PSGL-1-mediated adhesion of human hematopoietic progenitors to P-selectin results in suppression of hematopoiesis. (25/936)

Cellular interactions are critical for the regulation of hematopoiesis. The sialomucin PSGL-1/CD162 mediates the attachment of mature leukocytes to P-selectin. We now show that PSGL-1 also functions as the sole receptor for P-selectin on primitive human CD34+ hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPC). More importantly, ligation of PSGL-1 by immobilized or soluble ligand or anti-PSGL-1 antibody results in a profound suppression of HPC proliferation stimulated by potent combinations of early acting hematopoietic growth factors. These data demonstrate an unanticipated but extremely marked growth-inhibitory effect of P-selectin on hematopoiesis and provide direct evidence that PSGL-1, in addition to its well-documented role as an adhesion molecule on mature leukocytes, is a potent negative regulator of human hematopoietic progenitors.  (+info)

Characterization of the active site of ADP-ribosyl cyclase. (26/936)

ADP-ribosyl cyclase synthesizes two Ca(2+) messengers by cyclizing NAD to produce cyclic ADP-ribose and exchanging nicotinic acid with the nicotinamide group of NADP to produce nicotinic acid adenine dinucleotide phosphate. Recombinant Aplysia cyclase was expressed in yeast and co-crystallized with a substrate, nicotinamide. x-ray crystallography showed that the nicotinamide was bound in a pocket formed in part by a conserved segment and was near the central cleft of the cyclase. Glu(98), Asn(107) and Trp(140) were within 3.5 A of the bound nicotinamide and appeared to coordinate it. Substituting Glu(98) with either Gln, Gly, Leu, or Asn reduced the cyclase activity by 16-222-fold, depending on the substitution. The mutant N107G exhibited only a 2-fold decrease in activity, while the activity of W140G was essentially eliminated. The base exchange activity of all mutants followed a similar pattern of reduction, suggesting that both reactions occur at the same active site. In addition to NAD, the wild-type cyclase also cyclizes nicotinamide guanine dinucleotide to cyclic GDP-ribose. All mutant enzymes had at least half of the GDP-ribosyl cyclase activity of the wild type, some even 2-3-fold higher, indicating that the three coordinating amino acids are responsible for positioning of the substrate but not absolutely critical for catalysis. To search for the catalytic residues, other amino acids in the binding pocket were mutagenized. E179G was totally devoid of GDP-ribosyl cyclase activity, and both its ADP-ribosyl cyclase and the base exchange activities were reduced by 10,000- and 18,000-fold, respectively. Substituting Glu(179) with either Asn, Leu, Asp, or Gln produced similar inactive enzymes, and so was the conversion of Trp(77) to Gly. However, both E179G and the double mutant E179G/W77G retained NAD-binding ability as shown by photoaffinity labeling with [(32)P]8-azido-NAD. These results indicate that both Glu(179) and Trp(77) are crucial for catalysis and that Glu(179) may indeed be the catalytic residue.  (+info)

Correlation between IL-3 receptor expression and growth potential of human CD34+ hematopoietic cells from different tissues. (27/936)

CD123 (alpha-subunit of IL-3 receptor) expression on primitive and committed human hematopoietic cells was studied by multicolor sorting and single-cell culture. The sources of cells included fetal liver (FLV), fetal bone marrow, umbilical cord blood, adult bone marrow and mobilized peripheral blood. Three subsets of CD34+ cells were defined by the levels of surface CD123: CD123negative, CD123low, and CD123bright. Coexpression of lineage markers showed that a majority of CD34+CD123bright cells were myeloid and B-lymphoid progenitors, while erythroid progenitors were mainly in the CD34+CD123negative subset. The CD34+CD123low subset contained a heterogeneous distribution of early and committed progenitor cells. Single CD34+ cells from the CD123 subsets were cultured in a cytokine cocktail of stem cell factor, interleukin 3 (IL-3), IL-6, GM-CSF, erythropoietin, insulin-like growth factor-1, and basic fibroblast growth factor. After 14 days of incubation, a higher cloning efficiency (CE) was observed in the CD34+CD123negative and CD34+CD123low fractions (37+/-23% and 44+/-23%, respectively) than in the CD34+CD123bright fraction (15+/-21%). Using previously published criteria that colonies containing dispersed, translucent cells (dispersed growth pattern, DGP) were derived from primitive cells and that colonies composed solely of clusters were from committed cells, early precursors were distributed evenly in the CD34+CD123negative and CD34+CD123low subsets. When CD38 and CD90 (Thy-1) were used for further characterization of CD34+ cells from FLV, CE increased from 37+/-23% in CD123negative to 70+/-19% in CD123negativeCD38- and from 44+/-23% in CD123low to 66+/-19% in CD123lowCD38-. No significant increase in CE or DGP progenitors was observed when CD34+ cells were sorted by CD90 and CD123. We concluded that: A) high levels of CD123 were expressed on B-lymphoid and myeloid progenitors; B) early erythroid progenitors had little or no surface CD123, and C) primitive hematopoietic cells are characterized by CD123negative/low expression.  (+info)

Sympathetic potentiation of cyclic ADP-ribose formation in rat cardiac myocytes. (28/936)

We examined the role of cyclic ADP-ribose (cADP-ribose) as a second messenger downstream of adrenergic receptors in the heart after excitation of sympathetic neurons. To address this question, ADP-ribosyl cyclase activity was measured as the rate of [(3)H]cADP-ribose formation from [(3)H]NAD(+) in a crude membrane fraction of rat ventricular myocytes. Isoproterenol at 1 microM increased ADP-ribosyl cyclase activity by 1.7-fold in ventricular muscle; this increase was inhibited by propranolol. The stimulatory effect on the cyclase was mimicked by 10 nM GTP and 10 microM guanosine 5'-3-O-(thio)triphosphate, whereas 10 microM GTP inhibited the cyclase. Cholera toxin blocked the activation of the cyclase by isoproterenol and GTP. The above effects of isoproterenol and GTP in ventricular membranes were confirmed by cyclic GDP-ribose formation fluorometrically. These results demonstrate the existence of a signal pathway from beta-adrenergic receptors to membrane-bound ADP-ribosyl cyclase via G protein in the ventricular muscle cells and suggest that increased cADP-ribose synthesis is involved in up-regulation of cardiac function by sympathetic stimulation.  (+info)

CD38 triggers cytotoxic responses in activated human natural killer cells. (29/936)

Receptors used by natural killer (NK) cells to mediate natural cytotoxicity are poorly defined, although it is now clear that a number of adhesion molecules can serve this function. CD38 transduces signals on T- and B-cell lines, and we asked whether it could trigger lytic and secretory responses in human NK cells. By using an anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody in reverse antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity experiments, it is shown that CD38 engagement triggers cytotoxic responses by activated NK cells, but not by cytotoxic T lymphocytes or fresh NK cells. Cross-linking with anti-CD38 F(ab')(2) caused activated NK cells to release granzymes and cytokines, but did not trigger an increase in intracellular Ca(2+). Fresh NK cells acquired CD38-dependent lytic function during activation with interleukin-2 (IL-2), and inhibitor studies suggested that IL-2 stimulated the de novo expression of proteins that act between CD38 and the lytic machinery in NK cells. The induction of proteins that link commonly expressed adhesion molecules to effector mechanisms could provide a paradigm for pathogen recognition by the innate immune system.  (+info)

Autoantibodies to CD38 (ADP-ribosyl cyclase/cyclic ADP-ribose hydrolase) in Caucasian patients with diabetes: effects on insulin release from human islets. (30/936)

The type II transmembrane glycoprotein CD38 (ADP-ribosyl cyclase/cyclic ADP-ribose hydrolase) has been proposed as a mediator of insulin secretion from pancreatic beta-cells and as a candidate for autoimmune reactions in type 2 diabetes. We evaluated the presence of anti-CD38 autoantibodies in Caucasian patients with diabetes and investigated the effect of these antibodies on insulin secretion from isolated human pancreatic islets. The presence of anti-CD38 autoantibodies was evaluated by using Western blot analysis in 236 patients with type 2 diabetes (mean age 63 years), in 160 patients with type 1 diabetes (mean age 38 years), and in 159 nondiabetic subjects. Anti-CD38 autoantibody titers at least 3 SD above the mean value of the control group were found in 9.7% of type 2 diabetic patients and in 13.1% of type 1 diabetic patients (chi2 = 15.9, P = 0.0003 vs. 1.3% of control subjects). No significant differences were observed in sex distribution, current age, age at diabetes onset, BMI, fasting serum glucose, or glycemic control between anti-CD38+ and anti-CD38-diabetic patients in either the type 2 or type 1 diabetic groups. The effect of 23 anti-CD38- and 13 anti-CD38+ sera on insulin secretion at low (3.3 mmol/l) or high (16.7 mmol/l) medium glucose concentrations was evaluated in isolated human pancreatic islets. Data are medians (interquartile range). The anti-CD38+ sera potentiated insulin release both at low [95 (64) vs. 23 (12) microU/ml of control incubations, respectively, P < 0.0001] and high [271 (336) vs. a control of 55 (37) microU/ml, respectively, P = 0.001] medium glucose concentrations, whereas the anti-CD38- sera did not. Furthermore, in the pooled data from all 36 tested sera, insulin levels in the islet incubation medium were directly related to the anti-CD38 antibody titer. We conclude that autoantibodies to CD38 are associated with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in Caucasian subjects. These autoantibodies exert a stimulatory effect on insulin secretion by cultured human islets. The role of this autoimmune reaction in the pathogenesis of diabetes remains to be elucidated.  (+info)

Effects of the human CD38 glycoprotein on the early stages of the HIV-1 replication cycle. (31/936)

CD38 displays lateral association with the HIV-1 receptor CD4. This association is potentiated by the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein gp120. The aim of this work was to evaluate the CD38 role in T cell susceptibility to HIV-1 infection. Using laboratory X4 HIV-1 strains and X4 and X4/R5 primary isolates, we found that CD38 expression was negatively correlated to cell susceptibility to infection, evaluated as percentage of infected cells, release of HIV p24 in the supernatants, and cytopathogenicity. This correlation was at first suggested by results obtained in a panel of human CD4(+) T cell lines expressing different CD38 levels (MT-4, MT-2, C8166, CEMx174, Supt-1, and H9) and then demonstrated using CD38 transfectants of MT-4 cells (the line with the lowest CD38 expression). To address whether CD38 affected viral binding, we used mouse T cells that are non-permissive for productive infection. Gene transfection in mouse SR.D10.CD4(-).F1 T cells produced four lines expressing human CD4 and/or CD38. Ability of CD4(+)CD38(+)cells to bind HIV-1 or purified recombinant gp120 was significantly lower than that of CD4(+)CD38(-) cells. These data suggest that CD38 expression inhibits lymphocyte susceptibility to HIV infection, probably by inhibiting gp120/CD4-dependent viral binding to target cells.-Savarino, A., Bottarel, F., Calosso, L., Feito, M. J., Bensi, T., Bragardo, M., Rojo, J. M., Pugliese, A., Abbate, I., Capobianchi, M. R., Dianzani, F., Malavasi, F., and Dianzani, U. Effects of the human CD38 glycoprotein on the early stages of theHIV-1 replication cycle.  (+info)

Molecular cloning and functional expression of bovine spleen ecto-NAD+ glycohydrolase: structural identity with human CD38. (32/936)

Bovine spleen ecto-NAD(+) glycohydrolase, an archetypal member of the mammalian membrane-associated NAD(P)(+) glycohydrolase enzyme family (EC 3.2.2.6), displays catalytic features similar to those of CD38, i.e. a protein originally described as a lymphocyte differentiation marker involved in the metabolism of cyclic ADP-ribose and signal transduction. Using amino acid sequence information obtained from NAD(+) glycohydrolase and from a truncated and hydrosoluble form of the enzyme (hNADase) purified to homogeneity, a full-length cDNA clone was obtained. The deduced sequence indicates a protein of 278 residues with a molecular mass of 31.5 kDa. It predicts that bovine ecto-NAD(+) glycohydrolase is a type II transmembrane protein, with a very short intracellular tail. The bulk of the enzyme, which is extracellular and contains two potential N-glycosylation sites, yields the fully catalytically active hNADase which is truncated by 71 residues. Transfection of HeLa cells with the full-length cDNA resulted in the expression of the expected NAD(+) glycohydrolase, ADP-ribosyl cyclase and GDP-ribosyl cyclase activities at the surface of the cells. The bovine enzyme, which is the first 'classical' NAD(P)(+) glycohydrolase whose structure has been established, presents a particularly high sequence identity with CD38, including the presence of 10 strictly conserved cysteine residues in the ectodomain and putative catalytic residues. However, it lacks two otherwise conserved cysteine residues near its C-terminus. Thus hNADase, the truncated protein of 207 amino acids, represents the smallest functional domain endowed with all the catalytic activities of CD38/NAD(+) glycohydrolases so far identified. Altogether, our data strongly suggest that the cloned bovine spleen ecto-NAD(+) glycohydrolase is the bovine equivalent of CD38.  (+info)