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Chang K, Gao D, Yan J, Lin L, Cui T, Lu S. Critical Roles of Protein Arginine Methylation in the Central Nervous System. Mol Neurobiol 2023; 60:6060-6091. [PMID: 37415067 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-023-03465-x] [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: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 06/24/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023]
Abstract
A remarkable post-transitional modification of both histones and non-histone proteins is arginine methylation. Methylation of arginine residues is crucial for a wide range of cellular process, including signal transduction, DNA repair, gene expression, mRNA splicing, and protein interaction. Arginine methylation is modulated by arginine methyltransferases and demethylases, like protein arginine methyltransferase (PRMTs) and Jumonji C (JmjC) domain containing (JMJD) proteins. Symmetric dimethylarginine and asymmetric dimethylarginine, metabolic products of the PRMTs and JMJD proteins, can be changed by abnormal expression of these proteins. Many pathologies including cancer, inflammation and immune responses have been closely linked to aberrant arginine methylation. Currently, the majority of the literature discusses the substrate specificity and function of arginine methylation in the pathogenesis and prognosis of cancers. Numerous investigations on the roles of arginine methylation in the central nervous system (CNS) have so far been conducted. In this review, we display the biochemistry of arginine methylation and provide an overview of the regulatory mechanism of arginine methyltransferases and demethylases. We also highlight physiological functions of arginine methylation in the CNS and the significance of arginine methylation in a variety of neurological diseases such as brain cancers, neurodegenerative diseases and neurodevelopmental disorders. Furthermore, we summarize PRMT inhibitors and molecular functions of arginine methylation. Finally, we pose important questions that require further research to comprehend the roles of arginine methylation in the CNS and discover more effective targets for the treatment of neurological diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kewei Chang
- Department of Human Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment and Genes Related to Diseases (Xi'an Jiaotong University), Ministry of Education of China, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Dan Gao
- Department of Human Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment and Genes Related to Diseases (Xi'an Jiaotong University), Ministry of Education of China, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Jidong Yan
- Department of Human Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
- Key Laboratory of Environment and Genes Related to Diseases (Xi'an Jiaotong University), Ministry of Education of China, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Liyan Lin
- Department of Human Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Tingting Cui
- Department of Human Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Shemin Lu
- Key Laboratory of Environment and Genes Related to Diseases (Xi'an Jiaotong University), Ministry of Education of China, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China.
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Institute of Molecular and Translational Medicine, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China.
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Barry A, Samuel SF, Hosni I, Moursi A, Feugere L, Sennett CJ, Deepak S, Achawal S, Rajaraman C, Iles A, Wollenberg Valero KC, Scott IS, Green V, Stead LF, Greenman J, Wade MA, Beltran-Alvarez P. Investigating the effects of arginine methylation inhibitors on microdissected brain tumour biopsies maintained in a miniaturised perfusion system. LAB ON A CHIP 2023; 23:2664-2682. [PMID: 37191188 DOI: 10.1039/d3lc00204g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
Arginine methylation is a post-translational modification that consists of the transfer of one or two methyl (CH3) groups to arginine residues in proteins. Several types of arginine methylation occur, namely monomethylation, symmetric dimethylation and asymmetric dimethylation, which are catalysed by different protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs). Inhibitors of PRMTs have recently entered clinical trials to target several types of cancer, including gliomas (NCT04089449). People with glioblastoma (GBM), the most aggressive form of brain tumour, are among those with the poorest quality of life and likelihood of survival of anyone diagnosed with cancer. There is currently a lack of (pre)clinical research on the possible application of PRMT inhibitors to target brain tumours. Here, we set out to investigate the effects of clinically-relevant PRMT inhibitors on GBM biopsies. We present a new, low-cost, easy to fabricate perfusion device that can maintain GBM tissue in a viable condition for at least eight days post-surgical resection. The miniaturised perfusion device enables the treatment of GBM tissue with PRMT inhibitors ex vivo, and we observed a two-fold increase in apoptosis in treated samples compared to parallel control experiments. Mechanistically, we show thousands of differentially expressed genes after treatment, and changes in the type of arginine methylation of the RNA binding protein FUS that are consistent with hundreds of differential gene splicing events. This is the first time that cross-talk between different types of arginine methylation has been observed in clinical samples after treatment with PRMT inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonia Barry
- Centre for Biomedicine, Hull York Medical School, University of Hull, Hull, UK.
| | - Sabrina F Samuel
- Centre for Biomedicine, Hull York Medical School, University of Hull, Hull, UK.
| | - Ines Hosni
- Centre for Biomedicine, Hull York Medical School, University of Hull, Hull, UK.
| | - Amr Moursi
- Department of Neurosurgery, Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Hull Royal Infirmary, Hull, UK
| | - Lauric Feugere
- Department of Biological and Marine Sciences, University of Hull, Hull, UK
| | | | - Srihari Deepak
- Department of Neurosurgery, Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Hull Royal Infirmary, Hull, UK
| | - Shailendra Achawal
- Department of Neurosurgery, Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Hull Royal Infirmary, Hull, UK
| | - Chittoor Rajaraman
- Department of Neurosurgery, Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Hull Royal Infirmary, Hull, UK
| | | | | | - Ian S Scott
- Neuroscience Laboratories, The Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool, UK
| | - Vicky Green
- Centre for Biomedicine, Hull York Medical School, University of Hull, Hull, UK.
| | - Lucy F Stead
- Leeds Institute of Medical Research at St James's, St James's University Hospital, Leeds, UK
| | - John Greenman
- Centre for Biomedicine, Hull York Medical School, University of Hull, Hull, UK.
| | - Mark A Wade
- Centre for Biomedicine, Hull York Medical School, University of Hull, Hull, UK.
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Fang WJ, Li XM, Zhou XK, Xiong Y. Resveratrol improves diabetic cardiomyopathy by preventing asymmetric dimethylarginine-caused peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1α acetylation. Eur J Pharmacol 2022; 936:175342. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2022.175342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2022] [Revised: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Marsden AJ, Riley DRJ, Barry A, Khalil JS, Guinn BA, Kemp NT, Rivero F, Beltran-Alvarez P. Inhibition of Arginine Methylation Impairs Platelet Function. ACS Pharmacol Transl Sci 2021; 4:1567-1577. [PMID: 34661075 DOI: 10.1021/acsptsci.1c00135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) catalyze the transfer of methyl groups to arginine residues in proteins. PRMT inhibitors are novel, promising drugs against cancer that are currently in clinical trials, which include oral administration of the drugs. However, off-target activities of systemically available PRMT inhibitors have not yet been investigated. In this work, we study the relevance of arginine methylation in platelets and investigate the effect of PRMT inhibitors on platelet function and on the expression of relevant platelet receptors. We show that (1) key platelet proteins are modified by arginine methylation; (2) incubation of human platelets with PRMT inhibitors for 4 h results in impaired capacity of platelets to aggregate in response to thrombin and collagen, with IC50 values in the μM range; and (3) treatment with PRMT inhibitors leads to decreased membrane expression and reduced activation of the critical platelet integrin αIIbβ3. Our contribution opens new avenues for research on arginine methylation in platelets, including the repurposing of arginine methylation inhibitors as novel antiplatelet drugs. We also recommend that current and future clinical trials with PRMT inhibitors consider any adverse effects associated with platelet inhibition of these emerging anticancer drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - David R J Riley
- Centre for Atherothrombosis and Metabolic Disease, Hull York Medical School, Hull HU6 7RX, U.K
| | - Antonia Barry
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, U.K
| | - Jawad S Khalil
- Centre for Atherothrombosis and Metabolic Disease, Hull York Medical School, Hull HU6 7RX, U.K
| | - Barbara-Ann Guinn
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, U.K
| | - Neil T Kemp
- Department of Physics and Mathematics, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, U.K
| | - Francisco Rivero
- Centre for Atherothrombosis and Metabolic Disease, Hull York Medical School, Hull HU6 7RX, U.K
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Samuel SF, Barry A, Greenman J, Beltran-Alvarez P. Arginine methylation: the promise of a 'silver bullet' for brain tumours? Amino Acids 2021; 53:489-506. [PMID: 33404912 PMCID: PMC8107164 DOI: 10.1007/s00726-020-02937-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [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: 10/08/2020] [Accepted: 12/21/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Despite intense research efforts, our pharmaceutical repertoire against high-grade brain tumours has not been able to increase patient survival for a decade and life expectancy remains at less than 16 months after diagnosis, on average. Inhibitors of protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) have been developed and investigated over the past 15 years and have now entered oncology clinical trials, including for brain tumours. This review collates recent advances in the understanding of the role of PRMTs and arginine methylation in brain tumours. We provide an up-to-date literature review on the mechanisms for PRMT regulation. These include endogenous modulators such as alternative splicing, miRNA, post-translational modifications and PRMT-protein interactions, and synthetic inhibitors. We discuss the relevance of PRMTs in brain tumours with a particular focus on PRMT1, -2, -5 and -8. Finally, we include a future perspective where we discuss possible routes for further research on arginine methylation and on the use of PRMT inhibitors in the context of brain tumours.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Antonia Barry
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Hull, Hull, UK
| | - John Greenman
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Hull, Hull, UK
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Bryant JP, Heiss J, Banasavadi-Siddegowda YK. Arginine Methylation in Brain Tumors: Tumor Biology and Therapeutic Strategies. Cells 2021; 10:cells10010124. [PMID: 33440687 PMCID: PMC7827394 DOI: 10.3390/cells10010124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Protein arginine methylation is a common post-translational modification that plays a pivotal role in cellular regulation. Protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) catalyze the modification of target proteins by adding methyl groups to the guanidino nitrogen atoms of arginine residues. Protein arginine methylation takes part in epigenetic and cellular regulation and has been linked to neurodegenerative diseases, metabolic diseases, and tumor progression. Aberrant expression of PRMTs is associated with the development of brain tumors such as glioblastoma and medulloblastoma. Identifying PRMTs as plausible contributors to tumorigenesis has led to preclinical and clinical investigations of PRMT inhibitors for glioblastoma and medulloblastoma therapy. In this review, we discuss the role of arginine methylation in cancer biology and provide an update on the use of small molecule inhibitors of PRMTs to treat glioblastoma, medulloblastoma, and other cancers.
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Qian K, Yan C, Su H, Dang T, Zhou B, Wang Z, Zhao X, Ivanov I, Ho MC, Zheng YG. Pharmacophore-based screening of diamidine small molecule inhibitors for protein arginine methyltransferases. RSC Med Chem 2021; 12:95-102. [PMID: 34046601 PMCID: PMC8130551 DOI: 10.1039/d0md00259c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2020] [Accepted: 09/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) are essential epigenetic and post-translational regulators in eukaryotic organisms. Dysregulation of PRMTs is intimately related to multiple types of human diseases, particularly cancer. Based on the previously reported PRMT1 inhibitors bearing the diamidine pharmacophore, we performed virtual screening to identify additional amidine-associated structural analogs. Subsequent enzymatic tests and characterization led to the discovery of a top lead K313 (2-(4-((4-carbamimidoylphenyl)amino)phenyl)-1H-indole-6-carboximidamide), which possessed low-micromolar potency with biochemical IC50 of 2.6 μM for human PRMT1. Limited selectivity was observed over some other PRMT isoforms such as CARM1 and PRMT7. Molecular modeling and inhibition pattern studies suggest that K313 is a nonclassic noncompetitive inhibitor to PRMT1. K313 significantly inhibited cell proliferation and reduced the arginine asymmetric dimethylation level in the leukaemia cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kun Qian
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Georgia Athens Georgia 30602 USA +(706) 542 0277
| | - Chunli Yan
- Department of Chemistry and Center for Diagnostics and Therapeutics, Georgia State University Atlanta Georgia 30302 USA
| | - Hairui Su
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham Alabama 35294 USA
| | - Tran Dang
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Georgia Athens Georgia 30602 USA +(706) 542 0277
| | - Bo Zhou
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Georgia Athens Georgia 30602 USA +(706) 542 0277
| | - Zhenyu Wang
- Department of Chemistry and Center for Diagnostics and Therapeutics, Georgia State University Atlanta Georgia 30302 USA
| | - Xinyang Zhao
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham Alabama 35294 USA
| | - Ivaylo Ivanov
- Department of Chemistry and Center for Diagnostics and Therapeutics, Georgia State University Atlanta Georgia 30302 USA
| | - Meng-Chiao Ho
- Institute of Biological Chemistry, Academia Sinica Nankang Taipei Taiwan
| | - Y George Zheng
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Georgia Athens Georgia 30602 USA +(706) 542 0277
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Bollenbach A, Gambaryan S, Mindukshev I, Pich A, Tsikas D. GC-MS and LC-MS/MS pilot studies on the guanidine (N G)-dimethylation in native, asymmetrically and symmetrically N G-dimethylated arginine-vasopressin peptides and proteins in human red blood cells. J Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci 2020; 1141:122024. [PMID: 32062367 DOI: 10.1016/j.jchromb.2020.122024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2019] [Revised: 02/05/2020] [Accepted: 02/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Protein-arginine methyltransferases catalyze the methylation of the guanidine (NG) group of proteinic L-arginine (Arg) to produce monomethyl and dimethylarginine proteins. Their proteolysis releases the free amino acids monomethylarginine (MMA), symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) and asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), respectively. MMA, SDMA and ADMA are inhibitors of the nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity. High circulating and low urinary concentrations of ADMA and SDMA are considered risk factors in the cardiovascular and renal systems, mainly due to their inhibitory action on NOS activity. Identity, biological activity and concentration of NG-methylated proteins are largely unknown. The present study addressed these issues by using GC-MS and LC-MS/MS approaches. GC-MS was used to quantify free ADMA released by classical HCl-catalyzed hydrolysis of three synthetic Arg-vasopressin (V) peptides and of unknown endogenous NG-dimethylated proteins. The cyclic (c) disulfide forms of Arg-vasopressin analogs, i.e., Arg-vasopressin (cV-Arg-Gly-NH2), asymmetrically NG-dimethylated vasopressin (cV-ADMA-Gly-NH2) and symmetrically NG-dimethylated vasopressin (cV-SDMA-Gly-NH2) were used as model peptides in quantitative GC-MS analyses of ADMA, SDMA and other expected amino acids from the hydrolyzed Arg-vasopressin analogs. cV-ADMA-Gly-NH2 and cV-SDMA-Gly-NH2 were discriminated from cV-Arg-Gly-NH2 by LC-MS and LC-MS/MS, yet they were indistinguishable from each other. The same applies to the respective open (o) reduced and di-S-acetamide forms of oV-ADMA-Gly-NH2, oV-SDMA-Gly-NH2 and oV-Arg-Gly-NH2. Our LC-MS and LC-MS/MS studies suggest that the Arg-vasopressin analogs form [(M-H)]+ and [(M-H)+H]+ in the positive ESI mode and undergo in part conversion of their terminal Gly-NH2 (NH2, 16 Da) group to Gly-OH (OH, 17 Da). The product ion mass spectra of the di-S-acetamide forms are complex and contain several intense mass fragments differing by 1 Da. cV-ADMA-Gly-NH2 and cV-SDMA-Gly-NH2 induced platelet aggregation in platelet-rich human plasma with moderately different initial velocity and maximal aggregation rates compared to cV-Arg-Gly-NH2. Previous studies showed that human red blood cells are rich in large (>50 kDa) ADMA-containing proteins of unknown identity. Our LC-MS/MS proteomic study identified several membrane and cytosolic erythrocytic NG-dimethylated proteins, including spectrin-α (280 kDa), spectrin-β (247 kDa) and protein 4.1 (80 kDa). Being responsible for the stability of the erythrocyte membrane, the newly identified main targets for NG-dimethylation in human erythrocytes should be given a closer look in erythrocytic diseases like hereditary spherocytosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Bollenbach
- Institute of Toxicology and Core Unit Proteomics, Hannover Medical School, 30623 Hannover, Germany
| | - Stepan Gambaryan
- Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg 194223, Russia
| | - Igor Mindukshev
- Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg 194223, Russia
| | - Andreas Pich
- Institute of Toxicology and Core Unit Proteomics, Hannover Medical School, 30623 Hannover, Germany
| | - Dimitrios Tsikas
- Institute of Toxicology and Core Unit Proteomics, Hannover Medical School, 30623 Hannover, Germany.
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