bims-cagime Biomed News
on Cancer, aging and metabolism
Issue of 2020‒11‒22
fifty-seven papers selected by
Kıvanç Görgülü
Technical University of Munich
  1. Targeting cellular senescence based on inter-organelle communication, multi-level proteostasis and metabolic control.
  2. Pancreas-specific SNAP23 Depletion Prevents Pancreatitis by Attenuating Pathological Basolateral Exocytosis and Formation of Trypsin-activating Autolysosomes.
  3. PPARγ agonists delay age-associated metabolic disease and extend longevity.
  4. Senescent cells promote tissue NAD+ decline during ageing via the activation of CD38+ macrophages.
  5. Unbiased in vivo preclinical evaluation of anticancer drugs identifies effective therapy for the treatment of pancreatic adenocarcinoma.
  6. Aneuploidy increases resistance to chemotherapeutics by antagonizing cell division.
  7. Vesicle Tethering on the Surface of Phase-Separated Active Zone Condensates.
  8. IQGAP1 binds AMPK and is required for maximum AMPK activation.
  9. A Selective Autophagy Pathway for Phase-Separated Endocytic Protein Deposits.
  10. Upregulated GDF-15 expression facilitates pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma progression through orphan receptor GFRAL.
  11. Structural and functional consequences of reversible lipid asymmetry in living membranes.
  12. Alternative mitochondrial quality control mediated by extracellular release.
  13. Endoplasmic reticulum stress signals in the tumour and its microenvironment.
  14. Ubiquitination of Intramitochondrial Proteins: Implications for Metabolic Adaptability.
  15. Pancreatic Fibroblast Heterogeneity: From Development to Cancer.
  16. GDF-15 Neutralization Alleviates Platinum-Based Chemotherapy-Induced Emesis, Anorexia, and Weight Loss in Mice and Nonhuman Primates.
  17. Messages across time and space.
  18. Transient commensal clonal interactions can drive tumor metastasis.
  19. Single nucleus and in situ RNA sequencing reveals cell topographies in the human pancreas.
  20. Cholesterol access in cellular membranes controls Hedgehog signaling.
  21. Hyperpolarized mitochondria accumulate in Drosophila Hipk-overexpressing cells to drive tumor-like growth.
  22. Cancer-initiating cells in human pancreatic cancer organoids are maintained by interactions with endothelial cells.
  23. Decreased blood vessel density and endothelial cell subset dynamics during ageing of the endocrine system.
  24. MFSD12 mediates the import of cysteine into melanosomes and lysosomes.
  25. Intracellular Transport in Cancer Metabolic Reprogramming.
  26. Mitochondrial Targeting of Probes and Therapeutics to the Powerhouse of the Cell.
  27. Quantitative analysis of mitochondrial membrane potential heterogeneity in unsynchronized and synchronized cancer cells.
  28. The PI3K pathway preserves metabolic health through MARCO-dependent lipid uptake by adipose tissue macrophages.
  29. Plasma proteomic biomarker signature of age predicts health and life span.
  30. Cell type-selective secretome profiling in vivo.
  31. Molecular Profiling Reveals a Common Metabolic Signature of Tissue Fibrosis.
  32. Mutational drivers of cancer cell migration and invasion.
  33. Global associations between macronutrient supply and age-specific mortality.
  34. A transcriptomic signature to predict adjuvant gemcitabine sensitivity in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.
  35. CRISPR-Mediated Induction of Neuron-Enriched Mitochondrial Proteins Boosts Direct Glia-to-Neuron Conversion.
  36. Autophagy Takes Center Stage as a Possible Cancer Hallmark.
  37. Metastasis: crosstalk between tissue mechanics and tumour cell plasticity.
  38. CRI iAtlas: an interactive portal for immuno-oncology research.
  39. Germline Variants That Affect Tumor Progression.
  40. Genome chaos: Creating new genomic information essential for cancer macroevolution.
  41. Functions of outer mitochondrial membrane proteins: mediating the crosstalk between mitochondrial dynamics and mitophagy.
  42. Integrated transcriptome meta-analysis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and matched adjacent pancreatic tissues.
  43. H3K27M in Gliomas Causes a One-Step Decrease in H3K27 Methylation and Reduced Spreading within the Constraints of H3K36 Methylation.
  44. Lysosomal targeting of autophagosomes by the TECPR domain of TECPR2.
  45. ACVR2B antagonism as a countermeasure to multi-organ perturbations in metastatic colorectal cancer cachexia.
  46. The Metabolic Underpinnings of Ferroptosis.
  47. Cell differentiation and aging accompanied by depletion of the ACE2 protein.
  48. Mitochondrial Safeguard: a stress response that offsets extreme fusion and protects respiratory function via flickering-induced Oma1 activation.
  49. A new approach for quantifying epigenetic landscapes.
  50. Early dose reduction/delay and the efficacy of liposomal irinotecan with fluorouracil and leucovorin in metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (mPDAC): A post hoc analysis of NAPOLI-1.
  51. Myokines in treatment-naïve patients with cancer-associated cachexia.
  52. Needle-compatible miniaturized optoelectronic sensor for pancreatic cancer detection.
  53. Vav2 catalysis-dependent pathways contribute to skeletal muscle growth and metabolic homeostasis.
  54. STING induces LC3B lipidation onto single-membrane vesicles via the V-ATPase and ATG16L1-WD40 domain.
  55. CB1R regulates soluble leptin receptor levels via CHOP, contributing to hepatic leptin resistance.
  56. Regulation of translation by one-carbon metabolism in bacteria and the eukaryotic organelles.
  57. GIANT: galaxy-based tool for interactive analysis of transcriptomic data.
  1. FEBS J. 2020 Nov 17.
    Targeting cellular senescence based on inter-organelle communication, multi-level proteostasis and metabolic control.
    Maria Cavinato, Corina T Madreiter-Sokolowski, Sabrina Büttner, Markus Schosserer, Werner Zwerschke, Sophia Wedel, Johannes Grillari, Wolfgang F Graier, Pidder Jansen-Dürr.
      Cellular senescence, a stable cell division arrest caused by severe damage and stress, is a hallmark of aging in vertebrates including humans. With progressing age, senescent cells accumulate in a variety of mammalian tissues, where they contribute to tissue aging, identifying cellular senescence as a major target to delay or prevent aging. There is an increasing demand for the discovery of new classes of small molecules which would either avoid or postpone cellular senescence by selectively eliminating senescent cells from the body (i.e. "senolytics") or inactivating/switching damage-inducing properties of senescent cells (i.e. "senostatics/senomorphics"), such as the senescence-associated secretory phenotype. Whereas compounds with senolytic or senostatic activity have already been described, their efficacy and specificity has not been fully established for clinical use yet. Here, we review mechanisms of senescence that are related to mitochondria and their inter-organelle communication, and the involvement of proteostasis networks and metabolic control in the senescent phenotype. These cellular functions are associated with cellular senescence in in vitro and in vivo models but have not been fully exploited for the search of new compounds to counteract senescence yet. Therefore, we explore possibilities to target these mechanisms as new opportunities to selectively eliminate and/or disable senescent cells with the aim of tissue rejuvenation. We assume that this research will provide new compounds from the chemical space which act as mimetics of caloric restriction, modulators of calcium signaling and mitochondrial physiology, or as proteostasis optimizers, bearing the potential to counteract cellular senescence, thereby allowing healthy aging.
    Keywords:  Autophagy; RNA modification; calcium signaling homeostasis; caloric restriction(CR) mimetic; interorganellar connectivity; lysosome; mitochondria; mitophagy; proteostasis; senescence; translational control
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1111/febs.15631
  2. Autophagy. 2020 Nov 19.
    Pancreas-specific SNAP23 Depletion Prevents Pancreatitis by Attenuating Pathological Basolateral Exocytosis and Formation of Trypsin-activating Autolysosomes.
    Subhankar Dolai, Toshimasa Takahashi, Tairan Qin, Tao Liang, Li Xie, Fei Kang, Yi-Fan Miao, Huanli Xie, Youhou Kang, Justin Manuel, Erin Winter, Paul A Roche, Mark S Cattral, Herbert Y Gaisano.
      Intrapancreatic trypsin activation by dysregulated macroautophagy/autophagy and pathological exocytosis of zymogen granules (ZGs), along with activation of inhibitor of NFKB/NF-κB kinase (IKK) are necessary early cellular events in pancreatitis. How these three pancreatitis events are linked is unclear. We investigated how SNAP23 orchestrates these events leading to pancreatic acinar injury. SNAP23 depletion was by knockdown (SNAP23-KD) effected by adenovirus-shRNA (Ad-SNAP23-shRNA/mCherry) treatment of rodent and human pancreatic slices and in vivo by infusion into rat pancreatic duct. In vitro pancreatitis induction by supraphysiological cholecystokinin (CCK) or ethanol plus low-dose CCK were used to assess SNAP23-KD effects on exocytosis and autophagy. Pancreatitis stimuli resulted in SNAP23 translocation from its native location at the plasma membrane to autophagosomes, where SNAP23 would bind and regulate STX17 (syntaxin17) SNARE complex-mediated autophagosome-lysosome fusion. This SNAP23 relocation was attributed to IKBKB/IKKβ-mediated SNAP23 phosphorylation at Ser95 Ser120 in rat and Ser120 in human, which was blocked by IKBKB/IKKβ inhibitors, and confirmed by the inability of IKBKB/IKKβ phosphorylation-disabled SNAP23 mutant (Ser95A Ser120A) to bind STX17 SNARE complex. SNAP23-KD impaired the assembly of STX4-driven basolateral exocytotic SNARE complex and STX17-driven SNARE complex, causing respective reduction of basolateral exocytosis of ZGs and autolysosome formation, with consequent reduction in trypsinogen activation in both compartments. Consequently, pancreatic SNAP23-KD rats were protected from caerulein and alcoholic pancreatitis. This study revealed the roles of SNAP23 in mediating pathological basolateral exocytosis and IKBKB/IKKβ's involvement in autolysosome formation, both where trypsinogen activation would occur to cause pancreatitis. SNAP23 is a strong candidate to target for pancreatitis therapy.
    Keywords:  Autophagy; IKKβ; SNAREs; caerulein; experimental pancreatitis; pancreatic acinar cell
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2020.1852725
  3. Aging Cell. 2020 Nov 21. e13267
    PPARγ agonists delay age-associated metabolic disease and extend longevity.
    Lingyan Xu, Xinran Ma, Narendra Verma, Luce Perie, Jay Pendse, Sama Shamloo, Anne Marie Josephson, Dongmei Wang, Jin Qiu, Mingwei Guo, Xiaodan Ping, Michele Allen, Audrey Noguchi, Danielle Springer, Fei Shen, Caizhi Liu, Shiwei Zhang, Lingyu Li, Jin Li, Junjie Xiao, Jian Lu, Zhenyu Du, Jian Luo, Jose O Aleman, Philipp Leucht, Elisabetta Mueller.
      Aging leads to a number of disorders caused by cellular senescence, tissue damage, and organ dysfunction. It has been reported that anti-inflammatory and insulin-sensitizing compounds delay, or reverse, the aging process and prevent metabolic disorders, neurodegenerative disease, and muscle atrophy, improving healthspan and extending lifespan. Here we investigated the effects of PPARγ agonists in preventing aging and increasing longevity, given their known properties in lowering inflammation and decreasing glycemia. Our molecular and physiological studies show that long-term treatment of mice at 14 months of age with low doses of the PPARγ ligand rosiglitazone (Rosi) improved glucose metabolism and mitochondrial functionality. These effects were associated with decreased inflammation and reduced tissue atrophy, improved cognitive function, and diminished anxiety- and depression-like conditions, without any adverse effects on cardiac and skeletal functionality. Furthermore, Rosi treatment of mice started when they were 14 months old was associated with lifespan extension. A retrospective analysis of the effects of the PPARγ agonist pioglitazone (Pio) on longevity showed decreased mortality in patients receiving Pio compared to those receiving a PPARγ-independent insulin secretagogue glimepiride. Taken together, these data suggest the possibility of using PPARγ agonists to promote healthy aging and extend lifespan.
    Keywords:  PPARγ; adipose tissue; aging; metabolism; rosiglitazone
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1111/acel.13267
  4. Nat Metab. 2020 Nov;2(11): 1265-1283
    Senescent cells promote tissue NAD+ decline during ageing via the activation of CD38+ macrophages.
    Anthony J Covarrubias, Abhijit Kale, Rosalba Perrone, Jose Alberto Lopez-Dominguez, Angela Oliveira Pisco, Herbert G Kasler, Mark S Schmidt, Indra Heckenbach, Ryan Kwok, Christopher D Wiley, Hoi-Shan Wong, Eddy Gibbs, Shankar S Iyer, Nathan Basisty, Qiuxia Wu, Ik-Jung Kim, Elena Silva, Kaitlyn Vitangcol, Kyong-Oh Shin, Yong-Moon Lee, Rebeccah Riley, Issam Ben-Sahra, Melanie Ott, Birgit Schilling, Morten Scheibye-Knudsen, Katsuhiko Ishihara, Stephen R Quake, John Newman, Charles Brenner, Judith Campisi, Eric Verdin.
      Declining tissue nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) levels are linked to ageing and its associated diseases. However, the mechanism for this decline is unclear. Here, we show that pro-inflammatory M1-like macrophages, but not naive or M2 macrophages, accumulate in metabolic tissues, including visceral white adipose tissue and liver, during ageing and acute responses to inflammation. These M1-like macrophages express high levels of the NAD-consuming enzyme CD38 and have enhanced CD38-dependent NADase activity, thereby reducing tissue NAD levels. We also find that senescent cells progressively accumulate in visceral white adipose tissue and liver during ageing and that inflammatory cytokines secreted by senescent cells (the senescence-associated secretory phenotype, SASP) induce macrophages to proliferate and express CD38. These results uncover a new causal link among resident tissue macrophages, cellular senescence and tissue NAD decline during ageing and offer novel therapeutic opportunities to maintain NAD levels during ageing.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-020-00305-3
  5. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020 Nov 16. pii: 201920240. [Epub ahead of print]
    Unbiased in vivo preclinical evaluation of anticancer drugs identifies effective therapy for the treatment of pancreatic adenocarcinoma.
    Olivera Grbovic-Huezo, Kenneth L Pitter, Nicolas Lecomte, Joseph Saglimbeni, Gokce Askan, Matilda Holm, Jerry P Melchor, Rohit Chandwani, Suhasini Joshi, Caj Haglund, Christine A Iacobuzio-Donahue, Gabriela Chiosis, Tuomas Tammela, Steven D Leach.
      Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is typically diagnosed at an advanced stage, which limits surgical options and portends a dismal prognosis. Current oncologic PDAC therapies confer marginal benefit and, thus, a significant unmet clinical need exists for new therapeutic strategies. To identify effective PDAC therapies, we leveraged a syngeneic orthotopic PDAC transplant mouse model to perform a large-scale, in vivo screen of 16 single-agent and 41 two-drug targeted therapy combinations in mice. Among 57 drug conditions screened, combined inhibition of heat shock protein (Hsp)-90 and MEK was found to produce robust suppression of tumor growth, leading to an 80% increase in the survival of PDAC-bearing mice with no significant toxicity. Mechanistically, we observed that single-agent MEK inhibition led to compensatory activation of resistance pathways, including components of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling axis, which was overcome with the addition of HSP90 inhibition. The combination of HSP90(i) + MEK(i) was also active in vitro in established human PDAC cell lines and in vivo in patient-derived organoid PDAC transplant models. These findings encourage the clinical development of HSP90(i) + MEK(i) combination therapy and highlight the power of clinically relevant in vivo model systems for identifying cancer therapies.
    Keywords:  HSP90; MEK; PDAC; pancreatic cancer; trametinib
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1920240117
  6. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020 Nov 17. pii: 202009506. [Epub ahead of print]
    Aneuploidy increases resistance to chemotherapeutics by antagonizing cell division.
    John Michael Replogle, Wen Zhou, Adrianna E Amaro, James M McFarland, Mariana Villalobos-Ortiz, Jeremy Ryan, Anthony Letai, Omer Yilmaz, Jason Sheltzer, Stephen J Lippard, Uri Ben-David, Angelika Amon.
      Aneuploidy, defined as whole chromosome gains and losses, is associated with poor patient prognosis in many cancer types. However, the condition causes cellular stress and cell cycle delays, foremost in G1 and S phase. Here, we investigate how aneuploidy causes both slow proliferation and poor disease outcome. We test the hypothesis that aneuploidy brings about resistance to chemotherapies because of a general feature of the aneuploid condition-G1 delays. We show that single chromosome gains lead to increased resistance to the frontline chemotherapeutics cisplatin and paclitaxel. Furthermore, G1 cell cycle delays are sufficient to increase chemotherapeutic resistance in euploid cells. Mechanistically, G1 delays increase drug resistance to cisplatin and paclitaxel by reducing their ability to damage DNA and microtubules, respectively. Finally, we show that our findings are clinically relevant. Aneuploidy correlates with slowed proliferation and drug resistance in the Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia (CCLE) dataset. We conclude that a general and seemingly detrimental effect of aneuploidy, slowed proliferation, provides a selective benefit to cancer cells during chemotherapy treatment.
    Keywords:  aneuploidy; cell cycle; chemotherapy resistance; cisplatin; paclitaxel
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2009506117
  7. Mol Cell. 2020 Nov 09. pii: S1097-2765(20)30736-X. [Epub ahead of print]
    Vesicle Tethering on the Surface of Phase-Separated Active Zone Condensates.
    Xiandeng Wu, Marcelo Ganzella, Jinchuan Zhou, Shihan Zhu, Reinhard Jahn, Mingjie Zhang.
      Tethering of synaptic vesicles (SVs) to the active zone determines synaptic strength, although the molecular basis governing SV tethering is elusive. Here, we discover that small unilamellar vesicles (SUVs) and SVs from rat brains coat on the surface of condensed liquid droplets formed by active zone proteins RIM, RIM-BP, and ELKS via phase separation. Remarkably, SUV-coated RIM/RIM-BP condensates are encapsulated by synapsin/SUV condensates, forming two distinct SUV pools reminiscent of the reserve and tethered SV pools that exist in presynaptic boutons. The SUV-coated RIM/RIM-BP condensates can further cluster Ca2+ channels anchored on membranes. Thus, we reconstitute a presynaptic bouton-like structure mimicking the SV-tethered active zone with its one side attached to the presynaptic membrane and the other side connected to the synapsin-clustered SV condensates. The distinct interaction modes between membraneless protein condensates and membrane-based organelles revealed here have general implications in cellular processes, including vesicular formation and trafficking, organelle biogenesis, and autophagy.
    Keywords:  biological condensates; liquid-liquid phase separation; membrane organelles; membraneless condensates; postsynaptic density; presynaptic active zone; synapse formation; synaptic transmission
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcel.2020.10.029
  8. J Biol Chem. 2020 Nov 15. pii: jbc.RA120.016193. [Epub ahead of print]
    IQGAP1 binds AMPK and is required for maximum AMPK activation.
    Andrew C Hedman, Zhigang Li, Laëtitia Gorisse, Swetha Parvathaneni, Chase J Morgan, David B Sacks.
      AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a fundamental component of a protein kinase cascade that is an energy sensor. AMPK maintains energy homeostasis in the cell by promoting catabolic and inhibiting anabolic pathways. Activation of AMPK requires phosphorylation by the liver kinase B1 or by the Ca2+ /calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase 2 (CaMKK2). The scaffold protein IQGAP1 regulates intracellular signaling pathways, such as the mitogen-activated protein kinase and AKT signaling cascades. Recent work implicates the participation of IQGAP1 in metabolic function, but the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects are poorly understood. Here, using several approaches including binding analysis with fusion proteins, siRNA-mediated gene silencing, RT-PCR, and knockout mice, we investigated whether IQGAP1 modulates AMPK signaling. In vitro analysis reveals that IQGAP1 binds directly to the α1 subunit of AMPK. In addition, we observed a direct interaction between IQGAP1 and CaMKK2, which is mediated by the IQ domain of IQGAP1. Both CaMKK2 and AMPK associate with IQGAP1 in cells. The ability of metformin and increased intracellular free Ca2+ concentrations to activate AMPK is reduced in cells lacking IQGAP1. Importantly, Ca2+-stimulated AMPK phosphorylation was rescued by re-expression of IQGAP1 in IQGAP1-null cell lines. Comparison of the fasting response in wild-type and IQGAP1-null mice revealed that transcriptional regulation of the gluconeogenesis genes PCK1 and G6PC and the fatty acid synthesis genes FASN and ACC1 is impaired in IQGAP1-null mice. Our data disclose a previously unidentified functional interaction between IQGAP1 and AMPK and suggest that IQGAP1 modulates AMPK signaling.
    Keywords:  AMP-activated kinase (AMPK); IQGAP1; calcium; calmodulin (CaM); cell signaling; homeostasis; metabolic regulation; metformin; protein-protein interaction; scaffold protein; signaling
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.RA120.016193
  9. Mol Cell. 2020 Nov 05. pii: S1097-2765(20)30737-1. [Epub ahead of print]
    A Selective Autophagy Pathway for Phase-Separated Endocytic Protein Deposits.
    Florian Wilfling, Chia-Wei Lee, Philipp S Erdmann, Yumei Zheng, Dawafuti Sherpa, Stefan Jentsch, Boris Pfander, Brenda A Schulman, Wolfgang Baumeister.
      Autophagy eliminates cytoplasmic content selected by autophagy receptors, which link cargo to the membrane-bound autophagosomal ubiquitin-like protein Atg8/LC3. Here, we report a selective autophagy pathway for protein condensates formed by endocytic proteins in yeast. In this pathway, the endocytic protein Ede1 functions as a selective autophagy receptor. Distinct domains within Ede1 bind Atg8 and mediate phase separation into condensates. Both properties are necessary for an Ede1-dependent autophagy pathway for endocytic proteins, which differs from regular endocytosis and does not involve other known selective autophagy receptors but requires the core autophagy machinery. Cryo-electron tomography of Ede1-containing condensates, at the plasma membrane and in autophagic bodies, shows a phase-separated compartment at the beginning and end of the Ede1-mediated selective autophagy route. Our data suggest a model for autophagic degradation of macromolecular protein complexes by the action of intrinsic autophagy receptors.
    Keywords:  Atg11; Atg8; Ede1; clathrin-mediated endocytosis; intrinsic autophagy receptor; liquid-liquid phase separation; selective autophagy
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcel.2020.10.030
  10. Aging (Albany NY). 2020 Nov 17. 12
    Upregulated GDF-15 expression facilitates pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma progression through orphan receptor GFRAL.
    Zhiping Zhao, Junfeng Zhang, Liangyu Yin, Jiali Yang, Yao Zheng, Mengjie Zhang, Bing Ni, Huaizhi Wang.
      Growth and differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) has been studied as an important hallmark of cancer. However, the receptor of GDF-15 in pancreatic cancer cell remains unclear. Here, we investigated its biological effects in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). We found that aberrant GDF-15 expression positively correlated with poor survival of PDAC patients. GDF-15 protein enhanced tumor cell proliferation in two pancreatic cancer lines, AsPC-1 and BxPC-3. Knockdown GDF-15 attenuated its biological function in vitro and reduced PDAC cell tumorigenesis upon xenotransplantation into nude mice. Moreover, we identified that glial-derived neurotropic factor family receptor α-like (GFRAL) was upregulated in PDAC tissues and positively correlated with GDF-15 expression. High GFRAL expression was significantly associated with poor survival in PDAC patients. Furthermore, we identified that the biological effects of GDF-15 are mediated by its receptor GFRAL which is present in PDAC cells. After overexpression GFRAL in pancreatic cancer cells, the effect of GDF-15 was significantly enhanced. Overall, our findings demonstrated that the GDF-15 secreted by PDAC cells, binds to GFRAL, itself localized in PDAC cells, to promote cancer cell growth and metastasis through the GDF-15/GFRAL signaling pathway.
    Keywords:  GDF-15; GFRAL; metastasis; pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma; proliferation
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.103830
  11. Nat Chem Biol. 2020 Dec;16(12): 1321-1330
    Structural and functional consequences of reversible lipid asymmetry in living membranes.
    Milka Doktorova, Jessica L Symons, Ilya Levental.
      Maintenance of lipid asymmetry across the two leaflets of the plasma membrane (PM) bilayer is a ubiquitous feature of eukaryotic cells. Loss of this asymmetry has been widely associated with cell death. However, increasing evidence points to the physiological importance of non-apoptotic, transient changes in PM asymmetry. Such transient scrambling events are associated with a range of biological functions, including intercellular communication and intracellular signaling. Thus, regulation of interleaflet lipid distribution in the PM is a broadly important but underappreciated cellular process with key physiological and structural consequences. Here, we compile the mounting evidence revealing multifaceted, functional roles of PM asymmetry and transient loss thereof. We discuss the consequences of reversible asymmetry on PM structure, biophysical properties and interleaflet coupling. We argue that despite widespread recognition of broad aspects of membrane asymmetry, its importance in cell biology demands more in-depth investigation of its features, regulation, and physiological and pathological implications.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41589-020-00688-0
  12. Autophagy. 2020 Nov 20.
    Alternative mitochondrial quality control mediated by extracellular release.
    Chi-Jing Choong, Tatsusada Okuno, Kensuke Ikenaka, Kousuke Baba, Hideki Hayakawa, Masato Koike, Mutsumi Yokota, Junko Doi, Keita Kakuda, Toshihide Takeuchi, Akiko Kuma, Shuhei Nakamura, Yoshitaka Nagai, Seiichi Nagano, Tamotsu Yoshimori, Hideki Mochizuki.
      Mitochondrial quality control, which is crucial for maintaining cellular homeostasis, has been considered to be achieved exclusively through mitophagy. Here we report an alternative mitochondrial quality control pathway mediated by extracellular mitochondria release. By performing time-lapse confocal imaging on a stable cell line with fluorescent-labeled mitochondria, we observed release of mitochondria from cells into the extracellular space. Correlative light-electron microscopy revealed that majority of the extracellular mitochondria are in free form and, on rare occasions, some are enclosed in membrane-surrounded vesicles. Rotenone- and carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone-induced mitochondrial quality impairment promotes the extracellular release of depolarized mitochondria. Overexpression of PRKN (parkin RBR E3 ubiquitin protein ligase), which has a pivotal role in mitophagy regulation, suppresses the extracellular mitochondria release under basal and stress condition, whereas its knockdown exacerbates it. Correspondingly, overexpression of PRKN-independent mitophagy regulators, BNIP3 (BCL2 interacting protein 3) and BNIP3L/NIX (BCL2 interacting protein 3 like), suppress extracellular mitochondria release. Autophagy-deficient cell lines show elevated extracellular mitochondria release. These results imply that perturbation of mitophagy pathway prompts mitochondria expulsion. Presence of mitochondrial protein can also be detected in mouse sera. Sera of PRKN-deficient mice contain higher level of mitochondrial protein compared to that of wild-type mice. More importantly, fibroblasts and cerebrospinal fluid samples from Parkinson disease patients carrying loss-of-function PRKN mutations show increased extracellular mitochondria compared to control subjects, providing evidence in a clinical context. Taken together, our findings suggest that extracellular mitochondria release is a comparable yet distinct quality control pathway from conventional mitophagy.
    Keywords:  Mitochondria; Parkinson disease; mitochondrial quality control; mitophagy; parkin
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2020.1848130
  13. Nat Rev Cancer. 2020 Nov 19.
    Endoplasmic reticulum stress signals in the tumour and its microenvironment.
    Xi Chen, Juan R Cubillos-Ruiz.
      Protein handling, modification and folding in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) are tightly regulated processes that determine cell function, fate and survival. In several tumour types, diverse oncogenic, transcriptional and metabolic abnormalities cooperate to generate hostile microenvironments that disrupt ER homeostasis in malignant and stromal cells, as well as infiltrating leukocytes. These changes provoke a state of persistent ER stress that has been demonstrated to govern multiple pro-tumoural attributes in the cancer cell while dynamically reprogramming the function of innate and adaptive immune cells. Aberrant activation of ER stress sensors and their downstream signalling pathways have therefore emerged as key regulators of tumour growth and metastasis as well as response to chemotherapy, targeted therapies and immunotherapy. In this Review, we discuss the physiological inducers of ER stress in the tumour milieu, the interplay between oncogenic signalling and ER stress response pathways in the cancer cell and the profound immunomodulatory effects of sustained ER stress responses in tumours.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41568-020-00312-2
  14. Biomolecules. 2020 Nov 16. pii: E1559. [Epub ahead of print]10(11):
    Ubiquitination of Intramitochondrial Proteins: Implications for Metabolic Adaptability.
    Prasad Sulkshane, Jonathan Ram, Michael H Glickman.
      Mitochondria are constantly subjected to stressful conditions due to their unique physiology and organization. The resulting damage leads to mitochondrial dysfunction, which underlies many pathophysiological conditions. Hence, constant surveillance is required to closely monitor mitochondrial health for sound maintenance of cellular metabolism and thus, for viability. In addition to internal mitochondrial chaperones and proteases, mitochondrial health is also governed by host cell protein quality control systems. The ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) and autophagy constitute the main pathways for removal of damaged or superfluous proteins in the cytosol, nucleus, and from certain organelles such as the Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) and mitochondria. Although stress-induced ubiquitin-dependent degradation of mitochondrial outer membrane proteins has been widely studied, mechanisms of intramitochondrial protein ubiquitination has remained largely elusive due to the predominantly cytosolic nature of UPS components, separated from internal mitochondrial proteins by a double membrane. However, recent research has illuminated examples of intramitochondrial protein ubiquitination pathways and highlighted their importance under basal and stressful conditions. Owing to the dependence of mitochondria on the error-prone process of protein import from the cytosol, it is imperative that the cell eliminate any accumulated proteins in the event of mitochondrial protein import deficiency. Apparently, a significant portion of this activity involves ubiquitination in one way or another. In the present review article, following a brief introduction to mitochondrial protein quality control mechanisms, we discuss our recent understanding of intramitochondrial protein ubiquitination, its importance for basal function of mitochondria, metabolic implications, and possible therapeutic applications.
    Keywords:  autophagy; metabolism; mitochondria; mitophagy; proteasome; protein import; protein quality control; proteolysis; ubiquitin
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/biom10111559
  15. Cells. 2020 Nov 12. pii: E2464. [Epub ahead of print]9(11):
    Pancreatic Fibroblast Heterogeneity: From Development to Cancer.
    Paloma E Garcia, Michael K Scales, Benjamin L Allen, Marina Pasca di Magliano.
      Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is characterized by an extensive fibroinflammatory microenvironment that accumulates from the onset of disease progression. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are a prominent cellular component of the stroma, but their role during carcinogenesis remains controversial, with both tumor-supporting and tumor-restraining functions reported in different studies. One explanation for these contradictory findings is the heterogeneous nature of the fibroblast populations, and the different roles each subset might play in carcinogenesis. Here, we review the current literature on the origin and function of pancreatic fibroblasts, from the developing organ to the healthy adult pancreas, and throughout the initiation and progression of PDA. We also discuss clinical approaches to targeting fibroblasts in PDA.
    Keywords:  cancer-associated fibroblasts; fibroblasts; hedgehog; pancreas; pancreas development; pancreatic cancer; transforming growth factor Beta; tumor microenvironment
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9112464
  16. Cell Metab. 2020 Nov 10. pii: S1550-4131(20)30592-1. [Epub ahead of print]
    GDF-15 Neutralization Alleviates Platinum-Based Chemotherapy-Induced Emesis, Anorexia, and Weight Loss in Mice and Nonhuman Primates.
    Danna M Breen, Hanna Kim, Donald Bennett, Roberto A Calle, Susie Collins, Ryan M Esquejo, Tao He, Stephanie Joaquim, Alison Joyce, Matthew Lambert, Laura Lin, Betty Pettersen, Shuxi Qiao, Michelle Rossulek, Gregory Weber, Zhidan Wu, Bei B Zhang, Morris J Birnbaum.
      Platinum-based cancer therapy is restricted by dose-limiting side effects and is associated with elevation of growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15). But whether this elevation contributes to such side effects has been unclear. Here, we explored the effects of GDF-15 blockade on platinum-based chemotherapy-induced emesis, anorexia, and weight loss in mice and/or nonhuman primate models. We found that circulating GDF-15 is higher in subjects with cancer receiving platinum-based chemotherapy and is positively associated with weight loss in colorectal cancer (NCT00609622). Further, chemotherapy agents associated with high clinical emetic score induce circulating GDF-15 and weight loss in mice. Platinum-based treatment-induced anorexia and weight loss are attenuated in GDF-15 knockout mice, while GDF-15 neutralization with the monoclonal antibody mAB1 improves survival. In nonhuman primates, mAB1 treatment attenuates anorexia and emesis. These results suggest that GDF-15 neutralization is a potential therapeutic approach to alleviate chemotherapy-induced side effects and improve the quality of life.
    Keywords:  chemotherapy; cisplatin; emesis; growth differentiation factor 15; survival; weight loss
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2020.10.023
  17. Elife. 2020 Nov 17. pii: e63845. [Epub ahead of print]9
    Messages across time and space.
    Sascha M Kuhn, André Nadler.
      Compartmentalized oscillations of second messengers affect global cellular signaling.
    Keywords:  biochemistry; cAMP; chemical biology; computational biology; homeostasis; mouse; oscillation; pancreatic beta cell; second messengers; signaling compartmentalization; systems biology
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.63845
  18. Nat Commun. 2020 11 16. 11(1): 5799
    Transient commensal clonal interactions can drive tumor metastasis.
    Suha Naffar-Abu Amara, Hendrik J Kuiken, Laura M Selfors, Timothy Butler, Marco L Leung, Cheuk T Leung, Elaine P Kuhn, Teodora Kolarova, Carina Hage, Kripa Ganesh, Richard Panayiotou, Rosemary Foster, Bo R Rueda, Athena Aktipis, Paul Spellman, Tan A Ince, Joanne Xiu, Matthew Oberley, Zoran Gatalica, Nicholas Navin, Gordon B Mills, Rodrick T Bronson, Joan S Brugge.
      The extent and importance of functional heterogeneity and crosstalk between tumor cells is poorly understood. Here, we describe the generation of clonal populations from a patient-derived ovarian clear cell carcinoma model which forms malignant ascites and solid peritoneal tumors upon intraperitoneal transplantation in mice. The clonal populations are engineered with secreted Gaussia luciferase to monitor tumor growth dynamics and tagged with a unique DNA barcode to track their fate in multiclonal mixtures during tumor progression. Only one clone, CL31, grows robustly, generating exclusively malignant ascites. However, multiclonal mixtures form large solid peritoneal metastases, populated almost entirely by CL31, suggesting that transient cooperative interclonal interactions are sufficient to promote metastasis of CL31. CL31 uniquely harbors ERBB2 amplification, and its acquired metastatic activity in clonal mixtures is dependent on transient exposure to amphiregulin, which is exclusively secreted by non-tumorigenic clones. Amphiregulin enhances CL31 mesothelial clearance, a prerequisite for metastasis. These findings demonstrate that transient, ostensibly innocuous tumor subpopulations can promote metastases via "hit-and-run" commensal interactions.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-19584-1
  19. Gastroenterology. 2020 Nov 16. pii: S0016-5085(20)35399-3. [Epub ahead of print]
    Single nucleus and in situ RNA sequencing reveals cell topographies in the human pancreas.
    Luca Tosti, Yan Hang, Olivia Debnath, Sebastian Tiesmeyer, Timo Trefzer, Katja Steiger, Foo Wei Ten, Sören Lukassen, Simone Ballke, Anja A Kühl, Simone Spieckermann, Rita Bottino, Naveed Ishaque, Wilko Weichert, Seung K Kim, Roland Eils, Christian Conrad.
      BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Molecular evidence of cellular heterogeneity in the human exocrine pancreas has not been yet established, due to the local concentration and cascade of hydrolytic enzymes that can rapidly degrade cells and RNA upon pancreatic resection. We sought to better understand the heterogeneity and cellular composition of the pancreas in neonates and adults in healthy and diseased conditions using single cell sequencing approaches.METHODS: We innovated single-nucleus RNA sequencing protocols and profiled more than 120,000 cells from pancreata of adult and neonatal human donors. We validated the single nucleus findings using RNA-FISH, in situ sequencing and computational approaches.
    RESULTS: We created the first comprehensive atlas of human pancreas cells, including epithelial and non-epithelial constituents and uncovered three distinct acinar cell types, with possible implications for homeostatic and inflammatory processes of the pancreas. The comparison with neonatal sNuc-seq data revealed a different cellular composition of the endocrine tissue, highlighting tissue dynamics occurring during development. By applying spatial cartography, involving cell proximity mapping through in situ sequencing, we found evidence of specific cell type neighborhoods, dynamic topographies in the endocrine and exocrine pancreas, and principles of morphological organization of the organ. Furthermore, similar analyses in chronic pancreatitis biopsies revealed the presence of acinar-REG+ cells, a reciprocal association between macrophages and activated stellate cells, and a new potential role of Tuft cells in this disease.
    CONCLUSIONS: Our human pancreas cell atlas can be interrogated to understand pancreatic cell biology and provides a crucial reference set for comparisons with diseased tissue samples to map the cellular foundations of pancreatic diseases.Interactive exploration tool and data download: http://singlecell.charite.de/pancreas. Raw sequencing access-protected data on European Genome-phenome Archive (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/ega/home): EGAS00001004653. In Situ Sequencing raw data: 10.6084/m9.figshare.12173232.
    Keywords:  acinar heterogeneity; chronic pancreatitis; healthy pancreas; postnatal development
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2020.11.010
  20. Nat Chem Biol. 2020 Dec;16(12): 1303-1313
    Cholesterol access in cellular membranes controls Hedgehog signaling.
    Arun Radhakrishnan, Rajat Rohatgi, Christian Siebold.
      The Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway coordinates cell-cell communication in development and regeneration. Defects in this pathway underlie diseases ranging from birth defects to cancer. Hh signals are transmitted across the plasma membrane by two proteins, Patched 1 (PTCH1) and Smoothened (SMO). PTCH1, a transporter-like tumor-suppressor protein, binds to Hh ligands, but SMO, a G-protein-coupled-receptor family oncoprotein, transmits the Hh signal across the membrane. Recent structural, biochemical and cell-biological studies have converged at the surprising model that a specific pool of plasma membrane cholesterol, termed accessible cholesterol, functions as a second messenger that conveys the signal between PTCH1 and SMO. Beyond solving a central puzzle in Hh signaling, these studies are revealing new principles in membrane biology: how proteins respond to and remodel cholesterol accessibility in membranes and how the cholesterol composition of organelle membranes is used to regulate protein function.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41589-020-00678-2
  21. J Cell Sci. 2020 Nov 16. pii: jcs.250944. [Epub ahead of print]
    Hyperpolarized mitochondria accumulate in Drosophila Hipk-overexpressing cells to drive tumor-like growth.
    Kenneth Kin Lam Wong, Jenny Zhe Liao, Claire R Y Shih, Nicholas Harden, Esther M Verheyen.
      Both functional and dysfunctional mitochondria are known to underlie tumor progression. Here, we establish use of the proto-oncogene Drosophila Homeodomain-interacting protein kinase (Hipk) as a new tool to address this paradox. We find that, in Hipk-overexpressing tumor-like cells, mitochondria accumulate and switch from fragmented to highly fused interconnected morphologies. Moreover, elevated Hipk promotes mitochondrial membrane hyperpolarization. These mitochondrial changes are at least in part driven by the upregulation of Myc. Furthermore, we show that the altered mitochondrial energetics, but not morphology, is required for Hipk tumor-like growth as knockdown of pdsw (NDUFB10 in mammals; a Complex I subunit) abrogates the growth. Knockdown of ATPsynβ (a Complex V subunit), which produces higher levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) than pdsw knockdown, instead synergizes with Hipk to potentiate JNK activation and the downstream induction of Matrix metalloproteinases. Accordingly, ATPsynβ knockdown suppresses Hipk tumor-like growth only when ROS scavengers are co-expressed. Altogether, our work presents an in vivo tumor model featuring the accumulation of hyperfused and hyperpolarized mitochondria, and reveals respiratory Complex subunit-dependent, opposing effects on tumorigenic outcomes.
    Keywords:  Drosophila; Energetics; Hipk; Mitochondria; Myc; ROS
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1242/jcs.250944
  22. Cancer Lett. 2020 Nov 11. pii: S0304-3835(20)30528-0. [Epub ahead of print]
    Cancer-initiating cells in human pancreatic cancer organoids are maintained by interactions with endothelial cells.
    Jae-Il Choi, Sung Ill Jang, Jaehyun Hong, Chul Hoon Kim, Soon Sung Kwon, Joon Seong Park, Jong-Baeck Lim.
      Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) shows poor prognosis and high malignancy due to the presence of cancer-initiating cells (CICs) and characteristics of the tumor microenvironment (TME). Organoids are useful for studying PDAC, and establishing organoids is dependent on stem cell growth factors, including Wnt signaling. Herein, using a conventional organoid culture system, we demonstrated that CD44(+)CD24(+) and CD44(+)CD24(+)EpCAM(+) CICs were enriched >65% in a PDAC patient-derived organoid. CICs expressing CD44 formed lumen structures by gathering into circles. Additionally, organoid-derived CD44(-) cancer cells were capable of organoid re-formation and could be re-programed as CD44-expressing CICs in the organoid culture system. To mimic a TME absent artificial stem cell growth factors, a PDAC organoid with vascular niche was established. CICs in the PDAC tumor organoid were maintained by paracrine effects and direct interactions with endothelial cells. Interestingly, CD44(+) cells in PDAC tumor tissue were detected primarily in the vascular niche. Inhibiting both Wnt and Notch signaling in endothelial cells suppressed organoid formation and the maintenance of CD24(+)CD44(+) CICs. Collectively, our results suggest that PDAC patient-derived organoids maintain CICs by interacting with endothelial cells via Wnt and Notch pathways.
    Keywords:  Cancer plasticity; Cancer stem cells; Human cancer organoid; Tumor microenvironment; Vascular niche
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.canlet.2020.10.012
  23. EMBO J. 2020 Nov 20. e105242
    Decreased blood vessel density and endothelial cell subset dynamics during ageing of the endocrine system.
    Junyu Chen, Luciana Lippo, Rossella Labella, Sin Lih Tan, Brian D Marsden, Michael L Dustin, Saravana K Ramasamy, Anjali P Kusumbe.
      Age-associated alterations of the hormone-secreting endocrine system cause organ dysfunction and disease states. However, the cell biology of endocrine tissue ageing remains poorly understood. Here, we perform comparative 3D imaging to understand age-related perturbations of the endothelial cell (EC) compartment in endocrine glands. Datasets of a wide range of markers highlight a decline in capillary and artery numbers, but not of perivascular cells in pancreas, testis and thyroid gland, with age in mice and humans. Further, angiogenesis and β-cell expansion in the pancreas are coupled by a distinct age-dependent subset of ECs. While this EC subpopulation supports pancreatic β cells, it declines during ageing concomitant with increased expression of the gap junction protein Gja1. EC-specific ablation of Gja1 restores β-cell expansion in the aged pancreas. These results provide a proof of concept for understanding age-related vascular changes and imply that therapeutic targeting of blood vessels may restore aged endocrine tissue function. This comprehensive data atlas offers over > 1,000 multicolour volumes for exploration and research in endocrinology, ageing, matrix and vascular biology.
    Keywords:  3D imaging; ageing; endocrine system; pancreas; vasculature
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.15252/embj.2020105242
  24. Nature. 2020 Nov 18.
    MFSD12 mediates the import of cysteine into melanosomes and lysosomes.
    Charles H Adelmann, Anna K Traunbauer, Brandon Chen, Kendall J Condon, Sze Ham Chan, Tenzin Kunchok, Caroline A Lewis, David M Sabatini.
      Dozens of genes contribute to the wide variation in human pigmentation. Many of these genes encode proteins that localize to the melanosome-the organelle, related to the lysosome, that synthesizes pigment-but have unclear functions1,2. Here we describe MelanoIP, a method for rapidly isolating melanosomes and profiling their labile metabolite contents. We use this method to study MFSD12, a transmembrane protein of unknown molecular function that, when suppressed, causes darker pigmentation in mice and humans3,4. We find that MFSD12 is required to maintain normal levels of cystine-the oxidized dimer of cysteine-in melanosomes, and to produce cysteinyldopas, the precursors of pheomelanin synthesis made in melanosomes via cysteine oxidation5,6. Tracing and biochemical analyses show that MFSD12 is necessary for the import of cysteine into melanosomes and, in non-pigmented cells, lysosomes. Indeed, loss of MFSD12 reduced the accumulation of cystine in lysosomes of fibroblasts from patients with cystinosis, a lysosomal-storage disease caused by inactivation of the lysosomal cystine exporter cystinosin7-9. Thus, MFSD12 is an essential component of the cysteine importer for melanosomes and lysosomes.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2937-x
  25. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2020 ;8 597608
    Intracellular Transport in Cancer Metabolic Reprogramming.
    Marte Sneeggen, Noemi Antonella Guadagno, Cinzia Progida.
      Tumor progression is a complex process consisting of several steps characterized by alterations in cellular behavior and morphology. These steps include uncontrolled cell division and proliferation, invasiveness and metastatic ability. Throughout these phases, cancer cells encounter a changing environment and a variety of metabolic stress. To meet their needs for energy while they proliferate and survive in their new environment, tumor cells need to continuously fine-tune their metabolism. The connection between intracellular transport and metabolic reprogramming during cancer progression is emerging as a central process of cellular adaptation to these changes. The trafficking of proteolytic enzymes, surface receptors, but also the regulation of downstream pathways, are all central to cancer progression. In this review, we summarize different hallmarks of cancer with a special focus on the role of intracellular trafficking in cell proliferation, epithelial to mesenchymal transition as well as invasion. We will further emphasize how intracellular trafficking contributes to the regulation of energy consumption and metabolism during these steps of cancer progression.
    Keywords:  cancer cell metabolism; cell proliferation; epithelial to mesenchymal transition; invasion; membrane trafficking
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2020.597608
  26. Bioconjug Chem. 2020 Nov 15.
    Mitochondrial Targeting of Probes and Therapeutics to the Powerhouse of the Cell.
    Cindy Ma, Fan Xia, Shana O Kelley.
      Mitochondria, colloquially known as "the powerhouse of the cell", play important roles in production, but also in processes critical for cellular fate such as cell death, differentiation, signaling, metabolic homeostasis, and innate immunity. Due to its many functions in the cell, the mitochondria have been linked to a variety of human illnesses such as diabetes, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases. In order to further our understanding and pharmaceutical targeting of this critical organelle, effective strategies must be employed to breach the complex barriers and microenvironment of mitochondria. Here, we summarize advancements in mitochondria-targeted probes and therapeutics.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.0c00470
  27. FASEB J. 2020 Nov 16.
    Quantitative analysis of mitochondrial membrane potential heterogeneity in unsynchronized and synchronized cancer cells.
    Amandine Rovini, Kareem Heslop, Elizabeth G Hunt, Morgan E Morris, Diana Fang, Monika Gooz, Akos A Gerencser, Eduardo N Maldonado.
      Mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) is a global indicator of mitochondrial function. Previous reports on heterogeneity of ΔΨm were qualitative or semiquantitative. Here, we quantified intercellular differences in ΔΨm in unsynchronized human cancer cells, cells synchronized in G1, S, and G2, and human fibroblasts. We assessed ΔΨm using a two-pronged microscopy approach to measure relative fluorescence of tetramethylrhodamine methyl ester (TMRM) and absolute values of ΔΨm. We showed that ΔΨm is more heterogeneous in cancer cells compared to fibroblasts, and it is maintained throughout the cell cycle. The effect of chemical inhibition of the respiratory chain and ATP synthesis differed between basal, low and high ΔΨm cells. Overall, our results showed that intercellular heterogeneity of ΔΨm is mainly modulated by intramitochondrial factors, it is independent of the ΔΨm indicator and it is not correlated with intercellular heterogeneity of plasma membrane potential or the phases of the cell cycle.
    Keywords:  HepG2 cells; TMRM; cancer; cell cycle; fibroblasts; heterogeneity; mitochondria; mitochondrial membrane potential; plasma membrane potential
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1096/fj.202001693R
  28. Nat Metab. 2020 Nov 16.
    The PI3K pathway preserves metabolic health through MARCO-dependent lipid uptake by adipose tissue macrophages.
    Julia S Brunner, Andrea Vogel, Alexander Lercher, Michael Caldera, Ana Korosec, Marlene Pühringer, Melanie Hofmann, Alexander Hajto, Markus Kieler, Lucia Quemada Garrido, Martina Kerndl, Mario Kuttke, Ildiko Mesteri, Maria W Górna, Marta Kulik, Paulina M Dominiak, Amanda E Brandon, Emma Estevez, Casey L Egan, Florian Gruber, Martina Schweiger, Jörg Menche, Andreas Bergthaler, Thomas Weichhart, Kristaps Klavins, Mark A Febbraio, Omar Sharif, Gernot Schabbauer.
      Adipose tissue macrophages (ATMs) display tremendous heterogeneity depending on signals in their local microenvironment and contribute to the pathogenesis of obesity. The phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) signalling pathway, antagonized by the phosphatase and tensin homologue (PTEN), is important for metabolic responses to obesity. We hypothesized that fluctuations in macrophage-intrinsic PI3K activity via PTEN could alter the trajectory of metabolic disease by driving distinct ATM populations. Using mice harbouring macrophage-specific PTEN deletion or bone marrow chimeras carrying additional PTEN copies, we demonstrate that sustained PI3K activity in macrophages preserves metabolic health in obesity by preventing lipotoxicity. Myeloid PI3K signalling promotes a beneficial ATM population characterized by lipid uptake, catabolism and high expression of the scavenger macrophage receptor with collagenous structure (MARCO). Dual MARCO and myeloid PTEN deficiencies prevent the generation of lipid-buffering ATMs, reversing the beneficial actions of elevated myeloid PI3K activity in metabolic disease. Thus, macrophage-intrinsic PI3K signalling boosts metabolic health by driving ATM programmes associated with MARCO-dependent lipid uptake.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-020-00311-5
  29. Elife. 2020 Nov 19. pii: e61073. [Epub ahead of print]9
    Plasma proteomic biomarker signature of age predicts health and life span.
    Toshiko Tanaka, Nathan Basisty, Giovanna Fantoni, Julian Candia, Ann Z Moore, Angelique Bioancotto, Birgit Schilling, Stefania Bandinelli, Luigi Ferrucci.
      Older age is a strong shared risk factor for many chronic diseases and there is increasing interest in identifying aging biomarkers. Here a proteomic analysis of 1301 plasma proteins was conducted in 997 individuals between 21 and 102 years of age. We identified 651 proteins associated with age (506 over-represented, 145 underrepresented with age) was identified. Mediation analysis suggested a role for partial cis-epigenetic control of protein expression with age. Of the age-associated proteins, 33.5% and 45.3%, were associated with mortality and multimorbidity, respectively. There was enrichment of proteins associated with inflammation and extracellular matrix as well as senescence-associated secretory proteins. A 76-protein proteomic age signature predicted accumulation of chronic diseases and all-cause mortality. These data support the premise of proteomic biomarkers to monitor aging trajectories and to identify individuals at higher risk for disease to be targeted for in depth diagnostic procedures and early interventions.
    Keywords:  computational biology; epidemiology; global health; human; systems biology
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.61073
  30. Nat Chem Biol. 2020 Nov 16.
    Cell type-selective secretome profiling in vivo.
    Wei Wei, Nicholas M Riley, Andrew C Yang, Joon T Kim, Stephanie M Terrell, Veronica L Li, Marta Garcia-Contreras, Carolyn R Bertozzi, Jonathan Z Long.
      Secreted polypeptides are a fundamental axis of intercellular and endocrine communication. However, a global understanding of the composition and dynamics of cellular secretomes in intact mammalian organisms has been lacking. Here, we introduce a proximity biotinylation strategy that enables labeling, detection and enrichment of secreted polypeptides in a cell type-selective manner in mice. We generate a proteomic atlas of hepatocyte, myocyte, pericyte and myeloid cell secretomes by direct purification of biotinylated secreted proteins from blood plasma. Our secretome dataset validates known cell type-protein pairs, reveals secreted polypeptides that distinguish between cell types and identifies new cellular sources for classical plasma proteins. Lastly, we uncover a dynamic and previously undescribed nutrient-dependent reprogramming of the hepatocyte secretome characterized by the increased unconventional secretion of the cytosolic enzyme betaine-homocysteine S-methyltransferase (BHMT). This secretome profiling strategy enables dynamic and cell type-specific dissection of the plasma proteome and the secreted polypeptides that mediate intercellular signaling.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41589-020-00698-y
  31. Cell Rep Med. 2020 Jul 21. 1(4): 100056
    Molecular Profiling Reveals a Common Metabolic Signature of Tissue Fibrosis.
    Ji Zhang, Eric S Muise, Seongah Han, Peter S Kutchukian, Philippe Costet, Yonghua Zhu, Yanqing Kan, Haihong Zhou, Vinit Shah, Yongcheng Huang, Ashmita Saigal, Taro E Akiyama, Xiao-Lan Shen, Tian-Quan Cai, Kashmira Shah, Ester Carballo-Jane, Emanuel Zycband, Lan Yi, Ye Tian, Ying Chen, Jason Imbriglio, Elizabeth Smith, Kristine Devito, James Conway, Li-Jun Ma, Maarten Hoek, Iyassu K Sebhat, Andrea M Peier, Saswata Talukdar, David G McLaren, Stephen F Previs, Kristian K Jensen, Shirly Pinto.
      Fibrosis, or the accumulation of extracellular matrix, is a common feature of many chronic diseases. To interrogate core molecular pathways underlying fibrosis, we cross-examine human primary cells from various tissues treated with TGF-β, as well as kidney and liver fibrosis models. Transcriptome analyses reveal that genes involved in fatty acid oxidation are significantly perturbed. Furthermore, mitochondrial dysfunction and acylcarnitine accumulation are found in fibrotic tissues. Substantial downregulation of the PGC1α gene is evident in both in vitro and in vivo fibrosis models, suggesting a common node of metabolic signature for tissue fibrosis. In order to identify suppressors of fibrosis, we carry out a compound library phenotypic screen and identify AMPK and PPAR as highly enriched targets. We further show that pharmacological treatment of MK-8722 (AMPK activator) and MK-4074 (ACC inhibitor) reduce fibrosis in vivo. Altogether, our work demonstrate that metabolic defect is integral to TGF-β signaling and fibrosis.
    Keywords:  AMPK; MK-4074; MK-8722; PGC1α; PPAR; TGF-β; fatty acid oxidation; fibrosis; metabolism
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xcrm.2020.100056
  32. Br J Cancer. 2020 Nov 18.
    Mutational drivers of cancer cell migration and invasion.
    Nikita M Novikov, Sofia Y Zolotaryova, Alexis M Gautreau, Evgeny V Denisov.
      Genomic instability and mutations underlie the hallmarks of cancer-genetic alterations determine cancer cell fate by affecting cell proliferation, apoptosis and immune response, and increasing data show that mutations are involved in metastasis, a crucial event in cancer progression and a life-threatening problem in cancer patients. Invasion is the first step in the metastatic cascade, when tumour cells acquire the ability to move, penetrate into the surrounding tissue and enter lymphatic and blood vessels in order to disseminate. A role for genetic alterations in invasion is not universally accepted, with sceptics arguing that cellular motility is related only to external factors such as hypoxia, chemoattractants and the rigidity of the extracellular matrix. However, increasing evidence shows that mutations might trigger and accelerate the migration and invasion of different types of cancer cells. In this review, we summarise data from published literature on the effect of chromosomal instability and genetic mutations on cancer cell migration and invasion.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41416-020-01149-0
  33. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020 Nov 16. pii: 202015058. [Epub ahead of print]
    Global associations between macronutrient supply and age-specific mortality.
    Alistair M Senior, Shinichi Nakagawa, David Raubenheimer, Stephen J Simpson.
      Animal experiments have demonstrated that energy intake and the balance of macronutrients determine life span and patterns of age-specific mortality (ASM). Similar effects have also been detected in epidemiological studies in humans. Using global supply data and 1,879 life tables from 103 countries, we test for these effects at a macrolevel: between the nutrient supplies of nations and their patterns of ASM. We find that macronutrient supplies are strong predictors of ASM even after correction for time and economic factors. Globally, signatures of undernutrition are evident in the effects of low supply on life expectancy at birth and high mortality across ages, even as recently as 2016. However, in wealthy countries, the effects of overnutrition are prominent, where high supplies particularly from fats and carbohydrates are predicted to lead to high levels of mortality. Energy supplied at around 3,500 kcal/cap/d minimized mortality across ages. However, we show that the macronutrient composition of energy supply that minimizes mortality varies with age. In early life, 40 to 45% energy from each of fat and carbohydrate and 16% from protein minimizes mortality. In later life, replacing fat with carbohydrates to around 65% of total energy and reducing protein to 11% is associated with the lowest level of mortality. These results, particularly those regarding fats, accord both with experimental data from animals and within-country epidemiological studies on the association between macronutrient intake and risk of age-related chronic diseases.
    Keywords:  calorie; diet; food security; life span; nutrition
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2015058117
  34. Ann Oncol. 2020 Nov 11. pii: S0923-7534(20)43131-X. [Epub ahead of print]
    A transcriptomic signature to predict adjuvant gemcitabine sensitivity in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.
    R Nicolle, O Gayet, P Duconseil, C Vanbrugghe, J Roques, M Bigonnet, Y Blum, N Elarouci, L Armenoult, M Ayadi, A de Reyniès, F Puleo, J Augustin, J F Emile, M Svrcek, T Arsenijevic, P Hammel, M Giovannini, P Grandval, L Dahan, V Moutardier, M Gilabert, J L Van Laethem, J B Bachet, J Cros, J Iovanna, N J Dusetti.
      BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy is the only systemic treatment approved for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), with a selection of regimens based on patients' performance status and expected efficacy. The establishment of a potent stratification associated with chemotherapeutic efficacy could potentially improve prognosis by tailoring treatments.PATIENTS AND METHODS: Concomitant chemosensitivity and genome-wide RNA profiles were performed on preclinical models (primary cell cultures and patient-derived xenografts) derived from patients with PDAC included in the PaCaOmics program (NCT01692873). The RNA-based stratification was tested in a monocentric cohort and validated in a multicentric cohort, both retrospectively collected from resected PDAC samples (67 and 368 patients, respectively). Forty-three (65%) and 203 (55%) patients received adjuvant gemcitabine in the monocentric and the multicentric cohorts, respectively. The relationship between predicted gemcitabine sensitivity and patients' overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were investigated.
    RESULTS: The GemPred RNA signature was derived from preclinical models, defining gemcitabine sensitive PDAC as GemPred+. Among the patients who received gemcitabine in the test and validation cohorts, the GemPred+ patients had a higher OS than GemPred- (p = 0.046 and p = 0.00216). In both cohorts, the GemPred stratification was not associated with OS among patients that did not receive gemcitabine. Among gemcitabine treated-patients, GemPred+ patients had significantly higher OS than the GemPred-: 91.3 months (95% CI: 61.2-not reached) vs 33 months (95% CI: 24-35.2); HR 0.403 (95% CI: 0.221-0.735, p = 0.00216). The interaction test for gemcitabine and GemPred+ stratification was significant (p = 0.0245). Multivariate analysis in the gemcitabine-treated population retained an independent predictive value.
    CONCLUSION: The RNA-based GemPred stratification predicts the benefit of adjuvant gemcitabine in PDAC patients.
    Keywords:  Chemosensitivity Prediction; Gemcitabine; Pancreatic Cancer; Precision medicine; Transcriptomic Signature
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annonc.2020.10.601
  35. Cell Stem Cell. 2020 Nov 09. pii: S1934-5909(20)30509-9. [Epub ahead of print]
    CRISPR-Mediated Induction of Neuron-Enriched Mitochondrial Proteins Boosts Direct Glia-to-Neuron Conversion.
    Gianluca L Russo, Giovanna Sonsalla, Poornemaa Natarajan, Christopher T Breunig, Giorgia Bulli, Juliane Merl-Pham, Sabine Schmitt, Jessica Giehrl-Schwab, Florian Giesert, Martin Jastroch, Hans Zischka, Wolfgang Wurst, Stefan H Stricker, Stefanie M Hauck, Giacomo Masserdotti, Magdalena Götz.
      Astrocyte-to-neuron conversion is a promising avenue for neuronal replacement therapy. Neurons are particularly dependent on mitochondrial function, but how well mitochondria adapt to the new fate is unknown. Here, we determined the comprehensive mitochondrial proteome of cortical astrocytes and neurons, identifying about 150 significantly enriched mitochondrial proteins for each cell type, including transporters, metabolic enzymes, and cell-type-specific antioxidants. Monitoring their transition during reprogramming revealed late and only partial adaptation to the neuronal identity. Early dCas9-mediated activation of genes encoding mitochondrial proteins significantly improved conversion efficiency, particularly for neuron-enriched but not astrocyte-enriched antioxidant proteins. For example, Sod1 not only improves the survival of the converted neurons but also elicits a faster conversion pace, indicating that mitochondrial proteins act as enablers and drivers in this process. Transcriptional engineering of mitochondrial proteins with other functions improved reprogramming as well, demonstrating a broader role of mitochondrial proteins during fate conversion.
    Keywords:  CRISPR-a; antioxidant; direct reprogramming; metabolism; mitochondria; proteome
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stem.2020.10.015
  36. Front Oncol. 2020 ;10 586069
    Autophagy Takes Center Stage as a Possible Cancer Hallmark.
    Jose G Alvarez-Meythaler, Yoelsis Garcia-Mayea, Cristina Mir, Hiroshi Kondoh, Matilde E LLeonart.
      Cancer remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide, despite significant advances in cancer research and improvements in anticancer therapies. One of the major obstacles to curing cancer is the difficulty of achieving the complete annihilation of resistant cancer cells. The resistance of cancer cells may not only be due to intrinsic factors or factors acquired during the evolution of the tumor but may also be caused by chemotherapeutic treatment failure. Conversely, autophagy is a conserved cellular process in which intracellular components, such as damaged organelles, aggregated or misfolded proteins and macromolecules, are degraded or recycled to maintain cellular homeostasis. Importantly, autophagy is an essential mechanism that plays a key role in tumor initiation and progression. Depending on the cellular context and microenvironmental conditions, autophagy acts as a double-edged sword, playing a role in inducing apoptosis or promoting cell survival. In this review, we propose several scenarios in which autophagy could contribute to cell survival or cell death. Moreover, a special focus on novel promising targets and therapeutic strategies based on autophagic resistant cells is presented.
    Keywords:  autophagy; cancer; protective autophagy; resistance; therapy
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fonc.2020.586069
  37. Br J Cancer. 2020 Nov 18.
    Metastasis: crosstalk between tissue mechanics and tumour cell plasticity.
    Bircan Coban, Cecilia Bergonzini, Annelien J M Zweemer, Erik H J Danen.
      Despite the fact that different genetic programmes drive metastasis of solid tumours, the ultimate outcome is the same: tumour cells are empowered to pass a series of physical hurdles to escape the primary tumour and disseminate to other organs. Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been proposed to drive the detachment of individual cells from primary tumour masses and facilitate the subsequent establishment of metastases in distant organs. However, this concept has been challenged by observations from pathologists and from studies in animal models, in which partial and transient acquisition of mesenchymal traits is seen but tumour cells travel collectively rather than as individuals. In this review, we discuss how crosstalk between a hybrid E/M state and variations in the mechanical aspects of the tumour microenvironment can provide tumour cells with the plasticity required for strategies to navigate surrounding tissues en route to dissemination. Targeting such plasticity provides therapeutic opportunities to combat metastasis.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41416-020-01150-7
  38. F1000Res. 2020 ;9 1028
    CRI iAtlas: an interactive portal for immuno-oncology research.
    James A Eddy, Vésteinn Thorsson, Andrew E Lamb, David L Gibbs, Carolina Heimann, Jia Xin Yu, Verena Chung, Yooree Chae, Kristen Dang, Benjamin G Vincent, Ilya Shmulevich, Justin Guinney.
      The Cancer Research Institute (CRI) iAtlas is an interactive web platform for data exploration and discovery in the context of tumors and their interactions with the immune microenvironment. iAtlas allows researchers to study immune response characterizations and patterns for individual tumor types, tumor subtypes, and immune subtypes. iAtlas supports computation and visualization of correlations and statistics among features related to the tumor microenvironment, cell composition, immune expression signatures, tumor mutation burden, cancer driver mutations, adaptive cell clonality, patient survival, expression of key immunomodulators, and tumor infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) spatial maps. iAtlas was launched to accompany the release of the TCGA PanCancer Atlas and has since been expanded to include new capabilities such as (1) user-defined loading of sample cohorts, (2) a tool for classifying expression data into immune subtypes, and (3) integration of TIL mapping from digital pathology images. We expect that the CRI iAtlas will accelerate discovery and improve patient outcomes by providing researchers access to standardized immunogenomics data to better understand the tumor immune microenvironment and its impact on patient responses to immunotherapy.
    Keywords:  R; Shiny; cancer; genomics; immunology; systems biology
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.25141.1
  39. Trends Genet. 2020 Nov 14. pii: S0168-9525(20)30294-8. [Epub ahead of print]
    Germline Variants That Affect Tumor Progression.
    Ajay Chatrath, Aakrosh Ratan, Anindya Dutta.
      Germline variants have a rich history of being studied in the context of cancer risk. Emerging studies now suggest that germline variants contribute not only to cancer risk but to tumor progression as well. In this opinion article, we discuss the initial discoveries associating germline variants with patient outcome and the mechanisms by which germline variants affect molecular pathways. Germline variants affect molecular pathways through amino acid changes, alteration of splicing patterns or expression of genes, influencing the selection for somatic mutations, and causing genome-wide mutational enrichment. These molecular alterations can lead to tumor phenotypes that become clinically apparent such as metastasis, alterations to the immune microenvironment, and modulation of therapeutic response. Overall, the growing body of evidence suggests that germline variants play a larger role in tumor progression than has been previously appreciated and that germline variation holds substantial potential for improving personalized medicine and patient outcomes.
    Keywords:  cancer therapy; germline variants; personalized medicine; tumor progression
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tig.2020.10.005
  40. Semin Cancer Biol. 2020 Nov 12. pii: S1044-579X(20)30224-8. [Epub ahead of print]
    Genome chaos: Creating new genomic information essential for cancer macroevolution.
    Julie Heng, Henry H Heng.
      Cancer research has traditionally focused on the characterization of individual molecular mechanisms that can contribute to cancer. Due to the multiple levels of genomic and non-genomic heterogeneity, however, overwhelming molecular mechanisms have been identified, most with low clinical predictability. It is thus necessary to search for new concepts to unify these diverse mechanisms and develop better strategies to understand and treat cancer. In recent years, two-phased cancer evolution (comprised of the genome reorganization-mediated punctuated phase and gene mutation-mediated stepwise phase), initially described by tracing karyotype evolution, was confirmed by the Cancer Genome Project. In particular, genome chaos, the process of rapid and massive genome reorganization, has been commonly detected in various cancers-especially during key phase transitions, including cellular transformation, metastasis, and drug resistance-suggesting the importance of genome-level changes in cancer evolution. In this Perspective, genome chaos is used as a discussion point to illustrate new genome-mediated somatic evolutionary frameworks. By rephrasing cancer as a new system emergent from normal tissue, we present the multiple levels (or scales) of genomic and non-genomic information. Of these levels, evolutionary studies at the chromosomal level are determined to be of ultimate importance, since altered genomes change the karyotype coding and karyotype change is the key event for punctuated cellular macroevolution. Using this lens, we differentiate and analyze developmental processes and cancer evolution, as well as compare the informational relationship between genome chaos and its various subtypes in the context of macroevolution under crisis. Furthermore, the process of deterministic genome chaos is discussed to interpret apparently random events (including stressors, chromosomal variation subtypes, surviving cells with new karyotypes, and emergent stable cellular populations) as nonrandom patterns, which supports the new cancer evolutionary model that unifies genome and gene contributions during different phases of cancer evolution. Finally, the new perspective of using cancer as a model for organismal evolution is briefly addressed, emphasizing the Genome Theory as a new and necessary conceptual framework for future research and its practical implications, not only in cancer but evolutionary biology as a whole.
    Keywords:  Genome Theory; Karyotype coding; Phase transition; Punctuated cellular macroevolution; Two phased cancer evolution
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.semcancer.2020.11.003
  41. Cell Death Differ. 2020 Nov 18.
    Functions of outer mitochondrial membrane proteins: mediating the crosstalk between mitochondrial dynamics and mitophagy.
    Hongxu Xian, Yih-Cherng Liou.
      Most cellular stress responses converge on the mitochondria. Consequently, the mitochondria must rapidly respond to maintain cellular homeostasis and physiological demands by fine-tuning a plethora of mitochondria-associated processes. The outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM) proteins are central to mediating mitochondrial dynamics, coupled with continuous fission and fusion. These OMM proteins also have vital roles in controlling mitochondrial quality and serving as mitophagic receptors for autophagosome enclosure during mitophagy. Mitochondrial fission segregates impaired mitochondria in smaller sizes from the mother mitochondria and may favor mitophagy for eliminating damaged mitochondria. Conversely, mitochondrial fusion mixes dysfunctional mitochondria with healthy ones to repair the damage by diluting the impaired components and consequently prevents mitochondrial clearance via mitophagy. Despite extensive research efforts into deciphering the interplay between fission-fusion and mitophagy, it is still not clear whether mitochondrial fission essentially precedes mitophagy. In this review, we summarize recent breakthroughs concerning OMM research, and dissect the functions of these proteins in mitophagy from their traditional roles in fission-fusion dynamics, in response to distinct context, at the intersection of the OMM platform. These insights into the OMM proteins in mechanistic researches would lead to new aspects of mitochondrial quality control and better understanding of mitochondrial homeostasis intimately tied to pathological impacts.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41418-020-00657-z
  42. PeerJ. 2020 ;8 e10141
    Integrated transcriptome meta-analysis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and matched adjacent pancreatic tissues.
    Sevcan Atay.
      A comprehensive meta-analysis of publicly available gene expression microarray data obtained from human-derived pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) tissues and their histologically matched adjacent tissue samples was performed to provide diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, and molecular targets for PDAC. An integrative meta-analysis of four submissions (GSE62452, GSE15471, GSE62165, and GSE56560) containing 105 eligible tumor-adjacent tissue pairs revealed 344 differentially over-expressed and 168 repressed genes in PDAC compared to the adjacent-to-tumor samples. The validation analysis using TCGA combined GTEx data confirmed 98.24% of the identified up-regulated and 73.88% of the down-regulated protein-coding genes in PDAC. Pathway enrichment analysis showed that "ECM-receptor interaction", "PI3K-Akt signaling pathway", and "focal adhesion" are the most enriched KEGG pathways in PDAC. Protein-protein interaction analysis identified FN1, TIMP1, and MSLN as the most highly ranked hub genes among the DEGs. Transcription factor enrichment analysis revealed that TCF7, CTNNB1, SMAD3, and JUN are significantly activated in PDAC, while SMAD7 is inhibited. The prognostic significance of the identified and validated differentially expressed genes in PDAC was evaluated via survival analysis of TCGA Pan-Cancer pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma data. The identified candidate prognostic biomarkers were then validated in four external validation datasets (GSE21501, GSE50827, GSE57495, and GSE71729) to further improve reliability. A total of 28 up-regulated genes were found to be significantly correlated with worse overall survival in patients with PDAC. Twenty-one of the identified prognostic genes (ITGB6, LAMC2, KRT7, SERPINB5, IGF2BP3, IL1RN, MPZL2, SFTA2, MET, LAMA3, ARNTL2, SLC2A1, LAMB3, COL17A1, EPSTI1, IL1RAP, AK4, ANXA2, S100A16, KRT19, and GPRC5A) were also found to be significantly correlated with the pathological stages of the disease. The results of this study provided promising prognostic biomarkers that have the potential to differentiate PDAC from both healthy and adjacent-to-tumor pancreatic tissues. Several novel dysregulated genes merit further study as potentially promising candidates for the development of more effective treatment strategies for PDAC.
    Keywords:  Biomarker; Gene expression; Gene expression omnibus; Microarray; Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.10141
  43. Cell Rep. 2020 Nov 17. pii: S2211-1247(20)31379-6. [Epub ahead of print]33(7): 108390
    H3K27M in Gliomas Causes a One-Step Decrease in H3K27 Methylation and Reduced Spreading within the Constraints of H3K36 Methylation.
    Ashot S Harutyunyan, Haifen Chen, Tianyuan Lu, Cynthia Horth, Hamid Nikbakht, Brian Krug, Caterina Russo, Eric Bareke, Dylan M Marchione, Mariel Coradin, Benjamin A Garcia, Nada Jabado, Jacek Majewski.
      The discovery of H3K27M mutations in pediatric gliomas marked a new chapter in cancer epigenomics. Numerous studies have investigated the effect of this mutation on H3K27 trimethylation, but only recently have we started to realize its additional effects on the epigenome. Here, we use isogenic glioma H3K27M+/- cell lines to investigate H3K27 methylation and its interaction with H3K36 and H3K9 modifications. We describe a "step down" effect of H3K27M on the distribution of H3K27 methylation: me3 is reduced to me2, me2 is reduced to me1, whereas H3K36me2/3 delineates the boundaries for the spread of H3K27me marks. We also observe a replacement of H3K27me2/3 silencing by H3K9me3. Using a computational simulation, we explain our observations by reduced effectiveness of PRC2 and constraints imposed on the deposition of H3K27me by antagonistic H3K36 modifications. Our work further elucidates the effects of H3K27M in gliomas as well as the general principles of deposition in H3K27 methylation.
    Keywords:  H3.3K27M; computational modeling; epigenomics; histone methylation; pediatric high-grade glioma
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2020.108390
  44. Autophagy. 2020 Nov 19.
    Lysosomal targeting of autophagosomes by the TECPR domain of TECPR2.
    Milana Fraiberg, Bat-Chen Tamim-Yecheskel, Kamilya Kokabi, Nemanja Subic, Gali Heimer, Franziska Eck, Karsten Nalbach, Christian Behrends, Bruria Ben-Zeev, Oren Shatz, Zvulun Elazar.
      TECPR2 (tectonin beta-propeller repeat containing 2) is a large, multi-domain protein comprised of an amino-terminal WD domain, a middle unstructured region and a carboxy-terminal TEPCR domain comprises of six TECPR repeats followed by a functional LIR motif. Human TECPR2 mutations are linked to spastic paraplegia type 49 (SPG49), a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder. Here we show that basal macroautophagic/autophagic flux is impaired in SPG49 patient fibroblasts in the form of accumulated autophagosomes. Ectopic expression of either full length TECPR2 or the TECPR domain rescued autophagy in patient fibroblasts in a LIR-dependent manner. Moreover, this domain is recruited to the cytosolic leaflet of autophagosomal and lysosomal membranes in a LIR- and VAMP8-dependent manner, respectively. These findings provide evidence for a new role of the TECPR domain in particular, and TECPR2 in general, in lysosomal targeting of autophagosomes via association with Atg8-family proteins on autophagosomes and VAMP8 on lysosomes.
    Keywords:  SPG49; TECPR2; autophagy; lysosome; neurodegeneration
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2020.1852727
  45. J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle. 2020 Nov 16.
    ACVR2B antagonism as a countermeasure to multi-organ perturbations in metastatic colorectal cancer cachexia.
    Joshua R Huot, Fabrizio Pin, Ashok Narasimhan, Leah J Novinger, Austin S Keith, Teresa A Zimmers, Monte S Willis, Andrea Bonetto.
      BACKGROUND: Advanced colorectal cancer (CRC) is often accompanied by the development of liver metastases, as well as cachexia, a multi-organ co-morbidity primarily affecting skeletal (SKM) and cardiac muscles. Activin receptor type 2B (ACVR2B) signalling is known to cause SKM wasting, and its inhibition restores SKM mass and prolongs survival in cancer. Using a recently generated mouse model, here we tested whether ACVR2B blockade could preserve multiple organs, including skeletal and cardiac muscle, in the presence of metastatic CRC.METHODS: NSG male mice (8 weeks old) were injected intrasplenically with HCT116 human CRC cells (mHCT116), while sham-operated animals received saline (n = 5-10 per group). Sham and tumour-bearing mice received weekly injections of ACVR2B/Fc, a synthetic peptide inhibitor of ACVR2B.
    RESULTS: mHCT116 hosts displayed losses in fat mass ( - 79%, P < 0.0001), bone mass ( - 39%, P < 0.05), and SKM mass (quadriceps: - 22%, P < 0.001), in line with reduced muscle cross-sectional area ( - 24%, P < 0.01) and plantarflexion force ( - 28%, P < 0.05). Further, despite only moderately affected heart size, cardiac function was significantly impaired (ejection fraction %: - 16%, P < 0.0001; fractional shortening %: - 25%, P < 0.0001) in the mHCT116 hosts. Conversely, ACVR2B/Fc preserved fat mass ( + 238%, P < 0.001), bone mass ( + 124%, P < 0.0001), SKM mass (quadriceps: + 31%, P < 0.0001), size (cross-sectional area: + 43%, P < 0.0001) and plantarflexion force ( + 28%, P < 0.05) in tumour hosts. Cardiac function was also completely preserved in tumour hosts receiving ACVR2B/Fc (ejection fraction %: + 19%, P < 0.0001), despite no effect on heart size. RNA sequencing analysis of heart muscle revealed rescue of genes related to cardiac development and contraction in tumour hosts treated with ACVR2B/Fc.
    CONCLUSIONS: Our metastatic CRC model recapitulates the multi-systemic derangements of cachexia by displaying loss of fat, bone, and SKM along with decreased muscle strength in mHCT116 hosts. Additionally, with evidence of severe cardiac dysfunction, our data support the development of cardiac cachexia in the occurrence of metastatic CRC. Notably, ACVR2B antagonism preserved adipose tissue, bone, and SKM, whereas muscle and cardiac functions were completely maintained upon treatment. Altogether, our observations implicate ACVR2B signalling in the development of multi-organ perturbations in metastatic CRC and further dictate that ACVR2B represents a promising therapeutic target to preserve body composition and functionality in cancer cachexia.
    Keywords:  Activin signalling; Bone; Cachexia; Colorectal cancer; Heart; Liver metastases; Skeletal muscle
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1002/jcsm.12642
  46. Cell Metab. 2020 Oct 24. pii: S1550-4131(20)30544-1. [Epub ahead of print]
    The Metabolic Underpinnings of Ferroptosis.
    Jiashuo Zheng, Marcus Conrad.
      Acute or chronic cellular stress resulting from aberrant metabolic and biochemical processes may trigger a pervasive non-apoptotic form of cell death, generally known as ferroptosis. Ferroptosis is unique among the different cell death modalities, as it has been mostly linked to pathophysiological conditions and because several metabolic pathways, such as (seleno)thiol metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, iron handling, mevalonate pathway, and mitochondrial respiration, directly impinge on the cells' sensitivity toward lipid peroxidation and ferroptosis. Additionally, key cellular redox systems, such as selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidase 4 and the NAD(P)H/ferroptosis suppressor protein-1/ubiquinone axis, are at play that constantly surveil and neutralize oxidative damage to cellular membranes. Since this form of cell death emerges to be the root cause of a number of diseases and since it offers various pharmacologically tractable nodes for therapeutic intervention, there has been overwhelming interest in the last few years aiming for a better molecular understanding of the ferroptotic death process.
    Keywords:  FSP1; GPX4; ferroptosis; lipid peroxidation; redox metabolism
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2020.10.011
  47. Aging (Albany NY). 2020 Nov 17. 12
    Cell differentiation and aging accompanied by depletion of the ACE2 protein.
    Eva Bártová, Soňa Legartová, Jana Krejčí, Orazio Angelo Arcidiacono.
      ACE2 was observed as the cell surface receptor of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Interestingly, we also found ACE2 positivity inside the cell nucleus. The ACE2 levels changed during cell differentiation and aging and varied in distinct cell types. We observed ACE2 depletion in the aortas of aging female mice, similarly, the aging caused ACE2 decrease in the kidneys. Compared with that in the heart, brain and kidneys, the ACE2 level was the lowest in the mouse lungs. In mice exposed to nicotine, ACE2 was not changed in olfactory bulbs but in the lungs, ACE2 was upregulated in females and downregulated in males. These observations indicate the distinct gender-dependent properties of ACE2. Differentiation into enterocytes, and cardiomyocytes, caused ACE2 depletion. The cardiomyogenesis was accompanied by renin upregulation, delayed in HDAC1-depleted cells. In contrast, vitamin D2 decreased the renin level while ACE2 was upregulated. Together, the ACE2 level is high in non-differentiated cells. This protein is more abundant in the tissues of mouse embryos and young mice in comparison with older animals. Mostly, downregulation of ACE2 is accompanied by renin upregulation. Thus, the pathophysiology of COVID-19 disease should be further studied not only by considering the ACE2 level but also the whole renin-angiotensin system.
    Keywords:  ACE2; embryonic heart; human kidney embryonic cells; lung cancer cells; renin
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.202221
  48. EMBO J. 2020 Nov 17. e105074
    Mitochondrial Safeguard: a stress response that offsets extreme fusion and protects respiratory function via flickering-induced Oma1 activation.
    Daisuke Murata, Tatsuya Yamada, Takeshi Tokuyama, Kenta Arai, Pedro M Quirós, Carlos López-Otín, Miho Iijima, Hiromi Sesaki.
      The connectivity of mitochondria is regulated by a balance between fusion and division. Many human diseases are associated with excessive mitochondrial connectivity due to impaired Drp1, a dynamin-related GTPase that mediates division. Here, we report a mitochondrial stress response, named mitochondrial safeguard, that adjusts the balance of fusion and division in response to increased mitochondrial connectivity. In cells lacking Drp1, mitochondria undergo hyperfusion. However, hyperfusion does not completely connect mitochondria because Opa1 and mitofusin 1, two other dynamin-related GTPases that mediate fusion, become proteolytically inactivated. Pharmacological and genetic experiments show that the activity of Oma1, a metalloprotease that cleaves Opa1, is regulated by short pulses of the membrane depolarization without affecting the overall membrane potential in Drp1-knockout cells. Re-activation of Opa1 and Mitofusin 1 in Drp1-knockout cells further connects mitochondria beyond hyperfusion, termed extreme fusion, leading to bioenergetic deficits. These findings reveal an unforeseen safeguard mechanism that prevents extreme fusion of mitochondria, thereby maintaining mitochondrial function when the balance is shifted to excessive connectivity.
    Keywords:  Drp1; Oma1; Opa1; mitochondrial fusion; mitofusin
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.15252/embj.2020105074
  49. J Biol Chem. 2020 Nov 20. 295(47): 15838-15839
    A new approach for quantifying epigenetic landscapes.
    Wolfgang Fischle.
      ChIP-Seq is a widespread experimental method for determining the global enrichment of chromatin modifications and genome-associated factors. Whereas it is straightforward to compare the relative genomic distribution of these epigenetic features, researchers have also made efforts to compare their signal strength using external references for normalization. New work now suggests that these "spike-ins" could lead to inaccurate conclusions due to intrinsic issues of the methodology and instead calls for new criteria of experimental reporting that may permit internal standardization when certain parameters are fulfilled.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.H120.016430
  50. Pancreatology. 2020 Oct 10. pii: S1424-3903(20)30780-8. [Epub ahead of print]
    Early dose reduction/delay and the efficacy of liposomal irinotecan with fluorouracil and leucovorin in metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (mPDAC): A post hoc analysis of NAPOLI-1.
    Li-Tzong Chen, Teresa Macarulla, Jean-Frédéric Blanc, Beloo Mirakhur, Floris A de Jong, Bruce Belanger, Tanios Bekaii-Saab, Jens T Siveke.
      BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy dose modification to manage adverse events is commonplace in clinical practice. This exploratory analysis evaluates the impact of liposomal irinotecan dose modification on overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) in the NAPOLI-1 clinical trial (NCT01494506).METHODS: Analysis includes only patients enrolled under protocol version 2 who received at least the first 2 scheduled doses of study drug. Within the liposomal irinotecan +5 fluorouracil/leucovorin (5 FU/LV) arm, patients were grouped according to whether or not they had a dose modification within the first 6 weeks. Dose reduction was defined as any decrease from initial dose; dose delay was any dosing delay >3 days from target date. OS and PFS (Kaplan-Meier estimates) were compared within the liposomal irinotecan+5-FU/LV arm and between treatment arms. Unstratified hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated using Cox regression analysis.
    RESULTS: Of the 93 patients from the liposomal irinotecan+5 FU/LV arm included in the analysis, 53 experienced a dose modification (both delay and reduction, n = 30; delay only, n = 19; reduction only, n = 4). No apparent difference in median OS or PFS was observed between patients who did versus patients who did not have a dose modification (OS: 8.4 vs 6.7 months; HR, 0.89; PFS: 4.2 vs 3.1 months; HR, 0.74).
    CONCLUSION: An early dose reduction or delay of liposomal irinotecan+5-FU/LV in the first 6 weeks does not significantly impact OS or PFS compared to patients without dose modifications. This finding suggests that tolerability-guided dose modification of liposomal irinotecan does not adversely affect efficacy outcomes.
    Keywords:  Dose modification; Liposomal irinotecan; NAPOLI-1; Or phrases: metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma; mPDAC
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pan.2020.10.029
  51. Clin Nutr. 2020 Nov 02. pii: S0261-5614(20)30596-3. [Epub ahead of print]
    Myokines in treatment-naïve patients with cancer-associated cachexia.
    Gabriela S de Castro, Joanna Correia-Lima, Estefania Simoes, Camila E Orsso, Jingjie Xiao, Leonardo R Gama, Silvio P Gomes, Daniela Caetano Gonçalves, Raquel G F Costa, Katrin Radloff, Ulrike Lenz, Anna E Taranko, Fang Chia Bin, Fernanda B Formiga, Louisie G L de Godoy, Rafael P de Souza, Luis H A Nucci, Mario Feitoza, Claudio C de Castro, Flavio Tokeshi, Paulo S M Alcantara, Jose P Otoch, Alexandre F Ramos, Alessandro Laviano, Dario Coletti, Vera C Mazurak, Carla M Prado, Marilia Seelaender.
      Cancer-associated cachexia is a complex metabolic syndrome characterized by weight loss and systemic inflammation. Muscle loss and fatty infiltration into muscle are associated with poor prognosis in cancer patients. Skeletal muscle secretes myokines, factors with autocrine, paracrine and/or endocrine action, which may be modified by or play a role in cachexia. This study examined myokine content in the plasma, skeletal muscle and tumor homogenates from treatment-naïve patients with gastric or colorectal stages I-IV cancer with cachexia (CC, N = 62), or not (weight stable cancer, WSC, N = 32). Myostatin, interleukin (IL) 15, follistatin-like protein 1 (FSTL-1), fatty acid binding protein 3 (FABP3), irisin and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) protein content in samples was measured with Multiplex technology; body composition and muscle lipid infiltration were evaluated in computed tomography, and quantification of triacylglycerol (TAG) in the skeletal muscle. Cachectic patients presented lower muscle FSTL-1 expression (p = 0.047), higher FABP3 plasma content (p = 0.0301) and higher tumor tissue expression of FABP3 (p = 0.0182), IL-15 (p = 0.007) and irisin (p = 0.0110), compared to WSC. Neither muscle TAG content, nor muscle attenuation were different between weight stable and cachectic patients. Lumbar adipose tissue (AT) index, visceral AT index and subcutaneous AT index were lower in CC (p = 0.0149, p = 0.0455 and p = 0.0087, respectively), who also presented lower muscularity in the cohort (69.2% of patients; p = 0.0301), compared to WSC. The results indicate the myokine profile in skeletal muscle, plasma and tumor is impacted by cachexia. These findings show that myokines eventually affecting muscle wasting may not solely derive from the muscle itself (as the tumor also may contribute to the systemic scenario), and put forward new perspectives on cachexia treatment targeting myokines and associated receptors and pathways.
    Keywords:  Cachexia; Cancer; Myokines; Skeletal muscle; Tumor
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnu.2020.10.050
  52. Sci Adv. 2020 Nov;pii: eabc1746. [Epub ahead of print]6(47):
    Needle-compatible miniaturized optoelectronic sensor for pancreatic cancer detection.
    Seung Yup Lee, Julia M Pakela, Kyounghwan Na, Jiaqi Shi, Barbara J McKenna, Diane M Simeone, Euisik Yoon, James M Scheiman, Mary-Ann Mycek.
      Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers, with a 5-year survival rate of <10%. The current approach to confirming a tissue diagnosis, endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA), requires a time-consuming, qualitative cytology analysis and may be limited because of sampling error. We designed and engineered a miniaturized optoelectronic sensor to assist in situ, real-time, and objective evaluation of human pancreatic tissues during EUS-FNA. A proof-of-concept prototype sensor, compatible with a 19-gauge hollow-needle commercially available for EUS-FNA, was constructed using microsized optoelectronic chips and microfabrication techniques to perform multisite tissue optical sensing. In our bench-top verification and pilot validation during surgery on freshly excised human pancreatic tissues (four patients), the fabricated sensors showed a comparable performance to our previous fiber-based system. The flexibility in source-detector configuration using microsized chips potentially allows for various light-based sensing techniques inside a confined channel such as a hollow needle or endoscopy.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abc1746
  53. Nat Commun. 2020 11 16. 11(1): 5808
    Vav2 catalysis-dependent pathways contribute to skeletal muscle growth and metabolic homeostasis.
    Sonia Rodríguez-Fdez, L Francisco Lorenzo-Martín, Isabel Fernández-Pisonero, Begoña Porteiro, Christelle Veyrat-Durebex, Daniel Beiroa, Omar Al-Massadi, Antonio Abad, Carlos Diéguez, Roberto Coppari, Rubén Nogueiras, Xosé R Bustelo.
      Skeletal muscle promotes metabolic balance by regulating glucose uptake and the stimulation of multiple interorgan crosstalk. We show here that the catalytic activity of Vav2, a Rho GTPase activator, modulates the signaling output of the IGF1- and insulin-stimulated phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase pathway in that tissue. Consistent with this, mice bearing a Vav2 protein with decreased catalytic activity exhibit reduced muscle mass, lack of proper insulin responsiveness and, at much later times, a metabolic syndrome-like condition. Conversely, mice expressing a catalytically hyperactive Vav2 develop muscle hypertrophy and increased insulin responsiveness. Of note, while hypoactive Vav2 predisposes to, hyperactive Vav2 protects against high fat diet-induced metabolic imbalance. These data unveil a regulatory layer affecting the signaling output of insulin family factors in muscle.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-19489-z
  54. J Cell Biol. 2020 Dec 07. pii: e202009128. [Epub ahead of print]219(12):
    STING induces LC3B lipidation onto single-membrane vesicles via the V-ATPase and ATG16L1-WD40 domain.
    Tara D Fischer, Chunxin Wang, Benjamin S Padman, Michael Lazarou, Richard J Youle.
      Following the detection of cytosolic double-stranded DNA from viral or bacterial infection in mammalian cells, cyclic dinucleotide activation of STING induces interferon β expression to initiate innate immune defenses. STING activation also induces LC3B lipidation, a classical but equivocal marker of autophagy, that promotes a cell-autonomous antiviral response that arose before evolution of the interferon pathway. We report that STING activation induces LC3B lipidation onto single-membrane perinuclear vesicles mediated by ATG16L1 via its WD40 domain, bypassing the requirement of canonical upstream autophagy machinery. This process is blocked by bafilomycin A1 that binds and inhibits the vacuolar ATPase (V-ATPase) and by SopF, a bacterial effector that catalytically modifies the V-ATPase to inhibit LC3B lipidation via ATG16L1. These results indicate that activation of the cGAS-STING pathway induces V-ATPase-dependent LC3B lipidation that may mediate cell-autonomous host defense, an unanticipated mechanism that is distinct from LC3B lipidation onto double-membrane autophagosomes.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.202009128
  55. Elife. 2020 Nov 19. pii: e60771. [Epub ahead of print]9
    CB1R regulates soluble leptin receptor levels via CHOP, contributing to hepatic leptin resistance.
    Adi Drori, Asaad Gammal, Shahar Azar, Liad Hinden, Rivka Hadar, Daniel Wesley, Alina Nemirovski, Gergő Szanda, Maayan Salton, Boaz Tirosh, Joseph Tam.
      The soluble isoform of leptin receptor (sOb-R), secreted by the liver, regulates leptin bioavailability and bioactivity. Its reduced levels in diet-induced obesity (DIO) contribute to hyperleptinemia and leptin resistance, effects that are regulated by the endocannabinoid (eCB)/CB1R system. Here we show that pharmacological activation/blockade and genetic overexpression/deletion of hepatic CB1R modulates sOb-R levels and hepatic leptin resistance. Interestingly, peripheral CB1R blockade failed to reverse DIO-induced reduction of sOb-R levels, increased fat mass and dyslipidemia, and hepatic steatosis in mice lacking C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP), whereas direct activation of CB1R in wild-type hepatocytes reduced sOb-R levels in a CHOP-dependent manner. Moreover, CHOP stimulation increased sOb-R expression and release via a direct regulation of its promoter, while CHOP deletion reduced leptin sensitivity. Our findings highlight a novel molecular aspect by which the hepatic eCB/CB1R system is involved in the development of hepatic leptin resistance and in the regulation of sOb-R levels via CHOP.
    Keywords:  cell biology; mouse
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.60771
  56. J Biol Chem. 2020 11 16. pii: jbc.REV120.011985. [Epub ahead of print]
    Regulation of translation by one-carbon metabolism in bacteria and the eukaryotic organelles.
    Sunil Shetty, Umesh Varshney.
      Protein synthesis is an energetically costly cellular activity. It is therefore important that the process of mRNA translation remains in excellent synchrony with cellular metabolism and its energy reserves. Unregulated translation could lead to the production of incomplete, mistranslated, or misfolded proteins, squandering the energy needed for cellular sustenance, and causing cytotoxicity. One-carbon metabolism (OCM), an integral part of cellular intermediary metabolism, produces a number of one-carbon unit intermediates (formyl, methylene, methenyl, methyl). These OCM intermediates are required for the production of amino acids like methionine, and biomolecules such as purines, thymidylate, and redox regulators. In this review, we discuss how OCM impacts the translation apparatus (composed of ribosome, tRNA, mRNA, and translation factors) and regulates crucial steps in protein synthesis. More specifically, we address how the OCM metabolites regulate the fidelity and rate of translation initiation in bacteria and eukaryotic organelles such as mitochondria. Modulation of the fidelity of translation initiation by OCM opens new avenues to understand alternative translation mechanisms involved in stress tolerance and drug resistance.
    Keywords:  3GC base pairs; RNA; RNA methylation; RNA methyltransferase; RNA modification; S-adenosylmethionine (SAM); folate; formylation; initiator tRNA; methylations; mitochondria; one-carbon metabolism; ribosome; ribosome heterogeneity
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.REV120.011985
  57. Sci Rep. 2020 11 16. 10(1): 19835
    GIANT: galaxy-based tool for interactive analysis of transcriptomic data.
    Jimmy Vandel, Céline Gheeraert, Bart Staels, Jérôme Eeckhoute, Philippe Lefebvre, Julie Dubois-Chevalier.
      Transcriptomic analyses are broadly used in biomedical research calling for tools allowing biologists to be directly involved in data mining and interpretation. We present here GIANT, a Galaxy-based tool for Interactive ANalysis of Transcriptomic data, which consists of biologist-friendly tools dedicated to analyses of transcriptomic data from microarray or RNA-seq analyses. GIANT is organized into modules allowing researchers to tailor their analyses by choosing the specific set of tool(s) to analyse any type of preprocessed transcriptomic data. It also includes a series of tools dedicated to the handling of raw Affymetrix microarray data. GIANT brings easy-to-use solutions to biologists for transcriptomic data mining and interpretation.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-76769-w
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