Number Of Autophagic Vacuoles Research Articles

Changes in activity and structure of lysosomes from liver of mouse irradiated in vivo

Purpose: Lysosomes may have an important role in response to ionizing radiation. Moreover, radiation could affect autophagy, which process involves the activity of lysosomal enzymes. In the present study, the effect of ionizing radiation on the lysosomal compartment of mouse liver was investigated after in vivo exposure.Materials and methods: Morphology and ultrastructure of hepatocytes were assessed by light and electron microscopy, and activities of selected lysosomal enzymes were assessed in 12, 36 and 120 h after exposure to the mean dose of 1 Gy. The levels of autophagy-related proteins LC3-II and p62 were compared by Western blotting between untreated and irradiated animals (120 h after exposure).Results: Increased number of autophagic vacuoles in hepatocytes from exposed animals was documented in the ultrastructural study; destroyed mitochondria were the dominant component of such vacuoles. Moreover, an increased activity of lysosomal hydrolases was observed after exposure. However, levels of autophagy substrates LC3-II and p62 were barely affected in exposed animals 120 h after irradiation when the accumulation of autophagic vacuoles was observed.Conclusion: Effects of irradiation included an increased number of autophagic vacuoles, especially of autophagosomes, and increased activity of lysosomal enzymes. However, putative markers of autophagic flux were not observed, which suggested suppression of the completion of the radiation-mediated autophagy pathway.

Inhibition of Autophagy Attenuated Ethylene Glycol Induced Crystals Deposition and Renal Injury in a Rat Model of Nephrolithiasis

Background/Aims: Nephrolithiasis is a common and frequently occurring disease, its exact pathogenesis is remains unclear. Emerging data suggest that autophagy plays a vital role in the pathophysiological processes of kidney diseases. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the potential role of autophagy in the formation of calcium oxalate (CaOx) kidney stones in rat model. Methods: Thirty-two rats were randomly divided into four groups (eight rats/group): untreated control group, stone model group, rapamycin-treated group, chloroquine-treated group. Rat models of CaOx nephrolithiasis was administration of 0.75% ethylene glycol (EG) in their drinking water for 4 weeks. Western blot and transmission electron microscope (TEM) were used to detect the expression of autophagy related protein LC3-II, BECN1 and p62 and autophagic vacuoles respectively. Renal function was evaluated by measuring the levels of serum CRE and BUN. Renal tubular injury markers NGAL and Kim-1 was determined by ELISA kits. Von Kossa staining was used to assess crystal deposits and histological tissue injury. TUNEL staining was employed to assess apoptosis of the renal tubular cell. Results: Compare with the controls, the expression of autophagy related protein LC3-II, BECN1 and number of autophagic vacuoles were increased significantly, whereas the p62 protein level was decreased in the stone model group. The levels of apoptosis, serum CRE and BUN, NGAL and Kim-1 in the stone model group were increased compared with the control group and crystals deposition and renal injury were increased significantly. However, the levels of autophagy, kidney injury and crystal deposition were decreased by chloroquine but increased by rapamycin. Conclusion: These findings suggested that rats were administration of ethylene glycol could lead to the formation of CaOx nephrolithiasis and autophagy activation. Inhibiting autophagy could be an effective therapeutic approach for decreasing the formation of nephrolithiasis.

Inhibition of autophagy-attenuated calcium oxalate crystal-induced renal tubular epithelial cell injury in vivo and in vitro.

Accumulating evidence suggests that autophagy is involved in the pathophysiological processes of kidney diseases. However, the role of autophagy in the formation of calcium oxalate (CaOx) nephrolithiasis remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of autophagy on renal tubular epithelial cell injury induced by CaOx crystals in vivo and in vitro. We first observed that the expression levels of LC3-II and BECN1 and number of autophagic vacuoles were markedly increased in the renal tissue of CaOx stone patients. We subsequently found that exposure of HK-2 cells to CaOx crystals could increase LC3-II and BECN1 expression as well as the number of GFP-LC3 dots and autophagic vacuoles in a dose- and time-dependent manner. In addition, our results suggest that CaOx crystals induced autophagy, at least in part, via activation of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) pathway in HK-2 cells. Furthermore, inhibition of autophagy using 3-methyladenine or siRNA knockdown of BECN1 attenuated CaOx crystal-induced HK-2 cells injury. However, enhancing autophagic activity with rapamycin exerted an opposite effect. Taken together, our results demonstrate that autophagy is essential for CaOx crystal-induced renal tubular epithelial cell injury and that inhibition of autophagy could be a novel therapeutic strategy for CaOx nephrolithiasis.

Phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C\u03b31 inhibition induces autophagy in human colon cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma cells

Phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C (PLC) γ1 has been reported to be involved in cancer cell proliferation and metastasis. However, whether PLCγ1 modulates autophagy and the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Here, we investigated the relationship between PLCγ1 and autophagy in the human colon cancer cell line HCT116 and hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2. The results indicated that PLCγ1 inhibition via lentivirus-mediated transduction with shRNA/PLCγ1 or transient transfection with pRK5-PLCγ1 (Y783A) vector increased LC3B-II levels and the number of autophagic vacuoles and decreased p62 levels. Addition of an autophagy inhibitor led to LC3B and p62 accumulation. Furthermore, AMPK activation promoted the autophagy induced by PLCγ1 inhibition by blocking the FAK/PLCγ1 axis. In addition, PLCγ1 inhibition either blocked the mTOR/ULK1 axis or enhanced dissociation of the Beclin1-IP3R-Bcl-2 complex to induce autophagy. Taken together, our findings revealed that PLCγ1 inhibition induced autophagy and the FAK/PLCγ1 axis is a potential downstream effector of the AMPK activation-dependent autophagy signalling cascade. Both blockade of the mTOR/ULK1 axis and dissociation of the Beclin1-IP3R-Bcl-2 complex contributed to the induction of autophagy by PLCγ1 inhibition. Consequently, these findings provide novel insight into autophagy regulation by PLCγ1 in colon cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

Maresin 1 mitigates liver steatosis in ob/ob and diet-induced obese mice.

The aim of this study was to characterize the effects of Maresin 1 (MaR1) in obesity-related liver steatosis and the mechanisms involved. MaR1 effects on fatty liver disease were tested in ob/ob (2-10 μg kg-1 i.p., 20 days) and in diet-induced obese (DIO) mice (2 μg kg-1, i.p., or 50 μg kg-1, oral gavage for 10 days), as well as in cultured hepatocytes. In ob/ob mice, MaR1 reduced liver triglycerides (TG) content, fatty acid synthase (FAS) and stearoyl-CoA desaturase-1 protein expression, while increased acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) phosphorylation and LC3II protein expression, in parallel with a drop in p62 levels. Similar effects on hepatic TG, ACC phosphorylation, p62 and LC3II were observed in DIO mice after MaR1 i.p. injection. Interestingly, oral gavage of MaR1 also decreased serum transaminases, reduced liver weight and TG content. MaR1-treated mice exhibited reduced hepatic lipogenic enzymes content (FAS) or activation (by phosphorylation of ACC), accompanied by upregulation of carnitine palmitoyltransferase (Cpt1a), acyl-coenzyme A oxidase (Acox1) and autophagy-related proteins 5 and 7 (Atg5-7) gene expression, along with increased number of autophagic vacuoles and reduced p62 protein levels. MaR1 also induced AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) phosphorylation in DIO mice and in primary hepatocytes, and AMPK inhibition completely blocked MaR1 effects on Cpt1a, Acox1, Atg5 and Atg7 expression. MaR1 ameliorates liver steatosis by decreasing lipogenic enzymes, while inducing fatty acid oxidation genes and autophagy, which could be related to AMPK activation. Thus, MaR1 may be a new therapeutic candidate for reducing fatty liver in obesity.

Colistin-induced autophagy and apoptosis involves the JNK-Bcl2-Bax signaling pathway and JNK-p53-ROS positive feedback loop in PC-12 cells

Our recent study demonstrated neurotoxicity of colistin-induced autophagy and apoptosis in PC-12 cells, and that autophagy reached peak level at 12 h. In this study, we scrutinized the role of JNK in colistin-induced neurotoxicity and demonstrated the relationship among JNK, p53 and ROS in colistin treated PC-12 cells. Colistin-induced autophagy and apoptosis by JNK inhibition/activation were examined by western blotting, electron microscopy, and immunofluorescence/fluorescence microscopy. The results indicated that colistin induced JNK activation reached peak level at 12 h, while the highest levels of p-Bcl2/Bcl2 were observed at 12 h and Bax/Bcl2 significantly increased in a time-dependent manner. In PC-12 cells, inhibition of JNK by SP600125 (JNK inhibitor) resulted in significantly lower levels of autophagy upon colistin treatment, depending on the expression levels of Beclin1, LC3-II, p62 degradation and reduction in the number of autophagic vacuoles. In contrast, anisomycin pretreatment PC-12 cells led to upregulated autophagy. Especially, the highest levels of Beclin1 and p-Bcl2/Bcl2 were observed at 6 h, and Bax/Bcl2, cleaved-caspase3 and cleaved-PARP significantly increased in a time-dependent manner. The results revealed that JNK activation mediated autophagy and apoptosis related to Beclin1-Bcl2 and Bax-Bcl2 complex in colistin-treated PC-12 cells. Silencing of p53 by siRNA before colistin treatment substantially reduced ROS production and transactivated JNK in PC-12 cells. Moreover, activation of JNK increased ROS generation in PC-12 cells. In conclusion, colistin-induced autophagy and apoptosis is correlated to JNK-Bcl2-Bax signaling pathway, and an interaction effect found between intracellular ROS level and JNK-p53 signaling pathway in apoptosis.

The photodynamic action of pheophorbide a induces cell death through oxidative stress in Leishmania amazonensis

Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by hemoflagellate protozoa, affecting millions of people worldwide. The difficulties of treating patients with this parasitosis include the limited efficacy and many side effects of the currently available drugs. Therefore, the search for new compounds with leishmanicidal action is necessary. Photodynamic therapy has been studied in the medical field because of its selectivity, utilizing a combination of visible light, a photosensitizer compound, and singlet oxygen to reach the area of treatment. The continued search for selective alternative treatments and effective targets that impact the parasite and not the host are fundamentally important for the development of new drugs. Pheophorbide a is a photosensitizer that may be promising for the treatment of leishmaniasis. The present study evaluated the in vitro biological effects of pheophorbide a and its possible mechanisms of action in causing cell death in L. amazonensis. Pheophorbide a was active against promastigote and amastigote forms of the parasite. After treatment, we observed ultrastructural alterations in this protozoan. We also observed changes in promastigote macromolecules and organelles, such as loss of mitochondrial membrane potential [∆Ψm], lipid peroxidation, an increase in lipid droplets, DNA fragmentation, phosphatidylserine exposure, an increase in caspase-like activity, oxidative imbalance, and a decrease in antioxidant defense systems. These findings suggest that cell death occurred through apoptosis. The mechanism of cell death in intracellular amastigotes appeared to involve autophagy, in which we clearly observed an increase in reactive oxygen species, a compromised ∆Ψm, and an increase in the number of autophagic vacuoles. The present study contributes to the development of new photosensitizers against L. amazonensis. We also elucidated the mechanism of action of pheophorbide a, mainly in intracellular amastigotes, which is the most clinically relevant form of this parasite.

Nimodipine activates neuroprotective signaling events and inactivates autophages in the VCID rat hippocampus

Background: Autophagy and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt kinase pathways are implicated in cognitive decline associated with cerebrovascular lesions. This decline is reflected in the concept of vascular cognitive impairment and dementia (VCID). However, the underlying molecular mechanism and specific details regarding these types of cognitive deficits induced by chronic brain hypoperfusion have not been elucidated.Methods: We designed a method to evaluate these mechanisms. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to permanent bilateral occlusion of the common carotid artery (2VO) and randomly divided into three groups: Sham, Vehicle (2VO), and Nimodipine10 (2VO + nimodipine 10 mg/kg). Each group was studied for 4 weeks postoperatively and assessed by the Morris water maze.Results: The results of this study show that chronic brain hypoperfusion significantly increased the number of autophagic vacuoles with high LC3 II levels, but it decreased p-Akt and p-CREB levels, which were involved in the PI3K/Akt kinase pathway in the hippocampi of rats. Additionally, significant cognitive losses were observed following 2VO. Further analysis showed that, in VCID rats subjected to 2VO, nimodipine administration decreased autophagy, increased the Akt/CREB signaling pathway and significantly reduced brain damage.Conclusions: We concluded that neuronal pathology and activation of the autophagic and Akt/CREB signaling pathway caused by chronic brain hypoperfusion could suppress cognitive behavior, which may provide a novel way for the prevention of VCID. The results of this study indicate that nimodipine protected the brain from chronic brain hypoperfusion damage by suppressing autophagy and activating the Akt/CREB signaling pathway.

Downregulation of TIGAR sensitizes the antitumor effect of physapubenolide through increasing intracellular ROS levels to trigger apoptosis and autophagosome formation in human breast carcinoma cells

Physapubenolide (PB) is a cytotoxic withanolide isolated from Physalis angulata that was used as a traditional Chinese medicine. In this study, we investigated the role of TIGAR and ROS in PB-induced apoptosis and autophagosome formation in human breast carcinoma MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells. PB induced apoptosis by decreasing mitochondrial membrane potential and elevating the Bax/Bcl-2 protein expression ratio in MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells. Caspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK treatment partly blocked PB induced cytotoxicity, suggesting that apoptosis serves as an important role in the anti-proliferative effect of PB. Meanwhile, PB induced autophagosome formation, as characterized by increased acridine orange-stained positive cells, accumulation of punctate LC3B fluorescence and a greater number of autophagic vacuoles under electron microscopy. Furthermore, PB inhibited autophagic flux as reflected by the overlapping of mCherry and GFP fluorescence when MDA-MB-231 cells were transfected with GFP-mCherry-LC3 plasmid. Depletion of LC3B, ATG5 or ATG7 reduced PB-induced cytotoxicity, indicating that autophagosome associated cell death participated in the anti-cancer effect of PB. Moreover, PB-induced apoptosis and autophagosome formation were linked to the generation of intracellular ROS, and pre-treatment with the antioxidant NAC obviously mitigated the effects. Interestingly, PB treatment slightly increased TIGAR expression at low concentrations but decreased TIGAR expression drastically at high concentrations. Downregulation of TIGAR by small interfering RNA augmented low concentrations of PB-induced apoptosis and autophagosome formation, which contributed to the observed anti-cancer effect of PB and were reversed by NAC pre-treatment. Consistently, in MDA-MB-231 or MCF-7 xenograft mouse model, PB suppressed tumor growth through ROS induced apoptosis and autophagosome associated cell death accompanied with the downregulation of TIGAR. Taken together, these results indicate that downregulation of TIGAR increased PB-induced apoptosis and autophagosomes associated cell death through promoting ROS generation in MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells.

Activation of mitophagy leads to decline in Mfn2 and loss of mitochondrial mass in Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy

Human corneal endothelial cells (HCEnCs) are terminally differentiated cells that have limited regenerative potential. The large numbers of mitochondria in HCEnCs are critical for pump and barrier function required for corneal hydration and transparency. Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy (FECD) is a highly prevalent late-onset oxidative stress disorder characterized by progressive loss of HCEnCs. We previously reported increased mitochondrial fragmentation and reduced ATP and mtDNA copy number in FECD. Herein, carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenyl hydrazone (CCCP)-induced mitochondrial depolarization decreased mitochondrial mass and Mfn2 levels, which were rescued with mitophagy blocker, bafilomycin, in FECD. Moreover, electron transport chain complex (I, V) decrease in FECD indicated deficient mitochondrial bioenergetics. Transmission electron microscopy of FECD tissues displayed an increased number of autophagic vacuoles containing degenerated and swollen mitochondria with cristolysis. An elevation of LC3-II and LAMP1 and downregulation of Mfn2 in mitochondrial fractions suggested that loss of fusion capacity targets fragmented mitochondria to the pre-autophagic pool and upregulates mitophagy. CCCP-induced mitochondrial fragmentation leads to Mfn2 and LC3 co-localization without activation of proteosome, suggesting a novel Mfn2 degradation pathway via mitophagy. These data indicate constitutive activation of mitophagy results in reduction of mitochondrial mass and abrogates cellular bioenergetics during degeneration of post-mitotic cells of ocular tissue.

Signalome-wide RNAi screen identifies GBA1 as a positive mediator of autophagic cell death

Activating alternative cell death pathways, including autophagic cell death, is a promising direction to overcome the apoptosis resistance observed in various cancers. Yet, whether autophagy acts as a death mechanism by over consumption of intracellular components is still controversial and remains undefined at the ultrastructural and the mechanistic levels. Here we identified conditions under which resveratrol-treated A549 lung cancer cells die by a mechanism that fulfills the previous definition of autophagic cell death. The cells displayed a strong and sustained induction of autophagic flux, cell death was prevented by knocking down autophagic genes and death occurred in the absence of apoptotic or necroptotic pathway activation. Detailed ultrastructural characterization revealed additional critical events, including a continuous increase over time in the number of autophagic vacuoles, in particular autolysosomes, occupying most of the cytoplasm at terminal stages. This was followed by loss of organelles, disruption of intracellular membranes including the swelling of perinuclear space and, occasionally, a unique type of nuclear shedding. A signalome-wide shRNA-based viability screen was applied to identify positive mediators of this type of autophagic cell death. One top hit was GBA1, the Gaucher disease-associated gene, which encodes glucocerebrosidase, an enzyme that metabolizes glucosylceramide to ceramide and glucose. Interestingly, glucocerebrosidase expression levels and activity were elevated, concomitantly with increased intracellular ceramide levels, both of which correlated in time with the appearance of the unique death characteristics. Transfection with siGBA1 attenuated the increase in glucocerebrosidase activity and the intracellular ceramide levels. Most importantly, GBA1 knockdown prevented the strong increase in LC3 lipidation, and many of the ultrastructural changes characteristic of this type of autophagic cell death, including a significant decrease in cytoplasmic area occupied by autophagic vacuoles. Together, these findings highlight the critical role of GBA1 in mediating enhanced self-consumption of intracellular components and endomembranes, leading to autophagic cell death.

Autophagy plays a dual role during intracellular siRNA delivery by lipoplex and polyplex nanoparticles.

Although tremendous effects has been made in the development of non-viral siRNA delivery systems, the intracellular siRNA trafficking has not been elucidated clearly. In this study, we systematically investigated the relationship between autophagy and intracellular siRNA delivery. We found that the non-viral siRNA delivery by both lipoplex and polyplex could induce mTOR-independent autophagy response. More interestingly, knockdown efficiency of both lipoplex and polyplex could be modulated with different autophagy regulators. Specifically, the mTOR-dependent autophagy inducer rapamycin enhances the knockdown efficiency of both lipoplex and polyplex, whereas mTOR-dependent autophagy inhibitor 3-methyladenine suppresses their silencing efficiency. On the contrary, mTOR-independent autophagy inducer lithium bromide decreases, whereas mTOR-independent autophagy inhibitor thapsigargin increases the knockdown efficacy. These findings suggest that the mTOR-dependent and -independent autophagy play a distinct role in the intracellular siRNA trafficking. Furthermore, co-administration with proper autophagy regulators could be potential convenient method to modulate siRNA transfection efficacy.

Shock Wave Therapy Promotes Cardiomyocyte Autophagy and Survival during Hypoxia

Background: Autophagy plays an important role in cardiovascular disease. Controversy still exists regarding the effect of autophagy on ischemic/hypoxic myocardium. Cardiac shock wave therapy (CSWT) is an effective alternative treatment for refractory ischemic heart disease. Whether CSWT can regulate cardiomyocyte autophagy under hypoxic conditions is not clear. We established a myocardial hypoxia model using the H9c2 cell line and performed shock waves (SWs) treatment to evaluate the effect of SW on autophagy. Methods: The H9c2 cells were incubated under hypoxic conditions, and SW treatment was then performed at energies of 0.02, 0.05, or 0.10 mJ/mm². The cell viability and intracellular ATP level were examined. Western blot analysis was used to assess the expression of LC3B, AMPK, mTOR, Beclin-1, Sirt1, and HIF-1α. Autophagic vacuoles were visualized by monodansylcadaverine staining. Results: After the 24-hour hypoxic period, cardiomyocyte viability and ATP levels were decreased and autophagy was significantly increased in H9c2 cells. SW treatment with an energy of 0.05 mJ/mm² significantly increased the cellular viability, ATP level, LC3B-II/I, and number of autophagic vacuoles. In addition, phosphorylated AMPK and Sirt1 were increased and phosphorylated mTOR and HIF-1α were decreased after SW treatment. Conclusion: SW treatment can potentially promote cardiomyocyte autophagy during hypoxia and protect cardiomyocyte function by regulating the AMPK/mTOR pathway.

Na+/H+ Exchanger Regulates Amino Acid-Mediated Autophagy in Intestinal Epithelial Cells

Background/Aims: Dysfunctional autophagy has been reported to be associated with aberrant intestinal metabolism. Amino acids can regulate autophagic activity in intestinal epithelial cells (IECs). Na⁺/H⁺-exchanger 3 (NHE3) has been found to participate in the absorption of amino acids in the intestine, but whether NHE3 is involved in the regulation of autophagy in IECs is unclear. Methods: In the present study, an amino acid starvation-induced autophagic model was established. Then, the effects of alanine and proline with or without the NHE inhibitor 5-(N-ethyl-N-isopropyl) amiloride (EIPA) were evaluated. Autophagy was examined based on the microtubule-associated light chain 3 (LC3) levels, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), tandem GFP-mCherry-LC3 construct, sequestosome-1 (SQSTM1, P62) mRNA and protein levels, and autophagy-related gene (ATG) 5, 7, and 12 expression levels. The autophagic flux was evaluated as the ratio of yellow (autophagosomes) to red (autolysosomes) LC3 puncta. Results: Following amino acid starvation, we found the LC3-II and ATG expression levels were enhanced in the IEC-18 cells. An increase in the number of autophagic vacuoles was concomitantly observed by TEM and confocal microscopy. Based on the results, supplementation with either alanine or proline depressed autophagy in the IEC-18 cells. Consistent with the elevated LC3-II levels, ATG expression increased upon NHE3 inhibition. Moreover, the mCherry-GFP-LC3 autophagic puncta representing both autophagosomes and autolysosomes per cell increased after EIPA treatment. Conclusions: These results demonstrate that NHE (most likely NHE3) may participate in the amino acid regulation of autophagy in IECs, which would aid in the design of better treatments for intestinal inflammation.

The differentiation of cellular structure during encystment in the soil hypotrichous ciliate Australocirrus cf. australis (Protista, Ciliophora)

ABSTRACTCiliates are able to form resting cysts as a survival strategy in response to stressful environmental factors. Studies on the characteristics of cellular structure during encystment may provide useful information for further understanding of the regulatory mechanism of cellular patterns and supply new clues regarding the phylogeny of ciliates. Scanning and transmission electron microscopies were used to observe the ultrastructure of cells during encystment of the soil ciliate Australocirrus cf. australis. The dedifferentiation of ciliature was revealed for the first time. Ciliary shafts first shortened, and the remaining ciliature, including basal bodies and the fibrillar cirral basket, retracted into the cytoplasm and was surrounded by the autophagic vacuoles and then gradually digested. A large number of autophagic vacuoles were observed in mature resting cysts. Autophagy might not only be necessary for the differentiation of cellular structures during encystment but might also be important to sustain the basic life activities in the resting stage. Australocirrus cf. australis formed a kinetosome-resorbing cyst and contained four layers in the cyst wall: the ectocyst, mesocyst, endocyst and granular layer. The ciliature resorbing state and the number of layers in the cyst wall were consistent with those found in other oxytrichous ciliates. However, the phenomenon wherein the two macronuclear nodules are not fused during encystment is not commonly observed among oxytrichids. Additionally, the octahedral granules in the mesocyst of this species exhibit different morphology from the congeners.

The RET Receptor Tyrosine Kinase Promotes Acute Myeloid Leukemia through Protection of FLT3-ITD Mutants from Autophagic Degradation

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a heterogeneous disease with diverse leukemogenic driver lesions. The genetic understanding of AML has resulted in major improvements in diagnosis, classification, prognostication, and outcome prediction. However, these insights have not yet translated into molecular mechanism-based therapies in the majority of cases, because AML cells rapidly escape attempts at therapeutic targeting such as small-molecule inhibition of FLT3 internal tandem duplication (FLT3-ITD) mutants, which occur in up to 30% of AML cases and confer a poor prognosis. To identify potential new targets for combinatorial treatment approaches, we performed a series of large-scale short hairpin RNA (shRNA) screens and observed that cell lines representing various AML subtypes were dependent on expression of the RET receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK), which has not previously been implicated in AML pathogenesis. Validation experiments demonstrated that depletion of RET by shRNA knockdown or CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout led to cell cycle arrest in the G0/G1 phase, increased apoptosis, and reduced clonogenic activity. RTK profiling using ELISA-based antibody arrays demonstrated that RET is highly phosphorylated in RET-dependent AML cell lines. Analysis of known RET ligand/co-receptor pairs (GDNF/GFRA1, NRTN/GFRA2, ARTN/GFRA3, PSPN/GFRA4) by quantitative real-time PCR and shRNA knockdown indicated that RET signaling is facilitated mainly through NTRN/GFRA2 or ARTN/GFRA3. Interrogation of various signaling pathways known to promote myeloid leukemogenesis showed that RET knockdown resulted in decreased phosphorylation of 4E-BP1 (T37/46), p70S6K (T389), S6RP (S240/244), and ULK1 (S758), pointing to mTORC1-mediated protein synthesis and/or suppression of autophagy as important effectors of RET signaling in AML cells. Based on recent data showing that FLT3-ITD mutants can be degraded by autophagy (Larrue et al. Blood 2016), we reasoned that the RET-mTORC1 signaling axis promotes AML through protection of FLT3-ITD mutants from autophagic degradation. Consistent with this hypothesis, genetic or pharmacologic (vandetanib, danusertib) inhibition of RET predominantly affected FLT3-dependent AML cell lines and were accompanied by upregulation of autophagy and destabilization of FLT3, as evidenced by p62 degradation, LC3B turnover, increased numbers of autophagic vacuoles, and decreased FLT3 protein levels. Furthermore, we observed accumulation of STAT5, a key FLT3-ITD downstream effector, upon pharmacologic autophagy inhibition in low RET-expressing AML cells, underlining the importance of RET-mediated suppression of autophagy for leukemogenic FLT3-ITD signaling. In line with the observations in AML cell lines, preliminary data from a murine bone marrow transplantation model show that Ret is required for AML development and propagation in vivo as we observed a significant survival advantage for mice transplanted with Ret knockdown cells compared with mice transplanted with control cells. Finally, genome-wide transcriptome analysis identified elevated RET mRNA levels in 35 of 260 (13.5%) primary human AML samples. Since there are no known RET copy number alterations or mutations of the RET coding region in AML patients and cell lines, we are currently investigating whether aberrant RET expression in AML can be attributed to perturbed epigenetic regulation. To this end, we are applying chromosome conformation capture combined with high-throughput sequencing (4C-seq) technology to systematically analyze interactions of the RET promoter region with enhancer sequences in high and low RET-expressing AML cell lines. Combined, our results indicate that in a proportion of AML, RET-mTORC1 signaling promotes cell viability and proliferation through suppression of autophagy, suggesting that targeting RET or, more broadly, depletion of critical leukemogenic drivers via induction of autophagy may provide a therapeutic opportunity in this subset of patients. DisclosuresNo relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Role of Wnt/β-catenin pathway in inducing autophagy and apoptosis in multiple myeloma cells.

β-catenin is the downstream effector of the Wnt signaling pathway, which regulates cell proliferation and differentiation. Activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway has been shown to positively correlate with prognosis in several types of malignancies. The present study aimed to determine the role of β-catenin in multiple myeloma (MM) cells using lentiviruses expressing small interfering RNA (siRNA). The expression of β-catenin in the MM cell line RPMI-8826 was evaluated following β-catenin knockdown by the siRNA. Subsequently, the activation of autophagy in MM cells was assessed by transmission electron microscopy and western blot analyses. Cell apoptosis and the expression of apoptosis-related proteins following β-catenin silencing was investigated by flow cytometry and western blotting, respectively. A significant decrease in β-catenin expression was observed in the MM cell line expressing β-catenin-specific siRNA. Activation of autophagy was induced by β-catenin silencing, as evidenced by increases in the number of autophagic vacuoles and the expression of the autophagy-related proteins microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 and Beclin-1. Furthermore, the expression of 5′-adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase was increased, and that of mechanistic target of rapamycin was decreased, following β-catenin silencing. In addition, there was an increase in the rate of apoptosis of MM cells following β-catenin silencing, accompanied by increased protein expression of phosphorylated p53, active caspase-3 and B-cell lymphoma (Bcl)-2-associated X protein, and decreased protein expression of Bcl-2. The results of the present study suggested that β-catenin silencing induced autophagy and apoptosis in MM cells. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that a β-catenin deficiency induces autophagy in MM cells. These findings suggested that inhibition of β-catenin could be a potential therapeutic target for patients with MM.

Atg5-dependent autophagy plays a protective role against methylmercury-induced cytotoxicity

Methylmercury (MeHg) is a widespread environmental pollutant and causes a serious hazard to health worldwide. However, molecular mechanisms underlying MeHg toxicity remain elusive. We show that MeHg reduced mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) viability in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, MeHg treatment increased levels of autophagy markers LC3-II and p62, possibly by acting on the MAPKs signaling pathway in several cell types. MeHg exposure elevated the number of LC3 puncta in stable GFP-LC3 MEFs and the number of autophagic vacuoles. The accumulation of LC3-II and p62 increased further when complementing MeHg with autophagy inhibitor, chloroquine. Moreover, we found that autophagy-related gene 5-deficient (Atg5−/−) MEFs exhibited higher sensitivity and higher levels of p62 compared to their wild-type counterparts following MeHg exposure. This suggested that p62 was upregulated at the transcription level by MeHg and degraded by Atg5-dependent autophagy. Our data demonstrate that MeHg exposure promotes autophagy, and Atg5-dependent autophagy serves to protect cells from MeHg cytotoxicity.

Effect of autophagy induced by dexamethasone on senescence in chondrocytes.

The aim of the current study was to explore the effects of dexamethasone (DXM) on autophagy and senescence in chondrocytes. Collagen II and aggrecan were examined in normal chondrocytes isolated from Sprague-Dawley rats. Following stimulation with DXM, LysoTracker Red staining, monodansylcadaverine (MDC) staining, green fluorescent protein-red fluorescent protein-light chain 3 (LC3) and western blotting were used to detect autophagy levels in the chondrocytes. Mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway-associated molecules were investigated by western blotting. Cell senescence was analyzed by senescence-associated (SA)-β-galactosidase (β-gal) staining. A dose-dependent increase in the number of autophagic vacuoles was observed in the DXM-treated chondrocytes, as demonstrated by LysoTracker Red and MDC staining. A dose-dependent increase in autophagosome formation was observed in the DXM-treated chondrocytes. Expression of LC3-II and beclin-1 was increased by DXM, in particular in the cells treated with DXM for 4 days. However, P62 expression was reduced as a result of treatment. SA-β-gal staining indicated that DXM increased cell senescence. Notably, DXM-induced cell senescence was exacerbated by the autophagic inhibitor 3-MA. Autophagy induced by DXM protected chondrocytes from senescence, and it is suggested that the mTOR pathway may be involved in the activation of DXM-induced autophagy.

Aggressive human neuroblastomas show a massive increase in the numbers of autophagic vacuoles and damaged mitochondria

ABSTRACTAutophagy is activated in cancer cells in response to multiple stresses and has been demonstrated to promote tumor cell survival and drug resistance in neuroblastoma (NB). This study was conducted to analyze the ultrastructural features of peripheral neuroblastic tumors (pNTs) and identify the relation of the types of NTs, the proliferation rate, and MYCN gene amplification with a number of autophagic vacuoles. Our results indicate that aggressive human NBs show a massive increase in the number of autophagic vacuoles associated with proliferation rate and that alteration of the mitochondria might be an important factor for the induction of autophagy in NTs.