scholarly journals Polyamine metabolism in a member of the phylum Microspora (Encephalitozoon cuniculi): effects of polyamine analogues

Microbiology ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 150 (5) ◽  
pp. 1215-1224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cyrus J. Bacchi ◽  
Donna Rattendi ◽  
Evangeline Faciane ◽  
Nigel Yarlett ◽  
Louis M. Weiss ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Polyamine Metabolism ◽  
Encephalitozoon Cuniculi ◽  
Microsporidian Parasite ◽  
Ph Optimum ◽  
Polyamine Analogues ◽  
Specificity And Sensitivity ◽  
Cell Incubation ◽  
Ssat Activity

The uptake, biosynthesis and catabolism of polyamines in the microsporidian parasite Encephalitozoon cuniculi are detailed with reference to the effects of oligoamine and arylamine analogues of polyamines. Enc. cuniculi, an intracellular parasite of mammalian cells, has both biosynthetic and catabolic enzymes of polyamine metabolism, as demonstrated in cell-free extracts of mature spores. The uptake of polyamines was measured in immature, pre-emergent spores isolated from host cells by Percoll gradient. Spermine was rapidly taken up and metabolized to spermidine and an unknown, possibly acetamidopropanal, by spermidine/spermine N 1-acetyltransferase (SSAT) and polyamine oxidase (PAO). Most of the spermidine and the unknown product were found in the cell incubation medium, indicating they were released from the cell. bis(Ethyl) oligoamine analogues of polyamines, such as SL-11144 and SL-11158, as well as arylamine analogues [BW-1, a bis(phenylbenzyl) 3-7-3 analogue] blocked uptake and interconversion of spermine at micromolar levels and, in the case of BW-1, acted as substrate for PAO. The Enc. cuniculi PAO activity differed from that found in mammalian cells with respect to pH optimum, substrate specificity and sensitivity to known PAO inhibitors. SL-11158 inhibited SSAT activity with a mixed type of inhibition in which the analogue had a 70-fold higher affinity for the enzyme than the natural substrate, spermine. The interest in Enc. cuniculi polyamine metabolism and the biochemical effects of these polyamine analogues is warranted since they cure model infections of Enc. cuniculi in mice and are potential candidates for human clinical trials.

scholarly journals Post-transcriptional regulation of the content of spermidine/spermine N1-acetyltransferase by N1N12-bis(ethyl)spermine

1995 ◽  
Vol 305 (2) ◽  
pp. 451-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Parry ◽  
R Balaña Fouce ◽  
A E Pegg
Keyword(s):  
Transcriptional Regulation ◽  
Half Life ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Untranslated Regions ◽  
Translation Regulation ◽  
Polyamine Analogues ◽  
Post Transcriptional Regulation ◽  
Rate Limiting ◽  
Ssat Activity

Spermidine/spermine N1-acetyltransferase (SSAT) is the rate-limiting enzyme for the degradation and excretion of polyamines in mammalian cells, and its activity is known to be increased enormously on exposure to polyamines and polyamine analogues. The mechanism by which such an analogue, BESM [N1N12-bis(ethyl)spermine], increases the content of SSAT was investigated by transfecting COS-7 cells with plasmids containing SSAT cDNA in the pEUK expression vector. Despite a large increase in mRNA production, there was only a very small increase in SSAT activity in the transfected cells. When BESM was added at 36 h after transfection, there was a large and very rapid increase in SSAT protein amounting to 380-fold in 12 h without any increase in the mRNA. SSAT protein turned over very rapidly, with a half-life of about 20 min. In the presence of BESM, this turnover was greatly reduced, and the half-life increased to more than 13 h. However, this increase was not sufficient to account for all of the increase in SSAT protein, suggesting that there is also regulation of the translation of the mRNA by BESM. Further evidence for such translation regulation was obtained by studying the polysomal distribution of the SSAT mRNA. In the absence of BESM, most of the mRNA was present in fractions which sedimented more slowly than the monoribosome peak. In BESM-treated cells, a significant proportion of the SSAT mRNA was moved into the small-polysome region of the gradient. The expression of SSAT and the effects of BESM on the polysomal distribution of SSAT mRNA were not affected by the 5′- or 3′-untranslated regions of the mRNA, since constructs which lacked all of these regions gave similar results to constructs containing the entire mRNA sequence. These results show that the increased transcription of the SSAT gene that occurs in the presence of polyamine analogues such as BESM is not sufficient for SSAT expression and that post-transcriptional regulation is critical for the control of SSAT content.

scholarly journals Effect of a Bis-Benzyl Polyamine Analogue onPneumocystis carinii

2000 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 337-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Salim Merali ◽  
Muhamed Sarić ◽  
Kevin Chin ◽  
Allen B. Clarkson
Keyword(s):  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Pneumocystis Carinii ◽  
Specific Treatment ◽  
Polyamine Metabolism ◽  
Biosynthetic Enzyme ◽  
Polyamine Biosynthesis ◽  
Polyamine Analogues ◽  
Polyamine Content ◽  
Polyamine Analogue ◽  
Polyamine Transporter

ABSTRACT Pneumocystis carinii is the causative agent of P. carinii pneumonia (PCP), an opportunistic infection associated with AIDS and other immunosuppressed conditions. Although polyamine metabolism of this fungus has been shown to be a chemotherapeutic target, this metabolism has not been thoroughly investigated. Reported here is the effect of one polyamine analogue,N,N′-bis{3-[(phenylmethyl)amino]propyl}-1,7-diaminoheptane (BBS), on P. carinii. BBS inhibits the growth of P. carinii in culture, but at concentrations higher than those required to inhibit the growth of other pathogens. However, BBS is at least as active in an animal model of PCP as in other models of diseases studied. BBS causes some reduction in P. cariniipolyamine content and polyamine biosynthetic enzyme activities, but the effect is less than that observed with other pathogens and very much less than the effect of the polyamine biosynthesis inhibitordl-α-difluoromethylornithine. BBS enters P. carinii cells via a polyamine transporter, unlike all other cells that have been studied. P. carinii cells do not remove the benzyl groups of BBS, as is reported for mammalian cells. The most likely mode of action is displacement of natural polyamines. Overall, the activity of BBS provides further evidence that polyamines and polyamine metabolism are rational targets for the development of drugs to treat PCP. Because the details of BBS-P. cariniiinteraction differ from those of other cells studied, polyamine analogues may provide a highly specific treatment for PCP.

scholarly journals Host-Pathogen Adhesion as the Basis of Innovative Diagnostics for Emerging Pathogens

Diagnostics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 1259
Author(s):  
Alex van Belkum ◽  
Carina Almeida ◽  
Benjamin Bardiaux ◽  
Sarah V. Barrass ◽  
Sarah J. Butcher ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Receptor Binding ◽  
Pathogen Detection ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Emerging Pathogens ◽  
Emerging Viruses ◽  
Ligand Interaction ◽  
Novel Structure ◽  
Specificity And Sensitivity

Infectious diseases are an existential health threat, potentiated by emerging and re-emerging viruses and increasing bacterial antibiotic resistance. Targeted treatment of infectious diseases requires precision diagnostics, especially in cases where broad-range therapeutics such as antibiotics fail. There is thus an increasing need for new approaches to develop sensitive and specific in vitro diagnostic (IVD) tests. Basic science and translational research are needed to identify key microbial molecules as diagnostic targets, to identify relevant host counterparts, and to use this knowledge in developing or improving IVD. In this regard, an overlooked feature is the capacity of pathogens to adhere specifically to host cells and tissues. The molecular entities relevant for pathogen–surface interaction are the so-called adhesins. Adhesins vary from protein compounds to (poly-)saccharides or lipid structures that interact with eukaryotic host cell matrix molecules and receptors. Such interactions co-define the specificity and sensitivity of a diagnostic test. Currently, adhesin-receptor binding is typically used in the pre-analytical phase of IVD tests, focusing on pathogen enrichment. Further exploration of adhesin–ligand interaction, supported by present high-throughput “omics” technologies, might stimulate a new generation of broadly applicable pathogen detection and characterization tools. This review describes recent results of novel structure-defining technologies allowing for detailed molecular analysis of adhesins, their receptors and complexes. Since the host ligands evolve slowly, the corresponding adhesin interaction is under selective pressure to maintain a constant receptor binding domain. IVD should exploit such conserved binding sites and, in particular, use the human ligand to enrich the pathogen. We provide an inventory of methods based on adhesion factors and pathogen attachment mechanisms, which can also be of relevance to currently emerging pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19.

scholarly journals Neurotrophin Receptor TrkC Is an Entry Receptor for Trypanosoma cruzi in Neural, Glial, and Epithelial Cells

2011 ◽  
Vol 79 (10) ◽  
pp. 4081-4087 ◽  
Author(s):  
Craig Weinkauf ◽  
Ryan Salvador ◽  
Mercio PereiraPerrin
Keyword(s):  
Trypanosoma Cruzi ◽  
Chagas Disease ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Chinese Hamster ◽  
Neuronal Cell ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Neurotrophin Receptor ◽  
Content Type

ABSTRACTTrypanosoma cruzi, the agent of Chagas' disease, infects a variety of mammalian cells in a process that includes multiple cycles of intracellular division and differentiation starting with host receptor recognition by a parasite ligand(s). Earlier work in our laboratory showed that the neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) receptor TrkC is activated byT. cruzisurfacetrans-sialidase, also known as parasite-derived neurotrophic factor (PDNF). However, it has remained unclear whether TrkC is used byT. cruzito enter host cells. Here, we show that a neuronal cell line (PC12-NNR5) relatively resistant toT. cruzibecame highly susceptible to infection when overexpressing human TrkC but not human TrkB. Furthermore,trkCtransfection conferred an ∼3.0-fold intracellular growth advantage. Sialylation-deficient Chinese hamster ovarian (CHO) epithelial cell lines Lec1 and Lec2 also became much more permissive toT. cruziafter transfection with thetrkCgene. Additionally, NT-3 specifically blockedT. cruziinfection of the TrkC-NNR5 transfectants and of naturally permissive TrkC-bearing Schwann cells and astrocytes, as did recombinant PDNF. Two specific inhibitors of Trk autophosphorylation (K252a and AG879) and inhibitors of Trk-induced MAPK/Erk (U0126) and Akt kinase (LY294002) signaling, but not an inhibitor of insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor, abrogated TrkC-mediated cell invasion. Antibody to TrkC blockedT. cruziinfection of the TrkC-NNR5 transfectants and of cells that naturally express TrkC. The TrkC antibody also significantly and specifically reduced cutaneous infection in a mouse model of acute Chagas' disease. TrkC is ubiquitously expressed in the peripheral and central nervous systems, and in nonneural cells infected byT. cruzi, including cardiac and gastrointestinal muscle cells. Thus, TrkC is implicated as a functional PDNF receptor in cell entry, independently of sialic acid recognition, mediating broadT. cruziinfection bothin vitroandin vivo.

scholarly journals SpyAD, a Moonlighting Protein of Group A Streptococcus Contributing to Bacterial Division and Host Cell Adhesion

2014 ◽  
Vol 82 (7) ◽  
pp. 2890-2901 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marilena Gallotta ◽  
Giovanni Gancitano ◽  
Giampiero Pietrocola ◽  
Marirosa Mora ◽  
Alfredo Pezzicoli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Division ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Group A Streptococcus ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Knockout Mutant ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Moonlighting Protein ◽  
Group A

ABSTRACTGroup A streptococcus (GAS) is a human pathogen causing a wide repertoire of mild and severe diseases for which no vaccine is yet available. We recently reported the identification of three protein antigens that in combination conferred wide protection against GAS infection in mice. Here we focused our attention on the characterization of one of these three antigens, Spy0269, a highly conserved, surface-exposed, and immunogenic protein of unknown function. Deletion of thespy0269gene in a GAS M1 isolate resulted in very long bacterial chains, which is indicative of an impaired capacity of the knockout mutant to properly divide. Confocal microscopy and immunoprecipitation experiments demonstrated that the protein was mainly localized at the cell septum and could interactin vitrowith the cell division protein FtsZ, leading us to hypothesize that Spy0269 is a member of the GAS divisome machinery. Predicted structural domains and sequence homologies with known streptococcal adhesins suggested that this antigen could also play a role in mediating GAS interaction with host cells. This hypothesis was confirmed by showing that recombinant Spy0269 could bind to mammalian epithelial cellsin vitroand thatLactococcus lactisexpressing Spy0269 on its cell surface could adhere to mammalian cellsin vitroand to mice nasal mucosain vivo. On the basis of these data, we believe that Spy0269 is involved both in bacterial cell division and in adhesion to host cells and we propose to rename this multifunctional moonlighting protein as SpyAD (StreptococcuspyogenesAdhesion andDivision protein).

scholarly journals The Listeria monocytogenes hemolysin has an acidic pH optimum to compartmentalize activity and prevent damage to infected host cells

2002 ◽  
Vol 156 (6) ◽  
pp. 1029-1038 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian J. Glomski ◽  
Margaret M. Gedde ◽  
Albert W. Tsang ◽  
Joel A. Swanson ◽  
Daniel A. Portnoy
Keyword(s):  
Listeria Monocytogenes ◽  
Bacterial Pathogen ◽  
Cytolytic Activity ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Adaptive Mutation ◽  
Acidic Ph ◽  
Listeriolysin O ◽  
Lysosomal Hydrolases ◽  
Ph Optimum ◽  
Neutral Ph

Listeria monocytogenes is a facultative intracellular bacterial pathogen that escapes from a phagosome and grows in the host cell cytosol. The pore-forming cholesterol-dependent cytolysin, listeriolysin O (LLO), mediates bacterial escape from vesicles and is ∼10-fold more active at an acidic than neutral pH. By swapping dissimilar residues from a pH-insensitive orthologue, perfringolysin O (PFO), we identified leucine 461 as unique to pathogenic Listeria and responsible for the acidic pH optimum of LLO. Conversion of leucine 461 to the threonine present in PFO increased the hemolytic activity of LLO almost 10-fold at a neutral pH. L. monocytogenes synthesizing LLO L461T, expressed from its endogenous site on the bacterial chromosome, resulted in a 100-fold virulence defect in the mouse listeriosis model. These bacteria escaped from acidic phagosomes and initially grew normally in cells and spread cell to cell, but prematurely permeabilized the host membrane and killed the cell. These data show that the acidic pH optimum of LLO results from an adaptive mutation that acts to limit cytolytic activity to acidic vesicles and prevent damage in the host cytosol, a strategy also used by host cells to compartmentalize lysosomal hydrolases.

scholarly journals Heterologously Expressed Staphylococcus aureusFibronectin-Binding Proteins Are Sufficient for Invasion of Host Cells

2000 ◽  
Vol 68 (12) ◽  
pp. 6871-6878 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bhanu Sinha ◽  
Patrice Francois ◽  
Yok-Ai Que ◽  
Muzaffar Hussain ◽  
Christine Heilmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Binding Proteins ◽  
Surface Protein ◽  
Latex Agglutination ◽  
Surface Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Gram Positive ◽  
Fibronectin Receptor ◽  
293 Cells ◽  
Accessible Surface

ABSTRACT Staphylococcus aureus invasion of mammalian cells, including epithelial, endothelial, and fibroblastic cells, critically depends on fibronectin bridging between S. aureusfibronectin-binding proteins (FnBPs) and the host fibronectin receptor integrin α5β1 (B. Sinha et al., Cell. Microbiol. 1:101–117, 1999). However, it is unknown whether this mechanism is sufficient for S. aureus invasion. To address this question, various S. aureus adhesins (FnBPA, FnBPB, and clumping factor [ClfA]) were expressed in Staphylococcus carnosus and Lactococcus lactis subsp.cremoris. Both noninvasive gram-positive microorganisms are genetically distinct from S. aureus, lack any knownS. aureus surface protein, and do not bind fibronectin. Transformants of S. carnosus and L. lactisharboring plasmids coding for various S. aureus surface proteins (FnBPA, FnBPB, and ClfA) functionally expressed adhesins (as determined by bacterial clumping in plasma, specific latex agglutination, Western ligand blotting, and binding to immobilized and soluble fibronectin). FnBPA or FnBPB but not of ClfA conferred invasiveness to S. carnosus and L. lactis. Invasion of 293 cells by transformants was comparable to that of strongly invasive S. aureus strain Cowan 1. Binding of soluble and immobilized fibronectin paralleled invasiveness, demonstrating that the amount of accessible surface FnBPs is rate limiting. Thus, S. aureus FnBPs confer invasiveness to noninvasive, apathogenic gram-positive cocci. Furthermore, FnBP-coated polystyrene beads were internalized by 293 cells, demonstrating that FnBPs are sufficient for invasion of host cells without the need for (S. aureus-specific) coreceptors.

scholarly journals Mammalian cell invasion and intracellular trafficking by Trypanosoma cruzi infective forms

2005 ◽  
Vol 77 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renato A. Mortara ◽  
Walter K. Andreoli ◽  
Noemi N. Taniwaki ◽  
Adriana B. Fernandes ◽  
Claudio V. da Silva ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Trypanosoma Cruzi ◽  
Host Cell ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Parasitophorous Vacuole ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Mammalian Host ◽  
Target Cells ◽  
Sylvatic Cycle ◽  
Final Destination ◽  
Different Strains

Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiological agent of Chagas’ disease, occurs as different strains or isolates that may be grouped in two major phylogenetic lineages: T. cruzi I, associated with the sylvatic cycle and T. cruzi II, linked to the human disease. In the mammalian host the parasite has to invade cells and many studies implicated the flagellated trypomastigotes in this process. Several parasite surface components and some of host cell receptors with which they interact have been identified. Our work focused on how amastigotes, usually found growing in the cytoplasm, can invade mammalian cells with infectivities comparable to that of trypomastigotes. We found differences in cellular responses induced by amastigotes and trypomastigotes regarding cytoskeletal components and actin-rich projections. Extracellularly generated amastigotes of T. cruzi I strains may display greater infectivity than metacyclic trypomastigotes towards cultured cell lines as well as target cells that have modified expression of different classes of cellular components. Cultured host cells harboring the bacterium Coxiella burnetii allowed us to gain new insights into the trafficking properties of the different infective forms of T. cruzi, disclosing unexpected requirements for the parasite to transit between the parasitophorous vacuole to its final destination in the host cell cytoplasm.

scholarly journals Characterization, modelling and mitigation of gene expression burden in mammalian cells

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
T Frei ◽  
F Cella ◽  
F Tedeschi ◽  
J Gutierrez ◽  
GB Stan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Genome Engineering ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Genetic Circuits ◽  
Circuit Performance ◽  
Resource Requirements ◽  
Synthetic Circuit ◽  
Resource Aware

AbstractDespite recent advances in genome engineering, the design of genetic circuits in mammalian cells is still painstakingly slow and fraught with inexplicable failures. Here we demonstrate that competition for limited transcriptional and translational resources dynamically couples otherwise independent co-expressed exogenous genes, leading to diminished performance and contributing to the divergence between intended and actual function. We also show that the expression of endogenous genes is likewise impacted when genetic payloads are expressed in the host cells. Guided by a resource-aware mathematical model and our experimental finding that post-transcriptional regulators have a large capacity for resource redistribution, we identify and engineer natural and synthetic miRNA-based incoherent feedforward loop (iFFL) circuits that mitigate gene expression burden. The implementation of these circuits features the novel use of endogenous miRNAs as integral components of the engineered iFFL device, a versatile hybrid design that allows burden mitigation to be achieved across different cell-lines with minimal resource requirements. This study establishes the foundations for context-aware prediction and improvement of in vivo synthetic circuit performance, paving the way towards more rational synthetic construct design in mammalian cells.

scholarly journals Characterization of an Acid-Dependent Arginine Decarboxylase Enzyme from Chlamydophila pneumoniae

2007 ◽  
Vol 189 (20) ◽  
pp. 7376-7383 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa N. Giles ◽  
David E. Graham
Keyword(s):  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Arginine Decarboxylase ◽  
Chlamydophila Pneumoniae ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Respiratory Pathogen ◽  
Ph Optimum ◽  
Polyamine Biosynthesis ◽  
Mature Enzyme ◽  
Oxide Synthase

ABSTRACT Genome sequences from members of the Chlamydiales encode diverged homologs of a pyruvoyl-dependent arginine decarboxylase enzyme that nonpathogenic euryarchaea use in polyamine biosynthesis. The Chlamydiales lack subsequent genes required for polyamine biosynthesis and probably obtain polyamines from their host cells. To identify the function of this protein, the CPn1032 homolog from the respiratory pathogen Chlamydophila pneumoniae was heterologously expressed and purified. This protein self-cleaved to form a reactive pyruvoyl group, and the subunits assembled into a thermostable (αβ)3 complex. The mature enzyme specifically catalyzed the decarboxylation of l-arginine, with an unusually low pH optimum of 3.4. The CPn1032 gene complemented a mutation in the Escherichia coli adiA gene, which encodes a pyridoxal 5′-phosphate-dependent arginine decarboxylase, restoring arginine-dependent acid resistance. Acting together with a putative arginine-agmatine antiporter, the CPn1032 homologs may have evolved convergently to form an arginine-dependent acid resistance system. These genes are the first evidence that obligately intracellular chlamydiae may encounter acidic conditions. Alternatively, this system could reduce the host cell arginine concentration and produce inhibitors of nitric oxide synthase.

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