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Biomedical subjects

François Paris

Publications and source records attributed to François Paris.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

ATM regulates target switching to escalating doses of radiation in the intestines.

Although stem cells succumbing to reproductive death are assumed to be the single relevant targets in radiation tissue damage, recent studies showed intestinal stem cell damage is conditionally linked to crypt endothelial apoptosis, defining a two-target model. Here we report that when mouse intestines were protected against microvascular apoptosis, radiation switched as the dose escalated to a previously unrecognized crypt stem cell target, activating ceramide synthase-mediated apoptosis to initiate intestinal damage. Whereas ataxia telangiectasia-mutated (ATM) kinase normally represses ceramide synthase, its derepression in Atm(-/-) mice increased crypt stem cell radiosensitivity 3.7-fold without sensitizing the microvascular response. Discovery of this intestinal radiosensitivity mechanism allowed design of an antisense Atm oligonucleotide treatment which phenocopied the Atm(-/-) mouse, reordering ceramide synthase-mediated stem cell death to become the first-line gastrointestinal response of wild-type littermates. These experiments indicate that tissues operate multiple potential targets activated consecutively according to their inherent radiosensitivities that may be reordered therapeutically to control radiation tissue responses.

Animals↗

Microvascular function regulates intestinal crypt response to radiation.

Recent evidence suggests that microvascular endothelial apoptosis represents the primary lesion in radiation damage to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Rescue of endothelium by depletion of acid sphingomyelinase or i.v. treatment with basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF) prevented the lethal GI syndrome in C(57)Bl/6 mice. Here we show that basic FGF increased crypt survival after irradiation by 2-3 fold, with a dose modification factor at D(10) of 1.15 (P < 0.01). Basic FGF inhibited initial crypt damage, assessed by crypt shrinkage at 18-24 h, but did not significantly affect the regeneration of surviving crypts at 3.5 days after irradiation. These data suggest that microvascular function regulates expression of radiation-induced crypt stem cell clonogen damage in the evolution of radiation injury to the GI mucosa.

Animals↗

Correlation between antioxidant status, tumorigenicity and radiosensitivity in sister rat cell lines.

Tumorigenicity and radiosensitivity of related cell lines expressing distinct p53 mutants were analyzed in parallel with key components of the antioxidant metabolic pathway. Six sublines deriving from the same parental cell population and expressing either the mutant p53K130R or p53V270F were investigated. Both mutations abrogate the transcriptional activity of p53 as well as its ability to induce apoptosis. The cells expressing p53K130R showed a higher tumorigenicity and a higher radiosensitivity than those expressing p53V270F. An increase in tumorigenicity was associated with a decrease in manganese-containing superoxide dismutase activity, and with further decreases in the glutathione content and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) activity. A positive correlation was found between GPX activity, glutathione content and cell survival following ionizing irradiation. The fact that sister cell lines exhibit different tumorigenicity and radiosensitivity while expressing a mutant p53 further supports the notion that knowledge of p53 status is not sufficient to predict tumor outcome, especially the response to irradiation. A better understanding of antioxidant defenses might be more informative.

Animals↗