bims-lypmec Biomed News
on Lysosomal positioning and metabolism in cardiomyocytes
Issue of 2024–11–24
six papers selected by
Satoru Kobayashi, New York Institute of Technology



  1. J Endod. 2024 Nov 20. pii: S0099-2399(24)00597-1. [Epub ahead of print]
       INTRODUCTION: Odontoblasts, terminally differentiated dentin-producing cells, critically rely on lysosomal functions for intracellular recycling and renewal. Beyond their traditional degradative role, lysosomes actively orchestrate cellular responses to external stimuli through precise and rapid intracellular trafficking and positioning. This study aimed to explore the influence of lysosomal positioning on odontoblast mineralization and the underlying mechanisms implicated in carious inflammation.
    METHODS: Human dental pulp stem cells (hDPSCs) were induced to differentiate into human odontoblast-like cells (hOBLCs). hOBLCs were treated with various doses of LPS (0.1, 1, 5 μg/mL) to mimic carious inflammation. Lysosomal positioning was examined by immunofluorescence staining of LAMP1 in healthy and carious human teeth, LPS-treated hOBLCs, mouse lower incisors at postnatal day 2.5, and mineralization medium cultured hDPSCs. Lysosomal positioning was manipulated by knockdown or overexpression of SNAPIN or ARL8B. Mineralization was assessed by ARS staining and expression of DSPP and DMP1. Lysosomal exocytosis was examined by detection of lysosomal-plasma membrane fusion, surface exposure of LAMP1 luminal epitopes (1D4B) and extracellularly released lysosomal enzymes.
    RESULTS: Peripheral lysosomal positioning was markedly increased in odontoblasts within moderate and extensive carious lesions (P < .001) and in hOBLCs following LPS treatment. Increased peripheral dispersion of lysosomes was similarly observed during odontoblastic differentiation in vivo and in vitro. Moreover, peripheral lysosomal positioning promoted mineralization in inflamed hOBLCs, potentially via mTORC1 signaling pathway and lysosomal exocytosis.
    CONCLUSION: Inflammatory stimuli prompted a relocation of lysosomes in odontoblasts, redistributing them from perinuclear location towards the cell periphery, which in turn facilitated mineralization, potentially via mTORC1 signaling and lysosomal exocytosis.
    Keywords:  lysosomal exocytosis; lysosomal positioning; mTORC1; mineralization; odontoblast
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joen.2024.11.006
  2. Sci Adv. 2024 Nov 22. 10(47): eadr5807
      Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is targeted to the lysosomal membrane, where it hydrolyzes RAS homolog-mTORC1 binding (RHEB) from its GTP-bound to GDP-bound state, inhibiting mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1). Loss-of-function mutations in TSC cause TSC disease, marked by excessive tumor growth. Here, we overcome a high degree of continuous conformational heterogeneity to determine the 2.8-Å cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure of the complete human TSC in complex with the lysosomal recruitment factor WD repeat domain phosphoinositide-interacting protein 3 (WIPI3). We discover a previously undetected amino-terminal TSC1 HEAT repeat dimer that clamps onto a single TSC wing and forms a phosphatidylinositol phosphate (PIP)-binding pocket, which specifically binds monophosphorylated PIPs. These structural advances provide a model by which WIPI3 and PIP-signaling networks coordinate to recruit TSC to the lysosomal membrane to inhibit mTORC1. The high-resolution TSC structure reveals previously unrecognized mutational hotspots and uncovers crucial insights into the mechanisms of TSC dysregulation in disease.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adr5807
  3. Sci Rep. 2024 11 16. 14(1): 28296
      Lysosomes play a crucial role in metabolic adaptation to starvation, but detailed in vivo studies are scarce. Therefore, we investigated the changes of the proteome of liver lysosomes in mice starved short-term for 6h or long-term for 24h. We verified starvation-induced catabolism by weight loss, ketone body production, drop in blood glucose and an increase of 3-methylhistidine. Deactivation of mTORC1 in vivo after short-term starvation causes a depletion of mTORC1 and the associated Ragulator complex in hepatic lysosomes, resulting in diminished phosphorylation of mTORC1 target proteins. While mTORC1 lysosomal protein levels and activity in liver were restored after long-term starvation, the lysosomal levels of Ragulator remained constantly reduced. To determine whether this mTORC1 activity pattern may be organ-specific, we further investigated the key metabolic organs muscle and brain. mTORC1 inactivation, but not re-activation, occurred in muscle after a starvation of 12 h or longer. In brain, mTORC1 activity remained unchanged during starvation. As mTORC1 deactivation is known to induce autophagy, we further investigated the more than 150 non-lysosomal proteins enriched in the lysosomal fraction upon starvation. Proteasomal, cytosolic and peroxisomal proteins dominated after short-term starvation, while after long-term starvation, mainly proteasomal and mitochondrial proteins accumulated, indicating ordered autophagic protein degradation.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-78873-7
  4. Dev Cell. 2024 Nov 15. pii: S1534-5807(24)00637-3. [Epub ahead of print]
      During mouse preimplantation development, a subset of retrotransposons/genes are transiently expressed in the totipotent 2-cell (2C) embryos. These 2C transcripts rapidly shut down their expression beyond the 2C stage of embryos, promoting the embryo to exit from the 2C stage. However, the mechanisms regulating this shutdown remain unclear. Here, we identified that lysosomal catabolism played a role in the exit of the totipotent 2C state. Our results showed that the activation of embryonic lysosomal catabolism promoted the embryo to exit from the 2C stage and suppressed 2C transcript expression. Mechanistically, our results indicated that lysosomal catabolism suppressed 2C transcripts through replenishing cellular amino-acid levels, thereby inactivating transcriptional factors TFE3/TFEB and abolishing their transcriptional activation of 2C retrotransposons, MERVL (murine endogenous retrovirus-L)/MT2_Mm. Collectively, our study identified that lysosomal activity modulated the transcriptomic landscape and development in mouse embryos and identified an unanticipated layer of transcriptional control on early-embryonic retrotransposons from lysosomal signaling.
    Keywords:  2-cell-like cells; lysosomal signaling; retrotransposons; totipotency
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2024.10.018
  5. Mol Cell. 2024 Nov 15. pii: S1097-2765(24)00877-3. [Epub ahead of print]
      Cellular growth and organismal development are remarkably complex processes that require the nutrient-responsive kinase mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1). Anticipating that important mTORC1 functions remained to be identified, we employed genetic and bioinformatic screening in C. elegans to uncover mechanisms of mTORC1 action. Here, we show that during larval growth, nutrients induce an extensive reprogramming of gene expression and alternative mRNA splicing by acting through mTORC1. mTORC1 regulates mRNA splicing and the production of protein-coding mRNA isoforms largely independently of its target p70 S6 kinase (S6K) by increasing the activity of the serine/arginine-rich (SR) protein RSP-6 (SRSF3/7) and other splicing factors. mTORC1-mediated mRNA splicing regulation is critical for growth; mediates nutrient control of mechanisms that include energy, nucleotide, amino acid, and other metabolic pathways; and may be conserved in humans. Although mTORC1 inhibition delays aging, mTORC1-induced mRNA splicing promotes longevity, suggesting that when mTORC1 is inhibited, enhancement of this splicing might provide additional anti-aging benefits.
    Keywords:  C. elegans; SR proteins; development; gene expression; growth; human cell growth; longevity; mRNA splicing; mTORC1; metabolism; nutrient response
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcel.2024.10.037
  6. PLoS One. 2024 ;19(11): e0306435
      Cell corpses must be cleared in an efficient manner to maintain tissue homeostasis and regulate immune responses. Ubiquitin-like Atg8/LC3 family proteins promote the degradation of membranes and internal cargo during both macroautophagy and corpse clearance, raising the question how macroautophagy contributes to corpse clearance. Studying the clearance of non-apoptotic dying polar bodies in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos, we show that the LC3 ortholog LGG-2 is enriched inside the polar body phagolysosome independent of autophagosome formation. We demonstrate that ATG-16.1 and ATG-16.2, which promote membrane association of lipidated Atg8/LC3 proteins, redundantly promote polar body membrane breakdown in phagolysosomes independent of their role in macroautophagy. We also show that the lipid scramblase ATG-9 is needed for autophagosome formation in early embryos but is dispensable for timely polar body membrane breakdown or protein cargo degradation. These findings demonstrate that macroautophagy is not required to promote polar body degradation, in contrast to recent findings with apoptotic corpse clearance in C. elegans embryos. Determining how factors regulating Atg8/LC3 promote the breakdown of different types of cell corpses in distinct cell types or metabolic states is likely to give insights into the mechanisms of immunoregulation during normal development, physiology, and disease.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0306435