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Biomedical subjects

G Vaes

Publications and source records attributed to G Vaes.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Immunoreactive collagenase and bone resorption.

1. Active mouse bone collagenase is excluded from its inhibitory antibody by preincubation of that antibody with various forms of inactive enzyme, e.g. 'procollagenase', some collagenase-inhibitor complexes or partially denatured or degraded collagenase. This property allows the detection of several enzymatically inactive forms of collagenase. 2. The accumulation of immunoreactive collagenase in the culture fluid of mouse bones occurred only in the presence of heparin and was not correlated with bone resorption induced by parathyroid hormone. These experiments provide further (see Lenaers-Claeys, G. and Vaes, G., Biochim. Biophys. Acta (1979) 584, 375-388), more conclusive evidence that the critical role in the resorption of the organic matrix of these explants may be due to another enzyme system than collagenase.

Animals↗

Inhibition of bone resorption in culture by inhibitors of thiol proteinases.

Leupeptin, antipain, tosyl-lysylchloromethane (Tos-Lys-CH2Cl) and benzyloxy-carbonylphenylalanylalanyldiazomethane (Z-Phe-Ala-CHN2) inhibit reversibly the resorption induced by parathyroid hormone or heparin in cultured mouse bones. Leupeptin and antipain do not affect collagenase production and activity or the enhanced secretion of beta-glucuronidase induced by the bone-resorbing agents. They might thus act by a direct (extracellular?) inhibition of lysosomal thiol proteinases.

Animals↗

Cell-to-cell interactions in the secretion of enzymes of connective tissue breakdown, collagenase and proteoglycan-degrading neutral proteases. A review.

Cell and tissue culture techniques provide valuable tools for investigating cell-to-cell interactions leading to the secretion of connective-tissue degrading enzymes, collagenase and proteoglycan-degrading neutral proteases, in inflammatory situations. These interactions, which might constitute a major regulatory mechanism, are reviewed here. Taken together, the available data strongly suggest that fibroblasts and related mesenchymal cells (such as chondrocytes, fibroblast-like or type B synovial lining cells, corneal stromal cells, etc.) could be the main suppliers of collagenase within tissues. These cells can secrete collagenase in response to factors produced by other cells, mainly macrophages and related cells (monocytes, synovial cells - presumably the macrophage like, type A synovial lining cells), possibly also epithelial cells. Lymphocytes are able to modulate factor production by macrophages so that, through the macrophage link the secretory behavior of the fibroblastic cells may be under the control of the immune defense system and serve as an effector of immune reactions leading to connective tissue destruction.

Cartilage↗

Lymphocyte-macrophage-fibroblast co-operation in the inflammatory degradation of cartilage and connective tissue.

In tissue culture models of cartilage and connective tissue degradation, rabbit macrophages and fibroblasts are both independently capable to degrade cartilage proteoglycan due to the secretion of a metal-dependent neutral proteinase. However, only the fibroblasts significantly degrade the collagen due to a sufficient production of collagenase. Macrophages produce factor(s) that stimulate the secretion of collagenase and the degradation of collagen by fibroblasts. Soluble products released by stimulated lymphocytes increase that production and also markedly enhance the secretion of proteoglycan-degrading proteinase and of collagenase by the macrophages. These data support the view that macrophages and fibroblasts are among the main effector cells of cartilage degradation in rheumatoid arthritis and that they are regulated in this function by secretory products of nearby lymphocytes.

Animals↗

Macrophage-fibroblast interactions in collagenase production and cartilage degradation.

Rabbit bone-marrow macrophages and fibroblasts were cultured, independently or together, with pieces of 35S-labelled cartilage or at the surface of dried [14C]collagen gels. Each type of cell, cultivated alone, rapidly degraded the proteoglycan of cartilage, but only the fibroblasts degraded collagen. The co-culture of both types of cell had no consistent effect on the rate of proteoglycan degradation, but it stimulated the rate of collagen degradation. In parallel, the accumulation of collagenase in the culture fluid was enhanced but not that of neutral proteinase. Coinditioned media from macrophage cultures added to cultures of fibroblasts had the same effect as the living macrophages in stimulating the production of collagenase. Their action was itself enhanced when the macrophages had been activated by concanavalin A-stimulated spleen-cell factors. These data suggest that fibroblasts may act as effector cells in producing collagenase and degrading collagen in response to soluble factors released by macrophages under the control of lymphocyte factors.

Animals↗

Collagenase, procollagenase and bone resorption. Effects of heparin, parathyroid hormone and calcitonin.

1. The addition of heparin to the culture fluid of mouse tibiae or calvaria did not cause any significant resorption of bone collagen or mineral. However, heparin (or analogue sulfated polyanions), enhanced greatly the amount of latent, trypsin-activatable collagenase (i.e. procollagenase) released by the bones in the medium without influencing that of directly active collagenase which was always very low. Heparin appeared to act by increasing the production of the enzyme which is immediately excreted. Procollagenase and collagenase are not stored in bone tissue, even under conditions where it is in active resorption. 2. Parathyroid hormone induced in the explants a resorption of both mineral and collagen that was inhibited by calcitonin. These hormones, however, had no influence on the release of procollagenase or collagenase either in the presence or in the absence of heparin. 3. Once activated, bone collagenase digested the collagen of the bone explants, and more extensively after their demineralization. Thus the latent collagenase that accumulates around non-resorbing bones has to be considered as a precursor, (and not as a residue), of active enzyme. 4. Active collagenase added to incipient cultures of bones disappeared with a half-life of 24 h. The lost enzyme could, however, not be reactivated by trypsin and thus was not transformed into latent procollagenase.

Animals↗

The simultaneous release by bone explants in culture and the parallel activation of procollagenase and of a latent neutral proteinase that degrades cartilage proteoglycans and denatured collagen.

1. A latent neutral proteinase was found in culture media of mouse bone explants. Its accumulation during the cultures is closely parallel to that of procollagenase; both require the presence of heparin in the media. 2. Latent neutral proteinase was activated by several treatments of the media known to activate procollagenase, such as limited proteolysis by trypsin, chymotrypsin, plasmin or kallikrein, dialysis against 3 M-NaSCN at 4 degrees C and prolonged preincubation at 25 degrees C. Its activation often followed that of the procollagenase present in the same media. 3. Activation of neutral proteinase (as does that of procollagenase) by trypsin or plasmin involved two successive steps: the activation of a latent endogenous activator present in the media followed by the activation of neutral proteinase itself by that activator. 4. The proteinase degrades cartilage proteoglycans, denatured collagen (Azocoll) and casein at neutral pH; it is inhibited by EDTA, cysteine or serum. Collagenase is not inhibited by casein or Azocoll and is less resistant to heat or to trypsin than is the proteinase. Partial separation of the two enzymes was achieved by gel filtration of the media but not by fractional (NH4)2SO4 precipitation, by ion exchange or by affinity chromatography on Sepharose-collagen. These fractionations did not activate latent enzymes. 5. Trypsin activation decreases the molecular weight of both latent enzymes (60 000-70 000) by 20 000-30 000, as determined by gel filtration of media after removal of heparin. 6. The latency of both enzymes could be due either to a zymogen or to an enzyme-inhibitor complex. A thermostable inhibitor of both enzymes was found in some media. However, combinations of either enzyme with that inhibitor were not reactivated by trypsin, indicating that this inhibitor is unlikely to be the cause of the latency.

Animals↗

Degradation of cartilage proteoglycans by a neutral proteinase secreted by rabbit bone-marrow macrophages in culture.

When cultivated together with pieces of cartilage biosynthetically labelled with 35S in their proteoglycans, rabbit macrophages, differentiated in vitro from bone-marrow cells, cause the release of soluble 35S-labelled material into the culture medium. This process is inhibited by killing the macrophages or by cycloheximide treatment, and is due to the secretion by the cells of a metal-dependent neutral proteinase capable of degrading cartilage proteoglycan subunits into fragments of high molecular weight. Enzyme activity is optimum at about pH7, and is inhibited by EDTA, o-phenanthroline, cysteine or serum, but not by di-isopropyl phosphorofluoridate nor by 4-hydroxymercuribenzoate. The effect of EDTA is partially reversed by Co2+ or Zn2+ ions. The enzyme is eluted from Sephadex G-150 columns as a single peak of material (apparent mol.wt. 17000) that contains also most of the proteolytic activity exerted by culture media on Azocoll (denatured collagen) or on casein. The possible role of this metalloproteinase in chronic inflammatory processes is discussed, particularly in connection with joint erosions in rheumatoid arthritis.

Animals↗

Further studies on the activation of procollagenase, the latent precursor of bone collagenase. Effects of lysosomal cathepsin B, plasmin and kallikrein, and spontaneous activation.

1. Cathepsin B, a tissue (lysosomal) proteinase, and two humoral proteinases, plasmin and kallikrein, activate the latent collagenase ('procollagenase') which is released by mouse bone explants in culture. Other lysosomal proteinases (carboxypeptidase B, cathepsin C and D) and thrombin did not activate the procollagenase. Dialysis of the culture fluids against 3M-NaSCN at 4 degrees C and, for some culture fluids, prolonged preincubation at 25 degrees C also caused the activation of procollagenase. 2. In all these cases, activation of procollagenase involved at least two successive steps: the activation of an endogenous latent activator present in the culture fluids and the activation of procollagenase itself. 3. An assay method was developed for the endogenous activator. Human serum, bovine serum albumin, casein and cysteine inhibited the endogenous activator at concentrations that did not influence the collagenase activity. N-Ethylmaleimide and 4-hydroxy-mercuribenzoate stimulated the endogenous activator, but iodoacetate had no effect. 4. It is proposed that cathepsin B, kallikrein and plasmin may play a role in the physiological activation of latent collagenase and thus initiate degradation of collagen in vivo. This may occur whatever the molecular nature of procollagenase (zymogen or enzyme-inhibitor complex) might be.

Animals↗