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Musashi expression in intestinal stem cells attenuates radiation-induced decline in intestinal permeability and survival in Drosophila.

ABSTRACT: Exposure to genotoxic stress by environmental agents or treatments, such as radiation therapy, can diminish healthspan and accelerate aging. We have developed a Drosophila melanogaster model to study the molecular effects of radiation-induced damage and repair. Utilizing a quantitative intestinal permeability assay, we performed an unbiased GWAS screen (using 156 strains from the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel) to search for natural genetic variants that regulate radiation-induced gut permeability in adult D. melanogaster. From this screen, we identified an RNA binding protein, Musashi (msi), as one of the possible genes associated with changes in intestinal permeability upon radiation. The overexpression of msi promoted intestinal stem cell proliferation, which increased survival after irradiation and rescued radiation-induced intestinal permeability. In summary, we have established D. melanogaster as an expedient model system to study the effects of radiation-induced damage to the intestine in adults and have identified msi as a potential therapeutic target.

SUBMITTER: Sharma A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7644626 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Musashi expression in intestinal stem cells attenuates radiation-induced decline in intestinal permeability and survival in Drosophila.

Sharma Amit A Akagi Kazutaka K Pattavina Blaine B Wilson Kenneth A KA Nelson Christopher C Watson Mark M Maksoud Elie E Harata Ayano A Ortega Mauricio M Brem Rachel B RB Kapahi Pankaj P

Scientific reports 20201105 1

Exposure to genotoxic stress by environmental agents or treatments, such as radiation therapy, can diminish healthspan and accelerate aging. We have developed a Drosophila melanogaster model to study the molecular effects of radiation-induced damage and repair. Utilizing a quantitative intestinal permeability assay, we performed an unbiased GWAS screen (using 156 strains from the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel) to search for natural genetic variants that regulate radiation-induced gut permea ...[more]

PMID: 33154387

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Project description:BACKGROUND:Radiation-induced gastrointestinal syndrome (RIGS) results from the acute loss of intestinal stem cells (ISC), impaired epithelial regeneration, and subsequent loss of the mucosal barrier, resulting in electrolyte imbalance, diarrhea, weight loss, sepsis, and mortality. The high radiosensitivity of the intestinal epithelium limits effective radiotherapy against abdominal malignancies and limits the survival of victims of nuclear accidents or terrorism. Currently, there is no approved therapy to mitigate radiation toxicity in the intestine. Here we demonstrate that BCN057, an anti-neoplastic small molecular agent, induces ISC proliferation and promotes intestinal epithelial repair against radiation injury. METHODS:BCN057 (90 mg/kg body weight, subcutaneously) was injected into C57Bl6 male mice (JAX) at 24 h following abdominal irradiation (AIR) and was continued for 8 days post-irradiation. BCN057-mediated rescue of Lgr5-positive ISC was validated in Lgr5-EGFP-Cre-ERT2 mice exposed to AIR. The regenerative response of Lgr5-positive ISC was examined by lineage tracing assay using Lgr5-EGFP-ires-CreERT2-TdT mice with tamoxifen administration to activate Cre recombinase and thereby marking the ISC and their respective progeny. Ex vivo three-dimensional organoid cultures were developed from surgical specimens of human colon or from mice jejunum and were used to examine the radio-mitigating role of BCN057 on ISC ex vivo. Organoid growth was determined by quantifying the budding crypt/total crypt ratio. Statistical analysis was performed using Log-rank (Mantel-Cox) test and paired two-tail t test. RESULTS:Treatment with BCN057 24 h after a lethal dose of AIR rescues ISC, promotes regeneration of the intestinal epithelium, and thereby mitigates RIGS. Irradiated mice without BCN057 treatment suffered from RIGS, resulting in 100% mortality within 15 days post-radiation. Intestinal organoids developed from mice jejunum or human colon demonstrated a regenerative response with BCN057 treatment and mitigated radiation toxicity. However, BCN057 did not deliver radio-protection to mouse or human colon tumor tissue. CONCLUSION:BCN057 is a potential mitigator against RIGS and may be useful for improving the therapeutic ratio of abdominal radiotherapy. This is the first report demonstrating that a small molecular agent mitigates radiation-induced intestinal injury by inducing ISC self-renewal and proliferation.

Project description:Intestinal crypt progenitor/stem (ICPS) cell apoptosis and vascular endothelial cell apoptosis are responsible for the initiation and development of ionizing radiation (IR)-evoked gastrointestinal syndrome. The signaling mechanisms underlying IR-induced ICPS cell apoptosis remain largely unclear. Our findings provide evidence that ?-arrestin-2 (?arr2)-mediated ICPS cell apoptosis is crucial for IR-stimulated intestinal injury. ?Arr2-deficient mice exhibited decreased ICPS cell and intestinal Lgr5(+) (leucine-rich repeat-containing G-protein-coupled receptor 5-positive) stem cell apoptosis, promoted crypt proliferation and reproduction, and protracted survival following lethal doses of radiation. Radioprotection in the ICPS cells isolated from ?arr2-deficient mice depended on prolonged nuclear factor-?B (NF-?B) activation via direct interaction of ?arr2 with I?B? and subsequent inhibition of p53-upregulated modulator of apoptosis (PUMA)-mediated mitochondrial dysfunction. Unexpectedly, ?arr2 deficiency had little effect on IR-induced intestinal vascular endothelial cell apoptosis in mice. Consistently, ?arr2 knockdown also provided significant radioresistance by manipulating NF-?B/PUMA signaling in Lgr5(+) cells in vitro. Collectively, these observations show that targeting the ?arr2/NF-?B/PUMA novel pathway is a potential radiomitigator for limiting the damaging effect of radiotherapy on the gastrointestinal system. Significance statement: acute injury to the intestinal mucosa is a major dose-limiting complication of abdominal radiotherapy. The issue of whether the critical factor for the initiation of radiation-induced intestinal injury is intestinal stem cell apoptosis or endothelial cell apoptosis remains unresolved. ?Arrs have recently been found to be multifunctional adaptor of apoptosis. Here, we found that ?-arrestin-2 (?arr2) deficiency was associated with decreased radiation-induced ICPS cell apoptosis, which prolonged survival in abdominally irradiated mice. Moreover, ?arr2 deficiency-mediated intestinal progenitor/stem cell radioprotection relied on protracted NF-?B activation and subsequent suppression of PUMA induction. Our results suggest that ICPS cell apoptosis is the factor involved in the initiation and development of radiation-induced gastrointestinal syndrome. ?Arr2 is a potential target for lessening radiation-induced ICPS cell apoptosis.

Dataset Information

Musashi expression in intestinal stem cells attenuates radiation-induced decline in intestinal permeability and survival in Drosophila.

Publications

Musashi expression in intestinal stem cells attenuates radiation-induced decline in intestinal permeability and survival in Drosophila.

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