Measuring Phagosome pH by Ratiometric Fluorescence Microscopy

Desulfurization of thiosemicarbazones: the role of metal ions and biological implications

Thiosemicarbazones are biologically active substances whose structural formula is formed by an azomethine, an hydrazine, and a thioamide fragments, to generate a R2C=N-NR-C(=S)-NR2 backbone. These compounds often act as ligands to generate highly stable metal-organic complexes. In certain experimental conditions, however, thiosemicarbazones undergo reactions leading to the cleavage of the chain. Sometimes, the breakage involves desulfurization processes. The present work summarizes the different chemical factors that influence the desulfurization reactions of thiosemicarbazones, such as pH, the presence of oxidant reactants or the establishment of redox processes as those electrochemically induced, the effects of the solvent, the temperature, and the electromagnetic radiation. Many of these reactions require coordination of thiosemicarbazones to metal ions, even those present in the intracellular environment. The nature of the products generated in these reactions, their detection in vivo and in vitro, together with the relevance for the biological activity of these compounds, mainly as antineoplastic agents, is discussed.

A Mitochondria-Targeted Fluorescent Probe for Monitoring NADPH Overproduction during Influenza Virus Infection

Reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) is an important cofactor in the progress of antioxidant synthesis and biosynthesis, and an abnormal NADPH level has been observed in many viral infection processes. However, efficient tools to monitor NADPH in living cells after viral infection have not been reported. In this work, we present a fluorescent probe, NAFP4, that could detect NADPH ex vivo with a low detection limit of 3.66 nM and image mitochondrial NADPH level changes in living cells. The probe exhibits excellent cell permeability, rapid reactivity, and high selectivity with minimal cytotoxicity. Using NAFP4, we reveal that the NADPH is overproduced in the host cells infected by influenza virus, which was caused by an elevated level of G6PDH during the virus infection. Moreover, there was positive association between the G6PDH level and virus replication. With the proposed probe NAFP4, our study highlights that the virus infection would influence the host metabolism in NADPH production and also suggests that G6PDH is expected to be a promising target for antiviral therapy.

Kinetics of phagosome maturation is coupled to their intracellular motility

Immune cells degrade internalized pathogens in phagosomes through sequential biochemical changes. The degradation must be fast enough for effective infection control. The presumption is that each phagosome degrades cargos autonomously with a distinct but stochastic kinetic rate. However, here we show that the degradation kinetics of individual phagosomes is not stochastic but coupled to their intracellular motility. By engineering RotSensors that are optically anisotropic, magnetic responsive, and fluorogenic in response to degradation activities in phagosomes, we monitored cargo degradation kinetics in single phagosomes simultaneously with their translational and rotational dynamics. We show that phagosomes that move faster centripetally are more likely to encounter and fuse with lysosomes, thereby acidifying faster and degrading cargos more efficiently. The degradation rates increase nearly linearly with the translational and rotational velocities of phagosomes. Our results indicate that the centripetal motion of phagosomes functions as a clock for controlling the progression of cargo degradation.

Measuring the pH of Acidic Vesicles in Live Cells with an Optimized Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Probe

Acidification of intracellular vesicles, such as endosomes and lysosomes, is a key pathway for regulating the function of internal proteins. Most conventional methods of measuring pH are not satisfactory for quantifying the pH inside these vesicles. Here, we investigated the molecular requirements for a fluorescence probe to measure the intravesicular acidic pH in living cells by means of fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM). The developed probe, m-DiMeNAF488, exhibits a pH-dependent equilibrium between highly fluorescent and moderately fluorescent forms, which has distinct and detectable fluorescence lifetimes of 4.36 and 0.58 ns, respectively. The pK_a(τ) value of m-DiMeNAF488 was determined to be 4.58, which would be favorable for evaluating the pH in the acidic vesicles. We were able to monitor the pH changes in phagosomes during phagocytosis by means of FLIM using m-DiMeNAF488. This probe is expected to be a useful tool for investigating acidic pH-regulated biological phenomena.

Control of lysosomal-mediated cell death by the pH-dependent calcium channel RECS1

Programmed cell death is regulated by the balance between activating and inhibitory signals. Here, we have identified RECS1 (responsive to centrifugal force and shear stress 1) [also known as TMBIM1 (transmembrane BAX inhibitor motif containing 1)] as a proapoptotic member of the TMBIM family. In contrast to other proteins of the TMBIM family, RECS1 expression induces cell death through the canonical mitochondrial apoptosis pathway. Unbiased screening indicated that RECS1 sensitizes cells to lysosomal perturbations. RECS1 localizes to lysosomes, where it regulates their acidification and calcium content, triggering lysosomal membrane permeabilization. Structural modeling and electrophysiological studies indicated that RECS1 is a pH-regulated calcium channel, an activity that is essential to trigger cell death. RECS1 also sensitizes whole animals to stress in vivo in Drosophila melanogaster and zebrafish models. Our results unveil an unanticipated function for RECS1 as a proapoptotic component of the TMBIM family that ignites cell death programs at lysosomes.

Differential Roles of the Calcium Ion Channel TRPV4 in Host Responses to Mycobacterium tuberculosis Early and Late in Infection

Mycobacterium tuberculosis subverts host immunity to proliferate within host tissues. Non-selective transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels are involved in host responses and altered upon bacterial infections. Altered expression and localization of TRPV4 in macrophages upon virulent M. tuberculosis infection together with differential distribution of TRPV4 in human tuberculosis (TB) granulomas indicate a role of TRPV4 in TB. Compared with wild-type mice, Trpv4-deficient littermates showed transiently higher mycobacterial burden and reduced proinflammatory responses. In the absence of TRPV4, activation failed to render macrophages capable of controlling mycobacteria. Surprisingly, Trpv4-deficient mice were superior to wild-type ones in controlling M. tuberculosis infection in the chronic phase. Thus, Trpv4 is important in host responses to mycobacteria, although with opposite functions early versus late in infection. Ameliorated chronic infection in the absence of Trpv4 and its expression in human TB lesions indicate TRPV4 as putative target for host-directed therapy.

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Mtb down-modulates TRPV4 expression in macrophages

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Trpv4^−/− macrophages cannot be activated to drive phagosome maturation and NO production

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Trpv4-deficient mice are more resistant to Mtb

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TRPV4-positive macrophages in the periphery of human granuloma but not at the center

Quantitative Particle Uptake by Cells as Analyzed by Different Methods

There is a large number of two-dimensional static in vitro studies about the uptake of colloidal nano- and microparticles, which has been published in the last decade. In this Minireview, different methods used for such studies are summarized and critically discussed. Supplementary experimental data allow for a direct comparison of the different techniques. Emphasis is given on how quantitative parameters can be extracted from studies in which different experimental techniques have been used, with the goal of allowing better comparison.

The Bicarbonate Transporter SLC4A7 Plays a Key Role in Macrophage Phagosome Acidification

Macrophages represent the first line of immune defense against pathogens, and phagosome acidification is a necessary step in pathogen clearance. Here, we identified the bicarbonate transporter SLC4A7, which is strongly induced upon macrophage differentiation, as critical for phagosome acidification. Loss of SLC4A7 reduced acidification of phagocytosed beads or bacteria and impaired the intracellular microbicidal capacity in human macrophage cell lines. The phenotype was rescued by wild-type SLC4A7, but not by SLC4A7 mutants, affecting transport capacity or cell surface localization. Loss of SLC4A7 resulted in increased cytoplasmic acidification during phagocytosis, suggesting that SLC4A7-mediated, bicarbonate-driven maintenance of cytoplasmic pH is necessary for phagosome acidification. Altogether, we identify SLC4A7 and bicarbonate-driven cytoplasmic pH homeostasis as an important element of phagocytosis and the associated microbicidal functions in macrophages.

Cryptococcus neoformans urease affects the outcome of intracellular pathogenesis by modulating phagolysosomal pH

Cryptococcus neoformans is a facultative intracellular pathogen and its interaction with macrophages is a key event determining the outcome of infection. Urease is a major virulence factor in C. neoformans but its role during macrophage interaction has not been characterized. Consequently, we analyzed the effect of urease on fungal-macrophage interaction using wild-type, urease-deficient and urease-complemented strains of C. neoformans. The frequency of non-lytic exocytosis events was reduced in the absence of urease. Urease-positive C. neoformans manifested reduced and delayed intracellular replication with fewer macrophages displaying phagolysosomal membrane permeabilization. The production of urease was associated with increased phagolysosomal pH, which in turn reduced growth of urease-positive C. neoformans inside macrophages. Interestingly, the ure1 mutant strain grew slower in fungal growth medium which was buffered to neutral pH (pH 7.4). Mice inoculated with macrophages carrying urease-deficient C. neoformans had lower fungal burden in the brain than mice infected with macrophages carrying wild-type strain. In contrast, the absence of urease did not affect survival of yeast when interacting with amoebae. Because of the inability of the urease deletion mutant to grow on urea as a sole nitrogen source, we hypothesize urease plays a nutritional role involved in nitrogen acquisition in the environment. Taken together, our data demonstrate that urease affects fitness within the mammalian phagosome, promoting non-lytic exocytosis while delaying intracellular replication and thus reducing phagolysosomal membrane damage, events that could facilitate cryptococcal dissemination when transported inside macrophages. This system provides an example where an enzyme involved in nutrient acquisition modulates virulence during mammalian infection.

STIM1 promotes migration, phagosomal maturation and antigen cross-presentation in dendritic cells

Antigen cross-presentation by dendritic cells (DC) stimulates cytotoxic T cell activation to promote immunity to intracellular pathogens, viruses and cancer. Phagocytosed antigens generate potent T cell responses, but the signalling and trafficking pathways regulating their cross-presentation are unclear. Here, we show that ablation of the store-operated-Ca²⁺-entry regulator STIM1 in mouse myeloid cells impairs cross-presentation and DC migration in vivo and in vitro. Stim1 ablation reduces Ca²⁺ signals, cross-presentation, and chemotaxis in mouse bone-marrow-derived DCs without altering cell differentiation, maturation or phagocytic capacity. Phagosomal pH homoeostasis and ROS production are unaffected by STIM1 deficiency, but phagosomal proteolysis and leucyl aminopeptidase activity, IRAP recruitment, as well as fusion of phagosomes with endosomes and lysosomes are all impaired. These data suggest that STIM1-dependent Ca²⁺ signalling promotes the delivery of endolysosomal enzymes to phagosomes to enable efficient cross-presentation.

STIM proteins sense Ca²⁺ depletion in the ER and activate store-operated Ca²⁺-entry (SOCE) in response, a process associated with dendritic cell functions. Here the authors show STIM1 is the major isoform controlling SOCE in mouse dendritic cells and provide a mechanism for its requirement in antigen cross-presentation.

UNC93B1 interacts with the calcium sensor STIM1 for efficient antigen cross-presentation in dendritic cells

Dendritic cells (DC) have the unique ability to present exogenous antigens via the major histocompatibility complex class I pathway to stimulate naive CD8⁺ T cells. In DCs with a non-functional mutation in Unc93b1 (3d mutation), endosomal acidification, phagosomal maturation, antigen degradation, antigen export to the cytosol and the function of the store-operated-Ca²⁺-entry regulator STIM1 are impaired. These defects result in compromised antigen cross-presentation and anti-tumor responses in 3d-mutated mice. Here, we show that UNC93B1 interacts with the calcium sensor STIM1 in the endoplasmic reticulum, a critical step for STIM1 oligomerization and activation. Expression of a constitutively active STIM1 mutant, which no longer binds UNC93B1, restores antigen degradation and cross-presentation in 3d-mutated DCs. Furthermore, ablation of STIM1 in mouse and human cells leads to a decrease in cross-presentation. Our data indicate that the UNC93B1 and STIM1 cooperation is important for calcium flux and antigen cross-presentation in DCs.

STIM proteins sense Ca²⁺ depletion in the ER and activate store-operated Ca²⁺ entry in response, a process associated with dendritic cell (DC) functions. Here, the authors show that optimal antigen cross-presentation in DCs requires the association of the chaperone molecule UNC93B1 with STIM1.

Imaging the Neutrophil Phagosome and Cytoplasm Using a Ratiometric pH Indicator

Neutrophils are crucial to host innate defense and, consequently, constitute an important area of medical research. The phagosome, the intracellular compartment where the killing and digestion of engulfed particles take place, is the main arena for neutrophil pathogen killing that requires tight regulation. Phagosomal pH is one aspect that is carefully controlled, in turn regulating antimicrobial protease activity. Many fluorescent pH-sensitive dyes have been used to visualize the phagosomal environment. S-1 has several advantages over other pH-sensitive dyes, including its dual emission spectra, its resistance to photo-bleaching, and its high pKa. Using this method, we have demonstrated that the neutrophil phagosome is unusually alkaline in comparison to other phagocytes. By using different biochemical conjugations of the dye, the phagosome can be delineated from the cytoplasm so that changes in the size and shape of the phagosome can be assessed. This allows for further monitoring of ionic movement.