脂多糖对蜕膜NK细胞表达NKG2D水平的促进作用

为探讨脂多糖(LPS)及其受体TLR4相互作用并影响蜕膜NK细胞的可能机制,在孕E6.5给BALB/c×C57BL/6孕鼠腹腔注射LPS,而E10.5采用流式细胞术检测小鼠蜕膜NKG2D+TGF-β-NK细胞构成比,计算小鼠胚胎吸收率。此外,采用磁珠亲和细胞分选术纯化E10.5小鼠蜕膜NK细胞并培养,用LPS刺激所培养的细胞,并观察刺激后NK细胞表达NKG2D水平的变化。研究发现,在体内和体外实验中LPS刺激均可显著增高BALB/c×C57BL/6孕鼠蜕膜NK细胞NKG2D的表达水平,其中腹腔注射可显著增高胚胎吸收率。在体外细胞培养实验中,预先在培养基中加入抗TLR4抗体,则LPS刺激后细胞NKG2D表达水平无显著升高。这些结果提示,LPS与TLR4相互作用可增强小鼠蜕膜NK细胞NKG2D的表达,而NKG2D的过高表达不利于同种异基因妊娠成功。     

赖氨大黄酸通过激活JNK诱导宫颈癌HeLa细胞凋亡

目的研究赖氨大黄酸(RHL)对人宫颈癌HeLa细胞增殖、凋亡的影响,并探讨其作用机制。方法用MTT法检测细胞增殖;用流式细胞仪检测细胞凋亡,用Western blot检测凋亡相关蛋白及JNK蛋白与蛋白磷酸化水平。结果 RHL能有效抑制宫颈癌HeLa细胞增殖,并能诱导其凋亡,随药物浓度的增加,细胞凋亡率也逐渐升高;RHL能够激活caspase-3、caspase-7和PARP,并激活磷酸化的JNK表达,磷酸化的JNK表达增加在RHL的诱导凋亡中起主要作用。结论 RHL通过激活JNK-caspase-PARP信号通路抑制HeLa细胞增殖,并诱导其凋亡,赖氨大黄酸解决了大黄酸不溶于水的问题,有望成为临床肿瘤辅助化疗药物。     

Up-regulation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase pathway in Friedreich's ataxia cells

The severe reduction in mRNA and protein levels of the mitochondrial protein frataxin, encoded by the X25 gene, causes Friedreich ataxia (FRDA), the most common form of recessive hereditary ataxia. Increasing evidence underlines the pathogenetic role of oxidative stress in this disease. We generated an in vitro cellular model of regulated human frataxin overexpression. We identified, by differential display technique, the mitogen activated protein kinase kinase 4 mRNA down regulation in frataxin overexpressing cells. We studied the stress kinases pathway in this cellular model and in fibroblasts from FRDA patients. Frataxin overexpression reduced c-Jun N-terminal kinase phosphorylation. Furthermore, exposure of FRDA fibroblasts to several forms of environmental stress caused an up regulation of phospho-JNK and phospho-c-Jun. To understand if this susceptibility results in cell death, we have investigated the involvement of caspases. A significantly higher activation of caspase-9 was observed in FRDA versus control fibroblasts after serum-withdrawal. Our findings suggest the presence, in FRDA patient cells, of a 'hyperactive' stress signaling pathway. The role of frataxin in FRDA pathogenesis could be explained, at least in part, by this hyperactivity.     

Curcumin inhibits monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 expression and enhances cholesterol efflux by suppressing the c-Jun N-terminal kinase pathway in macrophage

Objective

To investigate the effect of curcumin on monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1) production and reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) in macrophage induced by oxidation low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL), and to identify the signal pathways involved.

Methods

The macrophages were treated with ox-LDL and various concentrations of curcumin simultaneously. The MCP-1 expression was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The apoAI-mediated cholesterol efflux was measured by ³H-cholesterol-labeled counting radioactivity. The activation of intracellular signaling pathways was studied by Western blotting.

Results

Curcumin decreased the production of MCP-1 induced by ox-LDL in macrophages. MCP-1 expression was restrained by the inhibition of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway (SP600125) and NF-κB pathway (BAY11-7082). Curcumin suppressed the phosphorylation of JNK and activation of NF-κB. Curcumin also enhanced RCT via up-regulating the expression of liver X receptor alpha (LXRα), ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) and scavenger receptor class B type I (SR-BI). Additionally, the inhibition of JNK (SP600125) increased cholesterol efflux and increased the expression of ABCA1 and SR-BI, but had no effect on LXRα.

Conclusion

Curcumin suppresses MCP-1 production induced by ox-LDL via the JNK pathway and NK-κB pathway, while enhances cholesterol efflux in macrophage via suppressing the JNK pathway and activating the LXR–ABCA1/SR-BI pathway, which indicate that the vascular protective effect of curcumin is related to anti-inflammation and anti-atherosclerosis.     

妊娠期uNK、pNK细胞NKG2A与NKG2D的表达及其生物学意义的研究

目的:研究妊娠期妇女子宫NK细胞(uNK细胞)与外周血NK细胞(pNK细胞)表面NKG2A和NKG2D及其相应配体的表达,探讨uNK细胞表面NKG2A和NKG2D的不平衡表达与母胎界面所形成的免疫耐受关系。方法:采用流式细胞术检测30例孕6～9周的正常妊娠妇女uNK细胞和pNK细胞NKG2A、NKG2D的表达状况;RTPCR技术检测绒毛膜组织HLAE、MICA的表达。结果:子宫NK细胞NKG2A的表达显著高于外周血NK细胞,二者分别为(97.86±1.75)%与(33.35±10.92)%;子宫NK细胞NKG2D的表达水平与外周血NK细胞相近,分别为(93.21±4.52)%与(97.80±1.72)%,滋养层组织仅检测到HLAEmRNA的表达。结论:妊娠期子宫NK细胞表面高表达抑制性受体NKG2A,同时滋养层组织表达相应的配体HLAE,这可能是维持母胎界面免疫耐受的重要因素。     

Activation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signalling in experimentally induced gastric lesions in rats

The c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) participates in intracellular signalling cascades that mediate inflammatory responses. Therefore, the JNK signalling may be involved in gastric injury and inhibition of this pathway may form the basis of a new strategy for the treatment of gastric injury. The aim of this study was to determine whether JNK participates in the formation of gastric lesions in an experimental model. Acute gastric injury was induced in Sprague-Dawley rats by intragastric administration of 100% ethanol. The amount of phospho-JNK in the rat stomach was determined using immunohistochemistry and Western analysis. Animals received subcutaneous injections of a specific JNK inhibitor SP600125 or vehicle and the extent of mucosal damage in the stomach was determined. Western analysis revealed early phosphorylation of JNK and, to a lesser extent, p38 as well as late phosphorylation of the p42/44 extracellular signal-related kinases during the development of gastric lesions. JNK was phosphorylated in epithelial cells and in occasional mononuclear cells present at lesion sites. These cells were rarely found in samples from control specimens. Treatment with SP600125 significantly reduced the extent of gastric lesions. These findings indicate that experimental gastric injury is associated with activation of the JNK signalling pathway, and also suggest that JNK inhibitors may play a role in the treatment of gastric injury in humans.     

Neuroprotection against ischemic brain injury by a small peptide inhibitor of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) via nuclear and non-nuclear pathways

Our previous studies and the others have strongly suggested that c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling pathway plays a critical role in ischemic brain injury. Here we reported that Tat-JNK binding domain (JBD) of JNK-interacting protein-1 (JIP-1), a smaller 11-mer peptide corresponding to residues 153-163 of murine JIP-1 conjugated to Tat peptide, perturbed the assembly of JIP-1-JNK3 complexes, thus inhibiting the activation of JNK3 induced by ischemia/reperfusion in the vulnerable hippocampal CA1 subregion. As a result, Tat-JBD diminished the increased phosphorylation of c-Jun (a nuclear substrate of JNK) and the increased expression of Fas ligand induced by ischemia/reperfusion in the vulnerable hippocampal CA1 subregion. At the same time, through inhibiting phosphorylation of Bcl-2 (a cytosolic target of JNK) and the release of Bax from Bcl-2/Bax dimers, Tat-JBD attenuated Bax translocation to mitochondria and the release of cytochrome c induced by ischemia/reperfusion. Furthermore, the activation of caspase3 and hydrolyzation of poly-ADP-ribose-polymerase induced by brain ischemia/reperfusion were also significantly suppressed by preinfusion of the peptide Tat-JBD. Importantly, Tat-JBD showed neuroprotective effects on ischemic brain damage in vivo, and administration of the peptide after ischemia also achieved the same effects as preinfusion of the peptide did. Thus, our findings imply that Tat-JBD induced neuroprotection against ischemia/reperfusion in rat hippocampal CA1 region via inhibiting nuclear and non-nuclear pathways of JNK signaling. Taken together, these results indicate that Tat-JBD peptide provides a promising therapeutic approach for ischemic brain injury.     

c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and JNK interacting protein response in rat brain after transient middle cerebral artery occlusion

c-Jun response is involved in the development of ischemic brain injury, which is activated by c-Jun N-terminal kinase-1 (JNK-1). The activity of JNK-1 is strictly regulated, and only the phosphorylated form of JNK (phospho-JNK) which is translocated to the nucleus has an ability to activate c-Jun response. There is a protein which inhibits JNK-1 activation, and known as JNK interacting protein-1 (JIP-1). In this study, we investigated change in JNK-1, phospho-JNK, and JIP-1 immunoreactivity in rat brain after transient middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion. Immunoreactive JNK-1 was scant in the sham-control brain, but it was induced at 1 h after reperfusion, which was slightly increased at 3 h of reperfusion. By contrast, phospho-JNK remained negative till 3 h. At 8 h, JNK-1 and phospho-JNK became distinctly positive, and nuclei as well as cytoplasm were stained. Thereafter, immunoreactivity for JNK-1 and phospho-JNK became furthermore dense, and most neurons revealed positively stained nuclei. Immunoreactivity for JIP-1 remained negative till 8 h of reperfusion, but at 24 and 72 h, cytoplasm of cortical neurons at the MCA boundary area was positively stained. This JIP-1 induction got behind the JNK-1 activation, and therefore, may be a vain effort for neurons to survive. Inhibition of JNK-1 activation might become an innovative means of therapy for stroke treatment in the future.     

Protective role of c-Jun N-terminal kinase-2 (JNK2) in ibuprofen-induced acute liver injury

Ibuprofen is a worldwide used non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug which may cause acute liver injury (ALI) requiring liver transplantation. We aimed to unveil the molecular pathways involved in triggering ibuprofen-induced ALI, which, at present, remain elusive. First, we investigated activation of essential pathways in human liver sections of ibuprofen-induced ALI. Next, we assessed the cytotoxicity of ibuprofen in vitro and developed a novel murine model of ibuprofen intoxication. To assess the role of JNK, we used animals carrying constitutive deletion of c-Jun N-terminal kinase 1 (Jnk1^−/−) or Jnk2 (Jnk2^−/−) expression and included investigations using animals with hepatocyte-specific Jnk deletion either genetically (Jnk1^Δhepa) or by siRNA (siJnk2^Δhepa). We found in human and murine samples of ibuprofen-induced acute liver failure that JNK phosphorylation was increased in the cytoplasm of hepatocytes and other non-liver parenchymal cells (non-LPCs) compared with healthy tissue. In mice, ibuprofen intoxication resulted in a significantly stronger degree of liver injury compared with vehicle-treated controls as evidenced by serum transaminases, and hepatic histopathology. Next, we investigated molecular pathways. PKCα, AKT, JNK and RIPK1 were significantly increased 8 h after ibuprofen intoxication. Constitutive Jnk1^−/− and Jnk2^−/− deficient mice exhibited increased liver dysfunction compared to wild-type (WT) animals. Furthermore, siJnk2^Δhepa animals showed a dramatic increase in biochemical markers of liver function, which correlated with significantly higher serum liver enzymes and worsened liver histology, and MAPK activation compared to Jnk1^Δhepa or WT animals. In our study, cytoplasmic JNK activation in hepatocytes and other non-LPCs is a hallmark of human and murine ibuprofen-induced ALI. Functional in vivo analysis demonstrated a protective role of hepatocyte-specific Jnk2 during ibuprofen ALI. Copyright © 2018 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Expression of FasL and its interaction with Fas are mediated by c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway in 6-OHDA-induced rat model of Parkinson disease

Our previous studies and those of others have strongly suggested that c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling pathway plays a critical role in 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-induced dopaminergic neuron injury in the substantia nigra. However, the downstream mechanism that accounts for the proapoptotic actions of JNK in 6-OHDA lesion remains to be investigated in detail. Fas, a member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor family with proapoptotic functions, was reported to be elevated within the striatum and substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. In the present study, we examined the changes in the protein level of Fas ligand (FasL) and its interaction with Fas in a rat model of PD. We demonstrate that the expression of FasL and not Fas was increased after 6-OHDA lesion; additionally, the interaction of FasL and Fas was increased due to 6-OHDA lesion. This indicates that the 6-OHDA-induced activation of Fas signaling pathway is mediated by JNK and that FasL may be a promising target in the therapeutic approach for PD patients.     

妊娠子宫微环境中uNK细胞NKG2A和NKG2D及其配体表达的研究

目的：研究妊娠子宫微环境中子宫自然杀伤细胞（uNK细胞）NKG2A和NKG2D及其相应配体的表达，探讨NKG2A与NKG2D的不平衡表达在母胎免疫耐受形成中的作用。方法：选择30例孕6-9周的正常妊娠妇女,分离其新鲜蜕膜组织，除去绒毛,分离蜕膜和外周血单个核细胞，采用流式细胞仪测定NK细胞的数量及NKG2A与NKG2D的表达；采用RT-PCR技术检测滋养层组织NKG2A与NKG2D配体人类白细胞抗原-E(HLA-E)、主要组织相容性复合体-Ⅰ类分子相关蛋白A(MICA)mRNA的表达结果：妊娠子宫蜕膜淋巴细胞中NK细胞约占70%,流式细胞分析的结果显示，子宫自然杀伤细胞NKG2A的表达显著高于外周血NK细胞，分别为97.86%±1.75%与33.35%±10.92%（〖AKx-D〗±s），两者差异显著（P<0.05），在滋养层细胞中检测到其配体HLA-E的表达；而与外周血相比，uNK细胞表面NKG2D的表达与之较为相近，分别为93.21%±4.52%与97.80%±1.72%，但两者仍有显著差异（P<0.05）。在滋养层组织未检测到其相应配体MICA mRNA的表达结论：蜕膜中的淋巴细胞主要为NK细胞，其免疫学表型与外周血NK细胞有较大的区别，妊娠期子宫自然杀伤细胞表面高表达抑制性受体NKG2A，同时滋养层组织表达相应的配体人类白细胞抗原-E，这可能是维持母胎界面免疫耐受的重要因素。     

Triptolide inhibits COX-2 expression via NF-kappa B pathway in astrocytes

Previous investigations have showed that triptolide possessed potent anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive properties. In the present study, we examined the protective effects of triptolide on the inflammatory response induced by bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) both in vivo and in vitro. Intrahippocampal injection of LPS (4 microg) in rats significantly increased the immunoreactivity of glial fibrillary acid protein (GFAP) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in the injected region, which was reduced by pretreatment with triptolide (10-50 microg/kg) for 5d. In the cultured human differentiated A172 astroglial cells, LPS (1mg/L) increased the expression of COX-2 mRNA and protein, the production of prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) and the DNA binding activity of NF-kappa B, which were markedly attenuated by pretreatment with triptolide (0.2-5 microg/L) for 1h. These results suggested that the protective effect of triptolide on neuroinflammation is mediated by decreasing COX-2 expression, at least partly, via the inhibition of NF-kappa B signaling pathway.     

Notch-independent regulation of Hes-1 expression by c-Jun N-terminal kinase signaling in human endothelial cells

Our laboratory has recently demonstrated constitutive activation of the Notch signaling pathway in Kaposi's sarcoma tumor cells. As endothelial cells (EC) are believed to be the progenitor of these tumor cells, this study was designed to examine the effect of Notch activation on normal human EC. Recent reports suggest Notch activation induces EC growth arrest, and that this growth arrest may be linked to the establishment or maintenance of EC quiescence, the phenotype seen in contact-inhibited EC lining the vasculature. To gain further insight into Notch activation and quiescence, we first confirmed that Notch activation induced EC growth arrest. Next, we examined Notch activation in confluent, growth arrested EC (mimicking the cells lining the vasculature). In contrast to previous reports, we found confluent EC possess lower levels of activated Notch compared to proliferating control cells. Interestingly, these cells express elevated levels of Hes-1 protein (an immediate downstream target of Notch signaling) despite decreased Notch activation. Under these conditions, Hes-1 expression was mediated, at least in part, by a Notch-independent mechanism involving c-jun N-terminal protein kinase (JNK) signaling. This is the first report, to our knowledge, that JNK signaling can modulate Hes-1 expression in a Notch-independent manner.     

Brain ischemia/reperfusion-induced expression of DP5 and its interaction with Bcl-2, thus freeing Bax from Bcl-2/Bax dimmers are mediated by c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway

Our previous studies and those of others have strongly suggested that c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling pathway plays a critical role in ischemic brain injury. But the downstream mechanism that accounts for the proapoptotic actions of JNK during cerebral ischemia/reperfusion still remains to be investigated in detail. DP5, one of the mammalian BH3-only proteins, was cloned as a neuronal apoptosis-inducing gene. In this study, we examined the changes of protein level of DP5 and its interaction with Bcl-2 family members in a rat model of global ischemia and reperfusion by immunoprecipitation and immunoblotting; furthermore, we investigated the effect of activated JNK on DP5-signaling pathway. We show here that DP5 was induced and interacted with Bcl-2 but not Bax in hippocampal CA1 6 h to 3 days after ischemia, while the interaction of Bcl-2 with Bax decreased. Systemic administration of SP600125, a small molecule JNK-specific inhibitor, diminished the induction of DP5 and its interaction with Bcl-2 after 2 days of ischemia. At the same time, SP600125 increased the interaction of Bax with Bcl-2 after 2 days of reperfusion. Thus, these results indicate that brain ischemia/reperfusion-induced activation of DP5 signaling pathway is mediated by JNK in postischemic rat hippocampal CA1.     

沙利度胺对白血病细胞NKG2D配体表达及NK细胞杀伤敏感性的影响

目的:探究沙利度胺对白血病细胞自然杀伤细胞及活性受体D(natural killer cell group 2 member D,NKG2D)配体表达及自然杀伤细胞(natural killer,NK)杀伤敏感性的影响.方法:取对数生长期白血病细胞株HL-60、K562细胞,以不同浓度沙利度胺作用48 h,并设置未经沙...