VEGF regulates haematopoietic stem cell survival by an internal autocrine loop mechanism

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a principal regulator of blood vessel formation and haematopoiesis, but the mechanisms by which VEGF differentially regulates these processes have been elusive. Here we describe a regulatory loop by which VEGF controls survival of haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). We observed a reduction in survival, colony formation and in vivo repopulation rates of HSCs after ablation of the VEGF gene in mice. Intracellularly acting small-molecule inhibitors of VEGF receptor (VEGFR) tyrosine kinase dramatically reduced colony formation of HSCs, thus mimicking deletion of the VEGF gene. However, blocking VEGF by administering a soluble VEGFR-1, which acts extracellularly, induced only minor effects. These findings support the involvement in HSC survival of a VEGF-dependent internal autocrine loop mechanism (that is, the mechanism is resistant to inhibitors that fail to penetrate the intracellular compartment). Not only ligands selective for VEGF and VEGFR-2 but also VEGFR-1 agonists rescued survival and repopulation of VEGF-deficient HSCs, revealing a function for VEGFR-1 signalling during haematopoiesis.     

Cdc25b phosphatase is required for resumption of meiosis during oocyte maturation

In a wide variety of animal species, oocyte maturation is arrested temporarily at prophase of meiosis I (ref. 1). Resumption of meiosis requires activation of cyclin-dependent kinase-1 (CDK1, p34cdc2), one component of maturation-promoting factor (MPF). The dual specificity phosphatases Cdc25a, Cdc25b and Cdc25c are activators of cyclin-dependent kinases; consequently, they are postulated to regulate cell-cycle progression in meiosis and mitosis as well as the DNA-damage response. We generated Cdc25b-deficient (Cdc25b-/-) mice and found that they are viable. As compared with wildtype cells, fibroblasts from Cdc25b-/- mice grew vigorously in culture and arrested normally in response to DNA damage. Female Cdc25b-/- mice were sterile, and Cdc25b-/- oocytes remained arrested at prophase with low MPF activity. Microinjection of wildtype Cdc25b mRNA into Cdc25b-/- oocytes caused activation of MPF and resumption of meiosis. Thus, Cdc25b-/- female mice are sterile because of permanent meiotic arrest resulting from the inability to activate MPF. Cdc25b is therefore essential for meiotic resumption in female mice. Mice lacking Cdc25b provide the first genetic model for studying the mechanisms regulating prophase arrest in vertebrates.     

The superoxide-generating NADPH oxidase: structural aspects and activation mechanism

Flavocytochrome b ₅₅₈ is the catalytic core of the respiratory-burst oxidase, an enzyme complex that catalyzes the NADPH-dependent reduction of O₂ into the superoxide anion O₂ ^- in phagocytic cells. Flavocytochrome b ₅₅₈ is anchored in the plasma membrane. It is a heterodimer that consists of a large glycoprotein gp91phox (phox for phagocyte oxidase) (β subunit) and a small protein p22phox (α subunit). The other components of the respiratory-burst oxidase are water-soluble proteins of cytosolic origin, namely p67phox, p47phox, p40phox and Rac. Upon cell stimulation, they assemble with the membrane-bound flavocytochrome b ₅₅₈ which becomes activated and generates O₂ ^-. A defect in any of the genes encoding gp91phox, p22phox, p67phox or p47phox results in chronic granulomatous disease, a genetic disorder characterized by severe and recurrent infections, illustrating the role of O₂ ^- and the derived metabolites H₂O₂ and HOCl in host defense against invading microorganisms. The electron carriers, FAD and hemes b, and the binding site for NADPH are confined to the gp91phox subunit of flavocytochrome b ₅₅₈ . The p22phox subunit serves as a docking site for the cytosolic phox proteins. This review provides an overview of current knowledge on the structural organization of the O₂ ^--generating flavocytochrome b ₅₅₈ , its kinetics, its mechanism of activation and the regulation of its biosynthesis. Homologues of gp91phox, called Nox and Duox, are present in a large variety of non-phagocytic cells. They exhibit modest O₂ ^--generating oxidase activity, and some act as proton channels. Their role in various aspects of signal transduction is currently under investigation and is briefly discussed. Received 28 May 2002; received after revision 20 June 2002; accepted 24 June 2002     

Immunotherapy against antigenic tumors: a game with a lot of players

Our understanding of how immune responses are generated and regulated drives the design of possible immunotherapies for cancer patients. For that reason, we first describe briefly the actual immunological theories and their common perspectives about cancer vaccine development. Second, we describe cancer vaccines that are able to induce tumor-specific immune responses in cancer patients. However, these responses are not always followed by tumor rejection. At the end of the review, we discuss two possible reasons that might explain this dichotomy of cancer immunology. First, the immune response generated, although detectable, may not be quantitatively sufficient to reject the tumor. Second, the tumor microenvironment may modulate tumor cell susceptibility to the systemic immune response induced by the immunization. Finally, we discuss what, in our opinion, might be the best way to improve cancer vaccine strategies and how the relationship between the tumor and its surroundings might be studied in more details. Received 21 June 2001; received after revision 15 August 2001; accepted 15 August 2001     

Cellular and molecular aspects of drugs of the future: meropenem

Meropenem, first synthesized in the late eighties, has become one of the most important beta-lactam antibiotics of the carbapenem subclass used for the treatment of a variety of life-threatening infections. Due to its unique chemical structure, meropenem is not inactivated by the kidney dehydropeptidase I and the majority of microbial beta-lactamases. Its antimicrobial activity is based on its high affinity for the majority of cell wall-synthesizing enzymes, the so-called penicillin-binding proteins, of Gram-positive and -negative bacteria. However, bacteria have evolved several approaches to resist meropenem: (i) by reducing the affinity of the penicillin-binding proteins for the antibiotics, (ii) by decreasing the permeability of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, (iii) by using efflux pumps, and (iv) by activating zinc-dependent carbapenemases. Meropenem has a low toxicity profile and, in contrast to imipenem, no central nervous system toxicity.     

The mutator phenotype theory can explain the complex morphology and behaviour of cancers

Almost all solid malignancies exhibit complex cytological and architectural abnormalities, which vary from cell to cell and area to area within the same tumour, and between tumours of the same type. The degrees of these abnormalities do not correlate perfectly with the biological behaviour (especially growth rate and metastatic potential) among the various tumour types. These features of tumours have long been considered to invalidate simple mutational or 'abnormal gene expression' (epigenetic) theories of carcinogenesis. The 'mutator phenotype/clonal selection' hypothesis is based on the now well-established phenomenon of genetic instability of cancer cells, and proposes that this instability is an essential requirement for the development of tumours, and not an irrelevant side-effect of some other process. This paper argues that this hypothesis can provide a satisfactory explanation for the diverse histological and biological features of solid malignancies. Further, because virtually all solid tumours are histologically abnormal, genetic instability is likely to be essential for the malignant process. The concepts of mutator phenotype and clonal selection are therefore supported. Received 8 April 2002; accepted 25 April 2002     

Mitochondria as the conductor of metabolic signals for insulin exocytosis in pancreatic beta-cells

Mitochondrial metabolism is crucial for the coupling of glucose recognition to the exocytosis of the insulin granules. This is illustrated by in vitro and in vivo observations discussed in the present review. Mitochondria generate ATP, which is the main coupling messenger in insulin secretion. However, the subsequent Ca2+ signal in the cytosol is necessary but not sufficient for full development of sustained insulin secretion. Hence, mitochondria generate ATP and other coupling factors serving as fuel sensors for the control of the exocytotic process. Numerous studies have sought to identify the factors that mediate the amplifying pathway over the Ca2+ signal in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. Predominantly, these factors are nucleotides (GTP, ATP, cAMP, NADPH), although metabolites have also been proposed, such as long-chain acyl-CoA derivatives and glutamate. Hence, the classical neurotransmitter glutamate receives a novel role, that of an intracellular messenger or co-factor in insulin secretion. This scenario further highlights the importance of glutamate dehydrogenase, a mitochondrial enzyme well recognized to play a key role in the control of insulin secretion. Therefore, additional putative messengers of mitochondrial origin are likely to participate in insulin secretion.