La phosphorylation constitue un mécanisme de régulation de la fonction biologique des protéines lié au contrôle des associations inter-moléculaires, de l'activité enzymatique ou de la liaison de ligands. L'isomérisation des liaisons Ser/Thr-Pro après phosphorylation par des kinases spécifiques, souvent impliquées dans le contrôle du cycle cellulaire, se présente comme un nouveau mode de régulation. Ces deux mécanismes de signalisation sont étroitement liés par l'intermédiaire d'enzymes catalysant l'isomérisation cis/trans des prolines au niveau de motifs Ser/Thr-Pro phosphorylés telles que les peptidyl-prolyl cis/trans isomérases de la famille de Pin1. Elles jouent un rôle cellulaire essentiel mais leur rôle moléculaire exact est encore mal connu. Les interactions moléculaires entre Pin1 et de nombreuses phospho-protéines mitotiques indiquent un rôle dans la régulation du cycle cellulaire et dans l'oncogénèse, et font de Pin1 une cible pharmacologique émergente dans le traitement des cancers. Récemment, des interactions avec la protéine microtubulaire Tau dans sa forme pathologique hyperphosphorylée, au niveau d'un site unique centré autour du motif Thr231-Pro232, pourraient impliquer Pin1 dans la régulation de la liaison de Tau aux microtubules et dans les phénomènes de neurodégénérescence observés dans la maladie d'Alzheimer.<br /><br />Nous avons ciblé les interactions entre Pin1 et la protéine Tau comme modèle de substrats pour une étude détaillée des mécanismes intervenant à l'échelle moléculaire, sur base de substrats peptidiques, qui permettraient d'expliquer le rôle fonctionnel de Pin1. L'interaction avec les substrats au travers des motifs Ser/Thr-Pro phosphorylés est double : un domaine de liaison WW permet la liaison du substrat et un domaine catalytique PPIase (peptidyl-prolyl isomérase) catalyse l'isomérisation cis/trans des prolines. Un criblage par RMN des différents motifs phospho-Ser/Thr-Pro au sein de la protéine Tau a permis de déterminer un nouveau site d'interaction centré autour du motif Thr212-Pro213, phosphorylé uniquement dans la forme pathologique de Tau. <br /><br />Nous avons étendu l'investigation des interactions avec Pin1 à l'échelle de la protéine Tau entière. Comme pour la plupart des régions protéiques impliquées dans les interactions avec Pin1, la protéine Tau se caractérise par une absence de structure globale qui limite considérablement les études par RMN. Un fragment peptidique de 40 acides aminés comprenant les sites Thr231 et Thr212 phosphorylés a permis de montrer un rôle régulateur du domaine WW dans l'activité enzymatique. Une première étude avec une protéine mutante mimant l'état phosphorylé de Tau a montré une interaction avec le domaine catalytique de Pin1 et a nécessité la mise au point préalable d'une technique d'attribution de la protéine Tau par RMN que nous avons appelé « mapping peptidique ».<br /><br />La phosphorylation du domaine WW de Pin1 est associée à l'inhibition de la liaison des substrats et joue un rôle dans la régulation de l'activité de Pin1 in vivo. La forme non phosphorylée active de Pin1 est retrouvée majoritairement dans les cellules cancéreuses et la forme phosphorylée inactive dans les cellules saines. Nous avons envisagé de cibler les interactions entre Pin1 et les phospho-peptides avec la synthèse de molécules organiques mimant le dipeptide phosphoThr-Pro et la mise en œuvre d'un test de criblage par RMN pour l'obtention d'inhibiteurs ciblant le domaine WW de Pin1 qui pourraient mimer la forme inactive de la protéine.

The Sun is the ultimate energy source on Earth. Photosynthetic organisms are able to catalyze the conversion of solar energy to chemical energy by a reaction called photosynthesis. In plants, this process occurs inside a green organelle called the chloroplast. The protein complexes involved in the photosynthetic light reactions are situated in the thylakoid membrane, which encloses a tiny space called lumen. The Peptidyl-Prolyl cis-trans Isomerase (PPIase) family is the most abundant protein family in the thylakoid lumen. The three PPIase subfamilies, cyclophilins, FKBPs (FK506 binding proteins) and parvulins form a group by their enzymatic activity despite lack of sequence similarity between the subfamilies. Cyclophilins and FKBPs, collectively called immunophilins, were originally discovered as the targets of the immunosuppressive drugs cyclosporine A and FK506, respectively. By suppressing the immune response in humans, these immunophilin-drug complexes revolutionized the field of organ transplantation by preventing graft rejection. Cis-trans isomerization of peptide bonds preceding the amino acid proline is the rate-limiting step of protein folding and several immunophilins have been shown to be important for catalysis of protein folding in vivo. PPIases have been found to be part of large protein complexes as well as in functions such as signalling, protein secretion, RNA processing and cell cycle control. A picture is therefore emerging in which the actual interaction between the PPIase and its target is perhaps more important than the PPIase activity. In the present work, PPIases have been characterized in the chloroplast thylakoid lumen of Spinacia oleracea (spinach) and Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis). The most active PPIase in the spinach lumen was identified as the cyclophilin TLP20. AtCYP20-2, the Arabidopsis homologue of TLP20, was found to be upregulated at high light and attached to the thylakoid membrane, more precisely to the outer regions of photosystem II supercomplexes. In Arabidopsis, up to 5 cyclophilins and 11 FKBPs were predicted to reside in the lumen. Of these 16 immunophilins, only 2 were identified as active PPIases and significant differences were observed between the two plant species. AtCYP20-2, like TLP20, is an active isomerase although AtFKBP13 is the most active PPIase in the lumen of Arabidopsis. Mutant Arabidopsis plants deficient in AtCYP20-2 displayed no phenothypical changes or decrease in total lumenal PPIase activity. Being the only active PPIase in the mutants, the redox sensitive AtFKBP13 is proposed to compensate for the lack of AtCYP20-2 by oxidative activation. In agreement with the experimental data, the sequence analyses of catalytic domains of lumenal immunophilins demonstrate that only AtCYP20-2 and AtFKBP13 possess the amino acids found essential for PPIase activity in earlier studies of human cyclophilin A and FKBP12. It is concluded that with the exception of AtCYP20-2 and AtFKBP13 most immunophilins in the lumen of Arabidopsis lost their PPIase activity on peptide substrates and developed other specialized functions.

Pin1 is an enzyme central to cell signaling pathways because it catalyzes the cis–trans isomerization of the peptide ω-bond in phosphorylated serine/threonine-proline motifs in many proteins. This regulatory function makes Pin1 a drug target in the treatment of various diseases. The effects of phosphorylation on Pin1 substrates and the basis for Pin1 recognition are not well understood. The conformational consequences of phosphorylation on Pin1 substrate analogues and the mechanism of recognition by the catalytic domain of Pin1 were determined using molecular dynamics simulations. Phosphorylation perturbs the backbone conformational space of Pin1 substrate analogues. It is also shown that Pin1 recognizes specific conformations of its substrate by conformational selection. Dynamical correlated motions in the free Pin1 enzyme are present in the enzyme of the enzyme–substrate complex when the substrate is in the transition state configuration. This suggests that these motions play a significant role during catalysis. These results provide a detailed mechanistic understanding of Pin1 substrate recognition that can be exploited for drug design purposes and further our understanding of the subtleties of post-translational phosphorylation and cis–trans isomerization. Results from accelerated molecular dynamics simulations indicate that catalysis occurs along a restricted path of the backbone configuration of the substrate, selecting specific subpopulations of the conformational space of the substrate in the active site of Pin1. The simulations show that the enzyme–substrate interactions are coupled to the state of the prolyl peptide bond during catalysis. The transition-state configuration of the substrate binds better than the cis and trans states to the catalytic domain of Pin1. This suggests that Pin1 catalyzes its substrate by noncovalently stabilizing the transition state. These results suggest an atomistic detail understanding of the catalytic mechanism of Pin1 that is necessary for the design of novel inhibitors and the treatment of several diseases. Additionally, a set of constant force biased molecular dynamics simulations are presented to explore the kinetic properties of a Pin1 substrate and its unphosphorylated analogue. The simulations indicate that the phosphorylated Pin1 substrate isomerizes slower than the unphosphorylated analogue. This is due to the lower diffusion constant for the phosphorylated Pin1 substrate.

The diverse outcomes of ubiquitination primarily relate to the flexibility of ubiquitin in forming homo- or heterotypic chains on each of its seven lysine residues which in turn stimulate distinct downstream signaling pathways. These ubiquitin signals must be selectively initiated on the substrate protein and subsequently decoded to facilitate the desired cellular function. These initiation and decoding steps often involve additional post-translational modifications and ubiquitin receptor proteins, but the enzymes and ubiquitin chains involved for many ubiquitinated substrates are not clear. Here, I have explored the initiation and decoding of ubiquitin signals, focusing on lysine-11 (K11) linked polyubiquitin chains and their role in protein degradation. I established in vitro assays to understand how K11-chains are decoded and whether these chains act as a signal for proteasome-mediated degradation. Pure homotypic K11-chains did not bind the proteasome or its associated ubiquitin binding proteins, but did bind to the mitophagy ubiquitin receptors, MyosinVI and TAX1BP1. Heterotypic K11/K48 linkages not only bound the proteasome but also stimulated degradation of the cell cycle substrate, cyclin B1. To further explore the functions of K11-chains I focused on the hypoxia inducible transcription factor (HIF) pathway, as K11-ubiquitination had been implicated in proteasome-independent degradation of the transcription factor. I established an in vitro assay to initiate HIF ubiquitination, via prolyl hydroxylation, and determine the type of ubiquitin chains involved. Recombinant HIF isoforms were rapidly hydroxylated when incubated with cell extracts. Moreover, the levels of iron and small molecule metabolites within the lysates regulated HIF hydroxylation. However, this hydroxylation was insufficient to reproducibly promote HIF ubiquitination or determine the ubiquitin chains involved. While the nature of the polyubiquitin chains formed in the HIF pathway remain elusive, my studies identify distinct roles for homotypic and heterotypic K11-polyubiquitination in proteasome-mediated degradation.

The amino acid proline is unique – within a polypeptide chain, proline adopts either a cis or trans peptide bond conformation while all other amino acids are sterically bound primarily in the trans configuration. In proteins, the isomeric state of a single proline can have dramatic consequences on structure and function. Consequently, cis-trans interconversion confers both barrier and opportunity – on one hand, isomerization is a rate limiting step in de novo protein folding and on the other can be utilized as a post-translational regulatory switch. Peptidyl-prolyl isomerases (PPIs) are a ubiquitous superfamily that catalyzes the interconversion between conformers. Although pervasive, the functions and substrates of most PPIs are unknown. The two largest subfamilies, FKBPs and cyclophilins, are the intracellular receptors of clinically relevant immunosuppressant drugs that also show promise in the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders and cancer. Therefore, narrowing the knowledge gap has significant potential to benefit human health. FKBP25 is a high-affinity binder of the PPI inhibitor rapamycin and is one of few nuclear-localized isomerases. While it has been shown to bind DNA and associate with chromatin, its function has remained largely uncharacterized. I hypothesized that FKBP25 targets prolines in nuclear proteins to regulate chromatin-templated processes. To explore this, I performed high-throughput transcriptomic and proteomic studies followed by detailed molecular characterizations of FKBP25’s function. Here, I discover that FKBP25 is a multifunctional protein required for the maintenance of genomic stability. In Chapter 2, I characterize the unique N-terminal Basic Tilted Helical Bundle (BTHB) domain of FKBP25 as a novel dsRNA binding module that recruits FKBP25’s prolyl isomerase activity to pre-ribosomal particles in the nucleolus. In Chapter 3, I show for the first time that FKBP25 associates with the mitotic spindle apparatus and acts to stabilize the microtubule cytoskeleton. In this chapter, I also present evidence that this function influences the stress response, cell cycle, and chromosomal stability. Additionally, I characterize the regulation of FKBP25’s localization and nucleic acid binding activity throughout the cell cycle. Finally, in Chapter 4, I uncover a role for FKBP25 in the repair of DNA double-stranded breaks. Importantly, this function requires FKBP25’s catalytic activity, identifying for the first time a functional requirement for cis-trans prolyl isomerization by FKBP25. Collectively, this work identifies FBKP25 as a multifunctional protein that is required for the maintenance of genomic stability. The knowledge gained contributes to the exploration of PPIs as important drug targets. / Graduate

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / In recent years there has been an increase in researches for new enzyme inhibitors on medicinal plants used in the treatment of disorders such as schizophrenia, anxiety, amnesia, different stages of depression and bipolar affective disorder. The study of enzymatic inhibitors of prolyl oligopepetidase (POP) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) are directly related to the treatment of central nervous sistem diseases. In a research with the species Hypericum brasiliense, native from Brazil, it was isolated as main secondary metabolite the chlorogenic acid, a compound able to inhibit POP and AChE. From this observation, three series of chlorogenic, caffeic and cinnamic acids derivatives were obtained through simple derivatization reactions and coupling with the amino acid proline. The derivatives were obtained by usual acetylation, methylation and esterification reactions with satisfactory yields of 50-90%. The couplings with the proline methyl ester were performed using either O-(7- azabenzotriazol-1-yl)-N,N,N',N'-tetramethyluronium hexafluorophosphate (HATU)/ diisopropylethylamine (DIEA) in dimethylformamide or isobutyl chloroformate/ Nmethylmorpholine in tetrahydrofuran. The derivatives were tested against the enzymes POP, AChE and dipeptidyl oligopeptidase (DPP IV). Also, a study was conducted to determine the antibacterial and antifungal activities of all derivatives. The capacity of the tested compounds to inhibit DPP IV and AChE was not exceptional. In contrast, the derivatives methyl ester and 1,7-acetonide obtained from chlorogenic acid, and caffeic acid and its methyl ester derivative showed selectivity and satisfactory performance as POP inhibitors, with IC50 values of 3 to 14 μM. All compounds showed moderate antimicrobial activity. / Nos últimos anos observa-se uma intensificação nas pesquisas por novos inibidores enzimáticos produzidos por plantas medicinais usadas no tratamento de transtornos mentais, tais como esquizofrenia, ansiedade, amnésia, diferentes estágios de depressão e o transtorno afetivo bipolar. O estudo de inibidores das enzimas prolil oligopepetidase (POP) e acetilcolinesterase (AChE), estão diretamente relacionados ao tratamento de tais enfermidades do sistema nervoso central (SNC). Em um trabalho com a planta medicinal Hypericum brasiliense, nativa do Brasil, foi isolado como um dos principais metabólitos secundários o ácido clorogênico, que demonstrou ter capacidade de inibir a POP e a AChE. A partir desta observação, foram obtidas três séries de derivados do ácido clorogênico, do ácido cafeico e do ácido cinâmico através de técnicas simples de derivatização e acoplamento com a prolina metil éster. Os derivados foram obtidos através de técnicas usuais de acetilação, metilação e esterificação, com rendimentos satisfatórios de 50-90 %. Já os acoplamentos com a prolina metil éster foram realizados com hexafluorofosfato de O-(7-azabenzotriazol-1-il)-N,N,N',N'- tetrametiluronio (HATU)/ diisopropiletilamina (DIEA) em dimetilformamida ou cloroformato de isobutila/ N-metilmorfolina em tetraidrofurano. Estes compostos foram avaliados quanto à capacidade inibitória das enzimas POP e AChE, bem como foram testados frente a enzima dipeptidil peptidade IV (DPP IV). Também foi realizado um estudo da atividade antimicrobiana dos derivados obtidos. Os resultados obtidos indicaram que, frente à DPP IV e AChE, os compostos avaliados não demonstraram significativa capacidade inibitória. Entretanto, o derivado metil éster e 1,7-acetonídeo obtidos a partir do ácido clorogênico, o cafeoato de metila e o próprio ácido cafeico mostraram capacidade inibitória seletiva para a POP, com valores de IC50 entre 3 e 14 μM. Com relação à atividade antimicrobiana, os derivados apresentaram moderada ação bactericida, destacando-se os compostos derivados do ácido cinâmico por serem fungicidas.

Orientador: Andre Luís Berteli Ambrósio / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Ciências Médicas / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-23T16:57:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Fala_AngelaMaria_M.pdf: 4666864 bytes, checksum: 3bcb145c1dc353b15b43b75e5723a310 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / Resumo: A adaptação das células cancerosas ao microambiente é o ponto central que leva ao fenótipo invasivo e metastático, e é garantida principalmente através do controle preciso da expressão gênica. A resposta às necessidades energéticas e biossintéticas e principalmente à disponibilidade de oxigênio intracelular, por exemplo, é em grande parte mediada pelo fator de transcrição induzido por hipóxia 1 (HIF-1). HIF-1 é um heterodímero composto pelas subunidades ? e ?, que respondem a sequência consenso (5'-RCGTG-3') e ativam a transcrição de mais de 100 genes envolvidos em diversos aspectos cruciais da biologia tumoral, incluindo angiogênese, metabolismo de glicose, diferenciação celular, apoptose e resistência a radio e quimioterapias. São conhecidas três isoformas da subunidade ? (1 a 3) e todas se heterodimerizam com a subunidade ?. No geral, HIFs são constituídas de diferentes domínios funcionais, como de ligação ao DNA, de heterodimerização, transativação e degradação. Atualmente, pouco se sabe sobre os mecanismos estruturais e funcionais dos domínios da HIF- 1, deste modo este trabalho objetivou o estudo estrutural destes domínios. Os domínios bHLH, Pas-1 e Pac de HIF-1? e HIF-? em diferentes combinações entre si e o domínio Pac da HIF-3? foram clonados, as proteínas foram expressas em sistema bacteriano e purificadas por diferentes técnicas cromatográficas. Diversas destas construções se mostraram insolúveis ou suscetíveis a degradação, enquanto outras foram purificadas com sucesso. As construções Pac, um exemplo de sucesso na produção, foram submetidas a ensaios de anisotropia de fluorescência e ressonância magnética nuclear, o que nos permitiu a caracterização dos perfis de interação entre as várias combinações de heterodimerização. Neste contexto, os resultados mostram que o equilíbrio dinâmico da interação entre Pac-1? com a subunidade -1? é alcançado imediatamente, enquanto que para a interação entre Pac-3? e -1?, são necessários pelo menos 30 horas de incubação. O mesmo pode ser extraído da caracterização da interação direta entre Pac-1? e Pac-3?. Nos experimentos de RMN, foi possível identificar a região de interação entre as subunidades -1? e -3? com a subunidade ?, separadamente. Ambas as subunidades ? interagem com a Pac-1? na região das fitas-beta 1 e 5 e no loop entre as fitas 4 e 5. Em conjunto, estes resultados impactam no mecanismo de antagonização de HIF-3? na atividade transcricional de HIF-1?. Houve ainda a formação de monocristais da subunidade Pac-3?, que foram submetidos a experimentos preliminares de difração de raios X, que apesar de resultar em dados anisotrópicos e insuficientes para resolução estrutural, permitiram a caracterização dos parâmetros cristalinos, incluindo a presença de um alto conteúdo de solvente. Adicionalmente, são também apresentados os resultados obtidos visando a expressão e cristalização das Prolilhidroxilases (PHDs) isoformas 1 a 4, durante estágio de seis meses no Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), da Universidade de Oxford, na Inglaterra. Foram expressas de maneira solúvel e purificadas, diversas construções das isoformas 1 e 3 das PHDs humanas. Cristais foram obtidos, porém estes foram determinados como sendo de compostos inorgânicos presentes na condição de cristalização. Como resultado final, está sendo estabelecida uma colaboração entre o nosso grupo e o SGC para que os estudos estruturais com PHDs se estendam e sejam realizados em nosso laboratório aqui no Brasil / Abstract: The adaptation process of cancer cells to the microenvironment is the central point leading to the invasive and metastatic phenotypes, and is guaranteed mainly through the precise control of gene expression. The cell response to the energetic and biosynthetic needs and especially to the availability of intracellular oxygen is mediated by the hypoxia inducible transcription factor 1, or HIF-1. HIF-1 functions as a heterodimer composed by subunits ? and ?, binding to responsive elements with the consensus sequence 5'-RCGTG-3 ', thus activating the transcription of more than 100 genes involved in many crucial aspects of tumor biology, including angiogenesis, metabolism glucose, cell differentiation, apoptosis, and resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. There are three known isoforms of the ? subunit (1, 2 and 3) and all heterodimerize with the ? subunit. HIFs are composed of different functional domains, such as the DNA binding domain, the heterodimerization, transactivation and the oxygen-dependent degradation domains. Currently, little is known about the mechanisms of structural and functional domains of HIF-1, thus this work was to study these structural domains. The domain (bHLH, Pas-1 and Pac) of HIF-1? and HIF-? in different combinations with each other and Pac domain of HIF-3? were cloned, the proteins were expressed in bacterial system and purified by various chromatographic techniques. Several of these constructs proved insoluble or susceptible to degradation, while others were purified successfully. The constructs Pac, an example of success in production, were tested for fluorescence anisotropy and nuclear magnetic resonance, which allowed us to characterize the profiles of the interaction between the various combinations of heterodimers. In this context, the results show that the dynamic equilibrium of the interaction between the Pac-1? and -1? subunits is achieved immediately, whereas for the interaction between Pac-3? and -1?, it takes at least 30 hours of incubation. The same can be observed from the characterization of direct interaction between Pac-1? and -3?. From the NMR experiments, it was possible to identify the region of interaction between the subunits -1? and -3? with the -1? subunit. Both ? subunits interact with Pac-1? via betastrands 1 and 5 and the loop between the strands 4 and 5. Overall, these results impact in the mechanism of HIF-3? antagonizing the transcriptional activity of HIF-1?. We also obtained single crystals for Pac-3? subunit, which were subjected to preliminary experiments of X-ray diffraction. Although resulting in anisotropic, insufficient data for and structural resolution, it has allowed the characterization of crystalline parameters, including the presence of a high solvent content. Additionally, we also present the results targeting the expression and crystallization of Prolyl-hydroxylases (PHDs) human isoforms 1-4, during the six-month period at the Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), the University of Oxford in England. Several construct from of isoforms 1 and 3 were successfully expressed and purified in the soluble form. Likewise, crystals were obtained, but these were determined to be composed by inorganic compounds present in the crystallization conditions. At the end, a collaboration was established between our and the SGC group for the structural studies with the PHDs to extend and carry out the experiments in our lab here in Brazil / Mestrado / Clinica Medica / Mestra em Clínica Médica

Abstract Oxygen deprivation (hypoxia) is related to many disease conditions, such as anemia, but is also a critical regulatory signal during normal development. Cellular responses to hypoxia are largely mediated through alterations in gene regulation brought about by the transcription factor known as hypoxia inducible facor (HIF). One of the most extensively studied systemic consequences of hypoxia is the induction of red blood cell production, erythropoiesis, which occurs through a HIF-dependent increase in erythropoietin (EPO) gene expression. The amount of HIF in cells is regulated by three HIF prolyl 4-hydroxylases (HIF-P4Hs) while a fourth P4H possessing a transmembrane domain (P4H-TM) is able to act on HIF at least in vitro. The putative role of P4H-TM in regulating erythropoiesis is studied here by administering a HIF-P4H inhibitor, FG-4497, to P4h-tm null and wild-type mice. By comparing the observed effects with those seen in FG-4497 treated hypomorphic Hif-p4h-2 and Hif-p4h-3 null mice, it is demonstrated for the first time that P4H-TM is involved in the regulation of Epo production in the mammalian kidney, but not in the liver. Long bones are formed via endochondral ossification, in which a cartilaginous template, the growth plate, is first laid down and then replaced with bone. The growth plate is rich in extracellular matrix (ECM) and contains a hypoxic central region in which HIF has been shown to regulate chondrocyte function. Importantly, growth plate chondrocytes are highly active in collagen synthesis. Collagen prolyl 4-hydroxylases (C-P4Hs I-III) provide collagen molecules with thermal stability and are thus necessary for the formation of a proper ECM. Through an in vitro approach it is demonstrated that hypoxia increases the amount and activity of C-P4H in primary mouse epiphyseal growth plate chondrocytes in a HIF-1-dependent manner. Lastly, it was set out to characterize mouse lines with complete inactivation of C-P4H-II with or without partial inactivation of C-P4H-I. A significant reduction in the total amount of C-P4H and its activity was found to result in mild chondrodysplasia and altered bone properties. The above mouse models provided new information on the specific in vivo roles of the C-P4H isoenzymes I and II. / Tiivistelmä Kudosten alentunut happipitoisuus (hypoksia) liittyy osana moniin elimistön patologisiin tiloihin, kuten anemiaan. Lisäksi se on tärkeä säätelytekijä normaalin yksilönkehityksen aikana. Jotta solut havaitsisivat hypoksian ja reagoidakseen siihen, on niille kehittynyt säätelyjärjestelmä, jossa hypoksiassa indusoituva transkriptiotekijä, HIF, on tärkeässä asemassa. Yksi merkittävin HIF:n indusoima systeeminen vaikutus elimistössä on punasolujen tuotannon, erytropoieesin, kiihtyminen. Sitä tapahtuu erytropoietiinia koodittavan geenin (EPO) lisääntyneen ilmentymisen kautta. HIF-tekijän määrää soluissa säätelee kolme HIF-prolyyli-4-hydroksylaasientsyymiä (HIF-P4Ht 1-3). Transmembraanisen prolyyli-4-hydroksylaasin (P4H-TM) tiedetään myös vaikuttavan HIF-tekijän määrään soluissa in vitro, mutta sen vaikutusta nisäkkään erytropoieesiin ei ole aiemmin tutkittu. Käyttämällä hyväksi kolmea eri transgeenista hiirilinjaa (P4h-tm-/-, Hif-P4h-2gt/gt, Hif-p4h-3-/-) ja HIF-P4H entsyymeitä inhiboivaa lääkeainetta, FG-4497, tässä työssä osoitettiin ensimmäistä kertaa, että P4H-TM osallistuu nisäkkään Epo-hormonin tuoton säätelyyn. Pitkät luut muodostuvat endokondraalisen luutumisen kautta. Siinä ensin muodostuu rustoinen malli, kasvulevy, joka vähitellen korvaantuu luukudoksella. Kasvulevyn sisin kerros on sen soluille, kondrosyyteille, hypoksinen kasvuympäristö. HIF:illä on todettu olevan tärkeä rooli kondrosyyttien toiminnan säätelijänä. Kasvulevyn soluvälitila sisältää runsaasti kollageeneja. Kollageenin prolyyli-4-hydroksylaasit (C-P4Ht I-III) ovat avainasemassa kollageenien biosynteesissä ja siten niiden toiminta on välttämätöntä kestävän soluvälitilan muodostumiselle. Käyttämällä in vitro menetelmiä, tässä työssä osoitettiin, että hiiren epifyseaalisten kasvulevyjen kondrosyyteissä hypoksia lisää C-P4H:n määrää ja aktiivisuutta HIF-tekijästä riippuvalla mekanismilla. Eri C-P4H-isoentsyymeiden toiminnasta ja merkityksestä in vivo tiedetään vain vähän. Tässä työssä karakterisoitiin hiirilinja, jossa C-P4H-II on täysin inaktiivinen, ja hiirilinja, jossa lisäksi C-P4H-I on osittain inaktiivinen. Merkittävästi alentuneen C-P4H:n aktiivisuuden todettiin aiheuttavan hiirimallissa lievän kondrodysplasian sekä heikentyneet luun ominaisuudet.

Abstract Oxygen homeostasis is critical to all animals, as both excess (hyperoxia) and reduced (hypoxia) levels of oxygen can result in pathological changes and ultimately in the loss of cellular and organismal viability. Complex systems have evolved to sense and adapt to changes in cellular oxygen availability, and the hypoxia-inducible factor HIF plays a pivotal role in this elaborate molecular network. In normoxic conditions the α-subunit of HIF becomes hydroxylated by HIF prolyl 4-hydroxylases (HIF-P4Hs 1-3), earmarking HIF-α for proteasomal degradation. Additionally, in the presence of oxygen the hydroxylation of an asparagine residue by the HIF asparaginyl hydroxylase FIH inhibits the transactivation of HIF-target genes by blocking the interaction of HIF-α with a transcriptional coactivator. In addition to being a feature of an organism’s normal life, hypoxia is also characteristic of many common diseases such as severe anemia and myocardial infarction, and it notably decreases these hydroxylation reactions, as HIF-P4Hs and FIH have an absolute requirement for oxygen as a cosubstrate. HIF-α thus escapes degradation and translocates into the nucleus, where it dimerizes with HIF-β and recruits transcriptional coactivators to the hypoxia-response elements of target genes, inducing their transcription and triggering the hypoxia response aimed at restoring cellular oxygen homeostasis. In this study we generated a genetically modified HIF-P4H-2 hypomorphic mouse line that expresses only 8% of the wild-type HIF-P4H-2 mRNA in the heart. We showed that chronic cardiac HIF-P4H-2 deficiency leads to stabilization of HIF-1α and HIF-2α and protects the heart against acute ischemia-reperfusion injury without causing any adverse effects. Furthermore, we identified and cloned a novel human transmembrane prolyl 4-hydroxylase P4H-TM and showed that it regulates HIF-1α protein levels in cellulo and hydroxylates HIF-1α in vitro similarly to the HIF-P4Hs, but may also have other physiological substrates. Using forward genetic tools we showed that lack of P4H-TM during development leads to basement membrane defects and compromised kidney function in zebrafish embryos. Finally, we demonstrated that FIH displays substrate selectivity in terms of hydroxylation and binding of HIF-1α and novel substrates Notch1-3. We showed that FIH has higher affinity for oxygen with Notch1 than with HIF-1α as a substrate, implying that FIH-mediated hydroxylation of Notch can continue in oxygen concentrations where HIF-1α hydroxylation would be markedly reduced. / Tiivistelmä Happitasapainon ylläpito on edellytys elimistön normaalille toiminnalle, koska sekä liian korkea (hyperoksia) että liian matala (hypoksia) happipitoisuus ovat elimistölle stressitiloja ja johtavat pitkittyessään haitallisiin seurauksiin. Happipitoisuuden muutosten havaitsemiseksi ja niihin reagoimiseksi onkin elimistössä kehittynyt monimutkainen säätelyjärjestelmä, jossa avainasemassa on hypoksia-indusoituva tekijä HIF. Solun happipitoisuuden ollessa normaali yksi kolmesta HIF prolyyli 4-hydroksylaasi-isoentsyymistä (HIF-P4Ht 1-3) katalysoi kahden proliinitähteen hydroksylaation HIF-α-alayksikössä. 4-hydroksiproliini toimii signaalina HIF-α:n nopealle proteasomaaliselle hajotukselle. Lisäksi HIF asparaginyyli hydroksylaasi FIH:n katalysoima HIF-α:n asparagiinitähteen hydroksylaatio estää transaktivaatiovaikutuksen. Koska HIF-P4Ht ja FIH tarvitsevat kosubstraatikseen happea, nämä hydroksylaatioreaktiot vähenevät happipitoisuuden laskiessa, jolloin HIF-α stabiloituu ja siirtyy solun tumaan, jossa se muodostaa kompleksin HIF-β-alayksikön kanssa ja houkuttelee paikalle tarvittavat kofaktorit. HIF-kompleksi tehostaa hypoksiavasteessa tarvittavien geenien luentaa sitoutumalla tumassa niiden promoottoreihin ja pyrkii näin palauttamaan solun happipitoisuuden normaaliksi. Tässä työssä luotiin geneettisesti muunneltu HIF-P4H-2 hypomorfi-hiirilinja, jonka sydämissä tuottuu vain 8 % normaalista HIF-P4H-2 lähetti-RNA:n määrästä. HIF-P4H-2:n puutoksen havaittiin johtavan HIF-1α:n ja HIF-2α:n stabiloitumiseen sydämessä ja suojaavan sydäntä kudosvaurioilta iskemian ja reperfuusion aikana aiheuttamatta haitallisia vaikutuksia. Tässä väitöskirjassa karakterisoitiin aiemmin tuntematon ihmisen transmembraaninen prolyyli 4-hydroksylaasi, P4H-TM. Sen osoitettiin säätelevän HIF-1α:n määrää soluissa ja katalysoivan HIF-1α:n kahden proliinitähteen hydroksylaatiota in vitro-olosuhteissa HIF-P4H-entsyymien tavoin. Seeprakalamallin avulla näytettiin, että P4H-TM:n puutos kalan kehityksen aikana aiheuttaa tyvikalvopoikkeavuuksia ja johtaa vakavaan munuaisen toiminnan häiriintymiseen seeprakalan poikasissa. FIH:n katalysoiman hydroksylaatioreaktion kineettisiä ominaisuuksia verrattiin tässä tutkimuksessa ensimmäistä kertaa aiemmin tunnetun HIF-α substraatin ja uusien Notch substraattien kesken. Tulokset osoittivat, että substraatin sitomisessa ja hydroksylaatiossa on merkittäviä eroja eri substraattien välillä.

Rýdlová Kateřina: Alkaloids Narcissus 'Dutch Master' (Amaryllidaceae) and their biological activity III. Diploma thesis 2017. Charles university in Prague, Faculty of Pharmacy in Hradec Králové, Department of Pharmaceutical Botany and Ecology. The aim of this work was isolation of compounds from the selected fraction ND 3 - 5 obtained by column chromatography of a Narcissus 'Dutch Master' alkaloid extract. Preparation of the extract and its column chromatography was performed by Mgr. Daniela Hulcová as a part of her doctoral study. Two substances NDM-1 and NDM-2 were isolated from fraction ND 3 - 5 by column chromatography and preparative TLC. The structures were determined as (+)-masonine and (+)-homolycorine on the basis of NMR, GC-MS analysis, optical rotation and their comparison with literature data. Isolated alkaloids were tested on inhibitory activity against human erythrocyte acetylcholinesterase, plasma butyrylcholinesterase and prolyloligopeptidase. Activity of alkaloids was expressed as IC50 values: (+)-masonine (IC50 AChE = 305 ± 34 μM, IC50 BuChE = 229 ± 24 μM, IC50 POP = 314 ± 34 μM), (+)-homolycorine (IC50 AChE = 63.7 ± 4.3 μM, IC50 BuChE = 151 ± 20 μM, IC50 POP = 173 ± 41 μM). In comparison with standards of galanthamine (IC50 AChE = 1.710 ± 0.1 μM, IC50 BuChE = 42.3 ± 1.3 μM),...