Browsing by Author "Yang, Zhenyun"

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    Dishevelled-associated activator of morphogenesis 1 (Daam1) is required for heart morphogenesis
    (2011-01) Li, Deqiang; Hallett, Mark A.; Zhu, Wuqiang; Rubart, Michael; Liu, Ying; Yang, Zhenyun; Chen, Hanying; Haneline, Laura S.; Chan, Rebecca J.; Schwartz, Robert J.; Field, Loren J.; Atkinson, Simon J.; Shou, Weinian
    Dishevelled-associated activator of morphogenesis 1 (Daam1), a member of the formin protein family, plays an important role in regulating the actin cytoskeleton via mediation of linear actin assembly. Previous functional studies of Daam1 in lower species suggest its essential role in Drosophila trachea formation and Xenopus gastrulation. However, its in vivo physiological function in mammalian systems is largely unknown. We have generated Daam1-deficient mice via gene-trap technology and found that Daam1 is highly expressed in developing murine organs, including the heart. Daam1-deficient mice exhibit embryonic and neonatal lethality and suffer multiple cardiac defects, including ventricular noncompaction, double outlet right ventricles and ventricular septal defects. In vivo genetic rescue experiments further confirm that the lethality of Daam1-deficient mice results from the inherent cardiac abnormalities. In-depth analyses have revealed that Daam1 is important for regulating filamentous actin assembly and organization, and consequently for cytoskeletal function in cardiomyocytes, which contributes to proper heart morphogenesis. Daam1 is also found to be important for proper cytoskeletal architecture and functionalities in embryonic fibroblasts. Biochemical analyses indicate that Daam1 does not regulate cytoskeletal organization through RhoA, Rac1 or Cdc42. Our study highlights a crucial role for Daam1 in regulating the actin cytoskeleton and tissue morphogenesis.
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    Genetic disruption of the PI3K regulatory subunits, p85 alpha, p55 alpha, and p50 alpha partially normalizes gain-of-function PTPN11- induced hypersensitivity to GM-CSF in hematopoietic progenitors
    (Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, 2011-04-08) Goodwin, Charles B.; Yang, Zhenyun; Yin, Fuqin; Chan, Rebecca J.
    Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia (JMML) is a lethal myeloproliferative disorder (MPD) of children, characterized by hyperproliferation of myelomonocytic cells and hypersensitivity to Granulocyte-Monocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor (GM-CSF). JMML is frequently associated with gain-of-function mutations in PTPN11, which encodes the protein tyrosine phosphatase, Shp2, and which is known to positively regulate Ras signaling. The role of MAPK signaling in gain-of-function mutant Shp2-induced leukemogenesis is well established. In addition, phosphoAkt levels are elevated in the presence of gain-of-function Shp2 mutations, suggesting a role for Phosphatidyl-Inositol-3-Kinase (PI3K) signaling (Yang, et al, 2008). Class IA PI3K is a lipid kinase heterodimer composed of one of two regulatory subunits—p85 alpha or p85 beta—and one of three catalytic subunits—p110 alpha, p110 beta, or p110 delta. PI3K mediates proliferative and anti-apoptotic signals. We have found that there is increased interaction between the p85 alpha regulatory subunit and the p110 alpha catalytic subunit in gain-offunction mutant Shp2-expressing cells compared to WT Shp2-expressing cells. The p85 alpha regulatory subunit, along with its splice variants, p55 alpha and p50 alpha, is encoded by the gene Pik3r1. To investigate the hypothesis that p85 alpha-dependent PI3K signaling contributes to gain-of-function mutant Shp2-induced GM-CSF hypersensitivity, WT and Pik3r1-/- fetal liver-derived hematopoietic progenitor cells were transduced with WT Shp2 or gain-of-function mutant Shp2 E76K. Ablation of all the Pik3r1 isoforms resulted in a significant, but incomplete, correction of GM-CSF hypersensitivity in Shp2 E76K-expressing cells. Consistently, upon genetic disruption of Pik3r1, Akt phosphorylation was reduced in both WT Shp2- and Shp2 E76K-expressing cells compared to that seen in Pik3r1+/+ cells, but was not completely absent. Additionally, Erk activation was reduced in Pik3r1-/- cells expressing Shp2 E76K compared to that in Pik3r1+/+ cells, indicating that interruption of Shp2-mediated PI3K signaling affects the MAPK pathway as well, which likely contributes to the reduction in GM-CSF-stimulated proliferation in the Pik3r1-/- cells. Finally, treatment with the PI3K inhibitor, LY294002 resulted in complete abrogation of Akt phosphorylation in Pik3r1-/- cells transduced with Shp2 E76K, indicating that residual PI3K activity in the absence of Pik3r1 likely contributes to the incomplete correction of GM-CSF hypersensitivity and suggesting that although p85 alpha plays an important role in gain-of-function mutant Shp2-induced hyperactivation of PI3K signaling, additional p85 alpha-independent mechanisms contribute as well.
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    Notch ligand Delta-like 1 promotes in vivo vasculogenesis in human cord blood-derived endothelial colony forming cells
    (Elsevier, 2015-05) Kim, Hyojin; Huang, Lan; Critser, Paul J.; Yang, Zhenyun; Chan, Rebecca J.; Wang, Lin; Carlesso, Nadia; Voytik-Harbin, Sherry L.; Bernstein, Irwin D.; Yoder, Mervin C.; Department of Pediatrics, IU School of Medicine
    BACKGROUND AIMS: Human cord blood (CB) is enriched in circulating endothelial colony forming cells (ECFCs) that display high proliferative potential and in vivo vessel forming ability. Because Notch signaling is critical for embryonic blood vessel formation in utero, we hypothesized that Notch pathway activation may enhance cultured ECFC vasculogenic properties in vivo. METHODS: In vitro ECFC stimulation with an immobilized chimeric Notch ligand (Delta-like1(ext-IgG)) led to significant increases in the mRNA and protein levels of Notch regulated Hey2 and EphrinB2 that were blocked by treatment with γ-secretase inhibitor addition. However, Notch stimulated preconditioning in vitro failed to enhance ECFC vasculogenesis in vivo. In contrast, in vivo co-implantation of ECFCs with OP9-Delta-like 1 stromal cells that constitutively expressed the Notch ligand delta-like 1 resulted in enhanced Notch activated ECFC-derived increased vessel density and enlarged vessel area in vivo, an effect not induced by OP9 control stromal implantation. RESULTS: This Notch activation was associated with diminished apoptosis in the exposed ECFC. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that Notch pathway activation in ECFC in vivo via co-implanted stromal cells expressing delta-like 1 promotes vasculogenesis and augments blood vessel formation via diminishing apoptosis of the implanted ECFC.
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    Protein phosphatase 5 and the tumor suppressor p53 down-regulate each other's activities in mice
    (American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 2018-11-23) Wang, Jun; Shen, Tao; Zhu, Wuqiang; Dou, Longyu; Gu, Hao; Zhang, Lingling; Yang, Zhenyun; Chen, Hanying; Zhou, Qi; Sánchez, Edwin R.; Field, Loren J.; Mayo, Lindsey D.; Xie, Zhongwen; Xiao, Deyong; Lin, Xia; Shou, Weinian; Yong, Weidong; Pediatrics, School of Medicine
    Protein phosphatase 5 (PP5), a serine/threonine phosphatase, has a wide range of biological functions and exhibits elevated expression in tumor cells. We previously reported that pp5-deficient mice have altered ataxia-telangiectasia mutated (ATM)-mediated signaling and function. However, this regulation was likely indirect, as ATM is not a known PP5 substrate. In the current study, we found that pp5-deficient mice are hypersensitive to genotoxic stress. This hypersensitivity was associated with the marked up-regulation of the tumor suppressor tumor protein p53 and its downstream targets cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1A (p21), MDM2 proto-oncogene (MDM2), and phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) in pp5-deficient tissues and cells. These observations suggested that PP5 plays a role in regulating p53 stability and function. Experiments conducted with p53 +/- pp5 +/- or p53 +/- pp5 -/- mice revealed that complete loss of PP5 reduces tumorigenesis in the p53 +/- mice. Biochemical analyses further revealed that PP5 directly interacts with and dephosphorylates p53 at multiple serine/threonine residues, resulting in inhibition of p53-mediated transcriptional activity. Interestingly, PP5 expression was significantly up-regulated in p53-deficient cells, and further analysis of pp5 promoter activity revealed that p53 strongly represses PP5 transcription. Our results suggest a reciprocal regulatory interplay between PP5 and p53, providing an important feedback mechanism for the cellular response to genotoxic stress.
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    Protein-tyrosine Phosphatase Shp2 Positively Regulates Macrophage Oxidative Burst
    (2015-02) Li, Xing Jun; Goodwin, Charles B.; Nabinger, Sarah C.; Richine, Briana M.; Yang, Zhenyun; Hanenberg, Helmut; Ohnishi, Hiroshi; Matozaki, Takashi; Feng, Gen-Sheng; Chan, Rebecca J.; Department of Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine
    Macrophages are vital to innate immunity and express pattern recognition receptors and integrins for the rapid detection of invading pathogens. Stimulation of Dectin-1 and complement receptor 3 (CR3) activates Erk- and Akt-dependent production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Shp2, a protein-tyrosine phosphatase encoded by Ptpn11, promotes activation of Ras-Erk and PI3K-Akt and is crucial for hematopoietic cell function; however, no studies have examined Shp2 function in particulate-stimulated ROS production. Maximal Dectin-1-stimulated ROS production corresponded kinetically to maximal Shp2 and Erk phosphorylation. Bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMMs) from mice with a conditionally deleted allele of Ptpn11 (Shp2flox/flox;Mx1Cre+) produced significantly lower ROS levels compared with control BMMs. Although YFP-tagged phosphatase dead Shp2-C463A was strongly recruited to the early phagosome, its expression inhibited Dectin-1- and CR3-stimulated phospho-Erk and ROS levels, placing Shp2 phosphatase function and Erk activation upstream of ROS production. Further, BMMs expressing gain of function Shp2-D61Y or Shp2-E76K and peritoneal exudate macrophages from Shp2D61Y/+;Mx1Cre+ mice produced significantly elevated levels of Dectin-1- and CR3-stimulated ROS, which was reduced by pharmacologic inhibition of Erk. SIRPα (signal regulatory protein α) is a myeloid inhibitory immunoreceptor that requires tyrosine phosphorylation to exert its inhibitory effect. YFP-Shp2C463A-expressing cells have elevated phospho-SIRPα levels and an increased Shp2-SIRPα interaction compared with YFP-WT Shp2-expressing cells. Collectively, these findings indicate that Shp2 phosphatase function positively regulates Dectin-1- and CR3-stimulated ROS production in macrophages by dephosphorylating and thus mitigating the inhibitory function of SIRPα and by promoting Erk activation.
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    Role of p85α in neutrophil extra- and intracellular reactive oxygen species generation
    (Impact Journals, 2016-04-26) Li, Xing Jun; Deng, Lisa; Brandt, Stephanie L.; Goodwin, Charles B.; Ma, Peilin; Yang, Zhenyun; Mali, Raghu S.; Liu, Ziyue; Kapur, Reuben; Serezani, C. Henrique; Chan, Rebecca J.; Department of Pediatrics, IU School of Medicine
    Drug resistance is a growing problem that necessitates new strategies to combat pathogens. Neutrophil phagocytosis and production of intracellular ROS, in particular, has been shown to cooperate with antibiotics in the killing of microbes. This study tested the hypothesis that p85α, the regulatory subunit of PI3K, regulates production of intracellular ROS. Genetic knockout of p85α in mice caused decreased expression of catalytic subunits p110α, p110β, and p110δ, but did not change expression levels of the NADPH oxidase complex subunits p67phox, p47phox, and p40phox. When p85α, p55α, and p50α (all encoded by Pik3r1) were deleted, there was an increase in intracellular ROS with no change in phagocytosis in response to both Fcγ receptor and complement receptor stimulation. Furthermore, the increased intracellular ROS correlated with significantly improved neutrophil killing of both methicillin-susceptible and methicillin-resistant S. aureus. Our findings suggest inhibition of p85α as novel approach to improving the clearance of resistant pathogens.