Targeting the hedgehog transcription factors GLI1 and GLI2 restores sensitivity to vemurafenib-resistant human melanoma cells

BRAF inhibitor (BRAFi) therapy for melanoma patients harboring the V600E mutation is initially highly effective, but almost all patients relapse within a few months. Understanding the molecular mechanisms underpinning BRAFi-based therapy is therefore an important issue. Here we identified a previously unsuspected mechanism of BRAFi resistance driven by elevated Hedgehog (Hh) pathway activation that is observed in a cohort of melanoma patients after vemurafenib treatment. Specifically, we demonstrate that melanoma cell lines, with acquired in vitro-induced vemurafenib resistance, show increased levels of glioma-associated oncogene homolog 1 and 2 (GLI1/GLI2) compared with naive cells. We also observed these findings in clinical melanoma specimens. Moreover, the increased expression of the transcription factors GLI1/GLI2 was independent of canonical Hh signaling and was instead correlated with the noncanonical Hh pathway, involving TGF beta/SMAD (transforming growth factor-beta/Sma- and Mad-related family) signaling. Knockdown of GLI1 and GLI2 restored sensitivity to vemurafenib-resistant cells, an effect associated with both growth arrest and senescence. Treatment of vemurafenib-resistant cells with the GLI1/GLI2 inhibitor Gant61 led to decreased invasion of the melanoma cells in a three-dimensional skin reconstruct model and was associated with a decrease in metalloproteinase (MMP2/MMP9) expression and microphthalmia transcription factor upregulation. Gant61 monotherapy did not alter the drug sensitivity of naive cells, but could reverse the resistance of melanoma cells chronically treated with vemurafenib. We further noted that alternating dosing schedules of Gant61 and vemurafenib prevented the onset of BRAFi resistance, suggesting that this could be a potential therapeutic strategy for the prevention of therapeutic escape. Our results suggest that targeting the Hh pathway in BRAFi-resistant melanoma may represent a viable therapeutic strategy to restore vemurafenib sensitivity, reducing or even inhibiting the acquired chemoresistance in melanoma patients.Fapesp-grant number 2012/04194-1, 2013/05172-4, 2014/24400-0 and 2015/10821-7, CNPq-grant number 150447/2013-2 and 471512/2013-3 and PRODOC-grant no 3193-32/2010. Work in the lab of KS Smalley was supported by the National Institutes of Health grants R01 CA161107, R21 CA198550, and Skin SPORE grant P50 CA168536info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Circadian Rhythm and Sleep Disruption: Causes, Metabolic Consequences and Countermeasures.

Circadian (∼ 24 hour) timing systems pervade all kingdoms of life, and temporally optimize behaviour and physiology in humans. Relatively recent changes to our environments, such as the introduction of artificial lighting, can disorganize the circadian system, from the level of the molecular clocks that regulate the timing of cellular activities to the level of synchronization between our daily cycles of behaviour and the solar day. Sleep/wake cycles are intertwined with the circadian system, and global trends indicate that these too are increasingly subject to disruption. A large proportion of the world's population is at increased risk of environmentally-driven circadian rhythm and sleep disruption, and a minority of individuals are also genetically predisposed to circadian misalignment and sleep disorders. The consequences of disruption to the circadian system and sleep are profound and include myriad metabolic ramifications, some of which may be compounded by adverse effects on dietary choices. If not addressed, the deleterious effects of such disruption will continue to cause widespread health problems; therefore, implementation of the numerous behavioural and pharmaceutical interventions that can help restore circadian system alignment and enhance sleep will be important

Circadian Clocks as Modulators of Metabolic Comorbidity in Psychiatric Disorders

Psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder are often accompanied by metabolic dysfunction symptoms, including obesity and diabetes. Since the circadian system controls important brain systems that regulate affective, cognitive, and metabolic functions, and neuropsychiatric and metabolic diseases are often correlated with disturbances of circadian rhythms, we hypothesize that dysregulation of circadian clocks plays a central role in metabolic comorbidity in psychiatric disorders. In this review paper, we highlight the role of circadian clocks in glucocorticoid, dopamine, and orexin/melanin-concentrating hormone systems and describe how a dysfunction of these clocks may contribute to the simultaneous development of psychiatric and metabolic symptoms

Noncanonical GLI1 signaling promotes stemness features and in vivo growth in lung adenocarcinoma

Aberrant Hedgehog/GLI signaling has been implicated in a diverse spectrum of human cancers, but its role in lung adenocarcinoma (LAC) is still under debate. We show that the downstream effector of the Hedgehog pathway, GLI1, is expressed in 76% of LACs, but in roughly half of these tumors, the canonical pathway activator, Smoothened, is expressed at low levels, possibly owing to epigenetic silencing. In LAC cells including the cancer stem cell compartment, we show that GLI1 is activated noncanonically by MAPK/ERK signaling. Different mechanisms can trigger the MAPK/ERK/GLI1 cascade including KRAS mutation and stimulation of NRP2 by VEGF produced by the cancer cells themselves in an autocrine loop or by stromal cells as paracrine cross talk. Suppression of GLI1, by silencing or drug-mediated, inhibits LAC cells proliferation, attenuates their stemness and increases their susceptibility to apoptosis in vitro and in vivo. These findings provide insight into the growth of LACs and point to GLI1 as a downstream effector for oncogenic pathways. Thus, strategies involving direct inhibition of GLI1 may be useful in the treatment of LACs

Direct Observation of Ferroelectric Domain Walls in LiNbO3: Wall-Meanders, Kinks, and Local Electric Charges

Direct observations of the ferroelectric domain boundaries in LiNbO3 are performed using high-resolution high-angle annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy imaging, revealing a very narrow width of the domain wall between the 180° domains. The domain walls demonstrate local side-way meandering, which results in inclinations even when the overall wall orientation follows the ferroelectric polarization. These local meanders contain kinks with “head-to-head” and “tail-to-tail” dipolar configurations and are therefore locally charged. The charged meanders are confined to a few cation layers along the polarization direction and are separated by longer stretches of straight domain walls

Direct Observation of Ferroelectric Domain Walls in LiNbO3: Wall-Meanders, Kinks, and Local Electric Charges

Direct observations of the ferroelectric domain boundaries in LiNbO3 are performed using high-resolution high-angle annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy imaging, revealing a very narrow width of the domain wall between the 180° domains. The domain walls demonstrate local side-way meandering, which results in inclinations even when the overall wall orientation follows the ferroelectric polarization. These local meanders contain kinks with “head-to-head” and “tail-to-tail” dipolar configurations and are therefore locally charged. The charged meanders are confined to a few cation layers along the polarization direction and are separated by longer stretches of straight domain walls

Comparison of cellular effects of starch-coated SPIONs and poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) matrix nanoparticles on human monocytes

Dominik Gonnissen,1 Ying Qu,1,2 Klaus Langer,3 Cengiz Öztürk,4 Yuliang Zhao,2 Chunying Chen,2 Guiscard Seebohm,5 Martina Düfer,6 Harald Fuchs,1 Hans-Joachim Galla,7 Kristina Riehemann11Center for Nanotechnology, Institute of Physics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany; 2National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 3Institute of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmacy, University of Münster, Münster, 4chemicell GmbH, Berlin, 5Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Institute for Genetics of Heart Diseases, University Hospital Münster, 6Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, 7Department of Cell Biology/Biophysics, Institute of Biochemistry, University of Münster, Münster, GermanyAbstract: Within the last years, progress has been made in the knowledge of the properties of medically used nanoparticles and their toxic effects, but still, little is known about their influence on cellular processes of immune cells. The aim of our comparative study was to present the influence of two different nanoparticle types on subcellular processes of primary monocytes and the leukemic monocyte cell line MM6. We used core-shell starch-coated superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) and matrix poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles for our experiments. In addition to typical biocompatibility testing like the detection of necrosis or secretion of interleukins (ILs), we investigated the impact of these nanoparticles on the actin cytoskeleton and the two voltage-gated potassium channels Kv1.3 and Kv7.1. Induction of necrosis was not seen for PLGA nanoparticles and SPIONs in primary monocytes and MM6 cells. Likewise, no alteration in secretion of IL-1β and IL-10 was detected under the same experimental conditions. In contrast, IL-6 secretion was exclusively downregulated in primary monocytes after contact with both nanoparticles. Two-electrode voltage clamp experiments revealed that both nanoparticles reduce currents of the aforementioned potassium channels. The two nanoparticles differed significantly in their impact on the actin cytoskeleton, demonstrated via atomic force microscopy elasticity measurement and phalloidin staining. While SPIONs led to the disruption of the respective cytoskeleton, PLGA did not show any influence in both experimental setups. The difference in the effects on ion channels and the actin cytoskeleton suggests that nanoparticles affect these subcellular components via different pathways. Our data indicate that the alteration of the cytoskeleton and the effect on ion channels are new parameters that describe the influence of nanoparticles on cells. The results are highly relevant for medical application and further evaluation of nanomaterial biosafety. Keywords: actin cytoskeleton, cell elasticity, AFM, ion channels, patch clamp, TEV