肿瘤抑制基因p53及p16与胃癌生物学行为的关系

目的探讨肿瘤抑制基因ｐ５３和ｐ１６异常与胃癌生物学行为的关系．方法采用免疫组化ＡＢＣ法检测５８例原发性胃癌（男３８例，女２０例，年龄３７岁～７６岁），Ｐ５３和Ｐ１６蛋白的表达变化．所有组织均新鲜取材，并迅速用８５０ｍｌ／Ｌ酒精固定，石蜡包埋，连续切片．结果受检组织中ｐ５３和ｐ１６阳性表达率分别为５１７％（３０／５８）和４８３％（２８／５８）．Ｐ５３蛋白在低分化胃癌（７００％）、进展期胃癌（５６９％）、淋巴结阳性胃癌（７４１％）中的表达率高于相应的高分化、早期、淋巴结阴性胃癌的表达率（２７３％，１４３％，３２３％）（Ｐ＜００５），且ｐ５３高表达多见于弥散型胃癌（同肠型胃癌比）、累及浆膜的胃癌也较局限于粘膜层的胃癌有更高的Ｐ５３蛋白表达（Ｐ＜００５）；Ｐ１６蛋白表达与胃癌大多数生物学行为无明显关系，但其在淋巴结阳性胃癌中的表达率（３３３％），低于淋巴结阴性胃癌中的表达率（６１３％）；相关性分析显示；ｐ５３阳性组织大多伴有Ｐ１６蛋白阳性表达（Ｐ＜００５）．结论Ｐ５３蛋白异常表达对胃癌生物学行为有广泛影响，Ｐ１６蛋白表达缺失可能是胃癌淋巴结转移的重要促发因素．     

Quaternary structures of tumor suppressor p53 and a specific p53 DNA complex

The homotetrameric tumor suppressor p53 consists of folded core and tetramerization domains, linked and flanked by intrinsically disordered segments that impede structure analysis by x-ray crystallography and NMR. Here, we solved the quaternary structure of human p53 in solution by a combination of small-angle x-ray scattering, which defined its shape, and NMR, which identified the core domain interfaces and showed that the folded domains had the same structure in the intact protein as in fragments. We combined the solution data with electron microscopy on immobilized samples that provided medium resolution 3D maps. Ab initio and rigid body modeling of scattering data revealed an elongated cross-shaped structure with a pair of loosely coupled core domain dimers at the ends, which are accessible for binding to DNA and partner proteins. The core domains in that open conformation closed around a specific DNA response element to form a compact complex whose structure was independently determined by electron microscopy. The structure of the DNA complex is consistent with that of the complex of four separate core domains and response element fragments solved by x-ray crystallography and contacts identified by NMR. Electron microscopy on the conformationally mobile, unbound p53 selected a minor compact conformation, which resembled the closed conformation, from the ensemble of predominantly open conformations. A multipronged structural approach could be generally useful for the structural characterization of the rapidly growing number of multidomain proteins with intrinsically disordered regions.     

Four p53 DNA-binding domain peptides bind natural p53-response elements and bend the DNA.

Recent structural studies of the minimal core DNA-binding domain of p53 (p53DBD) complexed to a single consensus pentamer sequence and of the isolated p53 tetramerization domain have provided valuable insights into their functions, but many questions about their interacting roles and synergism remain unanswered. To better understand these relationships, we have examined the binding of the p53DBD to two biologically important full-response elements (the WAF1 and ribosomal gene cluster sites) by using DNA circularization and analytical ultracentrifugation. We show that the p53DBD binds DNA strongly and cooperatively with p53DBD to DNA binding stoichiometries of 4:1. For the WAF1 element, the mean apparent Kd is (8.3 +/- 1.4) x 10(-8) M, and no intermediate species of lower stoichiometries can be detected. We show further that complex formation induces an axial bend of at least 60 degrees in both response elements. These results, taken collectively, demonstrate that p53DBD possesses the ability to direct the formation of a tight nucleoprotein complex having the same 4:1 DNA-binding stoichiometry as wild-type p53 which is accompanied by a substantial conformational change in the response-element DNA. This suggests that the p53DBD may play a role in the tetramerization function of p53. A possible role in this regard is proposed.     

Asymmetric PCR-based strategy for genetic analysis of the p53 tumor suppressor gene in cell lines and tumor tissues.

A novel strategy for genetic analysis of the p53 tumor suppressor gene is described, based on direct sequencing of the asymmetric polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products. A set of 10 PCR primers was designed which allows to amplify and sequence highly conserved regions of the molecule, i.e. the target areas of p53 mutations. The stepwise optimization of RNA isolation, cDNA synthesis, PCR amplifications and sequencing resulted in a procedure which is faster and more reliable than the techniques used to search for p53 mutations so far. This and similar strategies should be applicable to the study of genetic alterations in antioncogenes or other classes of genes which suffer from subtle mutations potentially scattered along large segments of the molecule.     

肝细胞癌抑癌基因p53突变

目的分析重庆地区肝细胞癌ｐ５３基因突变谱．方法住院肝细胞癌患者２０例，皆经病理证实，长期在重庆地区居住，其中早期小肝癌４例，中期６例，晚期１０例．采用ＰＣＲ－ＳＳＣＰ，ＰＣＲ直接测序技术分析ｐ５３基因５，６，７和８外显子突变．结果ｐ５３基因总的突变率为４０％．其中外显子５和６各占１０％，外显子７占２０％，未发现外显子８的突变；测序证实外显子７为第２４９位密码子Ｇ→Ｔ的颠换突变．突变病例多为晚期肿瘤．结论重庆地区肝细胞癌存在明显的ｐ５３基因突变，反映了该地区肝癌与黄曲霉毒素和ＨＢＶ或ＨＣＶ病毒有关     

Use of Arabidopsis thaliana defense-related mutants to dissect the plant response to pathogens.

The plant defense response to microbial pathogens had been studied primarily by using biochemical and physiological techniques. Recently, several laboratories have developed a variety of pathosystems utilizing Arabidopsis thaliana as a model host so that genetic analysis could also be used to study plant defense responses. Utilizing a pathosystem that involves the infection of Arabidopsis with pathogenic pseudomonads, we have cloned the Arabidopsis disease-resistance gene RPS2, which corresponds to the avirulence gene avrRpt2 in a gene-for-gene relationship. RPS2 encodes a 105-kDa protein containing a leucine zipper, a nucleotide binding site, and 14 imperfect leucine-rich repeats. The RPS2 protein is remarkably similar to the product of the tobacco N gene, which confers resistance to tobacco mosaic virus. We have also isolated a series of Arabidopsis mutants that synthesize decreased levels of an Arabidopsis phytoalexin called camalexin. Analysis of these mutants indicated that camalexin does not play a significant role in limiting growth of avirulent Pseudomonas syringae strains during the hypersensitive defense response but that it may play a role in limiting the growth of virulent strains. More generally, we have shown that we can utilize Arabidopsis to systematically dissect the defense response by isolation and characterization of appropriate defense-related mutants.     

Germ-line mutations of the p53 tumor suppressor gene in patients with high risk for cancer inactivate the p53 protein.

Germ-line mutations in the p53 tumor suppressor gene have been observed in patients with Li-Fraumeni syndrome, brain tumors, second malignancies, and breast cancers. It is unclear whether all of these mutations have inactivated p53 and thereby provide an increased risk for cancer. Therefore, it is necessary to establish the biological significance of these germ-line mutations by the functional and structural analysis of the resulting mutant p53 proteins. We analyzed the ability of seven germ-line mutant proteins observed in patients with Li-Fraumeni syndrome, second primary neoplasms, or familial breast cancer to block the growth of malignant cells and compared the structural properties of the mutant proteins to that of the wild-type protein. Six of seven missense mutations disrupted the growth inhibitory properties and structure of the wild-type protein. One germ-line mutation retained the features of the wild-type p53. Genetic analysis of the breast cancer family in which this mutation was observed indicated that this germ-line mutation was not associated with the development of cancer. These results demonstrate that germ-line p53 mutations observed in patients with Li-Fraumeni syndrome and with second malignancies have inactivated the p53 tumor suppressor gene. The inability of the germ-line p53 mutants to block the growth of malignant cells can explain why patients with these germ-line mutations have an increased risk for cancer. The observation of a functionally silent germ-line mutation indicates that, before associating a germ-line tumor suppressor gene mutation with cancer risk, it is prudent to consider its functional significance.     

Mutations of the p53 tumour suppressor gene in haematologic neoplasms

Mutations of the p53 tumour suppressor gene have frequently been observed in several types of solid tumours and are believed to be implicated in the development of these tumours. To determine the relevance of p53 mutations in haematologic neoplasms, we performed polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism analysis on the p53 gene in 45 patients with various types of haematologic neoplasms. In exons 5-8 containing highly conserved regions, mobility shifts indicating sequence alterations were detected in four of the 45 patients, and subsequent sequencing was performed. A point mutation resulting in a novel stop codon was detected at codon 213 in one of 23 cases of chronic myelogenous leukaemia (one of five cases of blast crisis). Point mutations causing amino acid substitutions were detected in one of four cases of myelodysplastic syndrome at codon 195, one of three cases of adult T-cell leukaemia at codon 281, and one of eight cases of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia at codon 281, and these missense mutations were accompanied by loss of the wild type allele. Patients harbouring these nonsense and missense mutations were in advanced disease stages. These findings suggest that mutational inactivation of the p53 gene is infrequent but is involved in the tumorigenesis of several types of haematologic neoplasms at least in some cases.     

Role of tumor suppressor p53 in megakaryopoiesis and platelet function

The pathobiological role of p53 has been widely studied, however, its role in normophysiology is relatively unexplored. We previously showed that p53 knock-down increased ploidy in megakaryocytic cultures. This study aims to examine the effect of p53 loss on in?vivo megakaryopoiesis, platelet production, and function, and to investigate the basis for greater ploidy in p53(-/-) megakaryocytic cultures. Here, we used flow cytometry to analyze ploidy, DNA synthesis, and apoptosis in murine cultured and bone marrow megakaryocytes following thrombopoietin administration and to analyze fibrinogen binding to platelets in?vitro. Culture of p53(-/-) marrow cells for 6 days with thrombopoietin gave rise to 1.7-fold more megakaryocytes, 26.1% ± 3.6% of which reached ploidy classes ≥64 N compared to 8.2% ± 0.9% of p53(+/+) megakaryocytes. This was due to 30% greater DNA synthesis in p53(-/-) megakaryocytes and 31% greater apoptosis in p53(+/+) megakaryocytes by day 4 of culture. Although the bone marrow and spleen steady-state megakaryocytic content and ploidy were similar in p53(+/+) and p53(-/-) mice, thrombopoietin administration resulted in increased megakaryocytic polyploidization in p53(-/-) mice. Although their platelet counts were normal, p53(-/-) mice exhibited significantly longer bleeding times and p53(-/-) platelets were less sensitive than p53(+/+) platelets to agonist-induced fibrinogen binding and P-selectin secretion. In summary, our in?vivo and ex?vivo studies indicate that p53 loss leads to increased polyploidization during megakaryopoiesis. Our findings also suggest for the first time a direct link between p53 loss and the development of fully functional platelets resulting in hemostatic deficiencies.     

Fc epsilon RI-mediated recruitment of p53/56lyn to detergent-resistant membrane domains accompanies cellular signaling.

Detergent-resistant plasma membrane structures, such as caveolae, have been implicated in signalling, transport, and vesicle trafficking functions. Using sucrose gradient ultracentrifugation, we have isolated low-density, Triton X-100-insoluble membrane domains from RBL-2H3 mucosal mast cells that contain several markers common to caveolae, including a src-family tyrosine kinase, p53/56lyn. Aggregation of Fc epsilon RI, the high-affinity IgE receptor, causes a significant increase in the amount of p53/56lyn associated with these low-density membrane domains. Under our standard conditions for lysis, IgE-Fc epsilon RI fractionates with the majority of the solubilized proteins, whereas aggregated receptor complexes are found at a higher density in the gradient. Stimulated translocation of p53/56lyn is accompanied by increased tyrosine phosphorylation of several proteins in the low-density membrane domains as well as enhanced in vitro tyrosine kinase activity toward these proteins and an exogenous substrate. With a lower detergent-to-cell ratio during lysis, significant Fc epsilon RI remains associated with these membrane domains, consistent with the ability to coimmunoprecipitate tyrosine kinase activity with Fc epsilon RI under similar lysis conditions [Pribluda, V. S., Pribluda, C. & Metzger, H. (1994) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 91, 11246-11250]. These results indicate that specialized membrane domains may be directly involved in the coupling of receptor aggregation to the activation of signaling events.     

Distinct p53/56lyn and p59fyn domains associate with nonphosphorylated and phosphorylated Ig-alpha.

Among the earliest detectable events in B-cell antigen receptor-mediated signal transduction are the activation of receptor-associated Src-family tyrosine kinases and the tyrosine phosphorylation of Ig-alpha and Ig-beta receptor subunits. These kinases appear to interact with resting B-cell antigen receptor complexes primarily through the Ig-alpha chain antigen receptor homology 1 (ARH1) motif. Recent studies showed a dramatic increase in the amount of Src-family kinase p59fyn bound to Ig-alpha when ARH1 motif tyrosines were phosphorylated. To explore the submolecular basis of these interactions, we conducted mutational analysis to localize sites in p53/56lyn and p59fyn that bind nonphosphorylated and phosphorylated Ig-alpha. Here we report that distinct regions within these kinases bind nonphosphorylated and phosphorylated Ig-alpha ARH1 motifs. The N-terminal 10 residues mediate binding to the nonphosphorylated Ig-alpha ARH1 motif. Association with the phosphorylated Ig-alpha ARH1 motif is mediated by Src homology 2 domains. These findings suggest a mechanism whereby ligand-induced Ig-alpha tyrosine phosphorylation initiates a change in the orientation of an associated kinase that may alter its activity and/or access to substrates and other effectors.     

肝细胞癌基因P53异常的研究

目的：分析我国重庆地区肝细胞癌Ｐ５３基因失活机制及突变谱。方法：采用ＰＣＲ—ＲＦＬＰＰＣＲＳＳＣＰ和ＰＣＲ直接测序技术对来自我国重庆地区２８例肝细胞癌Ｐ５３抑癌基因结构异常进行了分析。结果：６１．５１％的肝癌存在ｐ５３的杂合缺失：５０％肝癌伴有ｐ５３基因突变，其突变模式为突普通散在于５６７和８外显子，其中第７外显子２４９们密友情子突弯率最高（２１％）；具有突变的肝癌多同时伴夺缺失。伴有ｐ５３基因结构异常的肝癌均属进展期。结论：我国重庆地区肝癌存在Ｐ５３基因结构异常，Ｐ５３基因结构异常，ｐ５３基因突变模式反映了该地区肝癌发生可能与肝炎病互和黄贡互素两种因素及其相互作用有关；ｐ５３基因结构异常属肝癌晚期事件，可能参加与肝癌的进展过程。     

肝细胞癌肿瘤抑制基因p53过度表达及点突变的研究

目的检测重庆地区肝细胞癌 p53突变发生率,并进一步探讨 p53突变与肝细胞癌临床病理及相关危险因素的关系.方法应用一种敏感的 ARF 免疫组化和 PCR、银染 PCR-SSCP 方法检测本地区38例肝细胞癌(HCC)组织中肿瘤抑制基因p53的过度表达及点突变.结果 16例有P53蛋白过度表达(41.2%),7例有 p53基因249位密码子点突变(18.4%),2例249位密码子外第7外显子点突变.9例 p53基因有突变的肝癌中8例 P53蛋白阳性,两者符合率为88.9%.p53基因蛋白过度表达和点突变与 HCC 分化和转移有关.本组 HCC p53基因突变率与该地区黄曲霉素(AFB1)含量及乙型肝炎病毒(HBV)感染分布一致.结论该结果提示 p53基因突变与 AFB1和 HBV 等环境因素的协同作用有关,其中 AFB1主要与 p53基因249位密码子特异型突变有关,而 HBV 可能在散发型突变中发挥重要作用.     

Different levels of p38 MAP kinase activity mediate distinct biological effects in primary human erythroid progenitors

There have been conflicting reports regarding the role of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) in the regulation of differentiation, proliferation and apoptosis in erythroid cell lines. We have, therefore, examined the functions of this kinase in primary human erythroid progenitors. Cells in steady-state culture showed low-level p38 MAPK activity, which decreased further within 1 h of growth factor withdrawal and increased over a limited range within minutes of re-exposure of cells to erythropoietin or stem cell factor, demonstrating the link between low-level p38 MAPK activity and the prevailing growth factor milieu. Use of the p38 MAPK-specific inhibitor SB203580 demonstrated that this level of activity was necessary for (1) optimal proliferation, (2) erythroid burst-forming unit migration and (3) full upregulation of E-cadherin and CD36 expression, but not haemoglobin A or glycophorin A expression, during human erythroid differentiation. In contrast, cells deprived of growth factors for an 8-h period, following a transient decrease in p38 MAPK activity, demonstrated sustained, substantial and caspase-independent increases in p38 MAPK activity, and its blockade using SB203580 reduced the proportion of erythroblasts undergoing apoptosis by 40 +/- 7%, demonstrating a role for p38 MAPK in apoptosis induction in human erythroblasts. Thus, in primary human erythroblasts, different environmental conditions induce different levels of p38 MAPK activity, which have distinct functions.