5-Aza-2′-deoxycytidine reactivates the CDH1 gene without influencing methylation of the entire CpG island or histone modification in a human cancer cell line

It is well-recognized that DNA methylation and histone modifications play critical roles in epigenetic regulation of gene activity through the alteration of chromatin structure. Recent studies have shown that in a subset of cancer cells, the silencing of the human E-cadherin (CDH1) gene is associated with hypermethylation of the CpG island. However, the associated molecular mechanism remains unclear. To understand the mechanism, we have investigated the alteration of CpG island methylation and histone modifications during the reactivation of the CDH1 gene by treatment with 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine (5-aza-dC). Although the CDH1 gene expression was recovered by treatment with 5-aza-dC in a liver cancer cell line Li21, the methylation status of the entire CpG island and acetylation and methylation status of associated histones were not significantly altered. These results demonstrate that the silenced CDH1 gene can be reactivated without apparent alteration of histone modification or CpG island methylation.     

合成天然产物曲古抑菌素A的新方法

报道了一条组蛋白去乙酰化酶抑制剂曲古抑菌素A的有效合成路线. 通过L-脯氨酸催化对硝基苯甲醛与丙醛的羟醛缩合反应, 高立体选择性地构建了目标分子的手性中心, 羟醛缩合产物的ee值大于99%, anti∶syn＝16∶1. 随后的合成过程中无消旋化现象, 合成的曲古抑菌素A是单一R型异构体, ee值大于99%.     

Enzyme-Instructed Assemblies Enable Mitochondria Localization of Histone H2B in Cancer Cells

Presently, little is known of how the inter-organelle crosstalk impacts cancer cells owing to the lack of approaches that can manipulate inter-organelle communication in cancer cells. We found that a negatively charged, enzyme cleavable peptide (MitoFlag) enables the trafficking of histone protein H2B, a nuclear protein, to the mitochondria in cancer cells. MitoFlag interacts with the nuclear location sequence of H2B to block it from entering the nucleus. A protease on the mitochondria cleaves the Flag from the MitoFlag/H2B complex to form assemblies that retain H2B on the mitochondria and facilitate H2B entering the mitochondria. Adding NLS, replacing aspartic acid by glutamic acid residues, or changing the l - to d -aspartic acid residue on MitoFlag abolishes the trafficking of H2B into mitochondria of HeLa cells. As the first example of the enzyme-instructed self-assembly of a synthetic peptide for trafficking endogenous proteins, this work provides insights for understanding and manipulating inter-organelle communication in cells.     

Target Design of Novel Histone Deacetylase 6 Selective Inhibitors with 2-Mercaptoquinazolinone as the Cap Moiety

Epigenetic alterations found in all human cancers are promising targets for anticancer therapy. In this sense, histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACIs) are interesting anticancer agents that play an important role in the epigenetic regulation of cancer cells. Here, we report 15 novel hydroxamic acid-based histone deacetylase inhibitors with quinazolinone core structures. Five compounds exhibited antiproliferative activity with IC₅₀ values of 3.4–37.8 µM. Compound 8 with a 2-mercaptoquinazolinone cap moiety displayed the highest antiproliferative efficacy against MCF-7 cells. For the HDAC6 target selectivity study, compound 8 displayed an IC₅₀ value of 2.3 µM, which is 29.3 times higher than those of HDAC3, HDAC4, HDAC8, and HDAC11. Western blot assay proved that compound 8 strongly inhibited tubulin acetylation, a substrate of HDAC6. Compound 8 also displayed stronger inhibition activity against HDAC11 than the control drug Belinostat. The inhibitory mechanism of action of compound 8 on HDAC enzymes was then explored using molecular docking study. The data revealed a high binding affinity (−7.92 kcal/mol) of compound 8 toward HDAC6. In addition, dock pose analysis also proved that compound 8 might serve as a potent inhibitor of HDAC11.     

Recognition of Dimethylarginine Analogues by Tandem Tudor Domain Protein Spindlin1

Epigenetic readout of the combinatorial posttranslational modification comprised of trimethyllysine and asymmetric dimethylarginine (H3K4me3R8me2a) takes place via biomolecular recognition of tandem Tudor-domain-containing protein Spindlin1. Through comparative thermodynamic data and molecular dynamics simulations, we sought to explore the binding scope of asymmetric dimethylarginine mimics by Spindlin1. Herein, we provide evidence that the biomolecular recognition of H3K4me2R8me2a is not significantly affected when R8me2a is replaced by dimethylarginine analogues, implying that the binding of K4me3 provides the major binding contribution. High-energy water molecules inside both aromatic cages of the ligand binding sites contribute to the reader–histone association upon displacement by histone peptide, with the K4me3 hydration site being lower in free energy due to a flip of Trp151.     

乙酰鸟氨酸脱乙酰酶固定化细胞拆分D,L-缬氨酸

报道了一种利用具有乙酰鸟氨酸脱乙酰酶活性的固定化细胞拆分D,L-缬氨酸的新方法. 该酶促反应最适条件: pH=6, 反应温度50 ℃, 底物N-乙酰-D,L-缬氨酸浓度200 mmol/L, 固定化细胞用量0.2 g/mL(或100 U/mL). 0.1 mmol/L CoCl₂条件对该酶促反应有显著的激活作用. 在以上条件下反应2～3 h, 测得产物L-缬氨酸浓度95 mmol/L. 该固定化细胞连续10次使用, 平均转化率为90.8%(以N-乙酰-L-缬氨酸计), 显示出了良好的工业化应用前景.     

鲱鱼精DNA的电化学氧化及与组蛋白的相互作用

应用循环伏安法、微分脉冲伏安法和荧光光谱法研究了鲱鱼精DNA的电化学氧化及其与组蛋白的相互作用.结果发现,在0.20~1.25 V电位区间内,DNA在酸性溶液中呈现一个明显的不可逆氧化峰,在中性及碱性溶液中呈现两个不可逆氧化峰.氧化峰电位随溶液pH值增大而负移,变化幅度为-57 mV.pH-1.氧化峰电流与DNA浓度(0.45~8.20 mmol.L-1)成线性关系.DNA能与组蛋白结合,导致氧化电位正移,氧化电流减小,并减弱钌配合物指示剂和DNA相互作用的荧光强度以及减少DNA的氧化损伤.     

Fusion Wheat Histone H4 Protein Increases Transfection Efficiency of Non-viral DNA Vector

The lack of efficient and non-toxic gene delivery, preferably with non-viral DNA vectors, is generally regarded as a major limitation for gene therapy. In this study, a wheat histone H4 gene was cloned from Triticum aestivum, sequenced, modified and expressed in E. coli. The wheat histone H4 gene and reconstructed H4TL gene encoded wheat histone H4 and a recombinant protein of 141 amino acids with an approximate molecular weight of 15500. Gel electrophoresis mobility shift assays demonstrated that the purif...     

同源模建和分子对接研究HDAC1/HDAC8的选择性

组蛋白去乙酰化酶(HDACs)是近年来治疗肿瘤的重要靶标之一.由于HDACs包含多种亚型,且各亚型的生理功能存在一定的差异,其选择性抑制剂的开发已成为当前的研发热点.我们通过同源模建的HDAC1结构,与已有的HDAC8晶体结构的活性位点进行比较分析,探讨了对两者选择性有重要影响的残基,为基于受体的选择性抑制剂研究提供重要信息.同时选择了52个HDAC抑制剂,分别建立了HDAC1、HDAC8的活性值与对接打分值的线性回归模型.所建的HDAC1和HDAC8的线性构效关系模型的非交叉验证系数R2分别为0.82和0.80,表明具有一定的统计学意义.利用所建模型对已设计合成的化合物进行了预测,预测结果对HDAC1、HDAC8选择性抑制剂的优化改造提供了一定的指导意义.