the E4BP4 gene was expressed in cardiac tissue from several species including, monkey, dog, rabbit, and human. Western blot analysis showed that the E4BP4 protein was consistently present in all of these four species. Furthermore, immunohistochemistry revealed that the E4BP4 protein was overexpressed in diseased heart tissue in comparison with normal heart tissue. In addition, the overexpression of E4BP4 in vitro activated cell survival signaling pathway of cardiomyocytes. At last, siRNA-mediated knock down of E4BP4 in zebrafish resulted in malformed looping of the embryonic heart tube and decreased heart beating. Based on these results, we conclude that E4BP4 plays as a survival factor in heart and E4BP4 is essential for proper embryonic heart development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi-Jiun Weng
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, National Chung-Hsing University, No.250, Kuo-Kuang Road, 402 Taichung, Taiwan
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28
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NFIL3 and cAMP response element-binding protein form a transcriptional feedforward loop that controls neuronal regeneration-associated gene expression. J Neurosci 2010; 29:15542-50. [PMID: 20007478 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.3938-09.2009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Successful regeneration of damaged neurons depends on the coordinated expression of neuron-intrinsic genes. At present however, there is no comprehensive view of the transcriptional regulatory mechanisms underlying neuronal regeneration. We used high-content cellular screening to investigate the functional contribution of 62 transcription factors to regenerative neuron outgrowth. Ten transcription factors are identified that either increase or decrease neurite outgrowth. One of these, NFIL3, is specifically upregulated during successful regeneration in vivo. Paradoxically however, knockdown of NFIL3 and overexpression of dominant-negative NFIL3 both increase neurite outgrowth. Our data show that NFIL3, together with CREB, forms an incoherent feedforward transcriptional regulatory loop in which NFIL3 acts as a negative regulator of CREB-induced regeneration-associated genes.
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29
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Kamizono S, Duncan GS, Seidel MG, Morimoto A, Hamada K, Grosveld G, Akashi K, Lind EF, Haight JP, Ohashi PS, Look AT, Mak TW. Nfil3/E4bp4 is required for the development and maturation of NK cells in vivo. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2009; 206:2977-86. [PMID: 19995955 PMCID: PMC2806474 DOI: 10.1084/jem.20092176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 266] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Nuclear factor interleukin-3 (Nfil3; also known as E4-binding protein 4) is a basic region leucine zipper transcription factor that has antiapoptotic activity in vitro under conditions of growth factor withdrawal. To study the role of Nfil3 in vivo, we generated gene-targeted Nfil3-deficient (Nfil3−/−) mice. Nfil3−/− mice were born at normal Mendelian frequency and were grossly normal and fertile. Although numbers of T cells, B cells, and natural killer (NK) T cells were normal in Nfil3−/− mice, a specific disruption in NK cell development resulted in severely reduced numbers of mature NK cells in the periphery. This defect was NK cell intrinsic in nature, leading to a failure to reject MHC class I–deficient cells in vivo and reductions in both interferon γ production and cytolytic activity in vitro. Our results confirm the specific and essential requirement of Nfil3 for the development of cells of the NK lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shintaro Kamizono
- The Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Ontario Cancer Institute, University Health Network, Ontario M5G 2C1, Canada
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Okuya M, Kurosawa H, Kikuchi J, Furukawa Y, Matsui H, Aki D, Matsunaga T, Inukai T, Goto H, Altura RA, Sugita K, Arisaka O, Look AT, Inaba T. Up-regulation of survivin by the E2A-HLF chimera is indispensable for the survival of t(17;19)-positive leukemia cells. J Biol Chem 2009; 285:1850-60. [PMID: 19887369 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m109.023762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
The E2A-HLF fusion transcription factor generated by t(17;19)(q22;p13) translocation is found in a small subset of pro-B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemias (ALLs) and promotes leukemogenesis by substituting for the antiapoptotic function of cytokines. Here we show that t(17;19)+ ALL cells express Survivin at high levels and that a dominant negative mutant of E2A-HLF suppresses Survivin expression. Forced expression of E2A-HLF in t(17;19)(-) leukemia cells up-regulated Survivin expression, suggesting that Survivin is a downstream target of E2A-HLF. Analysis using a counterflow centrifugal elutriator revealed that t(17;19)+ ALL cells express Survivin throughout the cell cycle. Reporter assays revealed that E2A-HLF induces survivin expression at the transcriptional level likely through indirect down-regulation of a cell cycle-dependent cis element in the promoter region. Down-regulation of Survivin function by a dominant negative mutant of Survivin or reduction of Survivin expression induced massive apoptosis throughout the cell cycle in t(17;19)+ cells mainly through caspase-independent pathways involving translocation of apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) from mitochondria to the nucleus. AIF knockdown conferred resistance to apoptosis caused by down-regulation of Survivin function. These data indicated that reversal of AIF translocation by Survivin, which is induced by E2A-HLF throughout the cell cycle, is one of the key mechanisms in the protection of t(17;19)+ leukemia cells from apoptosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mayuko Okuya
- Department of Pediatrics, Dokkyo Medical University School of Medicine, Tochigi 321-0293, Japan
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Nehme R, Conradt B. egl-1: a key activator of apoptotic cell death in C. elegans. Oncogene 2009; 27 Suppl 1:S30-40. [DOI: 10.1038/onc.2009.41] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
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32
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Beck M, Karch C, Wiese S, Sendtner M. Motoneuron cell death and neurotrophic factors: Basic models for development of new therapeutic strategies in ALS. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2009. [DOI: 10.1080/146608201300079454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
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Trithorax, Hox, and TALE-class homeodomain proteins ensure cell survival through repression of the BH3-only gene egl-1. Dev Biol 2009; 329:374-85. [PMID: 19254707 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2009.02.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2008] [Revised: 02/05/2009] [Accepted: 02/18/2009] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Mutations that aberrantly activate trithorax-group proteins, Hox transcription factors and TALE-class Hox cofactors promote leukemogenesis, but their target genes critical for leukemogenesis remain largely unknown. Through genetic analyses in C. elegans, we find that the trithorax-group gene lin-59 and the TALE-class Hox cofactor unc-62 are required for survival of the VC motor neurons. With the goal of providing a model for how aberrantly active Hox complexes might promote leukemia, we elucidate the mechanism through which these new inhibitors of programmed cell death act: lin-59 maintains transcription of the Hox gene lin-39, while unc-62 promotes nuclear localization of the TALE-class Hox cofactor ceh-20. A LIN-39/CEH-20 complex binds the promoter of the pro-apoptotic BH3-only gene egl-1, repressing its transcription and ensuring survival of the VC neurons. In the absence of this regulatory mechanism, egl-1 is transcribed and the VC neurons die. Furthermore, ectopic expression of the Hox gene lin-39, as occurs for human Hox genes in leukemia, is sufficient to block death of some cells. This work identifies BH3-only pro-apoptotic genes as targets of Hox-mediated repression and suggests that aberrant activation of Hox networks may promote leukemia in part by inhibiting apoptosis.
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Abstract
The elimination of unwanted cells by programmed cell death is a common feature of animal development. Genetic studies in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, and the mouse have not only revealed the molecular machineries that cause the programmed demise of specific cells, but have also allowed us to get a glimpse of the types of pathways that regulate these machineries during development. Rather than serving as a broad overview of programmed cell death during development, this review focuses on recent advances in our understanding of the regulation of specific programmed cell death events during nematode, fly, and mouse development. Recent studies have revealed that many of the regulatory pathways involved play additional important roles in development, which confirms that the programmed cell death fate is an integral aspect of animal development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Conradt
- Department of Genetics, Norris Cotton Cancer Center, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, USA.
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Singhvi A, Garriga G. Asymmetric divisions, aggresomes and apoptosis. Trends Cell Biol 2008; 19:1-7. [PMID: 19091567 DOI: 10.1016/j.tcb.2008.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2008] [Revised: 10/24/2008] [Accepted: 10/27/2008] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Asymmetric cell division (ACD) is a fundamental process used to generate cell diversity during metazoan development that occurs when a cell divides to generate daughter cells adopting distinct fates. Stem cell divisions, for example, are a type of ACD and provide a source of new cells during development and in adult animals. Some ACDs produce a daughter cell that dies. In many cases, the reason why a cell divides to generate a dying daughter remains elusive. It was shown recently that denatured proteins are segregated asymmetrically during cell division. Here, we review data that provide interesting insights into how apoptosis is regulated during ACD and speculate on potential connections between ACD-induced cell death and partitioning of denatured proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aakanksha Singhvi
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3204, USA
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36
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Abstract
Years of research have identified a highly conserved mechanism required for apoptotic cell killing. How certain cells are specified to die is not well understood. With a rich history in programmed cell death research, the nematode C. elegans offers an excellent animal model with which to study cell death specification events. Developing hermaphrodites have 131 invariant cell death events that can be studied with single cell resolution. Recent genetic studies have begun to identify diverse sets of factors required for the proper specification of individual cell death events. The limited findings thus far suggest that cell death specification is controlled through transcriptional regulation of at least two members of the core cell death pathway, egl-1 and ced-3. However, it remains unclear if additional modes of cell death specification exist. Here we briefly summarize current findings in the field of C. elegans cell death specification and consider those questions that remain to be answered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin Peden
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA
| | - Darrell J. Killian
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA
| | - Ding Xue
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA
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37
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Abstract
Asymmetric cell division and apoptosis (programmed cell death) are two fundamental processes that are important for the development and function of multicellular organisms. We have found that the processes of asymmetric cell division and apoptosis can be functionally linked. Specifically, we show that asymmetric cell division in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is mediated by a pathway involving three genes, dnj-11 MIDA1, ces-2 HLF, and ces-1 Snail, that directly control the enzymatic machinery responsible for apoptosis. Interestingly, the MIDA1-like protein GlsA of the alga Volvox carteri, as well as the Snail-related proteins Snail, Escargot, and Worniu of Drosophila melanogaster, have previously been implicated in asymmetric cell division. Therefore, C. elegans dnj-11 MIDA1, ces-2 HLF, and ces-1 Snail may be components of a pathway involved in asymmetric cell division that is conserved throughout the plant and animal kingdoms. Furthermore, based on our results, we propose that this pathway directly controls the apoptotic fate in C. elegans, and possibly other animals as well. Asymmetric cell division and apoptosis (programmed cell death) are two fundamental processes that are important for the development and function of multicellular organisms. Asymmetric cell division creates daughter cells of different fates, and this is critical for the generation of cellular diversity. Apoptosis eliminates superfluous cells from the organism, which is critical for cellular homeostasis. We found that the processes of asymmetric cell division and apoptosis can be functionally linked. Specifically, we show that asymmetric cell division in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is mediated by a pathway involving three genes, dnj-11 MIDA1, ces-2 HLF, and ces-1 Snail, that directly control the enzymatic machinery responsible for apoptosis. Interestingly, the role of this pathway in asymmetric cell division and the control of apoptosis might be evolutionarily conserved. Furthermore, it might have an unexpected role in stem cell biology: the process of asymmetric cell division plays an essential role in the ability of stem cells to self-renew, and the mammalian counterparts of two components of the dnj-11 MIDA1, ces-2 HLF, ces-1 Snail pathway have recently been implicated in stem cell function. For this reason, we speculate that a dnj-11 MIDA1, ces-2 HLF, ces-1 Snail–like pathway might function in stem cells to coordinate self-renewal and apoptosis and, hence, the number of stem cells. A pathway involved in asymmetric cell division in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, the dnj-11 MIDA1, ces-2 HLF, ces-1 Snail pathway, directly controls the enzymatic machinery responsible for apoptosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Hatzold
- Department of Genetics, Norris Cotton Cancer Center, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
- Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Barbara Conradt
- Department of Genetics, Norris Cotton Cancer Center, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, United States of America
- * To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail:
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Blum ES, Driscoll M, Shaham S. Noncanonical cell death programs in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Cell Death Differ 2008; 15:1124-31. [PMID: 18437162 DOI: 10.1038/cdd.2008.56] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetic studies of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans have uncovered four genes, egl-1 (BH3 only), ced-9 (Bcl-2 related), ced-4 (apoptosis protease activating factor-1), and ced-3 (caspase), which function in a linear pathway to promote developmental cell death in this organism. While this core pathway functions in many cells, recent studies suggest that additional regulators, acting on or in lieu of these core genes, can promote or inhibit the onset of cell death. Here, we discuss the evidence for these noncanonical mechanisms of C. elegans cell death control. We consider novel modes for regulating the core apoptosis genes, and describe a newly identified cell death pathway independent of all known C. elegans cell death genes. The existence of these noncanonical cell death programs suggests that organisms have evolved multiple ways to ensure appropriate cellular demise during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- E S Blum
- Laboratory of Developmental Genetics, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065, USA
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39
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Kotaka M, Onishi Y, Ohno T, Akaike T, Ishida N. Identification of negative transcriptional factor E4BP4-binding site in the mouse circadian-regulated gene Mdr2. Neurosci Res 2008; 60:307-13. [PMID: 18242748 DOI: 10.1016/j.neures.2007.11.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2007] [Revised: 11/02/2007] [Accepted: 11/27/2007] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The hepatic transporter Mdr2 is an ATP-binding cassette transporter which excretes phosphatidylcholine into the bile. We showed that the level of Mdr2 mRNA oscillated in circadian fashion in mouse liver whereas such oscillation was dampened in the liver of Clock mutants. To examine transcriptional regulation of the Mdr2 gene we performed luciferase reporter assays using plasmid constructs containing the 5'-flanking region of the Mdr2 gene. Reporter assays using deletion constructs demonstrated that E4BP4 represses the transcriptional activity of the promoter including the D1 and D2 sites within four putative E4BP4-binding sites. Chromatin immunoprecipitation and gel shift assays showed that E4BP4 binds to the D2 site, but not to the D1 site. These data suggested that E4BP4 is a negative transcription factor for circadian Mdr2 mRNA expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maki Kotaka
- Clock Cell Biology Research Group, Institute for Biological Resources and Functions, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba 305-8566, Japan
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40
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Look AT. Investigator profile. An interview with A. Thomas Look, M.D. Interview by Vicki Glaser. Zebrafish 2008; 2:231-6. [PMID: 18248181 DOI: 10.1089/zeb.2005.2.231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Dr. Look received his M.D. degree and postgraduate training in Pediatrics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and completed his fellowship training in Pediatric Oncology at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. He then accepted a faculty position at St. Jude and remained there for 20 years, ultimately becoming the Chair of the Experimental Oncology Department. In June 1999, he joined the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts, as Vice-Chair for Research in Pediatric Oncology and Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. Work in Dr. Look's laboratory focuses on the molecular pathogenesis of leukemia. His group has been credited with the identification and functional analysis of several chimeric oncogenes activated by chromosomal translocations, including the E2A-HLF transcription factor, which was shown to act through an evolutionarily conserved genetic pathway to promote leukemia cell survival. Their efforts in human T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia have revealed key multistep mutational pathways that drive the pathogenesis of this disease and demonstrated that NOTCH1 receptors are mutationally activated in a majority of these cases. More recently, Dr. Look's laboratory developed the first transgenic model of leukemia in the zebrafish, opening the way for chemical and genome-wide genetic modifier screens in a vertebrate disease model.
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41
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Schwartz HT, Horvitz HR. The C. elegans protein CEH-30 protects male-specific neurons from apoptosis independently of the Bcl-2 homolog CED-9. Genes Dev 2008; 21:3181-94. [PMID: 18056428 DOI: 10.1101/gad.1607007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The developmental control of apoptosis is fundamental and important. We report that the Caenorhabditis elegans Bar homeodomain transcription factor CEH-30 is required for the sexually dimorphic survival of the male-specific CEM (cephalic male) sensory neurons; the homologous cells of hermaphrodites undergo programmed cell death. We propose that the cell-type-specific anti-apoptotic gene ceh-30 is transcriptionally repressed by the TRA-1 transcription factor, the terminal regulator of sexual identity in C. elegans, to cause hermaphrodite-specific CEM death. The established mechanism for the regulation of specific programmed cell deaths in C. elegans is the transcriptional control of the BH3-only gene egl-1, which inhibits the Bcl-2 homolog ced-9; similarly, most regulation of vertebrate apoptosis involves the Bcl-2 superfamily. In contrast, ceh-30 acts within the CEM neurons to promote their survival independently of both egl-1 and ced-9. Mammalian ceh-30 homologs can substitute for ceh-30 in C. elegans. Mice lacking the ceh-30 homolog Barhl1 show a progressive loss of sensory neurons and increased sensory-neuron cell death. Based on these observations, we suggest that the function of Bar homeodomain proteins as cell-type-specific inhibitors of apoptosis is evolutionarily conserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hillel T Schwartz
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and MIT Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA
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42
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Abstract
The most frequent targets of genetic alterations in human lymphoid leukemias are transcription factor genes with essential functions in blood cell development. TAL1, LYL1, HOX11 and other transcription factors essential for normal hematopoiesis are often misexpressed in the thymus in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL), leading to differentiation arrest and cell transformation. Recent advances in the ability to assess DNA copy number have led to the discovery that the MYB transcription factor oncogene is tandemly duplicated in T-ALL. The NOTCH1 gene, which is essential for key embryonic cell-fate decisions in multicellular organisms, was found to be activated by mutation in a large percentage of T-ALL patients. The gene encoding the FBW7 protein ubiquitin ligase, which regulates the turnover of the intracellular form of NOTCH (ICN), is also mutated in T-ALL, resulting in stabilization of the ICN and activation of the NOTCH signaling pathway. In mature B-lineage ALL and Burkitt lymphoma, the MYC transcription factor oncogene is overexpressed due to translocation into the IG locus. PAX5, a transcription factor essential for B-lineage commitment, is inactivated in 32% of cases of B-progenitor ALL. Translocations resulting in oncogenic fusion transcription factors also occur frequently in this form of ALL. The most frequent transcription factor chimeric fusion, TEL-AML1, is an initiating event in B-progenitor ALL that acts by repressing transcription. Therefore, deregulated transcription and its consequent effects on key developmental pathways play a major role in the molecular pathogenesis of lymphoid malignancy. Once the full complement of cooperating mutations in transformed B- and T-progenitor cells is known, and the deregulated downstream pathways have been elucidated, it will be possible to identify vulnerable components and to target them with small-molecule inhibitors.
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43
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Maurer CW, Chiorazzi M, Shaham S. Timing of the onset of a developmental cell death is controlled by transcriptional induction of the C. elegans ced-3 caspase-encoding gene. Development 2007; 134:1357-68. [PMID: 17329362 DOI: 10.1242/dev.02818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Temporal control of programmed cell death is necessary to ensure that cells die at only the right time during animal development. How such temporal regulation is achieved remains poorly understood. In some Caenorhabditis elegans somatic cells, transcription of the egl-1/BH3-only gene promotes cell-specific death. The EGL-1 protein inhibits the CED-9/Bcl-2 protein, resulting in the release of the caspase activator CED-4/Apaf-1. Subsequent activation of the CED-3 caspase by CED-4 leads to cell death. Despite the important role of egl-1 transcription in promoting CED-3 activity in cells destined to die, it remains unclear whether the temporal control of cell death is mediated by egl-1 expression. Here, we show that egl-1 and ced-9 play only minor roles in the death of the C. elegans tail-spike cell, demonstrating that temporal control of tail-spike cell death can be achieved in the absence of egl-1. We go on to show that the timing of the onset of tail-spike cell death is controlled by transcriptional induction of the ced-3 caspase. We characterized the developmental expression pattern of ced-3, and show that, in the tail-spike cell, ced-3 expression is induced shortly before the cell dies, and this induction is sufficient to promote the demise of the cell. Both ced-3 expression and cell death are dependent on the transcription factor PAL-1, the C. elegans homolog of the mammalian tumor suppressor gene Cdx2. PAL-1 can bind to the ced-3 promoter sites that are crucial for tail-spike cell death, suggesting that it promotes cell death by directly activating ced-3 transcription. Our results highlight a role that has not been described previously for the transcriptional regulation of caspases in controlling the timing of cell death onset during animal development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carine W Maurer
- Laboratory of Developmental Genetics, The Rockefeller University, 1230 York Avenue, New York, NY 10021, USA
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44
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Abraham MC, Lu Y, Shaham S. A morphologically conserved nonapoptotic program promotes linker cell death in Caenorhabditis elegans. Dev Cell 2007; 12:73-86. [PMID: 17199042 DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2006.11.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2006] [Revised: 11/01/2006] [Accepted: 11/16/2006] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Apoptosis, cell death characterized by stereotypical morphological features, requires caspase proteases. Nonapoptotic, caspase-independent cell death pathways have been postulated; however, little is known about their molecular constituents or in vivo functions. Here, we show that death of the Caenorhabditis elegans linker cell during development is independent of the ced-3 caspase and all known cell death genes. The linker cell employs a cell-autonomous death program, and a previously undescribed engulfment program is required for its clearance. Dying linker cells display nonapoptotic features, including nuclear crenellation, absence of chromatin condensation, organelle swelling, and accumulation of cytoplasmic membrane-bound structures. Similar features are seen during developmental death of neurons in the vertebrate spinal cord and ciliary ganglia. Linker cell death is controlled by the microRNA let-7 and Zn-finger protein LIN-29, components of the C. elegans developmental timing pathway. We propose that the program executing linker cell death is conserved and used during vertebrate development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary C Abraham
- Laboratory of Developmental Genetics, The Rockefeller University, 1230 York Avenue, New York, NY 10021, USA
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45
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Reddien PW, Andersen EC, Huang MC, Horvitz HR. DPL-1 DP, LIN-35 Rb and EFL-1 E2F act with the MCD-1 zinc-finger protein to promote programmed cell death in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics 2007; 175:1719-33. [PMID: 17237514 PMCID: PMC1855110 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.106.068148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The genes egl-1, ced-9, ced-4, and ced-3 play major roles in programmed cell death in Caenorhabditis elegans. To identify genes that have more subtle activities, we sought mutations that confer strong cell-death defects in a genetically sensitized mutant background. Specifically, we screened for mutations that enhance the cell-death defects caused by a partial loss-of-function allele of the ced-3 caspase gene. We identified mutations in two genes not previously known to affect cell death, dpl-1 and mcd-1 (modifier of cell death). dpl-1 encodes the C. elegans homolog of DP, the human E2F-heterodimerization partner. By testing genes known to interact with dpl-1, we identified roles in cell death for four additional genes: efl-1 E2F, lin-35 Rb, lin-37 Mip40, and lin-52 dLin52. mcd-1 encodes a novel protein that contains one zinc finger and that is synthetically required with lin-35 Rb for animal viability. dpl-1 and mcd-1 act with efl-1 E2F and lin-35 Rb to promote programmed cell death and do so by regulating the killing process rather than by affecting the decision between survival and death. We propose that the DPL-1 DP, MCD-1 zinc finger, EFL-1 E2F, LIN-35 Rb, LIN-37 Mip40, and LIN-52 dLin52 proteins act together in transcriptional regulation to promote programmed cell death.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter W Reddien
- Department of Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA
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46
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Abstract
PARbZip proteins (proline and acidic amino acid-rich basic leucine zipper) represent a subfamily of circadian transcription factors belonging to the bZip family. They are transcriptionally controlled by the circadian molecular oscillator and are suspected to accomplish output functions of the clock. In turn, PARbZip proteins control expression of genes coding for enzymes involved in metabolism, but also expression of transcription factors which control the expression of these enzymes. For example, these transcription factors control vitamin B6 metabolism, which influences neurotransmitter homeostasis in the brain, and loss of PARbZip function leads to spontaneous and sound-induced epilepsy that are frequently lethal. In liver, kidney, and small intestine, PAR bZip transcription factors regulate phase I, II, and III detoxifying enzymes in addition to the constitutive androstane receptor (CAR), one of the principal sensors of xenobiotics. Indeed, knockout mice for the three PARbZip transcription factors are deficient in xenobiotic detoxification and display high morbidity, high mortality, and accelerated aging. Finally, less than 20% of these animals reach an age of 1 year. Accumulated evidences suggest that PARbZip transcription factors play a role of relay, coupling circadian metabolism of xenobiotic and probably endobiotic substances to the core clock circuitry of local circadian oscillators.
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47
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Benito A, Gutierrez O, Pipaon C, Real PJ, Gachon F, Ritchie AE, Fernandez-Luna JL. A novel role for proline- and acid-rich basic region leucine zipper (PAR bZIP) proteins in the transcriptional regulation of a BH3-only proapoptotic gene. J Biol Chem 2006; 281:38351-7. [PMID: 17057225 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m607004200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Proline- and acid-rich (PAR) basic region leucine zipper (bZIP) proteins thyrotroph embryonic factor (TEF), D-site-binding protein (DBP), and hepatic leukemia factor have been involved in neurotransmitter homeostasis and amino acid metabolism. Here we demonstrate a novel role for these proteins in the transcriptional control of a BH3-only gene. PAR bZIP proteins are able to transactivate the promoter of bcl-gS. This promoter is particularly responsive to TEF activation and is silenced by NFIL3, a repressor that shares the consensus binding site with PAR bZIP proteins. Consistently, transfection of TEF induces the expression of endogenous bcl-gS in cancer cells, and this induction is independent of p53. A naturally occurring variant of DBP (tDBP), lacking the transactivation domain, has been identified and shown to impede the formation of active TEF dimers in a competitive manner and to reduce the TEF-dependent induction of bcl-gS. Of note, treatment of cancer cells with etoposide induces TEF activation and promotes the expression of bcl-gS. Furthermore, blockade of bcl-gS or TEF expression by a small interfering RNA strategy or transfection with tDBP significantly reduces the etoposide-mediated apoptotic cell death. These findings represent the first described role for PAR bZIP proteins in the regulation of a gene involved in the execution of apoptosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adalberto Benito
- Unidad de Genetica Molecular, Hospital Universitario Marques de Valdecilla, Servicio Cantabro de Salud, 39008 Santander, Spain
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48
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Kokel D, Li Y, Qin J, Xue D. The nongenotoxic carcinogens naphthalene and para-dichlorobenzene suppress apoptosis in Caenorhabditis elegans. Nat Chem Biol 2006; 2:338-45. [PMID: 16699520 DOI: 10.1038/nchembio791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2006] [Accepted: 04/13/2006] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Naphthalene (1) and para-dichlorobenzene (PDCB, 2), which are widely used as moth repellents and air fresheners, cause cancer in rodents and are potential human carcinogens. However, their mechanisms of action remain unclear. Here we describe a novel method for delivering and screening hydrophobic chemicals in C. elegans and apply this technique to investigate the ways in which naphthalene and PDCB may promote tumorigenesis in mammals. We show that naphthalene and PDCB inhibit apoptosis in C. elegans, a result that suggests a cellular mechanism by which these chemicals may promote the survival and proliferation of latent tumor cells. In addition, we find that a naphthalene metabolite directly inactivates caspases by oxidizing the active site cysteine residue; this suggests a molecular mechanism by which these chemicals suppress apoptosis. Naphthalene and PDCB are the first small-molecule apoptosis inhibitors identified in C. elegans. The power of C. elegans molecular genetics, in combination with the possibility of carrying out large-scale chemical screens in this organism, makes C. elegans an attractive and economic animal model for both toxicological studies and drug screens.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Kokel
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0347, USA
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Priceman SJ, Kirzner JD, Nary LJ, Morris D, Shankar DB, Sakamoto KM, Medh RD. Calcium-dependent upregulation of E4BP4 expression correlates with glucocorticoid-evoked apoptosis of human leukemic CEM cells. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2006; 344:491-9. [PMID: 16630563 PMCID: PMC2763529 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2006.03.169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2006] [Accepted: 03/24/2006] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Glucocorticoid (GC)-evoked apoptosis of T-lymphoid cells is preceded by increases in the intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i), which may contribute to apoptosis. This report demonstrates that GC-mediated upregulation of the bZIP transcriptional repressor gene, E4BP4, is dependent on [Ca2+]i levels, and correlates with GC-evoked apoptosis of GC-sensitive CEM-C7-14 cells. Calcium chelators EGTA and BAPTA reduced [Ca2+]i levels and protected CEM-C7-14 cells from Dex-evoked E4BP4 upregulation as well as apoptosis. In the GC-resistant sister clone, CEM-C1-15, Dex treatment did not induce [Ca2+]i levels, E4BP4 expression or apoptosis, however, the calcium ionophore A23187 restored Dex-evoked E4BP4 upregulation and apoptosis. CEM-C7-14 cells were more sensitive to GC-independent increases in [Ca2+]i levels by thapsigargin, and a corresponding increase in E4BP4 expression and cell death, compared to CEM-C1-15 cells, suggesting a direct correlation between [Ca2+]i levels, E4BP4 expression, and apoptosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saul J. Priceman
- Department of Biology, California State University at Northridge, Northridge, CA 91330-8303, USA
| | - Jonathan D. Kirzner
- Department of Biology, California State University at Northridge, Northridge, CA 91330-8303, USA
| | - Laura J. Nary
- Department of Biology, California State University at Northridge, Northridge, CA 91330-8303, USA
| | - Devin Morris
- Department of Biology, California State University at Northridge, Northridge, CA 91330-8303, USA
| | - Deepa B. Shankar
- Division of Hematology-Oncology, Mattel Children's Hospital, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1752, USA
| | - Kathleen M. Sakamoto
- Division of Hematology-Oncology, Mattel Children's Hospital, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1752, USA
| | - Rheem D. Medh
- Department of Biology, California State University at Northridge, Northridge, CA 91330-8303, USA
- Corresponding author. Fax: +1 818 677 2034. (R.D. Medh)
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Lettre G, Hengartner MO. Developmental apoptosis in C. elegans: a complex CEDnario. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 2006; 7:97-108. [PMID: 16493416 DOI: 10.1038/nrm1836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 217] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Apoptosis, an evolutionarily conserved programme of cellular self-destruction, is essential for the development and survival of most multicellular animals. It is required to ensure functional organ architecture and to maintain tissue homeostasis. During development of the simple nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, apoptosis claims over 10% of the somatic cells that are generated - these cells were healthy but unnecessary. Exciting insights into the regulation and execution of apoptosis in C. elegans have recently been made. These new findings will undoubtedly influence our perception of developmental apoptosis in more complex species, including humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guillaume Lettre
- Division of Genetics, Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
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