Identifying transient protein-protein interactions in EphB2 signaling by blue native PAGE and mass spectrometry.

Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are proteins that upon ligand stimulation undergo dimerization and autophosphorylation. Eph receptors (EphRs) are RTKs that are found in different cell types, from both tissues that are developing and from mature tissues, and play important roles in the development of the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system. EphRs also play roles in synapse formation, neural crest formation, angiogenesis and in remodeling the vascular system. Interaction of EphRs with their ephrin ligands lead to activation of signal transduction pathways and formation of many transient protein-protein interactions that ultimately leads to cytoskeletal remodeling. However, the sequence of events at the molecular level is not well understood. We used blue native PAGE and MS to analyze the transient protein-protein interactions that resulted from the stimulation of EphB2 receptors by their ephrinB1-Fc ligands. We analyzed the phosphotyrosine-containing protein complexes immunoprecipitated from the cell lysates of both unstimulated (-) and ephrinB1-Fc-stimulated (+) NG108 cells. Our experiments allowed us to identify many signaling proteins, either known to be part of EphB2 signaling or new for this pathway, which are involved in transient protein-protein interactions upon ephrinB1-Fc stimulation. These data led us to investigate the roles of proteins such as FAK, WAVEs and Nischarin in EphB2 signaling.

WAVE2 targeting to phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-triphosphate mediated by insulin receptor substrate p53 through a complex with WAVE2.

Membrane targeting of WAVE2 along microtubules to phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-triphosphate (PIP(3)) in response to an extracellular stimulus requires Rac1, Pak1, stathmin, and EB1. However, whether WAVE2 interacts directly with PIP(3) or not remains unclear. We demonstrate that insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) induces WAVE2 membrane targeting, accompanied by phosphorylation of Pak1 at serine 199/204 (Ser199/204) and stathmin at Ser38 in the inner cytoplasmic region. This is spatially independent of the membrane region where the IGF-I receptor (IGF-IR) is locally activated. WAVE2, phosphorylated Pak1, and phosphorylated stathmin located at the microtubule ends began to accumulate at the leading edge of cells in close proximity to PIP(3) that was produced in a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase)-dependent manner. The PIP(3)-beads binding assay revealed that insulin receptor substrate p53 (IRSp53) and actin rather than WAVE2 bound to PIP(3). IRSp53 constitutively associated with WAVE2 and these two proteins colocalized with PIP(3) at the leading edge after IGF-I stimulation. Suppression of IRSp53 expression by two independent small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) completely inhibited IGF-I-induced membrane targeting and local accumulation of WAVE2 at the leading edge of cells. We propose that IRSp53 constitutively forms a complex with WAVE2 and is crucial for membrane targeting followed by local accumulation of WAVE2 at the leading edge of cells through linking WAVE2 to PIP(3) that is produced near locally activated IGF-IR in response to IGF-I.

Directional control of WAVE2 membrane targeting by EB1 and phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-triphosphate.

Membrane targeting of WAVE2 along microtubules is mediated by a motor protein kinesin and requires Pak1, a downstream effector of Rac1. However, the mechanism by which WAVE2 targeting to the leading edge is directionally controlled remains largely unknown. Here we demonstrate that EB1, a microtubule plus-end-binding protein, constitutively associates with stathmin, a microtubule-destabilizing protein, in human breast cancer cells. Stimulation of the cells with insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) induced Pak1-dependent binding of the EB1-stathmin complex to microtubules that bear WAVE2 and colocalization of the complex with WAVE2 at the leading edge. Depletion of EB1 by small interfering RNA (siRNA) abrogated the IGF-I-induced WAVE2 targeting and stathmin binding to microtubules. On the other hand, chemotaxis chamber assays indicated that the IGF-I receptor (IGF-IR) was locally activated in the region facing toward IGF-I. In addition, IGF-I caused phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase)-dependent production of phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-triphosphate (PIP3) near activated IGF-IR and WAVE2 colocalization with it. Collectively, WAVE2-membrane targeting is directionally controlled by binding of the EB1-stathmin complex to WAVE2-bearing microtubules and by the interaction between WAVE2 and PIP3 produced near IGF-IR that is locally activated by IGF-I.

WAVE1 regulates Bcl-2 localization and phosphorylation in leukemia cells.

Bcl-2 proteins are over-expressed in many tumors and are critically important for cell survival. Their anti-apoptotic activities are determined by intracellular localization and post-translational modifications (such as phosphorylation). Here, we showed that WAVE1, a member of the Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein family, was over-expressed in blood cancer cell lines, and functioned as a negative regulator of apoptosis. Further enhanced expression of WAVE1 by gene transfection rendered leukemia cells more resistant to anti-cancer drug-induced apoptosis; whereas suppression of WAVE1 expression by RNA interference restored leukemia cells' sensitivity to anti-drug-induced apoptosis. WAVE1 was found to be associated with mitochondrial Bcl-2, and its depletion led to mitochondrial release of Bcl-2, and phosphorylation of ASK1/JNK and Bcl-2. Furthermore, depletion of WAVE1 expression increased anti-cancer drug-induced production of reactive oxygen species in leukemia cells. Taken together, these results suggest WAVE1 as a novel regulator of apoptosis, and potential drug target for therapeutic intervention of leukemia.

[Expression of WAVE1 in childhood acute lymphocytic leukemia and in the apoptosis of Jurkat cells induced by adriamycin].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether WASP/Verprolin homologous protein 1 (WAVE1) plays a role in the pathogenesis of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). METHODS: WAVE1 mRNA and protein expression in bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMCs) was measured by RT-PCR and Western blotting respectively in 4 children with ALL relapse, 15 children with ALL in complete remission (CR) and 40 children with newly diagnosed ALL. Ten normal bone marrow samples were used as controls. Jurkat cells were treated with different concentrations of adriamycin (ADM). The cell proliferation was detected with MTT. The apoptosis rate was measured by flow cytometry. WAVE1 mRNA and protein expression of Jurkat cells treated with ADM was detected by RT-PCR and Western blotting respectively. RESULTS: WAVE1 was not expressed or weakly expressed in BMMCs from normal controls and patients with ALL in CR. Higher WAVE1 mRNA and protein expression was found in BMMCs from patients with newly diagnosed ALL and patients with relapse ALL when compared with the controls and the patients in CR (P<0.01). ADM significantly inhibited the proliferation of the Jurkat cells and the inhibitory effect was dose-and time-dependent (P<0.05). After ADM treatment for 24 hrs, the percentage of apoptosis cells increased significantly and WAVE1 mRNA and protein expression of Jurkat cells decreased significantly when compared with the untreated controls (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The WAVE1 expression increased in children with ALL. WAVE1 may be related to the development of ALL and may be severed as a marker for the evaluation of the severity of ALL in children.

R5 and X4 HIV viruses differentially modulate host gene expression in resting CD4+ T cells.

During HIV-1 infection, distinct biological phenotypes are observed between R5 and X4 HIV-1 strains with respect to pathogenicity and tropism. In this study, temporal changes of the expression levels of the complete human transcriptome, representing 47,000 well-characterized human transcripts, were monitored in the first 24 h during HIV-1 R5 and X4 exposition in resting primary CD4(+) T cells. We provide evidence that R5 viruses modulate, to a greater extent than X4 viruses, the level of mRNA of the resting CD4(+) T cells. Indeed, modulation of the TCR signaling and the actin organization involving the WAVE/ABI complex and the ARP2/3 complex appeared to be associated with R5 exposition. The data suggest that the ability of R5 viruses to modulate TCR-mediated actin polymerization and signaling creates a favorable environment for CD4(+) T cell activation after TCR stimulation and may partly explain why R5 is the primary strain observed early in the natural infection process.

Axis specification and morphogenesis in the mouse embryo require Nap1, a regulator of WAVE-mediated actin branching.

Dynamic cell movements and rearrangements are essential for the generation of the mammalian body plan, although relatively little is known about the genes that coordinate cell movement and cell fate. WAVE complexes are regulators of the actin cytoskeleton that couple extracellular signals to polarized cell movement. Here, we show that mouse embryos that lack Nap1, a regulatory component of the WAVE complex, arrest at midgestation and have defects in morphogenesis of all three embryonic germ layers. WAVE protein is not detectable in Nap1 mutants, and other components of the WAVE complex fail to localize to the surface of Nap1 mutant cells; thus loss of Nap1 appears to inactivate the WAVE complex in vivo. Nap1 mutants show specific morphogenetic defects: they fail to close the neural tube, fail to form a single heart tube (cardia bifida), and show delayed migration of endoderm and mesoderm. Other morphogenetic processes appear to proceed normally in the absence of Nap1/WAVE activity: the notochord, the layers of the heart, and the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) at gastrulation appear normal. A striking phenotype seen in approximately one quarter of Nap1 mutants is the duplication of the anteroposterior body axis. The axis duplications arise because Nap1 is required for the normal polarization and migration of cells of the Anterior Visceral Endoderm (AVE), an early extraembryonic organizer tissue. Thus, the Nap1 mutant phenotypes define the crucial roles of Nap1/WAVE-mediated actin regulation in tissue organization and establishment of the body plan of the mammalian embryo.

Role for the Abi/wave protein complex in T cell receptor-mediated proliferation and cytoskeletal remodeling.

BACKGROUND: The molecular reorganization of signaling molecules after T cell receptor (TCR) activation is accompanied by polymerization of actin at the site of contact between a T cell and an antigen-presenting cell (APC), as well as extension of actin-rich lamellipodia around the APC. Actin polymerization is critical for the fidelity and efficiency of the T cell response to antigen. The ability of T cells to polymerize actin is critical for several steps in T cell activation including TCR clustering, mature immunological synapse formation, calcium flux, IL-2 production, and proliferation. Activation of the Rac GTPase has been linked to regulation of actin polymerization after TCR stimulation. However, the molecules required for TCR-mediated actin polymerization downstream of activated Rac have remained elusive. Here we identify a novel role for the Abi/Wave protein complex, which signals downstream of activated Rac, in the regulation of actin polymerization and T cell activation in response to TCR stimulation. RESULTS: Here we show that Abi and Wave rapidly translocate from the T cell cytoplasm to the T cell:B cell contact site in the presence of antigen. Abi and Wave colocalize with actin at the T cell:B cell conjugation site. Moreover, Wave and Abi are necessary for actin polymerization after T cell activation, and loss of Abi proteins in mice impairs TCR-induced cell proliferation and IL-2 production in primary T cells. Significantly, the impairment in actin polymerization in cells lacking Abi proteins is due to the inability of Wave proteins to localize to the T cell:B cell contact site in the presence of antigen, rather than the destabilization of the components of the Wave protein complex. CONCLUSIONS: The Abi/Wave complex is a novel regulator of TCR-mediated actin dynamics, IL-2 production, and proliferation.