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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

The Use of APC/C Antagonists to Promote Mitotic Catastrophe in Cancer Cells.

The multiprotein subunit E3 ubiquitin ligase Anaphase-Promoting Complex/Cyclosome (APC/C) plays a key role in the control of mitosis progression. APC/C is the ultimate effector of the Spindle Assembly Checkpoint (SAC), the signaling system of higher organisms including the human that monitors the proper attachment of chromosomes to microtubules during cell division. Defects in this process result in genome instability, aneuploidy, premature aging, and cancer. APC/C roles in the SAC require its activation by the protein Cdc20. Interfering with APC/C activation by Cdc20 impairs APC/C substrate recognition, resulting in a delayed mitotic exit and eventually inducing cell death. This may be advantageous for the treatment of cancer and malignancies associated with SAC dysregulation. Here we describe a protocol to interfere with mitotic exit through the use of commercially available (Apcin, proTAME) as well as innovative small molecules we have developed that function as antagonists of APC/C activation by Cdc20. We show that the use of these molecules alone and in combination is effective to promote mitotic catastrophe and suppress cell expansion in 2D and 3D (spheroids) cancer cells of different tissue origin, including breast, cervical, and ovarian cancer.

Humans↗

Proteolysis and the cell cycle: with this RING I do thee destroy.

The ubiquitin system drives the cell division cycle by the timely destruction of numerous regulatory proteins. Remarkably, the two main activities that catalyze substrate ubiquitination in the cell cycle, the Skp1-Cdc53/cullin-F-box protein (SCF) complexes and the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C), define a new superfamily of E3 ubiquitin ligases, all based on related cullin and RING-H2 finger protein subunits. The circuits that interconnect the SCF, APC/C and cyclin-dependent kinase activities form a master oscillator that coordinates the replication and segregation of the genome.

Anaphase-Promoting Complex-Cyclosome↗

APC(ste9/srw1) promotes degradation of mitotic cyclins in G(1) and is inhibited by cdc2 phosphorylation.

Fission yeast ste9/srw1 is a WD-repeat protein highly homologous to budding yeast Hct1/Cdh1 and Drosophila Fizzy-related that are involved in activating APC/C (anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome). We show that APC(ste9/srw1) specifically promotes the degradation of mitotic cyclins cdc13 and cig1 but not the S-phase cyclin cig2. APC(ste9/srw1) is not necessary for the proteolysis of cdc13 and cig1 that occurs at the metaphase-anaphase transition but it is absolutely required for their degradation in G(1). Therefore, we propose that the main role of APC(ste9/srw1) is to promote degradation of mitotic cyclins when cells need to delay or arrest the cell cycle in G(1). We also show that ste9/srw1 is negatively regulated by cdc2-dependent protein phosphorylation. In G(1), when cdc2-cyclin kinase activity is low, unphosphorylated ste9/srw1 interacts with APC/C. In the rest of the cell cycle, phosphorylation of ste9/srw1 by cdc2-cyclin complexes both triggers proteolysis of ste9/srw1 and causes its dissociation from the APC/C. This mechanism provides a molecular switch to prevent inactivation of cdc2 in G(2) and early mitosis and to allow its inactivation in G(1).

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Cell cycle-dependent expression of mammalian E2-C regulated by the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome.

Progression through mitosis requires the precisely timed ubiquitin-dependent degradation of specific substrates. E2-C is a ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme that plays a critical role with anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) in progression of and exit from M phase. Here we report that mammalian E2-C is expressed in late G(2)/M phase and is degraded as cells exit from M phase. The mammalian E2-C shows an autoubiquitinating activity leading to covalent conjugation to itself with several ubiquitins. The ubiquitination of E2-C is strongly enhanced by APC/C, resulting in the formation of a polyubiquitin chain. The polyubiquitination of mammalian E2-C occurs only when cells exit from M phase. Furthermore, mammalian E2-C contains two putative destruction boxes that are believed to act as recognition motifs for APC/C. The mutation of this motif reduced the polyubiquitination of mammalian E2-C, resulting in its stabilization. These results suggest that mammalian E2-C is itself a substrate of the APC/C-dependent proteolysis machinery, and that the periodic expression of mammalian E2-C may be a novel autoregulatory system for the control of the APC/C activity and its substrate specificity.

3T3 Cells↗

Cdk1 and PP2A constitute a molecular switch controlling orderly degradation of atypical E2Fs.

Dynamic oscillations in the phosphorylation and ubiquitination of key proliferative regulators are defining features of the eukaryotic cell cycle. Resetting the cell cycle at the mitosis-to-G1 transition requires activation of the E3 ubiquitin ligase Anaphase-Promoting Complex/Cyclosome (APC/C), which ensures cell cycle irreversibility by targeting dozens of substrates for degradation, safeguarding genome integrity. However, the overall coupling of substrate phosphorylation with target recognition and degradation by the APC/C remains relatively unexplored. As a paradigm for further defining these rules, we focused on E2F7 and E2F8-atypical E2F-family proteins that coordinate cell cycle gene expression by restraining the pro-proliferative transcriptional activity of E2F1. Leveraging complementary cell and cell-free systems, we demonstrate that flexible domains at the amino-termini of E2F7 and E2F8 contain APC/C recognition motifs adjacent to critical Thr residues, whose phosphorylation by Cdk1 is rate-limiting for degradation. The removal of this phosphorylation by PP2A serves as a molecular switch, coupling the degradation of E2F7 and E2F8 to the G1 phase, coinciding with the rise of E2F1. Collectively, these findings highlight a critical role for Cdk1-PP2A signaling in controlling the orderly degradation of APC/C substrates, ensuring precisely timed assembly of the transcriptional infrastructure that coordinates cell cycle commitment and progression.

Protein Phosphatase 2↗

Human p55(CDC)/Cdc20 associates with cyclin A and is phosphorylated by the cyclin A-Cdk2 complex.

The initiation of anaphase and exit from mitosis depend on the activation of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C), a multicomponent, ubiquitin-protein ligase. The WD-repeat protein called p55(CDC)(Cdc20) directly binds to and activates APC/C. By using yeast two-hybrid screening, we found that cyclin A, a critical cell cycle regulator in the S and G2/M phases, specifically interacts with p55(CDC). Ectopically expressed p55(CDC) and cyclin A form a stable protein complex in mammalian cells. The p55(CDC)-cyclin A interaction occurs through the region containing the WD repeats of p55(CDC) and the region between the destruction box and the cyclin box of cyclin A. In addition to the physical interaction, p55(CDC) is phosphorylated by cyclin A-associated kinase. These findings suggest that the function of p55(CDC) is mediated or regulated by its complex formation with cyclin A.

Animals↗

Polo-like kinases: positive regulators of cell division from start to finish.

Present in organisms ranging from yeast to man, homologues of the Drosophila Polo kinase control multiple stages of cell division. At the onset of mitosis, Polo-like kinases (Plks) function in centrosome maturation and bipolar spindle formation, and they contribute to the activation of cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk)1-cyclin B. Subsequently, they are required for the inactivation of Cdk1 and exit from mitosis. In the absence of Plk function, mitotic cyclins fail to be destroyed, indicating that Plks are important regulators of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C), a key component of the ubiquitin-dependent proteolytic degradation pathway. Finally, recent evidence implicates Plks in the temporal and spatial coordination of cytokinesis.

Animals↗

APC(Cdc20) promotes exit from mitosis by destroying the anaphase inhibitor Pds1 and cyclin Clb5.

Ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis due to the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) is essential for separation of sister chromatids, requiring degradation of the anaphase inhibitor Pds1, and for exit from mitosis, requiring inactivation of cyclin B Cdk1 kinases. Exit from mitosis in yeast involves accumulation of the cyclin kinase inhibitor Sic1 as well as cyclin proteolysis mediated by APC/C bound by the activating subunit Cdh1/Hct1 (APC(Cdh1)). Both processes require the Cdc14 phosphatase, whose release from the nucleolus during anaphase causes dephosphorylation and thereby activation of Cdh1 and accumulation of another protein, Sic1 (refs 4-7). We do not know what determines the release of Cdc14 and enables it to promote Cdk1 inactivation, but it is known to be dependent on APC/C bound by Cdc20 (APC(Cdc20)) (ref. 4). Here we show that APC(Cdc20) allows activation of Cdc14 and promotes exit from mitosis by mediating proteolysis of Pds1 and the S phase cyclin Clb5 in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Degradation of Pds1 is necessary for release of Cdc14 from the nucleolus, whereas degradation of Clb5 is crucial if Cdc14 is to overwhelm Cdk1 and activate its foes (Cdh1 and Sic1). Remarkably, cells lacking both Pds1 and Clb5 can proliferate in the complete absence of Cdc20.

Anaphase↗

Cell cycle-regulated proteolysis of mitotic target proteins.

The ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis of mitotic cyclin B, which is catalyzed by the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) and ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme H10 (UbcH10), begins around the time of the metaphase-anaphase transition and continues through G1 phase of the next cell cycle. We have used cell-free systems from mammalian somatic cells collected at different cell cycle stages (G0, G1, S, G2, and M) to investigate the regulated degradation of four targets of the mitotic destruction machinery: cyclins A and B, geminin H (an inhibitor of S phase identified in Xenopus), and Cut2p (an inhibitor of anaphase onset identified in fission yeast). All four are degraded by G1 extracts but not by extracts of S phase cells. Maintenance of destruction during G1 requires the activity of a PP2A-like phosphatase. Destruction of each target is dependent on the presence of an N-terminal destruction box motif, is accelerated by additional wild-type UbcH10 and is blocked by dominant negative UbcH10. Destruction of each is terminated by a dominant activity that appears in nuclei near the start of S phase. Previous work indicates that the APC/C-dependent destruction of anaphase inhibitors is activated after chromosome alignment at the metaphase plate. In support of this, we show that addition of dominant negative UbcH10 to G1 extracts blocks destruction of the yeast anaphase inhibitor Cut2p in vitro, and injection of dominant negative UbcH10 blocks anaphase onset in vivo. Finally, we report that injection of dominant negative Ubc3/Cdc34, whose role in G1-S control is well established and has been implicated in kinetochore function during mitosis in yeast, dramatically interferes with congression of chromosomes to the metaphase plate. These results demonstrate that the regulated ubiquitination and destruction of critical mitotic proteins is highly conserved from yeast to humans.

Animals↗

Regulation of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome by bimAAPC3 and proteolysis of NIMA.

Surprisingly, although highly temperature-sensitive, the bimA1(APC3) anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) mutation does not cause arrest of mitotic exit. Instead, rapid inactivation of bimA1(APC3) is shown to promote repeating oscillations of chromosome condensation and decondensation, activation and inactivation of NIMA and p34(cdc2) kinases, and accumulation and degradation of NIMA, which all coordinately cycle multiple times without causing nuclear division. These bimA1(APC3)-induced cell cycle oscillations require active NIMA, because a nimA5 + bimA1(APC3) double mutant arrests in a mitotic state with very high p34(cdc2) H1 kinase activity. NIMA protein instability during S phase and G2 was also found to be controlled by the APC/C. The bimA1(APC3) mutation therefore first inactivates the APC/C but then allows its activation in a cyclic manner; these cycles depend on NIMA. We hypothesize that bimAAPC3 could be part of a cell cycle clock mechanism that is reset after inactivation of bimA1(APC3). The bimA1(APC3) mutation may also make the APC/C resistant to activation by mitotic substrates of the APC/C, such as cyclin B, Polo, and NIMA, causing mitotic delay. Once these regulators accumulate, they activate the APC/C, and cells exit from mitosis, which then allows this cycle to repeat. The data indicate that bimAAPC3 regulates the APC/C in a NIMA-dependent manner.

Anaphase↗

The role of the destruction box and its neighbouring lysine residues in cyclin B for anaphase ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis in fission yeast: defining the D-box receptor.

Programmed proteolysis of proteins such as mitotic cyclins and Cut2/Pds1p requires a 9-residue conserved motif known as the destruction box (D-box). Strong expression of protein fragments containing destruction boxes, such as the first 70 residues of Cdc13 (N70), inhibits the growth of Schizosaccharomyces pombe at metaphase. This inhibition can be overcome either by removal of all lysine residues from N70 using site-directed mutagenesis (K0-N70) or by raising the concentration of intracellular ubiquitin. Consistent with the idea that competition for ubiquitin accounts for some of its inhibitory effects, wild-type N70 not only stabilized D-box proteins, but also Rum1 and Cdc18, which are degraded by a different pathway. The K0-N70 construct was neither polyubiquitinated nor degraded in vitro, but it blocked the growth of strains of yeast in which anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) function was compromised by mutation, and specifically inhibited proteolysis of APC/C substrates in vivo. Both K0-N70 and 20-residue D-box peptides blocked polyubiquitination of other D-box-containing substrates in a cell-free ubiquitination assay system. These data suggest the existence of a D-box receptor protein that recognizes D-boxes prior to ubiquitination.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The disappearance of cyclin B at the end of mitosis is regulated spatially in Drosophila cells.

We have followed the behaviour of a cyclin B-green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion protein in living Drosophila embryos in order to study how the localization and destruction of cyclin B is regulated in space and time. We show that the fusion protein accumulates at centrosomes in interphase, in the nucleus in prophase, on the mitotic spindle in prometaphase and on the microtubules that overlap in the middle of the spindle in metaphase. In cellularized embryos, toward the end of metaphase, the spindle-associated cyclin B-GFP disappears from the spindle in a wave that starts at the spindle poles and spreads to the spindle equator; when the cyclin B-GFP on the spindle is almost undetectable, the chromosomes enter anaphase, and any remaining cytoplasmic cyclin B-GFP then disappears over the next few minutes. The endogenous cyclin B protein appears to behave in a similar manner. These findings suggest that the inactivation of cyclin B is regulated spatially in Drosophila cells. We show that the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) specifically interacts with microtubules in embryo extracts, but it is not confined to the spindle in mitosis, suggesting that the spatially regulated disappearance of cyclin B may reflect the spatially regulated activation of the APC/C.

Animals↗

Hypomorphic bimA(APC3) alleles cause errors in chromosome metabolism that activate the DNA damage checkpoint blocking cytokinesis in Aspergillus nidulans.

The Aspergillus nidulans sepI(+) gene has been implicated in the coordination of septation with nuclear division and cell growth. We find that the temperature-sensitive (ts) sepI1 mutation represents a novel allele of bimA(APC3), which encodes a conserved component of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C). We have characterized the septation, nuclear division, cell-cycle checkpoint defects, and DNA sequence alterations of sepI1 (renamed bimA10) and two other ts lethal bimA(APC3) alleles, bimA1 and bimA9. Our observations that bimA9 and bimA10 strains had morphologically abnormal nuclei, chromosome segregation defects, synthetic phenotypes with mutations in the DNA damage checkpoint genes uvsB(MEC1/rad3) or uvsD(+), and enhanced sensitivity to hydroxyurea strongly suggest that these strains accumulate errors in DNA metabolism. We found that the aseptate phenotype of bimA9 and bimA10 strains was substantially relieved by mutations in uvsB(MEC1/rad3) or uvsD(+), suggesting that the presence of a functional DNA damage checkpoint inhibits septation in these bimA(APC3) strains. Our results demonstrate that mutations in bimA(APC3) lead to errors in DNA metabolism that indirectly block septation.

Alleles↗

Protein dynamics at the kinetochore: cell cycle regulation of the metaphase to anaphase transition.

The spindle checkpoint blocks the initiation of anaphase in mitosis and meiosis if chromosomes are not aligned at the metaphase plate. The checkpoint functions by preventing a ubiquitin ligase called the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) from ubiquitinylating proteins whose destruction is required for anaphase onset. The spindle checkpoint signal originates at the kinetochores of unaligned chromosomes and is broadcast to the rest of the cell. Although the spindle checkpoint is not understood in detail, several components of the checkpoint-signaling pathway have been identified. Many of these components associate transiently with the kinetochores of unaligned chromosomes. We propose a model in which kinetochores that lack stable attachments to the spindle microtubules serve as catalytic staging areas for the assembly of inhibitor complexes. These inhibitor complexes then leave the kinetochores and block activity of the APC/C throughout the cell. We suggest that microtubule occupancy at kinetochores or physical tension induced by microtubule capture turns off the capability of the kinetochore to produce the APC/C inhibitor. Subsequently, the inhibitor concentration in the cell wanes and anaphase initiates.

Anaphase-Promoting Complex-Cyclosome↗

Cdk1 and PP2A constitute a molecular switch controlling orderly degradation of atypical E2Fs.

Dynamic oscillations in the phosphorylation and ubiquitination of key proliferative regulators are defining features of the eukaryotic cell cycle. Resetting the cell cycle at the mitosis-to-G1 transition requires activation of the E3 ubiquitin ligase Anaphase-Promoting Complex/Cyclosome (APC/C), which ensures cell cycle irreversibility by targeting dozens of substrates for degradation, safeguarding genome integrity. However, the overall coupling of substrate phosphorylation with target recognition and degradation by the APC/C remains relatively unexplored. As a paradigm for further defining these rules, we focused on E2F7 and E2F8 - atypical E2F-family proteins that coordinate cell cycle gene expression by restraining the pro-proliferative transcriptional activity of E2F1. Leveraging complementary cell and cell-free systems, we demonstrate that flexible domains in the amino-termini of E2F7 and E2F8 contain APC/C recognition motifs adjacent to critical Thr residues, whose phosphorylation by Cdk1 is rate limiting for degradation. The removal of this phosphorylation by PP2A phosphatase serves as a molecular switch, coupling the degradation of E2F7 and E2F8 to the G1 phase, coinciding with the rise of E2F1. Collectively, these findings highlight a critical role for Cdk1-PP2A signaling in controlling the orderly degradation of APC/C substrates, ensuring precisely timed assembly of the transcriptional infrastructure that coordinates cell cycle commitment and progression.

APC/C substrate↗

Pds1p of budding yeast has dual roles: inhibition of anaphase initiation and regulation of mitotic exit.

Progression through mitosis is controlled by protein degradation that is mediated by the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) and its associated specificity factors. In budding yeast, APC/C(Cdc20) promotes the degradation of the Pds1p anaphase inhibitor at the metaphase-to-anaphase transition, whereas APC/C(Cdh1) promotes the degradation of the mitotic cyclins at the exit from mitosis. Here we show that Pds1p has a novel activity as an inhibitor of mitotic cyclin destruction, apparently by preventing the activation of APC/C(Cdh1). This activity of Pds1p is independent of its activity as an anaphase inhibitor. We propose that the dual role of Pds1p as an inhibitor of anaphase and of cyclin degradation allows the cell to couple the exit from mitosis to the prior completion of anaphase. Finally, these observations provide a novel regulatory paradigm in which the sequential degradation of two substrates is determined by the substrates themselves, such that an early substrate inhibits the degradation of a later one.

Anaphase↗

Targeting Mitotic Exit in Malignant Cells.

In order to sustain genomic stability by correct DNA replication and mitosis and thus avoid malignant transformation of cells, the cell cycle is a strictly regulated process. Aberrant cell cycle regulation and defects in mitosis in malignant cells are targets of various cancer therapies. Cancer cells may survive antimitotic treatment due to mitotic slippage with a residual activity of the ubiquitin ligase anaphase-promoting complex (APC/C) and a continuous slow ubiquitin-proteasome-dependent cyclin B-degradation leading to mitotic exit. The combination of antimitotic chemotherapeutics with proteasome inhibitors to block cyclin B-proteolysis or with targeted inhibitors of the APC/C and the antiapoptotic protein Mcl-1 seems a promising approach to improve treatment response in different malignancies by enhancing mitotic arrest and apoptosis.The influence of conventional spindle poisons and new targeted substances and of their combinations on mitosis and apoptosis has not yet been conclusively clarified. Most models have been verified on cell lines whose biology may differ from that of tumors growing in vivo. To study the impact of various antimitotic substances on cell proliferation, especially detect onset of apoptosis depending on different cell cycle phases and thus to identify a possibly entity-dependent mechanism of those agents and their combinations, a combined approach with live-cell imaging and soft-agar colony assays in cultured patient-derived xenografts (PDX) was established.

Humans↗

Viral inhibition of the anaphase promoting complex enhances replication by elevating nucleotide pools.

The anaphase promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) is a large, ubiquitin ligase and a central regulator of cell cycle progression. By targeting key substrates for degradation during mitosis and G1 phase, the APC/C coordinates metabolic fluctuations that occur during the cell cycle. A diverse range of viruses have convergently evolved mechanisms to bind and inhibit the APC/C; however, a molecular understanding for these interactions has never been demonstrated. Here, we use chicken anemia virus (CAV), a small single-stranded DNA virus encoding only three proteins, to demonstrate the importance of viral APC/C inhibition during replication. We show that the Vp3 protein of CAV inhibits the APC/C, causing a dramatic mitotic arrest during infection. The mutant virus lacking Vp3 is defective for replication and can be rescued by APC/C inhibition. Metabolomic profiling during CAV infection revealed that Vp3 expression mediates a broad increase in nucleotide pools. Moreover, viral inhibition of the APC/C resulted in stabilization of enzymes required for nucleotide biosynthesis. These findings suggest that the APC/C is a general target of many viruses to elevate nucleotide levels and facilitate viral genome replication.

Anaphase-Promoting Complex-Cyclosome↗