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Cao R, Zhu R, Sha Z, Qi S, Zhong Z, Zheng F, Lei Y, Tan Y, Zhu Y, Wang Y, Wang Y, Yu FX. WWC1/2 regulate spinogenesis and cognition in mice by stabilizing AMOT. Cell Death Dis 2023; 14:491. [PMID: 37528078 PMCID: PMC10394084 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-023-06020-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2022] [Revised: 07/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/03/2023]
Abstract
WWC1 regulates episodic learning and memory, and genetic nucleotide polymorphism of WWC1 is associated with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. However, the molecular mechanism through which WWC1 regulates neuronal function has not been fully elucidated. Here, we show that WWC1 and its paralogs (WWC2/3) bind directly to angiomotin (AMOT) family proteins (Motins), and recruit USP9X to deubiquitinate and stabilize Motins. Deletion of WWC genes in different cell types leads to reduced protein levels of Motins. In mice, neuron-specific deletion of Wwc1 and Wwc2 results in reduced expression of Motins and lower density of dendritic spines in the cortex and hippocampus, in association with impaired cognitive functions such as memory and learning. Interestingly, ectopic expression of AMOT partially rescues the neuronal phenotypes associated with Wwc1/2 deletion. Thus, WWC proteins modulate spinogenesis and cognition, at least in part, by regulating the protein stability of Motins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Runyi Cao
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Rui Zhu
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Zhao Sha
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Sixian Qi
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Zhenxing Zhong
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Fengyun Zheng
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Yubin Lei
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Yanfeng Tan
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Yuwen Zhu
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Yu Wang
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.
| | - Yi Wang
- Department of Neurology, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, National Children's Medical Center, No. 399 Wanyuan Road, Shanghai, 201102, China.
| | - Fa-Xing Yu
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, and the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, The International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism, the State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.
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Identification of AGXT2, SHMT1, and ACO2 as important biomarkers of acute kidney injury by WGCNA. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0281439. [PMID: 36735737 PMCID: PMC9897545 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0281439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2022] [Accepted: 01/23/2023] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a serious and frequently observed disease associated with high morbidity and mortality. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) is a research method that converts the relationship between tens of thousands of genes and phenotypes into the association between several gene sets and phenotypes. We screened potential target genes related to AKI through WGCNA to provide a reference for the diagnosis and treatment of AKI. Key biomolecules of AKI were investigated based on transcriptome analysis. RNA sequencing data from 39 kidney biopsy specimens of AKI patients and 9 normal subjects were downloaded from the GEO database. By WGCNA, the top 20% of mRNAs with the largest variance in the data matrix were used to construct a gene co-expression network with a p-value < 0.01 as a screening condition, showing that the blue module was most closely associated with AKI. Thirty-two candidate biomarker genes were screened according to the threshold values of |MM|≥0.86 and |GS|≥0.4, and PPI and enrichment analyses were performed. The top three genes with the most connected nodes, alanine-glyoxylate aminotransferase 2(AGXT2), serine hydroxymethyltransferase 1(SHMT1) and aconitase 2(ACO2), were selected as the central genes based on the PPI network. A rat AKI model was constructed, and the mRNA and protein expression levels of the central genes in the model and control groups were verified by PCR and immunohistochemistry experiments. The results showed that the relative mRNA expression and protein levels of AGXT2, SHMT1 and ACO2 showed a decrease in the model group. In conclusion, we inferred that there is a close association between AGXT2, SHMT1 and ACO2 genes and the development of AKI, and the down-regulation of their expression levels may induce AKI.
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Wang K, Li B, Ge L, Xie Y. Molecular insight into the systematic affinity and selectivity of partner recognition sites between the WW1 and WW2 domains of human KIBRA neuroprotein. J Mol Graph Model 2022; 116:108258. [PMID: 35810735 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmgm.2022.108258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2021] [Revised: 05/22/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Human KIBRA, a member of the WWC family proteins, is an upstream regulator of the Salvador/Warts/Hippo (SWH) signaling pathway and predominately expressed in nervous system. The protein has two functionally regulatory domains WW1 and WW2 at N-terminal region, which recognize and bind to the PY-motif segments of their partner proteins to serve as a signaling scaffold role in the SWH pathway. The two domains are highly conserved, but their downstream ligands and biological functions may not be fully consistent. In this study, we attempted to systematically profile the PY-motif affinity to and selectivity between KIBRA WW1 and WW2 domains involved in partner recognition sites. Ontology mining was used to enrich the KIBRA-interacting proteins in literature libraries, from which a variety of PY-motif peptide segments were identified, and their binding behavior to each domain was then analyzed by integrating computational modeling and experimental assay. Most PY-motif peptides were found to interact potently with WW1 and WW2, but they generally only exhibit a moderate or modest selectivity between the two domains. Subsequently, several representative peptides were further examined in detail to elucidate the molecular mechanism underlying their affinity and selectivity. It is revealed that the middle motif region of PY-motif peptides is primarily responsible for the affinity and stability of peptide binding, but only contributes marginally to peptide selectivity. Instead, the N-terminal region and, particularly, C-terminal region of PY-motif peptides play a crucial role in the selectivity. Hydrophobic contacts and hydrogen bonds confer stability and specificity to the domain-peptide interaction, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Wang
- Department of Anesthesiology, Rizhao People's Hospital, Affiliated to Jining Medical University, Rizhao, 276827, China
| | - Baoqiang Li
- Department of Anesthesiology, Rizhao People's Hospital, Affiliated to Jining Medical University, Rizhao, 276827, China
| | - Lei Ge
- Department of Emergency, Rizhao People's Hospital, Affiliated to Jining Medical University, Rizhao, 276827, China
| | - Yi Xie
- Department of Anesthesiology, Zibo Central Hospital, Affiliated to Binzhou Medical University, Zibo, 255020, China.
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Lee JM, Ko Y, Lee CH, Jeon N, Lee KH, Oh J, Kronbichler A, Saleem MA, Lim BJ, Shin JI. The Effect of Interleukin-4 and Dexamethasone on RNA-Seq-Based Transcriptomic Profiling of Human Podocytes: A Potential Role in Minimal Change Nephrotic Syndrome. J Clin Med 2021; 10:jcm10030496. [PMID: 33535372 PMCID: PMC7866993 DOI: 10.3390/jcm10030496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2020] [Revised: 01/18/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2021] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Interleukin-4 (IL-4) expression is implicated in the pathogenesis of nephrotic syndrome (NS). This study aimed to investigate the changes in the transcriptomes of human podocytes induced by IL-4 treatment and to analyze whether these changes could be affected by simultaneous steroid treatment. Three groups of human podocytes were treated with control, IL-4, and IL-4 plus dexamethasone (DEX), respectively. We performed whole-transcriptome sequencing to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the groups. We investigated relevant biological pathways using Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analyses. We also attempted to compare and validate the DEGs with the genes listed in PodNet, a literature-based database on mouse podocyte genes. A total of 176 genes were differentially expressed among the three groups. GO analyses showed that pathways related to cytoskeleton organization and cell signaling were significantly enriched. Among them, 24 genes were listed in PodNet, and 12 of them were previously reported to be associated with IL-4-induced changes in human podocytes. Of the 12 genes, the expression levels of BMP4, RARB, and PLCE1 were reversed when podocytes were simultaneously treated with DEX. In conclusion, this study explored changes in the transcriptome profiles of human podocytes treated with IL-4. Few genes were reported in previous studies and were previously validated in experiments with human podocytes. We speculate that IL-4 may exert pathogenic effects on the transcriptome of human podocytes, and a few genes may be involved in the pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiwon M. Lee
- Department of Pediatrics, Chungnam National University Hospital and College of Medicine, Daejeon 35015, Korea;
| | - Younhee Ko
- Division of Biomedical Engineering, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Gyeonggi-do 17035, Korea;
| | - Chul Ho Lee
- Department of Pediatrics, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea; (C.H.L.); (K.H.L.)
- Division of Clinical Genetics, Severance Children’s Hospital, Seoul 03722, Korea
| | - Nara Jeon
- Department of Pathology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea;
| | - Keum Hwa Lee
- Department of Pediatrics, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea; (C.H.L.); (K.H.L.)
| | - Jun Oh
- Department of Pediatrics, University Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany;
| | - Andreas Kronbichler
- Department of Internal Medicine IV (Nephrology and Hypertension), Medical University Innsbruck, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria;
| | - Moin A. Saleem
- Children’s and Renal Unit and Bristol Renal, University of Bristol, Bristol BS2 8BJ, UK;
| | - Beom Jin Lim
- Department of Pathology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea;
- Correspondence: (B.J.L.); (J.I.S.)
| | - Jae Il Shin
- Department of Pediatrics, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea; (C.H.L.); (K.H.L.)
- Division of Pediatric Nephrology, Severance Children’s Hospital, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Kidney Disease Research, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Correspondence: (B.J.L.); (J.I.S.)
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Baker K, Kwok E, Reardon P, Rodriguez DJ, Rolland AD, Wilson JW, Prell JS, Nyarko A. Yorkie-Warts Complexes are an Ensemble of Interconverting Conformers Formed by Multivalent Interactions. J Mol Biol 2020; 433:166776. [PMID: 33383033 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2020.166776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2020] [Revised: 11/18/2020] [Accepted: 12/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Multiple copies of WW domains and PPXY motif sequences are often reciprocally presented by regulatory proteins that interact at crucial regulatory steps in the cell life cycle. While biophysical studies of single WW domain-single PPXY motif complexes abound in the literature, the molecular mechanisms of multivalent WW domain-PPXY assemblies are still poorly understood. By way of investigating such assemblies, we characterized the multivalent association of the entire cognate binding domains, two WW sequences and five PPXY motifs respectively, of the Yorkie transcription coactivator and the Warts tumor suppressor. Isothermal titration calorimetry, sedimentation velocity, size-exclusion chromatography coupled to multi-angle light scattering and native-state mass spectrometry of Yorkie WW domains interactions with the full-length Warts PPXY domain, and numerous PPXY motif variants of Warts show that the two proteins assemble via binding of tandem WW domains to adjacent PPXY pairs to produce an ensemble of interconverting complexes of variable stoichiometries, binding energetics and WW domain occupancy. Apparently, the Yorkie tandem WW domains first target the two adjacent PPXY motifs at the C-terminus of the Warts polypeptide and additional WW domains bind unoccupied motifs. Similar ensembles of interconverting conformers may be common in multivalent WW domain-PPXY interactions to promote the adaptability and versatility of WW domain-PPXY mediated cellular processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kasie Baker
- Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Ethiene Kwok
- Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Patrick Reardon
- Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Diego J Rodriguez
- Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Amber D Rolland
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA; Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | - Jesse W Wilson
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA; Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | - James S Prell
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA; Materials Science Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | - Afua Nyarko
- Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA.
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