Genetic approaches to tyrosine kinase signaling pathways in the immune system

The development of a productive immune response requires the carefully coordinated activation of lymphocytes through their cell-surface antigen receptors, surface immunoglobulin (Ig) on B cells and the T cell receptor (TCR) on T cells. Studies of mutant cell lines, gene-targeted mice and humans with inherited immunodeficiencies have demonstrated that tyrosine kinases are critical components of lymphocyte antigen-receptor-signaling pathways. Our laboratory is interested in the mechanisms by which modulation of signaling pathways involving tyrosine kinases and related signaling molecules can influence cell function and development. We have concentrated our attention on the genetic and biochemical dissection of signaling pathways in the immune system, and how altering these pathways can change responses to infectious disease. As a model system, we are examining the Tec family kinases and their roles in T lymphocyte development and function.     

Differential activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase signalling pathways by isometric contractions in isolated slow- and fast-twitch rat skeletal muscle

Activation of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases has been implicated in the signal transduction pathways linking exercise to adaptive changes of muscle protein expression. In the present study, we investigated whether contractions of isolated muscles induced phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) and p38 MAPK in a fibre-type dependent manner. Slow-twitch (soleus) and fast-twitch (epitrochlearis, extensor digitorum longus) rat skeletal muscles were exposed to intermittent tetanic stimulation. Compared with the contralateral non-stimulated muscle, contractions increased ERK1/2 phosphorylation to the same extent in fast- and slow-twitch muscles. Significant increase in phosphorylation of p38 MAPK was observed in the fast-twitch muscles only. The total amount of ERK1/2 and p38 MAPK proteins was higher in the slow-twitch soleus muscle. In conclusion, MAP kinase signalling pathways are differentially activated and expressed in slow- and fast-twitch muscles. In addition, this activation is owing to muscle contraction per se and do not demand additional external influence.     

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor promotes innate immune responses by suppressing glucocorticoid-induced expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphatase-1

The pro-inflammatory cytokine macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) acts as a physiological counter-regulator of the immuno-suppressive effects of glucocorticoids. However, the mechanisms whereby MIF exerts its counter-balancing effect remain largely unknown. Here we report that MAPK phosphatase 1 (MKP-1), an archetypal member of dual specificity phosphatase that inactivates MAPK activity in response to pro-inflammatory stimuli, is a critical target of MIF-glucocorticoid crosstalk. Recombinant MIF counter-regulated in a dose-dependent fashion dexamethasone inhibition of TNF and IL-8 production by RAW 264.7 macrophages and U-937 promonocytes stimulated with lipopolysaccharides (LPS) or with LPS plus phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate. Stimulation of RAW 264.7 macrophages with dexamethasone or dexamethasone plus LPS led to a robust up-regulation of MKP-1 mRNA and protein expressions that were counter-regulated by addition of recombinant MIF. Antisense MIF macrophages expressing reduced levels of endogenous MIF produced higher amount of MKP-1 and lower amount of TNF after exposure to dexamethasone and dexamethasone plus LPS, indicating that endogenous MIF acts in an autocrine fashion to override glucocorticoid-induced MKP-1 expression and inhibition of cytokine production. Taken together, these data identify MKP-1 as a molecular target of MIF-glucocorticoid crosstalk and provide a molecular basis for the control of macrophage responses by a pair of physiological regulators of innate immunity.     

Dysregulation of mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathways in simian immunodeficiency virus encephalitis

Central nervous system (CNS) disease is a frequent complication of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 infection. Identification of cellular mechanisms that control virus replication and that mediate development of HIV-associated neuropathology will provide novel strategies for therapeutic intervention. The milieu of the CNS during HIV infection is extraordinarily complex because of infiltration of inflammatory cells and production of chemokines, cytokines, and neurotoxic molecules. Cells in the CNS must integrate signaling pathways activated simultaneously by products of virus replication and infiltrating immune cells. In this study, we examined activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in the CNS of simian immunodeficiency virus-infected macaques during acute, asymptomatic, and terminal infection. We demonstrate that significantly increased (P < 0.02) activation of ERK MAPK, typically associated with anti-apoptotic and neuroprotective pathways, occurs predominantly in astrocytes and immediately precedes suppression of virus replication and macrophage activation that occur after acute infection. In contrast, significantly increased activation of proapoptotic, neurodegenerative MAPKs JNK (P = 0.03; predominantly in macrophages/microglia), and p38 (P = 0.03; predominantly in neurons and astrocytes) after acute infection correlates with subsequent resurgent virus replication and development of neurological lesions. This shift from classically neuroprotective to neurodegenerative MAPK pathways suggests that agents that inhibit activation of JNK/p38 may be protective against HIV-associated CNS disease.     

Involvement of protein kinase C signalling and mitogen-activated protein kinase in the amebocyte-producing organ of Biomphalaria glabrata (Mollusca)

Mechanisms that regulate hemocyte production in molluscs, at either the organismal or cellular levels, are not well understood. In the present study, 24-h saline cultures of the amebocyte-producing organ (APO) of the schistosome-transmitting snail Biomphalaria glabrata were used to test for the potential involvement of protein kinase C (PKC) signalling in hematopoiesis. Exposure to phorbol myristate acetate (PMA), an activator of PKC, resulted in an increase in the number of dividing hematopoietic cells in APOs from schistosome-resistant Salvador snails. PMA-induced cell division was blocked by treatment with U0126, an inhibitor of the mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase, MEK1/2. These results suggest that PKC-induced activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase, ERK1/2, is involved in cell division in the APO.     

Differential activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase signalling pathways in the hippocampus of CRND8 transgenic mouse, a model of Alzheimer's disease

Transgenic Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases 8 (TgCRND8) mice expressing a double mutant form of human amyloid precursor protein represent a good model of Alzheimer's disease, and can be useful to clarify the involvement of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) dysregulation in the pathophysiology of this neurodegenerative disorder. Activation of extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2, jun kinase (JNK) and p38MAPK was studied in the hippocampus of 7-month-old TgCRND8 mice by immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis using antibodies selective for the phosphorylated, and thus active, forms of the enzymes. We demonstrated that the three main MAPK pathways were differentially activated in cells of the hippocampus of TgCRND8 mice in comparison to wild type (Wt) littermates, p38MAPK and JNK being more activated, while ERK less activated. p38MAPK was significantly activated in microglia, astrocytes and neurons, around and distant from the plaques. JNK was highly activated in cells closely surrounding the plaques. No difference was observed in the activation of the two major bands of JNK, at a molecular weight of 46 kDa and 54 kDa. These data indicate the possible involvement of p38MAPK and JNK pathways dysregulation in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. The ERK2 isoform of the ERK pathway was less activated in the hippocampal dentate gyrus of Tg mice in basal conditions. Furthermore activation of the ERK pathway by ex vivo cholinergic stimulation with carbachol caused significantly higher activation of ERK in the hippocampus of Wt mice than in Tg mice. These findings may pose a molecular basis for the memory disruption of Alzheimer's disease, since proper functioning of the basal forebrain cholinergic neurons and of ERK2 is critical for memory formation.     

Protein kinase C independent restoration of specific immune responsiveness in common variable immunodeficiency

7,8-Disubstituted guanine ribonucleosides represent a class of B lymphocyte agonists that utilize a protein kinase C-independent signaling pathway. These compounds provide an alternate T helper signal for B cells and enhance antigen-specific humoral responses in the murine model and in an IL-2-dependent human model in vitro. They effectively restore high level immune responses in a variety of murine models of immunodeficiency both in vivo and in vitro. In this study we examined the potential of these compounds to improve antibody responses generated by cultured cells from patients with common variable immunodeficiency (CVI). The inability to mount normal humoral responses to antigen was confirmed in nine patients with diagnosed CVI (CVI: 37 +/- 16, normal 653 +/- 116 plaque-forming cells (PFC)/culture; P less than 0.001). In cultured lymphocytes from eight of the nine patients studied, a normal level or greater responses to nominal antigen could be elicited by antigen in the presence of the immunostimulatory nucleoside 7-methyl-8-oxoguanosine (7m8oGuo). The average response to antigen increased from 37 +/- 16 without nucleoside to 1733 +/- 488 PFC/culture in its presence (P less than 0.002). Restoration of specific immune responses was an antigen-dependent and nucleoside dose-dependent event. Signaling by 7m8oGuo rendered the response to antigen protein kinase C independent in cultures of cells from normal donors as well as from CVI patients. These data substantiate (i) that a non-C-kinase signaling pathway for antigen-dependent differentiation exists, (ii) that this pathway can function normally in B cells from patients with CVI when triggered appropriately, and (iii) that 7,8-disubstituted guanine ribonucleosides can convert a C-kinase-dependent signaling event to a C-kinase-independent signaling event. Substituted guanine ribonucleosides may have potential as immunotherapeutic agents for patients with CVI.     

Specific inhibitors of mitogen-activated protein kinase and PI3-K pathways impair immune responses by hemocytes of trematode intermediate host snails

To characterize molecular mechanisms regulating snail cellular immune responses, the contributions of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-K) were examined in hemocytes of the trematode intermediate host snails Biomphalaria glabrata and Lymnaea stagnalis. Simultaneous measurement of phagocytosis/encapsulation and H2O2 production by hemocytes in the presence or absence of specific signal transduction inhibitors was used to assess the role of extracellular-signal regulated kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2), p38, JNK and PI3-K. Hemocyte spreading was significantly reduced in a dose-dependent manner by the ERK inhibitor, PD098059, and by wortmannin, a potent PI3-K inhibitor. The JNK inhibitor, SP600125, and the p38 kinase inhibitor, SB203580, had no effect on hemocyte spreading. Sheep red blood cell phagocytosis was significantly impaired by PD098059, SP600125, and SB203580. Hydrogen peroxide production during phagocytosis was severely inhibited by PD098059. Additionally, PD098059, but not the other inhibitors, significantly impaired the cellular encapsulation of trematode larvae and H2O2 production during encapsulation. These results suggest that MAPK and PI3-K signal transduction pathways play a pivotal role in the immune responses of snail hemocytes. PI3-K and ERK appear to strongly regulate cell motility. ERK, JNK and p38 contribute to phagocytosis-mediated signal transduction. ERK also play a major role in oxidative burst activation and the encapsulation of trematode larvae by snail hemocytes.     

Co-activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and protein tyrosine phosphatase underlies metabotropic glutamate receptor-dependent long-term depression

Long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) are forms of synaptic plasticity thought to contribute to learning and memory. Much is known about the mechanisms of NMDA receptor-dependent LTD in the CA1 region of rat hippocampus but there is still considerable uncertainty about the mechanisms of LTD induced by mGluR activation (mGluR-LTD). Furthermore, data on mGluR-LTD derives largely from studies using pharmacologically induced LTD. To investigate mGluR-LTD that is more physiologically relevant we have examined, in CA1 of adult rat hippocampus, mechanisms of synaptically induced mGluR-LTD. We provide the first demonstration that activation of protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTP) is essential for the induction of synaptically induced mGluR-LTD. In addition, we show that activation of p38 MAPK is also required for this form of LTD. Furthermore, LTD can be mimicked and occluded by activation of p38 MAPK, provided that protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) are inhibited. These data therefore demonstrate that a novel combination of signalling cascades, requiring both activation of p38 MAPK and tyrosine de-phosphorylation, underlies the induction of synaptically induced mGluR-LTD.     

Cross-linking of CD26 by antibody induces tyrosine phosphorylation and activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase.

CD26, a T-cell activation antigen that has dipeptidyl peptidase IV activity in its extracellular domain and has also been shown to play an important role in T-cell activation. The earliest biochemical events seen in stimulated T lymphocytes activated through the engagement of the T-cell receptor (TCR) is the tyrosine phosphorylation of a panel of cellular proteins. In this study we demonstrate that antibody-induced cross-linking of CD26-in CD26-transfected Jurkat cells induced tyrosine phosphorylation of several intracellular proteins with a similar pattern to that seen after TCR/CD3 stimulation. Herbimycin A, an inhibitor of the src family protein tyrosine kinases dramatically inhibited this CD26-mediated effect on tyrosine phosphorylation. Major tyrosine phosphorylated proteins were identified by immunoblotting, and included p56lck, p59fyn, zeta associated protein-tyrosine kinase of 70,000 MW (ZAP-70), mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase, c-Cb1, and phospholipase C gamma. CD26-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of MAP kinase correlated with increased MAP kinase activity. In addition, CD26 was costimulatory to CD3 signal transduction since co-cross-linking of CD26 and CD3 antigens induced prolonged and increased tyrosine phosphorylation in comparison with CD3 activation alone. We therefore conclude that CD26 is a true costimulatory entity that can up-regulate the signal transducing properties of the TCR.     

丝裂原活化蛋白激酶激活蛋白激酶2基因多态性与新疆维吾尔族人代谢综合征易感性的研究

目的 研究丝裂原活化蛋白激酶激活蛋白激酶2(MK2)基因是否与代谢综合征(MS)有关联,为探讨MS的分子遗传基础提供依据.方法 采取以流行病学调查为基础的病例对照研究,选择2334例维吾尔族自然人群(MS组808例,非MS组1526例)作为研究对象.首先测序筛查维吾尔族MS患者MK2基因功能区的变异位点,然后选择代表性变异位点应用TaqMan-PCR在大样本人群中进行基因型鉴定及病例对照关联研究.结果 在MK2基因功能区共发现7个变异位点(4个已知变异位点,3个新发现的变异位点),选取3个代表性变异位点进行基因型鉴定.TaqMan-PCR分型成功的2个变异位点(rs45514798、44890c/t)的基因型频率在MS组和非MS组的分布差异均无统计学意义(均为P＞0.05).然而,rs45514798位点GG基因型的腰围(85.1+11.5)cm低于(AG+AA)基因型(87.1+21.7)cm,差异有统计学意义(t=2.145,P=0.032).单体型关联分析发现H3 C-A在MS组的频率(12.9％)高于非MS组(10.3％),差异有统计学意义(x2=4.326,P=0.035);H3 C-A单体型在女性人群MS组的频率(13.9％)高于非MS组(10.8％),差异有临界统计学意义(x2=3.79,P=O.050).结论 MK2基因rs45514798、44890c/t位点变异与新疆维吾尔族人MS无关联;而rs45514798位点与腰围的关系有待进一步验证.     

Characterisation and specificity of two single-chain Fv antibodies directed to the protein tyrosine kinase Syk

In order to obtain single chain Fv fragments (scFv) specific for the protein tyrosine kinase Syk, we screened a human synthetic phage-display library. Two glutathione S-transferase (GST):Syk fusion proteins containing both SH2 domains of Syk were used to perform three rounds of selection of the library. Among the scFv fragments resulting from the third round of selection, the ones specific for the GST portion of the fusion proteins were eliminated by performing enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay tests on GST:Syk versus GST coated plates, and the monoclonal scFv fragments binding only to the GST:Syk coated plates with high affinities were further analysed. We report here the in vitro characterisation of G4G11 and G6G2 anti-Syk scFvs. G4G11 shows the best performance in immunoprecipitation and immunofluorescence experiments, and G6G2 is able to detect Syk in immunoprecipitation, immunofluorescence and on Western blots. Both scFvs are also able to detect the phosphorylated form of Syk, and neither of them binds to Zap-70, the other member of the Syk family of protein tyrosine kinases.     

Redox paradox: effect of N-acetylcysteine and serum on oxidation reduction-sensitive mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathways

The thiol reducing agent N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is commonly used as an "antioxidant" in studies examining gene expression, signaling pathways, and outcome in acute and chronic models of lung injury. It is less widely appreciated that NAC can also undergo auto-oxidation and behave as an oxidant. We showed previously that NAC can have opposite effects on the activation of nuclear factor-kappaB depending on whether or not serum is present, and that the effects of NAC in the absence of serum are mimicked by various oxidants. Here we show that in a serum-depleted environment (0.1% fetal bovine serum), NAC substantially inhibited lipopolysaccharide (LPS) activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), namely extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), p38mapk, and c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK). By contrast, in the presence of 10% serum, NAC had no effect on LPS activation of p42 and p44 ERK and in fact enhanced LPS induction of p38mapk and JNK phosphorylation. Because serum can significantly alter the redox state, these findings highlight the importance of the local redox milieu in signal transduction.     

Both mitogen-activated protein kinase and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase signalling are required in epidermal growth factor-induced human trophoblast migration

Adequate extravillous trophoblast (EVT) invasion is an essential step for placental formation. The aim of this study was to examine the possible role of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signalling in epidermal growth factor (EGF)-induced EVT migration and to determine if the 70 kDa ribosomal S6 kinase (p70S6K) is involved in this process. In this study, EGF significantly stimulated HTR8/SVneo cell migration and the phosphorylation of AKT, ERK1/2 and p70S6K in a concentration-dependent manner. The MAPK inhibitor U0126 decreased cell migration and ERK phosphorylation, but it did not influence p70S6K phosphorylation in response to EGF. In the presence of PI3K inhibitors (Wortmannin), EGF-stimulated trophoblast migration and phosphorylation of AKT and P70S6K (Thr(389) and Thr(421)/Ser(424)) were decreased, while EGF-induced ERK phosphorylation was not affected. Expression of an activated AKT (Myr-AKT2) increased basal phospho-p70S6K (Thr(389) and Thr(421)/Ser(424)) content, but failed to stimulate cell migration. However, it induced cell migration in the presence of EGF and Wortmannin, in which both AKT and MAPK pathways were activated. In addition, there was a concentration-dependent inhibition of cell migration and p70S6K phosphorylation (Thr(389) and Thr(421)/Ser(424)) in the presence of Rapamycin, a specific inhibitor of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR, a downstream of AKT). Taken together, our data suggest that EGF-induced trophoblast migration involves the coordinated regulation of both PI3K/AKT and MAPK signalling pathways. mTOR/p70S6K is important in PI3K- but not MAPK-mediated trophoblast migration in response to EGF.