No abstract

The evolutionarily conserved Wnt signaling pathway plays essential roles during embryonic development and tissue homeostasis. Notably, comprehensive genetic studies in Drosophila and mice in the past decades have demonstrated the crucial role of Wnt signaling in intestinal stem cell maintenance by regulating proliferation, differentiation, and cell-fate decisions. Wnt signaling has also been implicated in a variety of cancers and other diseases. Loss of the Wnt pathway negative regulator adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) is the hallmark of human colorectal cancers (CRC). Recent advances in high-throughput sequencing further reveal many novel recurrent Wnt pathway mutations in addition to the well-characterized APC and β-catenin mutations in CRC. Despite attractive strategies to develop drugs for Wnt signaling, major hurdles in therapeutic intervention of the pathway persist. Here we discuss the Wnt-activating mechanisms in CRC and review the current advances and challenges in drug discovery.

Deleterious sustained inflammation mediated by activated microglia is common to most of neurologic disorders. Here, we identified sirtuin 2 (SIRT2), an abundant deacetylase in the brain, as a major inhibitor of microglia‐mediated inflammation and neurotoxicity. SIRT2‐deficient mice (SIRT2−/−) showed morphological changes in microglia and an increase in pro‐inflammatory cytokines upon intracortical injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). This response was associated with increased nitrotyrosination and neuronal cell death. Interestingly, manipulation of SIRT2 levels in microglia determined the response to Toll‐like receptor (TLR) activation. SIRT2 overexpression inhibited microglia activation in a process dependent on serine 331 (S331) phosphorylation. Conversely, reduction of SIRT2 in microglia dramatically increased the expression of inflammatory markers, the production of free radicals, and neurotoxicity. Consistent with increased NF‐κB‐dependent transcription of inflammatory genes, NF‐κB was found hyperacetylated in the absence of SIRT2, and became hypoacetylated in the presence of S331A mutant SIRT2. This finding indicates that SIRT2 functions as a ‘gatekeeper’, preventing excessive microglial activation through NF‐κB deacetylation. Our data uncover a novel role for SIRT2 opening new perspectives for therapeutic intervention in neuroinflammatory disorders.

Sirtuin genes have been associated with aging and are known to affect multiple cellular pathways. Sirtuin 2 was previously shown to modulate proteotoxicity associated with age-associated neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer and Parkinson disease (PD). However, the precise molecular mechanisms involved remain unclear. Here, we provide mechanistic insight into the interplay between sirtuin 2 and α-synuclein, the major component of the pathognomonic protein inclusions in PD and other synucleinopathies. We found that α-synuclein is acetylated on lysines 6 and 10 and that these residues are deacetylated by sirtuin 2. Genetic manipulation of sirtuin 2 levels in vitro and in vivo modulates the levels of α-synuclein acetylation, its aggregation, and autophagy. Strikingly, mutants blocking acetylation exacerbate α-synuclein toxicity in vivo, in the substantia nigra of rats. Our study identifies α-synuclein acetylation as a key regulatory mechanism governing α-synuclein aggregation and toxicity, demonstrating the potential therapeutic value of sirtuin 2 inhibition in synucleinopathies.

Alpha-synuclein (aSyn) is the main component of proteinaceous inclusions known as Lewy bodies (LBs), the typical pathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD) and other synucleinopathies. Although aSyn is phosphorylated at low levels under physiological conditions, it is estimated that ∼90% of aSyn in LBs is phosphorylated at S129 (pS129). Nevertheless, the significance of pS129 in the biology of aSyn and in PD pathogenesis is still controversial. Here, we harnessed the power of budding yeast in order to assess the implications of phosphorylation on aSyn cytotoxicity, aggregation and sub-cellular distribution. We found that aSyn is phosphorylated on S129 by endogenous kinases. Interestingly, phosphorylation reduced aSyn toxicity and the percentage of cells with cytosolic inclusions, in comparison to cells expressing mutant forms of aSyn (S129A or S129G) that mimic the unphosphorylated form of aSyn. Using high-resolution 4D imaging and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) in live cells, we compared the dynamics of WT and S129A mutant aSyn. While WT aSyn inclusions were very homogeneous, inclusions formed by S129A aSyn were larger and showed FRAP heterogeneity. Upon blockade of aSyn expression, cells were able to clear the inclusions formed by WT aSyn. However, this process was much slower for the inclusions formed by S129A aSyn. Interestingly, whereas the accumulation of WT aSyn led to a marked induction of autophagy, cells expressing the S129A mutant failed to activate this protein quality control pathway. The finding that the phosphorylation state of aSyn on S129 can alter the ability of cells to clear aSyn inclusions provides important insight into the role that this posttranslational modification may have in the pathogenesis of PD and other synucleinopathies, opening novel avenues for investigating the molecular basis of these disorders and for the development of therapeutic strategies.

SummaryThe tumor suppressor gene adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) is mutated in most colorectal cancers (CRCs), resulting in constitutive Wnt activation. To understand the Wnt-activating mechanism of the APC mutation, we applied CRISPR/Cas9 technology to engineer various APC-truncated isogenic lines. We find that the β-catenin inhibitory domain (CID) in APC represents the threshold for pathological levels of Wnt activation and tumor transformation. Mechanistically, CID-deleted APC truncation promotes β-catenin deubiquitination through reverse binding of β-TrCP and USP7 to the destruction complex. USP7 depletion in APC-mutated CRC inhibits Wnt activation by restoring β-catenin ubiquitination, drives differentiation, and suppresses xenograft tumor growth. Finally, the Wnt-activating role of USP7 is specific to APC mutations; thus, it can be used as a tumor-specific therapeutic target for most CRCs.

The yeast Hsp31 minifamily proteins (Hsp31, Hsp32, Hsp33, Hsp34) belong to the highly conserved DJ-1 superfamily. The human DJ-1 protein is associated with cancer and neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson disease. However, the precise function of human and yeast DJ-1 proteins is unclear. Here we show that the yeast DJ-1 homologs have a role in diauxic-shift (DS), characterized by metabolic reprogramming because of glucose limitation. We find that the Hsp31 genes are strongly induced in DS and in stationary phase (SP), and that deletion of these genes reduces chronological lifespan, impairs transcriptional reprogramming at DS, and impairs the acquisition of several typical characteristics of SP, including autophagy induction. In addition, under carbon starvation, the HSP31 family gene-deletion strains display impaired autophagy, disrupted target of rapamycin complex 1 (TORC1) localization to P-bodies, and caused abnormal TORC1-mediated Atg13 phosphorylation. Repression of TORC1 by rapamycin in the gene-deletion strains completely reversed their sensitivity to heat shock. Taken together, our data indicate that Hsp31 minifamily is required for DS reprogramming and cell survival in SP, and plays a role upstream of TORC1. The enhanced understanding of the cellular function of these genes sheds light into the biological role of other members of the superfamily, including DJ-1, which is an attractive target for therapeutic intervention in cancer and in Parkinson disease.

Wnt signalling induces a gradient of stem/progenitor cell proliferation along the crypt‐villus axis of the intestine, which becomes expanded during intestinal regeneration or tumour formation. The YAP transcriptional co‐activator is known to be required for intestinal regeneration, but its mode of regulation remains controversial. Here we show that the YAP‐TEAD transcription factor is a key downstream effector of Wnt signalling in the intestine. Loss of YAP activity by Yap/Taz conditional knockout results in sensitivity of crypt stem cells to apoptosis and reduced cell proliferation during regeneration. Gain of YAP activity by Lats1/2 conditional knockout is sufficient to drive a crypt hyperproliferation response. In particular, Wnt signalling acts transcriptionally to induce YAP and TEAD1/2/4 expression. YAP normally localises to the nucleus only in crypt base stem cells, but becomes nuclear in most intestinal epithelial cells during intestinal regeneration after irradiation, or during organoid growth, in a Src family kinase‐dependent manner. YAP‐driven crypt expansion during regeneration involves an elongation and flattening of the Wnt signalling gradient. Thus, Wnt and Src‐YAP signals cooperate to drive intestinal regeneration.