VE-cadhérine dans l'inflammation et le cancer: phosphorylation et clivage

Vascular endothelial (VE) cadherin, a specific adhesive protein located at sites of endothelial intercellular contact, is required for junction integrity, vascular morphogenesis, and angiogenesis. We recently demonstrated that VE-cadherin was tyrosine phosphorylated in vivo in angiogenic conditions and not in quiescent endothelium. Tyrosine 685 is the only target for Src kinase in the VEGF pathway. Thus, phospho-VE-cadherin is characteristic for activated endothelium. The present study was designed to examine whether VE-cadherin was phosphorylated in tumoral angiogenesis in vivo, using two models of murine tumors: hepatocellular carcinoma model of mice with previous described hyperangiogenesis and glioblastoma model of rat brain with increased vascular permeability. I found the same tyrosine phosphorylation of VE-cadherin in both models of tumors and the site identified was Y658. To further investigate the mechanism of VE-cadherin phosphorylation, we used cultured cells stimulated with TNF because of the described role of Y658 in vascular permeability and extravasation of leukocytes and the related presence of inflammation in both models. I found that VE-cadherin is phosphorylated on Y658 with TNF and the kinase responsible for this phosphorylation was SYK (SiRNA of Syk, mutagenesis of VE-cadherin Y658 cytoplamsic domain). Because VE-cadherin is susceptible for extra-cellular domain proteolysis in response to TNFα, we studied in parallel the presence in cancer and inflammatory pathologies patients sera the presence of circulating VE-cadherin. VE-cadherin could be a feature of activated endothelium both by phosphorylation and proteolysis.L'endothélium vasculaire est la première couche de cellules en contact avec le flux sanguin. Au cours de processus pathologiques, les cellules endothéliales subissent des remaniements notoires dus à la présence de nombreux facteurs. Dans ce cas, l'intégrité de l'endothélium, assurée principalement par les jonctions adhérentes endothéliales dont la V(ascular)E(ndothelial)-cadhérine est la protéine clé, est perturbée. La phospho-VE-cadhérine est une caractéristique des cellules endothéliales activées in vitro. Notre laboratoire a montré l'existence d'une forme phosphorylée de VE-cadhérine in vivo au cours de l'angiogenèse physiologique. Des tyrosines importantes ont été identifiées : la tyrosine 685, qui est la cible directe de la tyrosine kinase Src en réponse au VEGF ainsi que les tyrosines 658 et 731. De plus, la VE-cadhérine peut être sensible à la protéolyse. Dans ce travail, la phosphorylation de la VE-cadhérine a été étudiée dans un contexte pathologique d'inflammation et de cancer à l'aide de deux modèles murins de tumeurs hépatiques ou cérébrales. J'ai démontré l'existence in vivo d'une forme phosphorylée de VE-cadhérine sur le site Y658. L'analyse d'une tyrosine kinase particulière, Syk, par si RNA ainsi que par des expériences de phosphorylation in vitro suggèrent fortement l'implication de SYK dans cette phosphorylation. En parallèle, dans le cadre d'une étude sur plusieurs pathologies, nous avons mis en évidence la présence d'une forme circulante de VE-cadhérine. La VE-cadhérine, tant par sa phosphorylation que par sa présence dans les fluides biologiques, pourrait être une signature de l'endothélium activé (phosphorylation) et/ou agressé (protéolyse)

Method of treating rheumatoid arthritis

The invention relates to a method of treating rheumatoid arthritis in a patient comprising the steps of:a) providing a biological sample from a patient,b) measuring the level of soluble VE-cadherin in the biological sample obtained at step a);c) comparing said level of soluble VE-cadherin with a predetermined reference value, andif the level of soluble VE-cadherin measured at step b) is higher that the predetermined reference value,treating the patient until a basal level of soluble VE-cadherin is reached

DHEA prevents mineralo- and glucocorticoid receptor-induced chronotropic and hypertrophic actions in isolated rat cardiomyocytes

Corticosteroids have been involved in the genesis of ventricular arrhythmias associated with pathological heart hypertrophy, although molecular mechanisms responsible for these effects have not been completely explained. Because mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) antagonists have been demonstrated to be beneficial on the cardiac function, much attention has been given to the action of aldosterone on the heart. However, we have previously shown that both aldosterone and corticosterone in vitro induce a marked acceleration of the spontaneous contractions, as well as a significant cell hypertrophy in isolated neonate rat ventricular cardiomyocytes. Moreover, a beneficial role of the steroid hormone dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) has been also proposed, but the mechanism of its putative cardioprotective function is not known. We found that DHEA reduces both the chronotropic and the hypertrophic responses of cardiomyocytes upon stimulation of MR and glucocorticoid receptor (GR) in vitro. DHEA inhibitory effects were accompanied by a decrease of T-type calcium channel expression and activity, as assessed by quantitative PCR and the patch-clamp technique. Prevention of cell hypertrophy by DHEA was also revealed by measuring the expression of A-type natriuretic peptide and BNP. The kinetics of the negative chronotropic effect of DHEA, and its sensitivity to actinomycin D, pointed out the presence of both genomic and nongenomic mechanisms of action. Although the genomic action of DHEA was effective mostly upon MR activation, its rapid, nongenomic response appeared related to DHEA antioxidant properties. On the whole, these results suggest new mechanisms for a putative cardioprotective role of DHEA in corticosteroid-associated heart diseases

Instabilité des jonctions endothéliales : biomarqueurs du remodelage vasculaire

International audienc

Hereditary angioedema: Key role for kallikrein and bradykinin in vascular endothelial-cadherin cleavage and edema formation

International audienc

MicroRNA-204 Is Necessary for Aldosterone-Stimulated T-Type Calcium Channel Expression in Cardiomyocytes

Activation of the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) in the heart is considered to be a cardiovascular risk factor. MR activation leads to heart hypertrophy and arrhythmia. In ventricular cardiomyocytes, aldosterone induces a profound remodeling of ion channel expression, in particular, an increase in the expression and activity of T-type voltage-gated calcium channels (T-channels). The molecular mechanisms immediately downstream from MR activation, which lead to the increased expression of T-channels and, consecutively, to an acceleration of spontaneous cell contractions in vitro, remain poorly investigated. Here, we investigated the putative role of a specific microRNA in linking MR activation to the regulation of T-channel expression and cardiomyocyte beating frequency. A screening assay identified microRNA 204 (miR-204) as one of the major upregulated microRNAs after aldosterone stimulation of isolated neonatal rat cardiomyocytes. Aldosterone significantly increased the level of miR-204, an effect blocked by the MR antagonist spironolactone. When miR-204 was overexpressed in isolated cardiomyocytes, their spontaneous beating frequency was significantly increased after 24 h, like upon aldosterone stimulation, and messenger RNAs coding T-channels (CaV3.1 and CaV3.2) were increased. Concomitantly, T-type calcium currents were significantly increased upon miR-204 overexpression. Specifically repressing the expression of miR-204 abolished the aldosterone-induced increase of CaV3.1 and CaV3.2 mRNAs, as well as T-type calcium currents. Finally, aldosterone and miR-204 overexpression were found to reduce REST-NRSF, a known transcriptional repressor of CaV3.2 T-type calcium channels. Our study thus strongly suggests that miR-204 expression stimulated by aldosterone promotes the expression of T-channels in isolated rat ventricular cardiomyocytes, and therefore, increases the frequency of the cell spontaneous contractions, presumably through the inhibition of REST-NRSF protein

Circadian clock characteristics are altered in human thyroid malignant nodules

Context: The circadian clock represents the body's molecular time-keeping system. Recent findings revealed strong changes of clock gene expression in various types of human cancers. Objective: Due to emerging evidence on the connection between the circadian oscillator, cell cycle, and oncogenic transformation, we aimed to characterize the circadian clockwork in human benign and malignant thyroid nodules. Design: Clock transcript levels were assessed by quantitative RT-PCR in thyroid tissues. To provide molecular characteristics of human thyroid clockwork, primary thyrocytes established from normal or nodular thyroid tissue biopsies were subjected to in vitro synchronization with subsequent clock gene expression analysis by circadian bioluminescence reporter assay and by quantitative RT-PCR. Results: The expression levels of the Bmal1 were up-regulated in tissue samples of follicular thyroid carcinoma (FTC), and in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), as compared with normal thyroid and benign nodules, whereas Cry2 was down-regulated in FTC and PTC. Human thyrocytes derived from normal thyroid tissue exhibited high-amplitude circadian oscillations of Bmal1-luciferase reporter expression and endogenous clock transcripts. Thyrocytes established from FTC and PTC exhibited clock transcript oscillations similar to those of normal thyroid tissue and benign nodules (except for Per2 altered in PTC), whereas cells derived from poorly differentiated thyroid carcinoma exhibited altered circadian oscillations. Conclusions: This is the first study demonstrating a molecular makeup of the human thyroid circadian clock. Characterization of the thyroid clock machinery alterations upon thyroid nodule malignant transformation contributes to understanding the connections between circadian clocks and oncogenic transformation. Moreover, it might help in improving the thyroid nodule preoperative diagnostics

The Human Autoantibody Response to Apolipoprotein A-I Is Focused on the C-Terminal Helix: A New Rationale for Diagnosis and Treatment of Cardiovascular Disease?

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide and new approaches for both diagnosis and treatment are required. Autoantibodies directed against apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I) represent promising biomarkers for use in risk stratification of CVD and may also play a direct role in pathogenesis

CD14 as a Mediator of the Mineralocorticoid Receptor-Dependent Anti-apolipoprotein A-1 IgG Chronotropic Effect on Cardiomyocytes

In vitro and animal studies point to autoantibodies against apolipoprotein A-1 (anti-apoA-1 IgG) as possible mediators of cardiovascular (CV) disease involving several mechanisms such as basal heart rate interference mediated by a mineralocorticoid receptor-dependent L-type calcium channel activation, and a direct pro-inflammatory effect through the engagement of the toll-like receptor (TLR) 2/CD14 complex. Nevertheless, the possible implication of these receptors in the pro-arrhythmogenic effect of anti-apoA-1 antibodies remains elusive. We aimed at determining whether CD14 and TLRs could mediate the anti-apoA-1 IgG chronotropic response in neonatal rat ventricular cardiomyocytes (NRVC). Blocking CD14 suppressed anti-apoA-1 IgG binding to NRVC and the related positive chronotropic response. Anti-apoA-1 IgG alone induced the formation of a TLR2/TLR4/CD14 complex, followed by the phosphorylation of Src, whereas aldosterone alone promoted the phosphorylation of Akt by phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), without affecting the chronotropic response. In the presence of both aldosterone and anti-apoA-1 IgG, the localization of TLR2/TLR4/CD14 was increased in membrane lipid rafts, followed by PI3K and Src activation, leading to an L-type calcium channel-dependent positive chronotropic response. Pharmacological inhibition of the Src pathway led to the decrease of L-type calcium channel activity and abrogated the NRVC chronotropic response. Activation of CD14 seems to be a key regulator of the mineralocorticoid receptor-dependent anti-apoA-1 IgG positive chronotropic effect on NRVCs, involving relocation of the CD14/TLR2/TLR4 complex into lipid rafts followed by PI3K and Src-dependent L-type calcium channel activation