Glucans are fungal cell wall polysaccharides which stimulate innate immune responses. We determined the minimum unit ligand that would bind to glucan receptors on human U937 cells using laminarin-derived pentaose, hexaose, and heptaose glucan polymers. When U937 membranes were pretreated with the oligosaccharides and passed over a glucan surface, only the heptasaccharide inhibited the interaction of glucan with membrane receptors at a Kd of 31 μM (95% CI 20-48 μM) and 100% inhibition. However, the glucan heptasaccharide did not stimulate U937 monocyte NFκB signaling, nor did it increase survival in a murine model of polymicrobial sepsis. Laminarin, a larger and more complex glucan polymer (Mw=7700 g/mol), only partially inhibited binding (61±4%) at a Kd of 2.6 μM (99% CI 1.7-4.2 μM) with characteristics of a single binding site. These results indicate that a heptasaccharide is the smallest unit ligand recognized by macrophage glucan receptors. The data also indicate the presence of at least two glucan-binding sites on U937 cells and that the binding sites on human monocyte/macrophages can discriminate between glucan polymers. The heptasaccharide and laminarin were receptor antagonists, but they were not receptor agonists with respect to activation of NFκB-dependent signaling pathways or protection against experimental sepsis.

La réponse au choc thermique est un mécanisme de défense largement décrit au cours duquel l’expression préférentielle des protéines de choc thermique Hsp aide la cellule à récupérer des dommages causés par l’hyperthermie, comme la dénaturation/agrégation des protéines. Une des conséquences du choc thermique mise en évidence au laboratoire, est l’activation du facteur de transcription NFκB. Cette activation a lieu pendant la période de récupération suivant ce stress. Par comparaison de la réponse au choc thermique de cellules témoins ou déficientes en NFκB, nous avons cherché à étudier les conséquences de l’activation de NFκB par le choc thermique. Nous avons montré que NFκB active un mécanisme augmentant la survie des cellules soumises à une hyperthermie : l’autophagie. L’absence d’induction de ce mécanisme conduit à la mort par nécrose des cellules déplétées en NFκB. Dans ces cellules, l’induction artificielle de l’autophagie restaure une survie normale au stress thermique. Nous avons montré que les principaux régulateurs de l’autophagie (complexes mTOR et PI3Kinase de Classe III) ne sont pas des cibles modulées par NFκB, en réponse à une hyperthermie. En revanche, l’accumulation de protéines dénaturées voire agrégées est un élément primordial pour l’activation de l’autophagie-dépendante de NFκB. En effet dans les cellules déficientes pour NFκB, contrairement aux cellules témoins, l’accumulation de protéines agrégées induite par le traitement hyperthermique, mais aussi par l’expression de formes mutées d’HspB5, n’est pas résorbée ; ceci indique que le contrôle qualité des protéines est altéré dans ces cellules. Cette altération pourrait provenir d’un défaut de formation du complexe BAG3-HspB8 en absence de NFκB. En effet, nous avons montré que la forte expression des gènes bag3 et hspb8, induite suite au stress thermique, est dépendante de NFκB et que l’accumulation du complexe BAG3-HspB8, observé dans les cellules témoins soumises au choc thermique, est inhibée dans les cellules déficientes pour NFκB. Nos résultats démontrent que NFκB induit un processus autophagique en réponse à l’agrégation protéique induite par l’hyperthermie. Ce mécanisme, nécessitant la formation du complexe BAG3-HspB8, augmente la survie des cellules probablement par l’élimination des protéines agrégées générées au cours du stress thermique / The heat shock response is a widely described defense mechanism during which the preferential expression of heat shock proteins (Hsps) helps the cell to recover from thermal damages such as protein denaturation/aggregation. We have previously reported that NFκB transcription factor is activated during the recovery period after heat shock. Thus, we aimed to analyze the consequences of NFκB activation during heat shock recovery, by comparing the heat shock response of NFκB competent and incompetent cells. We demonstrated that NFκB plays a major and crucial role during the heat shock response by activating autophagy, which increases the survival of heat-treated cells. Indeed, we observed that autophagy is not activated during heat shock recovery leading to an increased level of necrotic cell death in NFκB incompetent cells. Moreover, when autophagy is artificially induced in these cells, the heat shock cytotoxicity is turned back to normal. We showed that the key regulators of autophagy (mTOR complex, and class III PI3Kinase complex) are not regulated by NFκB after heat shock. In contrast, we observed that aberrantly folded/aggregated proteins accumulation is a prime event in the activation of NFκB -mediated autophagy. Moreover, NFκB -depleted cells accumulate higher levels of protein aggregates induced by either heat shock treatment or mutated form of HspB5, indicating that the protein quality control process seem to be altered in these cells. This alteration could be caused by a defect in BAG3-HspB8 complex formation in NFκB -depleted cells. We demonstrated that heat shock treatment induces a NFB-dependent overexpression of the bag3 and hspb8 genes. Moreover, the accumulation of BAG3-HspB8 complex in heat shocked NFκB -competent cells is inhibited by NFκB depletion. Our findings how / prove / highlight revealed that NFκB -induced autophagy during heat shock recovery is an additional response to protein denaturation/aggregation induced by heat shock. This process depends on the BAG3-HspB8 complex formation and increases cell survival, probably through clearance of aggregated proteins

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(社会健康医学) / 甲第22749号 / 社医博第110号 / 新制||社医||11(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院医学研究科社会健康医学系専攻 / (主査)教授 髙橋 良輔, 教授 髙折 晃史, 教授 中山 健夫 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Public Health / Kyoto University / DFAM

Growing evidence supports the role of transcription factor activation in the pathophysiology of inflammatory disorders, sepsis, ARDS, SIRS, and shock. Kinase mediated phosphorylation of IκBα is a crucial step in the NFκB activation pathway. We investigated IκBα phosphorylation in murine liver and lung extracts after cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) in the presence and absence of a glucan ligand. ICR mice were subjected to CLP. Unoperated and sham-operated mice served as the controls. Glucan phosphate (50 mg/kg) was administered 1 h before or 15 min after CLP. CLP increased hepatic and pulmonary levels of phospho-IκBα by 48-192%. Pre-or post-treatment with glucan phosphate decreased (P < 0.05) tissue phospho-IκBα levels in CLP mice. Phospho-IκBα in the glucan-CLP group were not significantly different from the unoperated controls. To investigate mechanisms we examined IKKβ kinase activity, IκBα phosphorylation and degradation, and NFκB activity in a murine macrophage cell line, J774a.1, treated with LPS (1 μg/mL) and/or glucan phosphate (1 μg/mL) for up to 120 min. The glucan ligand blunted LPS-induced IKKβ kinase activity, phosphorylation and degradation of IκBα, and NFκB nuclear binding activity. The data indicate that one mechanism by which (1→3)-β-D-glucan may alter the response to endotoxin or polymicrobial sepsis involves modulation of IKKβ kinase activity with subsequent decreases in IκBα phosphorylation and NFκB activation.

Aims: The ability of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) pre-treatment to induce cardioprotection following ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) has been well documented; however, the mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. LPS is a Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) ligand. Recent evidence indicates that there is cross-talk between the TLR and phosphoinositide 3-kinase/Akt (PI3K/Akt) signalling pathways. We hypothesized that activation of PI3K/Akt signalling plays a critical role in LPS-induced cardioprotection. Methods and results: To evaluate this hypothesis, we pre-treated mice with LPS 24 h before the hearts were subjected to ischaemia (45 min) and reperfusion (4 h). We examined activation of the PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β signalling pathway. The effect of PI3K/Akt inhibition on LPS-induced cardioprotection was also evaluated. LPS pre-treatment significantly reduced infarct size (71.25%) compared with the untreated group (9.3 ± 1.58 vs. 32.3 ± 2.92%, P < 0.01). Cardiac myocyte apoptosis and caspase-3 activity in LPS-pre-treated mice were significantly reduced following I/R. LPS pre-treatment significantly increased the levels of phospho-Akt, phospho-GSK-3β, and heat shock protein 27 in the myocardium. Pharmacological inhibition of PI3K by LY294002 or genetic modulation employing kinase-defective Akt transgenic mice abolished the cardioprotection induced by LPS. Conclusion: These results indicate that LPS-induced cardioprotection in I/R injury is mediated through a PI3K/Akt-dependent mechanism.

Les plaquettes sanguines sont des cellules anucléées qui jouent un rôle majeur dans l’hémostase. Au-delà de cette fonction, elles possèdent une composante inflammatoire multifacette ; recouvrant la détection du signal de danger, la libération de cytokines et la migration leucocytaire. Dans ce contexte, la première partie de ces travaux met en avant la capacité des plaquettes à mettre en place une activation de type inflammatoire en réponse à un pathogène. En effet, lors de l’infection à HIV les plaquettes sont dans un état d’hyperréactivité et libèrent des facteurs immunomodulateurs pouvant participer à l’inflammation observée chez les patients infectées. D’une manière parallèle, les plaquettes présentent une sensibilité aux bactéries, faisant intervenir les TLR2 et 4 mais aussi les exotoxines, voire les bactéries entières. Le profil de la réponse inflammatoire induite est assez conséquent et diversifié pour participer à la physiopathologie du sepsis. La participation des plaquettes à l’inflammation concerne également leur interconnexion avec les neutrophiles. La seconde partie des travaux traite d’ailleurs de cette coopération qui ne semble pas s’arrêter à la barrière endothéliale, car lors de leur extravasation les neutrophiles transportent avec eux les plaquettes ; qui sont encore capables d’entretenir l’inflammation au niveau du site inflammatoire (ici, modèle de l’alvéole pulmonaire). La diversité du répertoire moléculaire plaquettaire, mis en avant au cours de cette thèse, qui participe à l’inflammation ouvre plusieurs possibilités quant à l’élaboration d’anti-plaquettaires qui pourraient moduler une réponse inflammatoire exacerbée / Blood platelets are anucleate cells which play an key role in haemostasis. In addition to this function, they participate in a number of other functions related to the inflammatory response including danger detection, cytokine release, and leukocyte transmigration. In the first part of the study, we highlight the ability of platelets to undergo an inflammatory activation response to a pathogen. Indeed during HIV infection, platelets are hyperresponsive and release immunomodulatory factors that can be involved in the inflammatory state seen in the patients. In a parallel way, platelets are also sensitive to bacteria, involving TLRs 2 and 4, exotoxins, as well as whole live bacteria. The inflammatory profile induced is sufficient, and quite diversified to participate in sepsis physiopathology. Platelet inflammatory functions also apply to their ability to crosstalk with neutrophils. Thus in the second part of our study, we focus on this interconnection, which does not appear to be stopping at the endothelial barrier, and can be seen during extravasation where neutrophils carry surface bound platelets in order to maintain inflammation directly onsite (alveolar inflammation model here).The diversity of platelet inflammatory activities highlighted in our work leads to several possibilities for the development of an antiplatelet therapeutic target which could modulate an exacerbated inflammatory response

<p>Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is an extremely rare but highly aggressive form of breast cancer characterized by the rapid development of therapeutic resistance leading to particularly poor survival. Our previous work focused on the elucidation of factors that mediate therapeutic resistance in IBC and identified increased expression of the anti-apoptotic protein, X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP), to correlate with the development of resistance to chemotherapeutics. Although XIAP is classically thought of as an inhibitor of caspase activation, multiple studies have revealed that XIAP can also function as a signaling intermediate in numerous pathways. Based on preliminary evidence revealing high expression of XIAP in pre-treatment IBC cells rather than only subsequent to the development of resistance, we hypothesized that XIAP could play an important signaling role in IBC pathobiology outside of its heavily published apoptotic inhibition function. Further, based on our discovery of inhibition of chemotherapeutic efficacy, we postulated that XIAP overexpression might also play a role in resistance to other forms of therapy, such as immunotherapy. Finally, we posited that targeting of specific redox adaptive mechanisms, which are observed to be a significant barrier to successful treatment of IBC, could overcome therapeutic resistance and enhance the efficacy of chemo-, radio-, and immuno- therapies. To address these hypotheses our objectives were: 1. to determine a role for XIAP in IBC pathobiology and to elucidate the upstream regulators and downstream effectors of XIAP; 2. to evaluate and describe a role for XIAP in the inhibition of immunotherapy; and 3. to develop and characterize novel redox modulatory strategies that target identified mechanisms to prevent or reverse therapeutic resistance. </p><p> Using various genomic and proteomic approaches, combined with analysis of cellular viability, proliferation, and growth parameters both in vitro and in vivo, we demonstrate that XIAP plays a central role in both IBC pathobiology in a manner mostly independent of its role as a caspase-binding protein. Modulation of XIAP expression in cells derived from patients prior to any therapeutic intervention significantly altered key aspects IBC biology including, but not limited to: IBC-specific gene signatures; the tumorigenic capacity of tumor cells; and the metastatic phenotype of IBC, all of which are revealed to functionally hinge on XIAP-mediated NFκB activation, a robust molecular determinant of IBC. Identification of the mechanism of XIAP-mediated NFκB activation led to the characterization of novel peptide-based antagonist which was further used to identify that increased NFκB activation was responsible for redox adaptation previously observed in therapy-resistant IBC cells. Lastly, we describe the targeting of this XIAP-NFκB-ROS axis using a novel redox modulatory strategy both in vitro and in vivo. Together, the data presented here characterize a novel and crucial role for XIAP both in therapeutic resistance and the pathobiology of IBC; these results confirm our previous work in acquired therapeutic resistance and establish the feasibility of targeting XIAP-NFκB and the redox adaptive phenotype of IBC as a means to enhance survival of patients.</p> / Dissertation

Résumé confidentiel / Confidential abstract

Trace elements are essential for the host defence against infections, and during common infections, the balance of trace elements is changed in serum and tissues. Supplementation with selenium (Se), an essential trace element, is known to decrease the severity of coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3) infection in mice. Even the non-essential trace element arsenic (As) seems to influence the replication of some viruses. During the course of an acute CVB3 infection in mice, Se concentrations decreased in most tissues and were negatively correlated to viral load in our study. However, As concomitantly decreased in most tissues. As has previously been shown to interfere with the balance of essential trace elements. However, in the present study As supplementation in healthy mice resulted in minor effects on seven studied trace elements in serum and tissues. The effects of As supplementation were more pronounced in CVB3-infected mice, with an increase in As, but a decrease in Se in most tissues when compared with non-infected mice. As supplementation during CVB3 infection in mice decreased viral RNA concentrations in the brain (97%) and pancreas (75%), two of the target organs of this infection. In vitro experiments indicate that As caused an impaired virion assembly or release. In vivo, infection-induced expression of the host defence-associated genes nuclear factor κB (NFκB) and interferon γ (IFN-γ) were unaffected by As supplementation, except for an earlier increase in IFN-γ in the brain. In conclusion, a clinically relevant dose of As decreased the replication of CVB3 in vitro and in vivo. This antiviral effect in vivo was not related to changes in specific trace elements or in the host’s immune-mediated defence. Although the mechanism underlying the observed effect on viral replication remains to be further elucidated, As seems to be an intriguing trace element to study in the pursuit of new antiviral drugs.

The use of oncolytic viruses (OVs) to selectively destroy cancer cells is poised to make a major impact in the clinic and potentially revolutionize cancer therapy. Pre-clinical and clinical studies have shown that OV therapy is safe, well-tolerated and effective in a broad range of cancers. Still, resistance due to tumour heterogeneity highlights areas for improvement in OV based therapeutics. Combining OVs and small molecules is a promising strategy to selectively enhance OV-mediated anti-tumour effects. To this end, we have previously identified the synthetic compound Viral Sensitizer 1 (VSe1) that enhances the spread of oncolytic vesicular stomatitis virus (VSVΔ51) in resistant cancer cell lines up to 1000-fold, resulting in synergistic cell killing and improved efficacy in vitro and in vivo. The electrophilic nature of VSe1 prompted us to investigate the scaffold to identify active analogs with more favourable physiochemical properties and explore structure-activity relationships (SAR). In vitro assays and a rational approach in the design of VSe1 analogs allowed us to identify functional groups that can be modified without hampering activity. Lead compounds created in this study based on a pyrrole scaffold increase OV growth up to 2000-fold in vitro and demonstrate remarkable selectivity for cancer cells over normal tissue ex vivo and in vivo. Compared to the parental VSe1, these small molecules also possess enhanced stability with reduced electrophilicity and are well-tolerated in animals, leading to reduced tumour burden and prolonged survival in vivo when used in combination with VSVΔ51. It was known from previous studies that VSe1 suppresses the type I interferon response generated by cancer cells to defend against viral infection. In this study, further investigation revealed that VSe1 and its analogs inhibit the nuclear translocation of nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NFκB), resulting in dampened transcriptional expression and secretion of IFN-β and interferon stimulated genes, thereby increasing viral replication and spread. While these findings further elucidated the effect these compounds have on the innate antiviral response, the molecular mechanisms leading to NFκB inhibition remained unclear. We used the newly generated VSe1 analogs to perform ligand-based affinity capture studies leading to the identification of glutathione-s-transferases as interacting proteins, catalytically inhibited by VSe1 and to a lesser extent by its pyrrole analogs. Further inquiry revealed that VSe1 and its analogs cause an imbalance in cellular glutathione homeostasis and increase oxidative stress, which is associated with inhibition of the nuclear translocation of NFκB. However, further studies are required to assess whether these phenomena are directly or indirectly linked. Overall, this study highlights a novel approach to improving OV therapy by using a previously uncharacterized class of compounds that ultimately alter the innate cellular antiviral response through inhibition of NFκB.