Dexamethasone and Fludrocortisone Inhibit Hedgehog Signaling in Embryonic Cells

Cortisol regulates neonatal lung development via Smoothened

BACKGROUND

Neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (NRDS), one of the main causes of neonatal death, is clinically characterized by progressive dyspnea and cyanosis 1 to 2 h after birth. Corticosteroids are commonly used to prevent NRDS in clinical. However, the protective mechanism of the corticosteroids remains largely unclear.

METHODS

In this study, the simulation of the molecular docking by Autodock, in vitro binding experiments, and Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) pathway examination in cells were performed to study the directly binding of cortisol to Smoothened (SMO). To explore the effect of cortisol action on the SHH pathway on neonatal lung development, we generated a genetic mouse, in which leucine 116 (L112 in human) of SMO was mutated to alanine 116 (L116A, Smoa/a) by the CRISPR-Cas9, based on sequence differences between human and mice. Then, we performed morphological analysis, single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) on lung tissue and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH).

RESULTS

In this study, we reported that cortisol, the endogenous glucocorticoid, inhibited the sonic hedgehog (Shh)/SMO-mediated proliferation of lung fibroblasts to maintain the normal lung development. Specifically, cortisol competed with cholesterol for binding to the cysteine-rich domain (CRD) in SMO to inhibit the activation of Shh/SMO signaling, a critical signaling known for cell proliferation. Cortisol did not inhibit the activation of SMO when L112 in its CRD was mutated to A112. Moreover, Smoa/a (L116A) mice exhibited the immature lungs in which over-proliferation of interstitial fibroblasts and reduction in the surfactant protein were evident.

CONCLUSION

Together, these results suggested that cortisol regulated cholesterol stimulation of SMO by competitively binding to the CRD to regulate neonatal lung maturation in mice.

Modulating MGMT expression through interfering with cell signaling pathways

Guanine O6-alkylating agents are widely used as first-line chemotherapeutic drugs due to their ability to induce cytotoxic DNA damage. However, a major hurdle in their effectiveness is the emergence of chemoresistance, largely attributed to the DNA repair pathway mediated by O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT). MGMT plays an important role in removing the alkyl groups from lethal O6-alkylguanine (O6-AlkylG) adducts formed by chemotherapeutic alkylating agents. By doing so, MGMT enables tumor cells to evade apoptosis and develop drug resistance toward DNA alkylating agents. Although covalent inhibitors of MGMT, such as O6-benzylguanine (O6-BG) and O6-(4-bromothenyl)guanine (O6-4-BTG or lomeguatrib), have been explored in clinical settings, their utility is limited due to severe delayed hematological toxicity observed in most patients when combined with alkylating agents. Therefore, there is an urgent need to identify new targets and unravel the underlying molecular mechanisms and to develop alternative therapeutic strategies that can overcome MGMT-mediated tumor resistance. In this context, the regulation of MGMT expression via interfering the specific cell signaling pathways (e.g., Wnt/β-catenin, NF-κB, Hedgehog, PI3K/AKT/mTOR, JAK/STAT) emerges as a promising strategy for overcoming tumor resistance, and ultimately enhancing the efficacy of DNA alkylating agents in chemotherapy.

Induction of the CD24 Surface Antigen in Primary Undifferentiated Human Adipose Progenitor Cells by the Hedgehog Signaling Pathway

In the murine model system of adipogenesis, the CD24 cell surface protein represents a valuable marker to label undifferentiated adipose progenitor cells. Indeed, when injected into the residual fat pads of lipodystrophic mice, these CD24 positive cells reconstitute a normal white adipose tissue (WAT) depot. Unluckily, similar studies in humans are rare and incomplete. This is because it is impossible to obtain large numbers of primary CD24 positive human adipose stem cells (hASCs). This study shows that primary hASCs start to express the glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored CD24 protein when cultured with a chemically defined medium supplemented with molecules that activate the Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway. Therefore, this in vitro system may help understand the biology and role in adipogenesis of the CD24-positive hASCs. The induced cells’ phenotype was studied by flow cytometry, Real-Time Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR) techniques, and their secretion profile. The results show that CD24 positive cells are early undifferentiated progenitors expressing molecules related to the angiogenic pathway.

Relationship between lipid metabolism and Hedgehog signaling pathway

The Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway is highly conserved signaling pathway in cells. Steroids was found to play a vital role in Hh signaling pathway and aberrant Hh signaling was found to lead a series of disease correlate with abnormal lipid metabolism. This paper aimed to elucidate the relationship between lipid metabolism and Hedgehog signaling pathway.

Steroidal alkaloids isolated from Veratrum grandiflorum Loes. as novel Smoothened inhibitors with anti-proliferation effects on DAOY medulloblastoma cells

Constitutive activation of Hedgehog (Hh) pathway is intimately related with the occurrence and development of several malignancies, such as medulloblastoma (MB) and other tumors. Therefore, small molecular inhibitors of Hh pathway are urgently needed. In this study, three new steroidal alkaloids, ⊿⁵ (20R, 24R) 23-oxo-24-methylsolacongetidine, ⊿⁵ (20S, 24R) 23-oxo-24-methylsolacongetidine and veralinine 3-O-α-l-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-β-D-glucopyranoside, together with six known alkaloids, 20-epi-verazine, verazine, protoverine 15-(l)-2'-methylbutyrate, jervine, veramarine and β1-chaconine, were isolated and determined from Veratrum grandiflorum Loes. The dual-luciferase bioassay indicated that all compounds exhibited significant inhibitions of Hh pathway with IC₅₀ values of 0.72-14.31 μM against Shh-LIGHT 2 cells. To determine whether these Hh pathway inhibitors act with the Smoothened (Smo) protein, which is an important oncoprotein and target for this pathway, BODIPY-cyclopamine (BC) competitive binding assay was preferentially performed. Compared with BC alone, all compounds obviously reduced the fluorescence intensities of BC binding with Smo in Smo-overexpression HEK293T cells through fluorescence microscope and flow cytometer. By directly interacting with Smo, it revealed that they were actually novel natural Smo inhibitors. Then, their anti-tumor effects were investigated against the human MB cell line DAOY, which is a typical pediatric brain tumor cells line with highly expressed Hh pathway. Interestingly, most of compounds had slight proliferation inhibitions on DAOY cells after treatment for 24 h same as vismodegib, while β1-chaconine showed the strongest inhibitory effect on the growth of DAOY with IC₅₀ value of 5.35 μM. In conclusion, our studies valuably provide several novel natural Smo inhibitors for potential targeting treatment of Hh-dependent tumors.