The endolysosomal system sustains the reabsorptive activity of specialized epithelial cells. Lysosomal storage diseases such as nephropathic cystinosis cause a major dysfunction of epithelial cells lining the kidney tubule, resulting in massive losses of vital solutes in the urine. The mechanisms linking lysosomal defects and epithelial dysfunction remain unknown, preventing the development of disease-modifying therapies. Here we demonstrate, by combining genetic and pharmacologic approaches, that lysosomal dysfunction in cystinosis results in defective autophagy-mediated clearance of damaged mitochondria. This promotes the generation of oxidative stress that stimulates Gα12/Src-mediated phosphorylation of tight junction ZO-1 and triggers a signaling cascade involving ZO-1-associated Y-box factor ZONAB, which leads to cell proliferation and transport defects. Correction of the primary lysosomal defect, neutralization of mitochondrial oxidative stress, and blockage of tight junction-associated ZONAB signaling rescue the epithelial function. We suggest a link between defective lysosome-autophagy degradation pathways and epithelial dysfunction, providing new therapeutic perspectives for lysosomal storage disorders.
Deregulation of mitochondrial network in terminally differentiated cells contributes to a broad spectrum of disorders. Methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) is one of the most common inherited metabolic disorders, due to deficiency of the mitochondrial methylmalonyl-coenzyme A mutase (MMUT). How MMUT deficiency triggers cell damage remains unknown, preventing the development of disease-modifying therapies. Here we combine genetic and pharmacological approaches to demonstrate that MMUT deficiency induces metabolic and mitochondrial alterations that are exacerbated by anomalies in PINK1/Parkin-mediated mitophagy, causing the accumulation of dysfunctional mitochondria that trigger epithelial stress and ultimately cell damage. Using drug-disease network perturbation modelling, we predict targetable pathways, whose modulation repairs mitochondrial dysfunctions in patient-derived cells and alleviate phenotype changes in mmut-deficient zebrafish. These results suggest a link between primary MMUT deficiency, diseased mitochondria, mitophagy dysfunction and epithelial stress, and provide potential therapeutic perspectives for MMA. 1 1234567890():,;Mitochondrial dysfunction drives stress in MMA cells. As MMUT deficiency alters mitochondrial homeostasis, we next assessed potential consequences on mitochondrial function. Consistent with increased numbers of morphologically aberrant mitochondria, the mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψ m ) was drastically reduced in MMA cells (Fig. 2d), as evidenced by live cell imaging analyses of the mitochondrial network with cellpermeant, fluorescent dye tetramethylrhodamine methyl ester (TMRM, which readily accumulates within functional mitochondria) and MitoTracker (a fluorescent probe that localizes to mitochondria). These changes were paralleled by a major mitochondrial oxidative stress ( Fig. 2e), as testified by the elevated production of mitochondria (mt)-derived ROS (MitoSOX, a livecell-permeant indicator of mitochondrial ROS) and augmented antioxidant response (SOD1; Fig. 2g). Treatment with the mitochondrial complex I inhibitor Rotenone (5 μM for 24 h), which ARTICLE NATURE COMMUNICATIONS | https://doi.
Mutations in OCRL encoding the inositol polyphosphate 5-phosphatase OCRL (Lowe oculocerebrorenal syndrome protein) disrupt phosphoinositide homeostasis along the endolysosomal pathway causing dysfunction of the cells lining the kidney proximal tubule (PT). The dysfunction can be isolated (Dent disease 2) or associated with congenital cataracts, central hypotonia and intellectual disability (Lowe syndrome). The mechanistic understanding of Dent disease 2/Lowe syndrome remains scarce due to limitations of animal models of OCRL deficiency. Here, we investigate the role of OCRL in Dent disease 2/Lowe syndrome by using Ocrl Y/− mice, where the lethal deletion of the paralogue Inpp5b was rescued by human INPP5B insertion, and primary culture of proximal tubule cells (mPTCs) derived from Ocrl Y/− kidneys. The Ocrl Y/− mice show muscular defects with dysfunctional locomotricity and present massive urinary losses of low-molecular-weight proteins and albumin, caused by selective impairment of receptor-mediated endocytosis in PT cells. The latter was due to accumulation of phosphatidylinositol 4,5–bisphosphate PI(4,5)P 2 in endolysosomes, driving local hyper-polymerization of F-actin and impairing trafficking of the endocytic LRP2 receptor, as evidenced in Ocrl Y/− mPTCs. The OCRL deficiency was also associated with a disruption of the lysosomal dynamic and proteolytic activity. Partial convergence of disease-pathways and renal phenotypes observed in Ocrl Y/− and Clcn5 Y/− mice suggest shared mechanisms in Dent diseases 1 and 2. These studies substantiate the first mouse model of Lowe syndrome and give insights into the role of OCRL in cellular trafficking of multiligand receptors. These insights open new avenues for therapeutic interventions in Lowe syndrome and Dent disease.
Wilson disease (WD) is an autosomal recessive disorder that is caused by the toxic accumulation of copper (Cu) in the liver. The ATP7B gene, which is mutated in WD, encodes a multitransmembrane domain adenosine triphosphatase that traffics from the trans‐Golgi network to the canalicular area of hepatocytes, where it facilitates excretion of excess Cu into the bile. Several ATP7B mutations, including H1069Q and R778L that are two of the most frequent variants, result in protein products, which, although still functional, remain in the endoplasmic reticulum. Thus, they fail to reach Cu excretion sites, resulting in the toxic buildup of Cu in the liver of WD patients. Therefore, correcting the location of these mutants by leading them to the appropriate functional sites in the cell should restore Cu excretion and would be beneficial to help large cohorts of WD patients. However, molecular targets for correction of endoplasmic reticulum‐retained ATP7B mutants remain elusive. Here, we show that expression of the most frequent ATP7B mutant, H1069Q, activates p38 and c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase signaling pathways, which favor the rapid degradation of the mutant. Suppression of these pathways with RNA interference or specific chemical inhibitors results in the substantial rescue of ATP7BH1069Q (as well as that of several other WD‐causing mutants) from the endoplasmic reticulum to the trans‐Golgi network compartment, in recovery of its Cu‐dependent trafficking, and in reduction of intracellular Cu levels. Conclusion: Our findings indicate p38 and c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase as intriguing targets for correction of WD‐causing mutants and, hence, as potential candidates, which could be evaluated for the development of novel therapeutic strategies to combat WD. (Hepatology 2016;63:1842‐1859)
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