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Mehta N, Meng Y, Zare R, Kamenetsky-Goldstein R, Sattely E. A developmental gradient reveals biosynthetic pathways to eukaryotic toxins in monocot geophytes. Cell 2024; 187:5620-5637.e10. [PMID: 39276773 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.08.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 08/13/2024] [Indexed: 09/17/2024]
Abstract
Numerous eukaryotic toxins that accumulate in geophytic plants are valuable in the clinic, yet their biosynthetic pathways have remained elusive. A notable example is the >150 Amaryllidaceae alkaloids (AmAs), including galantamine, an FDA-approved treatment for Alzheimer's disease. We show that while AmAs accumulate to high levels in many daffodil tissues, biosynthesis is localized to nascent, growing tissue at the leaf base. A similar trend is found in the production of steroidal alkaloids (e.g., cyclopamine) in corn lily. This model of active biosynthesis enabled the elucidation of a complete set of biosynthetic genes that can be used to produce AmAs. Taken together, our work sheds light on the developmental and enzymatic logic of diverse alkaloid biosynthesis in daffodils. More broadly, it suggests a paradigm for biosynthesis regulation in monocot geophytes, where plants are protected from herbivory through active charging of newly formed cells with eukaryotic toxins that persist as above-ground tissue develops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niraj Mehta
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Yifan Meng
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Richard Zare
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | | | - Elizabeth Sattely
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA; HHMI, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
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Blaustein MP, Hamlyn JM. Sensational site: the sodium pump ouabain-binding site and its ligands. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 2024; 326:C1120-C1177. [PMID: 38223926 PMCID: PMC11193536 DOI: 10.1152/ajpcell.00273.2023] [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: 06/22/2023] [Revised: 12/22/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2024] [Indexed: 01/16/2024]
Abstract
Cardiotonic steroids (CTS), used by certain insects, toads, and rats for protection from predators, became, thanks to Withering's trailblazing 1785 monograph, the mainstay of heart failure (HF) therapy. In the 1950s and 1960s, we learned that the CTS receptor was part of the sodium pump (NKA) and that the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger was critical for the acute cardiotonic effect of digoxin- and ouabain-related CTS. This "settled" view was upended by seven revolutionary observations. First, subnanomolar ouabain sometimes stimulates NKA while higher concentrations are invariably inhibitory. Second, endogenous ouabain (EO) was discovered in the human circulation. Third, in the DIG clinical trial, digoxin only marginally improved outcomes in patients with HF. Fourth, cloning of NKA in 1985 revealed multiple NKA α and β subunit isoforms that, in the rodent, differ in their sensitivities to CTS. Fifth, the NKA is a cation pump and a hormone receptor/signal transducer. EO binding to NKA activates, in a ligand- and cell-specific manner, several protein kinase and Ca2+-dependent signaling cascades that have widespread physiological effects and can contribute to hypertension and HF pathogenesis. Sixth, all CTS are not equivalent, e.g., ouabain induces hypertension in rodents while digoxin is antihypertensinogenic ("biased signaling"). Seventh, most common rodent hypertension models require a highly ouabain-sensitive α2 NKA and the elevated blood pressure is alleviated by EO immunoneutralization. These numerous phenomena are enabled by NKA's intricate structure. We have just begun to understand the endocrine role of the endogenous ligands and the broad impact of the ouabain-binding site on physiology and pathophysiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mordecai P Blaustein
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States
- Department of Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States
| | - John M Hamlyn
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States
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Merchant HN, Portugal SJ, Bennett NC, Janse van Vuuren AK, Faulkes CG, Bowen J, Hart DW. New insights into morphological adaptation in common mole-rats ( Cryptomys hottentotus hottentotus) along an aridity gradient. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e11301. [PMID: 38651162 PMCID: PMC11033624 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.11301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Revised: 03/28/2024] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Morphological adaptation is the change in the form of an organism that benefits the individual in its current habitat. Mole-rats (family Bathyergidae), despite being subterranean, are impacted by both local and broad-scale environmental conditions that occur above ground. Common mole-rats (Cryptomys hottentotus hottentotus) present an ideal mammalian model system for the study of morphological variation in response to ecology, as this species is found along an aridity gradient and thus can be sampled from geographically non-overlapping populations of the same species along an environmental longitudinal cline. Using the mass of five internal organs, ten skeletal measurements and 3D morphometric analyses of skulls, we assessed the morphology of wild non-breeding individuals from five common mole-rat populations in South Africa. We found that the body mass and mean relative mass of the spleen and kidneys in arid populations was larger, and individuals from arid regions possessed shorter legs and larger inter-shoulder widths compared to individuals from mesic regions. Additionally, arid populations demonstrated greater skull depth, and shape change of features such as angular processes of the lower jaw than mesic individuals, indicating that these distinct geographic populations show differences corresponding to the aridity gradient, potentially in response to environmental factors such as the variation in food sources found between different habitats, in addition to different soil compositions found in the different regions. Arid populations potentially require a stronger jaw and neck musculature associated with mastication to chew xeric-adapted plants and to dig through hard soil types, whereas mesic populations excavate through soft, looser soil and may make use of their front limbs to aid the movement of soils when digging. Aridity influences the morphology of this species and could indicate the impact of environmental changes on speciation and mammalian skull morphology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hana N. Merchant
- Department of Biological Sciences, School of Life and Environmental SciencesRoyal Holloway University of LondonEgham, SurreyUK
- School of Biological and Behavioural SciencesQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
| | - Steven J. Portugal
- Department of Biological Sciences, School of Life and Environmental SciencesRoyal Holloway University of LondonEgham, SurreyUK
| | - Nigel C. Bennett
- Department of Zoology and EntomologyUniversity of PretoriaPretoriaGautengSouth Africa
| | | | - Chris G. Faulkes
- School of Biological and Behavioural SciencesQueen Mary University of LondonLondonUK
| | - James Bowen
- Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering, and MathematicsOpen UniversityMilton KeynesUK
| | - Daniel W. Hart
- Department of Zoology and EntomologyUniversity of PretoriaPretoriaGautengSouth Africa
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Khattab OM, El-Kersh DM, Khalifa SAM, Yosri N, El-Seedi HR, Farag MA. Comparative MS- and NMR-Based Metabolome Mapping of Egyptian Red and White Squill Bulbs F. Liliaceae and in Relation to Their Cytotoxic Effect. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 12:plants12112078. [PMID: 37299060 DOI: 10.3390/plants12112078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Revised: 04/29/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Urginea maritima L. (squill) species is widely spread at the Mediterranean region as two main varieties, i.e., white squill (WS) and red squill (RS), that are recognized for several health potentials. The major secondary metabolite classes of the squill are cardiac glycosides, mainly, bufadienolides, flavonoids, and anthocyanins. Herein, a multiplex MS and NMR metabolomics approach targeting secondary and aroma compounds in WS and RS was employed for varieties classification. Solid-phase micro extraction-gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy (SPME-GC/MS), ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (UPLC/MS), as well as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) provided fingerprinting and structural confirmation of the major metabolites for both types of the squill. For comparison of the different platforms' classification potential, multivariate data analysis was employed. While Bufadienolides, viz. "hydroxy-scilliglaucosidin-O-rhamnoside, desacetylscillirosidin-O-rhamnoside and bufotalidin-O-hexoside" as well as oxylipids, were enriched in WS, flavonoids, i.e., dihydro-kaempferol-O-hexoside and its aglycon, taxifolin derivative, were predominant in RS. A cytotoxicity screening against three cancer cell lines, including breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7), lung (A-549), and ovarian (SKOV-3) cell lines was conducted. Results revealed that WS was more effective on A-549 and SKOV-3 cell lines (WS IC50 0.11 and 0.4 µg/mL, respectively) owing to its abundance of bufadienolides, while RS recorded IC50 (MCF7 cell line) 0.17 µg/mL since is is rich inflavonoids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omar M Khattab
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Menoufia University, Shebin El-Kom 32512, Egypt
| | - Dina M El-Kersh
- Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, The British University in Egypt, Cairo 11837, Egypt
| | - Shaden A M Khalifa
- Psychiatry and Psychology Department, Capio Saint Göran's Hospital, Sankt Göransplan 1, 112 19 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Nermeen Yosri
- Chemistry Department of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Research Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (RIMAP), Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef 62514, Egypt
| | - Hesham R El-Seedi
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Menoufia University, Shebin El-Kom 32512, Egypt
- International Research Center for Food Nutrition and Safety, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
- International Joint Research Laboratory of Intelligent Agriculture and Agri-Products Processing, Jiangsu Education Department, Zhenjiang 212013, China
| | - Mohamed A Farag
- Pharmacognosy Department, College of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Kasr El Aini St., Cairo 11562, Egypt
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Mehta N, Meng Y, Zare R, Kamenetsky-Goldstein R, Sattely E. A developmental gradient reveals biosynthetic pathways to eukaryotic toxins in monocot geophytes. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.05.12.540595. [PMID: 37214939 PMCID: PMC10197729 DOI: 10.1101/2023.05.12.540595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Numerous eukaryotic toxins that accumulate in geophytic plants are valuable in the clinic, yet their biosynthetic pathways have remained elusive. A lead example is the >150 Amaryllidaceae alkaloids (AmAs) including galantamine, an FDA-approved treatment for Alzheimer's disease. We show that while AmAs accumulate to high levels in many tissues in daffodils, biosynthesis is localized to nascent, growing tissue at the base of leaves. A similar trend is found for the production of steroidal alkaloids (e.g. cyclopamine) in corn lily. This model of active biosynthesis enabled elucidation of a complete set of biosynthetic genes for the production of AmAs. Taken together, our work sheds light on the developmental and enzymatic logic of diverse alkaloid biosynthesis in daffodil. More broadly, it suggests a paradigm for biosynthesis regulation in monocot geophytes where plants are protected from herbivory through active charging of newly formed cells with eukaryotic toxins that persist as aboveground tissue develops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niraj Mehta
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Yifan Meng
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Richard Zare
- Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | | | - Elizabeth Sattely
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- HHMI, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
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Dormousoglou M, Boti V, Hela D, Vlastos D, Antonopoulou M, Chondrogiannis C, Petropoulou Y, Dailianis S. Beneficial properties of Drimia numidica leaf methanolic extract against the cytogenotoxic effects of mitomycin C on human lymphocytes. Food Chem Toxicol 2023; 173:113626. [PMID: 36682415 DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2023.113626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Revised: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2023] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
This study investigated the phytochemical profile of Drimia numidica leaf methanolic extract, as well as its cyto-genotoxic and cyto/genoprotective potential against mitomycin C (MMC) mediated effects on healthy human lymphocytes. Photosynthetic pigments, trace elements, and secondary metabolites were estimated and/or identified in methanolic extract of mature leaves, and the latter was further used for assessing its in vitro biological effects on MMC-free and/or MMC-treated human lymphocytes (at low, non-toxic concentrations of 0.001 and 0.01% v/v). The results showed that D. numidica leaf methanolic extract, being rich in carotenoids, phenolics, flavonoids, organic acids and bufadienolides, could be protective against MMC mediated cyto/genotoxic potential in healthy human lymphocytes. Biomolecules possessing antioxidant and antitumor potential, such as beta-carotene and lutein among others, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid and their derivatives, minerals such as Si, as well as apigenin- and luteolin-derived glycosides, either individual or in a mixture, could be beneficial rather than harmful, at least at the extract concentrations tested. Although further in vitro and in vivo studies are still needed for elucidating the beneficial (individual and/or additive/synergistic) role of those compounds, the results of the present study are quite promising, thus encouraging new challenges for the appropriate utilization of D. numidica leaf extract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margarita Dormousoglou
- Department of Biology, School of Natural Sciences, University of Patras, GR-26500, Rio, Patras, Greece; Department of Sustainable Agriculture, University of Patras, GR-30100, Agrinio, Greece
| | - Vasiliki Boti
- Department of Chemistry, University of Ioannina, GR-45110, Ioannina, Greece; Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development, University Research Center of Ioannina (URCI), Ioannina, GR-45110, Greece; Unit of Environmental, Organic and Biochemical High-resolution Analysis-Orbitrap-LC-MS, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, GR-45110, Greece
| | - Dimitra Hela
- Department of Chemistry, University of Ioannina, GR-45110, Ioannina, Greece; Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development, University Research Center of Ioannina (URCI), Ioannina, GR-45110, Greece
| | - Dimitris Vlastos
- Department of Biology, School of Natural Sciences, University of Patras, GR-26500, Rio, Patras, Greece
| | - Maria Antonopoulou
- Department of Sustainable Agriculture, University of Patras, GR-30100, Agrinio, Greece
| | - Christos Chondrogiannis
- Department of Biology, School of Natural Sciences, University of Patras, GR-26500, Rio, Patras, Greece
| | - Yiola Petropoulou
- Department of Biology, School of Natural Sciences, University of Patras, GR-26500, Rio, Patras, Greece
| | - Stefanos Dailianis
- Department of Biology, School of Natural Sciences, University of Patras, GR-26500, Rio, Patras, Greece.
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Bioactive Molecules from Plants: Discovery and Pharmaceutical Applications. Pharmaceutics 2022; 14:pharmaceutics14102116. [PMID: 36297551 PMCID: PMC9608623 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14102116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2022] [Accepted: 10/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
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