L’autophagie, processus catabolique lysosomal de recyclage de constituants cellulaires, est essentielle à la survie, à la différenciation et au maintien de l’homéostasie cellulaire. Ce processus est fréquemment impliqué dans la survie et la chimiorésistance des tumeurs. La leucémie aiguë promyélocytaire (LAP) est caractérisée par un blocage de la différenciation de la lignée hématopoïétique au stade promyélocytaire. Le traitement des LAP a considérablement progressé depuis l’administration aux patients de doses pharmacologiques d’acide rétinoïque tout-trans (ATRA), un puissant agent de différenciation. L’objectif de ma thèse a consisté à étudier la régulation de l’autophagie au cours de l’induction de différenciation des cellules de LAP par l’ATRA et de rechercher son implication éventuelle dans les mécanismes d’action de ce traitement et les modes d’échappement observés. Lors de mon travail de thèse, j’ai mis en évidence une activation de l’autophagie lors de l’induction de la différenciation granulocytaire des cellules de LAP par l’ATRA. J’ai montré que cette réponse était associée à une inhibition de la voie mTOR et une induction de l’expression des protéines BECLIN 1 et p62/SQSTM1. De façon intéressante, les cellules de LAP résistantes à la maturation par l’ATRA ne sont pas capables d’induire l’expression de p62/SQSTM1 en réponse à l’ATRA. De même, l’expression de p62/SQSTM1 dans les blastes des patients atteints de leucémie aiguë myéloïde est plus faible que celle des granulocytes de sujets sains. L’ensemble de ces données indique que l’expression de p62/SQSTM1 est réprimée dans les phénotypes immatures des cellules myéloïdes mais au contraire induite dans les cellules leucémiques qui s’engagent vers une différenciation terminale (granulocytes/neutrophiles). Enfin, j’ai démontré que les protéines BECLIN 1 et p62/SQSTM1 sont essentielles à la survie de cellules de LAP matures mais non pas à l’engagement de ces cellules vers la différenciation granulocytaire. Ainsi, ces résultats suggèrent qu’en permettant la survie des cellules de LAP différenciées, p62/SQSTM1 et BECLIN 1 pourraient contribuer au développement des résistances à l’ATRA et/ou à l’induction des complications associées à ce traitement tel que le syndrome de différenciation. / Autophagy, a lysosomal process used by the cell to degrade and recycle cytoplasmic constituents, is essential for cell survival, differentiation and the maintenance of cellular homeostasis. Autophagy is often involved in cell survival and resistance to anti-tumor therapy. Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) results from a blockade of granulocyte differentiation at the promyelocytic stage. All-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), a potent differentiation agent, has been shown to induce clinical remission in APL patients. The aim of our study was to investigate the regulation and roles of autophagy during ATRA-induced APL cells maturation into neutrophils/granulocytes with the ultimate objective to identify critical mechanisms involved in chemoresistance of APL patients. During my thesis, I demonstrated that autophagy is upregulated during the course of ATRA-induced neutrophil/granulocyte differentiation of APL cells. This response is associated with inhibition of mTOR activity and upregulation of both BECLIN 1 and p62/SQSTM1 proteins. Interestingly, induction of p62/SQSTM1 by ATRA was impaired in maturation-resistant NB4 cells but is re-activated when differentiation was restored in these cells. Accordingly, primary blast cells of AML patients exhibited significantly lower p62/SQSTM1 mRNA levels than did granulocytes from healthy donors. Together, these results highlight that p62/SQSTM1 expression level is repressed in immature myeloid cells compared to mature ones. Moreover, I demonstrated that BECLIN 1 and p62/SQSTM1 proteins are essential for the survival of myeloid cells that undergo differentiation but have no crucial effect on the granulocytic differentiation. This finding may help to elucidate the mechanisms involved in ATRA resistance of APL patients, and in the ATRA syndrome caused by an accumulation of mature APL cells.

L’autophagie est un mécanisme vacuolaire de dégradation de matériel cytoplasmique permettant le maintien de l’homéostasie cellulaire, mais elle peut être également activée par de nombreux stress, comme l’infection virale. Le virus de l’Herpès Simplex de type 1 (HSV 1) est capable de contrecarrer ce mécanisme de défense antivirale. HSV-1 possède une protéine ICP34.5 capable d’inhiber l’autophagie en se liant à Beclin 1, une protéine de la machinerie autophagique. Nous avons mis en évidence une deuxième protéine d’HSV-1 capable d’inhiber l’autophagie, la protéine tardive Us11, qui pourrait avoir un rôle complémentaire à celui d’ICP34.5 dans le contrôle de l’autophagie par le virus.Nous montrons que l’expression ectopique d’Us11 permet de bloquer l’autophagie induite par différents stimuli, et ce de manière similaire à ICP34.5. De plus, dans un contexte viral, l’expression précoce d’Us11 dans des cellules infectées par un virusICP34.5 permet un contrôle de l’autophagie comparable à celui d’un virus sauvage. Nous avons ensuite recherché le mécanisme d’action d’Us11. La protéine Us11 a été décrite comme pouvant interagir avec la kinase dépendante de l’ARN double brin PKR, empêchant ainsi la phosphorylation de son substrat eIF2, un facteur d’initiation de la traduction. Nous avons observé qu’en l’absence de PKR, Us11 n’est plus capable d’inhiber l’autophagie. Nous avons pu confirmer qu’Us11 a besoin de se lier à PKR pour exercer son activité inhibitrice par la construction de formes tronquées d’Us11, permettant de montrer l’importance de son domaine d’interaction avec PKR dans l’inhibition de l’autophagie. L’étude des formes tronquées d’Us11 a soulevé le fait que le domaine N-terminal était également nécessaire. Aucune interaction de ce domaine avec une protéine cellulaire n’a été identifiée à ce jour, mais il pourrait permettre l’interaction d’Us11 avec une autre protéine de la machinerie autophagique. Cependant, nous avons montré qu’Us11 n’interagissait pas avec Beclin 1 et n’avait pas d’effet sur la kinase mTOR, une autre voie importante de l’autophagie. Enfin, nous avons étudié la modulation de la voie PKR/eIF2 lors de la stimulation de l’autophagie par la carence, et nos résultats suggèrent que cette voie joue un rôle sous-estimé dans la réponse à la carence.Le mécanisme d’action de la protéine Us11, qui consiste en un blocage de l’autophagie en inhibant PKR, n’avait jamais été décrit auparavant. Ce travail ouvre de nombreuses perspectives dans l’étude de la voie PKR/eIF2 vis à vis de la régulation de l’autophagie, ainsi que dans la compréhension de l’implication de l’autophagie dans la neurovirulence d’HSV-1. / Autophagy is an evolutionary conserved vacuolar mechanism allowing to degrade cytoplasmic components and to maintaining cellular homeostasis, but it can also be triggered by a variety of stress-related conditions, including viral infection. The herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) is able to counteract this antiviral mechanism. Notably, HSV-1 encodes a protein, IPC34.5, which inhibits autophagy through its interaction with the autophagy machinery protein Beclin 1. In the present work, we uncovered a second anti-autophagic protein from HSV-1, the late protein Us11, which likely plays a complementary role to ICP34.5 regarding the inhibition of autophagy by the virus. We demonstrated that ectopic expression of Us11 inhibited autophagy triggered by different stimuli, as observed for ICP34.5. Moreover, during viral infection, early expression of Us11 was sufficient to block autophagy in cells infected with a ICP34.5 virus, similarly to the wild-type virus. We then explored the mechanism of action of Us11. Us11 has been described as capable of interacting with the dsRNA-dependent kinase PKR, therefore preventing it to phosphorylate its substrate eIF2, a translation initiation factor. We demonstrated that Us11 was no longer able to inhibit autophagy when expressed in PKR-deficient cells. We confirmed that Us11 binding to PKR was necessary for its function by constructing various truncated forms of Us11 that showed that the PKR-binding domain was crucial. We also unveiled the importance of a domain located within the N-terminal part of Us11. This domain has no cellular molecular partner known, but it can allow Us11 to interact with another protein of the autophagy machinery. However, we further showed that Us11 did not interact with Beclin 1 nor affected the kinase activity of mTOR, another important pathway regulating autophagy. In our work, we also gained insights into regulatory mechanisms of starvation-induced autophagy.The inhibition of autophagy through the specific blockade of PKR by Us11 had never been previously described. This work thus paves the way for studying the involvement of PKR/eIF2 pathway in the regulation of autophagy and for exploring the role of autophagy in HSV-1 neurovirulence.

Résumé : L’autophagie est un mécanisme constitutif et inductible de dégradation des composants cytoplasmiques afin de maintenir l’homéostasie cellulaire. Elle est souvent modulée par les virus car il s’agit également d’un mécanisme de défense antiviral. Elle peut avoir un rôle proviral quand elle est détournée et régulée par les virus. Nous avons précédemment observé au laboratoire que le cytomégalovirus humain (HCMV) stimule la formation des autophagosomes de manière précoce indépendamment de l’expression des protéines virales, puis qu’il entraine un blocage de l’autophagie aux temps tardifs. Dans ce travail, nous avons montré que ce virus a développé des stratégies impliquant la synthèse de deux protéines virales, IRS1 et TRS1, pour inhiber l’autophagie. De façon surprenante, nous avons également mis en évidence un rôle proviral de l’autophagie aux temps tardifs de l’infection par le HCMV. Nous avons pu montrer par des techniques de biochimie et d’imagerie cellulaire que l’expression aussi bien de TRS1 que d’IRS1 est capable de bloquer la formation des autophagosomes dans les cellules. Nous avons identifié le mécanisme d’action de ces protéines. Il est indépendant de la protéine kinase PKR mais nécessite une interaction avec Beclin 1, une protéine de la machinerie autophagique. Nous avons localisé le site d'interaction de Beclin 1 avec IRS1 et TRS1 (BBD pour Beclin 1 binding domain) au niveau de leur région N-terminale. Ce domaine, conservé entre les deux protéines, est nécessaire pour l’inhibition de l’autophagie. Le site d’interaction d’IRS1 a été identifié dans le domaine en superhélice (coiled-coil domain) CCD de Beclin 1. Nous avons caractérisé le rôle de TRS1 et IRS1 dans la modulation de l’autophagie dans le contexte de l’infection virale, en utilisant différents virus mutants : des virus dans lesquels on a supprimé soit le gène IRS1, soit le gène TRS1 et un virus dans lequel il manque les deux gènes IRS1 et TRS1. Les résultats obtenus suggèrent qu’IRS1 et TRS1 sont effectivement toutes les deux impliquées dans ce processus. Afin de mieux comprendre le rôle de l’interaction de ces protéines avec Beclin 1, nous avons étudié le phénotype d’un virus mutant qui n’exprime pas IRS1 et qui contient une délétion de la région BBD de TRS1. Nous avons montré que ce virus mutant ne se lie pas à Beclin 1 et qu’il ne bloque pas l’autophagie. De manière surprenante, il n’a pas de défaut de production virale, suggérant que l’inhibition de l'autophagie ne serait pas essentielle pour la réplication virale. Nous avons développé d’autres approches, comme l’utilisation de modulateurs pharmacologiques de l’autophagie ou de lentivirus hébergeant des shRNA, qui montrent que l’inhibition de l’autophagie est capable de diminuer la production virale et au contraire que sa stimulation l’augmente. Ces derniers résultats suggèrent que l’autophagie pourrait être bénéfique au HCMV dans certaines conditions. / Abstract: Autophagy is a constitutive and inducible mechanism of degradation of cytoplasmic components, in order to maintain the cellular homeostasis. Autophagy is often modulated by viruses, because it is also considered as an antiviral defense mechanism. It can have a beneficial role, when it is hijacked and regulated by viruses. We have previously observed in our laboratory that the human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) stimulates autophagosome formation, at the early stage of infection, independently of viral protein expression then, later on, it blocks autophagy. In this work, we showed that this virus has developed strategies involving the synthesis of several viral proteins, such as IRS1 and TRS1, to inhibit autophagy. Surprisingly, we also demonstrated a proviral role of autophagy at late stages of infection with HCMV. We showed, through biochemical and cellular imaging technologies, that expression of both TRS1 and IRS1 is able to block the formation of autophagosomes. We identified the mechanism of action of these proteins. It is independent of the protein kinase PKR but requires interaction with Beclin 1, a protein of the autophagic machinery. We mapped the interaction site of Beclin 1 with IRS1 and TRS1 in their N-terminal region and called it BBD for Beclin 1-binding domain. This domain (BBD)is conserved between the two proteins and essential to inhibit autophagy. We also identified the site of interaction of IRS1 in the coiled-coil domain (CCD) of Beclin 1. We characterized the role of IRS1 and TRS1 in the modulation of autophagy, in the context of viral infection, using different mutant viruses: viruses in which either the IRS1 or the TRS1 gene has been removed and a mutant virus lacking both IRS1 and TRS1 genes. Our results suggest that both IRS1 and TRS1 are involved in the regulation of this process. To better understand the role of the interaction of these proteins with Beclin 1, we studied the phenotype of a mutant virus that does not express IRS1 and which contains a deletion of the N-terminal region of TRS1. We showed that this mutant does not bind to Beclin 1 and is not able to block autophagy. Surprisingly, it has no defects in viral production, suggesting that inhibition of autophagy is not essential for viral replication. We developed other approaches, including the use of pharmacological modulators of autophagy or shRNA knockdown, which show that the inhibition of autophagy is able to reduce viral production and, on the contrary, that its stimulation increases it. These results suggest that autophagy may be beneficial to HCMV in certain conditions.

Le virus Epstein-Barr (EBV), un membre de la famille des Herpesviridae, est associé à la mononucléose infectieuse et à différents types de cancers comme le lymphome de Burkitt, les lymphomes post-transplantation ou encore le carcinome du nasopharynx. Ce virus est capable de persister à vie dans l’organisme en combinant des phases de latence et des phases de multiplication active. L’autophagie est un processus cellulaire primordial qui conduit à la dégradation et au recyclage de protéines à longue durée de vie et d’organites endommagés ou vieillissants. Elle contribue non seulement à maintenir l’homéostasie cellulaire mais aussi à s’adapter aux conditions environnementales. Souvent décrite comme un mécanisme antiviral, l’autophagie est contrecarrée par de nombreux virus. Elle peut également être détournée à leur profit. Il a été démontré que l’EBV est capable de stimuler l’autophagie durant le cycle lytique et d’échapper à la dégradation dans les autolysosomes en bloquant la maturation des autophagosomes. Le but de cette étude était d’identifier des protéines virales impliquées dans la modulation du processus autophagique par l’EBV. Nous avons démontré que l’expression ectopique de BHRF1, une protéine transmembranaire de 17kDa orthologue de la protéine cellulaire Bcl-2, module l’autophagie.Alors que Bcl-2 est une protéine anti-autophagique, nous avons établi par différentes approches que l’expression de BHRF1 conduit à l’accumulation d’autophagosomes. De plus, en utilisant une sonde tandem bifluorescente LC3 (mRFP-GFP-LC3) pour étudier le flux autophagique, nous avons montré que BHRF1 stimule l’autophagie. BHRF1 est engagée dans un complexe avec Beclin1, une protéine de la machinerie autophagique. Nous avons établi que BHRF1 est localisée au niveau des membranes mitochondriales et du réticulum endoplasmique (RE). L’expression de BHRF1 est associée à une réorganisation du réseau mitochondrial conduisant à la formation d’agrégats mitochondriaux juxta-nucléaires. Considérant l’importance des microtubules dans l’autophagie et le transport des mitochondries, nous avons exploré la dynamique des microtubules et les modifications post-traductionnelles de la tubuline après expression de BHRF1. Nous avons observé un recrutement d’acétyl-tubuline autour des mito-aggresomes associé à un réseau intact de microtubules. Nos résultats ont montré que le réseau de microtubules et l’hyper-acétylation de l’alpha-tubuline sont nécessaires pour former les mito-aggrésomes induits par BHRF1. Par différentes approches, nous avons démontré le rôle de BHRF1 dans l’induction de la mitophagie, un processus qui entraine la clairance des mitochondries endommagées par autophagie. Considérant le rôle des mitochondries endommagées dans l’induction de l’apoptose, nous suggérons que le rôle anti-apoptotique de BHRF1 pourrait être associé à l’induction de la mitophagie. / Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a member of the Herpesviridae family, is associated with infectious mononucleosis and with several types of cancers including Burkitt’s lymphoma, post-transplant B-cell lymphoma disease and nasopharyngeal carcinoma. This virus is able to establish persistent infection and to undergo lytic cycle after reactivation. Autophagy is a critical cellular process leading to degradation of long lasting proteins and damaged or aging organelles. It contributes not only to maintain cell homeostasis but also to the adaptation to environmental stresses. Sometimes, autophagy is described as an antiviral mechanism, and viruses have evolved multiple strategies to subvert it or to hijack it to their own profit. It has been reported that EBV is able to stimulate autophagy during lytic cycle and then to escape degradation within autolysosomes by blocking autophagosomes maturation. The aim of my study was to identify EBV viral proteins involved in this modulation. Among the numerous viral proteins encoded by EBV, we have identified BHRF1, a transmembrane protein homolog of cellular protein Bcl-2, which was able to modulate autophagy by ectopic expression.Whereas Bcl-2 is an anti-autophagic protein, we demonstrated by different approaches that BHRF1 expression leads to accumulation of autophagosomes. Moreover, using tandem-fluorescent-tagged LC3 (mRFP-GFP-LC3), which is based on different pH stability of GFP and mRFP fluorescent proteins, for monitoring autophagic flux, we clearly confirmed that BHRF1 stimulates autophagy. By co-immunoprecipitation we demonstrated that BHRF1 is part of acomplex including Beclin1, a protein of the autophagic machinery. We characterized the subcellular localization of BHRF1, and report that BHRF1 is localized in mitochondria and ER membranes. Expression of BHRF1 leads to a complete reorganization of the mitochondria network to form juxtanuclear mitochondrial aggregates. Based on the importance of microtubules on both autophagy and mitochondria transport, we explored microtubule dynamics and tubulin post-translational modifications after BHRF1 expression. We observed a clustering of acetyl-tubulin around the mito-aggresomes associated with an intact microtubules network. Our results showed that the microtubules network and the hyperacetylation of alpha-tubulin were both required to form BHRF1-induced mito-aggresomes.By different approaches, we demonstrated the role of BHRF1 in the induction of mitophagy, a process which promotes the clearance of impaired mitochondria by autophagy. We hypothesized that the role of BHRF1 to protect against apoptosis and to promote cell survival is related to the induction of selective autophagy.

Autophagy is a catabolic pathway utilized by cells to maintain homeostasis. Dysregulation of this pathway often leads to various diseases, such as cancers and neurodegeneration. Therefore, autophagy must be tightly regulated by the extracellular environment or signaling pathways. The class III PI3 kinase complex, a lipid kinase complex functioning in converting phosphatidylinositol to phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate, is a key regulator of autophagy that functions as a signaling hub where multiple regulatory signals converge. Here, we demonstrate that the class III PI3 kinase complex is negatively regulated by cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks). The catalytic subunit of the kinase complex, Vps34, is phosphorylated by Cdk1 in mitotic cells and by Cdk5 in postmitotic cells. Phosphorylation on Vps34 results in its dissociation from a regulatory subunit Beclin 1, leading to decreased lipid kinase activity. As a result, autophagy is inhibited in dividing cells and postmitotic neuronal cells with elevated Cdk5 activity. Since dysfunction of autophagy has been shown to be implicated in cancers and neurodegeneration, which are characterized by abnormal activity of Cdk1 and Cdk5, respectively, our study provides a mechanism by which autophagy is modulated in those diseases. To further discover the regulatory mechanisms of autophagy, we used a novel autophagy inhibitor, spautin-1, identified in a small molecule screening. Spautin-1 inhibits autophagy by inhibiting Usp10/Usp13, which deubiquitinate and stabilize the class III PI3 kinase complex. Interestingly, Usp10/Usp13 are also stabilized by the class III PI3 kinase complex, suggesting that they are reciprocally regulated. These results led us to the observation that p53, a substrate of Usp10 is regulated by the class III PI3 kinase complex and spautin-1. We also report that A70, a more potent derivative of spautin-1, leads to the degradation of mutant p53 through the chaperone-mediated autophagy, whereas the wild-type p53 is degraded by the ubiquitin-proteasome system. Our study demonstrates an important regulatory interaction between the class III PI3 kinase complex and p53, suggesting a novel tumor suppressive function of the class III PI3 kinase complex.

No description available.

La macro-autophagie est une voie catabolique conservée dans l’évolution permettant la dégradation des organites endommagés ou vieux, des protéines à longue durée de vie ou agrégées et des portions du cytosol pour le recyclage métabolique afin de maintenir l'homéostasie cellulaire. L'absence d'autophagie est fréquemment observée dans de nombreuses pathologies incluant les cancers et les maladies neurodégénératives. Beclin 1, un suppresseur de tumeur,est une protéine clé dans la régulation de l’autophagie et participe à la nucléation de l’autophagosome. Beclin 1 est une protéine “BH3-only” pouvant interagir avec le site de fixation au domaine BH3 présent dans la protéine Bcl-2 et ses homologues. Cette interaction inhibe l’autophagie. Certains agents pharmacologiques tels qu’ABT737, appelés«BH3 mimetics», occupent le site de fixation du domaine BH3 de façon compétitive pour perturber l'interaction inhibitrice entre Beclin 1 et Bcl-2/Bcl-XL. Ceci permet à Beclin 1 de maintenir l’activité classe IIIphosphatidylinositol-3-kinase de Vps34 pour la formation du phagophore. L'autophagie est un processus finement régulé par de nombreux complexes protéiques. Les senseurs de la charge énergétique comme l’AMP-dependant kinase(AMPK), la cible mammalienne de la rapamycine (mTOR), la Sirtuin1 (SIRT1) ou les voies d’intégration du stress telles que celles impliquant l'inhibiteur des kinases NF-κB (IκBα) (IKK) et le suppresseur de tumeur p53, ont tous un impact majeur dans la régulation de l'autophagie. Dans de nombreux paradigmes de stimulation autophagique, ils semblent tous agir en amont de la dissociation Beclin 1-Bcl-2. Nos résultats révèlent qu’ABT737 stimule plusieurs voies pro-autophagiques pour obtenir une efficacité optimale. Ces résultats placent la SIRT1, AMPK / mTOR, HDM2et IKK en aval de la dissociation du complexe Beclin 1-Bcl-2. Cette étude démontre que les BH3-mimetics activent des voies multiples de stimulation de l’autophagie, peut-être en raison du degré élevé de connectivité qui existe entre les complexes protéiques de régulation de l’autophagie. Cela signifie qu’un effet spécifique sur l’interactome de Beclin 1 peut affecter d'autres voies dans le réseau du contrôle autophagique. Ces voies ne semblent pas suivre une hiérarchie linéaire, mais doivent être plutôt interconnectées dans un circuit complexe dans lequel la stimulation de l'autophagie par des déclencheurs physiologiques (tels que la carence en nutriments ou le stress des organites) induit un ensemble de changements intimement liés et impliqués dans une boucle de régulation positive qui constituerait un ensemble indissociable composant l’«autophagy switch». / Macro-autophagy is a conserved catabolic pathway that culminates in the degradation of old/damaged organelles,long-lived/aggregated proteins and portions of the cytosol for metabolic recycling to maintain cellular homeostasis.The absence of autophagy is frequently observed in many pathologies including cancers and neurodegenerative diseases. Beclin 1, a bona fide tumour suppressor, is the key autophagy regulatory protein that participates in autophagosome nucleation. Infect, Beclin 1 is a BH3-only protein that can interacts with the BH3 receptor domain contained within Bcl-2 and its homologues. This interaction functions as a inhibitory check on autophagy. Some pharmacological agents such as ABT737, referred to as ‘BH3 mimetics’, occupy the BH3-binding grooves to competitively disrupt the inhibitory interaction between Beclin 1 and Bcl-2/Bcl-XL allowing Beclin 1 to maintain the class III phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase activity of Vps34 for the phagophore formation. Autophagy is a complex process that is regulated by multiple protein complexes beyond that organized around Beclin 1. The energy sensors including AMP-dependent kinase (AMPK), mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), Sirtuin1 (SIRT1) as well as stress-integrating pathways such as those involving the inhibitor of NF-κB (IκB) kinases (IKK) and the tumour suppressor protein p53, all have a major impact on the regulation of autophagy. In many paradigms of autophagic stimulation, they all seem to act upstream of the dissociation of Beclin 1-Bcl-2. Our results reveal that ABT737stimulate multiple pro-autophagic pathways to be optimally efficient. These results place SIRT1, AMPK/mTOR,HDM2 and IKK downstream of the dissociation of the Beclin 1-Bcl-2 complex. This study advocates that BH3mimetics trigger multiple autophagy-stimulatory pathways maybe due to the high degree of connectivity that exists among autophagy-regulatory protein complexes meaning that a specific effect on the Beclin 1-interactome might affect other nodes in the autophagy-controlling network. These pathways cannot follow a linear hierarchy and rather must be interconnected in a complex circuitry, in which stimulation of autophagy by physiological triggers (such as starvation or organelle stress) induce an ensemble of intimately linked changes that are coupled to each other in positive feed forward loops constituting an indissociable ensemble that composes the “autophagic switch”.

La maladie de Paget est une ostéopathie caractérisée par une augmentation multifocale du remodelage osseux, qui débute par un front de résorption osseuse, suivi d'une formation osseuse excessive, avec un remodelage anarchique et intense. Les ostéoclastes "OCs" impliqués dans la phase initiale sont les cellules responsables dans l'initiation du processus pagétique. Les OCs pagétiques sont caractérisés par une résistance à l'apoptose, et des anomalies du processus de l'autophagie "en particulier défaut d'induction"; afin de voir si ces deux caractéristiques étaient liées, nous avons émis l'hypothèse d’un rôle des complexes Bcl2-Beclin1. Beclin-1 est une protéine inductrice de l'autophagie qui peut lier les protéines anti-apoptotiques de la famille Bcl-2; Bcl-2 inhibe alors Beclin-1 "et donc l'induction de l'autophagie" en conservant ses fonctions anti-apoptotiques. Dans le but d'étudier l'impact de l'expression de Bcl2 sur l’autophagie dans les OCs humains, nous avons utilisé un modèle de différenciation in vitro à partir de monocytes dérivés de sang de cordon ombilical, cultivés en présence de RANKL et MCSF pendant 21 jours. Ces conditions permettent d'obtenir des cellules multinucléées au phénotype ostéoclastique. Pour augmenter l’expression de Bcl-2 dans les OCs et analyser son impact sur l’autophagie par interaction avec Beclin-1, les cultures ont été stimulées par TNFα ou RANKL dans le but d'induire une activation de NF-κB. L'expression de Beclin1 et Bcl2 a été confirmée par immunobuvardage dans les OCs. L’autophagie était induite dans les cultures réalisées en conditions stringentes "milieu pauvre en nutriments", sans variation de l'expression de Bcl2 ou Beclin 1 selon les conditions, et sans impact de TNFa ou RANKL. TNFa stimulait de manière significative l'activation de NF-kB dans les cellules HEK mais pas dans les OCs. Toutefois, et quelque soit les conditions, les immunoprécipitations ne permettaient pas de retrouver d'association entre Beclin1 et Bcl2. En revanche, le partenaire d'interaction classique de Beclin1, PI3K type III, était associé à Beclin1. En conclusion, notre travail n'a pas permis d'étudier la formation des complexes Beclin1/Bcl2 et les relations entre apoptose et autophagie, en partie du fait de la complexité du modèle "effets multiples de NF-kB et TNFa" ce qui n'exclut pas l'hypothèse initiale "à ré-évaluer par une méthodologie plus appropriée". En revanche les différentes techniques d'analyse sont maintenant au point pour la poursuite de l'étude. / Abstract : Paget's disease is an osteopathy characterized by a multifocal increase in bone remodeling, which begins with excessive bone resorption followed by increased bone formation. Osteoclasts "OCs" were incriminated in the initiation of the pagetic process. Pagetic OCs are characterized by a resistance to apoptosis, and abnormalities in the process of autophagy “in particular induction defect”. In order to define whether these two characteristics were linked, we hypothesized the role of Bcl2-Beclin1 complexes. Beclin-1 is an autophagy-inducing protein that can bind anti-apoptotic proteins of the Bcl-2 family; Bcl-2 then inhibits Beclin-1 "and thus the induction of autophagy" while retaining its anti-apoptotic functions. To study the impact of Bcl2 expression on autophagy in human OCs, we used an in vitro differentiation model that uses monocytes, which are derived from umbilical cord blood and grown in the presence of RANKL and MCSF for 21 days. These conditions make it possible to obtain multinucleated cells with an osteoclastic phenotype. To increase the expression of Bcl-2 in OCs and analyze its impact on autophagy due to its interaction with Beclin-1, cultures were stimulated with TNFα or RANKL in order to induce NF-κB activation. The expression of Beclin1 and Bcl2 was confirmed by immunoblotting of Ocs cell lysates. Autophagy was induced in cultures carried out under stringent conditions "nutriment-deprived mediun", but we did not observe any variation in the expression of Bcl2 or Beclin 1 according to the culture conditions or TNFα or RANKL stimulation. TNFα significantly stimulated the activation of NF-κB in HEK cells but not in OCs. However, whatever the conditions, results from immunoprecipitaion experiments did not reveal any association between Beclin1 and Bcl2. On the other hand, the classic interaction partner of Beclin1, PI3K type III, was associated with Beclin1. In conclusion, our work did not allow us to demonstrate the formation of Beclin1 / Bcl2 complexes and the relationship between apoptosis and autophagy, partly because of the complexity of the model "multiple effects of NF-κB and TNFα". Our initial hypothesis should thereby be re-evaluated using a more appropriate methodology. On the other hand, the different techniques are now ready for further study.

As lesões potencialmente malignas orais (LPMO) constituem processos com chances de malignização e, portanto, o acompanhamento rigoroso e a retirada das lesões em situações de displasia são mandatórios. A terapia fotodinâmica (PDT) tem sido apontada como uma alternativa promissora e não invasiva para o tratamento dessas lesões. O princípio terapêutico da PDT envolve a geração de altos níveis de estresse oxidativo, pela associação de uma substância fotoativa com a energia eletromagnética e o oxigênio tecidual. É capaz de inviabilizar, através de cascatas de morte ainda pouco esclarecidas, células com alterações metabólicas significativas. A maioria dos trabalhos aponta a necessidade de várias sessões de PDT para erradicar as LPMO, porém o intervalo entre as sessões ainda é discutível. O objetivo deste trabalho foi estabelecer a relação anatomocronológica de marcadores de morte celular (caspase 3, beclin 1 e RIP 1 ) e de proteína de reparo do DNA durante o ciclo celular (PCNA) presentes após a PDT, com o intuito de verificar a cinética morte/proliferação celular e sugerir o intervalo de tempo entre as sessões de PDT mais adequado para a repetição da terapia. Para tanto, LPMOs foram induzidas por intermédio da aplicação tópica de 4-nitroquinolina-1-óxido (4-NQO) na mucosa lingual de ratos e posteriormente tratadas com PDT mediada pela administração tópica do ácido 5-aminolevulínico (5-ALA) e laser comercial (660nm, 90J. cm-2, 1000mW. cm-2). O efeito da PDT foi analisado nos tempos experimentais de 6h, 24h, 48h e 72h após a primeira sessão de PDT, e em 6h e 72h após uma segunda sessão. Nesses períodos, as línguas foram avaliadas clinica e histopatologicamente em relação ao percentual de redução das lesões induzidas e à morfologia do tecido, bem como por meio de análise imuno-histoquímica para PCNA; caspase 3 clivada (presente na apoptose), Beclin 1 (presente na autofagia) e RIP 1 (presente na necroptose). Foi determinada a porcentagem de células positivas para esses marcadores no epitélio da mucosa lingual. Não houve remissão completa das lesões nas duas sessões de PDT, mas a segunda sessão acarretou diminuição em torno de 50% no tamanho das lesões. O período de 6h após a PDT foi o que exibiu significativa atrofia epitelial, bem como a maior porcentagem de células positivas para todos os marcadores analisados, incluindo o PCNA, em ambas as sessões. Caspase 3, beclin 1 e RIP 1 exibiram significativa diminuição da expressão em 24h. O PCNA exibiu aumento significativo no período 72h, e nos dois períodos do segundo ciclo. Como não houve a presença de necrose, a expressão aumentada de RIP 1 foi associada ao processo de apoptose e autofagia. Concluiu-se que a PDT mediada pelo 5-ALA provocou aumento da expressão de caspase 3, beclin 1 e RIP 1 em LPMO nas primeiras 6h após a terapia. Nesse modelo de PDT, essas proteínas parecem interagir em mecanismos de morte por apoptose e por autofagia, mas não por necrose. Considera- se o intervalo de 24h como o mais adequado para novo ciclo com os presentes parâmetros, sem que se estenda além de 72h. / The potentially malignant oral lesions (PMOL) are processes with great chances for cancer transformation and therefore the close monitoring and removal of lesions in cases of dysplasia are mandatory. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has been identified as a promising and noninvasive treatment for these injuries. The therapeutic principle of PDT involves the generation of high levels of oxidative stress, by association of a photoactive substance with electromagnetic energy and tissue oxygen. It can kill metabolically changed cells through cascades of death which are still unclear. Most studies indicate the need of several PDT sessions to eradicate PMOL, however the interval between sessions is not consensual. The aim of this study was to establish the anatomical and chronological relationship between cellular death biomarkers (caspase 3, beclin 1 and RIP 1 ) and a DNA repair protein during cell cycle (PCNA) present after PDT, aiming to check the kinetic death/cell proliferation and suggest the time interval between PDT sessions more suitable to repetition of the PDT. For this purpose, PMOLs were induced by 4-nitroquinoline-1-oxide (4-NQO) topical application on the lingual mucosa of rats and further treated with PDT mediated by topical administration of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) and a commercial laser (Twin flex-MM Optics São Carlos-Brazil 660nm, 90J.cm-2,1000mW.cm-2).The effect of PDT was analyzed at 6h, 24h, 48h and 72h after the first session, and at 6h and 72h after a second session. In these periods, the tongues have been evaluated clinically and histopathologically regarding the percentage reduction of lesions induced and tissue morphology as well as by immunohistochemical analysis for PCNA, cleaved caspase 3 (present in apoptosis), Beclin 1 (present in autophagy) and RIP (present in necroptosis). The percentage of positive cells for these markers was determined in the epithelium of the tongue mucosa. There was no complete remission of lesions after two PDT sessions, but the second session resulted in a decrease of around 50% in lesion size. The period of 6 hours after PDT was the one in which significant epithelial atrophy was exhibited, as well as the highest percentage of positive cells for all tested markers, including PCNA in both sessions. Caspase 3, beclin 1 and RIP 1 exhibited a significant decrease of the expression at 24 hours. PCNA showed significant increase in the 72-hour period and after 6h and 72h from the second session. As there was no necrosis, the increased expression of RIP 1 has been linked to apoptosis and autophagy. It was concluded that PDT mediated by 5-ALA promoted increased expression of caspase 3, beclin 1 and RIP 1 at the PMOLs in the first 6 hours after therapy. For this PDT model, these proteins appear to interact with mechanisms of death by apoptosis and autophagy, but not necrosis. It is considered the range of 24h as the most suitable for another cycle with these parameters of PDT, which should not be extended beyond 72 hours.

As lesões potencialmente malignas orais (LPMO) constituem processos com chances de malignização e, portanto, o acompanhamento rigoroso e a retirada das lesões em situações de displasia são mandatórios. A terapia fotodinâmica (PDT) tem sido apontada como uma alternativa promissora e não invasiva para o tratamento dessas lesões. O princípio terapêutico da PDT envolve a geração de altos níveis de estresse oxidativo, pela associação de uma substância fotoativa com a energia eletromagnética e o oxigênio tecidual. É capaz de inviabilizar, através de cascatas de morte ainda pouco esclarecidas, células com alterações metabólicas significativas. A maioria dos trabalhos aponta a necessidade de várias sessões de PDT para erradicar as LPMO, porém o intervalo entre as sessões ainda é discutível. O objetivo deste trabalho foi estabelecer a relação anatomocronológica de marcadores de morte celular (caspase 3, beclin 1 e RIP 1 ) e de proteína de reparo do DNA durante o ciclo celular (PCNA) presentes após a PDT, com o intuito de verificar a cinética morte/proliferação celular e sugerir o intervalo de tempo entre as sessões de PDT mais adequado para a repetição da terapia. Para tanto, LPMOs foram induzidas por intermédio da aplicação tópica de 4-nitroquinolina-1-óxido (4-NQO) na mucosa lingual de ratos e posteriormente tratadas com PDT mediada pela administração tópica do ácido 5-aminolevulínico (5-ALA) e laser comercial (660nm, 90J. cm-2, 1000mW. cm-2). O efeito da PDT foi analisado nos tempos experimentais de 6h, 24h, 48h e 72h após a primeira sessão de PDT, e em 6h e 72h após uma segunda sessão. Nesses períodos, as línguas foram avaliadas clinica e histopatologicamente em relação ao percentual de redução das lesões induzidas e à morfologia do tecido, bem como por meio de análise imuno-histoquímica para PCNA; caspase 3 clivada (presente na apoptose), Beclin 1 (presente na autofagia) e RIP 1 (presente na necroptose). Foi determinada a porcentagem de células positivas para esses marcadores no epitélio da mucosa lingual. Não houve remissão completa das lesões nas duas sessões de PDT, mas a segunda sessão acarretou diminuição em torno de 50% no tamanho das lesões. O período de 6h após a PDT foi o que exibiu significativa atrofia epitelial, bem como a maior porcentagem de células positivas para todos os marcadores analisados, incluindo o PCNA, em ambas as sessões. Caspase 3, beclin 1 e RIP 1 exibiram significativa diminuição da expressão em 24h. O PCNA exibiu aumento significativo no período 72h, e nos dois períodos do segundo ciclo. Como não houve a presença de necrose, a expressão aumentada de RIP 1 foi associada ao processo de apoptose e autofagia. Concluiu-se que a PDT mediada pelo 5-ALA provocou aumento da expressão de caspase 3, beclin 1 e RIP 1 em LPMO nas primeiras 6h após a terapia. Nesse modelo de PDT, essas proteínas parecem interagir em mecanismos de morte por apoptose e por autofagia, mas não por necrose. Considera- se o intervalo de 24h como o mais adequado para novo ciclo com os presentes parâmetros, sem que se estenda além de 72h. / The potentially malignant oral lesions (PMOL) are processes with great chances for cancer transformation and therefore the close monitoring and removal of lesions in cases of dysplasia are mandatory. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has been identified as a promising and noninvasive treatment for these injuries. The therapeutic principle of PDT involves the generation of high levels of oxidative stress, by association of a photoactive substance with electromagnetic energy and tissue oxygen. It can kill metabolically changed cells through cascades of death which are still unclear. Most studies indicate the need of several PDT sessions to eradicate PMOL, however the interval between sessions is not consensual. The aim of this study was to establish the anatomical and chronological relationship between cellular death biomarkers (caspase 3, beclin 1 and RIP 1 ) and a DNA repair protein during cell cycle (PCNA) present after PDT, aiming to check the kinetic death/cell proliferation and suggest the time interval between PDT sessions more suitable to repetition of the PDT. For this purpose, PMOLs were induced by 4-nitroquinoline-1-oxide (4-NQO) topical application on the lingual mucosa of rats and further treated with PDT mediated by topical administration of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) and a commercial laser (Twin flex-MM Optics São Carlos-Brazil 660nm, 90J.cm-2,1000mW.cm-2).The effect of PDT was analyzed at 6h, 24h, 48h and 72h after the first session, and at 6h and 72h after a second session. In these periods, the tongues have been evaluated clinically and histopathologically regarding the percentage reduction of lesions induced and tissue morphology as well as by immunohistochemical analysis for PCNA, cleaved caspase 3 (present in apoptosis), Beclin 1 (present in autophagy) and RIP (present in necroptosis). The percentage of positive cells for these markers was determined in the epithelium of the tongue mucosa. There was no complete remission of lesions after two PDT sessions, but the second session resulted in a decrease of around 50% in lesion size. The period of 6 hours after PDT was the one in which significant epithelial atrophy was exhibited, as well as the highest percentage of positive cells for all tested markers, including PCNA in both sessions. Caspase 3, beclin 1 and RIP 1 exhibited a significant decrease of the expression at 24 hours. PCNA showed significant increase in the 72-hour period and after 6h and 72h from the second session. As there was no necrosis, the increased expression of RIP 1 has been linked to apoptosis and autophagy. It was concluded that PDT mediated by 5-ALA promoted increased expression of caspase 3, beclin 1 and RIP 1 at the PMOLs in the first 6 hours after therapy. For this PDT model, these proteins appear to interact with mechanisms of death by apoptosis and autophagy, but not necrosis. It is considered the range of 24h as the most suitable for another cycle with these parameters of PDT, which should not be extended beyond 72 hours.