The neuroimmunodegenerative syndrome that develops in mice infected with ts1, a mutant of Moloney murine leukemia virus, resembles human AIDS. Both ts1 and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 infect astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendrocytes but do not infect neurons. Oxidative stress has been implicated in the neuropathology of AIDS dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases. We report here that ts1 infection of astrocytes (both transformed C1 cells and primary cultures) also induces thiol (i.e., glutathione and cysteine) depletion and reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, events occurring in parallel with viral envelope precursor gPr80(env) accumulation and upregulated expression of endoplasmic reticulum chaperones GRP78 and GRP94. Furthermore, ts1-infected astrocytes mobilize their thiol redox defenses by upregulating levels of the Nrf-2 transcription factor, as well its targets, the xCT cystine/glutamate antiporter, gamma-glutamylcysteine ligase, and glutathione peroxidase. Depleting intracellular thiols by treating uninfected astrocytes with buthionine sulfoximine (BSO), a glutathione synthesis inhibitor, or by culturing in cystine-deficient medium, also induces ROS accumulation, activates Nrf-2, and upregulates Nrf-2 target gene expression in these astrocytes. Overexpression of Nrf-2 in astrocytes specifically increases expression of the above thiol synthesis-related proteins. Further treatment with BSO or N-acetylcysteine in transfected cells modulates this expression. Thiol depletion also accelerates cell death, while thiol supplementation promotes survival of ts1-infected cells. Together, our results indicate that ts1 infection of astrocytes, along with ts1-induced gPr80(env) accumulation, endoplasmic reticulum stress, thiol depletion, and oxidative stress, accelerates cell death; in response to the thiol depletion and oxidative stress, astrocytes activate their Nrf-2-mediated thiol antioxidant defenses, promoting cell survival.
Previous studies have shown that the oxidants Cu++, H202, and diamide mimic the stimulatory effect of insulin on 3-0-methylglucose transport in isolated fat cells. The present experiments were designed to determine whether sulfhydryl oxidation plays a key role in the activation of the glucose transport system. It was found that reductants such as dithiothreitol inhibited 3-0-methylglucose transport rates and that this effect was reversible when cells were washed free of reducing agent. Treatment of cells with 1 mM N-ethylmaleimide for 5 min completely blocked the actions of insulin and oxidants on hexose transport without affecting control transport system activity. Under these conditions, binding of 1251_ labeled insulin to fat cell surface receptors was inhibited by only about 50%. Addition of insulin or oxidants to fat cells for 10 min before addition of N-ethylmaleimide completely prevented the inhibitory effect of N-ethylmaleimide on the activated transport system. This protective effect on transport rates appears to reside at a site that is altered by insulin subsequent to hormone-receptor interaction, since prior treatment of fat cells with insulin did not prevent the partial inhibitory effect of N-ethylmaleimide on insulin receptors. Furthermore, treatment of cells with N-ethylmaleimide after incubation with insulin prevented the elevated transport rates from returning to control levels when either the cells were washed free of hormone or insulin binding to its receptors was disrupted by trypsin digestion. However, transport rates in these cells treated with N-ethylmaleimide remained sensitive to cytochalasin B, phlorizin, and reductants. These data suggest that a component of the glucose transport system in isolated fat cells must be maintained in its disulfide state for expression of transport activity. Further, the results are consistent with the concept that the binding of insulin to cell surface receptors triggers sulfhydryl oxidation in this component, which prevents its reaction with N-ethylmaleimide.The well-known stimulatory effects of insulin on transport processes are thought to result from events triggered by the interaction of insulin with specific cell surface receptors. Although considerable information about the hormonereceptor interaction has become available in the last few years, nothing is known about the subsequent steps that lead to the physiological response. Studies on the actions of chemically specific agents, such as certain oxidants (1,2) which mimic effects of insulin on fat cell glucose transport, may be useful in this regard since they appear to act at steps subsequent to the hormone-receptor interaction (3). A major Abbreviation: MalNEt, N-ethylmaleimide. 3-0-Methyl-D-glucose transport into these cells is readily monitored, occurs by facilitated diffusion, and is inhibited by D-glucose, phlorizin, and cytochalasin 13 (4).Using this rationale we found that agents such as H202, Cu++, and diamide, which readily oxidize sulfhydryls to disulfides, markedly enhanced 3-0-m...
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