Changes in minor transcripts from the alpha 1 and beta maj globin and glutathione peroxidase genes during erythropoiesis

Selenoproteins in colon cancer

Selenocysteine-containing proteins (selenoproteins) have been implicated in the regulation of various cell signaling pathways, many of which are linked to colorectal malignancies. In this in-depth excurse into the selenoprotein literature, we review possible roles for human selenoproteins in colorectal cancer, focusing on the typical hallmarks of cancer cells and their tumor-enabling characteristics. Human genome studies of single nucleotide polymorphisms in various genes coding for selenoproteins have revealed potential involvement of glutathione peroxidases, thioredoxin reductases, and other proteins. Cell culture studies with targeted down-regulation of selenoproteins and studies utilizing knockout/transgenic animal models have helped elucidate the potential roles of individual selenoproteins in this malignancy. Those selenoproteins, for which strong links to development or progression of colorectal cancer have been described, may be potential future targets for clinical interventions.

Identification and cloning of a selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidase from tiger shrimp, Penaeus monodon, and its transcription following pathogen infection and related to the molt stages

Complementary (c)DNA encoding glutathione peroxidase (GPx) messenger (m)RNA of the tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon was obtained from haemocytes by a reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) method. The 1321-bp cDNA contained an open reading frame (ORF) of 564bp, a 69-bp 5'-untranslated region (UTR), and a 688-bp 3'-UTR containing a poly A tail and a conserved selenocysteine insertion sequence (SECIS) element. The molecular mass of the deduced amino acid (aa) sequence (188 aa) was 21.05kDa long with an estimated pI of 7.68. It contains a putative selenocysteine residue which is encoded by the unusual stop codon, (190)TGA(192), and forms the active site with residues Glu(75) and Trp(143). Comparison of amino acid sequences showed that tiger shrimp GPx is more closely related to vertebrate GPx1, in accordance with those in Litopenaeus vannamei and Macrobrachium rosenbergii. GPx cDNA was synthesised in lymphoid organ, gills, heart, haemocytes, the hepatopancreas, muscles, and intestines. After injected with either Photobacterium damsela or white spot syndrome virus (WSSV), the respiratory bursts of shrimp significantly increased in order to kill the pathogen, and induced increases in the activities of superoxide dismutase and GPx, and regulation in the expression of cloned GPx mRNA to protect cells against damage from oxidation. The GPx expression significantly increased at stage D(0/1), and then gradually decreased until stage C suggesting that the cloned GPx might play a role in the molt regulation of shrimp.

Polymorphism analysis of six selenoprotein genes: support for a selective sweep at the glutathione peroxidase 1 locus (3p21) in Asian populations

Background

There are at least 25 human selenoproteins, each characterized by the incorporation of selenium into the primary sequence as the amino acid selenocysteine. Since many selenoproteins have antioxidant properties, it is plausible that inter-individual differences in selenoprotein expression or activity could influence risk for a range of complex diseases, such as cancer, infectious diseases as well as deleterious responses to oxidative stressors like cigarette smoke. To capture the common genetic variants for 6 important selenoprotein genes (GPX1, GPX2, GPX3, GPX4, TXNRD1, and SEPP1) known to contribute to antioxidant host defenses, a re-sequence analysis was conducted across these genes with particular interest directed at the coding regions, intron-exon borders and flanking untranslated regions (UTR) for each gene in an 102 individual population representative of 4 major ethnic groups found within the United States.

Results

For 5 of the genes there was no strong evidence for selection according to the expectations of the neutral equilibrium model of evolution; however, at the GPX1 locus (3p21) there was evidence for positive selection. Strong confirmatory evidence for recent positive selection at the genomic region 3p21 in Asian populations is provided by data from the International HapMap project.

Conclusion

The SNPs and fine haplotype maps described in this report will be valuable resources for future functional studies, for population specific genetic studies designed to comprehensively explore the role of selenoprotein genetic variants in the etiology of various human diseases, and to define the forces responsible for a recent selective sweep in the vicinity of the GPX1 locus.

Expression pattern of cytosolic glutathione peroxidase (cGPx) mRNA during mouse embryogenesis

The selenoprotein cytosolic glutathione peroxidase (cGPx) is ubiquitously distributed in a variety of organs, and its primary function is to protect oxidative damage. To investigate the spatial and temporal expression pattern of cGPx mRNA in embryogenesis, as this has not been studied before, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was carried out in a thermal cycler using mouse-specific cGPx primers, and in situ hybridization was performed in whole embryos or embryonic tissues using digoxigenin-labeled mouse cGPx riboprobes. Expression of cGPx mRNA was detected in all the embryos retrieved from embryonic days (EDs) 7.5 to 18.5. On EDs 10.5-12.5, cGPx mRNA was highly expressed in the margin of forelimb and hindlimb buds and dorsally in the cranial neural tube, including the telencephalon, diencephalon, and hindbrain neural tube. On ED 13.5, cGPx mRNA was accumulated especially in vibrissae, forelimb and hindlimb plates, tail, and spinal cord. On EDs 14.5-16.5, cGPx mRNA was found in the developing brain, Rathke's pouch, thymus, lung, and liver. On ED 17.5, the expression of cGPx mRNA was apparent in various tissues such as brain, submandibular gland, vibrissae, heart, lung, liver, stomach, intestine, pancreas, skin, and kidney. In particular, cGPx mRNA was greatly expressed in epithelial linings and metabolically active sites such as whisker follicles, alveolar epithelium of lung, surface epithelium and glandular region of stomach, skin epithelium, and cortex and tubules of kidney. Overall results indicate that cGPx mRNA is expressed in developing embryos, cell-specifically and tissue-specifically, suggesting that cGPx may function to protect the embryo against reactive oxygen species and/or hydroperoxides massively produced by the intracellular or extracellular environment.

Immunohistochemical detection of human gastrointestinal glutathione peroxidase in normal tissues and cultured cells with novel mouse monoclonal antibodies

This is the first report to describe the successful detection of human gastrointestinal glutathione peroxidase in normal tissues by Western blotting and immunohistochemical staining techniques. Four hybridoma clones producing monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against the human gastrointestinal glutathione peroxidase were established from mice immunized with a gastrointestinal glutathione peroxidase-derived peptide. The MAbs did not crossreact with other members of the glutathione peroxidase family, be it cellular glutathione peroxidase, phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase, or extracellular glutathione peroxidase. Although the MAbs were found to react with a 24-kD protein in a Western blotting assay using gastric carcinoma cell extracts as antigen, they did not react with a B-lymphoblastoid cell extract. Immunohistochemical staining showed gastrointestinal glutathione peroxidase localized in the cytoplasm and in the nucleus of gastric carcinoma cells. Moreover, gastrointestinal glutathione peroxidase was detected in tissue extracts of human stomach, small intestine, large intestine, liver, and gallbladder by Western blotting, and its localization was immunohistochemically confirmed in the mucosal epithelia of the basal area of gastric pits and intestinal crypts.

Chronic brain oxidation in a glutathione peroxidase knockout mouse model results in increased resistance to induced epileptic seizures

Systemic administration of kainic acid (KA) to rodents results in limbic seizures and subsequent neurodegeneration similar to that observed in certain types of human epilepsy, and it is a commonly used animal model for this disease. Oxidative stress has been suggested to play a role in the neuronal injury associated with KA administration. Based on this observation, chronic treatment with antioxidants has been proposed as a possible protective therapy against neuronal damage associated with epileptic seizures. Here we demonstrate by histochemical, electrophysiological, and biochemical means that knockout mice with decreased activity of the protective antioxidant enzyme glutathione peroxidase, which display elevated basal brain oxidative stress levels, are resistant to KA-induced seizure activity and neurodegeneration. This appears to be a result of decreased NMDA receptor function due to oxidation of its NR1 subunit. This suggests that the chronic use of antioxidants as antiepileptic agents to modulate NMDA-dependent seizure-induced neurodegeneration may be detrimental rather than protective and calls into question their use as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of epilepsy.

The nature of antioxidant defense mechanisms: a lesson from transgenic studies

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of many clinical disorders such as adult respiratory distress syndrome, ischemia-reperfusion injury, atherosclerosis, neurodegenerative diseases, and cancer. Genetically engineered animal models have been used as a tool for understanding the function of various antioxidant enzymes in cellular defense mechanisms against various types of oxidant tissue injury. Transgenic mice overexpressing three isoforms of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and the cellular glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx-1) in various tissues show an increased tolerance to ischemia-reperfusion heart and brain injury, hyperoxia, cold-induced brain edema, adriamycin, and paraquat toxicity. These results have provided for the first time direct evidence demonstrating the importance of each of these antioxidant enzymes in protecting the animals against the injury resulting from these insults, as well as the effect of an enhanced level of antioxidant in ameliorating the oxidant tissue injury. To evaluate further the nature of these enzymes in antioxidant defense, gene knockout mice deficient in copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD) and GSHPx-1 have also been generated in our laboratory. These mice developed normally and showed no marked pathologic changes under normal physiologic conditions. In addition, a deficiency in these genes had no effects on animal survival under hyperoxida. However, these knockout mice exhibited a pronounced susceptibility to paraquat toxicity and myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury. Furthermore, female mice lacking CuZnSOD also displayed a marked increase in postimplantation embryonic lethality. These animals should provide a useful model for uncovering the identity of ROS that participate in the pathogenesis of various clinical disorders and for defining the role of each antioxidant enzyme in cellular defense against oxidant-mediated tissue injury.

Disruption of redox homeostasis in the transforming growth factor-alpha/c-myc transgenic mouse model of accelerated hepatocarcinogenesis

In previous studies we have demonstrated that transforming growth factor (TGF)-alpha/c-myc double transgenic mice exhibit an enhanced rate of cell proliferation, accumulate extensive DNA damage, and develop multiple liver tumors between 4 and 8 months of age. To clarify the biochemical events that may be responsible for the genotoxic and carcinogenic effects observed in this transgenic model, several parameters of redox homeostasis in the liver were examined prior to development of hepatic tumors. By 2 months of age, production of reactive oxygen species, determined by the peroxidation-sensitive fluorescent dye, 2',7'-dichlorofluorescin diacetate, was significantly elevated in TGF-alpha/c-myc transgenic hepatocytes versus either wild type or c-myc single transgenic cells, and occurred in parallel with an increase in lipid peroxidation. Concomitantly with a rise in oxidant levels, antioxidant defenses were decreased, including total glutathione content and the activity of glutathione peroxidase, whereas thioredoxin reductase activity was not changed. However, hepatic tumors which developed in TGF-alpha/c-myc mice exhibited an increase in thioredoxin reductase activity and a very low activity of glutathione peroxidase. Furthermore, specific deletions were detected in mtDNA as early as 5 weeks of age in the transgenic mice. These data provide experimental evidence that co-expression of TGF-alpha and c-myc transgenes in mouse liver promotes overproduction of reactive oxygen species and thus creates an oxidative stress environment. This phenomenon may account for the massive DNA damage and acceleration of hepatocarcinogenesis observed in the TGF-alpha/c-myc mouse model.

Mice deficient in cellular glutathione peroxidase develop normally and show no increased sensitivity to hyperoxia

Glutathione peroxidase, a selenium-containing enzyme, is believed to protect cells from the toxicity of hydroperoxides. The physiological role of this enzyme has previously been implicated mainly using animals fed with a selenium-deficient diet. Although selenium deficiency also affects the activity of several other cellular selenium-containing enzymes, a dramatic decrease of glutathione peroxidase activity has been postulated to play a role in the pathogenesis of a number of diseases, particularly those whose progression is associated with an overproduction of reactive oxygen species, found in selenium-deficient animals. To further clarify the physiological relevance of this enzyme, a model of mice deficient in cellular glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx-1), the major isoform of glutathione peroxidase ubiquitously expressed in all types of cells, was generated by gene-targeting technology. Mice deficient in this enzyme were apparently healthy and fertile and showed no increased sensitivity to hyperoxia. Their tissues exhibited neither a retarded rate in consuming extracellular hydrogen peroxide nor an increased content of protein carbonyl groups and lipid peroxidation compared with those of wild-type mice. However, platelets from GSHPx-1-deficient mice incubated with arachidonic acid generated less 12-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid and more polar products relative to control platelets at a higher concentration of arachidonic acid, presumably reflecting a decreased ability to reduce the 12-hydroperoxyeicosatetraenoic acid intermediate. These results suggest that the contribution of GSHPx-1 to the cellular antioxidant mechanism under normal animal development and physiological conditions and to the pulmonary defense against hyperoxic insult is very limited. Nevertheless, the potential antioxidant role of this enzyme in protecting cells and animals against the pathogenic effect of reactive oxygen species in other disorders remains to be defined. The knockout mouse model described in this report will also provide a new tool for future study to distinguish the physiological role of this enzyme from other selenium-containing proteins in mammals under normal and disease states.

MNU affects mouse erythroleukemia cell differentiation at sub-cytotoxic doses

MNU is a potent carcinogen and mutagen to various tissues. Molecular events during differentiation show particular sensitivity to MNU exposure. We have investigated the mouse erythroleukemia (MEL) cell differentiation in response to DMSO and the influence of subcytotoxic doses of MNU on this process to assess the role of MNU on the course of differentiation and specific gene expression in a single cell type. Differentiation was followed by determining the extent of hemoglobinization and beta-globin gene expression, which are representative measures of red cell maturation. In this study we have shown a delay and decrease in the extent of MEL cell differentiation by MNU exposure at the time of induction to differentiate, even at sub-lethal MNU concentrations. Once the differentiation process was initiated, exposure to MNU at sub-lethal doses showed a significantly smaller effect on the molecular course of events. Pre-treatment of MEL cells with MNU before DMSO induction did not affect differentiation. The MNU-induced delay in differentiation was reflected in the delayed appearance of beta-globin transcripts during the first 12 h post induction. However, transcription could not account for reduced hemoglobinization of the MNU-treated cells at 48 and 72 h post induction.

Nuclear proteins that interact with the beta maj globin promoter start to accumulate in MEL cells within 12 hours of induction and RNA copies of the promoter successfully compete their binding in vitro

The induction of differentiation in mouse erythroleukemia (MEL) cells by dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) is characterized by increased transcription of globin genes. We have determined that DMSO treated cells increase the levels of nuclear factors capable of overall interactions with the beta maj globin promoter during the initial 24 h post induction, as measured by gel mobility analysis. Two unprocessed beta maj globin mRNA precursors, which are present in MEL cell nuclei early in differentiation, were previously shown to contain the 5' promoter flanking region, and thereby provided the nucleus with a pool of regulatory sequences in multiple RNA copies. We have studied the effect of RNA copies of the promoter region on binding interactions between DNA sequences of the beta maj globin promoter and nuclear factors that interact with these sequences. The promoter region RNA transcripts competed effectively for DNA binding proteins in vitro, while the antisense RNA from the same region did not. The most pronounced competition was observed with proteins from 12 h after DMSO induction, when the concentration of the DNA binding proteins was still increasing. Since the 'upstream' transcripts predominate at 12 h after DMSO induction, these results indicate that the promoter region transcripts may influence the equilibrium of binding between the beta maj globin promoter and the nuclear factors that bind to this region during DMSO induction.

The chicken alpha-globin gene domain is transcribed into a 17-kilobase polycistronic RNA

The 5' start sites and the 3' ends of giant transcripts of the approximately 20-kilobase (kb)-long chicken alpha-globin gene domain were identified by reverse transcription with specific primers and by nuclease S1 mapping using cloned and sequenced restriction fragments of the domain. A transcriptional unit of approximately 17 kb was found that includes all three embryonic and adult genes of the cluster. The largest transcript initiates 8 kb upstream of the gene, within a cluster of A + T-rich sequences placed upstream of a matrix attachment point, at one of several CAA(A)T boxes framing a cluster of four TATA boxes. The 5' ends of a group of 2.5-, 5-, and 12-kb globin transcripts accumulating in avian erythroblastosis virus-transformed cells, which transcribe globin genes abortively, map to the sequence ATATATAATAA 1 kb upstream of the embryonic pi-globin gene. This sequence might correspond to a site of RNA processing or of alternative transcription initiation. Transcription of the domain ends about 2 kb downstream of the last gene of the cluster, downstream of an enhancer and immediately upstream of a CR1 repetitive element in an A + T-rich sequence that includes a matrix attachment site. These data indicate that full-domain transcripts including embryonic as well as adult alpha-globin genes exist, and that the region transcribed is framed by A + T-rich linkers and matrix attachment points.

Beta globin gene transcripts originating in the promoter region during early hexamethylene bisacetamide and dimethylsulfoxide induction of Friend erythroleukemia cells

The beta-globin transcripts which are induced by dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) and hexamethylene bisacetamide (HMBA) have been characterized in order to assess potential differences in their mechanisms of induction. Transcripts which initiate in the 5' flanking promoter region are likely indicators of promoter accessibility and were therefore characterized during the time course of induction with each inducer in Friend Erythroleukemia cells. S1 analysis with probes labeled at - 12 or +82 relative to the (+1) cap site showed no major differences between 5' ends of the upstream initiated transcripts in cells induced by DMSO or HMBA. We detected several upstream bands with each inducer corresponding to beta-globin transcripts with 5' ends between - 190 and -55 relative to the cap site and found that cells induced with DMSO and HMBA show a similar transcription response as measured by initiation in the 5' flanking region of the beta-globin gene. Interestingly, the upstream initiated transcripts reach their peak concentration levels much earlier in the time course of induction than do the mRNA transcripts with 5' ends at the major (+1) cap site. Northern blot analysis detected the upstream initiated transcripts as early as 16 hours after induction with DMSO, primarily in unprocessed large transcripts. We find that the promoter region containing transcripts constitute a higher percent of total beta-globin transcripts at the start of the induction and may therefore have an early function in the multistep induction process.

Regulation of erythroid cell-specific gene expression during erythropoiesis

The aim of our group's work over the past few years has been to investigate the molecular mechanisms regulating erythroid cell-specific gene expression during erythroid cell differentiation. In addition to the alpha-globin gene, we have focussed on two non-globin genes of interest encoding the rabbit red cell-specific lipoxygenase (LOX) and the mouse glutathione peroxidase (GSHPX), an important seleno-enzyme responsible for protection against peroxide-damage. Characterisation of the GSHPX gene showed that the seleno-cysteine residue in the active site of the enzyme is encoded by UGA, which usually functions as a translation-termination codon. This novel finding has important implications regarding mRNA sequence context effects affecting codon recognition. The regulation of the GSHPX and red cell LOX genes has been investigated by functional transfection experiments. The 700 bp upstream of the GSHPX promoter seems to function equally well when linked to the bacterial chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) gene and transfected into mouse erythroid or fibroblast cell lines. However, the presence of tissue-specific DNase I hypersensitive sites (DHSS) in the 3' flanking region of the GSHPX gene suggests that such sites may be important in its regulation in the various cell types in which it is highly expressed, i.e., erythroid cells, liver and kidney. The transcription unit of the RBC LOX gene has also been defined and 5' and 3' flanking regions are being investigated for erythroid-specific regulatory elements: a region upstream of the LOX gene gives increased expression of a linked CAT gene when transfected into mouse erythroid cell lines compared to non-erythroid cell lines.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)