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Zhang H, Zhang J, Luan S, Liu Z, Li X, Liu B, Yuan Y. Unraveling the Complexity of Regulated Cell Death in Esophageal Cancer: from Underlying Mechanisms to Targeted Therapeutics. Int J Biol Sci 2023; 19:3831-3868. [PMID: 37564206 PMCID: PMC10411468 DOI: 10.7150/ijbs.85753] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Esophageal cancer (EC) is the sixth most common and the seventh most deadly malignancy of the digestive tract, representing a major global health challenge. Despite the availability of multimodal therapeutic strategies, the existing EC treatments continue to yield unsatisfactory results due to their limited efficacy and severe side effects. Recently, knowledge of the subroutines and molecular mechanisms of regulated cell death (RCD) has progressed rapidly, enhancing the understanding of key pathways related to the occurrence, progression, and treatment of many types of tumors, including EC. In this context, the use of small-molecule compounds to target such RCD subroutines has emerged as a promising therapeutic strategy for patients with EC. Thus, in this review, we firstly discussed the risk factors and prevention of EC. We then outlined the established treatment regimens for patients with EC. Furthermore, we not only briefly summarized the mechanisms of five best studied subroutines of RCD related to EC, including apoptosis, ferroptosis, pyroptosis, necroptosis and autophagy, but also outlined the recent advances in the development of small-molecule compounds and long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) targeting the abovementioned RCD subroutines, which may serve as a new therapeutic strategy for patients with EC in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haowen Zhang
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Jin Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518000, China
| | - Siyuan Luan
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Zhiying Liu
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518000, China
| | - Xiaokun Li
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Bo Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Yong Yuan
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
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Hu WH, Liu TT, Liu PF, Morgan P, Lin IL, Tsai WL, Cheng YY, Hsieh AT, Hu TH, Shu CW. ATG4B and pS383/392-ATG4B serve as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets of colorectal cancer. Cancer Cell Int 2023; 23:63. [PMID: 37038218 PMCID: PMC10088137 DOI: 10.1186/s12935-023-02909-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 04/12/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Autophagy related protease 4B (ATG4B) is a protease required for autophagy processing, which is strongly implicated in cancer progression. Phosphorylation of ATG4B is crucial for activation of its protease activity. However, little is known about the relationship of ATG4B and its phosphorylated form at Ser 383 and 392 sites (pS383/392-ATG4B), with clinical outcomes, particularly in colorectal cancer (CRC). METHODS The ATG4B gene expression in CRC patients was obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database to analyze its clinical relevance. Tissue microarrays composed of 118 CRC patient specimens were used to determine the associations of ATG4B and pS383/392-ATG4B protein levels with prognosis. The biological functions of ATG4B in CRC cells were inspected with cell proliferation, mobility and spheroid culture assays. RESULTS ATG4B gene expression was elevated in tumor tissues of CRC patients compared to that in adjacent normal tissues and high level of ATG4B expression was associated with poor survival. Similarly, protein levels of ATG4B and pS383/392-ATG4B were highly correlated with worse overall survival and disease-free survival. Stratification analysis results showed that high level of ATG4B had significantly higher risk of mortality in males and elderly patients compared to those female patients and patients 60 years or younger. In contrast, multivariate Cox's regression analysis indicated that high level of pS383/392-ATG4B was significantly linked to unfavorable overall survival and disease-free survival of males and elderly patients, whereas, it had no correlation with female patients and patients 60 years or younger. Moreover, high level of ATG4B was positively associated with increased mortality risk in patients with advanced AJCC stages (III and IV) and lymph node invasion (N1 and N2) for both overall survival and disease-free survival. Nevertheless, high level of pS383/392-ATG4B was positively correlated with increased mortality risk in patients with early AJCC stages (I and II) and without lymph node invasion (N0). In addition, silencing ATG4B attenuated migration, invasion, and further enhanced the cytotoxic effects of chemotherapeutic drugs in two and three-dimensional cultures of CRC cells. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that ATG4B and pS383/392-ATG4B might be suitable biomarkers and therapeutic targets for CRC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wan-Hsiang Hu
- Department of Colorectal Surgery, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung, 83341, Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Science, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Kaohsiung, 83341, Taiwan
| | - Ting-Ting Liu
- Department of Pathology, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung, 83341, Taiwan
| | - Pei-Feng Liu
- Department of Biomedical Science and Environmental Biology, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, 80708, Taiwan
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, 80424, Taiwan
| | - Paul Morgan
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - I-Ling Lin
- Department of Medical Laboratory Science and Biotechnology, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, 80708, Taiwan
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung, 80708, Taiwan
| | - Wei-Lun Tsai
- Department of Internal Medicine, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung, 81362, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Yun Cheng
- Innovative Incubation Center, Praexisio Taiwain Inc, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
| | - Ang-Tsen Hsieh
- Institute of Biopharmaceutical Sciences, National Sun Yat-sen University, No. 70, Lianhai Rd., Gushan Dist, Kaohsiung, 80424, Taiwan
| | - Tsung-Hui Hu
- Division of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung, 83301, Taiwan
| | - Chih-Wen Shu
- Institute of Biopharmaceutical Sciences, National Sun Yat-sen University, No. 70, Lianhai Rd., Gushan Dist, Kaohsiung, 80424, Taiwan.
- Center of Excellence for Metabolic Associated Fatty Liver Disease, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, 80424, Taiwan.
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Xie H, Qiang P, Wang Y, Xia F, Liu P, Li M. Discovery and mechanism studies of a novel ATG4B inhibitor Ebselen by drug repurposing and its anti-colorectal cancer effects in mice. Cell Biosci 2022; 12:206. [PMID: 36539845 PMCID: PMC9767854 DOI: 10.1186/s13578-022-00944-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Cysteine protease ATG4B, a key autophagy protein, is an attractive target for colorectal cancer therapy. However, ATG4B inhibitors with higher efficiency, safety, and clear mechanism are still limited. In this study, we discovered ATG4B inhibitors based on the FDA-approved drug library through FRET-based high-throughput screening and gel-based analysis. Among the nine hits, compound Ebselen showed the most potent ATG4B inhibitory activity (IC50 = 189 nM) and exhibited controllable selectivity and structural optimizable possibility against ATG4A and caspases. We then performed mass spectrometry assay and cysteine mutations to confirm that Ebselen could covalently bind to ATG4B at Cys74. Moreover, Cys292 and Cys361 instead of Cys74 are responsible for the redox-oligomerization and efficient activity inhibition of ATG4B. Ultimately through cell culture and mouse xenograft tumor models, we established the impact of Ebselen on autophagy and tumor suppression via ATG4B inhibition other than apoptosis. These results suggest that old drug Ebselen as an ATG4B inhibitor through oxidative modification may be repurposed as a promising anti-colorectal cancer drug.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huazhong Xie
- grid.12981.330000 0001 2360 039XSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 Guangdong China
| | - Pengfei Qiang
- grid.12981.330000 0001 2360 039XSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 Guangdong China
| | - Yao Wang
- grid.12981.330000 0001 2360 039XSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 Guangdong China
| | - Fan Xia
- grid.12981.330000 0001 2360 039XSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 Guangdong China
| | - Peiqing Liu
- grid.12981.330000 0001 2360 039XSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 Guangdong China
| | - Min Li
- grid.12981.330000 0001 2360 039XSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006 Guangdong China
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Liu P, Chen C, Ger L, Tsai W, Tseng H, Lee C, Yang W, Shu C. MAP3K11 facilitates autophagy activity and is correlated with malignancy of oral squamous cell carcinoma. J Cell Physiol 2022; 237:4275-4291. [DOI: 10.1002/jcp.30881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2022] [Revised: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Pei‐Feng Liu
- Department of Biomedical Science and Environmental Biology, College of Life Science Kaohsiung Medical University Kaohsiung Taiwan
- Department of Medical Research Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital Kaohsiung Taiwan
- Center for Cancer Research Kaohsiung Medical University Kaohsiung Taiwan
| | - Chun‐Feng Chen
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital Kaohsiung Taiwan
- School of Dentistry, College of Dental Medicine Kaohsiung Medical University Kaohsiung Taiwan
| | - Luo‐Ping Ger
- Department of Medical Education and Research Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital Kaohsiung Taiwan
| | - Wei‐Lun Tsai
- Department of Internal Medicine Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital Kaohsiung Taiwan
| | - Ho‐Hsing Tseng
- Department of Medical Research Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital Kaohsiung Taiwan
| | - Cheng‐Hsin Lee
- Department of Biomedical Science and Environmental Biology, College of Life Science Kaohsiung Medical University Kaohsiung Taiwan
| | - Wen‐Hsin Yang
- Institute of BioPharmaceutical Sciences National Sun Yat‐sen University Kaohsiung Taiwan
| | - Chih‐Wen Shu
- Institute of BioPharmaceutical Sciences National Sun Yat‐sen University Kaohsiung Taiwan
- Department of Post‐Baccalaureate Medicine National Sun Yat‐sen University Kaohsiung Taiwan
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5
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Cheng A, Zhang H, Chen B, Zheng S, Wang H, Shi Y, You S, Li M, Jiang L. Modulation of autophagy as a therapeutic strategy for Toxoplasma gondii infection. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2022; 12:902428. [PMID: 36093185 PMCID: PMC9448867 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2022.902428] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii infection is a severe health threat that endangers billions of people worldwide. T. gondii utilizes the host cell membrane to form a parasitophorous vacuole (PV), thereby fully isolating itself from the host cell cytoplasm and making intracellular clearance difficult. PV can be targeted and destroyed by autophagy. Autophagic targeting results in T. gondii killing via the fusion of autophagosomes and lysosomes. However, T. gondii has developed many strategies to suppress autophagic targeting. Accordingly, the interplay between host cell autophagy and T. gondii is an emerging area with important practical implications. By promoting the canonical autophagy pathway or attenuating the suppression of autophagic targeting, autophagy can be effectively utilized in the development of novel therapeutic strategies against T gondii. Here, we have illustrated the complex interplay between host cell mediated autophagy and T. gondii. Different strategies to promote autophagy in order to target the parasite have been elucidated. Besides, we have analyzed some potential new drug molecules from the DrugBank database using bioinformatics tools, which can modulate autophagy. Various challenges and opportunities focusing autophagy mediated T. gondii clearance have been discussed, which will provide new insights for the development of novel drugs against the parasite.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ao Cheng
- Department of Parasitology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Huanan Zhang
- Department of Parasitology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Baike Chen
- Department of Parasitology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Shengyao Zheng
- Department of Parasitology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Hongyi Wang
- Department of Parasitology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Yijia Shi
- Department of Parasitology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Siyao You
- Department of Parasitology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Ming Li
- Department of Immunology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
- *Correspondence: Liping Jiang, ; Ming Li,
| | - Liping Jiang
- Department of Parasitology, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
- China-Africa Research Center of Infectious Diseases, Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
- *Correspondence: Liping Jiang, ; Ming Li,
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Post-Translational Modifications of ATG4B in the Regulation of Autophagy. Cells 2022; 11:cells11081330. [PMID: 35456009 PMCID: PMC9025542 DOI: 10.3390/cells11081330] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Revised: 04/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Autophagy plays a key role in eliminating and recycling cellular components in response to stress, including starvation. Dysregulation of autophagy is observed in various diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, and diabetes. Autophagy is tightly regulated by autophagy-related (ATG) proteins. Autophagy-related 4 (ATG4) is the sole cysteine protease, and four homologs (ATG4A–D) have been identified in mammals. These proteins have two domains: catalytic and short fingers. ATG4 facilitates autophagy by promoting autophagosome maturation through reversible lipidation and delipidation of seven autophagy-related 8 (ATG8) homologs, including microtubule-associated protein 1-light chain 3 (LC3) and GABA type A receptor-associated protein (GABARAP). Each ATG4 homolog shows a preference for a specific ATG8 homolog. Post-translational modifications of ATG4, including phosphorylation/dephosphorylation, O-GlcNAcylation, oxidation, S-nitrosylation, ubiquitination, and proteolytic cleavage, regulate its activity and ATG8 processing, thus modulating its autophagic activity. We reviewed recent advances in our understanding of the effect of post-translational modification on the regulation, activity, and function of ATG4, the main protease that controls autophagy.
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Patel P, Patel V, Modi A, Kumar S, Shukla YM. Phyto-factories of anti-cancer compounds: a tissue culture perspective. BENI-SUEF UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF BASIC AND APPLIED SCIENCES 2022. [DOI: 10.1186/s43088-022-00203-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Background
Cancer is one of the most critical but ubiquitous causes of death grappled from past decades. Widely used chemotherapy with cytotoxic activity blocks/ kills the cancer cell. The compounds targeted for anticancerous activity are either derived synthetically or naturally (through plants or microbial origin). Current day, versatile role of plants in medicinal field has been attributed to the secondary metabolites it produces, known for their anticancer activity. Therefore, discovery, identification and commercial production of such novel anticancer drugs is escalated and are centerpiece for pharmaceuticals.
Main body
A biotechnological approach, principally tissue culture, leads the candidacy to be an alternative method for production of anticancer compounds. A wide range of bioactive agents like alkaloids, steroids, phenolics, saponins, flavonoids, and terpenoids are in huge demand commercially. Plant tissue culture applications are constructively more advantageous over conventional methods in terms of their continuous, controlled, aseptic production, large scale and de novo synthesis opportunity. Various bioreactors are used for mass cultivation of bioactive compound at commercial level. For example: stirred tank reactors are used for production of shikonin from Lithospermum erythrorhizon, vincristine from Catharanthus roseus, podophyllotoxin from Podophyllum etc. Strategies like callus culture, suspension culture and hairy root culture are opted for mass cultivation of these bioactives.
Conclusions
This review summarizes plant tissue culture as a promising strategy proven to be a colossal breakthrough in reliable and continuous production of existing and novel anticancer compounds and help in combating the increasing future demands.
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Abstract
Autophagy is an important intracellular lysosomal degradation process in cells, which is highly conserved from yeast to mammals. The process of autophagy is roughly divided into the following key steps: the formation of a membrane structure called ISM (isolated membrane) after stimulation, the biogenesis and maturation of autophagosomes, and finally the degradation of autophagosomes. A number of proteins are required to function in the whole process of autophagy. Since the initial genetic screening in yeast cells, multiple genes that play pivotal roles in autophagy have been discovered. These molecules have been named ATG genes (AuTophaGy related genes). The screening for new key molecules involved in autophagy has greatly promoted the characterization of the mechanism of the autophagy machinery and provides multiple targets for the development of autophagy-based regulatory drugs.
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Licheva M, Raman B, Kraft C, Reggiori F. Phosphoregulation of the autophagy machinery by kinases and phosphatases. Autophagy 2021; 18:104-123. [PMID: 33970777 PMCID: PMC8865292 DOI: 10.1080/15548627.2021.1909407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Eukaryotic cells use post-translational modifications to diversify and dynamically coordinate the function and properties of protein networks within various cellular processes. For example, the process of autophagy strongly depends on the balanced action of kinases and phosphatases. Highly conserved from the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae to humans, autophagy is a tightly regulated self-degradation process that is crucial for survival, stress adaptation, maintenance of cellular and organismal homeostasis, and cell differentiation and development. Many studies have emphasized the importance of kinases and phosphatases in the regulation of autophagy and identified many of the core autophagy proteins as their direct targets. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on kinases and phosphatases acting on the core autophagy machinery and discuss the relevance of phosphoregulation for the overall process of autophagy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariya Licheva
- Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, ZBMZ, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Babu Raman
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, AV Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Claudine Kraft
- Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, ZBMZ, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,CIBSS-Centre for Integrative Biological Signalling Studies, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Fulvio Reggiori
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, AV Groningen, The Netherlands
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Li X, Sun L, Yan G, Yan X. PFKP facilitates ATG4B phosphorylation during amino acid deprivation-induced autophagy. Cell Signal 2021; 82:109956. [PMID: 33607258 DOI: 10.1016/j.cellsig.2021.109956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2020] [Revised: 01/29/2021] [Accepted: 02/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/09/2022]
Abstract
ATG4B facilitates autophagy by promoting autophagosome maturation through the reversible lipidation and delipidation of LC3. Recent reports have shown that phosphorylation of ATG4B regulates its activity and LC3 processing, leading to modulate autophagy activity. However, the mechanism about how ATG4B phosphorylation is involved in amino acid deprivation-induced autophagy is unclear. Here, we combined the tandem affinity purification with mass spectrometry (MS) and identified the ATG4B-interacting proteins including its well-known partner gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor-associated protein (GABARAP, a homolog of LC3) and phosphofructokinase 1 platelet isoform (PFKP). Further immunoprecipitation assays showed that amino acid deprivation strengthened the interaction between ATG4B and PFKP. By genetic depletion of PFKP using CRISPR/Cas9, we uncovered that PFKP loss reduced the degradation of LC3-II and p62 due to a partial block in autophagic flux. Furthermore, MS analysis of Flag-tagged ATG4B immunoprecipitates identified phosphorylation of ATG4B serine 34 residue (S34) and PFKP serine 386 residue (S386) under amino acid deprivation condition. In vitro kinase assay validated that PFKP functioning as a protein kinase phosphorylated ATG4B at S34. This phosphorylation could enhance ATG4B activity and p62 degradation. In addition, PFKP S386 phosphorylation was important to ATG4B S34 phosphorylation and autophagy in HEK293T cells. In brief, our findings describe that PFKP, a rate-limiting enzyme in the glycolytic pathway, functions as a protein kinase for ATG4B to regulate ATG4B activity and autophagy under amino acid deprivation condition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiuzhi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Animal Sciences and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; The Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; Hubei Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Pig Precision Feeding and Feed Safety Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China
| | - Lingling Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Animal Sciences and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; The Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; Hubei Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Pig Precision Feeding and Feed Safety Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China
| | - Guokai Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Animal Sciences and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; The Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; Hubei Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Pig Precision Feeding and Feed Safety Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China
| | - Xianghua Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Animal Sciences and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; The Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; Hubei Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Pig Precision Feeding and Feed Safety Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China.
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11
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Xia F, Liu P, Li M. The regulatory factors and pathological roles of autophagy-related protein 4 in diverse diseases: Recent research advances. Med Res Rev 2020; 41:1644-1675. [PMID: 33314291 DOI: 10.1002/med.21772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2020] [Revised: 12/01/2020] [Accepted: 12/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Macroautophagy (autophagy) is an evolutionarily conserved and dynamic degradation/recycling pathway in which portions of the cytoplasm, such as dysfunctional proteins and surplus organelles, are engulfed by double-membrane bound vesicles through a lysosome-dependent process. As the only proteolytic enzyme of the core mammalian autophagy proteins, autophagy-related protein 4 (ATG4) primes newly synthesized pro-light chain 3 (LC3) to form LC3-I that attaches to phosphatidylethanolamine and delipidates LC3-PE to LC3-I for recycling. Besides autophagy, ATG4 has been shown to be involved in regulating various biological and pathological processes. The roles of ATG4 in cancer therapy, a methodology for ATG4 activity detection, and the discovery of chemical modulators have been well-reviewed. However, a comprehensive summary on how ATG4 is regulated by multiple factors and, thereby, how ATG4 influences autophagy or other pathways remains lacking. In this paper, we summarize multiple processes and molecules that regulate the activity of ATG4, such as micro-RNAs, posttranslational modifications, and small molecules. Additionally, we focus on the relationship between ATG4 and diverse diseases, including cancer, neurodegeneration, microbial infection, and other diseases. It provides insight regarding potential ATG4-targeted therapeutic opportunities, which could be beneficial for future studies and human health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fan Xia
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Peiqing Liu
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Min Li
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, National and Local United Engineering Lab of Druggability and New Drugs Evaluation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
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12
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Yang G, Li Y, Zhao Y, Ouyang L, Chen Y, Liu B, Liu J. Targeting Atg4B for cancer therapy: Chemical mediators. Eur J Med Chem 2020; 209:112917. [PMID: 33077263 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2020.112917] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2020] [Revised: 09/30/2020] [Accepted: 10/04/2020] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Atg4, a pivotal macroautophagy/autophagy-related cysteine protein family, which regulate autophagy through either cleaving Atg8 homologs for its further lipidation or delipidating Atg8 homologs from the autophagosome. There are four homologs, Atg4A, Atg4B, Atg4C, and Atg4D. Among them, an increasing amount of evidence indicates that Atg4B possessed superior catalytic efficiency toward the Atg8 substrate, as well as regulates autophagy process and plays a key role in the development of several human cancers. Recently, efforts have been contributed to the exploration of Atg4B inhibitors or activators. In this review, we comprehensively clarify the function of Atg4B in autophagy and cancer biology, as well as the relationship between pharmacological function and structure-activity of small molecule drugs targeting Atg4B. The development of novel drugs targeting Atg4B could be well applied in the clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaoxia Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy/Collaborative Innovation Center of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Yang Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy/Collaborative Innovation Center of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Yuqian Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy/Collaborative Innovation Center of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Liang Ouyang
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy/Collaborative Innovation Center of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Yi Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, And Collaborative Innovation Center for Biotherapy, Chengdu, 610041, China.
| | - Bo Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy/Collaborative Innovation Center of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China.
| | - Jie Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy/Collaborative Innovation Center of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China.
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13
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Nguyen N, Olivas TJ, Mires A, Jin J, Yu S, Luan L, Nag S, Kauffman KJ, Melia TJ. The insufficiency of ATG4A in macroautophagy. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:13584-13600. [PMID: 32732290 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.013897] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2020] [Revised: 07/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
During autophagy, LC3 and GABARAP proteins become covalently attached to phosphatidylethanolamine on the growing autophagosome. This attachment is also reversible. Deconjugation (or delipidation) involves the proteolytic cleavage of an isopeptide bond between LC3 or GABARAP and the phosphatidylethanolamine headgroup. This cleavage is carried about by the ATG4 family of proteases (ATG4A, B, C, and D). Many studies have established that ATG4B is the most active of these proteases and is sufficient for autophagy progression in simple cells. Here we examined the second most active protease, ATG4A, to map out key regulatory motifs on the protein and to establish its activity in cells. We utilized fully in vitro reconstitution systems in which we controlled the attachment of LC3/GABARAP members and discovered a role for a C-terminal LC3-interacting region on ATG4A in regulating its access to LC3/GABARAP. We then used a gene-edited cell line in which all four ATG4 proteases have been knocked out to establish that ATG4A is insufficient to support autophagy and is unable to support GABARAP proteins removal from the membrane. As a result, GABARAP proteins accumulate on membranes other than mature autophagosomes. These results suggest that to support efficient production and consumption of autophagosomes, additional factors are essential including possibly ATG4B itself or one of its proteolytic products in the LC3 family.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan Nguyen
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Taryn J Olivas
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Antonio Mires
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA; National Agrarian University-La Molina, Lima, Peru
| | - Jiaxin Jin
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA; Lanzhou University Second Hospital, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, China
| | - Shenliang Yu
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Lin Luan
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Shanta Nag
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Karlina J Kauffman
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Thomas J Melia
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.
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14
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Agrotis A, Ketteler R. On ATG4B as Drug Target for Treatment of Solid Tumours-The Knowns and the Unknowns. Cells 2019; 9:cells9010053. [PMID: 31878323 PMCID: PMC7016753 DOI: 10.3390/cells9010053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2019] [Revised: 12/17/2019] [Accepted: 12/19/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Autophagy is an evolutionary conserved stress survival pathway that has been shown to play an important role in the initiation, progression, and metastasis of multiple cancers; however, little progress has been made to date in translation of basic research to clinical application. This is partially due to an incomplete understanding of the role of autophagy in the different stages of cancer, and also to an incomplete assessment of potential drug targets in the autophagy pathway. While drug discovery efforts are on-going to target enzymes involved in the initiation phase of the autophagosome, e.g., unc51-like autophagy activating kinase (ULK)1/2, vacuolar protein sorting 34 (Vps34), and autophagy-related (ATG)7, we propose that the cysteine protease ATG4B is a bona fide drug target for the development of anti-cancer treatments. In this review, we highlight some of the recent advances in our understanding of the role of ATG4B in autophagy and its relevance to cancer, and perform a critical evaluation of ATG4B as a druggable cancer target.
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15
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Stead ER, Castillo-Quan JI, Miguel VEM, Lujan C, Ketteler R, Kinghorn KJ, Bjedov I. Agephagy - Adapting Autophagy for Health During Aging. Front Cell Dev Biol 2019; 7:308. [PMID: 31850344 PMCID: PMC6892982 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2019.00308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2019] [Accepted: 11/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Autophagy is a major cellular recycling process that delivers cellular material and entire organelles to lysosomes for degradation, in a selective or non-selective manner. This process is essential for the maintenance of cellular energy levels, components, and metabolites, as well as the elimination of cellular molecular damage, thereby playing an important role in numerous cellular activities. An important function of autophagy is to enable survival under starvation conditions and other stresses. The majority of factors implicated in aging are modifiable through the process of autophagy, including the accumulation of oxidative damage and loss of proteostasis, genomic instability and epigenetic alteration. These primary causes of damage could lead to mitochondrial dysfunction, deregulation of nutrient sensing pathways and cellular senescence, finally causing a variety of aging phenotypes. Remarkably, advances in the biology of aging have revealed that aging is a malleable process: a mild decrease in signaling through nutrient-sensing pathways can improve health and extend lifespan in all model organisms tested. Consequently, autophagy is implicated in both aging and age-related disease. Enhancement of the autophagy process is a common characteristic of all principal, evolutionary conserved anti-aging interventions, including dietary restriction, as well as inhibition of target of rapamycin (TOR) and insulin/IGF-1 signaling (IIS). As an emerging and critical process in aging, this review will highlight how autophagy can be modulated for health improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleanor R Stead
- UCL Cancer Institute, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jorge I Castillo-Quan
- Section on Islet Cell and Regenerative Biology, Joslin Diabetes Center, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | | | - Celia Lujan
- UCL Cancer Institute, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Robin Ketteler
- MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Kerri J Kinghorn
- Institute of Healthy Ageing, University College London, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, United Kingdom.,Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Ivana Bjedov
- UCL Cancer Institute, University College London, London, United Kingdom
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16
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Kim J, Lana B, Torelli S, Ryan D, Catapano F, Ala P, Luft C, Stevens E, Konstantinidis E, Louzada S, Fu B, Paredes‐Redondo A, Chan AWE, Yang F, Stemple DL, Liu P, Ketteler R, Selwood DL, Muntoni F, Lin Y. A new patient-derived iPSC model for dystroglycanopathies validates a compound that increases glycosylation of α-dystroglycan. EMBO Rep 2019; 20:e47967. [PMID: 31566294 PMCID: PMC6832011 DOI: 10.15252/embr.201947967] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2019] [Revised: 08/24/2019] [Accepted: 08/29/2019] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Dystroglycan, an extracellular matrix receptor, has essential functions in various tissues. Loss of α-dystroglycan-laminin interaction due to defective glycosylation of α-dystroglycan underlies a group of congenital muscular dystrophies often associated with brain malformations, referred to as dystroglycanopathies. The lack of isogenic human dystroglycanopathy cell models has limited our ability to test potential drugs in a human- and neural-specific context. Here, we generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from a severe dystroglycanopathy patient with homozygous FKRP (fukutin-related protein gene) mutation. We showed that CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene correction of FKRP restored glycosylation of α-dystroglycan in iPSC-derived cortical neurons, whereas targeted gene mutation of FKRP in wild-type cells disrupted this glycosylation. In parallel, we screened 31,954 small molecule compounds using a mouse myoblast line for increased glycosylation of α-dystroglycan. Using human FKRP-iPSC-derived neural cells for hit validation, we demonstrated that compound 4-(4-bromophenyl)-6-ethylsulfanyl-2-oxo-3,4-dihydro-1H-pyridine-5-carbonitrile (4BPPNit) significantly augmented glycosylation of α-dystroglycan, in part through upregulation of LARGE1 glycosyltransferase gene expression. Together, isogenic human iPSC-derived cells represent a valuable platform for facilitating dystroglycanopathy drug discovery and therapeutic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jihee Kim
- Centre for Genomics and Child HealthBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
- Stem Cell LaboratoryNational Bowel Research CentreBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
| | - Beatrice Lana
- Centre for Genomics and Child HealthBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
- Stem Cell LaboratoryNational Bowel Research CentreBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
| | - Silvia Torelli
- UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child HealthLondonUK
| | - David Ryan
- Wellcome Sanger InstituteHinxtonCambridgeUK
| | | | - Pierpaolo Ala
- UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child HealthLondonUK
| | - Christin Luft
- MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell BiologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | | | - Evangelos Konstantinidis
- Centre for Genomics and Child HealthBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
- Stem Cell LaboratoryNational Bowel Research CentreBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
| | | | - Beiyuan Fu
- Wellcome Sanger InstituteHinxtonCambridgeUK
| | - Amaia Paredes‐Redondo
- Centre for Genomics and Child HealthBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
- Stem Cell LaboratoryNational Bowel Research CentreBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
| | - AW Edith Chan
- The Wolfson Institute for Biomedical ResearchUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | | | | | - Pentao Liu
- Wellcome Sanger InstituteHinxtonCambridgeUK
| | - Robin Ketteler
- MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell BiologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - David L Selwood
- The Wolfson Institute for Biomedical ResearchUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Francesco Muntoni
- UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child HealthLondonUK
- NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at Great Ormond Street HospitalLondonUK
| | - Yung‐Yao Lin
- Centre for Genomics and Child HealthBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
- Stem Cell LaboratoryNational Bowel Research CentreBlizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and DentistryQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
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