Project description:Gouty Arthritis (GA) is caused by urate deposition in the joint capsule, cartilage, bone, and surrounding tissues to trigger recurrent attacks of acute joint inflammation. However, the clearance mechanism of urate deposition is still not clear. We aimed to investigate whether lymphatics vessels can drain monosodium and involve in the immune process of GA. Methods: Inguinal lymph nodes (LNs) in 4 normal volunteers and 4 patients with acute flare of GA were examined by ultrasound. Acute and chronic GA flare mouse models were established by intra-footpad administrations of monosodium urate (MSU) for 1 week or 1 month. Mice were treated with VEGFR-3 inhibitor or undergone popliteal lymph node (PLN) excision or PLN macrophage depletion. The severity of foot inflammation, lymphatic draining function, concentration of uric acid (UA), and macrophage population were examined. Macrophages were co-cultured with MSU-treated lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) and differential gene expression of LECs was assessed by Agilent gene expression microarray. Results: 1) Draining LNs were enlarged in patients with GA flare and GA mouse models. 2) The lymphatic function and structure were abnormal in GA mouse models. 3) Acute GA mice had elevated UA levels in draining LNs, but not in the serum, while chronic GA mice had elevated UA levels in both LNs and serum. 4) Blockade of VEGFR-3 reduced foot inflammation in chronic GA mice. 5) MSU induces pro-inflammatory polarization of macrophages by inducing LEC inflammation. 6) PLN local depletion of macrophages or removal of PLNs alleviated foot inflammation in GA. Conclusions: Lymphatics drain MSU to the draining LNs to clear deposited urate in the distal extremity and induce LECs to stimulate macrophage pro-inflammatory response during GA. We have identified a novel mechanism about MSU clearance and pro-inflammatory macrophage activation, and provided possible therapeutic approach for GA.
Project description:Aim of the study was to characterize at a molecular level (changes in transcriptomes) the effect of monosodium urate crystal (MSU) on HaCaT keratinocyte cell line. This was adressed by using a culture model. The HaCaT cell line (human keratinocytes) was stimulated by MSU (1mg/mL) vs control for 12 hrs. By using genome-wide expression profiling, we identified deregulation of functionally relevant gene networks. HaCaT were obtained from Cell Lines Service (Eppelheim, Germany) and grown in DMEM medium (PAN biotech, Aidenbach, Germany) supplemented with 10% FBS (Life Technology, Grand Island, NY, USA), L-glutamine and non-essential amino acid. Before the treatment HaCaT cells were cultured in serum-free medium for 12hrs. HaCaT were treated with MSU (1mg/ml) vs DMEM control for 12hrs then submitted to RNA extration and gene expression profiling. Triplicate experiments were performed: HaCaT control (n=3), MSU-treated (n=3).
Project description:In this study, we repoort the protective effect of ursolic acid (UA) on vascular calcification in chronic kidney disease. To elucidate the molecular mechanism underlying the anti-vascular calcification effect of UA, we performed RNA-seq to identify the gene expresion under UA treatmment.
Project description:Bordel2018 - GSMM for Human Metabolic
Reactions (HMR database)
This model is described in the article:
Constraint based modeling of
metabolism allows finding metabolic cancer hallmarks and
identifying personalized therapeutic windows
Sergio Bordel
Oncotarget. 2018; 9:19716-19729
Abstract:
In order to choose optimal personalized anticancer
treatments, transcriptomic data should be analyzed within the
frame of biological networks. The best known human biological
network (in terms of the interactions between its different
components) is metabolism. Cancer cells have been known to have
specific metabolic features for a long time and currently there
is a growing interest in characterizing new cancer specific
metabolic hallmarks. In this article it is presented a method
to find personalized therapeutic windows using RNA-seq data and
Genome Scale Metabolic Models. This method is implemented in
the python library, pyTARG. Our predictions showed that the
most anticancer selective (affecting 27 out of 34 considered
cancer cell lines and only 1 out of 6 healthy mesenchymal stem
cell lines) single metabolic reactions are those involved in
cholesterol biosynthesis. Excluding cholesterol biosynthesis,
all the considered cell lines can be selectively affected by
targeting different combinations (from 1 to 5 reactions) of
only 18 metabolic reactions, which suggests that a small subset
of drugs or siRNAs combined in patient specific manners could
be at the core of metabolism based personalized treatments.
This model is hosted on
BioModels Database
and identified by:
MODEL1707250000.
To cite BioModels Database, please use:
Chelliah V et al. BioModels: ten-year
anniversary. Nucl. Acids Res. 2015, 43(Database
issue):D542-8.
To the extent possible under law, all copyright and related or
neighbouring rights to this encoded model have been dedicated to
the public domain worldwide. Please refer to
CC0
Public Domain Dedication for more information.
Project description:Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder associated with learning, memory, and cognitive deficits. Neuroinflammation and lysosomal dysfunction are thought to play key roles in the progression of AD pathology. Diverse measures have been applied to treat AD, but currently, there is no effective treatment. Urolithin A (UA) is a gut microbial metabolite of ellagic acid shown to stimulate mitophagy and acts as a potent anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant agent. However, long-term safety and the potential role of UA in altering pathology of AD is still largely unclear. In this study, we investigated the underlying mechanisms for the beneficial effects of UA in multiple mouse models of AD. We report that long-term UA treatment significantly improves learning and memory, olfactory function, and synaptic function of neurons in AD transgenic mice. We demonstrate that UA decreases soluble and insoluble Ab1-42, total Tau, and Tau phosphorylation. Furthermore, alterations in lysosomal cathepsins, particularly upregulation of cathepsin Z, was observed in the AD mice brains and normalized by UA treatment. Notably, UA treatment also ameliorates neuroinflammation, DNA damage, mitochondrial dysfunction, and restores lysosomal functions in AD mice brains. Collectively, these results provide new insights into the role of UA in regulating lysosomal dysfunction, cathepsins, and suggests that UA may have a potential therapeutic application for AD. To understand what metabolism-related gene expression changes are induced by Urolithin A, WT (C57BL6/J), 3xTgAD and 3xTgAD/PolB+/- mice were treated with water or Urolithin A (200mg/kg/day) by oral gavage for 5 months starting when the mice were 12m of age, thereafter hippocampi tissues was collected from each mouse and subjected to RNA isolation.
Project description:Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder associated with learning, memory, and cognitive deficits. Neuroinflammation and lysosomal dysfunction are thought to play key roles in the progression of AD pathology. Diverse measures have been applied to treat AD, but currently, there is no effective treatment. Urolithin A (UA) is a gut microbial metabolite of ellagic acid shown to stimulate mitophagy and acts as a potent anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant agent. However, long-term safety and the potential role of UA in altering pathology of AD is still largely unclear. In this study, we investigated the underlying mechanisms for the beneficial effects of UA in multiple mouse models of AD. We report that long-term UA treatment significantly improves learning and memory, olfactory function, and synaptic function of neurons in AD transgenic mice. We demonstrate that UA decreases soluble and insoluble Ab1-42, total Tau, and Tau phosphorylation. Furthermore, alterations in lysosomal cathepsins, particularly upregulation of cathepsin Z, was observed in the AD mice brains and normalized by UA treatment. Notably, UA treatment also ameliorates neuroinflammation, DNA damage, mitochondrial dysfunction, and restores lysosomal functions in AD mice brains. Collectively, these results provide new insights into the role of UA in regulating lysosomal dysfunction, cathepsins, and suggests that UA may have a potential therapeutic application for AD. To understand what gene expression changes are induced by Urolithin A, WT (C57BL6/J), 3xTgAD and 3xTgAD/PolB+/- mice were treated with water or Urolithin A (200mg/kg/day) by oral gavage for 5 months starting when the mice were 12m of age. Thereafter, hippocampi tissue was collected from each mouse and subjected to RNA isolation.
Project description:Objectives: In gout, flares of severely painful inflammatory arthritis intersect with metabolism, circadian rhythm, and macrophage activation. NAD+ is a necessary cofactor and key metabolite in cellular bioenergy homeostasis, and NAD+ suppresses the NLRP3 inflammasome and inflammation. However, cellular NAD+ declines in inflammatory states, associated with increased activity of the leukocyte-expressed NADase CD38. Gouty arthritis is principally prevented and treated with nonselective and frequently toxic drugs (colchicine, NSAIDs, corticosteroids). Hence, we tested the potential role of therapeutically targeting CD38 and NAD+ in gout. Methods: We studied cultured mouse wild type and CD38 knockout (KO) murine bone marrow derived macrophages (BMDMs) stimulated by monosodium urate (MSU) crystals, and the air pouch gout synovitis model. Results: MSU crystals induced CD38 in BMDMs in vitro, associated with NAD+ depletion, and IL-1b and CXCL1 release, effects reversed by pharmacologic CD38 inhibitors (apigenin, 78c). Mouse air pouch inflammatory responses to MSU crystals were blunted by CD38 KO and apigenin. Pharmacologic CD38 inhibition suppressed MSU crystal-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation and increased anti-inflammatory SIRT3-SOD2 in macrophages. BMDM RNA-seq analysis of 176 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) revealed CD38 control of multiple MSU crystal-modulated inflammation pathways. The top DEGs included the circadian rhythm modulator GRP176, and the metalloreductase STEAP4 that mediates iron homeostasis, and promotes oxidative stress and NF-kB activation when it is overexpressed. Conclusion: CD38 and NAD+ depletion are druggable targets controlling the MSU crystal- induced inflammation program. Targeting CD38 and NAD+ are potentially novel selective molecular approaches to limit gouty arthritis.