Type 2 diabetes is a disease characterized by the inability of pancreatic β-cells to secrete sufficient amounts of insulin to maintain normoglycemia. Increased levels of saturated fatty acids such as palmitate are believed to contribute to β-cell failure and the development of the disease. In the present thesis, mechanisms behind palmitate-induced β-cell apoptosis were explored. Palmitate augmented insulin secretion after short exposure to the fatty acid, but attenuated the secretory response after longer exposure. Elevated levels of palmitate increased endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and induced apoptosis. When insulin secretion was inhibited by diazoxide, palmitate-induced ER stress and apoptosis were reduced. In comparison to palmitate, the mono-unsaturated fatty acid oleate increased neither ER stress nor apoptosis. Furthermore, shuttling of fatty acids into triglycerides and β-oxidation was favored in cells exposed to oleate compared to palmitate. When the levels of stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1 (SCD1), the enzyme responsible for conversion of saturated to mono-unsaturated fatty acids, were reduced, up-regulation of ER chaperones and components of the proteasome was observed. Cells with reduced levels of SCD1 showed increased sensitivity to palmitate, as exposure to the fatty acid increased levels of ER stress and apoptosis. Palmitate-induced apoptosis of the β-cell has been linked to alterations in sphingolipid metabolism. In cells with reduced levels of sphingosine kinase (SphK) 2, palmitate failed to induce apoptosis, and ER stress was reduced. Furthermore, SphK2 was required for the palmitate-induced activation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). In contrast, knockdown of SphK1 sensitized the cell to palmitate-induced apoptosis independently of ER stress. In summary, palmitate induces β-cell apoptosis, which is partly dependent on the induction of ER stress. The mechanisms investigated support the notion that increased protein load on the ER, low degree of triglyceride formation and β-oxidation, and perturbations in sphingolipid metabolism contribute to palmitate-induced apoptosis in insulin-producing β-cells.

Orientador: Prof. Dr. Tiago Rodrigues / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Federal do ABC, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biossistemas, 2016. / O câncer é uma das principais causas de morte da população mundial, sendo considerado um problema de saúde pública. As células tumorais adquirem diversas características que as permitem se proliferar desordenadamente e invadir outros tecidos, como a resistência à morte celular. As fenotiazinas são fármacos utilizados há muito tempo para o tratamento de desordens psiquiátricas. Dados da literatura demonstram que estes compostos apresentam diversos efeitos biológicos relevantes, como a atividade antitumoral. Estudos do nosso grupo têm evidenciado efeitos extremamente importantes das fenotiazinas e análogos sobre mitocôndrias, como aumento das concentrações de cálcio no citosol. Em nosso estudo prévio com mitocôndrias isoladas, foi demonstrado que estes compostos promovem a permabilização da membrana mitocondrial pela abertura do poro de transição de permeabilidade com consequente dissipação do potencial de membrana mitocondrial, efluxo de cálcio e liberação de citocromo c. Posteriormente, em um estudo recente, demonstramos a citotoxicidade destes compostos em células de hepatoma, acompanhada de alterações na morfologia celular, permeabilização da membrana plasmática e imediata dissipação do potencial de membrana mitocondrial. Dentre as fenotiazinas estudadas por nosso grupo, a que apresentou maior potência foi a tioridazina (TR), sendo assim a droga escolhida para este estudo, cujo objetivo foi estudar os mecanismos moleculares envolvidos na morte celular induzida pela tioridazina em células leucêmicas, investigando o papel das proteínas da família BCL-­2 neste processo, bem como as alterações nas vias de sinalização associadas à morte celular, como estresse do retículo endoplasmático (RE). A TR foi capaz de induzir a apoptose de maneira concentração e tempo­dependente, além de inibir a progressão do ciclo celular nas células leucêmicas K562. Além disso, a morte celular induzida pela tioridazina foi acompanhada de dissipação do potencial de membrana mitocondrial e alterações na expressão das proteínas da família BCL-­2 e ativação das proteínas quinases JNK, ERK1/2 e p38. Nossos resultados também demonstraram que TR é capaz de promover a ativação da proteína pró-­apoptótica BAX e liberação da proteína mitocondrial Omi, eventos característicos da permeabilização da membrana mitocondrial externa. Adicionalmente, observamos que TR foi capaz de promover severo estresse do RE, acompanhado de aumento na expressão das principais proteínas envolvidas na sinalização em resposta a este evento e consequente morte celular. Neste trabalho podemos concluir que a tanto a via mitocondrial como o estresse do retículo endoplasmático contribuem para a morte celular induzida pela TR nas células K562. Estes resultados demonstraram o potente efeito citotóxico da tioridazina nas células leucêmicas e evidenciaram o promissor potencial terapêutico dessa classe de drogas como antitumorais. / Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide and it is considered a public health problem. Tumor cells exhibit a variety of features that enable tumor growth and dissemination, like resistance to cell death mechanisms. Phenothiazines is a group of drugs that have been used in the treatment of psychiatric disorders for a long time. Literature data demonstrate that these compounds exhibit relevant biological effects including antitumor activity. Publications from our group have evidenced extremely important effects of phenotiazines and analogues on mitochondria related to the increase of calcium cytosolic concentration promoted by this drug. In our earlier work with isolated mitochondria, it was demonstrated that these drugs promote the mitochondrial membrane permeability due to the opening of permeability transition pore complex with consequent dissipation of mitochondrial transmembrane potential, calcium efflux and cytochrome c release. Additionally, in our latest publication, we demonstrated the cytotoxicity of phenothiazines in hepatoma cells, accompanied by cellular morphological alterations, plasma membrane permeability and immediate dissipation of mitochondrial transmembrane potential. Among the studied phenothiazines, the most potent was thioridazine, which was chosen for the present work. The goal of this work was to underlie the molecular mechanisms of thioridazine-­induced cell death in leukemic cells, evaluating the role of BCL-­2 family proteins, as well as changes in signaling pathways associated to cell death, including endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. This compound was able to induce apoptosis in a concentration and time-­dependent manner, and also inhibit the cell cycle progression in K562 cells. Furthermore, tioridazine-­induced cell death was accompanied by dissipation of mitochondrial transmembrane potential, alterations in BCL-­2 proteins expression as well as activation of the kinases JNK, ERK1/2 and p38. Our results also demonstrated that thioridazine was able to activate the pro ­apoptotic protein BAX and the release of the mitochondrial protein Omi, resulting in mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization. In addition, we observed that thioridazine was able to induce a severe ER stress, promoting an increase in the expression of the major sensor proteins in this signaling pathway, leading to cell death. We can conclude that both mitochondrial and ER stress contributes to thioridazine-­induced cell death in K562 cells. Besides the importance of our results to the elucidation of phenothiazines-­induced tumor cells death, it also confirms the promising therapeutic potential of this class of drugs as antitumor agents.

Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (ARS) are a family of enzymes that catalyze the charging of amino acids to their cognate tRNA in an aminoacylation reaction. Many members of this family have been found to have secondary functions independent of their primary aminoacylation function. Threonyl-tRNA synthetase (TARS), the ARS responsible for charging tRNA with threonine, is secreted from endothelial cells in response to both vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and stimulates angiogenesis and cell migration. Here we show a novel experimental approach for studying TARS secretion, and for observing the role of intracellular TARS in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response and in angiogenesis. Using Western blotting, immunofluorescence microscopy and RT-qPCR we were able to investigate changes in TARS protein and transcript levels. We initially hypothesized that TARS was secreted by exosomal release, and so we treated a human ovarian cancer cell line (CaOV-3) with monensin, an ionophore that increases exosome production, and VEGF to observe changes in intracellular and extracellular TARS protein. Monensin treatment consistently increased extracellular and intracellular TARS protein, however CD63, an exosome marker protein, levels were unaffected by monensin treatment. VEGF had no effect on intracellular TARS. We therefore hypothesized that the TARS response was a result of ER stress. The unfolded protein response (UPR) is a series of signaling pathways that are activated upon ER stress. When CaOV-3 cells were treated with increasing concentrations of monensin, intracellular levels of TARS and p-eIF2α, a downstream UPR target, increased accordingly. Monensin increased intracellular TARS protein and transcript levels in CaOV-3 cells. Monensin also increased DNAJB9, an ER chaperone protein, transcript levels, further confirming ER stress. Interestingly, monensin increased VEGF transcript levels about 6-fold. Borrelidin, a natural TARS inhibitor, also increased VEGF transcript levels, and caused an increase in p-eIF2α protein. Although the mechanism of TARS secretion remains unresolved, these data indicate that intracellular TARS expression increases in response to ER stress by monensin. Given TARS and VEGF transcript expression increased accordingly, it is possible that intracellular TARS may have pro-angiogenic function. Future directions may include investigating TARS interactions with translational control machinery.

Cardiac function is regulated by the molecular components of the sarco/endoplasmic reticulum (ER/SR). Disruptions in homeostatic balance of these proteins and calcium regulation results in activation of ER stress response. Sarcolemmal membrane-associated proteins (SLMAPs) are found in cell membrane, SR/ER, and mitochondria. Overexpression of SLMAP in the myocardium has shown to impair excitation-contraction (E-C) coupling in the transgenic (Tg) mice. ER stress response was examined in Tg mice overexpressing SLMAP in the myocardium. In Tg hearts, changes observed in the expression of proteins involved in ER stress were dependent on the age and sex. SLMAP overexpression results in maladaptive ER stress response, as the mice age. Neonatal cardiomyocytes isolated from the Tg hearts showed decreased viability, upregulation of ER stress response proteins, which were sensitized to thapsigargin-induced stress, and desensitized to palmitate-induced oxidative stress. These findings suggest that normal SLMAP levels are important for proper cardiac function, and cell viability.

Plusieurs arguments de la littérature suggèrent l’importance de l’alimentation dans le développement tumoral et l’efficacité des traitements anti-cancereux. Dans différents modèles animaux, la restriction calorique (CR) supprime la prolifération des cellules tumorales et les sensibilise aux thérapies ciblées. Par conséquent, des approches non-pharmacologiques comme la restriction calorique ont un intérêt grandissant en clinique. Considérant l’addiction des cellules tumorales aux nutriments, nous nous sommes demandé quels macronutriments pouvaient avoir des propriétés anticancéreuses. A partir d’un modèle murin de lymphomes B (modèle transgénique Eµ-Myc) nous avons testé l’impact de deux régimes alimentaires : l’un pauvre en glucides (Low CHO, 25% de réduction en glucides) et l’autre pauvre en protéines (Low PROT, 25% de réduction en protéines). Des souris syngéniques C57BL/6 ont été injectées par voie intraveineuse avec des cellules primaires Eμ-Myc. Malgré un apport alimentaire équivalent entre les groupes, nous avons observé que le régime pauvre en protéines augmente la survie globale des souris C57BL/6 développant un lymphome B Eµ-Myc. De manière intéressante, nous avons démontré que cet effet pro-survie est dépendant du système immunitaire. En effet, la déplétion des cellules T CD8+ ou l’utilisation d’un modèle murin immunodéficient NSG (NOD-SCID il2rγ), empêche l’effet bénéfique du régime pauvre en protéines sur le développement tumoral. Nous avons reproduit et étendu nos observations en utilisant des lignées modèles de cancéreuses colorectaux (CT26) et de mélanome (B16) injectée dans des souris syngéniques, immunocompétente. Les cellules tumorales étant fortement dépendantes des nutriments, nous avons émis l’hypothèse qu’un régime pauvre en protéines pourrait induire un stress du réticulum endoplasmique (RE) dans ces dernières. En effet, nous avons observé une augmentation des protéines impliquées dans la signalisation du RE : CHOP et sXBP1. Par conséquent, nous avons traité les souris nourries en régime pauvre en protéines avec deux inhibiteurs du stress du RE : TUDCA, inhibiteur générique et MKC4485 qui cible l’activité ribonucléase d’IRE1. Dans les deux cas, ces inhibiteurs ont bloqué l’effet du régime faible en protéines sur le développement tumoral et l’infiltration des T CD8+ au sein de la tumeur. Pour s’affranchir, des potentiels effets secondaires des inhibiteurs chimiques, nous avons invalidé IRE1 dans la lignée CT26 et nous avons obtenus des résultats similaires, démontrant que la voie IRE1 dans les cellules tumorales est une voie centrale dans la réponse immunitaire anticancéreuse induite par un régime pauvre en protéines. En outre, nous avons découvert que l’activation de RIG-I est un événement en aval de l’activation d’IRE1 et que, par analyse bio-informatique nous avons pu corréler une signature IRE1 à une infiltration immunitaire élevée et à une immunogénicité accrue du cancer chez les patients atteints de mélanome, glioblastome et cancer colorectal. De ce fait, nous avons démontré que la réponse du système immunitaire induite par un régime pauvre en protéines est une conséquence de l’activation accrue de IRE1 dans les cellules cancéreuses. / Several arguments from the literature suggested the importance of diets in cancer development and in the efficacy of anti-cancer therapies. Calorie restriction (CR) suppresses cancer growth in various animal models and sensitizes tumor cells to targeted therapies (Meynet & Ricci, 2014). Thus, non-pharmacologic approaches such as CR have a growing interest in the clinic. Considering the nutrient addiction of cancer cells, we wondered which specific macronutrients contribute the most to anti-cancer effects. Therefore, we tested the reduction in specific macronutrient without decrease in general calorie intake on tumor development. We used two diets: reduced in carbohydrates (Low CHO, -25% carbohydrates) and diet reduced in protein (Low PROT, -25% proteins) on the Eµ-Myc transgenic mouse model of B-cell lymphoma. Syngeneic C57BL/6 mice were intravenously injected with primary Eμ-Myc cells. We observed that low PROT-diet, in spite of equal calorie intake among the groups, resulted in increase of the overall survival of Eµ-Myc-bearing C57BL/6 mice. Very importantly, we established that this pro-survival effect is immune system-dependent as both depletion of CD8+ T cells and use of immunodeficient NSG (NOD-SCID il2rγ) mouse model prevented the beneficial effect of the low PROT-diet on the tumor development. We reproduced and further extended our observations using subcutaneous injection of CT26 colorectal cancer cells in syngeneic immunocompetent BALB/c mice and B16 melanoma in C57BL/6 mice. As tumor cells are highly dependent on nutrients, we speculated that low PROT diet could induce ER stress in tumor cells. Indeed, we observed increase in proteins implicated in ER stress signaling – CHOP and sXBP1. Therefore, we treated low PROT-diet fed mice with two ER stress inhibitors, the general inhibitor TUDCA or MKC4485, which targets IRE1 RNAse activity. In both cases, inhibitors significantly prevented the effect of the Low PROT-diet on tumor development and on intratumoral number of CD8+ T cells. To eliminate any side effects of chemical inhibitors, we invalidated IRE1 in CT26 cells and obtained similar results, demonstrating that IRE1 signaling in tumor cells is a central event in the low PROT-diet induced anti-cancer immune response. In addition, we have uncovered RIG-I activation as a downstream event of IRE1 activation and by bioinformatic analysis correlated high-IRE1 signature with high immune infiltration and enhanced immunogenicity of cancer in patients bearing melanoma, glioblastoma and colorectal cancer. Hence, we have shown that the immune system response elicited under a Low PROT diet is a consequence of increased IRE1 activation in cancer cells.

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(医学) / 甲第23085号 / 医博第4712号 / 新制||医||1049(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院医学研究科医学専攻 / (主査)教授 安達 泰治, 教授 戸口田 淳也, 教授 別所 和久 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Medical Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

CELLULAR MECHANISMS BY WHICH ALCOHOL PROMOTES HIV PROTEASE INHIBITOR-INDUCED HEPATOTOXICITY Michael Hinton, B.S. A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University, 2019 Major Director: Huiping Zhou Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology The development of highly-active-antiretroviral therapy(HAART) has allowed management of HIV and extended the lives of those infected. Alcohol abuse, which is very common in HIV-1 infected patients, is one of the most important co-morbid risk factors for liver injury and has been associated with the occurrence of serious metabolic syndrome and subsequent discontinuation of HAART in HIV patients. We have identified endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-induced proapoptotic factor CCAAT-element-binding protein homologous protein (CHOP) as an important mechanism underlying HIV PI-induced inflammation and hepatic lipotoxicity. However, little is known about the mechanistic pathways by which alcohol promotes HIV PI-induced hepatic lipotoxicity. The aim of this study was to determine if inhibition of CHOP expression prevents alcohol- and HIV PI-induced apoptosis and dysregulation of lipid metabolism. We demonstrated that co-administration of alcohol and HIV PIs induced unfolded protein response (UPR) activation, ER stress, and CHOP upregulation in rodent hepatocytes. Both alcohol and HIV PI-induced lipid accumulation and apoptosis were significantly reduced in CHOP-/- hepatocytes. Also, CHOP-/- hepatocytes treated with alcohol and HIV PIs showed inflammation.. Activation of the ER stress-induced proapoptotic factor CHOP is a key cellular mechanism underlying alcohol and HIV PI-induced hepatotoxicity. CHOP expression is key for alcohol and HIV PI-induced dysregulation of key genes involved in lipid metabolism in hepatocytes. Limitations of the study include the usage of global CHOP-/- in lieu of tissue-specific conditional knockout mouse models, nonobservance of the effects of alcohol and HIV PIs on extra-hepatic tissues, and incomplete investigation of the interplay of hepatocytes and resident macrophages.

No description available.

Overweight has become a major health care problem in Western societies and is accompanied by an increasing incidence and prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The progression from NAFLD to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) marks a crucial tipping point in the progression of severe and irreversible liver diseases. This study aims to gain further insight into the molecular processes leading to the evolution from steatosis to steatohepatitis. Steatosis was induced in cultures of primary human hepatocytes by continuous five-day exposure to free fatty acids (FFAs). The kinetics of lipid accumulation, lipotoxicity, and oxidative stress were measured. Additionally, ER stress was evaluated by analyzing the protein expression profiles of its key players: PERK, IRE1a, and ATF6a. Our data revealed that hepatocytes are capable of storing enormous amounts of lipids without showing signs of lipotoxicity. Prolonged lipid accumulation did not create an imbalance in hepatocyte redox homeostasis or a reduction in antioxidative capacity. However, we observed an FFA-dependent increase in ER stress, revealing thresholds for triggering the activation of pathways associated with lipid stress, inhibition of protein translation, and apoptosis. Our study clearly showed that even severe lipid accumulation can be attenuated by cellular defenses, but regenerative capacities may be reduced.

Overweight has become a major health care problem in Western societies and is accompanied by an increasing incidence and prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The progression from NAFLD to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) marks a crucial tipping point in the progression of severe and irreversible liver diseases. This study aims to gain further insight into the molecular processes leading to the evolution from steatosis to steatohepatitis. Steatosis was induced in cultures of primary human hepatocytes by continuous five-day exposure to free fatty acids (FFAs). The kinetics of lipid accumulation, lipotoxicity, and oxidative stress were measured. Additionally, ER stress was evaluated by analyzing the protein expression profiles of its key players: PERK, IRE1a, and ATF6a. Our data revealed that hepatocytes are capable of storing enormous amounts of lipids without showing signs of lipotoxicity. Prolonged lipid accumulation did not create an imbalance in hepatocyte redox homeostasis or a reduction in antioxidative capacity. However, we observed an FFA-dependent increase in ER stress, revealing thresholds for triggering the activation of pathways associated with lipid stress, inhibition of protein translation, and apoptosis. Our study clearly showed that even severe lipid accumulation can be attenuated by cellular defenses, but regenerative capacities may be reduced.