bims-pideca 2021-10-24 papers

bims-pideca

Biomed News

on Class IA PI3K signalling in development and cancer

Issue of 2021‒10‒24
sixteen papers selected by
Ralitsa Radostinova Madsen
University College London Cancer Institute

EZH2 inhibition confers PIK3CA-driven lung tumors enhanced sensitivity to PI3K inhibition.
Generating a New Mouse Model for Nuclear PTEN Deficiency by a Single K13R Mutation.
Comprehensive molecular characterization of lung tumors implicates AKT and MYC signaling in adenocarcinoma to squamous cell transdifferentiation.
Targeted mass spectrometry-based assays enable multiplex quantification of receptor tyrosine kinase, MAP Kinase, and AKT signaling.
Acute Csk inhibition hinders B cell activation by constraining the PI3 kinase pathway.
Cell-to-cell and type-to-type heterogeneity of signaling networks: insights from the crowd.
5' modifications improve potency and efficacy of DNA donors for precision genome editing.
PI3Kδ Sustains Keratinocyte Hyperproliferation and Epithelial Inflammation: Implications for a Topically Druggable Target in Psoriasis.
mTORC1-induced retinal progenitor cell overproliferation leads to accelerated mitotic aging and degeneration of descendent Müller glia.
Loss of FBXO31-mediated degradation of DUSP6 dysregulates ERK and PI3K-AKT signaling and promotes prostate tumorigenesis.
Adaptive translational pausing is a hallmark of the cellular response to severe environmental stress.
Low glycaemic diets alter lipid metabolism to influence tumour growth.
Phosphoinositide binding activity of Smad2 is essential for its function in TGF-β signaling.
Harnessing orthogonal recombinases to decipher cell fate with enhanced precision.
Efficacy of Sirolimus in Patients Requiring Tracheostomy for Life-Threatening Lymphatic Malformation of the Head and Neck: A Report From the European Reference Network.
Bright and stable luminescent probes for target engagement profiling in live cells.

Cancer Lett. 2021 Oct 13. pii: S0304-3835(21)00520-6. [Epub ahead of print]

EZH2 inhibition confers PIK3CA-driven lung tumors enhanced sensitivity to PI3K inhibition.

Fan Chen, Jinpeng Liu, Xiulong Song, Tanner J DuCote, Aria L Byrd, Chi Wang, Christine F Brainson.

  PI3K signaling pathway, especially PIK3CA, the gene encoding the catalytic subunit of the PI3K complex, is highly mutated and amplified in various cancer types, including non-small cell lung cancer. Although PI3K inhibitors have been used in clinics for follicular lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, no agents targeting PI3K aberrations in lung cancer have been approved by FDA so far. In this study, we observed that the PIK3CA-mutant or amplified lung cancer cells were more sensitive to EZH2 inhibition. PIK3CA-E545K, the most common mutation in lung cancer, harbored a modest induction of stem-like properties in lung epithelial cells, and drove development of adenocarcinoma autochthonously when paired with p53 loss in a murine mouse model. EZH2 inhibitor synergized with PI3K inhibitor in human cancer cells in vitro and worked together efficiently in vivo. Mechanistically, EZH2 inhibition cooperated with PI3K inhibition to produce a more potent suppression of phospho-AKT downstream of PI3K. This study suggests a promising combination therapy to combat lung cancers with PIK3CA mutation or amplification. Both copanlisib, the PI3K inhibitor, and tazemetostat, the EZH2 inhibitor, are FDA-approved, which should enhance the clinical translation of this work.

Keywords:  Combination therapy; EZH2; Epigenetic therapy; Lung cancer; PI3K

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.canlet.2021.10.010
Genes Cells. 2021 Oct 18.

Generating a New Mouse Model for Nuclear PTEN Deficiency by a Single K13R Mutation.

Takashi Kato, Atsushi Igarashi, Hiromi Sesaki, Miho Iijima.

  Many human diseases, including cancer and neurological abnormalities, are linked to deficiencies of PTEN, a dual phosphatase that dephosphorylates both lipids and proteins. PTEN functions in multiple intracellular locations, including the plasma membrane and nucleus. Therefore, a critical challenge to understand the pathogenesis of PTEN-associated diseases is to determine the specific role of PTEN at different locations. Toward this goal, the current study generated a mouse line in which lysine 13, which is critical for the nuclear localization of PTEN, is changed to arginine in the lipid-binding domain using the CRISPR-Ca9 gene-editing system. We found that PTENK13R mice show a strong decrease in the localization of PTEN in the nucleus without affecting the protein stability, phosphatase activity, and phosphorylation in the C-terminal tail region. PTENK13R mice are viable but produce smaller neurons and develop microcephaly. These data demonstrate that PTENK13R mice provide a useful animal model to study the role of PTEN in the nucleus in vivo.

Keywords:  Brain; Mouse; Neuron; Nuclear PTEN; PTEN

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1111/gtc.12902
J Hematol Oncol. 2021 Oct 16. 14(1): 170

Comprehensive molecular characterization of lung tumors implicates AKT and MYC signaling in adenocarcinoma to squamous cell transdifferentiation.

Alvaro Quintanal-Villalonga, Hirokazu Taniguchi, Yingqian A Zhan, Maysun M Hasan, Shweta S Chavan, Fanli Meng, Fathema Uddin, Viola Allaj, Parvathy Manoj, Nisargbhai S Shah, Joseph M Chan, Metamia Ciampricotti, Andrew Chow, Michael Offin, Jordana Ray-Kirton, Jacklynn D Egger, Umesh K Bhanot, Irina Linkov, Marina Asher, Michael H Roehrl, Katia Ventura, Juan Qiu, Elisa de Stanchina, Jason C Chang, Natasha Rekhtman, Brian Houck-Loomis, Richard P Koche, Helena A Yu, Triparna Sen, Charles M Rudin.

  BACKGROUND: Lineage plasticity, the ability to transdifferentiate among distinct phenotypic identities, facilitates therapeutic resistance in cancer. In lung adenocarcinomas (LUADs), this phenomenon includes small cell and squamous cell (LUSC) histologic transformation in the context of acquired resistance to targeted inhibition of driver mutations. LUAD-to-LUSC transdifferentiation, occurring in up to 9% of EGFR-mutant patients relapsed on osimertinib, is associated with notably poor prognosis. We hypothesized that multi-parameter profiling of the components of mixed histology (LUAD/LUSC) tumors could provide insight into factors licensing lineage plasticity between these histologies.METHODS: We performed genomic, epigenomics, transcriptomics and protein analyses of microdissected LUAD and LUSC components from mixed histology tumors, pre-/post-transformation tumors and reference non-transformed LUAD and LUSC samples. We validated our findings through genetic manipulation of preclinical models in vitro and in vivo and performed patient-derived xenograft (PDX) treatments to validate potential therapeutic targets in a LUAD PDX model acquiring LUSC features after osimertinib treatment.
RESULTS: Our data suggest that LUSC transdifferentiation is primarily driven by transcriptional reprogramming rather than mutational events. We observed consistent relative upregulation of PI3K/AKT, MYC and PRC2 pathway genes. Concurrent activation of PI3K/AKT and MYC induced squamous features in EGFR-mutant LUAD preclinical models. Pharmacologic inhibition of EZH1/2 in combination with osimertinib prevented relapse with squamous-features in an EGFR-mutant patient-derived xenograft model, and inhibition of EZH1/2 or PI3K/AKT signaling re-sensitized resistant squamous-like tumors to osimertinib.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provide the first comprehensive molecular characterization of LUSC transdifferentiation, suggesting putative drivers and potential therapeutic targets to constrain or prevent lineage plasticity.

Keywords:  Lineage plasticity; Squamous transdifferentiation; Targeted therapy; Treatment resistance

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1186/s13045-021-01186-z
Cell Rep Methods. 2021 Jul 26. pii: 100015. [Epub ahead of print]1(3):

Targeted mass spectrometry-based assays enable multiplex quantification of receptor tyrosine kinase, MAP Kinase, and AKT signaling.

Jeffrey R Whiteaker, Kanika Sharma, Melissa A Hoffman, Eric Kuhn, Lei Zhao, Alexandra R Cocco, Regine M Schoenherr, Jacob J Kennedy, Ulianna Voytovich, Chenwei Lin, Bin Fang, Kiah Bowers, Gordon Whiteley, Simona Colantonio, William Bocik, Rhonda Roberts, Tara Hiltke, Emily Boja, Henry Rodriguez, Frank McCormick, Matthew Holderfield, Steven A Carr, John M Koomen, Amanda G Paulovich.

  Summary: A primary goal of the US National Cancer Institute's Ras initiative at the Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research is to develop methods to quantify RAS signaling to facilitate development of novel cancer therapeutics. We use targeted proteomics technologies to develop a community resource consisting of 256 validated multiple reaction monitoring (MRM)-based, multiplexed assays for quantifying protein expression and phosphorylation through the receptor tyrosine kinase, MAPK, and AKT signaling networks. As proof of concept, we quantify the response of melanoma (A375 and SK-MEL-2) and colorectal cancer (HCT-116 and HT-29) cell lines to BRAF inhibition by PLX-4720. These assays replace over 60 Western blots with quantitative mass spectrometry-based assays of high molecular specificity and quantitative precision, showing the value of these methods for pharmacodynamic measurements and mechanism of action studies. Methods, fit-for-purpose validation, and results are publicly available as a resource for the community at assays.cancer.gov.Motivation: A lack of quantitative, multiplexable assays for phosphosignaling limits comprehensive investigation of aberrant signaling in cancer and evaluation of novel treatments. To alleviate this limitation, we sought to develop assays using targeted mass spectrometry for quantifying protein expression and phosphorylation through the receptor tyrosine kinase, MAPK, and AKT signaling networks. The resulting assays provide a resource for replacing over 60 Western blots in examining cancer signaling and tumor biology with high molecular specificity and quantitative rigor.

Keywords:  AKT; Cancer signaling; MAP kinase; RAS; RTK; assay resource; immuno-MRM; pharmacodynamics; quantitative proteomics; targeted therapy

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crmeth.2021.100015
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2021 Oct 26. pii: e2108957118. [Epub ahead of print]118(43):

Acute Csk inhibition hinders B cell activation by constraining the PI3 kinase pathway.

Wen Lu, Katarzyna M Skrzypczynska, Arthur Weiss.

  T cell antigen receptor (TCR) and B cell antigen receptor (BCR) signaling are initiated and tightly regulated by Src-family kinases (SFKs). SFKs positively regulate TCR signaling in naïve T cells but have both positive and negative regulatory roles in BCR signaling in naïve B cells. The proper regulation of their activities depends on the opposing actions of receptor tyrosine phosphatases CD45 and CD148 and the cytoplasmic tyrosine kinase C-terminal Src kinase Csk. Csk is a major negative regulator of SFKs. Using a PP1-analog-sensitive Csk (CskAS) system, we have previously shown that inhibition of CskAS increases SFK activity, leading to augmentation of responses to weak TCR stimuli in T cells. However, the effects of Csk inhibition in B cells were not known. In this study, we surprisingly found that inhibition of CskAS led to marked inhibition of BCR-stimulated cytoplasmic free calcium increase and Erk activation despite increased SFK activation in B cells, contrasting the effects observed in T cells. Further investigation revealed that acute CskAS inhibition suppressed BCR-mediated phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate (PIP3) production in B cells. Restoring PIP3 levels in B cells by CD19 cross-linking or SHIP1 deficiency eliminated the negative regulatory effect of CskAS inhibition. This reveals the critical role of Csk in maintaining an appropriate level of SFK activity and regulating PIP3 amounts as a means of compensating for SFK fluctuations to prevent inappropriate B cell activation. This regulatory mechanism controlling PIP3 amounts may also contribute to B cell anergy and self-tolerance.

Keywords:  B cell receptor signaling; CSK; PI3 kinase; Src-family kinases

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2108957118
Mol Syst Biol. 2021 Oct;17(10): e10402

Cell-to-cell and type-to-type heterogeneity of signaling networks: insights from the crowd.

Single Cell Signaling in Breast Cancer DREAM Consortium members

  Recent technological developments allow us to measure the status of dozens of proteins in individual cells. This opens the way to understand the heterogeneity of complex multi-signaling networks across cells and cell types, with important implications to understand and treat diseases such as cancer. These technologies are, however, limited to proteins for which antibodies are available and are fairly costly, making predictions of new markers and of existing markers under new conditions a valuable alternative. To assess our capacity to make such predictions and boost further methodological development, we organized the Single Cell Signaling in Breast Cancer DREAM challenge. We used a mass cytometry dataset, covering 36 markers in over 4,000 conditions totaling 80 million single cells across 67 breast cancer cell lines. Through four increasingly difficult subchallenges, the participants predicted missing markers, new conditions, and the time-course response of single cells to stimuli in the presence and absence of kinase inhibitors. The challenge results show that despite the stochastic nature of signal transduction in single cells, the signaling events are tightly controlled and machine learning methods can accurately predict new experimental data.

Keywords:  cell signaling; crowdsourcing; mass cytometry; predictive modeling; single cell

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.15252/msb.202110402
Elife. 2021 Oct 19. pii: e72216. [Epub ahead of print]10

5' modifications improve potency and efficacy of DNA donors for precision genome editing.

Krishna S Ghanta, Zexiang Chen, Aamir Mir, Gregoriy A Dokshin, Pranathi M Krishnamurthy, Yeonsoo Yoon, Judith Gallant, Ping Xu, Xiao-Ou Zhang, Ahmet Rasit Ozturk, Masahiro Shin, Feston Idrizi, Pengpeng Liu, Hassan Gneid, Alireza Edraki, Nathan D Lawson, Jaime A Rivera-Pérez, Erik Sontheimer, Jonathan K Watts, Craig C Mello.

  Nuclease-directed genome editing is a powerful tool for investigating physiology and has great promise as a therapeutic approach to correct mutations that cause disease. In its most precise form, genome editing can use cellular homology-directed repair (HDR) pathways to insert information from an exogenously supplied DNA repair template (donor) directly into a targeted genomic location. Unfortunately, particularly for long insertions, toxicity and delivery considerations associated with repair template DNA can limit HDR efficacy. Here, we explore chemical modifications to both double-stranded and single-stranded DNA-repair templates. We describe 5'-terminal modifications, including in its simplest form the incorporation of triethylene glycol (TEG) moieties, that consistently increase the frequency of precision editing in the germlines of three animal models (Caenorhabditis elegans, zebrafish, mice) and in cultured human cells.

Keywords:  C. elegans; biochemistry; chemical biology; genetics; genomics; human; mouse; zebrafish

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.72216
Cells. 2021 Oct 02. pii: 2636. [Epub ahead of print]10(10):

PI3Kδ Sustains Keratinocyte Hyperproliferation and Epithelial Inflammation: Implications for a Topically Druggable Target in Psoriasis.

Laura Mercurio, Martina Morelli, Claudia Scarponi, Giovanni Luca Scaglione, Sabatino Pallotta, Cristina Albanesi, Stefania Madonna.

  The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-dependent signaling pathway is aberrantly activated in psoriatic lesions and contributes to disease pathogenesis. Among PI3Ks enzymes, PI3Kα, β, and δ isoforms are known to bind the p85 regulatory subunit and mediate activation of AKT and other downstream effectors. In this study, we deepened our understanding of the expression and function of PI3Kδ in skin lesions of patients affected by psoriasis. For the first time, we found that PI3Kδ is overexpressed in psoriatic plaques, and its expression is not only confined to infiltrating immune cells but also accumulates in proliferating keratinocytes of the epidermal basal layer. We investigated the function of PI3Kδ in psoriatic skin by evaluating the impact of seletalisib, a newly developed selective PI3Kδ inhibitor, in both in vitro and in vivo experimental models of psoriasis. Of note, we found that PI3Kδ sustains keratinocyte hyperproliferation and impaired terminal differentiation induced by IL-22, as well as induces epithelial inflammation and resistance to apoptosis mediated by TNF-α in human keratinocytes. Mechanistically, PI3Kδ promotes PDK1 phosphorylation and signals through AKT-dependent or -independent pathways. It is worth mentioning that PI3Kδ inhibition by seletalisib attenuates the severity of psoriasiform phenotype induced in the Imiquimod-induced mouse model of psoriasis by restoring the physiological proliferation and differentiation programs in epidermal keratinocytes and contrasting the cutaneous inflammatory responses. Therefore, we suggest PI3Kδ as a potential topically druggable target in psoriasis and skin diseases characterized by epidermal hyperproliferation and skin inflammation.

Keywords:  AKT; PI3K isoforms; PI3Kδ; cytokines; hyperproliferation; keratinocytes; psoriasis; seletalisib; skin inflammation

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/cells10102636
Elife. 2021 Oct 22. pii: e70079. [Epub ahead of print]10

mTORC1-induced retinal progenitor cell overproliferation leads to accelerated mitotic aging and degeneration of descendent Müller glia.

Soyeon Lim, You-Joung Kim, Sooyeon Park, Ji-Heon Choi, Younghoon Sung, Katsuhiko Nishimori, Zybmek Kozmik, Han-Woong Lee, Jin Woo Kim.

  Retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) divide in limited numbers to generate the cells comprising vertebrate retina. The molecular mechanism that leads RPC to the division limit, however, remains elusive. Here, we find that the hyperactivation of mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) in an RPC subset by deletion of tuberous sclerosis complex 1 (Tsc1) makes the RPCs arrive at the division limit precociously and produce Müller glia (MG) that degenerate from senescence-associated cell death. We further show the hyperproliferation of Tsc1-deficient RPCs and the degeneration of MG in the mouse retina disappear by concomitant deletion of hypoxia-induced factor 1-a (Hif1a), which induces glycolytic gene expression to support mTORC1-induced RPC proliferation. Collectively, our results suggest that, by having mTORC1 constitutively active, an RPC divides and exhausts mitotic capacity faster than neighboring RPCs, and thus produces retinal cells that degenerate with aging-related changes.

Keywords:  developmental biology; mouse

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.70079
Cell Rep. 2021 Oct 19. pii: S2211-1247(21)01337-1. [Epub ahead of print]37(3): 109870

Loss of FBXO31-mediated degradation of DUSP6 dysregulates ERK and PI3K-AKT signaling and promotes prostate tumorigenesis.

Shanshan Duan, Loredana Moro, Rui Qu, Daniele Simoneschi, Hyunwoo Cho, Shaowen Jiang, Huiyong Zhao, Qing Chang, Elisa de Stanchina, Arnaldo A Arbini, Michele Pagano.

  FBXO31 is the substrate receptor of one of many CUL1-RING ubiquitin ligase (CRL1) complexes. Here, we show that low FBXO31 mRNA levels are associated with high pre-operative prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels and Gleason grade in human prostate cancer. Mechanistically, the ubiquitin ligase CRL1FBXO31 promotes the ubiquitylation-mediated degradation of DUSP6, a dual specificity phosphatase that dephosphorylates and inactivates the extracellular-signal-regulated kinase-1 and -2 (ERK1/2). Depletion of FBXO31 stabilizes DUSP6, suppresses ERK signaling, and activates the PI3K-AKT signaling cascade. Moreover, deletion of FBXO31 promotes tumor development in a mouse orthotopic model of prostate cancer. Treatment with BCI, a small molecule inhibitor of DUSP6, suppresses AKT activation and prevents tumor formation, suggesting that the FBXO31 tumor suppressor activity is dependent on DUSP6. Taken together, our studies highlight the relevance of the FBXO31-DUSP6 axis in the regulation of ERK- and PI3K-AKT-mediated signaling pathways, as well as its therapeutic potential in prostate cancer.

Keywords:  AKT; BCI; CRL; DUSP6; ERK; F-box protein; FBXO31; prostate cancer; ubiquitin; ubiquitin ligases

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109870
Mol Cell. 2021 Oct 21. pii: S1097-2765(21)00798-X. [Epub ahead of print]81(20): 4191-4208.e8

Adaptive translational pausing is a hallmark of the cellular response to severe environmental stress.

Raul Jobava, Yuanhui Mao, Bo-Jhih Guan, Di Hu, Dawid Krokowski, Chien-Wen Chen, Xin Erica Shu, Evelyn Chukwurah, Jing Wu, Zhaofeng Gao, Leah L Zagore, William C Merrick, Aleksandra Trifunovic, Andrew C Hsieh, Saba Valadkhan, Youwei Zhang, Xin Qi, Eckhard Jankowsky, Ivan Topisirovic, Donny D Licatalosi, Shu-Bing Qian, Maria Hatzoglou.

  To survive, mammalian cells must adapt to environmental challenges. While the cellular response to mild stress has been widely studied, how cells respond to severe stress remains unclear. We show here that under severe hyperosmotic stress, cells enter a transient hibernation-like state in anticipation of recovery. We demonstrate this adaptive pausing response (APR) is a coordinated cellular response that limits ATP supply and consumption through mitochondrial fragmentation and widespread pausing of mRNA translation. This pausing is accomplished by ribosome stalling at translation initiation codons, which keeps mRNAs poised to resume translation upon recovery. We further show that recovery from severe stress involves ISR (integrated stress response) signaling that permits cell cycle progression, resumption of growth, and reversal of mitochondria fragmentation. Our findings indicate that cells can respond to severe stress via a hibernation-like mechanism that preserves vital elements of cellular function under harsh environmental conditions.

Keywords:  ATF4; ISR; hypertonic; mTOR; mitochondria; neMito mRNAs; ribosome stalling; stress; translation

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcel.2021.09.029
Nature. 2021 Oct 20.

Low glycaemic diets alter lipid metabolism to influence tumour growth.

Evan C Lien, Anna M Westermark, Yin Zhang, Chen Yuan, Zhaoqi Li, Allison N Lau, Kiera M Sapp, Brian M Wolpin, Matthew G Vander Heiden.

Dietary interventions can change metabolite levels in the tumour microenvironment, which might then affect cancer cell metabolism to alter tumour growth1-5. Although caloric restriction (CR) and a ketogenic diet (KD) are often thought to limit tumour progression by lowering blood glucose and insulin levels6-8, we found that only CR inhibits the growth of select tumour allografts in mice, suggesting that other mechanisms contribute to tumour growth inhibition. A change in nutrient availability observed with CR, but not with KD, is lower lipid levels in the plasma and tumours. Upregulation of stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD), which synthesises monounsaturated fatty acids, is required for cancer cells to proliferate in a lipid-depleted environment, and CR also impairs tumour SCD activity to cause an imbalance between unsaturated and saturated fatty acids to slow tumour growth. Enforcing cancer cell SCD expression or raising circulating lipid levels through a higher-fat CR diet confers resistance to the effects of CR. By contrast, although KD also impairs tumour SCD activity, KD-driven increases in lipid availability maintain the unsaturated to saturated fatty acid ratios in tumours, and changing the KD fat composition to increase tumour saturated fatty acid levels cooperates with decreased tumour SCD activity to slow tumour growth. These data suggest that diet-induced mismatches between tumour fatty acid desaturation activity and the availability of specific fatty acid species determine whether low glycaemic diets impair tumour growth.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-04049-2
J Biol Chem. 2021 Oct 13. pii: S0021-9258(21)01109-1. [Epub ahead of print] 101303

Phosphoinositide binding activity of Smad2 is essential for its function in TGF-β signaling.

Pawanthi Buwaneka, Arthur Ralko, Sukhamoy Gorai, Ha Pham, Wonhwa Cho.

As a central player in the canonical TGF-β signaling pathway, Smad2 transmits the activation of TGF-β receptors at the plasma membrane (PM) to transcriptional regulation in the nucleus. Although it has been well established that binding of TGF-β to its receptors leads to the recruitment and activation of Smad2, the spatiotemporal mechanism by which Smad2 is recruited to the activated TGF-β receptor complex and activated is not fully understood. Here we show that Smad2 selectively and tightly binds phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2) in the PM. The PI(4,5)P2-binding site is located in the MH2 domain that is involved in interaction with the TGF-β receptor I that transduces TGF-β-receptor binding to downstream signaling proteins. Quantitative optical imaging analyses show that PM recruitment of Smad2 is triggered by its interaction with PI(4,5)P2 that is locally enriched near the activated TGF-β receptor complex, leading to its binding to the TGF-β receptor I. The PI(4,5)P2 binding activity of Smad2 is essential for the TGF-β-stimulated phosphorylation, nuclear transport and transcriptional activity of Smad2. Structural comparison of all Smad MH2 domains suggests that membrane lipids may also interact with other Smad proteins and regulate their function in diverse TGF-β-mediated biological processes.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbc.2021.101303
Trends Cell Biol. 2021 Oct 15. pii: S0962-8924(21)00186-0. [Epub ahead of print]

Harnessing orthogonal recombinases to decipher cell fate with enhanced precision.

Wendong Weng, Xiuxiu Liu, Kathy O Lui, Bin Zhou.

  Precisely deciphering the cellular plasticity in vivo is essential in understanding many key biological processes. Site-specific recombinases are genetic tools used for in vivo lineage tracing and gene manipulation. Conventional Cre-loxP, Dre-rox, and Flp-frt technologies form the orthogonal recombination systems that can also be used in combination to increase the precision. As such, more than one marker gene can be targeted for lineage tracing, studying cellular heterogeneity, recording cellular activities, or even genome editing. Their combinatory use has recently resolved some controversies in defining cellular fate plasticity. Focusing on cell fate studies, we introduce the design principles of orthogonal recombinases-based strategies, describe some working examples in resolving cell fate-related controversies, and discuss some of their technical strengths and limits.

Keywords:  cell fate; gene manipulation; lineage tracing; orthogonal recombinases

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tcb.2021.09.007
Front Pediatr. 2021 ;9 697960

Efficacy of Sirolimus in Patients Requiring Tracheostomy for Life-Threatening Lymphatic Malformation of the Head and Neck: A Report From the European Reference Network.

Annegret Holm, Maroeska Te Loo, Leo Schultze Kool, Päivi Salminen, Veronica Celis, Eulalia Baselga, Sophie Duignan, Veronika Dvorakova, Alan D Irvine, Laurence M Boon, Miikka Vikkula, Nader Ghaffarpour, Charlotte M Niemeyer, Jochen Rössler, Friedrich G Kapp.

  Extensive lymphatic malformations (LMs) of the head and neck region may require tracheostomy to secure the airway. Treatment of these life-threatening LMs is usually multimodal and includes sclerotherapy and surgery, among others. Recently, systemic therapy with sirolimus has been introduced as an effective treatment for venous and lymphatic malformations; its efficacy and safety profile in patients with extensive LM requiring tracheostomy are, however, as yet not fully known. We performed a retrospective, multicenter review and identified 13 patients with an extensive LM of the head and neck region, who previously underwent placement of tracheostomy and subsequently received sirolimus treatment with the aim to improve the local respiratory situation and remove the tracheostomy. Under sirolimus therapy, tracheostomy could be reversed in 8/13 (62%) patients, a further 2/13 (15%) patients improved markedly, and removal of the tracheostomy was planned at the time of writing, while 3/13 (23%) patients showed insufficient or absent response to sirolimus, rendering tracheostomy reversal not feasible. The median duration of sirolimus treatment until removal of tracheostomy was 18 months (range, 8 months to 5.6 years). Adverse events of sirolimus therapy were common [10/13 (77%) patients], yet the majority of these were mild [9/10 (90%) patients] and only one severe adverse event was recorded, with ulceration and necrosis at a catheter insertion site. In conclusion, sirolimus can be considered an effective and safe salvage treatment in patients with extensive LM even after placement of a tracheostomy, as closure of the latter was possible in the majority of patients (62%) of our retrospective cohort. A better understanding of when to start sirolimus therapy, of the duration of treatment, and of factors allowing the prediction of treatment response will require further investigation.

Keywords:  lymphatic malformation; rapamycin; sirolimus; tracheostoma; tracheostomy; vascular anomaly

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2021.697960
Nat Chem Biol. 2021 Oct 21.

Bright and stable luminescent probes for target engagement profiling in live cells.

N Connor Payne, Alena S Kalyakina, Kritika Singh, Mark A Tye, Ralph Mazitschek.

The pace of progress in biomedical research directly depends on techniques that enable the quantitative interrogation of interactions between proteins and other biopolymers, or with their small-molecule ligands. Time-resolved Förster resonance energy transfer (TR-FRET) assay platforms offer high sensitivity and specificity. However, the paucity of accessible and biocompatible luminescent lanthanide complexes, which are essential reagents for TR-FRET-based approaches, and their poor cellular permeability have limited broader adaptation of TR-FRET beyond homogeneous and extracellular assay applications. Here, we report the development of CoraFluors, a new class of macrotricyclic terbium complexes, which are synthetically readily accessible, stable in biological media and exhibit photophysical and physicochemical properties that are desirable for biological studies. We validate the performance of CoraFluors in cell-free systems, identify cell-permeable analogs and demonstrate their utility in the quantitative domain-selective characterization of Keap1 ligands, as well as in isoform-selective target engagement profiling of HDAC1 inhibitors in live cells.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41589-021-00877-5