Exposure to antiepileptic drugs does not alter the functionality of P-glycoprotein in brain capillary endothelial and kidney cell lines.

Several major antiepileptic drugs, including carbamazepine, phenytoin and phenobarbital, induce xenobiotic metabolizing enzymes via activation of nuclear receptors, including pregnane X receptor (NR1I2) and constitutive androstane receptor (NR1I3). Via activation of these xenobiotic sensors, antiepileptic drugs may also induce the expression of efflux transporters such as P-glycoprotein (Pgp) in different tissues, including intestine, liver, kidney and brain. Increased expression of Pgp in brain capillary endothelial cells, which form the blood-brain barrier, could limit the penetration of antiepileptic drugs into the brain and therefore decrease their therapeutic efficacy. As a consequence, it is important to know whether antiepileptic drugs alter the expression or functionality of Pgp in endothelial cells. In the present study, we studied the effects of exposure to phenobarbital, phenytoin and carbamazepine on Pgp expression and functionality in the rat brain endothelial cell line GPNT. For comparison with drug effects on endothelial cells, a dog kidney cell line (MDCK II) was used. Furthermore, several known Pgp inducers (dexamethasone, doxorubicin, and rifampicin) were included in the study. Functionality of Pgp was determined by uptake assays, using known Pgp substrates (digoxin and vinblastine) and transport inhibitors (tariquidar, MK571). In GPNT cells, exposure to dexamethasone increased Pgp functionality, while antiepileptic drug exposure at clinically relevant concentrations did not exert any significant induction of Pgp expression or function. Similarly, antiepileptic drug exposure did not affect Pgp in MDCK cells. The lack of antiepileptic drugs to induce Pgp in brain capillary endothelial cells and kidney cells is in contrast to their known effect on Pgp expression in hepatic and intestinal cells, substantiating tissue differences in the regulation of Pgp.

Importance of cholesterol-rich membrane microdomains in the interaction of the S protein of SARS-coronavirus with the cellular receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2.

Cholesterol present in the plasma membrane of target cells has been shown to be important for the infection by SARS-CoV. We show that cholesterol depletion by treatment with methyl-beta-cyclodextrin (m beta CD) affects infection by SARS-CoV to the same extent as infection by vesicular stomatitis virus-based pseudotypes containing the surface glycoprotein S of SARS-CoV (VSV-Delta G-S). Therefore, the role of cholesterol for SARS-CoV infection can be assigned to the S protein and is unaffected by other coronavirus proteins. There have been contradictory reports whether or not angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), the cellular receptor for SARS-CoV, is present in detergent-resistant membrane domains. We found that ACE2 of both Vero E6 and Caco-2 cells co-purifies with marker proteins of detergent-resistant membranes supporting the notion that cholesterol-rich microdomains provide a platform facilitating the efficient interaction of the S protein with the cellular receptor ACE2. To understand the involvement of cholesterol in the initial steps of the viral life cycle, we applied a cell-based binding assay with cells expressing the S protein and cells containing angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Alternatively, we used a soluble S protein as interaction partner. Depletion of cholesterol from the ACE2-expressing cells reduced the binding of S-expressing cells by 50% whereas the binding of soluble S protein was not affected. This result suggests that optimal infection requires a multivalent interaction between viral attachment protein and cellular receptors.

Analysis of ACE2 in polarized epithelial cells: surface expression and function as receptor for severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus.

The primary target of severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV) is epithelial cells in the respiratory and intestinal tract. The cellular receptor for SARS-CoV, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), has been shown to be localized on the apical plasma membrane of polarized respiratory epithelial cells and to mediate infection from the apical side of these cells. Here, these results were confirmed and extended by including a colon carcinoma cell line (Caco-2), a lung carcinoma cell line (Calu-3) and Vero E6 cells in our analysis. All three cell types expressed human ACE2 on the apical membrane domain and were infected via this route, as determined with vesicular stomatitis virus pseudotypes containing the S protein of SARS-CoV. In a histological analysis of the respiratory tract, ACE2 was detected in the trachea, main bronchus and alveoli, and occasionally also in the small bronchi. These data will help us to understand the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV infection.

A novel sorting signal for intracellular localization is present in the S protein of a porcine coronavirus but absent from severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus.

Coronaviruses (CoV) mature by a budding process at intracellular membranes. Here we showed that the major surface protein S of a porcine CoV (transmissible gastroenteritis virus) is not transported to the cell surface but is retained intracellularly. Site-directed mutagenesis indicated that a tyrosine-dependent signal (YXXI) in the cytoplasmic tail is essential for intracellular localization of the S protein. Surface expression of mutant proteins was evident by immunofluorescence analysis and surface biotinylation. Intracellularly retained S proteins only contained endoglycosidase H-sensitive N-glycans, whereas mutant proteins that migrated to the plasma membrane acquired N-linked oligosaccharides of the complex type. Corresponding tyrosine residues are present in the cytoplasmic tails of the S proteins of other animal CoV but not in the tail portion of the S protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV. Changing the SEPV tetrapeptide in the cytoplasmic tail to YEPI resulted in intracellular retention of the S protein of SARS-CoV. As the S proteins of CoV have receptor binding and fusion activities and are the main target of neutralizing antibodies, the differences in the transport behavior of the S proteins suggest different strategies in the virus host interactions between SARS-CoV and other coronaviruses.