| 1. |
- Grujic, Mirjana, et al.
(författare)
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Distorted Secretory Granule Composition in Mast Cells with Multiple Protease Deficiency
- 2013
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Ingår i: Journal of Immunology. - : The American Association of Immunologists. - 0022-1767 .- 1550-6606. ; 191:7, s. 3931-3938
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mast cells are characterized by an abundance of secretory granules densely packed with inflammatory mediators such as bioactive amines, cytokines, serglycin proteoglycans with negatively charged glycosaminoglycan side chains of either heparin or chondroitin sulfate type, and large amounts of positively charged proteases. Despite the large biological impact of mast cell granules and their contents on various pathologies, the mechanisms that regulate granule composition are incompletely understood. In this study, we hypothesized that granule composition is dependent on a dynamic electrostatic interrelationship between different granule compounds. As a tool to evaluate this possibility, we generated mice in which mast cells are multideficient in a panel of positively charged proteases: the chymase mouse mast cell protease-4, the tryptase mouse mast cell protease-6, and carboxypeptidase A3. Through a posttranslational effect, mast cells from these mice additionally lack mouse mast cell protease-5 protein. Mast cells from mice deficient in individual proteases showed normal morphology. In contrast, mast cells with combined protease deficiency displayed a profound distortion of granule integrity, as seen both by conventional morphological criteria and by transmission electron microscopy. An assessment of granule content revealed that the distorted granule integrity in multiprotease-deficient mast cells was associated with a profound reduction of highly negatively charged heparin, whereas no reduction in chondroitin sulfate storage was observed. Taken together with previous findings showing that the storage of basic proteases conversely is regulated by anionic proteoglycans, these data suggest that secretory granule composition in mast cells is dependent on a dynamic interrelationship between granule compounds of opposite electrical charge.
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| 2. |
- Hagforsen, Eva, et al.
(författare)
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Ablation of human skin mast cells in situ by lysosomotropic agents
- 2015
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Ingår i: Experimental dermatology. - : Wiley. - 0906-6705 .- 1600-0625. ; 24:7, s. 516-521
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mast cells are known to have a detrimental impact on numerous types of inflammatory skin diseases such as contact dermatitis, atopic eczema and cutaneous mastocytosis. Regimens that dampen skin mast cell-mediated activities can thus offer an attractive therapeutic option under such circumstances. As mast cells are known to secrete a large array of potentially pathogenic compounds, both from preformed stores in secretory lysosomes (granules) and after de novo synthesis, mere inhibition of degranulation or interference with individual mast cell mediators may not be sufficient to provide an effective blockade of harmful mast cell activities. An alternative strategy may therefore be to locally reduce skin mast cell numbers. Here, we explored the possibility of using lysosomotropic agents for this purpose, appreciating the fact that mast cell granules contain bioactive compounds prone to trigger apoptosis if released into the cytosolic compartment. Based on this principle, we show that incubation of human skin punch biopsies with the lysosomotropic agents siramesine or Leu-Leu methyl ester preferably ablated the mast cell population, without causing any gross adverse effects on the skin morphology. Subsequent analysis revealed that mast cells treated with lysosomotropic agents predominantly underwent apoptotic rather than necrotic cell death. In summary, this study raises the possibility of using lysosomotropic agents as a novel approach to targeting deleterious mast cell populations in cutaneous mastocytosis and other skin disorders negatively influenced by mast cells.
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| 3. |
- Melo, Fabio rabelo, et al.
(författare)
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Serglycin Proteoglycan Promotes Apoptotic versus Necrotic Cell Death in Mast Cells
- 2012
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Ingår i: Journal of Biological Chemistry. - 0021-9258 .- 1083-351X. ; 287, s. 18142-18152
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The mechanisms that govern whether a cell dies by apoptosis or necrosis are not fully understood. Here we show that serglycin, a secretory granule proteoglycan of hematopoietic cells, can have a major impact on this decision. Wild type and serglycin(-/-) mast cells were equally sensitive to a range of cell death-inducing regimens. However, whereas wild type mast cells underwent apoptotic cell death, serglycin(-/-) cells died predominantly by necrosis. Investigations of the underlying mechanism revealed that cell death was accompanied by leakage of secretory granule compounds into the cytosol and that the necrotic phenotype of serglycin(-/-) mast cells was linked to defective degradation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1. Cells lacking mouse mast cell protease 6, a major serglycin-associated protease, exhibited similar defects in apoptosis as observed in serglycin(-/-) cells, indicating that the pro-apoptotic function of serglycin is due to downstream effects of proteases that are complex-bound to serglycin. Together, these findings implicate serglycin in promoting apoptotic versus necrotic cell death.
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| 4. |
- Melo, Fabio R., et al.
(författare)
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Tryptase-catalyzed core histone truncation : A novel epigenetic regulatory mechanism in mast cells
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. - : MOSBY-ELSEVIER. - 0091-6749 .- 1097-6825. ; 140:2, s. 474-485
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Mast cells are key effector cells in allergic reactions. When activated to degranulate, they release a plethora of bioactive compounds from their secretory granules, including mast cell-restricted proteases such as tryptase. In a previous study, we showed that tryptase, in addition to its intragranular location, can be found within the nuclei of mast cells where it truncates core histones at their N-terminal ends. Objective: Considering that the N-terminal portions of the core histones constitute sites for posttranslational modifications of major epigenetic impact, we evaluated whether histone truncation by tryptase could have an impact on epigenetic events in mast cells. Methods: Mast cells were cultured from wild-type and tryptase null mice, followed by an assessment of their profile of epigenetic histone modifications and their phenotypic characteristics. Results: We show that tryptase truncates nucleosomal histone 3 and histone 2B (H2B) and that its absence results in accumulation of the epigenetic mark, lysine 5-acetylated H2B. Intriguingly, the accumulation of lysine 5-acetylated H2B was cell age-dependent and was associated with a profound upregulation of markers of non-mast cell lineages, loss of proliferative control, chromatin remodeling as well as extensive morphological alterations. Conclusions: These findings introduce tryptase-catalyzed histone clipping as a novel epigenetic regulatory mechanism, which in the mast cell context may be crucial for maintaining cellular identity.
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| 5. |
- Rönnberg, Elin, et al.
(författare)
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Granzyme H Is a Novel Protease Expressed by Human Mast Cells
- 2014
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Ingår i: International Archives of Allergy and Immunology. - : S. Karger AG. - 1018-2438 .- 1423-0097. ; 165:1, s. 68-74
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Many of the functions attributed to mast cells depend on the various pro-inflammatory mediators that are secreted upon mast cell activation. These include a panel of mast cell-specific proteases. In addition, recent studies have indicated that murine mast cells also express granzyme D, a protease previously thought to be confined to cytotoxic lymphocytes. Here, we address the human relevance of the latter findings by investigating whether human mast cells express granzyme H, the granzyme that may represent the functional counterpart to murine granzyme D. Methods: Cord blood-derived mast cells, LAD2 cells and skin mast cells in situ were evaluated for their expression of granzymes using quantitative PCR, Western blot analysis and immunostaining. Mast cells were activated by either calcium ionophore stimulation or IgE receptor cross-linking. Results: Cord blood-derived mast cells and LAD2 cells were shown to express granzyme H and B mRNA, while granzyme A, K and M expression was undetectable. Mast cell activation by either calcium ionophore or IgE receptor cross-linking caused down-regulated expression of granzyme H. In contrast, granzyme B expression was up-regulated by the same stimuli. Granzyme H expression was also confirmed at the protein level, as shown by both Western blot analysis and confocal microscopy. Further, we show that granzyme H is expressed by human skin mast cells in situ. Conclusions: The present findings implicate granzyme H as a novel protease expressed by human mast cells and support earlier findings obtained in natural killer cells suggesting that granzymes B and H are reciprocally regulated.
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| 6. |
- Rönnberg, Elin, et al.
(författare)
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Mast cells are activated by Staphylococcus aureus in vitro but do not influence the outcome of intraperitoneal S. aureus infection in vivo
- 2014
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Ingår i: Immunology. - : Wiley. - 0019-2805 .- 1365-2567. ; 143:2, s. 155-163
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Staphylococcus aureus is a major pathogen that can cause a broad spectrum of serious infections including skin infections, pneumonia and sepsis. Peritoneal mast cells have been implicated in the host response towards various bacterial insults and to provide mechanistic insight into the role of mast cells in intraperitoneal bacterial infection we here studied the global effects of S. aureus on mast cell gene expression. After co-culture of peritoneal mast cells with live S. aureus we found by gene array analysis that they up-regulate a number of genes. Many of these corresponded to pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-3, interleukin-13 and tumour necrosis factor-a. The cytokine induction in response to S. aureus was confirmed by ELISA. To study the role of peritoneal mast cells during in vivo infection with S. aureus we used newly developed Mcpt5-Cre(+) x R-DTA mice in which mast cell deficiency is independent of c-Kit. This is in contrast to previous studies in which an impact of mast cells on bacterial infection has been proposed based on the use of mice whose mast cell deficiency is a consequence of defective c-Kit signalling. Staphylococcus aureus was injected intraperitoneally into mast-cell-deficient Mcpt5-Cre(+) x R-DTA mice using littermate mast-cell-sufficient mice as controls. We did not observe any difference between mast-cell-deficient and control mice with regard to weight loss, bacterial clearance, inflammation or cytokine production. We conclude that, despite peritoneal mast cells being activated by S. aureus in vitro, they do not influence the in vivo manifestations of intraperitoneal S. aureus infection.
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| 7. |
- Bolin, Sara, 1988-, et al.
(författare)
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Dormant SOX9-positive cells behind MYC-driven medulloblastoma recurrence
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Tumor recurrence is a slow biological process involving therapy resistance, immune escape, and metastasis and is the leading cause of death in medulloblastoma, the most frequent malignant pediatric brain tumor. By studying paired primary-recurrent patient samples and patient-derived xenografts we identified a significant accumulation of SOX9-positive cells in relapses and metastases. They exist as rare, quiescent cells in Group 3 and Group 4 patients that constitute two-thirds of medulloblastoma. To follow relapse at the single-cell level we developed an inducible dual Tet model of MYC-driven MB, where MYC can be directed from treatment-sensitive bulk cells to resistant, dormant SOX9-positive cells by doxycycline. SOX9 promoted immune es-cape, DNA repair suppression and was essential for recurrence. Tumor cell dormancy was non-hierarchical, migratory, and depended on MYC suppression by SOX9 to promote relapse. By using computational modeling and treatment we further showed how doxorubicin and MGMT inhibitors are specifically targeting relapsing cells.
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| 8. |
- Borgenvik, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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CDK2 as a therapeutic target in MYC-driven medulloblastoma
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Group 3 medulloblastoma (MB) is a malignant pediatric brain tumor that shows aberrant cell cycle activation, therapy resistance, and poor prognosis. Here, we identified that MYC expression and poor prognosis in Group 3 MB correlates with elevated levels of core cell cycle members CDK2 and cyclin A2, suggesting they would be promising targets for direct inhibition. Tumor cells in a novel transgenic MYC-driven MB mouse model further displayed increased p27 levels, decreased viability, and cell growth in vitro upon conditional CDK2 depletion using tamoxifen-induced recombination. Human Group 3 MB cells transduced with dominant-negative CDK2 mutants similarly exhibited decreased viability and increased p27 activation. As compared to controls, CDK2-depleted cells responded less to CDK2-specific inhibitors but were not more sensitive to BET inhibition or CDK4/6 inhibition as previously proposed. We finally used global transcriptional profiling and found that mTOR and B-Myb/ZMYM2 signaling pathways are compensating for CDK2 loss in Group 3MB cells. Our analysis suggests that specific inhibitors of these pathways could in combination with approved cell cycle inhibitors provide more efficient treatments for this severe childhood brain cancer.
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| 9. |
- Borgenvik, Anna, 1987-, et al.
(författare)
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Dormant SOX9-Positive Cells Facilitate MYC-Driven Recurrence of Medulloblastoma
- 2022
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Ingår i: Cancer Research. - : AMER ASSOC CANCER RESEARCH. - 0008-5472 .- 1538-7445. ; 82:24, s. 4586-4603
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Relapse is the leading cause of death in patients with medulloblas-toma, the most common malignant pediatric brain tumor. A better understanding of the mechanisms underlying recurrence could lead to more effective therapies for targeting tumor relapses. Here, we observed that SOX9, a transcription factor and stem cell/glial fate marker, is limited to rare, quiescent cells in high-risk medulloblastoma with MYC amplification. In paired primary-recurrent patient samples, SOX9-positive cells accumulated in medulloblastoma relapses. SOX9 expression anti-correlated with MYC expression in murine and human medulloblastoma cells. However, SOX9-positive cells were plastic and could give rise to a MYC high state. To follow relapse at the single-cell level, an inducible dual Tet model of medulloblastoma was developed, in which MYC expression was redirected in vivo from treatment-sensitive bulk cells to dormant SOX9-positive cells using doxycycline treatment. SOX9 was essential for relapse initiation and depended on suppression of MYC activity to promote therapy resistance, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and immune escape. p53 and DNA repair pathways were downregulated in recurrent tumors, whereas MGMT was upregulated. Recurrent tumor cells were found to be sensitive to treatment with an MGMT inhibitor and doxorubicin. These findings suggest that recurrence-specific targeting coupled with DNA repair inhibition comprises a potential therapeutic strategy in patients affected by medulloblastoma relapse.Significance: SOX9 facilitates therapy escape and recurrence in medulloblastoma via temporal inhibition of MYC/MYCN genes, revealing a strategy to specifically target SOX9-positive cells to prevent tumor relapse.
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| 10. |
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