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Dysregulation of Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor (FGFR) signaling through amplifications, mutations, and gene fusions has been implicated in a broad array of cancers (e.g. liver, gastric, ovarian, endometrial, and bladder). ARQ 087 is a novel, ATP competitive, small molecule, multi-kinase inhibitor with potent in vitro and in vivo activity against FGFR addicted cell lines and tumors. Biochemically, ARQ 087 exhibited IC50 values of 1.8 nM for FGFR2, and 4.5 nM for FGFR1 and 3. In cells, inhibition of FGFR2 auto-phosphorylation and other proteins downstream in the FGFR pathway (FRS2α, AKT, ERK) was evident by the response to ARQ 087 treatment. Cell proliferation studies demonstrated ARQ 087 has anti-proliferative activity in cell lines driven by FGFR dysregulation, including amplifications, fusions, and mutations. Cell cycle studies in cell lines with high levels of FGFR2 protein showed a positive relationship between ARQ 087 induced G1 cell cycle arrest and subsequent induction of apoptosis. In addition, ARQ 087 was effective at inhibiting tumor growth in vivo in FGFR2 altered, SNU-16 and NCI-H716, xenograft tumor models with gene amplifications and fusions. ARQ 087 is currently being studied in a phase 1/2 clinical trial that includes a sub cohort for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma patients with confirmed FGFR2 gene fusions (NCT01752920).

Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) is a multifunctional growth factor that has a principal role in growth control through both its cytostatic effect on many different epithelial cell types and its ability to induce programmed cell death in a variety of other cell types. Here we have used a screen for proteins that interact physically with the cytoplasmic domain of the type II TGF-β receptor to isolate the gene encoding Daxx — a protein associated with the Fas receptor that mediates activation of Jun amino-terminal kinase (JNK) and programmed cell death induced by Fas. The carboxy-terminal portion of Daxx functions as a dominant-negative inhibitor of TGF-β-induced apoptosis in B-cell lymphomas, and antisense oligonucleotides to Daxx inhibit TGF-β-induced apoptosis in mouse hepatocytes. Furthermore, Daxx is involved in mediating JNK activation by TGF-β. Our findings associate Daxx directly with the TGF-β apoptotic-signalling pathway, and make a biochemical connection between the receptors for TGF-β and the apoptotic machinery.

The molecular machinery that governs circadian rhythmicity is based on clock proteins organized in regulatory feedback loops. Although posttranslational modification of clock proteins is likely to finely control their circadian functions, only limited information is available to date. Here, we show that BMAL1, an essential transcription factor component of the clock mechanism, is SUMOylated on a highly conserved lysine residue (Lys²⁵⁹) in vivo. BMAL1 shows a circadian pattern of SUMOylation that parallels its activation in the mouse liver. SUMOylation of BMAL1 requires and is induced by CLOCK, the heterodimerization partner of BMAL1. Ectopic expression of a SUMO-deficient BMAL1 demonstrates that SUMOylation plays an important role in BMAL1 circadian expression and clock rhythmicity. This reveals an additional level of regulation within the core mechanism of the circadian clock.

Campylobacter jejuni is the major cause of bacterial food-borne illness in the USA and Europe. An important virulence attribute of this bacterial pathogen is its ability to enter and survive within host cells. Here we show through a quantitative proteomic analysis that upon entry into host cells, C. jejuni undergoes a significant metabolic downshift. Furthermore, our results indicate that intracellular C. jejuni reprograms its respiration, favoring the respiration of fumarate. These results explain the poor ability of C. jejuni obtained from infected cells to grow under standard laboratory conditions and provide the bases for the development of novel anti microbial strategies that would target relevant metabolic pathways.

Noonan syndrome is a developmental disorder with dysmorphic facies, short stature, cardiac defects, and skeletal anomalies, which can be caused by missense PTPN11 mutations. PTPN11 encodes Src homology 2 domain‐containing tyrosine phosphatase 2 (SHP2 or SHP‐2), a protein tyrosine phosphatase that acts in signal transduction downstream to growth factor, hormone, and cytokine receptors. We compared the functional effects of three Noonan syndrome–causative PTPN11 mutations on SHP2's phosphatase activity, interaction with a binding partner, and signal transduction. All SHP2 mutants had significantly increased basal phosphatase activity compared to wild type, but that activity varied significantly between mutants and was further increased after epidermal growth factor stimulation. Cells expressing SHP2 mutants had prolonged extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 2 activation, which was ligand‐dependent. Binding of SHP2 mutants to Grb2‐associated binder‐1 was increased and sustained, and tyrosine phosphorylation of both proteins was prolonged. Coexpression of Grb2‐associated binder‐1‐FF, which lacks SHP2 binding motifs, blocked the epidermal growth factor‐mediated increase in SHP2's phosphatase activity and resulted in a dramatic reduction of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 2 activation. Taken together, these results document that Noonan syndrome‐associated PTPN11 mutations increase SHP2's basal phosphatase activity, with greater activation when residues directly involved in binding at the interface between the N‐terminal Src homology 2 and protein tyrosine phosphatase domains are altered. The SHP2 mutants prolonged signal flux through the RAS/mitogen‐activated protein kinase (ERK2/MAPK1) pathway in a ligand‐dependent manner that required docking through Grb2‐associated binder‐1 (GAB1), leading to increased cell proliferation. Hum Mutat 23:267–277, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Parkinson's disease is a complex neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the death of brain dopamine neurons. In mammals, dopamine neuronal degeneration can be triggered through exposure to neurotoxins accumulated by the presynaptic dopamine transporter (DAT), including 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) and 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium. We have established a system for the pharmacological and genetic evaluation of neurotoxin-induced dopamine neuronal death in Caenorhabditis elegans. Brief (1 h) exposure of green fluorescent protein-tagged, living worms to 6-OHDA causes selective degeneration of dopamine neurons. We demonstrate that agents that interfere with DAT function protect against 6-OHDA toxicity. 6-OHDA-triggered neural degeneration does not require the CED-3/CED-4 cell death pathway, but is abolished by the genetic disruption of the C. elegans DAT.

The coding sequence, which corresponds to the mature antimicrobial peptide ranalexin from the frog Rana catesbeiana , was chemically synthesized with preferred codons for expression in Escherichia coli . It was cloned into the vector pET32c (+) to express a thioredoxin-ranalexin fusion protein which was produced in soluble form in E. coli BL21 (DE3) induced under optimized conditions. After two purification steps through affinity chromatography, about 1 mg of the recombinant ranalexin was obtained from 1 L of culture. Mass spectrometrical analysis of the purified recombinant ranalexin demonstrated its identity with ranalexin. The purified recombinant ranalexin is biologically active. It showed antibacterial activities similar to those of the native peptide against Staphylococcus aureus , Streptococcus pyogenes , E. coli , and multidrug-resistant strains of S. aureus with minimum inhibitory concentration values between 8 and 128 μg/ml. The recombinant ranalexin is also cytotoxic in HeLa and COS7 human cancer cells (IC 50  = 13–15 μg/ml).

It has been proposed that growth cones navigating through gradients adapt to baseline concentrations of guidance cues. This adaptation process is poorly understood. Using the collapse assay, we show that adaptation in Xenopus laevis retinal growth cones to the guidance cues Sema3A or netrin-1 involves two processes: a fast, ligand-specific desensitization that occurs within 2 min of exposure and is dependent on endocytosis, and a slower, ligand-specific resensitization, which occurs within 5 min and is dependent upon protein synthesis. These two phases of adaptation allow retinal axons to adjust their range of sensitivity to specific guidance cues.

We have developed a method for simultaneous recording of high-resolution topography and cell surface fluorescence in a single scan which we call scanning surface confocal microscopy. The resolution of the system allows imaging of individual fluorescent particles in the nanometer range on fixed or live cells. We used this technique to record the interaction of single virus-like particles with the cell surface and demonstrated that single particles sink into the membrane in invaginations reminiscent of caveolae or pinocytic vesicles. This method provides a technique for elucidating the interaction of individual viruses and other nanoparticles, such as gene therapy vectors, with target cells. Furthermore, this technique should find widespread application for studying the relationship of fluorescently tagged molecules with components of the cell plasma membrane.

Cells need to compartmentalize thousands of distinct proteins, but the nanoscale spatial relationship of many proteins to overall intracellular ultrastructure remains poorly understood. Correlated light and electron microscopy approaches can help. Hoffman et al. combined cryogenic super-resolution fluorescence microscopy and focused ion beam–milling scanning electron microscopy to visualize protein-ultrastructure relationships in three dimensions across whole cells. The fusion of the two imaging modalities enabled identification and three-dimensional segmentation of morphologically complex structures within the crowded intracellular environment. The researchers observed unexpected relationships within a variety of cell types, including a web-like protein adhesion network between juxtaposed cerebellar granule neurons. Science , this issue p. eaaz5357 Cryogenic super-resolution fluorescence and electron microscopy reveals protein-ultrastructure relationships in whole cells. Within cells, the spatial compartmentalization of thousands of distinct proteins serves a multitude of diverse biochemical needs. Correlative super-resolution (SR) fluorescence and electron microscopy (EM) can elucidate protein spatial relationships to global ultrastructure, but has suffered from tradeoffs of structure preservation, fluorescence retention, resolution, and field of view. We developed a platform for three-dimensional cryogenic SR and focused ion beam–milled block-face EM across entire vitreously frozen cells. The approach preserves ultrastructure while enabling independent SR and EM workflow optimization. We discovered unexpected protein-ultrastructure relationships in mammalian cells including intranuclear vesicles containing endoplasmic reticulum–associated proteins, web-like adhesions between cultured neurons, and chromatin domains subclassified on the basis of transcriptional activity. Our findings illustrate the value of a comprehensive multimodal view of ultrastructural variability across whole cells.