Nardilysin-regulated scission mechanism activates polo-like kinase 3 to suppress the development of pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) develops through step-wise genetic and molecular alterations including Kras mutation and inactivation of various apoptotic pathways. Here, we find that development of apoptotic resistance and metastasis of KrasG12D-driven PDAC in mice is accelerated by deleting Plk3, explaining the often-reduced Plk3 expression in human PDAC. Importantly, a 41-kDa Plk3 (p41Plk3) that contains the entire kinase domain at the N-terminus (1-353 aa) is activated by scission of the precursor p72Plk3 at Arg354 by metalloendopeptidase nardilysin (NRDC), and the resulting p32Plk3 C-terminal Polo-box domain (PBD) is removed by proteasome degradation, preventing the inhibition of p41Plk3 by PBD. We find that p41Plk3 is the activated form of Plk3 that regulates a feed-forward mechanism to promote apoptosis and suppress PDAC and metastasis. p41Plk3 phosphorylates c-Fos on Thr164, which in turn induces expression of Plk3 and pro-apoptotic genes. These findings uncover an NRDC-regulated post-translational mechanism that activates Plk3, establishing a prototypic regulation by scission mechanism.

Revisiting the multisite phosphorylation that produces the M-phase supershift of key mitotic regulators

The term M-phase supershift denotes the phosphorylation-dependent substantial increase in the apparent molecular weight of numerous proteins of varied biological functions during M-phase induction. Although the M-phase supershift of multiple key mitotic regulators has been attributed to the multisite phosphorylation catalyzed by the Cdk1/cyclin B/Cks complex, this view is challenged by multiple lines of paradoxical observations. To solve this problem, we reconstituted the M-phase supershift of Xenopus Cdc25C, Myt1, Wee1A, APC3 and Greatwall in Xenopus egg extracts and characterized the supershift-producing phosphorylations. Our results demonstrate that their M-phase supershifts are each due to simultaneous phosphorylation of a considerable portion of S/T/Y residues in a long intrinsically disordered region that is enriched in both S/T residues and S/TP motifs. Although the major mitotic kinases in Xenopus egg extracts, Cdk1, MAPK, Plx1 and RSK2, are able to phosphorylate the five mitotic regulators, they are neither sufficient nor required to produce the M-phase supershift. Accordingly, inhibition of the four major mitotic kinase activities in Xenopus oocytes did not inhibit the M-phase supershift in okadaic acid-induced oocyte maturation. These findings indicate that the M-phase supershift is produced by a previously unrecognized category of mitotic phosphorylation that likely plays important roles in M-phase induction.

Vestigial-like 1 is a shared targetable cancer-placenta antigen expressed by pancreatic and basal-like breast cancers

Cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL)-based cancer immunotherapies have shown great promise for inducing clinical regressions by targeting tumor-associated antigens (TAA). To expand the TAA landscape of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), we performed tandem mass spectrometry analysis of HLA class I-bound peptides from 35 PDAC patient tumors. This identified a shared HLA-A*0101 restricted peptide derived from co-transcriptional activator Vestigial-like 1 (VGLL1) as a putative TAA demonstrating overexpression in multiple tumor types and low or absent expression in essential normal tissues. Here we show that VGLL1-specific CTLs expanded from the blood of a PDAC patient could recognize and kill in an antigen-specific manner a majority of HLA-A*0101 allogeneic tumor cell lines derived not only from PDAC, but also bladder, ovarian, gastric, lung, and basal-like breast cancers. Gene expression profiling reveals VGLL1 as a member of a unique group of cancer-placenta antigens (CPA) that may constitute immunotherapeutic targets for patients with multiple cancer types.

Hypervirulent group A Streptococcus emergence in an acaspular background is associated with marked remodeling of the bacterial cell surface

Inactivating mutations in the control of virulence two-component regulatory system (covRS) often account for the hypervirulent phenotype in severe, invasive group A streptococcal (GAS) infections. As CovR represses production of the anti-phagocytic hyaluronic acid capsule, high level capsule production is generally considered critical to the hypervirulent phenotype induced by CovRS inactivation. There have recently been large outbreaks of GAS strains lacking capsule, but there are currently no data on the virulence of covRS-mutated, acapsular strains in vivo. We investigated the impact of CovRS inactivation in acapsular serotype M4 strains using a wild-type (M4-SC-1) and a naturally-occurring CovS-inactivated strain (M4-LC-1) that contains an 11bp covS insertion. M4-LC-1 was significantly more virulent in a mouse bacteremia model but caused smaller lesions in a subcutaneous mouse model. Over 10% of the genome showed significantly different transcript levels in M4-LC-1 vs. M4-SC-1 strain. Notably, the Mga regulon and multiple cell surface protein-encoding genes were strongly upregulated–a finding not observed for CovS-inactivated, encapsulated M1 or M3 GAS strains. Consistent with the transcriptomic data, transmission electron microscopy revealed markedly altered cell surface morphology of M4-LC-1 compared to M4-SC-1. Insertional inactivation of covS in M4-SC-1 recapitulated the transcriptome and cell surface morphology. Analysis of the cell surface following CovS-inactivation revealed that the upregulated proteins were part of the Mga regulon. Inactivation of mga in M4-LC-1 reduced transcript levels of multiple cell surface proteins and reversed the cell surface alterations consistent with the effect of CovS inactivation on cell surface composition being mediated by Mga. CovRS-inactivating mutations were detected in 20% of current invasive serotype M4 strains in the United States. Thus, we discovered that hypervirulent M4 GAS strains with covRS mutations can arise in an acapsular background and that such hypervirulence is associated with profound alteration of the cell surface.

Genome-wide identification and differential analysis of translational initiation

Translation is principally regulated at the initiation stage. The development of the translation initiation (TI) sequencing (TI-seq) technique has enabled the global mapping of TIs and revealed unanticipated complex translational landscapes in metazoans. Despite the wide adoption of TI-seq, there is no computational tool currently available for analyzing TI-seq data. To fill this gap, we develop a comprehensive toolkit named Ribo-TISH, which allows for detecting and quantitatively comparing TIs across conditions from TI-seq data. Ribo-TISH can also predict novel open reading frames (ORFs) from regular ribosome profiling (rRibo-seq) data and outperform several established methods in both computational efficiency and prediction accuracy. Applied to published TI-seq/rRibo-seq data sets, Ribo-TISH uncovers a novel signature of elevated mitochondrial translation during amino-acid deprivation and predicts novel ORFs in 5′UTRs, long noncoding RNAs, and introns. These successful applications demonstrate the power of Ribo-TISH in extracting biological insights from TI-seq/rRibo-seq data.

Translation initiation sequencing (TI-seq) has revealed unexpected diversity in protein isoforms. Here, Zhang et al. present Ribo-TISH, a computational toolkit that can detect and compare TIs across conditions and improve open reading frame prediction from different types of ribosome profiling data.

Proteomics Profiling of Exosomes from Primary Mouse Osteoblasts under Proliferation versus Mineralization Conditions and Characterization of Their Uptake into Prostate Cancer Cells

Osteoblasts communicate both with normal cells in the bone marrow and with tumor cells that metastasized to bone. Here we show that osteoblasts release exosomes, we termed osteosomes, which may be a novel mechanism by which osteoblasts communicate with cells in their environment. We have isolated exosomes from undifferentiated/proliferating (D0 osteosomes) and differentiated/mineralizing (D24 osteosomes) primary mouse calvarial osteoblasts. The D0 and D24 osteosomes were found to be vesicles of 130-140 nm by dynamic light scattering analysis. Proteomics profiling using tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) identified 206 proteins in D0 osteosomes and 336 in D24 osteosomes. The proteins in osteosomes are mainly derived from the cytoplasm (∼47%) and plasma membrane (∼31%). About 69% of proteins in osteosomes are also found in Vesiclepedia, and these canonical exosomal proteins include tetraspanins and Rab family proteins. We found that there are differences in both protein content and levels in exosomes isolated from undifferentiated and differentiated osteoblasts. Among the proteins that are unique to osteosomes, 169 proteins are present in both D0 and D24 osteosomes, 37 are unique to D0, and 167 are unique to D24. Among those 169 proteins present in both D0 and D24 osteosomes, 10 proteins are likely present at higher levels in D24 than D0 osteosomes based on emPAI ratios of >5. These results suggest that osteosomes released from different cellular state of osteoblasts may mediate distinct functions. Using live-cell imaging, we measured the uptake of PKH26-labeled osteosomes into C4-2B4 and PC3-mm2 prostate cancer cells. In addition, we showed that cadherin-11, a cell adhesion molecule, plays a role in the uptake of osteosomes into PC3-mm2 cells as osteosome uptake was delayed by neutralizing antibody against cadherin-11. Together, our studies suggest that osteosomes could have a unique role in the bone microenvironment under both physiological and pathological conditions.

SLC45A2: A Melanoma Antigen with High Tumor Selectivity and Reduced Potential for Autoimmune Toxicity

Cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL)-based immunotherapies have had remarkable success at generating objective clinical responses in patients with advanced metastatic melanoma. Although the melanocyte differentiation antigens (MDA) MART-1, PMEL, and tyrosinase were among the first melanoma tumor-associated antigens identified and targeted with immunotherapy, expression within normal melanocytes of the eye and inner ear can elicit serious autoimmune side effects, thus limiting their clinical potential as CTL targets. Using a tandem mass spectrometry (MS) approach to analyze the immunopeptidomes of 55 melanoma patient-derived cell lines, we identified a number of shared HLA class I-bound peptides derived from the melanocyte-specific transporter protein SLC45A2. Antigen-specific CTLs generated against HLA-A*0201- and HLA-A*2402-restricted SLC45A2 peptides effectively killed a majority of HLA-matched cutaneous, uveal, and mucosal melanoma cell lines tested (18/25). CTLs specific for SLC45A2 showed significantly reduced recognition of HLA-matched primary melanocytes that were, conversely, robustly killed by MART1- and PMEL-specific T cells. Transcriptome analysis revealed that SLC45A2 mRNA expression in normal melanocytes was less than 2% that of other MDAs, therefore providing a more favorable melanoma-to-melanocyte expression ratio. Expression of SLC45A2 and CTL sensitivity could be further upregulated in BRAF(V600E)-mutant melanoma cells upon treatment with BRAF or MEK inhibitors, similarly to other MDAs. Taken together, our study demonstrates the feasibility of using tandem MS as a means of discovering shared immunogenic tumor-associated epitopes and identifies SLC45A2 as a promising immunotherapeutic target for melanoma with high tumor selectivity and reduced potential for autoimmune toxicity. Cancer Immunol Res; 5(8); 618-29. ©2017 AACR.

A nucleoside-sensitive organic cation transporter in opossum kidney cells

Renal secretion of organic cations and anions are pleiotropic, active processes in mammals. Some nucleosides such as deoxyadenosine (dAdo), 2-chlorodeoxyadenosine, and azidothymidine are secreted by human and rodent kidneys. Previous work (J. A. Nelson, J. F. Kuttesch, Jr., and B. H. Herbert. Biochemical Pharmacology 32: 2323-2327, 1983) indicated a role for the classic organic cation transporter (OCT) in the secretion of the dAdo analog, 2'-deoxytubercidin, by mouse kidney. Using [14C]tetraethylammonium bromide ([14C]TEA) as a substrate, we tested several renal cell lines for a nucleoside-sensitive OCT. American opossum kidney proximal tubule cells (OK) express a cimetidine-sensitive and metabolic-dependent ability to efflux TEA. Other classic OCT inhibitors and several nucleosides also inhibit TEA efflux by these cells in a manner reflecting structural specificity for the carrier. Inhibition of OCT by nucleosides is not a universal feature of OCTs, since TEA transport mediated by cloned rat kidney OCT2 in the Xenopus laevis oocyte system was not inhibited by the same nucleosides. In conclusion, OK cells appear to possess an OCT that may also transport some nucleosides by a novel carrier.

A transfected cell model for the renal toxin transporter, rOCT2

A cDNA for the organic cation transporter (rOCT2) of the rat kidney was inserted into the retroviral plasmid pLXSN. This plasmid was used to stably transfect NIH3T3 cells. The transfected cell line exhibited an enhanced rate of tetraethylammonium (TEA) uptake and efflux compared to wild-type NIH3T3 cells. Uptake of TEA by the transfected cells was markedly reduced upon incubation at 4 degrees C. When the extracellular pH was lowered from 8.1 to 5.9, uptake was also reduced, suggesting inhibition of rOCT2 by extracellular protons. The apparent K(m) for TEA in the transfected cells was 141 microM. The classical organic cation transport inhibitors, cyanine 863 and cimetidine, produced noncompetitive inhibition with apparent Ki values of 0.81 and 198 microM, respectively. Daunomycin, vinblastine, and the deoxyadenosine analogs, 2'-deoxytubercidin and 2-chlorodeoxyadenosine, did not appear to be substrates for rOCT2. However, the anticancer drug, cisplatin, competitively inhibited TEA uptake by rOCT2 with an apparent Ki value of 925 microM, suggesting that rOCT2 may play a role in its renal secretion. In summary, transfected NIH3T3 cells provide a facile system by which this and other organic ion transporters can be studied.

The drug verapamil inhibits bystander killing but not cell suicide in thymidine kinase-ganciclovir prodrug-activated gene therapy

The bystander effect, in which unmodified cells are killed as the result of enzyme-prodrug activation in genetically modified neighboring cells, amplifies the suicide response in a tumor in which only a fraction of the cells are targeted. The drug verapamil (VRP), a calcium channel antagonist that is also used to counteract the multidrug resistance of tumor cells, is shown to inhibit the bystander effect by herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSVtk) enzyme-prodrug therapy with ganciclovir by protecting beta geo marked bystander cells in both in vitro coculture assays and in an in vivo animal tumor model. VRP had no stimulatory or inhibitory effect on the proliferation of CT 26 cells, their tumorigenicity, or prodrug-activated cell death produced by the action of the HSVtk gene. The kinetics of the protection afforded by VRP was time dependent with respect to the time of addition of the prodrug, and protection was ineffective when added two or more days after prodrug administration.

Cysteine conjugate beta-lyase activity in human renal carcinomas

Cysteine conjugate beta-lyase, an enzyme that converts cysteine S-conjugates to free thiols, pyruvate and ammonia, is normally expressed primarily in the liver and kidney. In theory, this selective distribution affords the opportunity to target thiol-containing drugs to these organs and, perhaps, to tumors derived from them. To assess the potential for delivery of such drugs to kidney-derived tissue, we have used a typical beta-lyase substrate, S-(2-benzothiazolyl)-L-cysteine, to measure the beta-lyase activity in normal and tumor tissue of kidneys removed from patients with renal carcinoma. Although considerable heterogeneity in enzyme activity levels was observed in normal and tumor-derived samples, a high proportion of tumor samples had enzyme activity that was at least 50% of that observed in adjacent normal tissue. Frequently, hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase activity was observed to be greater in the tumor than in normal tissue. These results may aid in the development of therapy for renal carcinomas.

Enhanced transepithelial flux of cimetidine by Madin-Darby canine kidney cells overexpressing human P-glycoprotein

Cimetidine has been used as a relatively selective inhibitor of renal organic cation secretion, analogous to the use of probenecid to inhibit organic anion secretion. Many of the substrates for the multidrug transporter P-glycoprotein, which is overexpressed in multidrug-resistant tumor cells, are organic cations. Furthermore, the protein is normally expressed on the apical membranes of proximal tubule cells, the postulated site for active organic cation secretion. To test directly whether P-glycoprotein might serve as a carrier for cimetidine, we measured cimetidine transepithelial movement across Madin-Darby canine kidney cells grown as monolayers on membrane filters. A retrovirally transduced Madin-Darby canine kidney cell line (Madin-Darby canine kidney cells transfected with the human multiple drug resistance 1 cDNA for P-glycoprotein), that expresses the human form of P-glycoprotein on its apical membrane, had an increased capacity to transport cimetidine from the basolateral to apical medium (b-->a) but not in the reverse direction (i.e., a-->b). Qualitatively similar results were observed with daunomycin, a well established substrate for P-glycoprotein. Cellular uptake and energy-dependent efflux experiments further established cimetidine to be a substrate for the human P-glycoprotein. Thus, P-glycoprotein may play a role in the renal secretion of cimetidine and perhaps other organic cations.

Intrinsic resistance to anticancer agents in the murine pancreatic adenocarcinoma PANC02

PANC02 is a ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas that is resistant to every known class of clinically active antitumor agent. To study the mechanism(s) underlying the intrinsic drug resistance of this tumor, a mammary adenocarcinoma (CA-755) that also grows in C57/BL mice and is known to be drug sensitive was used for comparison. PANC02 resistance and CA-755 sensitivity to several antitumor agents and to X-ray therapy was confirmed in mice, and PANC02 also demonstrated relative resistance in tissue culture. Relative to Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) and CA-755 cells, PANC02 did not appear to show a higher rate of mutation to drug resistance in culture as based on the 6-thioguanine resistance marker. Although P-glycoprotein characteristic of the multidrug resistance (MDR) phenomenon could be demonstrated at the mRNA level using a sensitive RNAse protection assay, the level of expression found was several orders of magnitude lower than that observed in phenotypic MDR cell lines. Furthermore, quinidine failed to increase the sensitivity of PANC02 cells to Adriamycin under conditions that clearly potentiated the toxicity of the drug to a CHO cell line exhibiting classic MDR traits. The heterogeneity in the distribution of drugs was inferred as being significantly greater in PANC02 versus CA-755 cells in vivo as based on measurements of within-animal, within-tumor variance in the distribution of the marker compounds inulin and antipyrine. Although it may not be the only mechanism involved, this greater intratumor heterogeneity in drug distribution could theoretically play a major role in the intrinsic drug resistance of PANC02 in vivo.

Mechanisms of resistance to 6-thioguanine in a murine pancreatic tumor

PANC02 is a unique experimental animal tumor that fails to respond significantly to any known clinically active antitumor agent. In this regard, the murine ductal adenocarcinoma resembles its human counterpart. To study the mechanism for its intrinsic resistance to 6-thioguanine (TG), we compared the metabolism of the drug in PANC02 and a reference, TG-sensitive adenocarcinoma, CA-755. In comparison with CA-755, PANC02 cells were approximately 6 times less sensitive to TG and CHO cells were 80 times less sensitive in tissue culture. Nevertheless, the incorporation of TG into the DNA of these three cell lines was approximately equal at the lowest concentrations capable of reducing cloning efficiency by 50%, i.e., 3.0-3.8 pmol (dthioGMP)/nmol (dGMP). In mice bearing bilateral implants of CA-755 and PANC02, only CA-755 responded to TG treatment. At various doses used on various schedules, the incorporation of TG into CA-755 DNA readily achieved that observed to be cytotoxic to the cells in vitro, whereas the incorporation into the DNA of PANC02 tumor cells did not. Although the biochemical basis for the poor incorporation of TG into the DNA of PANC02 in vivo is not known, this factor appears to explain the refractoriness of PANC02 as compared with CA-755 to this antitumor antimetabolite.

Characterization of the DNA damage in 6-thioguanine-treated cells

6-Thioguanine (TG) incorporation into DNA has been associated with cytotoxicity and DNA damage in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) and murine leukemia L1210 cells. According to alkaline elution analysis, single-strand breaks (SSB) occur in both cell types. DNA-protein and interstrand crosslinks are prominent features of TG effects in L1210, CEM, and HL-60 but not CHO cells. To assess which DNA strand experiences SSB in CHO cells, the cells were synchronized by growth to confluence (late G1, S). The cells were then diluted into fresh medium so that they underwent a round of division during a subsequent 16-hr interval. They were treated with TG during this first cell cycle, and mitotic cells were harvested at the end of the first cycle using colcemid. SSB were determined in parental DNA (radiolabeled with thymidine during growth to confluence), TG-containing DNA (radiolabeled with [14C]TG during drug exposure), and daughter DNA (labeled with thymidine during the second cell cycle). SSB occurred in TG-containing DNA late in the second cell cycle after drug exposure and in the DNA synthesized from a TG-DNA template (daughter DNA). This observation is consistent with the known delayed cytotoxicity and chromosomal aberrations seen in CHO cells. The SSB suggest relatively normal elongation of DNA containing TG but altered synthesis and/or ligation from a TG-DNA template. This premise was tested in synchronized CHO cells. The DNA strand incorporating TG elongated naturally; however, DNA elongation was impaired in the cell cycle following TG treatment. The results are consistent with SSB in daughter DNA synthesized from a TG-DNA template due to inability to elongate the newly-synthesized strand.

Selective modulation of antibody response and natural killer cell activity by purine nucleoside analogues

Analogues that are poor substrates for adenosine deaminase or purine nucleoside phosphorylase may mimic immunodeficiencies associated with the enzyme deficiencies, and their activities may be directed toward selected lymphocyte subpopulations. Four analogues were studied for their effects on primary antibody response to either a T-dependent (sheep erythrocytes) or T-independent (trinitrophenyl-conjugated Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide) antigen as well as effects on T-cytotoxic and natural killer cell activities in mice. The nucleosides were: an adenosine analogue, tubercidin; two deoxyadenosine analogues, 2-chloro, 2'-deoxyadenosine and 2-fluoroadenine arabinoside-5'-phosphate; and a deoxyguanosine analogue, 9-beta-D-arabinosylguanine. Drugs were given i.p. once daily for 3 consecutive days. Immune responses were determined in spleen cell suspensions 1 day after the last dose. Tubercidin inhibited both T-cytotoxic and natural killer cell activities at doses that did not reduce primary antibody response, whereas the reverse was true for 2-chloro, 2'-deoxyadenosine and 2-fluoroadenine arabinoside-5'-phosphate. At higher doses, T-cytotoxic lymphocytes appeared to be more sensitive than natural killer cells to the deoxyadenosine analogues. 9-beta-D-Arabinosylguanine did not selectively inhibit the immune responses at doses that clearly reduced the yield of spleen lymphocytes. Assuming the analogues mimic endogenous nucleosides, the results suggest that natural killer cells are more sensitive to adenosine than are those cells responsible for primary antibody response, whereas the reverse is true for deoxyadenosine.