Project description:Fibrillins are the major components of microfibrils in the extracellular matrix of elastic and non-elastic tissues. Fibrillin-1 contains one evolutionarily conserved Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) sequence which mediates cell-matrix interactions through cell-surface integrins. Mutations in close vicinity to the RDG sequence lead to heritable disorders, including Marfan syndrome and stiff skin syndrome. Two recombinant fibrillin-1 fragments were produced, one wild-type RGD-containing fragment and one fragment containing a mutant RGA sequence, which has been previously shown to abolish interactions with integrins. To determine the differential regulation of signaling pathways, microarray analysis of microRNA expression was conducted using Affymetrix miRNA3.0 chips. The microRNA expression levels were compared after 24 hours of interaction between human skin fibroblasts (HSFs) and the RGD- and RGA-containing fibrillin-1 fragments.
Project description:Fibrillins are the major components of microfibrils in the extracellular matrix of elastic and non-elastic tissues. Fibrillin-1 contains one evolutionarily conserved Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) sequence which mediates cell-matrix interactions through cell-surface integrins. Mutations in close vicinity to the RDG sequence lead to heritable disorders, including Marfan syndrome and stiff skin syndrome. Two recombinant fibrillin-1 fragments were produced, one wild-type RGD-containing fragment and one fragment containing a mutant RGA sequence, which has been previously shown to abolish interactions with integrins. To determine the differential regulation of signaling pathways, microarray analysis of mRNA expression was conducted using Affymetrix Human Gene 2.0 ST chips. The mRNA expression levels were compared after 24 hours of interaction between human skin fibroblasts (HSFs) and the RGD- and RGA-containing fibrillin-1 fragments.
Project description:Fibrillin dysfunction in Marfan syndrome (MFS) causes severe cardiovascular complications, including aortic dilation, dissection, and rupture. To model MFS, we generated zebrafish mutants lacking various fibrillin genes. Among them, fibrillin-2b-deficient zebrafish exhibited cardiovascular phenotypes resembling those seen in patients with MFS. Multimodal imaging revealed early cardiac defects, bulbus arteriosus dilation, and valve abnormalities. RNA sequencing identified developmental disruptions, and compound testing demonstrated the model’s potential for drug discovery. This zebrafish model, recapitulating key cardiovascular features of MFS, provides a valuable platform for investigating disease mechanisms and identifying novel treatment strategies.
Project description:Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) involves progressive muscle degeneration associated with calcium dysregulation, but the mechanisms linking extracellular matrix (ECM) integrity to calcium homeostasis remain unclear. We investigated whether MUA-3, a fibrillin-related ECM protein in Caenorhabditis elegans, contributes to calcium regulation in dystrophic muscle. Using fluorescent calcium imaging in transgenic worms expressing muscle-specific GCaMP2, we found that downregulating mua-3 selectively elevated resting calcium levels in healthy muscle but had no effect in dystrophic (dys-1) muscle, suggesting impaired MUA-3 function in dystrophy. Despite altered calcium dynamics, mua-3 downregulation did not affect locomotor function. In human dystrophic myoblasts, we observed significantly elevated sarcoplasmic calcium levels concurrent with substantial downregulation of fibrillin genes FBN1/FBN2. These findings demonstrate that fibrillin-related proteins regulate calcium homeostasis across species, suggesting that ECM integrity directly contributes to cellular calcium control in muscle. This work identifies a conserved mechanism linking extracellular matrix stability to intracellular calcium regulation and suggests that targeting ECM-calcium coupling may offer new therapeutic approaches for muscular dystrophy.
Project description:Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common and aggressive type of malignant glioma. Oncolytic adenoviruses are being modified to exploit the aberrant expression of proteins in tumor cells to enhance tumor tropism and glioma-selective replication. E1A mutant adenovirus Delta-24-RGD has shown favorable toxicity profile and remarkable efficacy in a first-in-human phase I clinical trial. However, the comprehensive modulation of glioma metabolism in response to Delta-24-RGD infection is poorly understood. Integrating mass spectrometry based-quantitative proteomics, physical and functional interaction data, and biochemical approaches, we conducted a cell-wide study of intracellular and secreted glioma proteomes at late stage of Delta-24-RGD infection, when prominent autophagy has been described.