Interaction of pathogens with cells of the immune system results in activation of inflammatory gene expression. This response, while vital for immune defence, is frequently deleterious to the host due to the exaggerated production of inflammatory proteins. The scope of inflammatory responses reflects the activation state of signalling proteins upstream of inflammatory genes as well as signal-induced assembly of nuclear chromatin complexes that support mRNA expression1–4. Recognition of post-translationally modified histones by nuclear proteins that initiate mRNA transcription and support mRNA elongation is a critical step in the regulation of gene expression5–10. Here we present a novel pharmacological approach that targets inflammatory gene expression by interfering with the recognition of acetylated histones by the Bromodomain and Extra Terminal domain (BET) family of proteins. We describe a synthetic compound (I-BET) that by “mimicking” acetylated histones disrupts chromatin complexes responsible for the expression of key inflammatory genes in activated macrophages and confers protection against LPS-induced endotoxic shock and bacteria-induced sepsis. Our findings suggest that synthetic compounds specifically targeting proteins that recognize post-translationally modified histones can serve as a new generation of immunomodulatory drugs.

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammalian central nervous system, where it exerts its effects through ionotropic (GABA(A/C)) receptors to produce fast synaptic inhibition and metabotropic (GABA(B)) receptors to produce slow, prolonged inhibitory signals. The gene encoding a GABA(B) receptor (GABA(B)R1) has been cloned; however, when expressed in mammalian cells this receptor is retained as an immature glycoprotein on intracellular membranes and exhibits low affinity for agonists compared with the endogenous receptor on brain membranes. Here we report the cloning of a complementary DNA encoding a new subtype of the GABAB receptor (GABA(B)R2), which we identified by mining expressed-sequence-tag databases. Yeast two-hybrid screening showed that this new GABA(B)R2-receptor subtype forms heterodimers with GABA(B)R1 through an interaction at their intracellular carboxy-terminal tails. Upon expression with GABA(B)R2 in HEK293T cells, GABA(B)R1 is terminally glycosylated and expressed at the cell surface. Co-expression of the two receptors produces a fully functional GABA(B) receptor at the cell surface; this receptor binds GABA with a high affinity equivalent to that of the endogenous brain receptor. These results indicate that, in vivo, functional brain GABA(B) receptors may be heterodimers composed of GABA(B)R1 and GABA(B)R2.

Epigenetic mechanisms of gene regulation have a profound role in normal development and disease processes. An integral part of this mechanism occurs through lysine acetylation of histone tails which are recognized by bromodomains. While the biological and structural characterization of many bromodomain containing proteins has advanced considerably, the therapeutic tractability of this protein family is only now becoming understood. This paper describes the discovery and molecular characterization of potent (nM) small molecule inhibitors that disrupt the function of the BET family of bromodomains (Brd2, Brd3, and Brd4). By using a combination of phenotypic screening, chemoproteomics, and biophysical studies, we have discovered that the protein-protein interactions between bromodomains and acetylated histones can be antagonized by selective small molecules that bind at the acetylated lysine recognition pocket. X-ray crystal structures of compounds bound into bromodomains of Brd2 and Brd4 elucidate the molecular interactions of binding and explain the precisely defined stereochemistry required for activity.

Chromatographically homogeneous egg lecithin, as determined by TLC on Silica Gel G, has been isolated from crude egg phosphatides by column chromatography on alumina through modification of existing, lengthy methods. The modified method involved application of crude egg phosphatides to a column of alumina in the proportion of 1 g phosphatide/25 g alumina, and elution of the lecithin fraction with the 2‐component solvent system chloroform:methanol, 9:1 by vol. This method of purification separated lecithin from other choline and non‐choline components of crude phosphatides, avoided overloading of the alumina column, and made unnecessary the need for a second chromatographic fractionation of partially purified lecithin on silicic acid, which is needed in existing methods of purification of lecithin.The use of fresh yolks permitted easier removal of pigment from the final product than was possible with commercially dried yolks.Phosphatides extracted from dried yolks were much more highly colored than were the phosphatides extracted from fresh yolks and the color presisted through chromatography on alumina.The fatty acid/phosphorus molar ratio of the purified lecithin was 2.00, which is the theoretical FA/P molar ratio of phosphatidylcholine; other materials with this ratio were not present.

I.

A number of DNA viruses carry apoptosis-inhibiting genes which enable the virus to escape from the host response. The adenovirus E1B 19K protein can inhibit apoptosis induced by E1A, tumour-necrosis factor-alpha, FAS antigen and nerve growth factor deprivation. The molecular basis of this inhibition remains poorly understood, but the fact that protection is seen in the absence of other viral proteins suggests that E1B 19K targets cellular proteins. We report here the identification of three cellular proteins that bind E1B 19K. One of these is a new member of the bcl-2 family, which we have called bak (for bcl-2 homologous antagonist/killer). This protein, which is expressed in a wide variety of cell types, binds to E1B 19K and to the Bcl-2 homologue Bcl-XL (ref. 17) in yeast. In addition, overexpression of bak in sympathetic neurons deprived of nerve growth factor accelerates apoptosis and blocks the protective effect of co-injected E1B 19K.

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␥-Aminobutyric acid type B (GABAB) receptors mediate the metabotropic actions of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA. These seven-transmembrane receptors are known to signal primarily through activation of G proteins to modulate the action of ion channels or second messengers. The functional GABAB receptor is made up of a heterodimer consisting of two subunits, GABAB-R1 and GABA B-R2, which interact via coiled-coil domains in their C-terminal tails. By using a yeast two-hybrid approach, we have identified direct interactions between the C-terminal tails of GABAB-R1 and GABAB-R2 with two related transcription factors, CREB2 (ATF4) and ATFx. In primary neuronal cultures as well in recombinant Chinese hamster ovary cells expressing GABAB receptors, CREB2 is localized within the cytoplasm as well as the nucleus. Activation of the GABAB receptor by the specific agonist baclofen leads to a marked translocation and accumulation of CREB2 from the cytoplasm into the nucleus. We demonstrate that receptor stimulation results in activation of transcription from a CREB2 responsive reporter gene. Such a signaling mechanism is unique among Family C G protein-coupled receptors and, in the case of the GABAB receptor and CREB2, may play a role in long-term changes in the nervous system. G ABA (␥-aminobutyric acid) is the major inhibitory neurotransmitter activating both ionotrophic GABA A and GABA C receptors as well as metabotropic GABA B receptors (1). GABA B receptors were originally identified pharmacologically (2) and couple through G proteins to Ca 2ϩ or K ϩ channels. Despite being recognized many years ago, the molecular nature of the GABA B receptor has been elucidated only recently (3-8). The initial GABA B ''receptor,'' GABA B -R1, was expression cloned by using a high-affinity antagonist and showed homology to Family C G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), such as metabotropic glutamate receptors, with a characteristically large extracellular N-terminal domain as well as a seven-transmembrane topology (3). However, when expressed recombinantly, GABA B -R1 failed to reproduce the expected agonist affinities (3, 5) and was not expressed at the cell surface (5, 9), suggesting that a component was lacking from GABA B -R1 for reconstitution of the functional receptor. Subsequent studies confirmed that a second distinct but related GPCR, GABA B -R2, heterodimerizes with GABA B -R1 to create the GABA B -receptor (4-8). Yeast two-hybrid (YTH) studies showed that the two receptors interact through a coiled-coil domain within their respective C-terminal tails (5, 7, 10), and in situ hybridization analysis showed colocalization of the two receptors (4, 5, 7, 10). The expressed heterodimer reproduced expected agonist pharmacology, and in the presence of GABA B -R2, GABA B -R1 was trafficked to the cell surface. Moreover, effector couplings to K ϩ and Ca 2ϩ channels have now been demonstrated by using the heterodimeric receptor (4,6,11,12).We previously used a YTH screen to identify GABA B -R2 as an interacting protein partner to G...