Association Analysis of Ten Candidate Genes in a Large Multinational Cohort of Small for Gestational Age Children and Children with Idiopathic Short Stature (NESTEGG study)

Background: Fetal growth failure has been associated with an increased risk of hypertension, cardiovascular disease and diabetes in adulthood. Exploring the mechanisms underlying this association should improve our understanding of these common adult diseases. Patients and Methods: We investigated 225 SNPs in 10 genes involved in growth and glucose metabolism (GH1, GHR, IGF1, IGF1R, STAT5A, STAT5B, MAPK1, MAPK3, PPARγ and INS) in 1,437 children from the multinational NESTEGG consortium: 345 patients born small for gestational age who remained short (SGA-S), 288 who showed catch-up growth (SGA-Cu), 410 idiopathic short stature (ISS) and 394 controls. We related genotype to pre- and/or postnatal growth parameters, response to growth hormone (if applicable) and blood pressure. Results: We found several clinical associations for GH1, GHR, IGF1, IGF1R, PPARγ and MAPK1. One SNP remained significant after Bonferroni's correction: IGF1R SNP rs4966035's minor allele A was significantly more prevalent among SGA and associated with smaller birth length (p = 0.000378) and birth weight (weaker association), independent of gestational age. Conclusion:IGF1R SNP rs4966035 is significantly associated with birth length, independent of gestational age. This and other associations suggest that polymorphisms in these genes might partly explain the phenotype of short children born SGA and children with ISS

Pathophysiology of melanocortin receptors and their accessory proteins.

The melanocortin receptors (MCRs) and their accessory proteins (MRAPs) are involved in regulation of a diverse range of endocrine pathways. Genetic variants of these components result in phenotypic variation and disease. The MC1R is expressed in skin and variants in the MC1R gene are associated with ginger hair color. The MC2R mediates the action of ACTH in the adrenal gland to stimulate glucocorticoid production and MC2R mutations result in familial glucocorticoid deficiency (FGD). MC3R and MC4R are involved in metabolic regulation and their gene variants are associated with severe pediatric obesity, whereas the function of MC5R remains to be fully elucidated. MRAPs have been shown to modulate the function of MCRs and genetic variants in MRAPs are associated with diseases including FGD type 2 and potentially early onset obesity. This review provides an insight into recent advances in MCRs and MRAPs physiology, focusing on the disorders associated with their dysfunction

Ligand-specific conformational change of the G-protein-coupled receptor ALX/FPR2 determines proresolving functional responses

Formyl-peptide receptor type 2 (FPR2), also called ALX (the lipoxin A4 receptor), conveys the proresolving properties of lipoxin A4 and annexin A1 (AnxA1) and the proinflammatory signals elicited by serum amyloid protein A and cathelicidins, among others. We tested here the hypothesis that ALX might exist as homo- or heterodimer with FPR1 or FPR3 (the two other family members) and operate in a ligand-biased fashion. Coimmunoprecipitation and bioluminescence resonance energy transfer assays with transfected HEK293 cells revealed constitutive dimerization of the receptors; significantly, AnxA1, but not serum amyloid protein A, could activate ALX homodimers. A p38/MAPK-activated protein kinase/heat shock protein 27 signaling signature was unveiled after AnxA1 application, leading to generation of IL-10, as measured in vitro (in primary monocytes) and in vivo (after i.p. injection in the mouse). The latter response was absent in mice lacking the ALX ortholog. Using a similar approach, ALX/FPR1 heterodimerization evoked using the panagonist peptide Ac2-26, identified a JNK-mediated proapoptotic path that was confirmed in primary neutrophils. These findings provide a molecular mechanism that accounts for the dual nature of ALX and indicate that agonist binding and dimerization state contribute to the conformational landscape of FPRs. G-protein–coupled receptors (GPCRs) constitute a large family of cell surface receptors that share structural characteristics and perform pivotal biological functions, transducing signals from hormones, autacoids, and chemokines. The human GPCR termed “ALX/FPR2” (formyl peptide receptor type 2 or lipoxin A4 receptor, hereafter referred to as “ALX”) is a unique GPCR, shown to convey signals induced by proteins, peptides, and lipid ligands (1). ALX belongs to a small family of receptors that is also activated by formylated peptides, short amino acid sequences with an N-terminal formyl group released by pathogenic and commensal bacteria, as well as by mitochondria upon cell damage. There are three human FPRs and they are termed FPR1, ALX, and FPR3 (2). In view of their different nature and potential engagement with a large number endogenous and exogenous ligands, elucidation of FPR functions may reveal important biological pathways. ALX is an unconventional receptor for the diversity of its agonists and because it can convey contrasting biological signals. The proresolving and anti-inflammatory properties of the protein annexin A1 (AnxA1) and the lipid lipoxin A4 (LXA4), which include neutrophil apoptosis and macrophage efferocytosis, are mediated by this receptor, as shown using pharmacological approaches (1, 3) and more recently with knockout mouse models (4). At the same time, the proinflammatory responses elicited by the cathelicidin-associated antimicrobial peptide LL-37 and serum amyloid protein A (SAA) are also mediated by ALX, which modulates leukocyte activation, recruitment to the site of inflammation, and lifespan (5–7). Moreover, LXA4 and AnxA1 engage ALX to favor a macrophage M2 phenotype, whereas LL-37 and SAA used the same receptor to induce an M1 phenotype (8). In a similar vein using human neutrophils, nanomolar concentrations of LXA4 counteracted LL-37–mediated release of leukotriene B4, both actions being conveyed by ALX (9). Using resonance energy transfer (RET) techniques to investigate GPCR interactions, a number of studies reported agonist stimulation to initiate dimerization between certain GPCRs, which may otherwise exist as monomeric structures (10) or that agonists enhance the interaction between preformed dimers (11). Agonist-induced changes in RET signal could be attributed to conformational changes occurring within the receptor in response to agonist binding (12). Finally, activation of downstream signaling pathways may also influence conformational changes within the receptors (13, 14). We tested here whether the ability of ALX to transduce the bioactions elicited by distinct agonists is modulated by conformational changes