bims-tubesc 2021-01-17 papers

bims-tubesc

Biomed News

on Molecular mechanisms in tuberous sclerosis

Issue of 2021–01–17
sixteen papers selected by

Structural insights into TSC complex assembly and GAP activity on Rheb.
Genetic pathogenesis of the epileptogenic lesions in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex: Therapeutic targeting of the mTOR pathway.
Factors associated with autism spectrum disorder in children with tuberous sclerosis complex: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Neuron-Glia Interactions in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex Affect the Synaptic Balance in 2D and Organoid Cultures.
Tuberous sclerosis complex-associated neuropsychiatric disorder (TAND) in a low-resource setting - From seizure to psychosis: A case report.
A case of TSC2-PKD1 Contiguous Deletion Syndrome: Clinical features and effective treatment for epilepsy.
Conserved and Divergent Mechanisms That Control TORC1 in Yeasts and Mammals.
Amino acid sensory complex proteins in mTORC1 and macroautophagy regulation.
Profiling the Surfaceome Identifies Therapeutic Targets for Cells with Hyperactive mTORC1 Signaling.
The interplay of ROS and the PI3K/Akt pathway in autophagy regulation.
Imaging dynamic mTORC1 pathway activity in vivo reveals marked shifts that support time-specific inhibitor therapy in AML.
Adaptive responses to mTOR gene targeting in hematopoietic stem cells reveal a proliferative mechanism evasive to mTOR inhibition.
Gradient of brain mosaic RHEB variants causes a continuum of cortical dysplasia.
Physiological function of FKBP12, a primary target of rapamycin/FK506: a newly identified role in transcription of ribosomal protein genes in yeast.
Sestrin2 protects against bavachin induced ER stress through AMPK/mTORC1 signaling pathway in HepG2 cells.
Role of FMRP in rapid antidepressant effects and synapse regulation.

Nat Commun. 2021 01 12. 12(1): 339

Structural insights into TSC complex assembly and GAP activity on Rheb.

Huirong Yang, Zishuo Yu, Xizi Chen, Jiabei Li, Ningning Li, Jiaxuan Cheng, Ning Gao, Hai-Xin Yuan, Dan Ye, Kun-Liang Guan, Yanhui Xu.

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) integrates upstream stimuli and regulates cell growth by controlling the activity of mTORC1. TSC complex functions as a GTPase-activating protein (GAP) towards small GTPase Rheb and inhibits Rheb-mediated activation of mTORC1. Mutations in TSC genes cause tuberous sclerosis. In this study, the near-atomic resolution structure of human TSC complex reveals an arch-shaped architecture, with a 2:2:1 stoichiometry of TSC1, TSC2, and TBC1D7. This asymmetric complex consists of two interweaved TSC1 coiled-coil and one TBC1D7 that spans over the tail-to-tail TSC2 dimer. The two TSC2 GAP domains are symmetrically cradled within the core module formed by TSC2 dimerization domain and central coiled-coil of TSC1. Structural and biochemical analyses reveal TSC2 GAP-Rheb complimentary interactions and suggest a catalytic mechanism, by which an asparagine thumb (N1643) stabilizes γ-phosphate of GTP and accelerate GTP hydrolysis of Rheb. Our study reveals mechanisms of TSC complex assembly and GAP activity.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-20522-4
Epilepsy Behav. 2021 Jan 08. pii: S1525-5050(20)30893-3. [Epub ahead of print] 107713

Genetic pathogenesis of the epileptogenic lesions in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex: Therapeutic targeting of the mTOR pathway.

Romina Moavero, Angelika Mühlebner, Mark Jasper Luinenburg, Dana Craiu, Eleonora Aronica, Paolo Curatolo.

  Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a genetic multisystem disease due to the mutation in one of the two genes TSC1 and TSC2, affecting several organs and systems and carrying a significant risk of early onset and refractory seizures. The pathogenesis of this complex disorder is now well known, with most of TSC-related manifestations being a consequence of the overactivation of the mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR) complex. The discovery of this underlying mechanism paved the way for the use of a class of drugs called mTOR inhibitors including rapamycin and everolimus and specifically targeting this pathway. Rapamycin has been widely used in different animal models of TSC-related epilepsy and proved to be able not only to suppress seizures but also to prevent the development of epilepsy, thus demonstrating an antiepileptogenic potential. In some models, it also showed some benefit on neuropsychiatric manifestations associated with TSC. Everolimus has recently been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medical Agency for the treatment of refractory seizures associated with TSC starting from the age of 2 years. It demonstrated a clear benefit when compared to placebo on reducing the frequency of different seizure types and exerting a higher effect in younger children. In conclusion, mTOR cascade can be a potentially major cause of TSC-associated epilepsy and neurodevelopmental disability, and additional research should investigate if early suppression of abnormal mTOR signal with mTOR inhibitors before seizure onset can be a more efficient approach and an effective antiepileptogenic and disease-modifying strategy in infants with TSC.

Keywords:  Epilepsy; Everolimus; Rapamycin; Tuberous sclerosis complex; mTOR; mTOR inhibitor

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yebeh.2020.107713
Dev Med Child Neurol. 2021 Jan 11.

Factors associated with autism spectrum disorder in children with tuberous sclerosis complex: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Rebecca A Mitchell, Sarah M Barton, A Simon Harvey, Alexandra M Ure, Katrina Williams.

AIM: To investigate associations between clinical factors and the development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), specifically seizures, electroencephalogram abnormalities, tubers and other neurostructural abnormalities, and genetic factors.
METHOD: MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, the Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were searched until January 2019. Studies that considered the predefined factors for development of ASD in children with TSC were included, following PRISMA-P guidelines. Two authors independently reviewed titles, abstracts, and full texts, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias.
RESULTS: Forty-two studies with 3542 children with TSC were included. ASD was associated with a history of seizures (odds ratio [OR] 3.79, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.77-8.14), infantile spasms compared with other seizure types (OR 3.04, 95% CI 2.17-4.27), onset of any seizure type during infancy (OR 2.65, 95% CI 1.08-6.54), and male sex (OR 1.62, 95% CI 1.23-2.14). There was no association with tuber number, tuber location, or genotype.
INTERPRETATION: While a causal link between seizures and ASD in children with TSC cannot be inferred, a strong association between seizures and ASD in children with TSC, particularly with seizure onset during infancy and specifically infantile spasms, is present. Children with TSC and infant-onset seizures should be monitored for emerging features of ASD.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/dmcn.14787
Cells. 2021 Jan 12. pii: E134. [Epub ahead of print]10(1):

Neuron-Glia Interactions in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex Affect the Synaptic Balance in 2D and Organoid Cultures.

Stephanie Dooves, Arianne J H van Velthoven, Linda G Suciati, Vivi M Heine.

  Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a genetic disease affecting the brain. Neurological symptoms like epilepsy and neurodevelopmental issues cause a significant burden on patients. Both neurons and glial cells are affected by TSC mutations. Previous studies have shown changes in the excitation/inhibition balance (E/I balance) in TSC. Astrocytes are known to be important for neuronal development, and astrocytic dysfunction can cause changes in the E/I balance. We hypothesized that astrocytes affect the synaptic balance in TSC. TSC patient-derived stem cells were differentiated into astrocytes, which showed increased proliferation compared to control astrocytes. RNA sequencing revealed changes in gene expression, which were related to epidermal growth factor (EGF) signaling and enriched for genes that coded for secreted or transmembrane proteins. Control neurons were cultured in astrocyte-conditioned medium (ACM) of TSC and control astrocytes. After culture in TSC ACM, neurons showed an altered synaptic balance, with an increase in the percentage of VGAT+ synapses. These findings were confirmed in organoids, presenting a spontaneous 3D organization of neurons and glial cells. To conclude, this study shows that TSC astrocytes are affected and secrete factors that alter the synaptic balance. As an altered E/I balance may underlie many of the neurological TSC symptoms, astrocytes may provide new therapeutic targets.

Keywords:  EGF signaling; astrocyte-conditioned medium; astrocytes; excitation/inhibition balance; iPSC; organoid; tuberous sclerosis complex

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/cells10010134
Ann Med Surg (Lond). 2020 Dec;60 734-736

Tuberous sclerosis complex-associated neuropsychiatric disorder (TAND) in a low-resource setting - From seizure to psychosis: A case report.

Shashwat Pokharel, Pallawi Jyotsana, Robert Singh Maharjan, Rajshree Singh, Kamal Pandit.

   Introduction: Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) patients commonly present with neuropsychiatric symptoms - grouped as TSC-associated neuropsychiatric disorder (TAND) - incorporating Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) symptoms, intellectual and learning disabilities, psychiatric and behavioral problems. A structured symptomatic assessment known as the TAND-checklist can be useful in reviewing these symptoms systematically and comprehensively.
Case summary: A 21-year-old woman presented with delusions of reference, auditory hallucinations, irritability, restlessness, aggressive behavior, new-onset tremors and rigidity in both upper limbs, and refusal of food and medication intake for 1 week. She has a history of several seizure episodes since 3 years of age which was controlled on oral sodium valproate, carbamazepine, and clobazam. MRI revealed tubers in frontal and insular cortex.Ultrasound of the abdomen showed bilateral renal angiomyolipomas. She was diagnosed with TSC with psychotic symptoms.
Discussion: TSC2 mutations usually present early with epileptic spasms (ES), complex epilepsies, intellectual and cognitive deficits, cardiac rhabdomyomas, and sub-ependymal giant-cell astrocytomas (SEGAs) with high tuber-to-brain proportions (TBP). There is also a remarkable symptom overlap between autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and TSC with behavioral/psychiatric disorders. Social and behavioral problems seen in our patient may be a manifestation of either TSC, ASD, or both. Cost-effectiveness and pragmatism must be considered for TAND-patients in low-resource settings. While it may be theoretically valid to seek genetic testing, TBP-measurement, and mTOR-inhibitor therapy to address TAND-symptoms, they are impractical when compared to TAND-checklist during follow-up.

Keywords:  MRI; Nepal; Psychiatric disorder; Seizure; TAND-checklist; Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC)

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amsu.2020.11.084
Int J Dev Neurosci. 2021 Jan 09.

A case of TSC2-PKD1 Contiguous Deletion Syndrome: Clinical features and effective treatment for epilepsy.

Xiaoyu Pan, Chengqing Yang, Shaochun Ma, Weihong Wang, Peipei Liu, Ya Guo, Yedan Liu, Jie Song, Sifei Wu, Liping Yi, Wei Wei, Zongbo Chen.

  Polycystic kidney disease with Tuberous sclerosis is a disease caused by the deletions of the TSC2-PKD1 gene. The disease is rare reported and the characterized manifestation is severe polycystic kidney growth. The diagnosed can be made by molecular analysis. We report the first case of PKDTS discovered in infancy in China with typical neurological and renal manifestations. The patient has infantile spasm, polycystic kidney, skin damage, hypertension and hematuria after infection. After effective treatment of Rapamycin, the seizures were completely controlled. There was not been any renal function damage in the patient. At the same time, we review the related literature, and further elaborate on the variety of clinical manifestations, treatment and prognosis.

Keywords:  TSC2-PKD gene deletions; infantile spasm; rapamycin; renal cysts

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1002/jdn.10088
Genes (Basel). 2021 Jan 12. pii: E88. [Epub ahead of print]12(1):

Conserved and Divergent Mechanisms That Control TORC1 in Yeasts and Mammals.

Yuichi Morozumi, Kazuhiro Shiozaki.

  Target of rapamycin complex 1 (TORC1), a serine/threonine-protein kinase complex highly conserved among eukaryotes, coordinates cellular growth and metabolism with environmental cues, including nutrients and growth factors. Aberrant TORC1 signaling is associated with cancers and various human diseases, and TORC1 also plays a key role in ageing and lifespan, urging current active research on the mechanisms of TORC1 regulation in a variety of model organisms. Identification and characterization of the RAG small GTPases as well as their regulators, many of which are highly conserved from yeast to humans, led to a series of breakthroughs in understanding the molecular bases of TORC1 regulation. Recruitment of mammalian TORC1 (mTORC1) by RAGs to lysosomal membranes is a key step for mTORC1 activation. Interestingly, the RAG GTPases in fission yeast are primarily responsible for attenuation of TORC1 activity on vacuoles, the yeast equivalent of lysosomes. In this review, we summarize our current knowledge about the functions of TORC1 regulators on yeast vacuoles, and illustrate the conserved and divergent mechanisms of TORC1 regulation between yeasts and mammals.

Keywords:  GTPase; TOR complex 1 (TORC1); target of rapamycin (TOR); yeast

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/genes12010088
Matrix Biol. 2021 Jan 08. pii: S0945-053X(21)00001-9. [Epub ahead of print]

Amino acid sensory complex proteins in mTORC1 and macroautophagy regulation.

Marcel Seibert, Nina Kurrle, Frank Schnütgen, Hubert Serve.

Autophagy is the highly conserved catabolic process, which enables the survival of a cell under unfavorable environmental conditions. In a constantly changing environment, cells must be capable of dynamically oscillating between anabolism and catabolism in order to maintain cellular homeostasis. In this context, the activity of the mechanistic Target Of Rapamycin Complex 1 (mTORC1) is of major importance. As a central signaling node, it directly controls the process of macroautophagy and thus cellular metabolism. Thereby, the control of mTORC1 is equally crucial as the regulation of cellular homeostasis itself, whereby particular importance is attributed to amino acid sensory proteins. In this review, we describe the recent findings of macroautophagy and mTORC1 regulation by upstream amino acid stimuli in different subcellular localizations. We highlight in detail which proteins of the sensor complexes play a specific role in this regulation and point out additional non-canonical functions, e.g. in the regulation of macroautophagy, which have received little attention so far.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matbio.2021.01.001
Mol Cell Proteomics. 2020 Feb;pii: S1535-9476(20)35080-5. [Epub ahead of print]19(2): 294-307

Profiling the Surfaceome Identifies Therapeutic Targets for Cells with Hyperactive mTORC1 Signaling.

Junnian Wei, Kevin Leung, Charles Truillet, Davide Ruggero, James A Wells, Michael J Evans.

  Aberrantly high mTORC1 signaling is a known driver of many cancers and human disorders, yet pharmacological inhibition of mTORC1 rarely confers durable clinical responses. To explore alternative therapeutic strategies, herein we conducted a proteomics survey to identify cell surface proteins upregulated by mTORC1. A comparison of the surfaceome from Tsc1-/-versus Tsc1+/+ mouse embryonic fibroblasts revealed 59 proteins predicted to be significantly overexpressed in Tsc1-/- cells. Further validation of the data in multiple mouse and human cell lines showed that mTORC1 signaling most dramatically induced the expression of the proteases neprilysin (NEP/CD10) and aminopeptidase N (APN/CD13). Functional studies showed that constitutive mTORC1 signaling sensitized cells to genetic ablation of NEP and APN, as well as the biochemical inhibition of APN. In summary, these data show that mTORC1 signaling plays a significant role in the constitution of the surfaceome, which in turn may present novel therapeutic strategies.

Keywords:  SILAC; cancer biology; cancer therapeutics; cell biology; drug targets; membranes; mouse models

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1074/mcp.RA119.001785
Biotechnol Appl Biochem. 2021 Jan 14.

The interplay of ROS and the PI3K/Akt pathway in autophagy regulation.

Dr Lakhan Kma, Dr Taranga Jyoti Baruah.

  Autophagy causes the breakdown of damaged proteins and organelles to their constituent components. The Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway played an important role in regulating the autophagic response of cells in reply to changing reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels. The PI3K α catalytic subunit inhibits autophagy while the β catalytic subunit promotes autophagy in response to changes in ROS levels. The downstream Akt protein acts against autophagy initiation in response to increases in ROS levels under nutrient-rich conditions. Akt acts by activating mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) and by arresting autophagic gene expression. AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) protein counteracts the Akt actions. mTORC1 and mTORC2 inhibit autophagy under moderate ROS levels, but under high ROS levels, mTORC2 can promote cellular senescence via autophagy. Phosphatase and Tensin Homologue (PTEN) protein is the negative regulator of the PI3K pathway, and it has pro-autophagic activities. Studies conducted on cells treated with flavonoids and ionizing radiation showed that the moderate increase in ROS levels in the flavonoid treated groups corresponded with higher PTEN levels and lowered Akt levels leading to a higher occurrence of autophagy. In contrast, higher ROS level evoked by ionizing radiation caused a lowering of the incidence of autophagy. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Keywords:  AMPK; Akt; Autophagy; Beclin-1; PI3K; ROS; apoptosis; cancer; flavonoid; mTOR

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1002/bab.2104
Nat Commun. 2021 01 11. 12(1): 245

Imaging dynamic mTORC1 pathway activity in vivo reveals marked shifts that support time-specific inhibitor therapy in AML.

Toshihiko Oki, Francois Mercier, Hiroki Kato, Yookyung Jung, Thomas O McDonald, Joel A Spencer, Michael C Mazzola, Nick van Gastel, Charles P Lin, Franziska Michor, Toshio Kitamura, David T Scadden.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a high remission, high relapse fatal blood cancer. Although mTORC1 is a master regulator of cell proliferation and survival, its inhibitors have not performed well as AML treatments. To uncover the dynamics of mTORC1 activity in vivo, fluorescent probes are developed to track single cell proliferation, apoptosis and mTORC1 activity of AML cells in the bone marrow of live animals and to quantify these activities in the context of microanatomical localization and intra-tumoral heterogeneity. When chemotherapy drugs commonly used clinically are given to mice with AML, apoptosis is rapid, diffuse and not preferentially restricted to anatomic sites. Dynamic measurement of mTORC1 activity indicated a decline in mTORC1 activity with AML progression. However, at the time of maximal chemotherapy response, mTORC1 signaling is high and positively correlated with a leukemia stemness transcriptional profile. Cell barcoding reveals the induction of mTORC1 activity rather than selection of mTORC1 high cells and timed inhibition of mTORC1 improved the killing of AML cells. These data define the real-time dynamics of AML and the mTORC1 pathway in association with AML growth, response to and relapse after chemotherapy. They provide guidance for timed intervention with pathway-specific inhibitors.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-20491-8
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2021 Jan 05. pii: e2020102118. [Epub ahead of print]118(1):

Adaptive responses to mTOR gene targeting in hematopoietic stem cells reveal a proliferative mechanism evasive to mTOR inhibition.

Cuiqing Fan, Chuntao Zhao, Feng Zhang, Meenu Kesarwani, Zhaowei Tu, Xiongwei Cai, Ashley Kuenzi Davis, Lingli Xu, Cindy L Hochstetler, Xiaoyi Chen, Fukun Guo, Gang Huang, Mohammad Azam, Weidong Tian, Q Richard Lu, Yi Zheng.

  The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a central regulator of cell growth and an attractive anticancer target that integrates diverse signals to control cell proliferation. Previous studies using mTOR inhibitors have shown that mTOR targeting suppresses gene expression and cell proliferation. To date, however, mTOR-targeted therapies in cancer have seen limited efficacy, and one key issue is related to the development of evasive resistance. In this manuscript, through the use of a gene targeting mouse model, we have found that inducible deletion of mTOR in hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) results in a loss of quiescence and increased proliferation. Adaptive to the mTOR loss, mTOR -/- HSCs increase chromatin accessibility and activate global gene expression, contrary to the effects of short-term inhibition by mTOR inhibitors. Mechanistically, such genomic changes are due to a rewiring and adaptive activation of the ERK/MNK/eIF4E signaling pathway that enhances the protein translation of RNA polymerase II, which in turn leads to increased c-Myc gene expression, allowing the HSCs to thrive despite the loss of a functional mTOR pathway. This adaptive mechanism can also be utilized by leukemia cells undergoing long-term mTOR inhibitor treatment to confer resistance to mTOR drug targeting. The resistance can be counteracted by MNK, CDK9, or c-Myc inhibition. These results provide insights into the physiological role of mTOR in mammalian stem cell regulation and implicate a mechanism of evasive resistance in the context of mTOR targeting.

Keywords:  adaptive compensation; drug resistance; hematopoietic stem cells; leukemia; mTOR

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2020102118
Ann Clin Transl Neurol. 2021 Jan 12.

Gradient of brain mosaic RHEB variants causes a continuum of cortical dysplasia.

Wei Shern Lee, Sara Baldassari, Mathilde Chipaux, Homa Adle-Biassette, Sarah E M Stephenson, Wirginia Maixner, A Simon Harvey, Paul J Lockhart, Stéphanie Baulac, Richard J Leventer.

Focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) and hemimegalencephaly (HME) are related malformations with shared etiologies. We report three patients with a spectrum of cortical malformations associated with pathogenic brain-specific somatic Ras homolog enriched in brain (RHEB) variants. The somatic variant load directly correlated with the size of the malformation, with upregulated mTOR activity confirmed in dysplastic tissues. Laser capture microdissection showed enrichment of RHEB variants in dysmorphic neurons and balloon cells. Our findings support the role of RHEB in a spectrum of cortical malformations confirming that FCD and HME represent a disease continuum, with the extent of dysplastic brain directly correlated with the somatic variant load.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/acn3.51286
Curr Genet. 2021 Jan 12.

Physiological function of FKBP12, a primary target of rapamycin/FK506: a newly identified role in transcription of ribosomal protein genes in yeast.

Koji Kasahara.

  In this review, we have summarized the information from a study on FKBP12 (FK506 binding protein 12 kDa) with a view to understand its drug-free, physiological roles in transcription of ribosomal protein gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. FKBP12 with peptidyl-prolylisomerase (PPIase) activity is widely conserved among many eukaryotes. FKBP12 is a primary target for the two structurally related drugs, FK506 and rapamycin. FKBP12 bound with FK506 or rapamycin inhibits calcineurin and target of rapamycin complex 1 (TORC1), respectively. The molecular mechanisms of the effect of FKBP12 in the presence of these drugs have been elucidated. Conversely, the physiological role of FKBP12 has been unclear, especially in yeast. Our study revealed that the deletion of FPR1 (FK506-sensitive prolinerotamase 1 gene), which encodes yeast FKBP12, induced severe growth defect synthetically with deletion of HMO1 (high mobility group family 1). HMO1 encodes an HMGB family protein involved in transcription of ribosomal component genes. Fpr1 was shown to bind specifically to the promoters of ribosomal protein genes (RPGs) dependent on Rap1 (repressor/activator binding protein 1). Importantly, Fpr1 and Hmo1 promote the binding of Fhl1/Ifh1 (forkhead-like 1/interacts with forkhead 1), key regulators of RPG transcription, to certain RPG promoters independently and/or cooperatively with each other. Taken together, we conclude that Fpr1 physiologically functions as transcription factor of RPGs in S. cerevisiae. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that FKBP12 participates in ribosome synthesis independently of drugs, and it may also provide a clue to the unidentified function of other PPIase proteins.

Keywords:  FK506 binding protein 12 (FKBP12); HMGB protein; PPIase; Rapamycin/FK506; Ribosomal protein genes (RPGs); Saccharomyces cerevisiae

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1007/s00294-020-01142-3
J Pharmacol Sci. 2021 Feb;pii: S1347-8613(20)30118-3. [Epub ahead of print]145(2): 175-186

Sestrin2 protects against bavachin induced ER stress through AMPK/mTORC1 signaling pathway in HepG2 cells.

Ying Yang, Guiming Guo, Wei Zhou, Yunxuan Ge, Zheng Fan, Qingquan Liu, Yue Gao.

  Bavachin (BV), a natural flavonoid compound derived from Psoralea corylifolia L, has been reported to be a potential hepatotoxin. Our previous studies have found that BV can induce endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-related cell apoptosis, but the molecular mechanism underlying BV-induced ER stress remains obscure. Sestrin2, a highly conserved stress-inducible protein, is involved in the cellular responses of various stress conditions and homeostatic regulation. However, whether Sestrin2 participated in the ER stress related hepatotoxicity against BV is still elusive. In the present study, we aim to investigate the role of BV on liver injury of mice and the impact of Sestrin2 on BV-induced ER stress in HepG2 cells. The results in mice showed that BV induced ER stress related liver injury with increased Sestrin2 expression involvement. Knockdown of Sestrin2 with siRNA aggravated BV-induced ER stress significantly in HepG2 cells. Further mechanistic study uncovered that inhibition of mTORC1 with rapamycin blocked BV-induced ER stress, and treatment with Sestrin2 siRNA blocked the inhibition effect of AMPK to mTORC1. Therefore, constant mTORC1 would lead to accumulation of misfolded or unfolded proteins and aggravated ER stress. Collectively, our study indicates that Sestrin2 confers protection against BV-induced ER stress via activating of the AMPK/mTORC1 pathway.

Keywords:  Acute liver injury; Bavachin; ER stress; Sestrin2

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jphs.2020.11.012
Mol Psychiatry. 2021 Jan 12.

Role of FMRP in rapid antidepressant effects and synapse regulation.

Chelcie F Heaney, Sanjeev V Namjoshi, Ayse Uneri, Eva C Bach, Jeffrey L Weiner, Kimberly F Raab-Graham.

Rapid antidepressants are novel treatments for major depressive disorder (MDD) and work by blocking N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs), which, in turn, activate the protein synthesis pathway regulated by mechanistic/mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1). Our recent work demonstrates that the RNA-binding protein Fragile X Mental Retardation Protein (FMRP) is downregulated in dendrites upon treatment with a rapid antidepressant. Here, we show that the behavioral effects of the rapid antidepressant Ro-25-6981 require FMRP expression, and treatment promotes differential mRNA binding to FMRP in an mTORC1-dependent manner. Further, these mRNAs are identified to regulate transsynaptic signaling. Using a novel technique, we show that synapse formation underlying the behavioral effects of Ro-25-6981 requires GABABR-mediated mTORC1 activity in WT animals. Finally, we demonstrate that in an animal model that lacks FMRP expression and has clinical relevance for Fragile X Syndrome (FXS), GABABR activity is detrimental to the effects of Ro-25-6981. These effects are rescued with the combined therapy of blocking GABABRs and NMDARs, indicating that rapid antidepressants alone may not be an effective treatment for people with comorbid FXS and MDD.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41380-020-00977-z