Functional Genetic Variants in DC-SIGNR Are Associated with Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV-1

BACKGROUND: Mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) is the main cause of HIV-1 infection in children worldwide. Given that the C-type lectin receptor, dendritic cell-specific ICAM-grabbing non-integrin-related (DC-SIGNR, also known as CD209L or liver/lymph node-specific ICAM-grabbing non-integrin (L-SIGN)), can interact with pathogens including HIV-1 and is expressed at the maternal-fetal interface, we hypothesized that it could influence MTCT of HIV-1. METHODS AND FINDINGS: To investigate the potential role of DC-SIGNR in MTCT of HIV-1, we carried out a genetic association study of DC-SIGNR in a well-characterized cohort of 197 HIV-infected mothers and their infants recruited in Harare, Zimbabwe. Infants harbouring two copies of DC-SIGNR H1 and/or H3 haplotypes (H1-H1, H1-H3, H3-H3) had a 3.6-fold increased risk of in utero (IU) (P = 0.013) HIV-1 infection and a 5.7-fold increased risk of intrapartum (IP) (P = 0.025) HIV-1 infection after adjusting for a number of maternal factors. The implicated H1 and H3 haplotypes share two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in promoter region (p-198A) and intron 2 (int2-180A) that were associated with increased risk of both IU (P = 0.045 and P = 0.003, respectively) and IP (P = 0.025, for int2-180A) HIV-1 infection. The promoter variant reduced transcriptional activity in vitro. In homozygous H1 infants bearing both the p-198A and int2-180A mutations, we observed a 4-fold decrease in the level of placental DC-SIGNR transcripts, disproportionately affecting the expression of membrane-bound isoforms compared to infant noncarriers (P = 0.011). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that DC-SIGNR plays a crucial role in MTCT of HIV-1 and that impaired placental DC-SIGNR expression increases risk of transmission

Cytotoxic, apoptotic, and sensitization properties of ent -kaurane-type diterpenoids from Croton tonkinensis Gagnep on human liver cancer HepG2 and Hep3b cell lines

International audienceHuman hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common type of liver cancer, the second most common cause of death from cancer worldwide. A very poor prognosis and a lack of effective treatments make liver cancer a major public health problem, notably in less developed regions, particularly in eastern Asia. This fully justifies the search of new molecules and therapeutic strategies against HCC. Ent‐kaurane diterpenoids are natural compounds displaying a broad spectrum of potential therapeutic effects including anticancer activity. In this study, we analyzed the pharmacological properties of a family of ent‐kaurane diterpenoids from Croton tonkinensis Gagnep in human HepG2 and Hep3b cell lines, used as cellular reference models for in vitro evaluation of new molecules active on HCC. A structure‐related cytotoxicity was observed against both HCC cell lines, enlighting the role of the 16‐en‐15‐one skeleton of ent‐kaurane diterpenoids. Cytotoxicity was closely correlated to apoptosis, evidenced by concentration‐dependent subG1 cell accumulation, and increased annexin V expression. In addition, subtoxic concentration of ent‐kaurane diterpenoid dramatically enhanced the sensitivity of HCC cells to doxorubicin. All together, our data bring strong support to the potential interest of ent‐kaurane diterpenoids, alone or in combination with a cytotoxic agent, in cancer and more precisely against HCC

Effects of BCL-2 over-expression on B cells in transgenic rats and rat hybridomas

International audienceThe rat is an important biomedical experimental model that benefited from the recent development of new transgenic and knockout techniques. With the goal to optimize rat mAb production and to analyze the impact of Bcl-2 on B-cell development, we generated bcl-2 transgenic rats. Transgenic rats showed Bcl-2 over-expression in B cells, increased B cell numbers in lymphoid organs, elevated production of immunoglobulins (Igs) and prolonged B-cell survival in vitro. Transgenic rats remained healthy, reproduced normally and did not develop autoimmunity. Fusions with bcl-2 transgenic splenocytes did not result in increased hybridoma generation. A comparison of on- and off-rates of 39 mAbs generated with bcl-2 transgenic and wild-type animals revealed no significant differences. Over-expression of Bcl-2 in hybridomas did not change cell proliferation but resulted in increased Ig production. Bcl-2 transgenic rats will be a useful tool for the generation of rat mAbs, the analysis of B cells in different pathophysiological models, such as autoimmunity, cancer or organ transplantation, and the study of rat B-cell biology

High-affinity IgG antibodies develop naturally in Ig-knockout rats carrying germline human IgH/Igκ/Igλ loci bearing the rat C[H] region

International audienceMice transgenic for human Ig loci are an invaluable resource for the production of human Abs. However, such mice often do not yieldhumanmAbsaseffectivelyasconventionalmice yieldmousemAbs.Suboptimalefficacy indeliveryofhumanAbsmightreflect imperfect interaction between the human membrane IgH chains and the mouse cellular signaling machinery. To obviate this problem, in this study we generated a humanized rat strain (OmniRat) carrying a chimeric human/rat IgH locus (comprising 22 human VHs, all human D and JH segments in natural configuration linked to the rat CH locus) together with fully human IgL loci (12 Vks linked to Jk-Ck and 16 Vls linked to Jl-Cl). The endogenous Ig loci were silenced using designer zinc finger nucleases. Breeding to homozygosity resulted in a novel transgenic rat line exclusively producing chimeric Abs with human idiotypes. B cell recovery was indistinguishable from wild-type animals, and human V(D)J transcripts were highly diverse. Following immunization, the OmniRat strain performed as efficiently as did normal rats in yielding high-affinity serum IgG. mAbs, comprising fully human variable regions with subnanomolar Ag affinity and carrying extensive somatic mutations, are readily obtainable, similarly to conventional mAbs from normal rats

Production scientifique

International audienc