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Panitz V, Končarević S, Sadik A, Friedel D, Bausbacher T, Trump S, Farztdinov V, Schulz S, Sievers P, Schmidt S, Jürgenson I, Jung S, Kuhn K, Pflüger I, Sharma S, Wick A, Pfänder P, Selzer S, Vollmuth P, Sahm F, von Deimling A, Heiland I, Hopf C, Schulz-Knappe P, Pike I, Platten M, Wick W, Opitz CA. Tryptophan metabolism is inversely regulated in the tumor and blood of patients with glioblastoma. Am J Cancer Res 2021; 11:9217-9233. [PMID: 34646367 PMCID: PMC8490504 DOI: 10.7150/thno.60679] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2021] [Accepted: 08/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Tryptophan (Trp)-catabolic enzymes (TCEs) produce metabolites that activate the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) and promote tumor progression and immunosuppression in glioblastoma. As therapies targeting TCEs or AHR become available, a better understanding of Trp metabolism is required. Methods: The combination of LC-MS/MS with chemical isobaric labeling enabled the simultaneous quantitative comparison of Trp and its amino group-bearing metabolites in multiple samples. We applied this method to the sera of a cohort of 43 recurrent glioblastoma patients and 43 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Tumor volumes were measured in MRI data using an artificial neural network-based approach. MALDI MSI visualized Trp and its direct metabolite N-formylkynurenine (FK) in glioblastoma tissue. Analysis of scRNA-seq data was used to detect the presence of Trp metabolism and AHR activity in different cell types in glioblastoma. Results: Compared to healthy controls, glioblastoma patients showed decreased serum Trp levels. Surprisingly, the levels of Trp metabolites were also reduced. The decrease became smaller with more enzymatic steps between Trp and its metabolites, suggesting that Trp availability controls the levels of its systemic metabolites. High tumor volume associated with low systemic metabolite levels and low systemic kynurenine levels associated with worse overall survival. MALDI MSI demonstrated heterogeneity of Trp catabolism across glioblastoma tissues. Analysis of scRNA-seq data revealed that genes involved in Trp metabolism were expressed in almost all the cell types in glioblastoma and that most cell types, in particular macrophages and T cells, exhibited AHR activation. Moreover, high AHR activity associated with reduced overall survival in the glioblastoma TCGA dataset. Conclusion: The novel techniques we developed could support the identification of patients that may benefit from therapies targeting TCEs or AHR activation.
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Mohapatra SR, Sadik A, Sharma S, Poschet G, Gegner HM, Lanz TV, Lucarelli P, Klingmüller U, Platten M, Heiland I, Opitz CA. Hypoxia Routes Tryptophan Homeostasis Towards Increased Tryptamine Production. Front Immunol 2021; 12:590532. [PMID: 33679737 PMCID: PMC7933006 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.590532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The liver is the central hub for processing and maintaining homeostatic levels of dietary nutrients especially essential amino acids such as tryptophan (Trp). Trp is required not only to sustain protein synthesis but also as a precursor for the production of NAD, neurotransmitters and immunosuppressive metabolites. In light of these roles of Trp and its metabolic products, maintaining homeostatic levels of Trp is essential for health and well-being. The liver regulates global Trp supply by the immunosuppressive enzyme tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase (TDO2), which degrades Trp down the kynurenine pathway (KP). In the current study, we show that isolated primary hepatocytes when exposed to hypoxic environments, extensively rewire their Trp metabolism by reducing constitutive Tdo2 expression and differentially regulating other Trp pathway enzymes and transporters. Mathematical modelling of Trp metabolism in liver cells under hypoxia predicted decreased flux through the KP while metabolic flux through the tryptamine branch significantly increased. In line, the model also revealed an increased accumulation of tryptamines under hypoxia, at the expense of kynurenines. Metabolic measurements in hypoxic hepatocytes confirmed the predicted reduction in KP metabolites as well as accumulation of tryptamine. Tdo2 expression in cultured primary hepatocytes was reduced upon hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) stabilisation by dimethyloxalylglycine (DMOG), demonstrating that HIFs are involved in the hypoxic downregulation of hepatic Tdo2. DMOG abrogated hepatic luciferase signals in Tdo2 reporter mice, indicating that HIF stability also recapitulates hypoxic rewiring of Trp metabolism in vivo. Also in WT mice HIF stabilization drove homeostatic Trp metabolism away from the KP towards enhanced tryptamine production, leading to enhanced levels of tryptamine in liver, serum and brain. As tryptamines are the most potent hallucinogens known, the observed upregulation of tryptamine in response to hypoxic exposure of hepatocytes may be involved in the generation of hallucinations occurring at high altitude. KP metabolites are known to activate the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR). The AHR-activating properties of tryptamines may explain why immunosuppressive AHR activity is maintained under hypoxia despite downregulation of the KP. In summary our results identify hypoxia as an important factor controlling Trp metabolism in the liver with possible implications for immunosuppressive AHR activation and mental disturbances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soumya R. Mohapatra
- DKTK Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Ahmed Sadik
- DKTK Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Suraj Sharma
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Gernot Poschet
- Centre for Organismal Studies (COS), University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Hagen M. Gegner
- Centre for Organismal Studies (COS), University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Tobias V. Lanz
- DKTK Clinical Cooperation Unit Neuroimmunology and Brain Tumor Immunology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Mannheim Center for Translational Neurosciences (MCTN), Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
- Division of Immunology and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - Philippe Lucarelli
- Division Systems Biology of Signal Transduction, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Ursula Klingmüller
- Division Systems Biology of Signal Transduction, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- Translational Lung Research Center (TLRC), Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Michael Platten
- DKTK Clinical Cooperation Unit Neuroimmunology and Brain Tumor Immunology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Mannheim Center for Translational Neurosciences (MCTN), Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Ines Heiland
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Christiane A. Opitz
- DKTK Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- Neurology Clinic and National Center for Tumor Diseases, University Hospital of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
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Mohapatra SR, Sadik A, Tykocinski LO, Dietze J, Poschet G, Heiland I, Opitz CA. Hypoxia Inducible Factor 1α Inhibits the Expression of Immunosuppressive Tryptophan-2,3-Dioxygenase in Glioblastoma. Front Immunol 2019; 10:2762. [PMID: 31866995 PMCID: PMC6905408 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.02762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2019] [Accepted: 11/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Abnormal circulation in solid tumors results in hypoxia, which modulates both tumor intrinsic malignant properties as well as anti-tumor immune responses. Given the importance of hypoxia in glioblastoma (GBM) biology and particularly in shaping anti-tumor immunity, we analyzed which immunomodulatory genes are differentially regulated in response to hypoxia in GBM cells. Gene expression analyses identified the immunosuppressive enzyme tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase (TDO2) as the second most downregulated gene in GBM cells cultured under hypoxic conditions. TDO2 catalyses the oxidation of tryptophan to N-formyl kynurenine, which is the first and rate-limiting step of Trp degradation along the kynurenine pathway (KP). In multiple GBM cell lines hypoxia reduced TDO2 expression both at mRNA and protein levels. The downregulation of TDO2 through hypoxia was reversible as re-oxygenation rescued TDO2 expression. Computational modeling of tryptophan metabolism predicted reduced flux through the KP and lower intracellular concentrations of kynurenine and its downstream metabolite 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid under hypoxia. Metabolic measurements confirmed the predicted changes, thus demonstrating the ability of the mathematical model to infer intracellular tryptophan metabolite concentrations. Moreover, we identified hypoxia inducible factor 1α (HIF1α) to regulate TDO2 expression under hypoxic conditions, as the HIF1α-stabilizing agents dimethyloxalylglycine (DMOG) and cobalt chloride reduced TDO2 expression. Knockdown of HIF1α restored the expression of TDO2 upon cobalt chloride treatment, confirming that HIF1α controls TDO2 expression. To investigate the immunoregulatory effects of this novel mechanism of TDO2 regulation, we co-cultured isolated T cells with TDO2-expressing GBM cells under normoxic and hypoxic conditions. Under normoxia TDO2-expressing GBM cells suppressed T cell proliferation, while hypoxia restored the proliferation of the T cells, likely due to the reduction in kynurenine levels produced by the GBM cells. Taken together, our data suggest that the regulation of TDO2 expression by HIF1α may be involved in modulating anti-tumor immunity in GBM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soumya R Mohapatra
- DKTK Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Ahmed Sadik
- DKTK Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.,Faculty of Bioscience, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Lars-Oliver Tykocinski
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine V, University Hospital of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jørn Dietze
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Gernot Poschet
- Centre for Organismal Studies (COS), University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Ines Heiland
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Christiane A Opitz
- DKTK Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.,Neurology Clinic and National Center for Tumor Diseases, University Hospital of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
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Adam I, Dewi DL, Mooiweer J, Sadik A, Mohapatra SR, Berdel B, Keil M, Sonner JK, Thedieck K, Rose AJ, Platten M, Heiland I, Trump S, Opitz CA. Upregulation of tryptophanyl-tRNA synthethase adapts human cancer cells to nutritional stress caused by tryptophan degradation. Oncoimmunology 2018; 7:e1486353. [PMID: 30524887 PMCID: PMC6279332 DOI: 10.1080/2162402x.2018.1486353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2018] [Revised: 05/31/2018] [Accepted: 06/02/2018] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Tryptophan (Trp) metabolism is an important target in immuno-oncology as it represents a powerful immunosuppressive mechanism hijacked by tumors for protection against immune destruction. However, it remains unclear how tumor cells can proliferate while degrading the essential amino acid Trp. Trp is incorporated into proteins after it is attached to its tRNA by tryptophanyl-tRNA synthestases. As the tryptophanyl-tRNA synthestases compete for Trp with the Trp-catabolizing enzymes, the balance between these enzymes will determine whether Trp is used for protein synthesis or is degraded. In human cancers expression of the Trp-degrading enzymes indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase-1 (IDO1) and tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase (TDO2) was positively associated with the expression of the tryptophanyl-tRNA synthestase WARS. One mechanism underlying the association between IDO1 and WARS identified in this study is their joint induction by IFNγ released from tumor-infiltrating T cells. Moreover, we show here that IDO1- and TDO2-mediated Trp deprivation upregulates WARS expression by activating the general control non-derepressible-2 (GCN2) kinase, leading to phosphorylation of the eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2α (eIF2α) and induction of activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4). Trp deprivation induced cytoplasmic WARS expression but did not increase nuclear or extracellular WARS levels. GCN2 protected the cells against the effects of Trp starvation and enabled them to quickly make use of Trp for proliferation once it was replenished. Computational modeling of Trp metabolism revealed that Trp deficiency shifted Trp flux towards WARS and protein synthesis. Our data therefore suggest that the upregulation of WARS via IFNγ and/or GCN2-peIF2α-ATF4 signaling protects Trp-degrading cancer cells from excessive intracellular Trp depletion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabell Adam
- Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Dyah L Dewi
- Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Joram Mooiweer
- Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Ahmed Sadik
- Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Soumya R Mohapatra
- Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Bianca Berdel
- Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Melanie Keil
- DKTK Clinical Cooperation Unit Neuroimmunology and Brain Tumor Immunology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jana K Sonner
- DKTK Clinical Cooperation Unit Neuroimmunology and Brain Tumor Immunology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Kathrin Thedieck
- Laboratory of Pediatrics, Section Systems Medicine of Metabolism and Signalling, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.,Department for Neuroscience, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
| | - Adam J Rose
- Nutrient Metabolism and Signalling Lab, Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Michael Platten
- DKTK Clinical Cooperation Unit Neuroimmunology and Brain Tumor Immunology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.,Department of Neurology, University Hospital and Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Ines Heiland
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, UiT Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Saskia Trump
- Department of Environmental Immunology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Christiane A Opitz
- Brain Cancer Metabolism Group, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.,Neurology Clinic and National Center for Tumor Diseases, University Hospital of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
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