Orientadores: Sandra Martha Gomes Dias, Marília Meira Dias / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-24T09:41:29Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ascencao_CarollineFernandaRodrigues_M.pdf: 4713312 bytes, checksum: b65183d96535d66661af745a562f2d58 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014 / Resumo: A proliferação celular comanda os processos de embriogênese e de crescimento do organismo, sendo essencial para a correta função de vários tecidos adultos. Apesar de ser importante para a homeostase do organismo, a sua desregulação compõe a força motriz do desenvolvimento tumoral. Somente nos últimos vinte anos começou a ser evidenciada a relação entre as vias de tradução de sinais estimuladas por fatores de crescimento e a reorganização da atividade metabólica, a qual precisa priorizar a biossíntese e o aumento da biomassa, processos essenciais para a divisão celular. Em células tumorais, o consumo de glutamina é aumentando concomitante ao aumento da atividade de glutaminase. Três isoenzimas de glutaminase são expressas na maioria dos tecidos (liver-type glutaminase, kidney-type glutaminase e glutaminase C), todavia pouco se sabe sobre a necessidade específica de cada uma delas para o metabolismo tumoral. Vários artigos recentes têm definido o papel da glutaminólise, ou metabolismo da glutamina e seus subprodutos, na ativação da mTOR. Neste sentido é uma hipótese válida imaginar que mTOR possa contra-regular glutaminase. Desta maneira, resolvemos investigar se mTOR atua na regulação da atividade de glutaminase. Para tanto, realizamos knockdown estável de PTEN em células MDA-MB 231 e verificamos que não o mesmo afetou os níveis protéicos de GAC e KGA, assim como não houve mudança na localização subcelular das isoformas. Cinética enzimática da fração mitocondrial desta linhagem revelou que o knockdown de PTEN levou à uma diminuição do KM da enzima sem alteração de Vmax. De acordo, o tratamento com rapamicina, inibidor da mTOR, elevou o KM para os níveis detectados nas células controles. A atividade de glutaminase de lisado total de MDA-MB 231, NIH 3T3, IMR90 e BJ5TA foi afetada pelo tratamento com rapamicina conforme julgado por ensaios de dose e tempo resposta. Mais, ensaios de privação de glicose, glutamina e de fatores de crescimento levaram à inibição de mTOR e concomitante redução da atividade de glutaminase. Somado a isso, o knockdown estável de TSC2 em MDA-MB 231 e BJ5TA, assim como o knockout de TSC2 em MEF, promoveu superestimulação de mTOR e foi capaz de aumentar a atividade de glutaminase. Dosagem de atividade de glutaminase de células MDA-MB 231 com knockdown de GAC, KGA ou GAC/KGA tratadas com rapamicina indicaram que mTOR possa agir em ambas as isoformas. Curioso foi que apenas células shGAC e shGAC/KGA apresentaram redução da fosforilação de S6K em Thr389 indicando que GAC ou o metabolismo de glutamina via esta isoforma, possa contra-regular mTOR. Em adição, na comparação entre PC3 e DU145, verificamos que DU145 apresentou maior expressão de GAC, maior consumo de glutamina, maior dependência de glutamina em seu crescimento, maior sensibilidade ao inibidor de glutaminase, BPTES, e por fim, se mostrou mais responsiva à metformina, ativador indireto de AMPK. A ativação de AMPK por metformina, um conhecido sensor de estresse energético, mostrou diminuir a atividade de glutaminase em célula de tumor de próstata, DU145, indicando uma potencial ação de AMPK na atividade de glutaminase / Abstract: Cell proliferation is crucial for embryogenesis and organism growth, being also essential for the proper function of several adult tissues. Although important for the homeostasis of the organism, its deregulation composes the driving force of tumor development. In the past twenty years the relationship between the processes of signal translation stimulated by growth factors and the reorganization of metabolic activity has become more evident. Growing cells need to prioritize the biosynthesis and biomass increase, processes essential for cell division. In tumor cells, the glutamine consumption is increased concurrently with the increasing in the glutaminase activity. Three glutaminase isoenzymes are expressed in most tissues (liver- type glutaminase, kidney -type glutaminase and glutaminase C), but not much is known about the necessity of each isoform for the tumor metabolism. Several recent papers have defined the role of glutaminolysis or glutamine metabolism in mTOR activation. So it is a valid hypothesis to speculate that mTOR can counter-regulate glutaminase. Thus, we decided to investigate whether mTOR can control glutaminase activity. To this end, we have made MDA - MB 231 cells stably knocked down for PTEN and verified no alteration in KGA and GAC protein levels, as well as there was no change on their subcellular location. Enzyme kinetics of the MDA-MB 231 mitochondrial fraction revealed that PTEN knockdown led to a decrease in the KM of the enzyme without changing Vmax. Accordingly, the treatment with rapamycin (mTOR inhibitor), led to an increase in KM back to the level detected in control cells. The glutaminase activity of MDA - MB 231, NIH 3T3, IMR90 and BJ5TA total cellular lysates was also affected by rapamycin treatment in a dose- and time-response fashion. Moreover, glucose, glutamine and growth factors deprivation promoted mTOR inhibition and concomitant reduction on glutaminase activity. Glutaminase activity of MDA-MB 231 cells knocked down for GAC, KGA or GAC/KGA and treated with rapamycin indicated that mTOR can regulate both isoforms. Curiously, it was only on GAC or GAC/KGA knocked down cells that we observed a decrease in S6K Thr 389 phosphorylation, which could indicate that GAC or the GAC dependent-glutamine metabolism is a specific mTOR counter-regulator. Accordling, stable TSC2 knockdown in MDA-MB 231 and BJ5TA, as well as TCS2 knockout in MEF cells, promoted overstimulation of mTOR and increasing on glutaminase activity. Moreover, a comparison between PC3 and DU145 revealed that DU145 has higher GAC expression, greater consumption of glutamine, is more dependent on glutamine for its growth, more sensitive to the inhibitor of glutaminase, BPTES, and more responsive to metformin, an indirect AMPK activator. The activation of AMPK by metformin, a known energy stress sensor, led to a decreased glutaminase activity in the prostate tumor cell line DU145 indicating a potential role of AMPK on glutaminase activity / Mestrado / Genetica Animal e Evolução / Mestra em Genética e Biologia Molecular

Serina endopeptidases de insetos, principalmente tripsinas e quimotripsinas, estão envolvidas na digestão inicial de proteínas. Genes codificadores para estas enzimas estão organizados em famílias multigênicas tendo expressão diferencial de acordo com a dieta do inseto, estando envolvidos no desenvolvimento de resistência a diferentes metabólitos secundários vegetais. Para uma melhor compreensão desta interação, fez-se necessário o isolamento destas enzimas para insetos de diferentes ordens, bem como a caracterização de suas especificidades por duas abordagens: (a) caracterização cinética dos subsítios componentes do sítio de ligação de tripsinas e quimotripsinas, utilizando diferentes substratos, modificadores químicos e inibidores e (b) estudos estruturais por modelagem molecular, clonagem, expressão e cristalização destas enzimas de insetos. Além disso, estudos evolutivos por análise de distância possibilitaram uma caracterização inicial da interação insetoplanta. Estas determinações permitiram verificar que tripsinas de insetos apresentam diferenças de especificidade tanto dentre as diferentes ordens de insetos quanto em relação às tripsinas de vertebrados, sendo que as tripsinas da ordem Lepidóptera apresentam troca de especificidade primária hidrolisando preferencialmente substratos P1 Lys. Foram também observadas diferenças de hidrofobicidade para os subsítios caracterizados sendo que estes apresentam hidrofobicidades crescentes segundo o grau de complexidade dos insetos na sua escala evolutiva. A troca de especificidade e o aumento da hidrofobicidade podem permitir a hidrólise dos inibidores vegetais protéicos. A análise das sequências de tripsinas de insetos por Neighbor Joining (NJ) compõe uma árvore de distâncias topologicamente semelhante à árvore de relações filogenéticas determinadas por morfologia. A sobreposição de estruturas pré -determinadas de tripsina complexada a diferentes inibidores permite a identificação de posições de interação enzima-inibidor que justificam a classificação em grupos distintos de enzimas sensíveis ou resistentes a presença de inibidores na dieta de insetos. Da mesma forma: a caracterização da especificidade das quimotripsinas de insetos permitiu a separação de grupos distintos de quimotripsinas. Estes grupos são sustentados pela substituição do resíduo 59 em insetos polífagos que alimentam-se de plantas que contêm cetonas naturais reativas. Estas caracterizações demonstram a importância de um estudo detalhado da especificidade de serina endopeptidases possibilitando o desenho de moléculas apropriadas para inibição destas e desenvolvimento de estratégias de controle de insetos. / Insect serine endopeptidases, mairily trypsin and chymotrypsin are involved in initial protein digestion. Genes that encode these proteins are members of complex multigene families and are differentially expressed according to insects diet , thus being involved with resistance to plant metabolites. Purification of trypsins from different insect orders and chymotrypsins, as well as, characterization of their specificity are essential to a better understanding of this interaction. Characterization relied on two approaches: (a) kinetic characterization of the binding subsities of trypsins and chymotrypsins using different substrates, chemical modification and inhibition assays and (b) study of protein structure by molecular modelling and cloning, expression and crystallization of these enzymes. Besides that, evolutionary studies performed through distance analysis, permitted the investigation of plantinsect interaction. These characterizations showed that insect trypsins, in terms of specificity, are quite different from vertebrate trypsins and among insect orders. Lepidopterans trypsins have a distinct primary specificity, since they hydrolyses preferentially P1 Lys substrates, and present a crescent subsite hydrophobicity, which is directly correlated with the evolutionary scale. Both, the specificity exchange and the crescent hydrophobicity can allow the hydrolysis of vegetal proteic inhibitors. The analysis of trypsin sequences in Neighbor-Joining (NJ) algorithm yield a distance tree that is coherent with morphological phylogenetic relationships. The superposition of predicted structures of trypsins-inhibitors complexes permits to observe amino acid residues of interaction between enzyme-inhibitor, which support the distinction of different groups between sensitive and insensitive trypsins to the presence of inhibitors on insect diet. Similarly, characterization of insect chymotrypsins according to their specificity allowed us to classify these enzymes into different groups. These groups are supported by residue 59 replacements in polyphagous insects, which feed on plants bearing natural reactive ketones. These studies show the irnportance of a detailed study of serine endopeptidases, which may help in the development of better insect control strategies.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(医学) / 甲第22117号 / 医博第4530号 / 新制||医||1039(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 武藤 学, 教授 松原 和夫, 教授 滝田 順子 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Medical Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a hepatotropic positive-sense RNA virus of the Flaviviridae virus family and is a major cause of chronic liver disease worldwide. Like all obligate parasites, HCV relies on host pathways to enable its pathogenesis. HCV, in particular, has a clear link with hepatic lipid metabolism, promoting a lipid-rich environment for its proliferation. This manifests as liver steatosis in many patients harboring chronic HCV infection. Based on our recent findings regarding an immunometabolic and HCV antiviral microRNA (miRNA), miRNA-185 targeting and down regulating serine hydrolases (SH) involved in lipid and endocannabinoid metabolism, here we investigate HCV and its dependency on certain metabolic serine hydrolases involved in lipid and endocannabinoid metabolism. Serine hydrolases are one of the largest and most diverse enzyme families. This enzyme family has emerged as a center of therapeutic potential due to its implications in many metabolic roles. Here, we demonstrate that pharmacological inhibition of metabolic serine hydrolases alpha-beta hydrolyzing domain 6 (ABHD6), carboxylesterase 1 (CES1), and monoacylglycerol lipase (MGLL), enzymes involved in the hydrolysis of the endogenous cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1) agonist 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG) are potently antiviral against HCV. Serine hydrolase inhibition with the MGLL inhibitor MJN110 paired with endocannabinoid signaling antagonization led to additive antiviral effects against HCV and has revealed modulation of the viral pathogenic phenotype to be its key course of action. MGLL inhibitor MJN110 transcriptomic characterization revealed modulations in humoral immunity and phagocytosis and acts antiviraly against HCV independent of CB1 antagonization. This provides an avenue for future investigation, assessing the viability of CB1 antagonization, and MGLL as a key host targeted antiviral factor in affecting HCV viral life cycle.

La perte de mémoire est un des premiers symptômes caractéristiques de la maladie d’Alzheimer (MA). Dans les cerveaux des patients, on retrouve des dépôts extracellulaires de plaques amyloïdes ainsi que des agrégats intracellulaires de la protéine tau. Les patients présentent également des déficits du métabolisme cérébral du glucose, une quinzaine d’années avant les premiers défauts cognitifs, suggérant que le métabolisme pourrait contribuer à la physiopathologie de la MA. Pour mieux comprendre les mécanismes qui relient le métabolisme énergétique et l’activité synaptique, nous nous sommes intéressés à la production de L-serine, une molécule dont la synthèse de novo dérive d’un intermédiaire de la glycolyse. La L-serine est le précurseur de la D-sérine, un acide aminé en conformation D présent en grande quantité dans le cerveau. La D-sérine est un co-agoniste des récepteurs au N-méthyl-D-aspartate (NMDA-R) nécessaire à la potentialisation à long terme (LTP) de l’activité synaptique dans l’hippocampe. La voie de biosynthèse de la L-serine est ainsi à l’interface entre métabolisme énergétique et activité synaptique. Afin d’étudier le rôle de cette voie, nous avons mis au point un modèle de délétion conditionnelle de la Phgdh, la première enzyme de la voie de biosynthèse de la L-serine. Nous avons injecté par stéréotaxie des vecteurs adéno-associés permettant l’expression de la Cre recombinase dans l’hippocampe de souris Phgdh(flox/flox), une lignée de souris qui possède des sites LoxP autour des exons 4 et 5 du gène de la Phgdh. Nous avons validé ce modèle en montrant que l’expression de Phgdh ainsi que les taux de D-serine diminuent d’environ 60% dans l’hippocampe des souris injectées. Nous avons ensuite réalisé des enregistrements électrophysiologiques sur tranches et nous avons mis en évidence une diminution de la LTP dans l’hippocampe des souris injectées avec la Cre recombinase. Ces souris présentent également un déficit de mémoire à long terme mis en évidence avec le test de la piscine de Morris. Ces déficits sont restaurés lorsque les souris reçoivent chroniquement un régime enrichi en L-serine. Ces résultats montrent que la biosynthèse de sérine est nécessaire et suffisante pour la plasticité synaptique et la mémoire à long terme.Afin d’étudier le rôle de cette voie dans la MA, nous avons mesuré l’expression de différentes enzymes dans des extraits d’hippocampes de patients atteints de MA et nous avons mis en évidence des changements significatifs dès les stades intermédiaires. Finalement, nous avons étudié un modèle murin de MA, les souris 3xTg, qui présentent des déficits métaboliques, synaptiques et comportementaux. Les déficits de LTP sont restaurés en ajoutant de la L- ou de la D-sérine de façon aigue sur les tranches d’hippocampe. Nous montrons que le déficit de mémoire spatiale à long terme peut être restauré par une supplémentation chronique en D-sérine, suggérant l’importance de cette voie dans le contexte de la MA. / Memory loss is among the first symptoms reported by patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease (AD). AD is characterized by extracellular amyloid plaques and intracellular aggregations of tau. A decrease of brain glucose metabolism has also been described in the brain of AD patients. Since this decrease appears decades before memory loss, we hypothesize that metabolic deficits could directly contribute to AD physiopathology. To understand the mechanisms linking brain metabolism and synaptic activity, we proposed to study the production of L-serine, a signaling molecule whose de novo synthesis diverts part of the glycolytic flux. L-serine is the precursor of D-serine, a co-agonist of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDA-R) that is required to maintain long term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic activity in the hippocampus. Since both L- and D-serine are formed through the activity of the Phosphorylated Pathway that diverts part of the glycolytic flux, any metabolic deficits may impact synaptic activity.We developed a model of conditional Phgdh deletion, the first enzyme of the phosphorylated pathway, by stereotaxically injecting Adeno-Associated Vectors allowing the expression of Cre recombinase in the hippocampus of Phgdh(flox/flox) mice, a mice strain with loxP sites flanking exons 4 and 5 of Phgdh gene. We validated this model showing that Phgdh expression and D-serine level are decreased by 60% in the hippocampus of injected mice. We performed electrophysiological recordings and showed that LTP is significantly reduced in mice injected with Cre recombinase. Those mice also show long term memory deficits in the Morris Water Maze test. Those deficits are restored by chronically feeding Cre injected mice with a diet enriched in L-serine indicating that serine biosynthesis is necessary and sufficient for synaptic plasticity and long term memory.To assess whether this pathway may be involved in AD pathogenesis, we quantified the expression of several enzymes of the serine biosynthesis pathway in human brain samples and found major changes in AD patients even at intermediate stages. To further investigate this hypothesis, we used 3xTg-AD mice, a mouse model for AD showing deficits in brain metabolism, synaptic activity and cognition. LTP deficits in 3xTg mice are restored by acute supplementation of L- or D-serine on hippocampal slices. We show that chronic administration of D-serine restores long term spatial memory. It suggests that serine biosynthesis is an important pathway in AD.

Vaspin is an adipokine which improves glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity in obesity. Kallikrein 7 (KLK7) is the first known protease target inhibited by vaspin and a potential target for the treatment of metabolic disorders. Here, we tested the hypothesis that inhibition of KLK7 in adipose tissue may beneficially affect glucose metabolism and adipose tissue function. Therefore, we have inactivated the Klk7 gene in adipose tissue using conditional gene-targeting strategies in mice. Klk7-deficient mice (ATKlk7 −/−) exhibited less weight gain, predominant expansion of subcutaneous adipose tissue and improved whole body insulin sensitivity under a high fat diet (HFD). ATKlk7 −/− mice displayed higher energy expenditure and food intake, most likely due to altered adipokine secretion including lower circulating leptin. Pro-inflammatory cytokine expression was significantly reduced in combination with an increased percentage of alternatively activated (anti-inflammatory) M2 macrophages in epigonadal adipose tissue of ATKlk7 −/−. Taken together, by attenuating adipose tissue inflammation, altering adipokine secretion and epigonadal adipose tissue expansion, Klk7 deficiency in adipose tissue partially ameliorates the adverse effects of HFD-induced obesity. In summary, we provide first evidence for a previously unrecognized role of KLK7 in adipose tissue with effects on whole body energy expenditure and insulin sensitivity.

Vaspin is a glycoprotein with three predicted glycosylation sites at asparagine residues located in proximity to the reactive center loop and close to domains that play important roles in conformational changes underlying serpin function. In this study, we have investigated the glycosylation of human vaspin and its effects on biochemical properties relevant to vaspin function. We show that vaspin is modified at all three sites and biochemical data demonstrate that glycosylation does not hinder inhibition of the target protease kallikrein 7. Although binding affinity to heparin is slightly decreased, the protease inhibition reaction is still significantly accelerated in the presence of heparin. Glycosylation did not affect thermal stability.

Molecular modelling strategies for evaluation of enzyme selectivity wereinvestigated with a focus on principles of how molecular interactionscould be evaluated to provide information about selectivity. Althoughmolecular modelling provides tools for evaluation of geometrical andenergy features of molecular systems, no general strategies for evaluationof enzyme selectivity exist. Geometrical analyses can be based uponinspection and reasoning about molecular interactions, which provide aneasily accessible way to gain information, but suffer from the risk of biasput in by the modeller. They can also be based on geometrical features ofmolecular interactions such as bond lengths and hydrogen-bond formation.Energy analyses are appealing for their modeller independenceand for the possibility to predict not only stereopreference, but also itsmagnitude.In this thesis, four examples of enantio- or regioselective serinehydrolase-catalysed reaction systems are presented together with developedmodelling protocols for explanation, prediction or enhancement ofselectivity. Geometrical as well as energy-based methodology were used,and provided an understanding of the structural basis of enzymeselectivity. In total, the protocols were successful in making qualitative explanationsand predictions of stereoselectivity, although quantitative determinationswere not achieved.

Recombinant human mast cell chymase (rhChymase) was expressed in secreted form as an active enzyme in the SuperMan5 strain of GlycoSwitch® Pichia pastoris, which is engineered to produce proteins with (Man) 5(GlcNAc)2 Asn-linked glycans. Cation exchange and heparin affinity chromatography yielded 5 mg of active rhChymase per liter of fermentation medium. Purified rhChymase migrated on SDS-PAGE as a single band of 30 kDa and treatment with peptide N-glycosidase F decreased this to 25 kDa, consistent with the established properties of native human chymase (hChymase). Polyclonal antibodies against hChymase detected rhChymase by Western blot. Active site titration with Eglin C, a potent chymase inhibitor, quantified the concentration of purified active enzyme. Kinetic analyses with succinyl-Ala-Ala-Pro-Phe (suc-AAPF) p-nitroanilide and thiobenzyl ester synthetic substrates showed that heparin significantly reduced KM, whereas heparin effects on kcat were minor. Pure rhChymase with Asn-linked glycans closely resembles hChymase. This bioengineering approach avoided hyperglycosylation and provides a source of active rhChymase for other studies as well as a foundation for production of recombinant enzyme with human glycosylation patterns.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The overexpression of protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) is strongly correlated to poor clinical outcomes for colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. Previously, we demonstrated that PRMT5 overexpression could substantially augment activation of NF-κB via methylation of arginine 30 (R30) on its p65 subunit, while knockdown of PRMT5 showed the opposite effect on the transcriptional competence of p65. However, the precise mechanisms governing this PRMT5/NF-κB axis are still largely unknown. We report a novel finding that PRMT5 is phosphorylated on serine 15 (S15) in response to interleukin-1β (IL-1β) stimulation. Overexpression of the serine-to-alanine mutant of PRMT5 (S15A-PRMT5), in either HEK293 cells or HT29, DLD1 and HCT116 CRC cells attenuated NF-κB activation compared to wild type (WT)-PRMT5, confirming that S15 phosphorylation is critical for the activation of NF-κB by PRMT5. Furthermore, we found that overexpression of S15A-PRMT5 mutant attenuated the expression of a subset of NF-κB target genes through decreased p65 occupancy at their respective promoters. Importantly, the S15A-PRMT5 mutant also reduced IL-1β-induced methyltransferase activity of PRMT5 as well as its ability to form a complex with p65. Finally, we observed that the S15A-PRMT5 mutant diminished the growth, migratory and colony-forming abilities of CRC cells compared to the WT-PRMT5. Collectively, our findings provide strong evidence that novel phosphorylation of PRMT5 at S15 is critical to its regulation of NF-κB and plays an essential role in promoting the cancer-associated functions exerted by the PRMT5/NF-κB axis. Therefore, development of inhibitors to block phosphorylation of PRMT5 at S15 could become a potential novel therapeutic approach to treat CRC. / 2020-10-15