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Lennart Philipson

Publications and source records attributed to Lennart Philipson.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

The coxsackie- and adenovirus receptor (CAR) is an in vivo marker for epithelial tight junctions, with a potential role in regulating permeability and tissue homeostasis.

The coxsackie- and adenovirus receptor (CAR) is a transmembrane protein belonging to the immunoglobulin superfamily. The function of CAR as a virus receptor has been extensively analyzed, while its physiological role and expression pattern in adult tissues have remained less clear. CAR associates with epithelial tight junctions in vitro and mediates cell-cell adhesion. Using a set of affinity-purified antibodies, we show that CAR is predominantly expressed in epithelial cells lining the body cavities in adult mice, where it specifically co-localizes with the tight junction components ZO-1 and occludin. Notably, CAR could not be detected in endothelial cells of the vasculature, including brain capillaries. CAR expression correlated positively with the maturity of tight junctions and inversely with permeability. With a few exceptions, the two known CAR isoforms were co-expressed in most epithelial cells analyzed. A CAR mutant lacking the intracellular tail over-expressed in transgenic mice was diffusely localized over the plasma membrane, showing the importance of this domain for correct subcellular localization in vivo. We conclude that CAR is localized to epithelial tight junctions in vivo where it may play a role in the regulation of epithelial permeability and tissue homeostasis.

Animals↗

Coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR) is expressed in male germ cells and forms a complex with the differentiation factor JAM-C in mouse testis.

The coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR) is a transmembrane protein important for viral binding to target cells. Using RT-PCR, Western analysis, GST pull-down assay and indirect immunofluorescence, it was shown that CAR is expressed in male germ cells from mice, rats, and humans. CAR was detected in round spermatids in the testis as well as in purified, mature spermatozoa. The two membrane-bound isoforms of CAR occupied different subcellular sites in the acrosomal region of the spermatozoa. CAR was exposed on the surface of acrosome-reacted, but not acrosome-intact cells. Two CAR-binding proteins belonging to the ligand-of-numb protein-X (LNX) family also occupied distinct regions in spermatozoa. Finally, co-immunoprecipitation experiments demonstrated an interaction between CAR and JAM-C, a protein required for spermatid differentiation. Together, these findings imply a function for CAR in male fertility. The results also suggest that CAR in spermatozoa is inaccessible to adenovirus-based gene therapy vectors, and that the risk of germ line infection therefore is low.

Acrosome↗

The cell surface protein coxsackie- and adenovirus receptor (CAR) directly associates with the Ligand-of-Numb Protein-X2 (LNX2).

The coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR) is a cell surface protein that is proposed to be involved in cell-cell adhesion. Based on a yeast two-hybrid screen, co-immunoprecipitation and binding experiments, the intracellular tail of CAR was found to interact both in vivo and in vitro with the Ligand-of-Numb Protein-X2 (LNX2). The interacting domains between the two proteins were identified by truncation analyses and affinity chromatography. CAR and LNX2 protein expression in embryonic mouse tissues was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. The results suggest that CAR is a partner in a protein complex organized at specific subcellular sites by LNX2.

Adenoviridae↗

Expression of the coxsackie and adenovirus receptor in human astrocytic tumors and xenografts.

The sensitivity of human tissues and tumors to infection with type C adenoviruses correlates with the expression of the human coxsackie B- and adenovirus receptor, hCAR. HCAR is heterogeneously expressed in various tissues and types of human cancer cells, which has implications for the use of adenoviruses as vectors in cancer gene therapy. Using immunoblotting, real-time PCR, FACS-analysis and sensitivity to infection with adenovirus-lacZ, we analyzed the expression level of hCAR in glioma Grade IV cell lines. With real-time PCR, we also analyzed hCAR expression in primary human astrocytomas of different malignancy grades, as well as in their xenograft derivatives. Analysis of a set of 10 cell lines showed great variation in hCAR expression. Susceptibility to Ad5lacZ correlated well with hCAR expression, whereas no correlation was observed with the expression of alphavbeta3/alphavbeta5 integrins, proposed to function as co-receptors for adenoviruses. A great variation of CAR expression was also observed in primary astrocytomas of different malignancy grades. The mean value of CAR expression was significantly lower in 22 Grade IV tumors as compared to the values for 6 Grade II (p = 0.01) and 6 Grade III (p = 0.01) tumors. When the hCAR expression in 11 xenografts derived from Grade IV gliomas were compared to the levels detected in the original parental tumors, a mean 12-fold higher expression was seen in the xenografts (P = 0.01). Two xenografts with low hCAR expression grew considerably faster than the hCAR-expressing cells. Our results have relevance for the use of adenoviruses in gene therapy against astrocytomas.

Adenoviridae↗

The Coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR) forms a complex with the PDZ domain-containing protein ligand-of-numb protein-X (LNX).

The Coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR) functions as a virus receptor, but its primary biological function is unknown. A yeast two-hybrid screen was used to identify Ligand-of-Numb protein-X (LNX) as a binding partner to the intracellular tail of CAR. LNX harbors several protein-protein interacting domains, including four PDZ domains, and was previously shown to bind to and regulate the expression level of the cell-fate determinant Numb. CAR was able to bind LNX both in vivo and in vitro. Efficient binding to LNX required not only the consensus PDZ domain binding motif in the C terminus of CAR but also upstream sequences. The CAR binding region in LNX was mapped to the second PDZ domain. CAR and LNX were also shown to colocalize in vivo in mammalian cells. We speculate that CAR and LNX are part of a larger protein complex that might have important functions at discrete subcellular localizations in the cell.

Animals↗