Biomedical subjects

Nigel M Hooper

Publications and source records attributed to Nigel M Hooper.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2004

Dual mechanisms for shedding of the cellular prion protein.

The cellular prion protein (PrP(C)) is essential for the pathogenesis and transmission of prion diseases. Whereas the majority of PrP(C) is bound to the cell membrane via a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor, a secreted form of the protein has been identified. Here we show that PrP(C) can be shed into the medium of human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells by both protease- and phospholipase-mediated mechanisms. The constitutive shedding of PrP(C) was inhibited by a range of hydroxamate-based zinc metalloprotease inhibitors in a manner identical to the alpha-secretase-mediated shedding of the amyloid precursor protein, indicating a proteolytic shedding mechanism. Like amyloid precursor protein, this zinc metalloprotease-mediated shedding of PrP(C) could be stimulated by phorbol myristate acetate and by copper ions. The lipid raft-disrupting agents filipin and methyl-beta-cyclodextrin promoted the shedding of PrP(C) via a distinct mechanism that was not inhibited by hydroxamate-based inhibitors. Filipin-mediated shedding of PrP(C) is likely to occur via phospholipase cleavage of the GPI anchor, since a transmembrane polypeptide-anchored PrP construct was not shed in response to filipin treatment. Collectively, our data indicate that shedding of PrP(C) can occur via both secretase-like proteolytic cleavage of the protein and phospholipase cleavage of the GPI anchor moiety.

Cell Line, Tumor↗

PubMed2004

ACE2: from vasopeptidase to SARS virus receptor.

The zinc metallopeptidase angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is the only known human homologue of the key regulator of blood pressure angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE). Since its discovery in 2000, ACE2 has been implicated in heart function, hypertension and diabetes, with its effects being mediated, in part, through its ability to convert angiotensin II to angiotensin-(1-7). Unexpectedly, ACE2 also serves as the cellular entry point for the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) virus and the enzyme is therefore a prime target for pharmacological intervention on several disease fronts.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Normalized proliferation of normal and psoriatic keratinocytes by suppression of sAPPalpha-release.

The soluble form of the beta-amyloid precursor protein (sAPPalpha) is known to function in the autocrine regulation of epidermal growth and repair. Here we show that its proteolytic release by alpha-secretase in normal human keratinocytes is susceptible to hydroxamic-acid-based zinc metalloproteinase inhibitors and suppressed by these inhibitors by 80%-90%. As various other growth factors participate in regulating epidermal growth we investigated whether the inhibitor-induced sAPPalpha-deficiency would affect keratinocyte proliferation. At optimal inhibitor concentrations the suppression of sAPPalpha-release was followed by a decline in proliferation by 50%-60%, indicating that sAPPalpha is a major growth factor that cannot be compensated for by other growth factors. This finding was the basis for the treatment of human lesional psoriatic keratinocytes with these inhibitors, which resulted in the normalization of their increased proliferation rates. The reversibility of these effects and the lack of toxicity underline the value of these inhibitors and suggest their therapeutic application in psoriatic skin diseases.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

The role of ADAM10 and ADAM17 in the ectodomain shedding of angiotensin converting enzyme and the amyloid precursor protein.

Numerous transmembrane proteins, including the blood pressure regulating angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) and the Alzheimer's disease amyloid precursor protein (APP), are proteolytically shed from the plasma membrane by metalloproteases. We have used an antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) approach to delineate the role of ADAM10 and tumour necrosis factor-alpha converting enzyme (TACE; ADAM17) in the ectodomain shedding of ACE and APP from human SH-SY5Y cells. Although the ADAM10 ASO and TACE ASO significantly reduced (> 81%) their respective mRNA levels and reduced the alpha-secretase shedding of APP by 60% and 30%, respectively, neither ASO reduced the shedding of ACE. The mercurial compound 4-aminophenylmercuric acetate (APMA) stimulated the shedding of ACE but not of APP. The APMA-stimulated secretase cleaved ACE at the same Arg-Ser bond in the juxtamembrane stalk as the constitutive secretase but was more sensitive to inhibition by a hydroxamate-based compound. The APMA-activated shedding of ACE was not reduced by the ADAM10 or TACE ASOs. These results indicate that neither ADAM10 nor TACE are involved in the shedding of ACE and that APMA, which activates a distinct ACE secretase, is the first pharmacological agent to distinguish between the shedding of ACE and APP.

ADAM Proteins↗

PubMed2004

Secretase-mediated cell surface shedding of the angiotensin-converting enzyme.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) is an example of a membrane-bound protein, which is shed from the cell surface in a soluble form by a post-translational proteolytic cleavage event involving a secretase. The secretase cleavage site in somatic ACE has been mapped to Arg-1203/Ser-1204, 24 residues proximal to the membrane-anchoring domain and the ADAM ('a disintegrin and metalloprotease') family of proteins may be involved in ACE shedding.

Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases↗

PubMed2003

Angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2): comparative modeling of the active site, specificity requirements, and chloride dependence.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), a homologue of ACE, represents a new and potentially important target in cardio-renal disease. A model of the active site of ACE2, based on the crystal structure of testicular ACE, has been developed and indicates that the catalytic mechanism of ACE2 resembles that of ACE. Structural differences exist between the active site of ACE (dipeptidyl carboxypeptidase) and ACE2 (carboxypeptidase) that are responsible for the differences in specificity. The main differences occur in the ligand-binding pockets, particularly at the S2' subsite and in the binding of the peptide carboxy-terminus. The model explains why the classical ACE inhibitor lisinopril is unable to bind to ACE2. On the basis of the ability of ACE2 to cleave a variety of biologically active peptides, a consensus sequence of Pro-X-Pro-hydrophobic/basic for the protease specificity of ACE2 has been defined that is supported by the ACE2 model. The dipeptide, Pro-Phe, completely inhibits ACE2 activity at 180 microM with angiotensin II as the substrate. As with ACE, the chloride dependence of ACE2 is substrate-specific such that the hydrolysis of angiotensin I and the synthetic peptide substrate, Mca-APK(Dnp), are activated in the presence of chloride ions, whereas the cleavage of angiotensin II is inhibited. The ACE2 model is also suggestive of a possible mechanism for chloride activation. The structural insights provided by these analyses for the differences in inhibition pattern and substrate specificity among ACE and its homologue ACE2 and for the chloride dependence of ACE/ACE2 activity are valuable in understanding the function and regulation of ACE2.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2003

ADAMs family members as amyloid precursor protein alpha-secretases.

In the non-amyloidogenic pathway, the Alzheimer's amyloid precursor protein (APP) is cleaved within the amyloid-beta domain by alpha-secretase precluding deposition of intact amyloid-beta peptide. The large ectodomain released from the cell surface by the action of alpha-secretase has several neuroprotective properties. Studies with protease inhibitors have shown that alpha-secretase is a zinc metalloproteinase, and several members of the adamalysin family of proteins, tumour necrosis factor-alpha convertase (TACE, ADAM17), ADAM10, and ADAM9, all fulfil some of the criteria required of alpha-secretase. We review the evidence for each of these ADAMs acting as the alpha-secretase. What seems to be emerging from numerous studies, including those with mice in which each of the ADAMs has been knocked out, is that there is a team of zinc metalloproteinases able to cleave APP at the alpha-secretase site. We also discuss how upregulation of alpha-secretase activity by muscarinic agonists, cholesterol-lowering drugs, steroid hormones, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and metal ions may explain some of the therapeutic actions of these agents in Alzheimer's disease.

ADAM Proteins↗

PubMed2003

Exclusively targeting beta-secretase to lipid rafts by GPI-anchor addition up-regulates beta-site processing of the amyloid precursor protein.

beta-Secretase (BACE, Asp-2) is a transmembrane aspartic proteinase responsible for cleaving the amyloid precursor protein (APP) to generate the soluble ectodomain sAPPbeta and its C-terminal fragment CTFbeta. CTFbeta is subsequently cleaved by gamma-secretase to produce the neurotoxic/synaptotoxic amyloid-beta peptide (Abeta) that accumulates in Alzheimer's disease. Indirect evidence has suggested that amyloidogenic APP processing may preferentially occur in lipid rafts. Here, we show that relatively little wild-type BACE is found in rafts prepared from a human neuroblastoma cell line (SH-SY5Y) by using Triton X-100 as detergent. To investigate further the significance of lipid rafts in APP processing, a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor has been added to BACE, replacing the transmembrane and C-terminal domains. The GPI anchor targets the enzyme exclusively to lipid raft domains. Expression of GPIBACE substantially up-regulates the secretion of both sAPPbeta and amyloid-beta peptide over levels observed from cells overexpressing wild-type BACE. This effect was reversed when the lipid rafts were disrupted by depleting cellular cholesterol levels. These results suggest that processing of APP to the amyloid-beta peptide occurs predominantly in lipid rafts and that BACE is the rate-limiting enzyme in this process. The processing of the APP695 isoform by GPI-BACE was up-regulated 20-fold compared with wild-type BACE, whereas only a 2-fold increase in the processing of APP751/770 was seen, implying a differential compartmentation of the APP isoforms. Changes in the local membrane environment during aging may facilitate the cosegregation of APP and BACE leading to increased beta-amyloid production.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2003

The Caenorhabditis elegans orthologue of mammalian puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase has roles in embryogenesis and reproduction.

Mammals possess membrane-associated and cytosolic forms of the puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase (PSA; EC 3.4.11.14). Increasing evidence suggests the membrane PSA is involved in neuromodulation within the central nervous system and in reproductive biology. The functional roles of the cytosolic PSA are less clear. The genome of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans encodes an aminopeptidase, F49E8.3 (PAM-1), that is orthologous to PSA, and sequence analysis predicts it to be cytosolic. We have determined the spatio/temporal gene expression pattern of pam-1 by using the promoter region of F49E8.3 to control expression in the nematode of a second exon translational fusion of the aminopeptidase to green fluorescent protein. Cytosolic fluorescence was observed throughout development in the intestine and nerve cells of the head. Neuronal expression was also observed in the tail of adult males. Recombinant PAM-1, expressed and purified from Escherichia coli, hydrolyzed the N-terminal amino acid from peptide substrates. Favored substrates had positively charged or small neutral amino acids in the N-terminal position. Peptide hydrolysis was inhibited by the metal-chelating agent 1,10-phenanthroline and by the aminopeptidase inhibitors actinonin, amastatin, and leuhistin. However, the enzyme was approximately 100-fold less sensitive toward puromycin (IC50, 135 mum) than other PSA homologues. Following inactivation of the enzyme, aminopeptidase activity was recovered with Zn2+, Co2+, and Ni2+. Silencing expression of pam-1 by RNA interference resulted in 30% embryonic lethality. Surviving adult hermaphrodites deposited large numbers of oocytes throughout the self-fertile period. The overall brood size was, however, unaffected. We conclude that pam-1 encodes an aminopeptidase that clusters phylogenetically with the PSAs, despite attenuated sensitivity toward puromycin, and that it functions in embryo development and reproduction of the nematode.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2003

The N-terminal region of the prion protein ectodomain contains a lipid raft targeting determinant.

The association of the prion protein (PrP) with sphingolipid- and cholesterol-rich lipid rafts is instrumental in the pathogenesis of the neurodegenerative prion diseases. Although the glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor is an exoplasmic determinant of raft association, PrP remained raft-associated in human neuronal cells even when the GPI anchor was deleted or substituted for a transmembrane anchor indicating that the ectodomain contains a raft localization signal. The raft association of transmembrane-anchored PrP occurred independently of Cu(II) binding as it failed to be abolished by either deletion of the octapeptide repeat region (residues 51-90) or treatment of cells with a Cu(II) chelator. Raft association of transmembrane-anchored PrP was only abolished by the deletion of the N-terminal region (residues 23-90) of the ectodomain. This region was sufficient to confer raft localization when fused to the N terminus of a non-raft transmembrane-anchored protein and suppressed the clathrin-coated pit localization signal in the cytoplasmic domain of the amyloid precursor protein. These data indicate that the N-terminal region of PrP acts as a cellular raft targeting determinant and that residues 23-90 of PrP represent the first proteinaceous raft targeting signal within the ectodomain of a GPI-anchored protein.

Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor↗

PubMed2003

The ectodomain shedding of angiotensin-converting enzyme is independent of its localisation in lipid rafts.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), a type I integral membrane protein that plays a major role in vasoactive peptide metabolism, is shed from the plasma membrane by proteolytic cleavage within the juxtamembrane stalk. To investigate whether this shedding is regulated by lateral segregation in cholesterol-rich lipid rafts, Chinese hamster ovary cells and human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells were transfected with either wild-type ACE (WT-ACE) or a construct with a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor attachment signal replacing the transmembrane and cytosolic domains (GPI-ACE). In both cell types, GPI-ACE, but not WT-ACE, was sequestered in caveolin or flotillin-enriched lipid rafts and was released from the cell surface by treatment with phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C. When cells were treated with activators of the protein kinase C signalling cascade (phorbol myristate acetate or carbachol) the shedding of GPI-ACE was stimulated to a similar extent to that of WT-ACE. The release of WT-ACE and GPI-ACE from the cells was inhibited in an identical manner by a range of hydroxamate-based zinc metalloprotease inhibitors. Disruption of lipid rafts by filipin treatment did not alter the shedding of GPI-ACE, and phorbol ester treatment did not alter the distribution of WT-ACE or GPI-ACE between raft and non-raft membrane compartments. These data clearly show that the protein kinase C-stimulated shedding of ACE does not require the transmembrane or cytosolic regions of the protein, and that sequestration in lipid rafts does not regulate the shedding of the protein.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

Glycosylation efficiency of Asn-Xaa-Thr sequons is independent of distance from the C-terminus in membrane dipeptidase.

In vitro transcription/translation studies with model proteins have shown that glycosylation of Asn-Xaa-Thr sequons is reduced when the sequon is within 60 residues of the C-terminus of the protein. We have previously shown that in living cells N-glycosylation of the prion protein (PrP) is also abolished when its Asn-Ile-Thr and Asn-Phe-Thr sequons are less than 60 residues from the C-terminus (Walmsley and Hooper [2003] Biochemical Journal, 370, 351-355). To investigate whether sequon distance to the C-terminus is a general determinant of N-glycosylation in living cells, Asn-Ile/Phe-Thr sequons were introduced into another glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchored protein, membrane dipeptidase (MDP), at similar distances from the C-terminus as those in PrP. When expressed in the human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell line, the introduced sequons were fully N-glycosylated even when they were less than 60 residues from the C-terminus in both GPI-anchored and secreted forms of MDP. These data demonstrate that the utilization of sequons in some proteins is independent of their distance from the C-terminus.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2003

Surface coat remodeling during differentiation of Trypanosoma brucei.

African trypanosomes (Trypanosoma brucei) are digenetic parasites whose lifecycle alternates between the mammalian bloodstream and the midgut of the tsetse fly vector. In mammals, proliferating long slender parasites transform into non-diving short stumpy forms, which differentiate into procyclic forms when ingested by the tsetse fly. A hallmark of differentiation is the replacement of the bloodstream stage surface coat composed of variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) with a new coat composed of procylin. An undefined endoprotease and endogenous glycosylphosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (GPI-PLC) have been implicated in releasing the old VSG coat. However, GPI hydrolysis has been considered unimportant because (i) GPI-PLC null mutants are fully viable and (ii) cytosolic GPI-PLC is localized away from cell surface VSG. Utilizing an in vitro differentiation assay with pleomorphic strains we have investigated these modes of VSG release. Shedding is initially by GPI hydrolysis, which ultimately accounts for a substantial portion of total release. Surface biotinylation assays indicate that GPI-PLC does gain access to extracellular VSG, suggesting that this mode is primed in the starting short stumpy population. Proteolytic release is up-regulated during differentiation and is stereoselectively inhibited by peptidomimetic collagenase inhibitors, implicating a zinc metalloprotease. This protease may be related to TbMSP-B, a trypanosomal homologue of Leishmania major surface protease (MSP) described in the accompanying paper (LaCount, D. J., Gruszynski, A. E., Grandgenett, P. M., Bangs, J. D., and Donelson, J. E. (2003) J. Biol. Chem. 278, 24658-24664). Overall, our results demonstrate that surface coat remodeling during differentiation has multiple mechanisms and that GPI-PLC plays a more significant role in VSG release than previously thought.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

Distance of sequons to the C-terminus influences the cellular N-glycosylation of the prion protein.

Cell-specific differences in the utilization of the two N-glycosylation sequons (Asn180-Ile-Thr and Asn196-Phe-Thr) of the prion protein (PrP) have been proposed to influence the aetiology of the neurodegenerative prion diseases. As the N-glycosylation of PrP is ablated by deletion of the C-terminal glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor signal sequence, we have investigated the determinants for PrP sequon utilization in human neuronal cells using the novel approach of restoring N-glycosylation to secreted forms of PrP lacking a GPI anchor. N-glycosylation was restored to an efficiency comparable with that of GPI anchored PrP when the distance of the sequon to the C-terminus was increased so that it was sufficient to reach the active site of oligosaccharyltransferase before chain termination. Our findings indicate that sequon utilization in PrP is a co-translational process that precedes GPI anchor addition and, as such, will be greatly influenced by the dynamics of the translocon-oligosaccharyltransferase complex.

Amidohydrolases↗

PubMed2003

Could inhibition of the proteasome cause mad cow disease?

The proteasome is the cellular machinery responsible for the degradation of normal and misfolded proteins. Inhibitors of the proteasome are being evaluated as therapeutic agents and recent work suggests that such inhibition might promote the neurotoxic properties of the prion protein (the causative agent of mad cow disease) and its conformational conversion to the infectious form, thus raising the question as to whether proteasome inhibitors might facilitate the development of prion diseases.

ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters↗

PubMed2003

The prion protein and neuronal zinc homeostasis.

Although the prion protein (PrP) is known to be the causative agent of the neurodegenerative transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, its normal cellular function remains elusive. Octapeptide repeats in the N terminus of PrP bind metal ions and are required for the endocytosis of PrP upon exposure of cells to copper or zinc. As the concentration of zinc in the extracellular spaces of the brain is higher than that for copper, we put forward the hypothesis that PrP is involved in neuronal zinc homeostasis; PrP might be involved in transport of zinc into the cell or might act as a zinc sensor. In prion disease, when the protein undergoes a conformational change to the infectious form, this function of PrP in zinc homeostasis might be compromised.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

Changes of angiotensin-converting enzyme activity in the pancreas of chronic hypoxia and acute pancreatitis.

Emerging data have provided evidence for the presence of a local renin-angiotensin system (RAS) in the pancreas, which play a role in the regulation of pancreatic microcirculation, thus affecting islet hormonal secretion. The present study aimed, therefore, at elucidating the presence and changes of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and a specific assay for ACE activity using the internally quenched fluorogenic substrate Meoc-DL-Amp-Gly-Lys(epsilon -DNP)-Gln-OH. RT-PCR clearly demonstrated the expression of ACE mRNA in the pancreas. ACE activity was markedly and significantly increased by chronic hypoxia and by acute pancreatitis when compared with that of their respective control pancreas. Addition of captopril, a specific inhibitor for ACE, completely blocked the ACE activity both in the control and experimental groups. All these data suggest that increased activity of pancreatic ACE in chronic hypoxia and acute pancreatitis could have implications for pancreatic physiology and pathophysiology.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed2003

An ACE structure.

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Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors↗