| 1. |
- Lammi, Mikko, 1961-
(author)
-
Influences of in vivo and in vitro loading on the proteoglycan synthesis of articular cartilage chondrocytes
- 1993
-
Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- In this study, the biosynthesis of proteoglycans (PGs) was examined in articular cartilage of canine hip joint after long-distance running experiment and in bovine chondrocyte cultures during in vitro loading with hydrostatic pressure. In addition, new assays were developed for more sensitive quantitation of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) and PGs.Anterior (weight-bearing) and posterior (less weight-bearing) areas of the femoral head from young beagles were labeled after long-term, longdistance running exercise. Total sulpahte incorporation rates were determined and distribution of of the incorporated sulphate in the tissue was localized by quantitative autoradiography. Concentration and extractability of the PGs were determined, and PG structures were studied by gel filtration, agarose gel electrophoresis, and chemical determinations. In the less weight-bearing area, the amount of extractable PGs was decreased, simultaneously with an increased concentration of residual GAGs in the tissue after 4M GuCl extraction. In the weight-bearing area, no marked alterations were noticed. The congruency of the femoral head seems to protect the cartilage from untoward alterations that occur in the femoral head condyles subjected to the same running program.The effect of hydrostatic pressure on PG metabolism of chondrocyte cultures was examined during 20 hours' exposure of chondrocytes to 5 and 30 MPa pressures. The continuous 30 MPa pressure reduced total PG synthesis by 37 % as measured by [35S]sulphate incorporation, in contrast to the 5 MPa which had no effect. Continuous 30 MPa hydrostatic pressure also reduced the steady-state mRNA level of aggrecan. The cyclic pressures showed a frequency dependent stimulation (0.5 Hz, + 11 %) or inhibition (0.017 Hz, -17 %). Aggrecans secreted under continuous 30 MPa pressure showed a retarded migration in 0.75 % SDS-agarose gel electrophoresis and also eluted earlier on Sephacryl S-1000 gel filtration, indicative of larger molecular size. The results demonstrate that high hydostatic pressure can influence the synthesis of PGs in chondrocytes both at the transcriptionl and translational/posttranslational levels.
|
|
| 2. |
- Lin, Chun-Yu, 1976-
(author)
-
The role of hyaluronan and its CD44 receptor in inflammation and cancer
- 2024
-
Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Hyaluronan, an important extra-cellular matrix molecule, was thought to be interstitial connecting glue decades ago. However, recent evidence has revealed that hyaluronan and its binding proteins also play crucial roles in various pathophysiological conditions in humans, including inflammation and infection.Study I focused on dengue virus infection and found that elevated serum hyaluronan levels during early infection phase was an independent predictor for occurrence of warning signs, and thus severe dengue. High circulating levels of the viral non-structural protein 1 (NS1) correlated with high concentrations of serum hyaluronan. NS1 exposure decreased the expression of CD44 in differentiating endothelial cells impairing the integrity of vessel-like structures and promoted the synthesis of hyaluronan in dermal fibroblasts and endothelial cells in synergy with dengue-induced pro-inflammatory mediators. Perturbed hyaluronan-CD44 interactions enhanced endothelial permeability through modulation of VE-cadherin and cytoskeleton re-organization, and exacerbated the NS1-induced disruption of endothelial integrity. Study II reports a negative correlation between the expression of genes encoding hyaluronan synthase HAS2, its natural antisense transcript HAS2-AS, the chromatin modulating factor HMGA2 and transforming growth factor-β (TGFβ), and survival of patients with invasive breast cancer. TGFβ induction of Hmga2, Has2as and Has2 in mouse mammary epithelial cells, and synthesis of hyaluronan were accompanied with activation of Akt and Erk1/2 MAP-kinase signaling and were required for breast cancer cell motility. Importantly, the hyaluronan receptor Cd44, but not Hmmr, was required for TGFβ-mediated epithelial-mesenchymal transition phenotype. Has2as was found to contribute to the maintenance of stem cell factors and breast cancer stemness. Study III explored the physical interaction between the inhibitor of the apoptosis-stimulating protein of p53 (iASPP) and the hyaluronan receptor CD44. The CD44 standard isoform (CD44s), but not the variant isoform, bound to iASPP via the ankyrin-binding domain in CD44s. iASPP was required for hyaluronan-induced CD44-dependent migration and adhesion of fibroblasts. CD44 altered the sub-cellular localization of the iASPP-p53 complex; thus, ablation of CD44 promoted translocation of iASPP from the nucleus to the cytoplasm, resulting in increased formation of a cytoplasmic iASPP-p53 complex in fibroblasts. Overexpression of iASPP decreased the level of intracellular reactive oxygen species, while overexpression of CD44 increased. Knock-down of CD44s, in the presence of p53, led to increased cell growth and cell density of fibroblasts by suppression of p27 and p53.In summary, we investigated the interaction of hyaluronan and its transmembranous receptor, CD44, as well as the modulation of hyaluronan synthesis, in several different pathophysiological conditions.
|
|
