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Bramwell LR, Harries LW. Senescence, regulators of alternative splicing and effects of trametinib treatment in progeroid syndromes. GeroScience 2024; 46:1861-1879. [PMID: 37751047 PMCID: PMC10828446 DOI: 10.1007/s11357-023-00933-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 09/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Progeroid syndromes such as Hutchinson Gilford Progeroid syndrome (HGPS), Werner syndrome (WS) and Cockayne syndrome (CS), result in severely reduced lifespans and premature ageing. Normal senescent cells show splicing factor dysregulation, which has not yet been investigated in syndromic senescent cells. We sought to investigate the senescence characteristics and splicing factor expression profiles of progeroid dermal fibroblasts. Natural cellular senescence can be reversed by application of the senomorphic drug, trametinib, so we also investigated its ability to reverse senescence characteristics in syndromic cells. We found that progeroid cultures had a higher senescence burden, but did not always have differences in levels of proliferation, DNA damage repair and apoptosis. Splicing factor gene expression appeared dysregulated across the three syndromes. 10 µM trametinib reduced senescent cell load and affected other aspects of the senescence phenotype (including splicing factor expression) in HGPS and Cockayne syndromes. Werner syndrome cells did not demonstrate changes in in senescence following treatment. Splicing factor dysregulation in progeroid cells provides further evidence to support this mechanism as a hallmark of cellular ageing and highlights the use of progeroid syndrome cells in the research of ageing and age-related disease. This study suggests that senomorphic drugs such as trametinib could be a useful adjunct to therapy for progeroid diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura R Bramwell
- RNA-Mediated Mechanisms of Disease Group, Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences (Medical School), Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Lorna W Harries
- RNA-Mediated Mechanisms of Disease Group, Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences (Medical School), Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK.
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Bramwell LR, Frankum R, Harries LW. Repurposing Drugs for Senotherapeutic Effect: Potential Senomorphic Effects of Female Synthetic Hormones. Cells 2024; 13:517. [PMID: 38534362 DOI: 10.3390/cells13060517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2024] [Revised: 02/26/2024] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Repurposing previously approved drugs may fast track the route to the clinic for potential senotherapeutics and improves the inefficiency of the clinical drug development pipeline. We performed a repurposing screen of 240 clinically approved molecules in human primary dermal fibroblasts for their effects on CDKN2A expression. Molecules demonstrating effects on CDKN2A expression underwent secondary screening for senescence-associated beta galactosidase (SAB) activity, based on effect size, direction, and/or molecule identity. Selected molecules then underwent a more detailed assessment of senescence phenotypes including proliferation, apoptosis, DNA damage, senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) expression, and regulators of alternative splicing. A selection of the molecules demonstrating effects on senescence were then used in a new bioinformatic structure-function screen to identify common structural motifs. In total, 90 molecules displayed altered CDKN2A expression at one or other dose, of which 15 also displayed effects on SAB positivity in primary human dermal fibroblasts. Of these, 3 were associated with increased SAB activity, and 11 with reduced activity. The female synthetic sex hormones-diethylstilboestrol, ethynyl estradiol and levonorgestrel-were all associated with a reduction in aspects of the senescence phenotype in male cells, with no effects visible in female cells. Finally, we identified that the 30 compounds that decreased CDKN2A activity the most had a common substructure linked to this function. Our results suggest that several drugs licensed for other indications may warrant exploration as future senotherapies, but that different donors and potentially different sexes may respond differently to senotherapeutic compounds. This underlines the importance of considering donor-related characteristics when designing drug screening platforms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura R Bramwell
- RNA-Mediated Mechanisms of Disease Group, Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences (Medical School), Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter EX2 5DW, UK
| | - Ryan Frankum
- RNA-Mediated Mechanisms of Disease Group, Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences (Medical School), Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter EX2 5DW, UK
| | - Lorna W Harries
- RNA-Mediated Mechanisms of Disease Group, Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences (Medical School), Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter EX2 5DW, UK
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Davies M, Bramwell LR, Jeffery N, Bunce B, Lee BP, Knight B, Auckland C, Masoli JA, Harries LW. Persistence of clinically-relevant levels of SARS-CoV2 envelope gene subgenomic RNAs in non-immunocompromised individuals. Int J Infect Dis 2021; 116:418-425. [PMID: 34890790 PMCID: PMC8757659 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2021.12.312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2021] [Revised: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives This study aimed to evaluate the associations between COVID-19 severity and active viral load, and to characterize the dynamics of active SARS-CoV-2 clearance in a series of archival samples taken from patients in the first wave of COVID-19 infection in the South West of the UK. Methods Subgenomic RNA (sgRNA) and E-gene genomic sequences were measured in a retrospective collection of PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2-positive samples from 176 individuals, and related to disease severity. Viral clearance dynamics were then assessed in relation to symptom onset and last positive test. Results Whilst E-gene sgRNAs declined before E-gene genomic sequences, some individuals retained sgRNA positivity for up to 68 days. 13% of sgRNA-positive cases still exhibited clinically relevant levels of virus after 10 days, with no clinical features previously associated with prolonged viral clearance times. Conclusions Our results suggest that potentially active virus can sometimes persist beyond a 10-day period, and could pose a potential risk of onward transmission. Where this would pose a serious public health threat, additional mitigation strategies may be necessary to reduce the risk of secondary cases in vulnerable settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Merlin Davies
- Institute of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, University of Exeter, RILD building, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford), Barrack Road, Exeter, UK
| | - Laura R Bramwell
- Institute of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, University of Exeter, RILD building, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford), Barrack Road, Exeter, UK
| | - Nicola Jeffery
- Institute of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, University of Exeter, RILD building, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford), Barrack Road, Exeter, UK
| | - Ben Bunce
- NIHR Exeter Clinical Research Facility, Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Barrack Road, Exeter, UK
| | - Ben P Lee
- Institute of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, University of Exeter, RILD building, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford), Barrack Road, Exeter, UK
| | - Bridget Knight
- NIHR Exeter Clinical Research Facility, Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Barrack Road, Exeter, UK
| | - Cressida Auckland
- Microbiology Department, Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, Exeter, UK
| | - Jane Ah Masoli
- Institute of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, University of Exeter, RILD building, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford), Barrack Road, Exeter, UK; Healthcare for Older People, Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, Exeter, UK
| | - Lorna W Harries
- Institute of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, University of Exeter, RILD building, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford), Barrack Road, Exeter, UK.
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McCulloch LJ, Bramwell LR, Knight B, Kos K. Circulating and tissue specific transcription of angiopoietin-like protein 4 in human Type 2 diabetes. Metabolism 2020; 106:154192. [PMID: 32112823 DOI: 10.1016/j.metabol.2020.154192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2019] [Revised: 02/12/2020] [Accepted: 02/24/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
AIMS Obesity is associated with adipose tissue (AT) dysfunction marked by cellular hypertrophy, inflammation, hypoxia and fibrosis. Angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4) inhibits lipoprotein lipase which regulates triglyceride storage. Recently, inhibition of ANGPTL4 has been suggested as potential treatment for type 2 diabetes. Here we evaluate ANGPTL4's role in diabetes and examine ANGPTL4 in relation to markers of AT dysfunction and fatty liver disease. MATERIALS & METHODS We obtained a unique set of paired samples from subjects undergoing weight loss surgery including subcutaneous AT (SCAT), omental AT (OMAT), liver, thigh muscle biopsies and serum including a post-surgical SCAT biopsy after 9 months. RESULTS SCAT ANGPTL4 expression and circulating protein levels were higher in people with diabetes and correlated with glucose levels and HOMA-IR but not BMI. At post-surgical follow up, SCAT ANGPTL4 declined in subjects with diabetes to levels of those without diabetes. ANGPTL4 expression correlated with HIF1A and inflammation (MCP-1, IL-6). CONCLUSIONS We found that SCAT ANGPTL4 was closely linked with the expression of ANGPTL4 in the liver and represented a good proxy for liver steatosis. We suggest the elevation of ANGPTL4 levels in diabetes and the association with inflammation and hypoxia is due to a compensatory mechanism to limit further AT dysfunction. A reduction of ANGPTL4 for the treatment of T2DM as previously suggested is thus unlikely to be of further benefit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura J McCulloch
- Diabetes and Obesity Research Group, Institute of Biological and Clinical Sciences, University of Exeter, EX2 5DW, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Laura R Bramwell
- Diabetes and Obesity Research Group, Institute of Biological and Clinical Sciences, University of Exeter, EX2 5DW, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Bridget Knight
- Exeter NIHR Clinical Research Facility, RILD, Exeter EX2 5DW, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Katarina Kos
- Diabetes and Obesity Research Group, Institute of Biological and Clinical Sciences, University of Exeter, EX2 5DW, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
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Ayyappa KA, Shatwan I, Bodhini D, Bramwell LR, Ramya K, Sudha V, Anjana RM, Lovegrove JA, Mohan V, Radha V, Vimaleswaran KS. High fat diet modifies the association of lipoprotein lipase gene polymorphism with high density lipoprotein cholesterol in an Asian Indian population. Nutr Metab (Lond) 2017; 14:8. [PMID: 28115978 PMCID: PMC5247808 DOI: 10.1186/s12986-016-0155-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2016] [Accepted: 12/17/2016] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in lipoprotein lipase gene (LPL) have been shown to influence metabolism related to lipid phenotypes. Dietary factors have been shown to modify the association between LPL SNPs and lipids; however, to date, there are no studies in South Asians. Hence, we tested for the association of four common LPL SNPs with plasma lipids and examined the interactions between the SNPs and dietary factors on lipids in 1,845 Asian Indians. Methods The analysis was performed in 788 Type 2 diabetes cases and 1,057 controls randomly chosen from the cross-sectional Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiological Study. Serum triacylglycerol (TAG), serum total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were measured using a Hitachi-912 autoanalyzer (Roche Diagnostics GmbH, Mannheim, Germany). Dietary intake was assessed using a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. The SNPs (rs1121923, rs328, rs4922115 and rs285) were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction followed by restriction enzyme digestion and 20% of samples were sequenced to validate the genotypes obtained. Statistical Package for Social Sciences for Windows version 22.0 (SPSS, Chicago, IL) was used for statistical analysis. Results After correction for multiple testing and adjusting for potential confounders, SNPs rs328 and rs285 showed association with HDL-C (P = 0.0004) and serum TAG (P = 1×10−5), respectively. The interaction between SNP rs1121923 and fat intake (energy %) on HDL-C (P = 0.003) was also significant, where, among those who consumed a high fat diet (28.4 ± 2.5%), the T allele carriers (TT + XT) had significantly higher HDL-C concentrations (P = 0.0002) and 30% reduced risk of low HDL-C levels compared to the CC homozygotes. None of the interactions on other lipid traits were statistically significant. Conclusion Our findings suggest that individuals carrying T allele of the SNP rs1121923 have increased HDL-C levels when consuming a high fat diet compared to CC homozygotes. Our finding warrants confirmation in prospective studies and randomized controlled trials. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12986-016-0155-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- K A Ayyappa
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Kallam Anji Reddy Centre, Plot no. 20, Golden Jubilee Biotech Park for Women Society, SIPCOT-IT PARK, Siruseri, Chennai 603 103 India.,Present Address: Department of Biotechnology, School of Chemical & Biotechnology, SASTRA University, Tanjore, India
| | - I Shatwan
- Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, Hugh Sinclair Unit of Human Nutrition and Institute for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research (ICMR), University of Reading, Whiteknights, PO Box 226, Reading, RG6 6AP UK.,Food and Nutrition Department, Faculty of Home Economics, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - D Bodhini
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Kallam Anji Reddy Centre, Plot no. 20, Golden Jubilee Biotech Park for Women Society, SIPCOT-IT PARK, Siruseri, Chennai 603 103 India
| | - L R Bramwell
- Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, Hugh Sinclair Unit of Human Nutrition and Institute for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research (ICMR), University of Reading, Whiteknights, PO Box 226, Reading, RG6 6AP UK
| | - K Ramya
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Kallam Anji Reddy Centre, Plot no. 20, Golden Jubilee Biotech Park for Women Society, SIPCOT-IT PARK, Siruseri, Chennai 603 103 India
| | - V Sudha
- Department of Foods, Nutrition and Dietetics Research, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Chennai, India
| | - R M Anjana
- Department of Diabetology, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Chennai, India.,Dr. Mohan's Diabetes Specialties Centre, WHO Collaborating Centre for Non-communicable Diseases Prevention and Control, Chennai, India
| | - J A Lovegrove
- Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, Hugh Sinclair Unit of Human Nutrition and Institute for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research (ICMR), University of Reading, Whiteknights, PO Box 226, Reading, RG6 6AP UK
| | - V Mohan
- Department of Diabetology, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Chennai, India.,Dr. Mohan's Diabetes Specialties Centre, WHO Collaborating Centre for Non-communicable Diseases Prevention and Control, Chennai, India
| | - V Radha
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Kallam Anji Reddy Centre, Plot no. 20, Golden Jubilee Biotech Park for Women Society, SIPCOT-IT PARK, Siruseri, Chennai 603 103 India
| | - K S Vimaleswaran
- Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, Hugh Sinclair Unit of Human Nutrition and Institute for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research (ICMR), University of Reading, Whiteknights, PO Box 226, Reading, RG6 6AP UK
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