Key Points• Temporal profiles of .4000 phosphopeptides after stimulating human platelets (a) with ADP and (b) consecutively with ADP and Iloprost.• Reciprocal phosphorylation profiles of ADP and Iloprost point to central players of platelet homeostasis.Adenosine diphosphate (ADP) enhances platelet activation by virtually any other stimulant to complete aggregation. It binds specifically to the G-protein-coupled membrane receptors P2Y1 and P2Y12, stimulating intracellular signaling cascades, leading to integrin aIIbb3 activation, a process antagonized by endothelial prostacyclin. P2Y12 inhibitors are among the most successful antiplatelet drugs, however, show remarkable variability in efficacy. We reasoned whether a more detailed molecular understanding of ADP-induced protein phosphorylation could identify (1) critical hubs in platelet signaling toward aggregation and (2) novel molecular targets for antiplatelet treatment strategies. We applied quantitative temporal phosphoproteomics to study ADP-mediated signaling at unprecedented molecular resolution. Furthermore, to mimic the antagonistic efficacy of endothelial-derived prostacyclin, we determined how Iloprost reverses ADP-mediated signaling events. We provide temporal profiles of 4797 phosphopeptides, 608 of which showed significant regulation. Regulated proteins are implicated in well-known activating functions such as degranulation and cytoskeletal reorganization, but also in less well-understood pathways, involving ubiquitin ligases and GTPase exchange factors/GTPaseactivating proteins (GEF/GAP). Our data demonstrate that ADP-triggered phosphorylation occurs predominantly within the first 10 seconds, with many short rather than sustained changes. For a set of phosphorylation sites (eg, PDE3A Ser312 , CALDAG-GEFI Ser587 , ENSA Ser109 ), we demonstrate an inverse regulation by ADP and Iloprost, suggesting that these are central modulators of platelet homeostasis. This study demonstrates an extensive spectrum of human platelet protein phosphorylation in response to ADP and Iloprost, which inversely overlap and represent major activating and inhibitory pathways. (Blood. 2017;129(2):e1-e12)

Miniaturized and parallelized ligand binding assays are of great interest in postgenomic research because microarray technology allows the simultaneous determination of a large number of parameters from a minute amount of sample within a single experiment. Assay systems based on this technology are used for the identification and quantification of proteins as well as for the study of protein interactions. Protein affinity assays have been implemented that allow the analysis of interactions between proteins with other proteins, peptides, low molecular weight compounds, oligosaccharides or DNA. Microarray technology is an emerging technology used in global analytical approaches and has a considerable impact on proteomic research.

In vitro differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) recapitulates early aspects of human embryogenesis, but the underlying processes are poorly understood and controlled. Here we show that modulating the bulk cell density (BCD: cell number per culture volume) deterministically alters anteroposterior patterning of primitive streak (PS)-like priming. The BCD in conjunction with the chemical WNT pathway activator CHIR99021 results in distinct paracrine microenvironments codifying hPSCs towards definitive endoderm, precardiac or presomitic mesoderm within the first 24 h of differentiation, respectively. Global gene expression and secretome analysis reveals that TGFß superfamily members, antagonist of Nodal signalling LEFTY1 and CER1, are paracrine determinants restricting PS progression. These data result in a tangible model disclosing how hPSC-released factors deflect CHIR99021-induced lineage commitment over time. By demonstrating a decisive, functional role of the BCD, we show its utility as a method to control lineage-specific differentiation. Furthermore, these findings have profound consequences for inter-experimental comparability, reproducibility, bioprocess optimization and scale-up.

Acquired resistance to second generation BRAF inhibitors (BRAFis), like vemurafenib is limiting the benefits of long term targeted therapy for patients with malignant melanomas that harbor BRAF V600 mutations. Since many resistance mechanisms have been described, most of them causing a hyperactivation of the MAPK- or PI3K/AKT signaling pathways, one potential strategy to overcome BRAFi resistance in melanoma cells would be to target important common signaling nodes. Known factors that cause secondary resistance include the overexpression of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs), alternative splicing of BRAF or the occurrence of novel mutations in MEK1 or NRAS.In this study we show that β-catenin is stabilized and translocated to the nucleus in approximately half of the melanomas that were analyzed and which developed secondary resistance towards BRAFi. We further demonstrate that β-catenin is involved in the mediation of resistance towards vemurafenib in vitro and in vivo. Unexpectedly, β-catenin acts mainly independent of the TCF/LEF dependent canonical Wnt-signaling pathway in resistance development, which partly explains previous contradictory results about the role of β-catenin in melanoma progression and therapy resistance. We further demonstrate that β-catenin interacts with Stat3 after chronic vemurafenib treatment and both together cooperate in the acquisition and maintenance of resistance towards BRAFi.