Functional analysis and drug response to zinc and D-penicillamine in stable ATP7B mutant hepatic cell lines

AIM: To study the effect of anti-copper treatment for survival of hepatic cells expressing different ATP7B mutations in cell culture.METHODS: The most common Wilson disease (WD) mutations p.H1069Q, p.R778L and p.C271*, found in the ATP7B gene encoding a liver copper transporter, were studied. The mutations represent major genotypes of the United States and Europe, China, and India, respectively. A human hepatoma cell line previously established to carry a knockout of ATP7B was used to stably express WD mutants. mRNA and protein expression of mutant ATP7B, survival of cells, apoptosis, and protein trafficking were determined.RESULTS: Low temperature increased ATP7B protein expression in several mutants. Intracellular ATP7B localization was significantly impaired in the mutants. Mutants were classified as high, moderate, and no survival based on their viability on exposure to toxic copper. Survival of mutant p.H1069Q and to a lesser extent p.C271* improved by D-penicillamine (DPA) treatment, while mutant p.R778L showed a pronounced response to zinc (Zn) treatment. Overall, DPA treatment resulted in higher cell survival as compared to Zn treatment; however, only combined Zn + DPA treatment fully restored cell viability.CONCLUSION: The data indicate that the basic impact of a genotype might be characterized by analysis of mutant hepatic cell lines.     

Galectin 7 (p53-Induced Gene 1): A New Prognostic Predictor of Recurrence and Survival in Stage IV Hypopharyngeal Cancer

Background Eighty percent of hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma patients have advanced stages (III and IV) of the disease, and biological markers are required to predict high-risk head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patients in need of highly aggressive treatments after surgery to improve the survival rate. We analyzed the potential prognostic value of galectin 7 in a series of 81 stage IV hypopharyngeal SCCs because galectin 7 is an emerging marker involved in the epidermal development of pluristratified epithelia and in epidermal cell migration. Methods The immunohistochemical expression of galectin 7 was determined on a series of 81 stage IV hypopharyngeal SCCs and was compared with that of galectins 1 and 3. Results High levels of galectin 7 expression were associated with rapid recurrence rates and dismal prognoses in these 81 stage IV hypopharyngeal SCCs, a feature not observed with galectin 3 and one observed weakly, if at all, with galectin 1. Conclusions These data suggest that the immunohistochemical determination of galectin 7 expression in the case of high-risk hypopharyngeal cancers is a meaningful tool to identify patients who should benefit from aggressive postsurgical adjuvant therapy after surgery, including not only radiotherapy, but also chemotherapy.     

Combined cimetidine and temozolomide, compared with temozolomide alone: significant increases in survival in nude mice bearing U373 human glioblastoma multiforme orthotopic xenografts

OBJECT: Malignant gliomas consist of both heterogeneous proliferating and migrating cell subpopulations, with migrating glioma cells exhibiting less sensitivity to antiproliferative or proapoptotic drugs than proliferative cells. Therefore, the authors combined cimetidine, an antiinflammatory agent already proven to act against migrating epithelial cancer cells, with temozolomide to determine whether the combination induces antitumor activities in experimental orthotopic human gliomas compared with the effects of temozolomide alone. METHODS: Cimetidine added to temozolomide compared with temozolomide alone induced survival benefits in nude mice with U373 human glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) cells orthotopically xenografted in the brain. Computer-assisted phase-contrast microscopy analyses of 9L rat and U373 human GBM cells showed that cimetidine significantly decreased the migration levels of these tumor cells in vitro at concentrations at which tumor growth levels were not modified (as revealed on monotetrazolium colorimetric assay). Computer-assisted microscope analyses of neoglycoconjugate-based glycohistochemical staining profiles of 9L gliosarcomas grown in vivo revealed that cimetidine significantly decreased expression levels of endogenous receptors for fucose and, to a lesser extent, for N-acetyl-lactosamine moieties. Endogenous receptors of this specificity are known to play important roles in adhesion and migration processes of brain tumor cells. CONCLUSIONS: Cimetidine, acting as an antiadhesive and therefore an antimigratory agent for glioma cells, could be added in complement to the cytotoxic temozolomide compound to combat both migrating and proliferating cells in GBM.     

Detection of S100B, S100A6 and galectin-3 ligands in meningiomas as markers of aggressiveness

The biological factors responsible for the increased aggressiveness in atypical meningiomas are not well known. The aim of this study is to evaluate the discriminatory value of a number of biological markers (S100 proteins and galectin-3 and its ligand profile) with respect to benign and atypical meningiomas. Using 63 meningiomas (39 benign and 24 atypical), we performed a semi-quantitative histochemical analysis of both the expression of galectin-3 and its ligand profile and the Ca2+-binding proteins S100A5, S100A6 and S100B. Three features were considered for each marker, namely the labeling index (LI), the staining intensity (SI) and the global score (LI + SI). A low S100A6 labeling index was observed in 51% of the benign and 25% of the atypical meningiomas (P=0.035). Furthermore, high S100B scores were observed in 46% of the benign and in only 8% of the atypical meningiomas (P=0.001). Seventy-one percent of the atypical meningiomas exhibited a low level of staining intensity for the galectin-3-binding sites as compared to only 36% of the benign meningiomas (P=0.007). The combination of these three markers (by means of a decision tree) enabled an improved discriminatory criterion to be established between the benign and the atypical meningiomas. Our results thus suggest that the galectin-3-binding sites and S100B (and S100A6 to a lesser extent) could play a role in the aggressiveness characterizing atypical meningiomas.     

Are glycoconjugates and their endogenous receptors involved in the fusion of mononuclear macrophages resulting in multinucleate giant cells? Histochemical and electron microscopic determination of endogenous sugar-binding proteins (lectins) in mononuclear macrophages and multinucleate giant cells appearing in granulomatous foreign body reaction

Protein-carbohydrate recognition has been found to play an important role in phagocytosis. Labelled (neo)glycoproteins were employed to comparatively analyze the histochemical pattern and ultrastructural localization of endogenous carbohydrate-binding proteins (lectins) of mononuclear macrophages and multinucleate giant cells involved in the granulomatous foreign body reaction. Sugar receptors having an affinity to simple alpha- and beta-galactoside-structures, to alpha-mannose residues, to N-acetylglucosamine, to N-acetylgalactosamine and to glucuronic acid, respectively, were detected in both cell types. However, alpha-fucoside- and beta-xyloside-specific receptors were present only in the mononuclear macrophages. Pronounced differences were seen with labelled, suitably modified glycoproteins, exposing different complex sugar parts with common beta-galactoside-termini. Among the population of multinucleate giant cells, a positive histochemical reaction was observed with mannose-6-phosphate-, galactose-6-phosphate- and glucuronic acid-(BSA-biotin), respectively, only in giant cells in which fusing mononuclear cells were recognizable. This transient expression indicates changes within the profile of endogenous sugar receptors in the stages from fusion to establishment of giant cells. Aside from the diffuse intracytoplasmic distribution of carbohydrate-binding proteins, a prominent accumulation of various types of glycosylated ferritin, used as a marker for electron microscopic evaluation, was ultrastructurally found in membranous subcellular structures and vesicles. This study is a basis for further investigation of the potential involvement of various sugar receptors in the process of macrophage fusion, resulting in multinucleate giant cells of foreign body type, and the process of phagocytosis.     

Vertebrate lectins and their possible role in fertilization, development and tumor biology (review)

Agglutination of cells is not only a functional test, employed in lectin characterization: the ability of lectins to mediate intercellular contacts may have physiological relevance beyond the test tube. Selected examples of advances in research on vertebrate lectins underscore their potential physiological significance in fertilization, development and in the pathogenesis of cancer.