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Biomedical subjects

Christine M Stellrecht

Publications and source records attributed to Christine M Stellrecht.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Cell death of bioenergetically compromised and transcriptionally challenged CLL lymphocytes by chlorinated ATP.

Myeloid cell leukemia-1 (MCL-1) acts as a key survival factor for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells. In addition, dissipation of cellular bioenergy may impose a lethal effect on these quiescent cells. Previously, in multiple myeloma cell lines we demonstrated that halogenated adenosine (8-Cl-Ado) was phosphorylated to triphosphate (8-Cl-adenosine triphosphate [ATP]), which preferentially incorporated into mRNA and inhibited RNA synthesis by premature transcription termination. Furthermore, 8-Cl-ATP accumulation was associated with a decline in cellular bioenergy. Based on these actions, we hypothesized that 8-Cl-Ado would be ideal to target CLL lymphocytes. In the present study we demonstrate that leukemic lymphocytes incubated with 8-Cl-Ado display time- and dose-dependent increase in the accumulation of 8-Cl-ATP, with a parallel depletion of the endogenous ATP pool. Inhibition of global RNA synthesis resulted in a significant decline in the expression of transcripts with a short half-life such as MCL1. Consistent to this, protein expression of MCL-1 but not B-cell lymphoma-2 (BCL-2) was decreased. Furthermore, 8-Cl-ATP induced programmed cell death, as suggested by caspases activation, cleavage of caspase 3, and PARP (poly-adenosine diphosphate [ADP]-ribose polymerase), and increased DNA fragmentation. In conclusion, 8-Cl-Ado induces apoptosis in CLL lymphocytes by targeting cellular bioenergy as well as RNA transcription and translation of key survival genes such as MCL1.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed2003

RNA-directed actions of 8-chloro-adenosine in multiple myeloma cells.

The purine analogue, 8-chloro-adenosine (8-Cl-Ado), induces apoptosis in a number of multiple myeloma (MM) cell lines. This ribonucleoside analogue accumulates as a triphosphate and selectively inhibits RNA synthesis without perturbing DNA synthesis. Cellular RNA is synthesized by one of three polymerases (Pol I, II, or III); thus, the inhibition of one or more RNA polymerases may be mediating 8-Cl-Ado cytotoxicity. Here, we have addressed this question by dissecting the RNA-directed actions of 8-Cl-Ado in MM cells. Differential alterations in [(3)H]uridine incorporation were found in the three major classes of RNA after a 20-h exposure with 10 microM 8-Cl-Ado. The synthesis rate of Pol III transcripts, 5 S and tRNA, remained unchanged, whereas Pol I-mediated rRNA synthesis decreased by approximately 20%. In contrast, mRNA synthesis, which is transcribed by Pol II, rapidly declined within 4 h and reached a 50% decrease, which was maintained for 20 h. Parallel to RNA synthesis inhibition, 8-Cl-Ado was maximally incorporated in the mRNA (>13 nmol/mg RNA), which was 5-fold higher than the tRNA and rRNA incorporation. Electrophoretic and radiographic analysis of newly synthesized and processed [(14)C]uridine-labeled transcripts indicated that the analogue blocks transcription elongation. Consistent with that result, high-performance liquid chromatography analysis of micrococcal nuclease and spleen phosphodiesterase-digested RNA demonstrated that the analogue incorporation is at the 3' terminus. In conclusion, our data demonstrate that in MM cells, 8-Cl-Ado is preferentially incorporated into mRNA, suggesting a propensity toward Pol II, and inhibits RNA synthesis by premature transcriptional chain termination.

2-Chloroadenosine↗
PubMed2003

Mechanisms for T-cell selective cytotoxicity of arabinosylguanine.

Nelarabine, prodrug of arabinosylguanine (ara-G), has demonstrated T-lymphoblastic antileukemic activity in cell lines and in the clinic. To investigate the mechanism for lineage-specific toxicity, the effects of ara-G were compared in CEM (T-lymphoblast), Raji (B-lymphoblast), and ML-1 (myeloid) cell lines. CEM cells were the most sensitive to ara-G-induced apoptosis and accumulated the highest levels of ara-G triphosphate (ara-GTP). However, compared with myeloid and B-lineage cell lines, CEM cells incorporated fewer ara-G molecules-which were at internucleotide positions in all 3 cell lines- into DNA. Ara-G induced an S-phase arrest in both Raji and ML-1, while in CEM the S-phase cells decreased with a concomitant increase in the sub-G1 population. Within 3 hours of ara-G treatment, the levels of soluble Fas ligand (sFasL) in the medium increased significantly in CEM cultures. In parallel, an induction of FasL gene expression was observed by real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Pretreatment of CEM cells with a Fas antagonistic antibody inhibited ara-G-mediated cell death. These results demonstrate that high ara-GTP accumulation in T cells results in an S phase-dependent apoptosis induced by ara-G incorporation into DNA, which may lead to a T cell-specific signal for the induction and liberation of sFasL. Subsequently, the sFasL induces an apoptotic response in neighboring non-S-phase cells. In contrast, myeloid and B cells accumulated lower levels of ara-GTP and arrested in S phase, blocking any apoptotic signaling.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed2002

Functional and structural characterization of the human gene BHLHB5, encoding a basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor.

The genes encoding basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors have been implicated in many aspects of neural development, including cell growth, differentiation, and cell migration. Using both genomic and cDNA mouse and human clones encoding a neural-specific bHLH protein, human BHLHB5 was cloned and mapped to a region on chromosome 8q13 that segregates with Duane syndrome. Genomic sequence analysis of human BHLHB5 and mouse Bhlhb5 revealed that they contain a single exon encoding 381- and 355-amino-acid bHLH proteins, respectively. Multiple amino acid sequence alignments of the Bhlhb5 family members revealed several conserved motifs and an identical 147-amino-acid carboxy-terminal region that contains a 60-amino-acid bHLH domain. A 27-bp trinucleotide repeat (CAG)(9) encoding polyserine was found in human BHLHB5, but only one CAG was found at the corresponding position in the mouse Bhlhb5 and hamster BETA3 genes. Northern blot analysis of human BHLHB5 revealed brain-specific expression with the highest abundance in the cerebellum. Mouse Bhlhb5 can strongly repress a human PAX6 promoter.

Amino Acid Sequence↗