Targeting mitochondrial metabolism by the mitotoxin bromoxib in leukemia and lymphoma cells.

Targeting mitochondrial metabolism represents a promising approach for cancer treatment. Here, we investigated the mitotoxic potential of the polybrominated diphenyl ether bromoxib, a natural compound isolated from the marine sponge Dysidea family. We could show that bromoxib comprised strong cytotoxicity in different leukemia and lymphoma cell lines (such as HL60, HPBALL, Jurkat, K562, KOPTK1, MOLT4, SUPB15 and Ramos), but also in solid tumor cell lines (such as glioblastoma cell lines SJ-GBM2 and TP365MG).

The mycotoxin viriditoxin induces leukemia- and lymphoma-specific apoptosis by targeting mitochondrial metabolism.

Inhibition of the mitochondrial metabolism offers a promising therapeutic approach for the treatment of cancer. Here, we identify the mycotoxin viriditoxin (VDT), derived from the endophytic fungus Cladosporium cladosporioides, as an interesting candidate for leukemia and lymphoma treatment. VDT displayed a high cytotoxic potential and rapid kinetics of caspase activation in Jurkat leukemia and Ramos lymphoma cells in contrast to solid tumor cells that were affected to a much lesser extent.

Impaired Hepatic Mitochondrial Capacity in Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Associated With Type 2 Diabetes.

Objective: Individuals with type 2 diabetes are at higher risk of progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver (steatosis) to steatohepatitis (NASH), fibrosis, and cirrhosis. The hepatic metabolism of obese individuals adapts by upregulation of mitochondrial capacity, which may be lost during the progression of steatosis. However, the role of type 2 diabetes with regard to hepatic mitochondrial function in NASH remains unclear.

Rapid metabolic and bioenergetic adaptations of astrocytes under hyperammonemia - a novel perspective on hepatic encephalopathy.

Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a well-studied, neurological syndrome caused by liver dysfunctions. Ammonia, the major toxin during HE pathogenesis, impairs many cellular processes within astrocytes. Yet, the molecular mechanisms causing HE are not fully understood.

Ammonia inhibits energy metabolism in astrocytes in a rapid and glutamate dehydrogenase 2-dependent manner.

Astrocyte dysfunction is a primary factor in hepatic encephalopathy (HE) impairing neuronal activity under hyperammonemia. In particular, the early events causing ammonia-induced toxicity to astrocytes are not well understood. Using established cellular HE models, we show that mitochondria rapidly undergo fragmentation in a reversible manner upon hyperammonemia.

Hepatic encephalopathy is linked to alterations of autophagic flux in astrocytes.

Background: Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a severe neuropsychiatric syndrome caused by various types of liver failure resulting in hyperammonemia-induced dysfunction of astrocytes. It is unclear whether autophagy, an important pro-survival pathway, is altered in the brains of ammonia-intoxicated animals as well as in HE patients.

Methods: Using primary rat astrocytes, a co-culture model of primary mouse astrocytes and neurons, an in vivo rat HE model, and post mortem brain samples of liver cirrhosis patients with HE we analyzed whether and how hyperammonemia modulates autophagy.

How to get rid of mitochondria: crosstalk and regulation of multiple mitophagy pathways.

Mitochondria are indispensable cellular organelles providing ATP and numerous other essential metabolites to ensure cell survival. Reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are formed as side reactions during oxidative phosphorylation or by external agents, induce molecular damage in mitochondrial proteins, lipids/membranes and DNA. To cope with this and other sorts of organellar stress, a multi-level quality control system exists to maintain cellular homeostasis.

Signatures of Mechanically Interlocked Topology of Lasso Peptides by Ion Mobility-Mass Spectrometry: Lessons from a Collection of Representatives.

Lasso peptides are characterized by a mechanically interlocked structure, where the C-terminal tail of the peptide is threaded and trapped within an N-terminal macrolactam ring. Their compact and stable structures have a significant impact on their biological and physical properties and make them highly interesting for drug development. Ion mobility - mass spectrometry (IM-MS) has shown to be effective to discriminate the lasso topology from their corresponding branched-cyclic topoisomers in which the C-terminal tail is unthreaded.

Insights into the Unique Phosphorylation of the Lasso Peptide Paeninodin.

Lasso peptides are a new class of ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides and thus far are only isolated from proteo- and actinobacterial sources. Typically, lasso peptide biosynthetic gene clusters encode enzymes for biosynthesis and export but not for tailoring. Here, we describe the isolation of the novel lasso peptide paeninodin from the firmicute Paenibacillus dendritiformis C454 and reveal within its biosynthetic cluster a gene encoding a kinase, which we have characterized as a member of a new class of lasso peptide-tailoring kinases.

Controlling quality and amount of mitochondria by mitophagy: insights into the role of ubiquitination and deubiquitination.

Mitophagy is a selective autophagy pathway conserved in eukaryotes and plays an essential role in mitochondrial quality and quantity control. Mitochondrial fission and fusion cycles maintain a certain amount of healthy mitochondria and allow the isolation of damaged mitochondria for their elimination by mitophagy. Mitophagy can be classified into receptor-dependent and ubiquitin-dependent pathways.

Lasso peptides: an intriguing class of bacterial natural products.

Natural products of peptidic origin often represent a rich source of medically relevant compounds. The synthesis of such polypeptides in nature is either initiated by deciphering the genetic code on the ribosome during the translation process or driven by ribosome-independent processes. In the latter case, highly modified bioactive peptides are assembled by multimodular enzymes designated as nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS) that act as a protein-template to generate chemically diverse peptides.

Ion mobility-mass spectrometry of lasso peptides: signature of a rotaxane topology.

Ion mobility mass spectrometry data were collected on a set of five class II lasso peptides and their branched-cyclic topoisomers prepared in denaturing solvent conditions with and without sulfolane as a supercharging agent. Sulfolane was shown not to affect ion mobility results and to allow the formation of highly charged multiply protonated molecules. Drift time values of low charged multiply protonated molecules were found to be similar for the two peptide topologies, indicating the branched-cyclic peptide to be folded in the gas phase into a conformation as compact as the lasso peptide.

Rational improvement of the affinity and selectivity of integrin binding of grafted lasso peptides.

Integrins moderate diverse important functions in the human body and are promising targets in cancer therapy. Hence, the selective inhibition of specific integrins is of great medicinal interest. Here, we report the optimization of a grafted lasso peptide, yielding MccJ25(RGDF), which is a highly potent and selective αvβ3 integrin inhibitor.

Xanthomonins I-III: a new class of lasso peptides with a seven-residue macrolactam ring.

Lasso peptides belong to the class of ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides. Their common distinguishing feature is an N-terminal macrolactam ring that is threaded by the C-terminal tail. This lasso fold is maintained through steric interactions.

Lasso peptides from proteobacteria: Genome mining employing heterologous expression and mass spectrometry.

Lasso peptides are natural products with a unique three dimensional structure resembling a lariat knot. They are from ribosomal origin and are post-translationally modified by two enzymes (B and C), one of which shares little similarity to enzymes outside of lasso peptide biosynthetic gene clusters and as such is a useful target for genome mining. In this study, we demonstrate a B protein-centric genome mining approach through which we were able to identify 102 putative lasso peptide biosynthetic gene clusters from a total of 87 different proteobacterial strains.

The astexin-1 lasso peptides: biosynthesis, stability, and structural studies.

Lasso peptides are a large family of natural products that owe their name to a unique structure formed by a side chain to backbone macrocyclization, resembling a knotted lasso. The unique structure has significant impact on their biological and physical properties, as lasso peptides are usually more stable than linear ones. Current work examines stability, structure, and biosynthesis of recently discovered lasso peptide astexin-1, a heat-sensitive lasso peptide.

Caulosegnins I-III: a highly diverse group of lasso peptides derived from a single biosynthetic gene cluster.

Lasso peptides are natural products of ribosomal origin with a unique knotted structural fold. Even though only a few of them are known, recent reports of newly isolated lasso peptides were scarce. In this work, we report the identification of a novel lasso peptide gene cluster from Caulobacter segnis, that produces three new lasso peptides (caulosegnins I, II, and III) using a single biosynthetic machinery.