Human heme oxygenase-1 efficiently catabolizes heme in the absence of biliverdin reductase

Identification and Characterization of the miRNA Transcriptome Controlling Green Pigmentation of Chicken Eggshells

Green eggs are mainly caused by inserting an avian endogenous retrovirus (EVA-HP) fragment into the SLCO1B3 gene. Although the genotypes for this insertion allele are consistent, eggshell color (ESC) may vary after a peak laying period; light-colored eggs are undesired by consumers and farmers and result in financial loss, so it is necessary to resolve this problem. miRNAs are small non-coding RNAs that exert essential functions in animal development and diseases. However, the regulatory miRNAs and detailed molecular mechanisms regulating eggshell greenness remain unclear. In the present study, we determined the genotype of green-eggshell hens through the detection of a homozygous allele insertion in the SLCO1B3 gene. The shell gland epithelium was obtained from green-eggshell hens that produced white and green shell eggs to perform transcriptome sequencing and investigate the important regulatory mechanisms that influence the ESC. Approximately 921 miRNAs were expressed in these two groups, which included 587 known miRNAs and 334 novel miRNAs, among which 44 were differentially expressed. There were 22 miRNAs that were significantly upregulated in the green and white groups, respectively, which targeted hundreds of genes, including KIT, HMOX2, and several solute carrier family genes. A Gene Ontology enrichment analysis of the target genes showed that the differentially expressed miRNA-targeted genes mainly belonged to the functional categories of homophilic cell adhesion, gland development, the Wnt signaling pathway, and epithelial tube morphogenesis. A KEGG enrichment analysis showed that the Hedgehog signaling pathway was significantly transformed in this study. The current study provides an overview of the miRNA expression profiles and the interaction between the miRNAs and their target genes. It provides valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying green eggshell pigmentation, screening more effective hens to produce stable green eggs and obtaining higher economic benefits.

Macrophages and iron trafficking at the birth and death of red cells

Macrophages play a critical role in iron homeostasis via their intimate association with developing and dying red cells. Central nurse macrophages promote erythropoiesis in the erythroblastic island niche. These macrophages make physical contact with erythroblasts, enabling signaling and the transfer of growth factors and possibly nutrients to the cells in their care. Human mature red cells have a lifespan of 120 days before they become senescent and again come into contact with macrophages. Phagocytosis of red blood cells is the main source of iron flux in the body, because heme must be recycled from approximately 270 billion hemoglobin molecules in each red cell, and roughly 2 million senescent red cells are recycled each second. Here we will review pathways for iron trafficking found at the macrophage-erythroid axis, with a focus on possible roles for the transport of heme in toto.

Macrophages and iron trafficking at the birth and death of red cells

Macrophages play a critical role in iron homeostasis via their intimate association with developing and dying red cells. Central nurse macrophages promote erythropoiesis in the erythroblastic island niche. These macrophages make physical contact with erythroblasts, enabling signaling and the transfer of growth factors and possibly nutrients to the cells in their care. Human mature red cells have a lifespan of 120 days before they become senescent and again come into contact with macrophages. Phagocytosis of red blood cells is the main source of iron flux in the body, because heme must be recycled from approximately 270 billion hemoglobin molecules in each red cell, and roughly 2 million senescent red cells are recycled each second. Here we will review pathways for iron trafficking found at the macrophage-erythroid axis, with a focus on possible roles for the transport of heme in toto.

Beneficial effects of diminished production of hydrogen sulfide or carbon monoxide on hypertension and renal injury induced by NO withdrawal

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Whether NO, carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen sulfide (H2 S) compensate for each other when one or more is depleted is unclear. Inhibiting NOS causes hypertension and kidney injury. Both global depletion of H2 S by cystathionine γ-lyase (CSE) gene deletion and low levels of exogenous H2 S cause hypertension. Inhibiting CO-producing enzyme haeme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) makes rodents hypersensitive to hypertensive stimuli. We hypothesized that combined inhibition of NOS and HO-1 exacerbates hypertension and renal injury, but how combined inhibition of NOS and CSE affect hypertension and renal injury was unclear.

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH

Rats were treated with inhibitors of NOS (L-nitroarginine; LNNA), CSE (DL-propargylglycine; PAG), or HO-1 (tin protoporphyrin; SnPP) singly for 1 or 4 weeks or in combinations for 4 weeks.

KEY RESULTS

LNNA always reduced NO, decreased H2 S and increased CO after 4 weeks. PAG abolished H2 S, always enhanced CO and reduced NO, but not when used in combination with other inhibitors. SnPP always increased NO, enhanced H2 S and inhibited CO after 1 week. Rats treated with LNNA, but not PAG and SnPP, rapidly developed hypertension followed by renal dysfunction. LNNA-induced hypertension was ameliorated and renal dysfunction prevented by all additional treatments. Renal HO-1 expression was increased by LNNA in injured tubules and increased in all tubules by all other treatments.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

The amelioration of LNNA-induced hypertension and renal injury by additional inhibition of H2 S and/or CO-producing enzymes appeared to be associated with secondary increases in renal CO or NO production.

Like iron in the blood of the people: the requirement for heme trafficking in iron metabolism

Heme is an iron-containing porphyrin ring that serves as a prosthetic group in proteins that function in diverse metabolic pathways. Heme is also a major source of bioavailable iron in the human diet. While the synthesis of heme has been well-characterized, the pathways for heme trafficking remain poorly understood. It is likely that heme transport across membranes is highly regulated, as free heme is toxic to cells. This review outlines the requirement for heme delivery to various subcellular compartments as well as possible mechanisms for the mobilization of heme to these compartments. We also discuss how these trafficking pathways might function during physiological events involving inter- and intra-cellular mobilization of heme, including erythropoiesis, erythrophagocytosis, heme absorption in the gut, as well as heme transport pathways supporting embryonic development. Lastly, we aim to question the current dogma that heme, in toto, is not mobilized from one cell or tissue to another, outlining the evidence for these pathways and drawing parallels to other well-accepted paradigms for copper, iron, and cholesterol homeostasis.

Curcumin ameliorates the permeability of the blood-brain barrier during hypoxia by upregulating heme oxygenase-1 expression in brain microvascular endothelial cells

Curcumin (Cur) is a major active component of the food flavor turmeric isolated from the powdered dry rhizome of Curcuma longa Linn., which has been used in traditional Chinese medicine to ameliorate intracerebral ischemic damage and reduce brain edema. However, the effects of Cur on the disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) induced by brain ischemia are still unclear. The effects of Cur on the disruption of BBB and changes of tight junction (TJ) proteins induced by oxygen glucose deprivation (OGD) were studied in BBB in vitro. The transendothelial electrical resistance and the flux of horseradish peroxidase in BBB in vitro were measured. The expression and localization of the TJ proteins occludin and zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) were evaluated by Western blots and immunofluorescence microscopy. The protein levels of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) were also analyzed via Western blots. Cur attenuated OGD-induced disruption of paracellular permeability and increased the expression of HO-1 protein in rat brain microvascular endothelial cells (RBMECs). After administration of OGD, the expression of occludin and ZO-1 proteins was restored by Cur, and this effect was blocked by a HO-1 inhibitor, zinc protoporphyrin (ZnPP). Cur protects RBMECs against OGD-induced disruption of TJ and barrier dysfunction via the HO-1 pathway. We propose that Cur is capable of improving the barrier function of BBB under ischemic conditions and this beneficial effect might be reversed by a HO-1 inhibitor, ZnPP.