A novel Lyn-like protein tyrosine kinase identified in lamprey and its role in immune response

Macrophage Lyn Kinase Is a Sex-Specific Regulator of Post-Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Neuroinflammation

BACKGROUND

Lyn kinase is a member of the Src family of tyrosine kinases, primarily known for its role in regulating immune cell signaling. It can phosphorylate and modulate the activity of various proteins involved in immune responses, including Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). TLR4-mediated inflammatory pathways have been extensively studied; however, the sex-specific interaction of TLR4 and Lyn in neuroinflammation after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) has yet to be investigated. SAH occurs due to a ruptured aneurysm, and the consequences often lead to neuroinflammation and cognitive impairments. In our study, we investigated the sex-specific involvement of Lyn kinase in regulating TLR4 signaling to understand the TLR4-mediated inflammatory response after SAH.

METHODS

Cell-specific Lyn knockout mice of both sexes were used for this study. Wild-type and conditional knockout mouse brains were analyzed by multicolor flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, and western blotting at postoperative day 7 following SAH surgery. An unbiased spatial transcriptomic analysis was performed with the frozen mouse brain tissues. A 3-dimensional brain stroke model and cerebrospinal fluid samples of patients with SAH were also used for this study.

RESULTS

Our overall animal and patient data from flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, western blot, cognitive function tests, and spatial transcriptomic data revealed that Lyn kinase is a sex-specific regulator in inflammatory cytokine production, red blood cell phagocytosis, neuronal apoptosis, and cognitive function, as well as a negative regulator of TLR4 signaling pathways.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results highlight sex-specific modulation of Lyn kinase activity in TLR4 signaling after hemorrhagic stroke and indicate that successful treatment of neuroinflammation may require sex-specific treatments.

Integrated virtual screening and MD simulation study to discover potential inhibitors of Lyn-kinase: targeting cancer therapy

Tyrosine-protein kinase Lyn (LynK) has emerged as one of the most attractive therapeutic targets for cancer and diabetes. In this study, we used a multistep virtual screening process of natural compounds to discover potential inhibitors of LynK from the IMPPAT database. The primary filters were based on Lipinski rules, ADMET properties, and PAINS patterns. Then, binding affinities and interaction analyses were carried out for the high-affinity selectivity of the compounds towards LynK. Eventually, two natural compounds, Glabrene and Lactupicrin, were identified with high affinity and specificity for the LynK-binding pocket. Both compounds exhibited drug-like properties, as predicted by ADMET analysis and physicochemical parameters. The molecular dynamics (MD) simulation study revealed that these compounds bind to the ATP-binding pocket of LynK and interact with functionally significant residues with stability without inducing any significant structural changes to the protein. Ultimately, the identified compounds may be regarded as promising LynK inhibitors and can be used as lead molecules in the drug development against LynK-related diseases.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Molecular Characterization of a B Cell Adaptor for Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase Homolog in Lamprey (Lampetra japonica) and Its Function in the Immune Response

Human B cell adaptor for phosphoinositide 3-kinase (BCAP) is identified as an adaptor protein expressed in B cells and plays a critical immunomodulatory role in B cell receptor signaling and humoral immune response. In the current study, a homolog of BCAP (Lja-BCAP) was identified in Lampetra japonica. The open reading frame of Lja-BCAP contains 2181bp nucleotides and encodes a protein of 726 amino acids. After being stimulated by mixed bacteria, the mRNA and protein expression levels of Lja-BCAP and the activation levels of tyrosine kinases increased significantly in peripheral blood lymphocytes, gills and supraneural myeloid bodies, respectively. However, after the knockdown of Lja-BCAP by RNAi in vivo, the activation of tyrosine kinases was inhibited in the above tissues, which indicated that Lja-BCAP participated in the anti-bacterial immune response of lampreys. After lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation, the expression of Lja-BCAP in peripheral blood lymphocytes, gills and supraneural myeloid bodies were significantly up-regulated 2.5, 2.2, and 11.1 times (p < 0.05) compared to the control group, respectively; while after phytohemagglutinin (PHA) stimulation, the up-regulation of Lja-BCAP was only detected in peripheral blood lymphocytes. The above results show that Lja-BCAP mainly participates in the LPS-mediated immune response of lampreys.