The Canonical Notch Signaling Pathway: Unfolding the Activation Mechanism

Notch signaling regulates many aspects of metazoan development and tissue renewal. Accordingly, the misregulation or loss of Notch signaling underlies a wide range of human disorders, from developmental syndromes to adult-onset diseases and cancer. Notch signaling is remarkably robust in most tissues even though each Notch molecule is irreversibly activated by proteolysis and signals only once without amplification by secondary messenger cascades. In this Review, we highlight recent studies in Notch signaling that reveal new molecular details about the regulation of ligand-mediated receptor activation, receptor proteolysis, and target selection

Gamma-secretase composed of PS1/Pen2/Aph1a can cleave notch and amyloid precursor protein in the absence of nicastrin

γ-secretase is a multiprotein intramembrane-cleaving protease with a growing list of protein substrates including the Notch receptors and the amyloid precursor protein. The four components of γ-secretase complex - presenilin (PS), nicastrin (NCT), Pen2, and Aph1 - are all thought to be essential for activity. The catalytic domain resides within PS proteins; NCT has been suggested to be critical for substrate recognition; the contributions of Pen2 and Aph1 remain unclear. The role of NCT has been challenged recently by the observation that a critical residue (E332) in NCT, thought to be essential for γ-secretase activity, is instead involved in complex maturation. Here we report that NCT is dispensable for γ-secretase activity. NCT-independent γ-secretase activity can be detected in two independent NCT-deficient MEF lines, and blocked by the γ-secretase inhibitors DAPT and L-685,458. This catalytic activity requires prior ectodomain shedding of the substrate, and can cleave ligand-activated endogenous Notch receptors, indicating presence at the plasma membrane. siRNA knockdown experiments demonstrated that NCT-independent γ-secretase activity requires the presence of PS1, Pen2 and Aph1a but can tolerate knockdown of PS2 or Aph1b. We conclude that a PS1/Pen2/Aph1a trimeric complex is an active enzyme, displaying similar biochemical properties to those of γ-secretase and roughly 50% of its activity when normalized to PS1 NTF levels. This PS1/Pen2/Aph1a complex, however, is highly unstable. Thus, NCT acts to stabilize γ-secretase, but is not required for substrate recognition

The Aminoalkylindole BML-190 Negatively Regulates Chitosan Synthesis via the Cyclic AMP/Protein Kinase A1 Pathway in Cryptococcus neoformans

Cryptococcus neoformans can cause fatal meningoencephalitis in patients with AIDS or other immunocompromising conditions. Current antifungals are suboptimal to treat this disease; therefore, novel targets and new therapies are needed. Previously, we have shown that chitosan is a critical component of the cryptococcal cell wall and is required for survival in the mammalian host and that chitosan deficiency results in rapid clearance from the mammalian host. We had also identified several specific proteins that were required for chitosan biosynthesis, and we hypothesize that screening for compounds that inhibit chitosan biosynthesis would identify additional genes/proteins that influence chitosan biosynthesis. To identify these compounds, we developed a robust and novel cell-based flow cytometry screening method to identify small-molecule inhibitors of chitosan production. We screened the ICCB Known Bioactives library and identified 8 compounds that reduced chitosan in C. neoformans We used flow cytometry-based counterscreens and confirmatory screens, followed by a biochemical secondary screen to refine our primary screening hits to 2 confirmed hits. One of the confirmed hits that reduced chitosan content was the aminoalkylindole BML-190, a known inverse agonist of mammalian cannabinoid receptors. We demonstrated that BML-190 likely targets the C. neoformans G-protein-coupled receptor Gpr4 and, via the cyclic AMP (cAMP)/protein kinase A (PKA) signaling pathway, contributes to an intracellular accumulation of cAMP that results in decreased chitosan. Our discovery suggests that this approach could be used to identify additional compounds and pathways that reduce chitosan biosynthesis and could lead to potential novel therapeutics against C. neoformans IMPORTANCE Cryptococcus neoformans is a fungal pathogen that kills approximately 200,000 people every year. The cell wall is an essential organelle that protects fungi from the environment. Chitosan, the deacetylated form of chitin, has been shown to be an essential component of the cryptococcal cell wall during infection of a mammalian host. In this study, we screened a set of 480 compounds, which are known to have defined biological activities, for activity that reduced chitosan production in C. neoformans Two of these compounds were confirmed using an alternative method of measuring chitosan, and one of these was demonstrated to impact the cAMP signal transduction pathway. This work demonstrates that the cAMP pathway regulates chitosan biosynthesis in C. neoformans and validates that this screening approach could be used to find potential antifungal agents

The Extracellular Domain of Notch2 Increases Its Cell-Surface Abundance and Ligand Responsiveness during Kidney Development

SummaryNotch2, but not Notch1, plays indispensable roles in kidney organogenesis, and Notch2 haploinsufficiency is associated with Alagille syndrome. We proposed that proximal nephron fates are regulated by a threshold that requires nearly all available free Notch intracellular domains (NICDs) but could not identify the mechanism that explains why Notch2 (N2) is more important than Notch1 (N1). By generating mice that swap their ICDs, we establish that the overall protein concentration, expression domain, or ICD amino acid composition does not account for the differential requirement of these receptors. Instead, we find that the N2 extracellular domain (NECD) increases Notch protein localization to the cell surface during kidney development and is cleaved more efficiently upon ligand binding. This context-specific asymmetry in NICD release efficiency is further enhanced by Fringe. Our results indicate that an elevated N1 surface level could compensate for the loss of N2 signal in specific cell contexts

A novel FRET-based screen in high-throughput format to identify inhibitors of malarial and human glucose transporters

The glucose transporter PfHT is essential to the survival of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum and has been shown to be a druggable target with high potential for pharmacological intervention. Identification of compounds against novel drug targets is crucial to combating resistance against current therapeutics. Here, we describe the development of a cell-based assay system readily adaptable to high-throughput screening that directly measures compound effects on PfHT-mediated glucose transport. Intracellular glucose concentrations are detected using a genetically encoded fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based glucose sensor. This allows assessment of the ability of small molecules to inhibit glucose uptake with high accuracy (Z′ factor of >0.8), thereby eliminating the need for radiolabeled substrates. Furthermore, we have adapted this assay to counterscreen PfHT hits against the human orthologues GLUT1, -2, -3, and -4. We report the identification of several hits after screening the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) Malaria Box, a library of 400 compounds known to inhibit erythrocytic development of P. falciparum. Hit compounds were characterized by determining the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC(50)) for the uptake of radiolabeled glucose into isolated P. falciparum parasites. One of our hits, compound MMV009085, shows high potency and orthologue selectivity, thereby successfully validating our assay for antimalarial screening

Identification of druggable small molecule antagonists of the Plasmodium falciparum hexose transporter PfHT and assessment of ligand access to the glucose permeation pathway via FLAG-mediated protein engineering

Although the Plasmodium falciparum hexose transporter PfHT has emerged as a promising target for anti-malarial therapy, previously identified small-molecule inhibitors have lacked promising drug-like structural features necessary for development as clinical therapeutics. Taking advantage of emerging insight into structure/function relationships in homologous facilitative hexose transporters and our novel high throughput screening platform, we investigated the ability of compounds satisfying Lipinksi rules for drug likeness to directly interact and inhibit PfHT. The Maybridge HitFinder chemical library was interrogated by searching for compounds that reduce intracellular glucose by >40% at 10 μM. Testing of initial hits via measurement of 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG) uptake in PfHT over-expressing cell lines identified 6 structurally unique glucose transport inhibitors. WU-1 (3-(2,6-dichlorophenyl)-5-methyl-N-[2-(4-methylbenzenesulfonyl)ethyl]-1,2-oxazole-4-carboxamide) blocked 2-DG uptake (IC50 = 5.8 ± 0.6 μM) with minimal effect on the human orthologue class I (GLUTs 1–4), class II (GLUT8) and class III (GLUT5) facilitative glucose transporters. WU-1 showed comparable potency in blocking 2-DG uptake in freed parasites and inhibiting parasite growth, with an IC50 of 6.1 ± 0.8 μM and EC50 of 5.5 ± 0.6 μM, respectively. WU-1 also directly competed for N-[2-[2-[2-[(N-biotinylcaproylamino)ethoxy)ethoxyl]-4-[2-(trifluoromethyl)-3H-diazirin-3-yl]benzoyl]-1,3-bis(mannopyranosyl-4-yloxy)-2-propylamine (ATB-BMPA) binding and inhibited the transport of D-glucose with an IC50 of 5.9 ± 0.8 μM in liposomes containing purified PfHT. Kinetic analysis revealed that WU-1 acts as a non-competitive inhibitor of zero-trans D-fructose uptake. Decreased potency for WU-1 and the known endofacial ligand cytochalasin B was observed when PfHT was engineered to contain an N-terminal FLAG tag. This modification resulted in a concomitant increase in affinity for 4,6-O-ethylidene-α-D-glucose, an exofacially directed transport antagonist, but did not alter the Km for 2-DG. Taken together, these data are consistent with a model in which WU-1 binds preferentially to the transporter in an inward open conformation and support the feasibility of developing potent and selective PfHT antagonists as a novel class of anti-malarial drugs.</div

Neuroactive steroid effects on autophagy in a human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK) cell model

Neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders are correlated with cellular stress. Macroautophagy (autophagy) may represent an important protective pathway to maintain cellular homeostasis and functionality, as it targets cytoplasmic components to lysosomes for degradation and recycling. Given recent evidence that some novel psychiatric treatments, such as the neuroactive steroid (NAS) allopregnanolone (AlloP, brexanolone), may induce autophagy, we stably transfected human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK) cells with a ratiometric fluorescent probe to assay NAS effects on autophagy. We hypothesized that NAS may modulate autophagy in part by the ability of uncharged NAS to readily permeate membranes. Microscopy revealed a weak effect of AlloP on autophagic flux compared with the positive control treatment of Torin1. In high-throughput microplate experiments, we found that autophagy induction was more robust in early passages of HEK cells. Despite limiting studies to early passages for maximum sensitivity, a range of NAS structures failed to reliably induce autophagy or interact with Torin1 or starvation effects. To probe NAS in a system where AlloP effects have been shown previously, we surveyed astrocytes and again saw minimal autophagy induction by AlloP. Combined with other published results, our results suggest that NAS may modulate autophagy in a cell-specific or context-specific manner. Although there is merit to cell lines as a screening tool, future studies may require assaying NAS in cells from brain regions involved in neuropsychiatric disorders

A class II MHC-targeted vaccine elicits immunity against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has resulted in over 100 million infections and millions of deaths. Effective vaccines remain the best hope of curtailing SARS-CoV-2 transmission, morbidity, and mortality. The vaccines in current use require cold storage and sophisticated manufacturing capacity, which complicates their distribution, especially in less developed countries. We report the development of a candidate SARS-CoV-2 vaccine that is purely protein based and directly targets antigen-presenting cells. It consists of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike receptor-binding domain (Spik

Mitochondrial pyruvate carrier inhibitors improve metabolic parameters in diet-induced obese mice

The mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) is an inner mitochondrial membrane complex that plays a critical role in intermediary metabolism. Inhibition of the MPC, especially in liver, may have efficacy for treating type 2 diabetes mellitus. Herein, we examined the antidiabetic effects of zaprinast and 7ACC2, small molecules which have been reported to act as MPC inhibitors. Both compounds activated a bioluminescence resonance energy transfer-based MPC reporter assay (reporter sensitive to pyruvate) and potently inhibited pyruvate-mediated respiration in isolated mitochondria. Furthermore, zaprinast and 7ACC2 acutely improved glucose tolerance in diet-induced obese mice in vivo. Although some findings were suggestive of improved insulin sensitivity, hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp studies did not detect enhanced insulin action in response to 7ACC2 treatment. Rather, our data suggest acute glucose-lowering effects of MPC inhibition may be due to suppressed hepatic gluconeogenesis. Finally, we used reporter sensitive to pyruvate to screen a chemical library of drugs and identified 35 potentially novel MPC modulators. Using available evidence, we generated a pharmacophore model to prioritize which hits to pursue. Our analysis revealed carsalam and six quinolone antibiotics, as well as 7ACC1, share a common pharmacophore with 7ACC2. We validated that these compounds are novel inhibitors of the MPC and suppress hepatocyte glucose production and demonstrated that one quinolone (nalidixic acid) improved glucose tolerance in obese mice. In conclusion, these data demonstrate the feasibility of therapeutic targeting of the MPC for treating diabetes and provide scaffolds that can be used to develop potent and novel classes of MPC inhibitors

A class II MHC-targeted vaccine elicits immunity against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has resulted in over 100 million infections and millions of deaths. Effective vaccines remain the best hope of curtailing SARS-CoV-2 transmission, morbidity, and mortality. The vaccines in current use require cold storage and sophisticated manufacturing capacity, which complicates their distribution, especially in less developed countries. We report the development of a candidate SARS-CoV-2 vaccine that is purely protein based and directly targets antigen-presenting cells. It consists of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike receptor-binding domain (SpikeRBD) fused to an alpaca-derived nanobody that recognizes class II major histocompatibility complex antigens (VHHMHCII). This vaccine elicits robust humoral and cellular immunity against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants. Both young and aged mice immunized with two doses of VHHMHCII-SpikeRBD elicit high-titer binding and neutralizing antibodies. Immunization also induces strong cellular immunity, including a robust CD8 T cell response. VHHMHCII-SpikeRBD is stable for at least 7 d at room temperature and can be lyophilized without loss of efficacy