Project description:Transcription factor (TF) function is redundant as TF phenotypes are frequently rescued by TFs not resident to the TF locus, a phenomenon termed phenotypic nonspecificity. Phenotypic nonspecificity is not dependent on the DNA binding specificity of the TFs and generally due to genetic complementation. Two TF phenotypes (doublesex [dsx] and apterous [ap]) are rescued by multiple TFs, and the rescue and non-rescue by resident and non-resident TFs of these two phenotypes were used to distinguish between three possible outcomes of the comparison of the TF dependent mRNA accumulation in these two systems: first the sets of TF dependent mRNAs are independent and non-overlapping; second the sets of TF dependent mRNAs are independent and overlapping; and third the sets of TF dependent mRNAs are constrained and have extensive overlap. The transcriptomes associated with rescue and non-rescue by resident and non-resident TFs of the two TF phenotypes (dsx and ap) provided many examples of extensive overlap indicating regulation of constrained sets of genes. However, the strength of correlation of transcript accumulation observed between the resident and non-resident TFs was not a strong predictor of the ability of the TFs to rescue the phenotype. The regulation of a constrained set of genes supports the hypothetical assembly of TFs into wolfpacks, and not the hypothetical limited specificity of TF function, as a potential explanation of phenotypic nonspecificity.
Project description:Macrophage-mediated inflammation drives various lung diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD macrophages have dysfunctional mitochondrial metabolism and function which lead to a chronic inflammatory lung environment. However, the factors regulating this altered metabolism have not been elucidated. Adenine nucleotide translocase 1 (ANT1) is a mitochondrial ATP transporter critical to mitochondrial metabolism. We demonstrate that human alveolar macrophages from patients with moderate COPD (GOLD stage 2) have reduced ANT1 expression while macrophages from very severe COPD (GOLD stage 4) has elevated ANT1 compared to normal control subjects. Ant1-deficient mice were protected against cigarette smoke (CS)-induced emphysema with failure of recruited immune cells to migrate into alveoli. Ant1-null alveolar macrophages had reduced ATP production and mitochondrial respiration, upregulated fewer inflammatory pathways after CS and reduced migratory capacity. Conditional Ant1 knockout in Cx3cr1-positive monocytes and adoptive transfer of Ant1-deficient bone marrow into CS-treated mice phenocopied the migratory defect in the lung. Our data indicate that ANT1 is a critical regulator of lung macrophage inflammatory signaling and CS-triggered cell migration in the lung, suggesting that metabolic modulation may be a promising therapeutic avenue for COPD
Project description:Macrophage-mediated inflammation drives various lung diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD macrophages have dysfunctional mitochondrial metabolism and function which lead to a chronic inflammatory lung environment. However, the factors regulating this altered metabolism have not been elucidated. Adenine nucleotide translocase 1 (ANT1) is a mitochondrial ATP transporter critical to mitochondrial metabolism. We demonstrate that human alveolar macrophages from patients with moderate COPD (GOLD stage 2) have reduced ANT1 expression while macrophages from very severe COPD (GOLD stage 4) has elevated ANT1 compared to normal control subjects. Ant1-deficient mice were protected against cigarette smoke (CS)-induced emphysema with failure of recruited immune cells to migrate into alveoli. Ant1-null alveolar macrophages had reduced ATP production and mitochondrial respiration, upregulated fewer inflammatory pathways after CS and reduced migratory capacity. Conditional Ant1 knockout in Cx3cr1-positive monocytes and adoptive transfer of Ant1-deficient bone marrow into CS-treated mice phenocopied the migratory defect in the lung. Our data indicate that ANT1 is a critical regulator of lung macrophage inflammatory signaling and CS-triggered cell migration in the lung, suggesting that metabolic modulation may be a promising therapeutic avenue for COPD