Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Protein Kinase, c-Src'

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2004
Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 350 p. : ill. (some col.). Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 322-346).

The interest in protein kinase had been improved in recent years since the entry into the market of the first protein Kinase inhibitor. In this thesis have been designed, and synthesized new small molecules able to inhibit separately three different kinases, c-Src, Hck and TAK1, widely implicated in cancer disease. Protein kinases catalyse the transfer of phosphate groups from nucleoside triphosphates, usually adenosine triphosphate (ATP), to specific serine, threonine, or tyrosine residues in substrate proteins as a way of regulating their activities1,2. Deregulation of their activities can lead to severe diseases such as cancer3, which makes them desirable targets for drug design and therapeutic intervention4. In this context, Pyrazolo[3,4-d]Pyrimidines represent a promising class of compounds capable of inhibiting the first oncogenic tyrosine kinase discovered: c-Src. This class of compounds showed good inhibition properties toward c-Src in a cell-free assay, as well as antiproliferative activity toward different cell lines, blocking c-Src phosphorylation, and inducing apoptosis5,6 due to its isosterism with adenine scaffold of ATP, the natural phosphorylating agent that bind PTKs. In the first part of this thesis, had been designed a rational study to improve binding affinity to c-Src, without forget the importance of ADME properties, one of the most reason for drug discovery failure. Starting from X-ray crystal structure7 and Monte Carlo/Free Energy Perturbation on our hit compound, it was possible to design and synthesize compound 13e, characterized by a significant improvement of inhibitory activity against c-Src (IC50 7nM). Furthermore, new aminothiazole and aryl-amido derivatives were designed and synthesized, showing an interesting inhibitory profile too. A similar study had been applied to Hematopoietic Cell Kinase, suggesting the synthesis of new small molecule inhibitors. Instead, for the development of TAK1 inhibitors was applied a different strategy; an irreversible inhibition study was designed, leading to synthesize molecules able to form covalent bond with Cys174 of that kinase. Once identified the hit compound, different electrophiles had been inserted in order to trap cysteine of interest.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2001.
Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 195 p. : ill. (some col.). Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 182-190).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2003.
Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains v, 149 p. : ill. (some col.). Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references.

Protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) mediate important signaling events associated with cellular growth, differentiation, and mitogenesis. The p60c-src protein is the first described cellular protein tyrosine kinase. Human p60c-src PTK has been implicated in the development of colon and breast cancer, and leukemia. However, the exact physiological role of p60c-src PTK or its physiological target proteins are not well known, and the mechanism by which the p60c-src PTK activity is regulated is not completely understood. Peptide substrates can be used to determine the substrate specificity and kinetic parameters, and therefore to provide important information for understanding of the physiological role and mechanism of action of this enzyme. Peptide substrates can also be used to develop pseudosubstrate-based peptide inhibitors for p60c-src PTK. Combinatorial peptide library methods have proven to be very powerful in identifying ligands for receptors and in discovering peptide substrates for protein kinases. In this dissertation, a "one-bead one-compound" combinatorial peptide library method was applied to identify peptide substrates for p60c-src PTK, the structure-activity relationship of the identified peptide substrates was studied, and the pseudosubstrate-based peptide inhibitors for p60c-src PTK were developed. Using the "one-bead one-compound" combinatorial peptide library method, a novel peptide, YIYGSFK, was identified as an efficient substrate for p60c-src PTK. The structure-activity relationship study was performed on over 70 analogs of YIYGSFK. It was determined that -Ile-Tyr- were the two critical residues required for activity. Based on this dipeptide motif a secondary library was synthesized (XIYXXXX, wherein X = all 19 eukaryotic amino acids except cysteine, I = isoleucine, Y = tyrosine) and screened with p60c-src PTK. One of the identified peptides, GIYWHHY, was found to be more efficient for p60c-src PTK than the parental compound, YIYGSFK. Several potent psedosubstrate based inhibitors were developed using GIYWHHY as a template. Some of the more potent inhibitors have branched structure indicating the enzyme active site can accommodate more than a linear motif. These data demonstrate that the "one-bead one-compound" combinatorial library method is a powerful tool to discover novel peptide substrates, and to develop pseudosubstrate-based peptide inhibitors for PTKs.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Cincinnati, 2005.
Title from electronic thesis title page (viewed Sept. 13, 2007). Includes abstract. Keywords: Protein Kinase C; Cell spreading; Cell migration; Epithelial Cells; Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor; Transactivation; Focal Adhesion; Actin; Focal Adhesion Kinase; Src; Paxillin Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2008.
The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Vita. "May 2008" Includes bibliographical references.

A number of reports have demonstrated the importance of the CUB domaincontaining protein 1 (CDCP1) in facilitating cancer progression in animal models and the potential of this protein as a prognostic marker in several malignancies. CDCP1 facilitates metastasis formation in animal models by negatively regulating anoikis, a type of apoptosis triggered by the loss of attachment signalling from cell-cell contacts or cell-extra cellular matrix (ECM) contacts. Due to the important role CDCP1 plays in cancer progression in model systems, it is considered a potential drug target to prevent the metastatic spread of cancers. CDCP1 is a highly glycosylated 836 amino acid cell surface protein. It has structural features potentially facilitating protein-protein interactions including 14 N-glycosylation sites, three CUB-like domains, 20 cysteine residues likely to be involved in disulfide bond formation and five intracellular tyrosine residues. CDCP1 interacts with a variety of proteins including Src family kinases (SFKs) and protein kinase C ä (PKCä). Efforts to understand the mechanisms regulating these interactions have largely focussed on three CDCP1 tyrosine residues Y734, Y743 and Y762. CDCP1-Y734 is the site where SFKs phosphorylate and bind to CDCP1 and mediate subsequent phosphorylation of CDCP1-Y743 and -Y762 which leads to binding of PKCä at CDCP1-Y762. The resulting trimeric protein complex of SFK•CDCP1•PKCä has been proposed to mediate an anti-apoptotic cell phenotype in vitro, and to promote metastasis in vivo. The effect of mutation of the three tyrosines on interactions of CDCP1 with SFKs and PKCä and the consequences on cell phenotype in vitro and in vivo have not been examined. CDCP1 has a predicted molecular weight of ~90 kDa but is usually detected as a protein which migrates at ~135 kDa by Western blot analysis due to its high degree of glycosylation. A low molecular weight form of CDCP1 (LMWCDCP1) of ~70 kDa has been found in a variety of cancer cell lines. The mechanisms leading to the generation of LMW-CDCP1 in vivo are not well understood but an involvement of proteases in this process has been proposed. Serine proteases including plasmin and trypsin are able to proteolytically process CDCP1. In addition, the recombinant protease domain of the serine protease matriptase is also able to cleave the recombinant extracellular portion of CDCP1. Whether matriptase is able to proteolytically process CDCP1 on the cell surface has not been examined. Importantly, proteolytic processing of CDCP1 by trypsin leads to phosphorylation of its cell surface-retained portion which suggests that this event leads to initiation of an intracellular signalling cascade. This project aimed to further examine the biology of CDCP1 with a main of focus on exploring the roles played by CDCP1 tyrosine residues. To achieve this HeLa cells stably expressing CDCP1 or the CDCP1 tyrosine mutants Y734F, Y743F and Y762F were generated. These cell lines were used to examine: • The roles of the tyrosine residues Y734, Y743 and Y762 in mediating interactions of CDCP1 with binding proteins and to examine the effect of the stable expression on HeLa cell morphology. • The ability of the serine protease matriptase to proteolytically process cell surface CDCP1 and to examine the consequences of this event on HeLa cell phenotype and cell signalling in vitro. • The importance of these residues in processes associated with cancer progression in vitro including adhesion, proliferation and migration. • The role of these residues on metastatic phenotype in vivo and the ability of a function-blocking anti-CDCP1 antibody to inhibit metastasis in the chicken embryo chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) assay. Interestingly, biochemical experiments carried out in this study revealed that mutation of certain CDCP1 tyrosine residues impacts on interactions of this protein with binding proteins. For example, binding of SFKs as well as PKCä to CDCP1 was markedly decreased in HeLa-CDCP1-Y734F cells, and binding of PKCä was also reduced in HeLa-CDCP1-Y762F cells. In contrast, HeLa-CDCP1-Y743F cells did not display altered interactions with CDCP1 binding proteins. Importantly, observed differences in interactions of CDCP1 with binding partners impacted on basal phosphorylation of CDCP1. It was found that HeLa-CDCP1, HeLa-CDCP1-Y743F and -Y762F displayed strong basal levels of CDCP1 phosphorylation. In contrast, HeLa-CDCP1-Y734F cells did not display CDCP1 phosphorylation but exhibited constitutive phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) at tyrosine 861. Significantly, subsequent investigations to examine this observation suggested that CDCP1-Y734 and FAK-Y861 are competitive substrates for SFK-mediated phosphorylation. It appeared that SFK-mediated phosphorylation of CDCP1- Y734 and FAK-Y861 is an equilibrium which shifts depending on the level of CDCP1 expression in HeLa cells. This suggests that the level of CDCP1 expression may act as a regulatory mechanism allowing cells to switch from a FAK-Y861 mediated pathway to a CDCP1-Y734 mediated pathway. This is the first time that a link between SFKs, CDCP1 and FAK has been demonstrated. One of the most interesting observations from this work was that CDCP1 altered HeLa cell morphology causing an elongated and fibroblastic-like appearance. Importantly, this morphological change depended on CDCP1- Y734. In addition, it was observed that this change in cell morphology was accompanied by increased phosphorylation of SFK-Y416. This suggests that interactions of SFKs with CDCP1-Y734 increases SFK activity since SFKY416 is critical in regulating kinase activity of these proteins. The essential role of SFKs in mediating CDCP1-induced HeLa cell morphological changes was demonstrated using the SFK-selective inhibitor SU6656. This inhibitor caused reversion of HeLa-CDCP1 cell morphology to an epithelial appearance characteristic of HeLa-vector cells. Significantly, in vitro studies revealed that certain CDCP1-mediated cell phenotypes are mediated by cellular pathways dependent on CDCP1 tyrosine residues whereas others are independent of these sites. For example, CDCP1 expression caused a marked increase in HeLa cell motility that was independent of CDCP1 tyrosine residues. In contrast, CDCP1- induced decrease in HeLa cell proliferation was most prominent in HeLa- CDCP1-Y762F cells, potentially indicating a role for this site in regulating proliferation in HeLa cells. Another cellular event which was identified to require phosphorylation of a particular CDCP1 tyrosine residue is adhesion to fibronectin. It was observed that the CDCP1-mediated strong decrease in adhesion to fibronectin is mostly restored in HeLa-CDCP1-Y743F cells. This suggests a possible role for CDCP1-Y743 in causing a CDCP1-mediated decrease in adhesion. Data from in vivo experiments indicated that HeLa-CDCP1-Y734F cells are more metastic than HeLa-CDCP1 cells in vivo. This indicates that interaction of CDCP1 with SFKs and PKCä may not be required for CDCP1-mediated metastasis formation of HeLa cells in vivo. The metastatic phenotype of these cells may be caused by signalling involving FAK since HeLa-CDCP1- Y734F cells are the only CDCP1 expressing cells displaying constitutive phosphorylation of FAK-Y861. HeLa-CDCP1-Y762F cells displayed a very low metastatic ability which suggests that this CDCP1 tyrosine residue is important in mediating a pro-metastatic phenotype in HeLa cells. More detailed exploration of cellular events occurring downstream of CDCP1-Y734 and -Y762 may provide important insights into the mechanisms altering the metastatic ability of CDCP1 expressing HeLa cells. Complementing the in vivo studies, anti-CDCP1 antibodies were employed to assess whether these antibodies are able to inhibit metastasis of CDCP1 and CDCP1 tyrosine mutants expressing HeLa cells. It was found that HeLa- CDCP1-Y734F cells were the only cell line which was markedly reduced in the ability to metastasise. In contrast, the ability of HeLa-CDCP1, HeLa- CDCP1-Y743F and -Y762F cells to metastasise in vivo was not inhibited. These data suggest a possible role of interactions of CDCP1 with SFKs, occurring at CDCP1-Y734, in preventing an anti-metastatic effect of anti- CDCP1 antibodies in vivo. The proposal that SFKs may play a role in regulating anti-metastatic effects of anti-CDCP1 antibodies was supported by another experiment where differences between HeLa-CDCP1 cells and CDCP1 expressing HeLa cells (HeLa-CDCP1-S) from collaborators at the Scripps Research Institute were examined. It was found that HeLa-CDCP1-S cells express different SFKs than CDCP1 expressing HeLa cells generated for this study. This is important since HeLa-CDCP1-S cells can be inhibited in their metastatic ability using anti-CDCP1 antibodies in vivo. Importantly, these data suggest that further examinations of the roles of SFKs in facilitating anti-metastatic effects of anti-CDCP1 antibodies may give insights into how CDCP1 can be blocked to prevent metastasis in vivo. This project also explored the ability of the serine protease matriptase to proteolytically process cell surface localised CDCP1 because it is unknown whether matriptase can cleave cell surface CDCP1 as it has been reported for other proteases such as trypsin and plasmin. Furthermore, the consequences of matriptase-mediated proteolysis on cell phenotype in vitro and cell signalling were examined since recent reports suggested that proteolysis of CDCP1 leads to its phosphorylation and may initiate cell signalling and consequently alter cell phenotype. It was found that matriptase is able to proteolytically process cell surface CDCP1 at low nanomolar concentrations which suggests that cleavage of CDCP1 by matriptase may facilitate the generation of LWM-CDCP1 in vivo. To examine whether matriptase-mediated proteolysis induced cell signalling anti-phospho Erk 1/2 Western blot analysis was performed as this pathway has previously been examined to study signalling in response to proteolytic processing of cell surface proteins. It was found that matriptase-mediated proteolysis in CDCP1 expressing HeLa cells initiated intracellular signalling via Erk 1/2. Interestingly, this increase in phosphorylation of Erk 1/2 was also observed in HeLa-vector cells. This suggested that initiation of cell signalling via Erk 1/2 phosphorylation as a result of matriptase-mediated proteolysis occurs by pathways independent of CDCP1. Subsequent investigations measuring the flux of free calcium ions and by using a protease-activated receptor 2 (PAR2) agonist peptide confirmed this hypothesis. These data suggested that matriptase-mediated proteolysis results in cell signalling via a pathway induced by the activation of PAR2 rather than by CDCP1. This indicates that induction of cell signalling in HeLa cells as a consequence of matriptase-mediated proteolysis occurs via signalling pathways which do not involve phosphorylation of Erk 1/2. Consequently, it appears that future attempts should focus on the examination of cellular pathways other than Erk 1/2 to elucidate cell signalling initiated by matriptase-mediated proteolytic processing of CDCP1. The data presented in this thesis has explored in vitro and in vivo aspects of the biology of CDCP1. The observations summarised above will permit the design of future studies to more precisely determine the role of CDCP1 and its binding partners in processes relevant to cancer progression. This may contribute to further defining CDCP1 as a target for cancer treatment.

L’invasion métastatique des tumeurs humaines est un mécanisme complexe qui repose sur l’acquisition de nouvelles fonctionnalités par les cellules tumorales. Les protéines ADAM et plus particulièrement la protéine ADAM9, grâce à leur domaine extracellulaire se composant d’une activité métalloprotéasique et disintégrine, possèdent des fonctions importantes et nécessaires au processus d’invasion. Cependant, les mécanismes de régulation de la protéine restent globalement méconnus dans la pathologie cancéreuse. L’objectif de ce travail a consisté à évaluer le rôle de l’expression d’ADAM9 dans les mécanismes d’agressivité tumorale tels que l’adhérence cellulaire, la migration cellulaire ou l’angiogénèse ainsi que l’étude des mécanismes de régulation de l’expression de cette protéine. Compte tenu du fait que le peroxyde d’hydrogène est connu pour induire l’expression d’ADAM9, les premiers travaux ont eu pour objectif d’établir le lien entre stress oxydant, ADAM9 et adhérence tumorale. L’exposition des cellules d’adénocarcinome pulmonaire au peroxyde d’hydrogène induit une augmentation dose dépendante de l’expression de la protéine ADAM9 transmembranaire et de sa forme sécrétée. Les études in vitro ont permis d’établir que les capacités d’adhérence et d’invasion tumorale induites par le stress oxydant sont principalement médiées par les deux isoformes de la protéine ADAM9. Par ailleurs, l’expression d’ADAM9 provoque un accroissement de la néo-angiogénèse par l’intermédiaire d’un accroissement non transcriptionel de la biosynthèse d’IL8. Cette cytokine proangiogénique va interagir avec le récepteur CXCR2 et va permettre la mise en place d’une néovascularisation in vitro. Le développement d’un modèle de xénogreffe de cellule d’adénocarcinome pulmonaire a permis de confirmer le rôle majeur d’ADAM9 dans les processus de dissémination métastatique et d’angiogénèse tumoraux. L’étude de la modulation pharmacologique d’ADAM9 a reposé sur deux stratégies pharmacologiques différentes : d’une part l’interaction directe avec les différentes isoformes d’ADAM9 au moyen d’un anticorps neutralisant et d’autre part une action sur les mécanismes de transduction cellulaire tels que la protéine SRC ou la protéine kinase C. Ce travail a permis de mieux comprendre l’implication de la protéine ADAM9 au cours du processus de cancérogenèse de part sa participation aux étapes majeures que sont la dissémination métastatique induite par le stress oxydant et l’angiogenèse
Tumor invasion is a complex mechanism that is based on the acquisition of tumor cells new functions. ADAM proteins, especially protein ADAM9, through their extracellular domain consisting of a disintegrin and metalloprotease activity, have important functions and processes necessary for invasion. However, the mechanisms regulating protein remain largely unknown in cancer pathology. The objective of this work was to evaluate the role of ADAM9 expression in tumor aggressiveness such as cell adhesion, cell migration and angiogenesis and to study the mechanisms regulating this protein expression. Given the fact that hydrogen peroxide is known to induce the expression of ADAM9 protein, the first work aimed to establish the relationship between oxidative stress, adhesion and tumor ADAM9 expression. Hydrogen peroxide induces a dose-dependent increase of both expression and activity of ADAM9 on adenocarcinoma pulmonary cells. Oxidative stress induced ADAM9 expression and activity are mainly supported by the secreted form of ADAM9 protein. In vitro studies have shown that capacity of adhesiveness and invasiveness induced by oxidative stress are mainly mediated by the two forms of ADAM9 protein. In addition, ADAM9 protein expression induces neoangiogenesis through increased production of interleukin 8. This proangiogenic cytokine that interacts with the CXCR2 receptor is able to stimulate neovascularization in vitro studies. Development of a lung adenocarcinoma xenograft model confirmed that ADAM9 protein have an important role on metastasis process and tumor angiogenesis. The study of pharmacological modulation of ADAM9 expression was based on two different pharmacological strategies: the first interacts with different isoforms of ADAM9 using a neutralizing antibody and the second strategy modulate cell transduction mechanism such as SRC protein or protein kinase C (PKC). This work aims to understand the involvement of ADAM9 protein during the process of carcinogenesis, such as tumor invasion induced by oxidative stress and neoangiogenesis

La schistosomiase est une parasitose causée par un ver plat trématode du genre Schistosoma. Cette pathologie, responsable de près de 300 000 décès par an, est essentiellement due à la forte fécondité des vers et à l’accumulation des œufs dans les tissus de l’hôte. Pour lutter contre la pathologie, un seul traitement efficace, le Praziquantel, est utilisé en masse dans les régions endémiques. Afin de parer à l’apparition de résistances au Praziquantel, le développement de molécules régulant la ponte du parasite fait partie des solutions alternatives envisagées.Les récepteurs Venus Kinase (VKRs) forment une famille de récepteurs tyrosine kinase (RTKs) spécifique des invertébrés découverte au laboratoire chez le parasite Schistosoma mansoni. Les VKRs possèdent une structure atypique associant un domaine extracellulaire de fixation au ligand de type Venus Flytrap (VFT) associé à un domaine Tyrosine Kinase (TK) intracellulaire. Deux VKRs sont exprimés chez S. mansoni : SmVKR1 et SmVKR2. Ces deux récepteurs activent les voies de signalisation ERK, Akt et JNK et jouent un rôle dans la reproduction du parasite.Du fait de leur absence dans le génome de l’Homme, et de leur rôle potentiel dans la modulation de la reproduction et du développement des parasites, les SmVKRs constituent des cibles intéressantes pour lutter contre la schistosomiase.La première partie de mon travail de thèse expose les données acquises quant au rôle des RTKs dans la régulation de la reproduction des schistosomes. Nous avons pu montrer que la conservation des domaines catalytiques des différents RTKs ouvre la voie à l’élaboration de molécules pouvant inhiber simultanément plusieurs RTKs de schistosomes afin de lutter contre la schistosomiase en agissant sur la ponte du parasite.La seconde partie de mon travail met en évidence qu’en plus d’agir directement sur l’activité des RTKs, il est possible d’inhiber les voies qu’ils activent. En effet, un criblage d’inhibiteurs de protéines kinases a permis d’identifier les composants de la voie Akt comme cibles potentielles pour lutter contre la schistosomiase : des doses très faibles (de l’ordre du nM) de certains inhibiteurs d’Akt sont capables d’inhiber l’appariement des schistosomes et la ponte.Dans la dernière partie, nous montrons que la protéine adaptatrice SmShb interagit spécifiquement avec SmVKR1 phosphorylé. Cette interaction se fait par la liaison du domaine SH2 de SmShb sur une Tyrosine phosphorylée spécifique, située dans la région juxtamembranaire du récepteur (pY979). La formation de ce complexe induit la phosphorylation de SmShb et dirige le signal de SmVKR1 spécifiquement vers la voie JNK. Des expériences d’hybridation in situ ont mis en évidence une colocalisation des transcrits de SmShb avec ceux de Smvkr1 au niveau des organes reproducteurs des vers adultes, notamment au niveau des ovocytes matures et des testicules. Le knock-down de SmShb par ARN interférence conduit à une accumulation de spermatozoïdes dans les testicules des vers mâles. Parallèlement, un criblage par la technique du triple hybride, en utilisant SmShb phosphorylé par SmVKR1 comme appât, a permis l’identification de diverses protéines partenaires de SmShb. En raison des résultats précédents, notre attention s’est portée sur deux protéines partenaires pour lesquelles l’interaction avec SmShb a été confirmée. 1) La GTPase RhoU, qui possède des fonctions potentielles dans la signalisation JNK et sur la dynamique du cytosquelette. 2) Une chaine légère de la dynéine TcTex-1 possédant un rôle potentiel dans la motilité des spermatozoïdes. L’ensemble de ces résultats suggère un rôle de SmShb dans la régulation de l’activité de SmVKR1 en permettant la formation d’un complexe multi-protéique incluant des protéines impliquées dans l’organisation du cytosquelette
Schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease caused by trematode flatworm species belonging to the genus Schistosoma. Responsible for about 300,000 deaths per year, the disease is mainly due to the high fertility of the worms and to encystment of eggs in host tissues. In order to fight against schistosomiasis, a single drug (Praziquantel) is efficient and massively distributed in endemic areas. To deal with the emergence of resistance to Praziquantel, one alternative is to consider the design of molecules that target parasite reproduction.Venus Kinase Receptors (VKRs) constitute an invertebrate Receptor Tyrosine Kinase (RTK) family initially discovered in the parasite Schistosoma mansoni. VKRs are atypical RTKs formed by an extracellular Venus Fly Trap (VFT) ligand binding domain associated via a transmembrane domain with an intracellular tyrosine kinase (TK) domain. Two VKRs are expressed in S. mansoni: SmVKR1 and SmVKR2. They both activate Erk, Akt and JNK signaling pathways and act on the parasite reproduction.As they are absent from the human genome and as they have potential roles in the modulation of reproductive processes and development of parasites, SmVKRs appear as attractive targets to fight schistosomiasis.The first part of my thesis work sets known data concerning the role of RTKs in schistosome reproduction. Here, we show that the catalytic domains are conserved across various RTKs and we open the perspective to design drugs which could inhibit several RTKs at the same time to control egg laying by schistosomes.The second part of my work describes the importance of using an alternative strategy of inhibiting downstream partners of RTKs. By screening a kinase inhibitor library, we defined the Akt pathway components as potential targets to fight schistosomiasis. Nanomolar doses of Akt inhibitors can inhibit schistosome pairing and egg laying.In the last part, we present the specific interaction of the adaptor protein SmShb with the phosphorylated form of SmVKR1. This binding occurs between the SH2 domain of SmShb and a phosphotyrosine residue (pY979) located in the juxtamembrane region of the receptor. That interaction leads to the phosphorylation of SmShb and promotes the signal of SmVKR1 towards a JNK pathway. In situ hybridization experiments highlighted that SmShb and Smvkr1 transcripts were both located in mature oocytes and testes of adult worms. RNA interference experiments using double-stranded RNA targeting SmShb led to an accumulation of mature sperm in testes of male worms. Finally, a yeast three hybrid screening, using SmShb phosphorylated by SmVKR1 as prey, allowed us to identify various protein partners. Taking advantage of previous results, we focused on two partners and confirmed their interaction with SmShb. 1) RhoU GTPase which has potential functions in JNK signalling and cytoskeleton dynamic. 2) The dynein light chain TcTex-1, with potential role in sperm motility. Altogether, this results argue for a potential role of SmShb in the regulation of the SmVKR1 activity by forming a multiprotein complex including proteins with various roles in cytoskeleton reorganization

Thesis (M. Phil.)--Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, 2004.
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 92-111). Also available in electronic version. Access restricted to campus users.

c-Src is the leading member of the Src family of non-receptor tyrosine kinases, which are involved in many signaling pathways. Its deregulation affects cell migration, proliferation and survival. c-Src is composed of the intrinsically disordered N-terminal SH4 and Unique domains, of the folded SH3, SH2, kinase domains and of a C-terminal tail. c-Src is myristoylated at its N-terminal region and anchored to membranes via cooperative electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. Weak interactions with lipids in the Unique and SH3 domains and intramolecular interactions between them were recently found in the non-myristoylated form. These interactions involve the Unique Lipid Binding region (ULBR) in the Unique domain, and the RT and nSrc loops in the SH3 domain. Our objective consisted in obtaining and characterizing the myristoylated form of the Unique and SH3 domains (MyrUSH3). Protocols for the efficient production of myristoylated proteins were developed. The incorporation of shorter acyl chains was characterized as a general problem in the preparation of myristoylated proteins, and conditions enabling to minimize their formation were found, in particular in the case of expression in minimum media. A well-defined myristoylation-induced cleavage site was identified and characterized in the Unique Lipid Binding Region of the Unique Domain of c-Src. Conditions to obtain degradation-free samples for structural studies were established. The kinetics of MyrUSH3 binding to liposomes was followed using surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and revealed two MyrUSH3 populations, a dominant form binding with relatively fast association and dissociation, and a minor persistently bound (PB) population not described earlier. This PB form was studied in an assay involving detection by a secondary antibody and the model better explaining the experimental results described these PB species to be dimer forms of MyrUSH3. In a construct in which the SH3 domain was replaced by the GFP protein, single molecule photobleaching experiments of these PB species bound to supported lipid bilayers were conducted. A major population of dimers over the bilayer surface was detected. When binding of the myristoylated SH4 (MyrSH4) peptide to liposomes by SPR, a PB population was also observed. Monitoring of the surface activity of MyrSH4 revealed the micelar behavior of the peptide at low concentrations. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) measurements permitted to study the effect of the myristoyl group on the intramolecular interactions between the Unique and SH3 domains, as well as on the binding of the ULBR and RT loops to liposomes when the protein was anchored in the bilayer. 1H-15N spectra of the myristoylated Unique domain (MyrUSrc) confirmed the propensity of the ULBR to bind liposomes, but in a different manner depending on the nature of the lipid in the bilayer. These measurements of MyrUSrc also pointed out some intermolecular propensities in the MyrSH4 domain. 1H-15N spectra of MyrUSH3 in solution revealed the presence of a myristoyl binding site has been found in the RT loop. Interaction of the myristoyl chain with lipids results in the loss of other lipid binding interactions in the Unique and SH3 domains that were observed in the non-myristoylated form. The interaction between the SH4 and the SH3 domains that restricts the conformational space of the Unique domain was preserved in the myristoylated forms and in the presence of lipids. The SPR and single molecule fluorescence studies revealed the formation of self-associated complexes of limited size upon binding of MyrUSH3 or MyrUGFP to liposomes, possibly driven by the presence of the MyrSH4 domain. The NMR data highlighted the interplay between the lipid binding regions of the Unique and SH3 domains, in presence or absence of liposomes. Therefore, the myristoylated intrinsically disordered Unique domain may act in c-Src regulation at the lipid bilayer interface.
c-Src es miembro de una importante familia de tirosina quinasas, que está involucrada en la transducción de señales en las células. c-Src está formada por una región N-terminal desordenada (compuesta de los dominios SH4 y Único), por los dominios plegados SH3, SH2, SH1 (el dominio quinasa), y por una cola C-terminal. c-Src es una proteína miristoilada en su extremo N-terminal, lo cual permite su unión a membranas, unión reforzada por la interacción del dominio SH4 polibásico con los lípidos cargados negativamente. En ausencia del grupo miristoilo, se encontraron zonas de unión a lípidos y de interacciones intramoleculares en los dominios Único y SH3. El objetivo de este trabajo es la obtención y la caracterización de la forma miristoilada de los dominios Único y SH3 (MyrUSH3). Se desarrollaron protocolos que permitieron la producción de proteínas miristoiladas. La cinética de unión de MyrUSH3 a liposomas se estudió con resonancia de plasmones superficiales. Se observó una población mayoritaria con una asociación y una disociación relativamente rápidas, y una población minoritaria con una unión persistente a liposomas. Esta segunda especie se estudió por detección secundaria via un anticuerpo y se dedujo que estaba posiblemente formada por dímeros. El dominio SH3 se remplazó por una proteína verde fluorescente (MyrUGFP) y se estudió la unión de MyrUGFP a liposomas, mediante su observación con microscopía confocal, usando la técnica de fotoblanqueo de moléculas individuales. Se observó una población mayoritaria de dímeros. A continuación, se estudió la proteína MyrUSH3 con resonancia magnética nuclear, en solución o unida a liposomas. En solución, se encontró un sitio de unión al grupo miristoil en el dominio SH3. Tras la inserción del grupo miristoil en la bicapa lipídica, se perdió la capacidad de unión a lípidos en los dominios Único y SH3 (excepto el dominio SH4), y algunas interacciones intramoleculares fueron afectadas.

c-Src is a non-receptor tyrosine kinase that controls numerous cellular signaling pathways. c-Src implication in human cancers was brought into the attention in the 1980s. Since its discovery, unveiling of c-Src structural architecture and subsequent regulatory function focused on the folded domains cassette SH3-SH2-SH1(kinase), while the remaining N-terminal intrinsically disordered myristoylated SH4 and Unique domains were assumed to have a membrane-connecting function. c-Src membrane binding has been well-characterized as a two-prong association requiring the burial of its myristoyl moiety and the electrostatic interaction of the cluster of basic residues in the SH4 domain to the anionic lipids. Membrane binding of c-Src is mostly reversible, however accumulated evidence shows clustering and irreversible binding of a small fraction of c-Src molecules upon membrane anchoring. All the elements required for c-Src self-association are found in the N-terminal myristoylated SH4 domain. However, self-association through the strongly positively charged SH4 domain (+5 net charge) is counterintuitive. The structural basis of this self- association has been investigated in this thesis using Surface Plasmon Resonance. Performing individual mutations, we have determined that the alternate lysine residues at positions 5, 7 and 9 in the myristoylated SH4 domain enables c-Src self-association upon membrane binding. Further analysis reveals that the positive charge of the lysine residues is essential for clustering and thus a role of the lipids in the membrane as mediators of the c-Src self-association is proposed. Recently, it was shown that the (non-myristoylated) N-terminal region comprising the intrinsically disordered SH4-Unique domains and the adjacent globular SH3 domain formed a novel regulatory unit designated as the c-Src N-terminal Regulatory Element (SNRE). The (non- myristoylated) SNRE features an interdomain fuzzy complex, where the Intrinsically Disordered Regions: SH4 and Unique domains (IDR) maintain multiple weak contacts with the SH3 domain. The unavoidable question is whether the nature of this fuzzy complex is altered when the SH4 domain is in its native myristoylated form. In this thesis, characterization of the myristoylated SNRE has been performed using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and various constructs of the SNRE in the myristoylated and non-myristoylated forms. We show that the myristoyl moiety increases the local concentration of the intrinsically disordered SH4 and Unique domains in the proximity of the SH3 domain by cooperatively favoring the intramolecular interactions that define the fuzzy complex. When c-Src is not bound to the membrane, the myristoyl moiety is harbored in the fuzzy interdomain complex through multiple binding sites in the SH3 domain. Finally, a preliminary characterization of the SNRE with the adjacent SH2 domain has revealed that the interface region connecting the SH3-SH2 could also be a key component of the SNRE.
c-Src es una tirosina quinasa no receptora que regula múltiples vías de señalización celular. Destaca su implicación en diversos tipos de cáncer en humanos. Desde su descubrimiento, el análisis de la arquitectura estructural de c-Src y posteriormente la función reguladora se centró en el casete de dominios plegados SH3-SH2-SH1 (quinasa), mientras que se asumió que la función de los dominios N-terminales intrínsecamente desordenados SH4 miristoilado y Unique era la unión a membrana. La asociación de c-Src a la membrana citoplasmática se caracteriza por la inserción del grupo miristoilo y la interacción electrostática del clúster de residuos básicos del dominio SH4 con los lípidos cargados negativamente. La interacción de c-Src con la membrana es en general reversible, aunque, se ha observado que una fracción minoritaria se une de manera permanente formando en su mayoría especies diméricas en la membrana. Esta dimerización de c-Src se produce mediante el dominio N-terminal SH4 miristoilado. Sin embargo, la autoasociación a través del dominio SH4 con una alta carga positiva (carga neta +5) es algo contradictoria. En la presente tesis se ha investigado la base estructural de esta autoasociación mediante Resonancia de Plasmones Superficiales. Mediante la realización mutaciones individuales en el dominio SH4 se determina que los residuos de lisina en las posiciones alternativas 5, 7 y 9 en el dominio SH4 miristoilado permiten la autoasociación de c- Src tras la unión a la membrana. Un análisis más detallado revela que la carga positiva de los residuos de lisina es esencial para la dimerización y, por lo tanto, se propone que los lípidos de la membrana son mediadores de la autoasociación de c-Src. Recientemente, se demostró que la región N-terminal (no miristoilada) que comprende los dominios intrínsecamente desordenados (SH4-Unique) y el dominio globular adyacente SH3 forman una unidad funcional conocida como Elemento Regulador N-terminal de c-Src (ERNS). El ERNS (no miristoilado) se caracteriza por la formación de un complejo difuso, donde las regiones intrínsecamente desordenadas: dominios SH4 y Unique mantienen múltiples interacciones débiles con el dominio SH3. La pregunta inevitable es si la naturaleza de este complejo difuso se altera cuando el dominio SH4 está en su forma nativa miristoilada. En esta tesis, se ha realizado la caracterización de la ERNS miristoilada mediante Resonancia Magnética Nuclear y utilizando varias construcciones del ERNS en las formas miristoilada y no miristoilada. Se demuestra que el grupo miristoílo aumenta la concentración local de los dominios SH4 y Unique intrínsecamente desordenados en la proximidad del dominio SH3 favoreciendo cooperativamente las interacciones intramoleculares que definen el complejo difuso. Cuando c- Src no está unido a la membrana, el grupo miristoílo se aloja de manera dinámica en el complejo difuso a través de múltiples sitios de unión en el dominio SH3. Por último, se ha realizado una caracterización preliminar del ERNS en presencia del dominio SH2 adyacente y ésta ha revelado que la región interfaz que conecta los dominios SH3-SH2 también podría ser un componente clave del ERNS.

c-Src is a central player in several cellular signaling pathways. It controls impor- tant cellular processes like cellular proliferation, survival or motility. Therefore, a number of tumoral diseases have been related to abnormal c-Src activity. Among them, colorectal cancer stands out, as c-Src deregulation correlates with tumor progression and clinical outcome. This tyrosine kinase is part of a larger group of functionally and structurally related proteins termed Src Family Kinases. These proteins share the same domain architecture: a cassette formed by a catalytic domain (SH1), two reg- ulatory domains, SH2 and SH3, and a variable intrinsically disordered region (the Unique domain) that ultimately anchors to the inner face of the cellular membrane via the N-terminal SH4 domain, also disordered. The sequence and structure of the cassette are highly conserved, and thus unsurprisingly Src Family Kinases perform closely related and often overlapping functions. However, the role of intrinsically disordered regions has remained unclear, although they are known to be functionally relevant. In this work, the structural and functional relationship between the intrinsically disordered SH4 and Unique domains with the neighboring folded SH3 domain in c-Src is explored. Interactions between disordered and ordered proteins are often characterized by the formation of complexes that are specific and functional but structurally heterogeneous. Moreover, conformational plasticity is a fundamental feature for function. These assemblies are known as fuzzy complexes. Here this theoretical framework, usually applied to isolated partners, is extended to the intramolecular interface between covalently bound domains instead of isolated pairs. The concept of fuzzy binding is also used in order to describe interactions based on sets of dynamic, transient, and promiscuous contacts between ill-defined sets of interactors. In order to characterize the system, an integrative strategy using short and long range Nuclear Magnetic Resonance techniques and Small Angle X-ray Scattering is applied to several constructs containing different combinations of bound or isolated domains. It is demonstrated that the folded SH3 domain acts as a scaffold for the disordered region, which interacts in a specific manner with its partner. Both disordered domains, SH4 and Unique, are involved in the process albeit they contribute differently. Additionally, it is shown that the Unique domain is not a random coil, but contains a significant degree of pre-arrangement that is independent of the scaffold. Sequence determinants are then searched by comparison of the sequences of different Src Family Kinases. Four conserved phenylalanine residues are found and their implication in Unique domain pre-organization and Unique:SH3 domain interaction tested. All these amino acids are found to favor compaction of the intrinsically disordered region, and at the same time to perturb close contact with the scaffold. In addition, mutations in the interacting zones of the SH3 domain are also studied to test reciprocity. In all, the fuzzy complex model is proven for the SH4:Unique:SH3 system. Then, the results are extrapolated to the full-length c-Src to test its biological relevance. A co evolutionary analysis suggests that the fuzzy model may be a general feature for the whole Src Family, so the closest member of the family, Yes, is also tested experimentally. The initial results on long-range contacts suggests a similar arrangement between the scaffold and the disordered region. In all, it is suggested that plastic, fuzzy interfaces between ordered and disordered domains may be a relevant mode for the transmission of functional information within multidomain proteins. Finally, a first approach for a structural study of the c-Src fuzzy complex in a native-like lipid environment, including natural co-translational modifications, is presented. A protocol for sample preparation is developed and Dynamic Nuclear Polarization solid state NMR is shown to be an adequate tool for further analysis.
c-Src es una tirosina quinasa clave en múltiples rutas de señalización celulares. Su desregulación ha sido asociada a diversos procesos tumorales, entre los que destaca el cáncer de cólon. Una actividad anómala de c-Src se correlaciona con el desarrollo tumoral y pronóstico clínico desfavorable. c-Src forma parte de un grupo de proteínas relacionadas estructural y funcional- mente, la Familia de Quinasas Src. Todas ellas comparten la misma arquitectura modular, que incluye un dominio catalítico (SH1), dos dominios regulatorios, SH2 y SH3, y a continuación una región variable intrínsecamente desordenada que incluye los dominios Único y SH4. Mientras que el segmento ordenado está bien caracterizado, el papel de la región desordenada no está claro, aunque es funcionalmente relevante. En este trabajo se explora la relación estructural y funcional entre la región desordenada y el dominio ordenado adyacente SH3. Dado que este tipo de interacciones implican un grado significativo de heterogeneidad estructural, se ha aplicado el concepto de unión difusa para caracterizar este sistema. Este marco teórico permite modelar interacciones basadas en contactos dinámicos y transitorios entre múltiples interactores vagamente definidos, que sin embargo son específicos y funcionales. Para ello, se ha usado una estrategia que implica el uso combinado de técnicas de Resonancia Magnética Nuclear de largo y corto alcance, así como Dispersión de rayos X a Bajo Ángulo. Se demuestra así que el dominio plegado SH3 actúa como armazón para la región desordenada, que a su vez contiene un grado significativo de pre-organización estructural. Se han identificado cuatro fenilalaninas en el dominio Único responsables de esta pre-formación que también afectan a la interacción entre la región desordenada y el armazón. Los resultados demuestran que el conjunto de dominios SH4, Único y SH3 forman una unidad funcional que puede ser definida como un complejo difuso. Además, datos teóricos y experimentales de otros miembros de la familia sugieren que el modelo difuso es una característica común de todos ellos. Finalmente, se ha demostrado que la Resonancia Magnética de estado sólido con Polarización Dinámica Nuclear es una técnica adecuada para el estudio estructural de c-Src unida a una matriz lipídica similar a la natural.

The altered protein expression and activity of receptor tyrosine kinases (TK) are implicated in the progression of various types of cancers. One such dysfunction is the overexpression of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) that correlates with aggressive tumor progression and poor prognosis. On the other hand, c-Src non-receptor tyrosine kinase is overexpressed and activated in a large number of human malignancies and has been strongly linked to progression to distant metastases. c-Src-induced phosphorylation of EGFR is required for EGF-mediated mitogenesis, tumorigenesis and tumour invasiveness. Thus we surmised that molecules termed "combi-molecules" designed to block both EGFR and c-Src should not only possess significant growth inhibitory potency but also strong anti-invasive properties. In this thesis, we utilized molecular modeling to design molecules containing two moieties: one that straddles the structure of the known Src inhibitor PP2 and the other that mimics the backbone of Iressa, a potent EGFR inhibitor. Of all the molecules synthesized, only SB163 containing the longest spacer between the two moieties was capable of inducing a dose dependent inhibition of both Src and EGFR. More importantly, SB163 blocked cell motility in the wound healing assay and showed significantly greater anti-invasive activity than a PP2+Iressa combination. The observation that SB163 was a less potent EGFR or Src inhibitor than Iressa and PP2 suggests that its superior potency when compared with the PP2+ Iressa combination may be at least partially attributed to mechanisms other than EGFR or Src blockade. This was also corroborated by the fact that SB163, despite its significant bulkiness (>700) could induce dose dependent inhibition of other kinase such PDFGR and Abl. The results in toto suggest that conferring multiple kinase targeting properties to single molecules can lead to highly anti-proliferative and anti-invasive agents. Traditionally, multi-kinase targeted molecules were discovered serendipitously through multi-kinase testing. Here we initiated a more rational approach to the design of single multi-targeted molecules. Cancer being a complex disease driven by tumours characterized by multiple disordered signaling pathways, this approach may well represent a novel avenue in the therapy of refractory malignancies.

The central role of Src in the development of several malignancies including breast cancer and the accumulating evidence of its interaction with receptor tyrosine kinases (RTK), integrins and steroid receptors have identified it as an attractive therapeutic target. In the current study we have evaluated the effect of a Src/Abl kinase inhibitor SKI-606, on breast cancer growth, migration, invasion and metastasis. Treatment of human breast cancer cells MDA-MB-231 with SKI-606 caused a marked inhibition of cell proliferation, invasion and migration by inhibiting MAPK and Akt phosphorylation. For in vivo studies MDA-MB-231 cells transfected with the plasmid encoding green fluorescent protein (GFP) [MDA-MB-231-GFP] were inoculated into mammary fat pad of female BALB/c nu/nu mice. Once tumor volume reached 30-50 mm3, animals were randomized and treated with vehicle alone or 150 mg/kg of SKI-606 by daily oral gavage. Experimental animals receiving SKI-606 developed tumors of significantly smaller volume (45-54%) as compared to control animals receiving vehicle alone. Analysis of lungs, liver and spleen of these animals showed a significant decrease in GFP positive tumor metastasis in animals receiving SKI-606 at a dose that was well tolerated. Western blot analysis and immunohistochemical analysis of primary tumors showed that these effects were due to the ability of SKI-606 to block tumor cell proliferation, angiogenesis, growth factors expression and inhibition of Src mediated signalling pathways in vivo. Together the results from these studies provide compelling evidence for the use of Src inhibitors as therapeutic agents for blocking breast cancer growth and metastasis.

Breast cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers in the world. Each year, over 400,000 women die from breast cancer world wide and metastasis is the main cause of their mortality. Tumor cell invasion into the adjacent tissue is the first step in the multistep process of cancer metastasis and it involves multiple protein changes. The α6β4 integrin, a transmembrane heterodimeric laminin receptor is associated with poor prognosis in many tumor types, including breast cancer. Src family kinase (SFK) activity is elevated in many cancers and this activity also correlates with invasive tumor behavior. The α6β4 integrin can stimulate SFK activation and promote cancer invasion, however the mechanism by which it does so is not known. In the current study, I provide novel mechanistic insight into how the α6β4 integrin selectively activates the Src family kinase member Fyn in response to receptor engagement. Specifically, the tyrosine phosphatase SHP2 is recruited to α6β4 and its catalytic activity is stimulated through a specific interaction of its N-terminal SH2 domain with pY1494 in the β4 subunit. Importantly, both catalytic and non-catalytic functions of SHP2 are required for Fyn activation by α6β4. Fyn is recruited to the α6β4/SHP2 complex through an interaction with phospho-Y580 in the C-terminus of SHP2. In addition to activating Fyn, this interaction with Y580-SHP2 localizes Fyn to sites of receptor engagement, which is required for α6β4-dependent invasion. Moreover, the selective activation of Fyn, but not Src, requires the palmitoylation modification of Fyn on its N-terminus. Of clinical relevance, phospho-Y580-SHP2 and phospho-Y418-SFK could be used as potential biomarkers of invasive breast cancer because their expression are elevated in high-grade breast tumors.

L'activació sostinguda de Hog1 porta a una inhibició del creixement cel·lular. En aquest treball, hem observat que el fenotip de letalitat causat per l'activació sostinguda de Hog1 és parcialment inhibida per la mutació del complexe SCFCDC4. La inhibició de la mort causada per l'activació sostinguda de Hog1 depèn de la via d'extensió de la vida. Quan Hog1 s'activa de manera sostinguda, la mutació al complexe SCFCDC4 fa que augmenti l'expressió gènica depenent de Msn2 i Msn4 que condueix a una sobreexpressió del gen PNC1 i a una hiperactivació de la deacetilassa Sir2. La hiperactivació de Sir2 és capaç d'inhibir la mort causada per l'activació sostinguda de Hog1.
També hem observat que la mort cel·lular causada per l'activació sostinguda de Hog1 és deguda a una inducció d'apoptosi. L'apoptosi induïda per Hog1 és inhibida per la mutació al complexe SCFCDC4. Per tant, la via d'extensió de la vida és capaç de prevenir l'apoptosi a través d'un mecanisme desconegut.
Sustained Hog1 activation leads to an inhibition of cell growth. In this work, we have observed that the lethal phenotype caused by sustained Hog1 activation is prevented by SCFCDC4 mutants. The prevention of Hog1-induced cell death by SCFCDC4 mutation depends on the lifespan extension pathway. Upon sustained Hog1 activation, SCFCDC4 mutation increases Msn2 and Msn4 dependent gene expression that leads to a PNC1 overexpression and a Sir2 deacetylase hyperactivation. Then, hyperactivation of Sir2 is able to prevent cell death caused by sustained Hog1 activation.
We have also observed that cell death upon sustained Hog1 activation is due to an induction of apoptosis. The apoptosis induced by Hog1 is decreased by SCFCDC4 mutation. Therefore, lifespan extension pathway is able to prevent apoptosis by an unknown mechanism.

碩士
國防醫學院
藥理學研究所
98
Sepsis is the systemic inflammatory response with infection. Usually, septic shock is occurred at the late phase of sepsis. Septic shock is characterized by severe hypotension and reduced response to vasopressor agents, called vascular hyporeactivity. The hypotension and vascular hyporeactvity are associated with the development of multiple organs dysfunction which causes death eventually. Thus, it is important to investigate the mechanism of vascular hyporeactivity in septic shock. Among the cell signaling pathways that are crucial to control vascular tone, Ca2+-sensitization contraction has become more and more important. The small GTP-binding protein, RhoA, plays a crucial role in mediating smooth muscle contraction. Activation of RhoA leads to inactivation of myosin light chain phosphatase via activation of Rho-kinase. The activation of RhoA is controlled by three mediators, GEF (guanine nucleotide exchange factor), GAP (GTPase activating protein) and GDI (GDP dissociation inhibitor). Among these mediators, GEF has been regarded as the most important one for RhoA activation. It has been shown that Src family tyrosine kinase (SFK) can activate RhoA via phosphorylation of GEF. In addition, it is reported that activation of PKC can lead to Ca2+-independent vasocontraction through activation of RhoA. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of PKC and SFK in RhoA activity in thoracic aortae from endotoxemic rats. Rats received an intravenous injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 10 mg/kg) for 4 hours. After then, rats were sacrificed and the thoracic aortae were excised and immediately incubated in GF-109203X (PKC inhibitor) and PP2 (SFK inhibitor). We found that RhoA activity was decreased significantly in aortae from endotoxic rats. GF-109203X and PP2 had inhibitory effect in aortae from endotoxic rats only. In addition, the phosphorylation of SFK was decreased by GF-109203X in endotoxemic rats. In conclusion, PKC and SFK might play a more crucial role in RhoA activation and PKC might play a more important role in activation of SFK endotoxemic rats. These results suggest that RhoA is related to vascular hyporeactivity caused by LPS-induced septic shock. In addition, PKC and SFK might be targets for improving vascular hyporeactivity.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)
Murine double minute (Mdm2) is a highly modified and multi-faceted protein that is overexpressed in numerous human malignancies. It engages in many cellular activities and is essential for development since deletion of mdm2 is lethal in early stages of embryonic development. The most studied function of Mdm2 is as a negative regulator of the tumor suppressor protein p53. Mdm2 achieves this regulation by binding to p53 and inhibiting p53 transcriptional activity. Mdm2 also functions as an E3 ubiquitin ligase that signals p53 for destruction by the proteasome. Interestingly recent evidence has shown that Mdm2 can also function as an E3 neddylating enzyme that can conjugate the ubiquitin-like molecule, nedd8, to p53. This modification results in inhibition of p53 activity, while maintaining p53 protein levels. While the signaling events that regulate Mdm2 E3 ubiquitin ligase activity have been extensively studied, what activates the neddylating activity of Mdm2 has remained elusive. My investigations have centered on understanding whether tyrosine kinase signaling could activate the neddylating activity of Mdm2. I have shown that c-Src, a non-receptor protein tyrosine kinase that is involved in a variety of cellular processes, phosphorylates Mdm2 on tyrosines 281 and 302. This phosphorylation event increases the half-life and neddylating activity of Mdm2 resulting in a neddylation dependent reduction of p53 transcriptional activity. Mdm2 also has many p53-independent cellular functions that are beginning to be linked to its role as an oncogene. There is an emerging role for Mdm2 in tumor metastasis. Metastasis is a process involving tumor cells migrating from a primary site to a distal site and is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in cancer patients. To date, the involvement of Mdm2 in breast cancer metastasis has only been correlative, with no in vivo model to definitively define a role for Mdm2. Here I have shown in vivo that Mdm2 enhances breast to lung metastasis through the up regulation of multiple angiogenic factors, including HIF-1 alpha and VEGF. Taken together my data provide novel insights into important p53-dependent and independent functions of Mdm2 that represent potential new avenues for therapeutic intervention.

8 1 ABSTRACT (EN) This thesis is focused mainly on understanding mechanisms of regulatory roles of C-terminal Src kinase (CSK) and phosphoprotein associated with glycosphingolipid- enriched microdomains (PAG) in the high-affinity IgE receptor (FcɛRI)-mediated signaling of murine mast cells. FcɛRI activation is initiated by aggregation of the receptor by complexes of multivalent antigen with IgE, followed by activation and enhanced activities of protein tyrosine kinases, phosphatases, adaptor proteins and number of other signal transduction molecules. The signaling events result in mast cell degranulation and release of variety of proinflammatory mediators, responsible for initiation of allergy and other inflammatory diseases. Understanding the function of key regulatory molecules controlling FcεRI-mediated mast cell activation, degranulation, and cytokines production could have therapeutic impact. CSK is a major negative regulator of Src family tyrosine kinases (SFKs) that play a critical role in various immunoreceptor signaling events. However, its function in mast cell activation has not been completely understood. Because of its cytoplasmic localization, CSK was assumed to be brought to the vicinity of the plasma membrane- bound SFKs via binding to membrane-bound adaptors and PAG was a major candidate....

Essentiell für die Blutstillung (Haemostase) ist die Thrombozyten- oder Blutplaettchen-Adhaesion und die Thrombus-Bildung. Beide Vorgaenge werden hauptsaechlich durch den Thrombozyten-Rezeptor Integrin alphaIIb-beta3 vermittelt. Nach Bindung des Liganden Fibrinogen aendert sich die Rezeptor-Konformation, Integrine assoziieren und ein intrazellulaeres Signalnetzwerk wird aktiviert, welches die Organisation des Aktin-Zytoskeletts steuert. Diese Zytoskelett-Reorganisationen sind Grundlage für zellulaere Adhaesions- und Aggregations-Prozesse. Die Signalvermittlung vom Integrin zum Zytoskelett wird durch die Protein-Tyrosinkinase Src eingeleitet, deren Aktivitaetszustand den Signalweg reguliert. Bei der Src-Aktivierung wird Tyrosin 418 durch Autokatalyse phosphoryliert. Die Kinase muss jedoch wieder inaktiviert werden. Dies übernimmt in Plaettchen ausschliesslich die Tyrosinkinase Csk (C-terminale Src Kinase) durch Phosphorylierung von Tyrosin 529 im C-terminalen Ende des Proteins. Die Csk-vermittelte Inaktivierung von Src stellt den entscheidenden Kontrollschritt des alphaIIb-beta3-vermittelten Signalwegs dar. Obwohl bekannt ist, dass die Src-Aktivierung bei der Zelladhaesion an den Zellraendern der Lamellipodien geschieht und man den Mechanismus und die Kinetik der Src-Csk Interaktion genauer versteht, ist bislang immer noch unbekannt, wo und wie Src inaktiviert wird bzw. welche Rolle der Src-Inaktivierung genau zukommt. FRET (Fluoreszenz-Resonanz-Energie-Transfer) ist ein physikalischer Effekt, mit dem Interaktionen beliebiger fluoreszenzmarkierter Proteine mikroskopisch detektiert werden koennen. Diese Technik wurde genutzt, um die Src-Csk-Interaktion waehrend der alphaIIb-beta3-vermittelten Fibrinogen-Adhaesion in einer etablierten Thrombozyten-Modellzelllinie (A5-CHO) direkt visualisierbar zu machen. Es zeigten sich starke Src-Csk Interaktionen (FRET-Signale) an den Zellraendern aktiver Lamellipodien und zusaetzlich in Fokalkontakten, wo beide Proteine mit Vinculin, einem Fokalkontakte-Marker, co-lokalisierten. Die Proteininteraktionen folgten einem hochdynamischen Ablauf. Nach der Akkumulation der Src-Csk Komplexe an den Zellraendern wanderten sie in Abstaenden von 2-3 Minuten nach innen, fragmentierten und bildeten schliesslich stabile Fokal-Adhaesionen. FRET-Signale an den Zellraendern fanden sich vor allem in ruhenden Lamellipodien bzw., waehrend des Lamellipodien-Rückzugs, in wachsenden Lamellipodien traten die FRET-Signale dort dagegen nicht auf. In unabhaengigen biochemischen Tests im Zeitfenster der FRET-Beobachtungen wurde ein spezifischer Anstieg der Src-Tyr529-Phosphorylierung (Inaktivierung) und eine parallele Abnahme der Src-Tyr418-Phosphorylierung (Aktivierung) gemessen. Weiterführende Ergebnisse lieferten Versuche mit Src- und Csk-Mutanten. Die Co-Expression von Wildtyp-Src mit Kinase-inaktivem CskK222R hatte weder einen Effekt auf die Adhaesion und Ausbreitung der Zellen noch auf die Praesenz von FRET, es aenderte sich jedoch drastisch die zellulaere Verteilung der FRET-Signale sowie das Wachstum und die Form der Lamellipodien. Die Co-Expression von Wildtyp-Csk mit konstitutiv aktivem SrcY529F verursachte dagegen eine stark verringerte Adhaesionsfaehigkeit und Hemmung der Lamellipodien-Bildung. Die Fokal-Adhaesionspunkte in diesen Zellen waren sehr schwach und ueberdimensioniert und lagen ungeordnet verteilt in der Adhaesionsebene. Zusaetzlich verursachte SrcY529F eine starke Ueberaktivierung des Zytoskeletts und das fast vollstaendige Verschwinden der FRET-Signale. Die ermittelten Daten zeigen, dass die enge Kontrolle der Src-Aktivitaet durch Csk eine bedeutende Rolle für die funktionelle Zell-Adhaesion and -Ausbreitung spielt. Co-Immunpraezipitations-Resultate und Messungen der Menge an markiertem Protein in Zellen, in welchen FRET detektierbar war, untermauern zusaetzlich unsere These, zum ersten Mal die Src-Regulation durch Csk in lebenden Zellen direkt beobachtbar gemacht zu haben. Dieser neue FRET-Ansatz kann auch als Reporter-System für Prozesse der Src-Inaktivierung in anderen Signalwegen und Zellen angewendet werden. Das Messprinzip kann weiterhin auf das Studium der Inaktivierung weiterer Mitglieder der Familie der Src-Kinasen (in verschiedensten Signalwegen) erweitert werden
Platelet adhesion and thrombus formation required for functional hemostasis depends on integrin receptor mediated “outside-in” signaling to the cytoskeleton. Integrin alphaIIb-beta3 is the major integrin on the platelet surface and acts as a specific receptor for the plasma protein fibrinogen. Fibrinogen binding causes clustering of integrins within the plasma membrane activating the protein tyrosine kinase Src (signal initiation) by phosphorylation of tyrosine 418. Src, however, is negatively regulated by another tyrosine kinase, Csk (C-terminal Src kinase), which phosphorylates tyrosine 529. Although, in adhering cells, it is believed that Src is getting activated at lamellipodia leading edges, neither the cellular location nor the dynamics and exact role of Src inactivation is known to date. Here, we studied Src inactivation during alphaIIb-beta3-dependent adhesion to fibrinogen in the established platelet model cell line A5-CHO. Using a live cell FRET (fluorescence resonance energy transfer) microscopy technique with CFP and YFP label molecules (cyan and yellow fluorescent protein), we were able to image highly dynamic Src-Csk interactions at the leading edges of active lamellipodia. Every 2-3 minutes, signals detecting Src-Csk interactions (complexes) appeared at the cell periphery before they begin to move inward in the cell and reorganize while lamellipodia start to protrude (grow). FRET signals were also found in small accumulations at the fringe and also further to the centre of the adhesion plane (focal complexes and adhesions). Src and Csk co-localize with vinculin (a focal adhesion marker) within these regions. During the runtime of FRET observation a specific increase in Src-Tyr529 phosphorylation with a parallel decrease in Src-Tyr418 phosphorylation was observed supporting the idea that Src inactivation occurs within the cells. The role of Src-Csk interaction was studied in further detail using Src and Csk mutants. The data revealed that co-expression of inactive CskK222R did not alter the presence of FRET signals, but fundamentally changed its distribution within the cell. Furthermore it caused lamellipodia shape changes and a tendency of constant lamellipodia protrusion. Co-expression of constitutively active SrcY529F in turn caused a severe adhesion and spreading dysfunction. Adherent cells showed very weak, disorganized and oversized focal adhesions, a hyper-activated cytoskeleton (visible in fast-changing membrane blebs) and absence of FRET signals. Results from immunoprecipitation analyses and protein level determination within cells, in which FRET was detectable, further supported that we were able, for the first time, to directly visualize Src (and integrin) regulation by Csk control in live cells. The results show that Src control by Csk is ultimately required for lamellipodia and focal adhesion function and thus for cell anchorage and spreading. The novel FRET-approach reported here can be readily applied to other integrin and signaling pathways including the study of closely related Src family kinases (SFKs). Results may also contribute to a better understanding of the processes of tumor formation

L'endothéline-1 (ET-1) et l'angiotensine II (Ang II) jouent un rôle important dans le maintien de la pression artérielle et l'homéostasie vasculaire. Une activité accrue de ces peptides vasoactifs est présumée contribuer au développement de pathologies vasculaires, telles que l'hypertension, l'athérosclérose, l'hypertrophie et la resténose. Ceci est causé par une activation excessive de plusieurs voies de signalisation hypertrophiques et prolifératives, qui incluent des membres de la famille des Mitogen Activated Protein Kinases (MAPK), ainsi que la famille phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-K) / protéine kinase B (PKB). Bien que l'activation de ces voies de signalisation soit bien élucidée, les éléments en amont responsables de l'activation des MAPK et de la PKB, induite par l'ET-1 et Ang II, demeurent mal compris. Durant les dernières années, le concept de la transactivation de récepteurs et/ou non-récepteurs protéines tyrosine kinases (PTK) dans le déclenchement des événements de signalisation induits par les peptides vasoactifs a gagné beaucoup de reconnaissance. Nous avons récemment démontré que la PTK Insulin-like Growth Factor type-1 Receptor (IGF-1R) joue un rôle dans la transduction des signaux induits par l‟H2O2, menant à la phosphorylation de la PKB. Étant donné que les peptides vasoactifs génèrent des espèces réactives d'oxygène, telles que l‟H2O2 lors de leur signalisation, nous avons examiné le rôle de d‟IGF-1R dans la phosphorylation de la PKB et les réponses hypertrophiques dans les cellules muscle lisse vasculaires (CMLV) induites par l'ET-1 et Ang II. AG-1024, un inhibiteur spécifique de l'IGF-1R, a atténué la phosphorylation de la PKB induite à la fois par l'ET-1 et Ang II. Le traitement des CMLVs avec l‟ET-1 et Ang II a également induit une phosphorylation des résidus tyrosine dans les sites d'autophosphorylation d'IGF-1R, celle-ci a été bloquée par l‟AG-1024. En outre, l‟ET-1 et l‟Ang II on tous les deux provoqué la phosphorylation de c-Src, une PTK non-récepteur, bloqué par PP-2, inhibiteur spécifique de la famille Src. La PP-2 a également inhibé la phosphorylation de PKB et d‟IGF-1R induite par l‟ET-1 et l‟Ang II. De plus, la synthèse de protéines ainsi que d‟ADN, marqueurs de la prolifération cellulaire et de l'hypertrophie, ont également été atténuée par l‟AG-1024 et le PP-2. Bien que ce travail démontre le rôle de c-Src dans la phosphorylation PKB induite par l'ET-1 et Ang II, son rôle dans l'activation des MAPK induit par l'ET-1 dans les CMLVs reste controversé. Par conséquent, nous avons examiné l'implication de c-Src dans l'activation de ERK 1/2, JNK et p38MAPK, par l'ET-1 et Ang II, ainsi que leur capacité à régulariser l'expression du facteur de transcription Early growth transcription factor-1 « Egr-1 ». ET-1 et Ang II ont induit la phosphorylation de ERK 1/2, JNK et p38 MAPK, et ont amplifié l'expression d'Egr-1 dans les CMLVs. Cette augmentation de la phosphorylation des MAPK a été diminuée par la PP-2, qui a aussi atténué l'expression d'Egr-1 induite par l'ET-1 et l'Ang II. Une preuve supplémentaire du rôle de c-Src dans ce processus a été obtenue en utilisant des fibroblastes embryonnaires de souris déficientes en c-Src (Src -/- MEF). L'expression d'Egr-1, ainsi que l'activation des trois MAPKs par l'ET-1 ont été atténuées dans les cellules Src -/- par rapport au MEF exprimant des taux normaux Src. En résumé, ces données suggèrent que l'IGF-1R et c-Src PTK jouent un rôle essentiel dans la régulation de la phosphorylation de PKB et des MAPK dans l‟expression d'Egr-1, ainsi que dans les réponses hypertrophiques et prolifératives induites par l'ET-1 et Ang II dans les CMLVs.
Endothelin-1 (ET-1) and angiotensin II (Ang II) play important roles in maintaining blood pressure and vascular homeostasis, and a heightened activity of these vasoactive peptides is thought to contribute to the development of vascular pathologies, such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, hypertrophy and restenosis. This is caused by an excessive activation of several growth and proliferative signaling pathways, which include members of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family, as well as the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-K)/protein kinase B (PKB) pathway. While the activation of these signaling pathways is well elucidated, the upstream elements responsible for ET-1 and Ang II-induced MAPK and PI3-K/PKB activation remain poorly understood. During the last several years, the concept of transactivation of receptor and/or non-receptor protein tyrosine kinases (PTK) in triggering vasoactive peptide-induced signaling events has gained much recognition. We have recently demonstrated that insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R) plays a role in tranducing the effect of H2O2, leading to PKB phosphorylation. Since vasoactive peptides elicit their responses through generation of reactive oxygen species, including H2O2, we investigated whether IGF-1R transactivation plays a similar role in ET-1 and Ang II-induced PKB phosphorylation and hypertrophic responses in VSMC. AG-1024, a specific inhibitor of IGF-1R, attenuated both ET-1 and Ang II-induced PKB phosphorylation in a dose-dependent manner. ET-1 and Ang II treatment also induced the phosphorylation of tyrosine residues in the autophosphorylation sites of IGF-1R, which was blocked by AG-1024. In addition, both ET-1 and Ang II evoked tyrosine phosphorylation of c-Src, a non-receptor PTK, and pharmacological inhibition of c-Src PTK activity by PP-2, a specific inhibitor of Src-family tyrosine kinase, significantly reduced PKB phosphorylation as well as tyrosine phosphorylation of IGF-1R induced by the two vasoactive peptides. Furthermore, protein and DNA synthesis, markers of cell growth and proliferation, enhanced by ET-1 and Ang II were also attenuated by AG-1024 and PP-2. While this work demonstrates the role of c-Src in ET-1 and Ang II-induced PKB phosphorylation, its role in ET-1-induced MAPK signaling and regulation of transcription factors, such as early growth response factor-1 (Egr-1), which was recently shown to be expressed in atherosclerotic plaque, remains controversial in VSMC. Therefore, we have also investigated the involvement of c-Src in ET-1 and Ang II-induced ERK 1/2, JNK and p38mapk activation, as well as Egr-1 regulation. ET-1 and Ang II-induced the phosphorylation of ERK 1/2, JNK and p38mapk, and enhanced the expression of Egr-1 in aortic VSMC. This increased phosphorylation was decreased by PP-2. Further proof for the role of c-Src in this process was obtained by using mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) deficient in c-Src (Src -/- MEF). ET-1-induced Egr-1 expression, as well as MAPK activation, were found to be downregulated in Src -/- MEF, as compared to MEF expressing normal Src levels. In summary, these data demonstrate that IGF-1R and c-Src PTK play a critical role in mediating both PKB and MAPK phosphorylation and Egr-1 expression, as well as hypertrophic and proliferative responses induced by ET-1 and Ang II in VSMC.

Resveratrol, an activator of histone deacetylase Sirt-1, has been proposed to have beneficial health effects due to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the mechanisms underlying the anti-inflammatory effects of resveratrol and the intracellular signaling pathways involved are poorly understood. An in vitro model of human tenocytes was used to examine the mechanism of resveratrol action on IL-1beta-mediated inflammatory signaling. Resveratrol suppressed IL-1beta-induced activation of NF-kappaB and PI3K in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Treatment with resveratrol enhanced the production of matrix components collagen types I and III, tenomodulin, and tenogenic transcription factor scleraxis, whereas it inhibited gene products involved in inflammation and apoptosis. IL-1beta-induced NF-kappaB and PI3K activation was inhibited by resveratrol or the inhibitors of PI3K (wortmannin), c-Src (PP1), and Akt (SH-5) through inhibition of IkappaB kinase, IkappaBalpha phosphorylation, and inhibition of nuclear translocation of NF-kappaB, suggesting that PI3K signaling pathway may be one of the signaling pathways inhibited by resveratrol to abrogate NF-kappaB activation. Inhibition of PI3K by wortmannin attenuated IL-1beta-induced Akt and p65 acetylation, suggesting that p65 is a downstream component of PI3K/Akt in these responses. The modulatory effects of resveratrol on IL-1beta-induced activation of NF-kappaB and PI3K were found to be mediated at least in part by the association between Sirt-1 and scleraxis and deacetylation of NF-kappaB and PI3K. Overall, these results demonstrate that activated Sirt-1 plays an essential role in the anti-inflammatory effects of resveratrol and this may be mediated at least in part through inhibition/deacetylation of PI3K and NF-kappaB.