Long-term maintenance of functional primary human hepatocytes in 3D gelatin matrices produced by solution blow spinning.

Solution blow spinning (SBS) has recently emerged as a novel method that can produce nano- and microfiber structures suitable for tissue engineering. Gelatin is an excellent precursor for SBS as it is derived mainly from collagens that are abundant in natural extracellular matrices. Here we report, for the first time the successful generation of 3D thermally crosslinked preforms by using SBS from porcine gelatin. These SBS mats were shown to have three-dimensional fibrous porous structure similar to that of mammalian tissue extracellular matrix. In pharma industry, there is an urgent need for adequate 3D liver tissue models that could be used in high throughput setting for drug screening and to assess drug induced liver injury. We used SBS mats as culturing substrates for human hepatocytes to create an array of 3D human liver tissue equivalents in 96-well format. The SBS mats were highly cytocompatible, facilitated the induction of hepatocyte specific CYP gene expression in response to common medications, and supported the maintenance of hepatocyte differentiation and polarization status in long term cultures for more than 3 weeks. Together, our results show that SBS-generated gelatin scaffolds are a simple and efficient platform for use in vitro for drug testing applications.

Docking to a Basic Helix Promotes Specific Phosphorylation by G1-Cdk1.

Cyclins are the activators of cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) complex, but they also act as docking scaffolds for different short linear motifs (SLiMs) in CDK substrates and inhibitors. According to the unified model of CDK function, the cell cycle is coordinated by CDK both via general CDK activity thresholds and cyclin-specific substrate docking. Recently, it was found that the G1-cyclins of S. cerevisiae have a specific function in promoting polarization and growth of the buds, making the G1 cyclins essential for cell survival. Thus, while a uniform CDK specificity of a single cyclin can be sufficient to drive the cell cycle in some cells, such as in fission yeast, cyclin specificity can be essential in other organisms. However, the known G1-CDK specific LP docking motif, was not responsible for this essential function, indicating that G1-CDKs use yet other unknown docking mechanisms. Here we report a discovery of a G1 cyclin-specific (Cln1,2) lysine-arginine-rich helical docking motif (the K/R motif) in G1-CDK targets involved in the mating pathway (Ste7), transcription (Xbp1), bud morphogenesis (Bud2) and spindle pole body (Spc29, Spc42, Spc110, Sli15) function of S. cerevisiae. We also show that the docking efficiency of K/R motif can be regulated by basophilic kinases such as protein kinase A. Our results further widen the list of cyclin specificity mechanisms and may explain the recently demonstrated unique essential function of G1 cyclins in budding yeast.

Proline-Rich Motifs Control G2-CDK Target Phosphorylation and Priming an Anchoring Protein for Polo Kinase Localization.

The hydrophobic patch (hp), a docking pocket on cyclins of CDKs (cyclin-dependent kinases), has been thought to accommodate a single short linear motif (SLiM), the "RxL or Cy" docking motif. Here we show that hp can bind different motifs with high specificity. We identify a PxxPxF motif that is necessary for G2-cyclin Clb3 function in S. cerevisiae, and that mediates Clb3-Cdk1 phosphorylation of Ypr174c (proposed name: Cdc5 SPB anchor-Csa1) to regulate the localization of Polo kinase Cdc5. Similar motifs exist in other Clb3-Cdk1 targets. Our work completes the set of docking specificities for the four major cyclins: LP, RxL, PxxPxF, and LxF motifs for G1-, S-, G2-, and M-phase cyclins, respectively. Further, we show that variations in motifs can change their specificity for human cyclins. This diversity could provide complexity for the encoding of CDK thresholds to achieve ordered cell-cycle phosphorylation.

A processive phosphorylation circuit with multiple kinase inputs and mutually diversional routes controls G1/S decision.

Studies on multisite phosphorylation networks of cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) targets have opened a new level of signaling complexity by revealing signal processing routes encoded into disordered proteins. A model target, the CDK inhibitor Sic1, contains linear phosphorylation motifs, docking sites, and phosphodegrons to empower an N-to-C terminally directed phosphorylation process. Here, we uncover a signal processing mechanism involving multi-step competition between mutually diversional phosphorylation routes within the S-CDK-Sic1 inhibitory complex. Intracomplex phosphorylation plays a direct role in controlling Sic1 degradation, and provides a mechanism to sequentially integrate both the G1- and S-CDK activities while keeping S-CDK inhibited towards other targets. The competing phosphorylation routes prevent premature Sic1 degradation and demonstrate how integration of MAPK from the pheromone pathway allows one to tune the competition of alternative phosphorylation paths. The mutually diversional phosphorylation circuits may be a general way for processing multiple kinase signals to coordinate cellular decisions in eukaryotes.

Multisite phosphorylation code of CDK.

The quantitative model of cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) function states that cyclins temporally order cell cycle events at different CDK activity levels, or thresholds. The model lacks a mechanistic explanation, as it is not understood how different thresholds are encoded into substrates. We show that a multisite phosphorylation code governs the phosphorylation of CDK targets and that phosphorylation clusters act as timing tags that trigger specific events at different CDK thresholds. Using phospho-degradable CDK threshold sensors with rationally encoded phosphorylation patterns, we were able to predictably program thresholds over the entire range of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell cycle. We defined three levels of CDK multisite phosphorylation encoding: (i) serine-threonine swapping in phosphorylation sites, (ii) patterning of phosphorylation sites, and (iii) cyclin-specific docking combined with modulation of CDK activity. Thus, CDK can signal via hundreds of differentially encoded targets at precise times to provide a temporally ordered phosphorylation pattern required for cell division.

Cyclin-Specific Docking Mechanisms Reveal the Complexity of M-CDK Function in the Cell Cycle.

Cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) coordinate hundreds of molecular events during the cell cycle. Multiple cyclins are involved, but the global role of cyclin-specific phosphorylation has remained unsolved. We uncovered a cyclin docking motif, LxF, that mediates binding of replication factor Cdc6 to mitotic cyclin. This interaction leads to phospho-adaptor Cks1-mediated inhibition of M-CDK to facilitate Cdc6 accumulation and sequestration in mitosis. The LxF motif and Cks1 also mediate the mutual inhibition between M-CDK and the tyrosine kinase Swe1. Additionally, the LxF motif is critical for targeting M-CDK to phosphorylate several mitotic regulators; for example, Spo12 is targeted via LxF to release the phosphatase Cdc14. The results complete the full set of G1, S, and M-CDK docking mechanisms and outline the unified role of cyclin specificity and CDK activity thresholds. Cooperation of cyclin and Cks1 docking creates a variety of CDK thresholds and switching orders, including combinations of last in, first out (LIFO) and first in, first out (FIFO) ordering.

SP140L, an Evolutionarily Recent Member of the SP100 Family, Is an Autoantigen in Primary Biliary Cirrhosis.

The SP100 family members comprise a set of closely related genes on chromosome 2q37.1. The widely expressed SP100 and the leukocyte-specific proteins SP110 and SP140 have been associated with transcriptional regulation and various human diseases. Here, we have characterized the SP100 family member SP140L. The genome sequence analysis showed the formation of SP140L gene through rearrangements of the two neighboring genes, SP100 and SP140, during the evolution of higher primates. The SP140L expression is interferon-inducible with high transcript levels in B cells and other peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Subcellularly, SP140L colocalizes with SP100 and SP140 in nuclear structures that are devoid of SP110, PML, or p300 proteins. Similarly to SP100 and SP140 protein, we detected serum autoantibodies to SP140L in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis using luciferase immunoprecipitation system and immunoblotting assays. In conclusion, our results show that SP140L is phylogenetically recent member of SP100 proteins and acts as an autoantigen in primary biliary cirrhosis patients.

New generation of efficient peptide-based vectors, NickFects, for the delivery of nucleic acids.

Harnessing of a branched structure is a novel approach in the design of cell-penetrating peptides and it has provided highly efficient transfection reagents for intracellular delivery of nucleic acids. The new stearylated TP10 analogs, NickFects, condense plasmid DNA, splice correcting oligonucleotides and short interfering RNAs into stable nanoparticles with a size of 62-160nm. Such nanoparticles have a negative surface charge (-11 to -18mV) in serum containing medium and enable highly efficient gene expression, splice correction and gene silencing. One of the novel peptides, NickFect51 is capable of transfecting plasmid DNA into a large variety of cell lines, including refractory suspension and primary cells and in several cases exceeds the transfection level of commercially available reagent Lipofectamine™ 2000 without any cytotoxic side effects. Additionally we demonstrate the advantages of NickFect51 in a protein production system, QMCF technology, for expression and production of recombinant proteins in hardly transfectable suspension cells.

Autoimmune regulator deficiency results in decreased expression of CCR4 and CCR7 ligands and in delayed migration of CD4+ thymocytes.

Autoimmune regulator (Aire) has been viewed as a central player in the induction of tolerance. This study examines whether Aire can modulate the production of the thymic chemokines involved in corticomedullary migration and thus play a role in intrathymic thymocyte migration and maturation. Aire deficiency resulted in reduced gene expression and protein levels of the CCR4 and CCR7 ligands in whole thymi of mice, as determined by quantitative PCR analysis and ELISA. The expression of the CCR4 ligands coincided with Aire expression in the CD80(high) medullary thymic epithelial cells, whereas the expression of the CCR7 ligands was detected in other cell populations. Also, the expression pattern of the CCR4 and CCR7 ligands follows that of Aire during postnatal but not during embryonic development. In vitro, overexpression of Aire resulted in an up-regulation of selected CCR4 and CCR7 ligands, which induced selective migration of double-positive and single-positive CD4(+) cells. In vivo, Aire deficiency resulted in a diminished emigration of mature CD4(+) T cells from the thymi of 5-day-old mice. In conclusion, Aire regulates the production of CCR4 and CCR7 ligands in medullary thymic epithelial cells and alters the coordinated maturation and migration of thymocytes. These results suggest a novel mechanism behind the Aire-dependent induction of central tolerance.

Anti-interferon autoantibodies in autoimmune polyendocrinopathy syndrome type 1.

BACKGROUND: The autoimmune regulator (AIRE) gene influences thymic self-tolerance induction. In autoimmune polyendocrinopathy syndrome type 1 (APS1; OMIM 240300), recessive AIRE mutations lead to autoimmunity targetting endocrine and other epithelial tissues, although chronic candidiasis usually appears first. Autoimmunity and chronic candidiasis can associate with thymomas as well. Patients with these tumours frequently also have high titre immunoglobulin G autoantibodies neutralising type I interferon (IFN)-alpha and IFN-omega, which are secreted signalling proteins of the cytokine superfamily involved in both innate and adaptive immunity. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We tested for serum autoantibodies to type I IFNs and other immunoregulatory cytokines using specific binding and neutralisation assays. Unexpectedly, in 60/60 Finnish and 16/16 Norwegian APS1 patients with both AIRE alleles mutated, we found high titre neutralising immunoglobulin G autoantibodies to most IFN-alpha subtypes and especially IFN-omega (60% homologous to IFN-alpha)-mostly in the earliest samples. We found lower titres against IFN-beta (30% homologous to IFN-alpha) in 23% of patients; two-thirds of these (from Finland only) also had low titres against the distantly related "type III IFN" (IFN-lambda1; alias interleukin-29). However, autoantibodies to the unrelated type II IFN, IFN-gamma, and other immunoregulatory cytokines, such as interleukin-10 and interleukin-12, were much rarer and did not neutralise. Neutralising titres against type I IFNs averaged even higher in patients with APS1 than in patients with thymomas. Anti-type I IFN autoantibodies preceded overt candidiasis (and several of the autoimmune disorders) in the informative patients, and persisted for decades thereafter. They were undetectable in unaffected heterozygous relatives of APS1 probands (except for low titres against IFN-lambda1), in APS2 patients, and in isolated cases of the endocrine diseases most typical of APS1, so they appear to be APS1-specific. Looking for potentially autoimmunising cell types, we found numerous IFN-alpha(+) antigen-presenting cells-plus strong evidence of local IFN secretion-in the normal thymic medulla (where AIRE expression is strongest), and also in normal germinal centres, where it could perpetuate these autoantibody responses once initiated. IFN-alpha2 and IFN-alpha8 transcripts were also more abundant in antigen-presenting cells cultured from an APS1 patient's blood than from age-matched healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: These apparently spontaneous autoantibody responses to IFNs, particularly IFN-alpha and IFN-omega, segregate like a recessive trait; their high "penetrance" is especially remarkable for such a variable condition. Their apparent restriction to APS1 patients implies practical value in the clinic, e.g., in diagnosing unusual or prodromal AIRE-mutant patients with only single components of APS1, and possibly in prognosis if they prove to predict its onset. These autoantibody responses also raise numerous questions, e.g., about the rarity of other infections in APS1. Moreover, there must also be clues to autoimmunising mechanisms/cell types in the hierarchy of preferences for IFN-omega, IFN-alpha8, IFN-alpha2, and IFN-beta and IFN-lambda1.

Identification of the immunodominant regions of the melanoma antigen tyrosinase by anti-tyrosinase monoclonal antibodies.

Tyrosinase, the critical enzyme in melanin synthesis, is also found to be expressed in most malignant melanomas and can serve as a target for the immune response by both CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells. Therefore it could be used as a potential target for therapeutic intervention in tyrosinase-positive melanomas. In order to develop serological reagents for the immunodetection of human tyrosinase and to find the most immunogenic region of the protein, we have raised a panel of monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against recombinant tyrosinase expressed and purified from bacteria. Epitope mapping revealed the 79 amino acid long stretch between 163 and 241 residues to be the most immunodominant region of the tyrosinase. This region could be further divided into three parts by binding different MAbs. These MAbs were very useful tools for the detection of tyrosinase expression from different constructs in tissue culture cells by immunocytochemistry and in melanocytes by immunohistochemistry. Some of the MAbs that recognized epitopes between 163 and 204 amino acids also recognized an additional distinct protein of about 70 kDa seen on Western blot analysis of transfected and non-transfected COS-7 cells. One of these, the MAb 4B1, was used in immunohistochemistry, and cross reaction with the basement membrane of the human tissue was observed. The analysis of the 4B1 MAb epitope showed that the C-terminal part of that region almost entirely overlaps with the sequence of the recently reported basement membrane protein beta-netrin.