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The Journal of Biological Chemistry Dec 2022Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a lethal muscle disease, caused by mutations in the gene encoding dystrophin, an actin-binding cytoskeletal protein. Absence of functional...
Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a lethal muscle disease, caused by mutations in the gene encoding dystrophin, an actin-binding cytoskeletal protein. Absence of functional dystrophin results in muscle weakness and degeneration, eventually leading to cardiac and respiratory failure. Strategies to replace the missing dystrophin via gene therapy have been intensively pursued. However, the dystrophin gene is too large for current gene therapy approaches. Currently available micro-dystrophin constructs lack the actin-binding domain 2 and show decreased actin-binding affinity in vitro compared to full-length dystrophin. Thus, increasing the actin-binding affinity of micro-dystrophin, using small molecules, could be a beneficial therapeutic approach. Here, we have developed and validated a novel high-throughput screening (HTS) assay to discover small molecules that increase the binding affinity of dystrophin's actin-binding domain 1 (ABD1). We engineered a novel FRET biosensor, consisting of the mClover3, fluorescent protein (donor) attached to the C-terminus of dystrophin ABD1, and Alexa Fluor 568 (acceptor) attached to the C-terminal cysteine of actin. We used this biosensor in small-molecule screening, using a unique high-precision, HTS fluorescence lifetime assay, identifying several compounds from an FDA-approved library that significantly increase the binding between actin and ABD1. This HTS assay establishes feasibility for the discovery of small-molecule modulators of the actin-dystrophin interaction, with the ultimate goal of developing therapies for muscular dystrophy.
Topics: Humans; Actins; Dystrophin; Genetic Therapy; Muscular Dystrophy, Duchenne; Protein Binding; Small Molecule Libraries; Protein Domains
PubMed: 36372234
DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102675 -
Mechanisms of Development Apr 2001Dystrophin, the protein defective in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), plays a critical role in the formation and maintenance of the neuromuscular junction. In addition...
Dystrophin, the protein defective in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), plays a critical role in the formation and maintenance of the neuromuscular junction. In addition to dystrophin, activation of internal promoters of the DMD gene leads to the production of several short products. Among these, Dp71, which consists of the C-terminal domain of dystrophin, is the most abundant product of the gene in non-muscle tissues and brain. In this report, we compare the temporal and regional expression patterns of dystrophin and Dp71 at different stages of embryonic development and during retinal differentiation in zebrafish. The Dp71 transcripts are the earliest to be expressed at 9-10 h post-fertilization (hpf) in the axial mesoderm. As development proceeds, intense Dp71 staining is observed in the notochord, the developing brain, the marginal regions of the somites and the eye primordium. At the completion of retinal differentiation, Dp71 is expressed in the ganglion and inner nuclear layers. Transcripts encoding dystrophin have a slightly later onset of expression, 13-14 hpf, and remain restricted to the transverse myosepta through all the developmental stages examined. The complementary patterns of expression of dystrophin and Dp71 suggest that these two proteins exert different functions during embryonic development in zebrafish.
Topics: Animals; Brain; Dystrophin; Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; In Situ Hybridization; Mesoderm; Molecular Sequence Data; Promoter Regions, Genetic; Protein Structure, Tertiary; RNA, Messenger; Retina; Time Factors; Zebrafish
PubMed: 11287201
DOI: 10.1016/s0925-4773(01)00310-0 -
Neuroreport Jan 2016Dp71 dystrophin is the main DMD gene product expressed in the central nervous system. Experiments using PC12 cells as a neuronal model have shown that Dp71 isoforms are...
Dp71 dystrophin is the main DMD gene product expressed in the central nervous system. Experiments using PC12 cells as a neuronal model have shown that Dp71 isoforms are involved in differentiation, adhesion, cell division, and nuclear architecture. To contribute to the knowledge of Dp71 domains function, we previously reported the isolation and partial characterization of the dystrophin Dp71[INCREMENT]78-79 (a mutant that lacks exons 71, 78, and 79), which stimulates the neuronal differentiation of PC12-C11 clone. In this article, we generated a doxycycline (Dox)-inducible expression system in PC12 Tet-On cells (B10 cells) to overexpress and control the transcription of Dp71[INCREMENT]78-79. Western blotting and confocal microscopy showed an increase in the amount of Dp71[INCREMENT]78-79 (217±75-fold) with the addition of Dox to growth medium. Cell proliferation assays and morphometric analyses demonstrated that Dp71[INCREMENT]78-79 increases the growth rate of B10 cells and reduces the nerve growth factor-neuronal differentiation. Western blotting analysis revealed an upregulation in the expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen, focal adhesion kinase, and β-dystroglycan in B10 cells compared with control cells. Our results show that the inducible expression of Dp71[INCREMENT]78-79 increases the growth rate of PC12 Tet-On cells, suggesting a role of this protein in cell proliferation.
Topics: Animals; Blotting, Western; Cell Proliferation; Dystrophin; Exons; Fluorescent Antibody Technique; Microscopy, Confocal; Mutation; Neurogenesis; PC12 Cells; Rats; Transfection
PubMed: 26551922
DOI: 10.1097/WNR.0000000000000475 -
The AAPS Journal Dec 2022Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a degenerative muscular disease affecting roughly one in 5000 males at birth. The disease is often caused by inherited X-linked...
Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a degenerative muscular disease affecting roughly one in 5000 males at birth. The disease is often caused by inherited X-linked recessive pathogenic variants in the dystrophin gene, but may also arise from de novo mutations. Disease-causing variants include nonsense, out of frame deletions or duplications that result in loss of dystrophin protein expression. There is currently no cure for DMD and the few treatment options available aim at slowing muscle degradation. New advances in gene therapy and understanding of dystrophin (DYS) expression in other muscular dystrophies have opened new opportunities for treatment. Therefore, reliable methods are needed to monitor dystrophin expression and assess the efficacy of new therapies for muscular dystrophies such as DMD and Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD). Here, we describe the validation of a novel Western blot (WB) method for the quantitation of mini-dystrophin protein in human skeletal muscle tissues that is easy to adopt in most laboratory settings. This WB method was assessed through precision, accuracy, selectivity, dilution linearity, stability, and repeatability. Based on mini-DYS standard performance, the assay has a dynamic range of 0.5-15 ng protein (per 5 µg total protein per lane), precision of 3.3 to 25.5%, and accuracy of - 7.5 to 3.3%. Our stability assessment showed that the protein is stable after 4 F/T cycles, up to 2 h at RT and after 7 months at - 70°C. Furthermore, our WB method was compared to the results from our recently published LC-MS method. Workflow for our quantitative WB method to determine mini-dystrophin levels in muscle tissues (created in Biorender.com). Step 1 involves protein extraction from skeletal muscle tissue lysates from control, DMD, or BMD biospecimen. Step 2 measures total protein concentrations. Step 3 involves running gel electrophoresis with wild-type dystrophin (wt-DYS) from muscle tissue extracts alongside mini-dystrophin STD curve and mini-DYS and protein normalization with housekeeping GAPDH.
Topics: Male; Infant, Newborn; Humans; Dystrophin; Muscular Dystrophy, Duchenne; Muscle, Skeletal; Biopsy; Blotting, Western
PubMed: 36539515
DOI: 10.1208/s12248-022-00776-0 -
Human Molecular Genetics Apr 1992Duchenne and the less severe Becker form of muscular dystrophy (DMD,BMD) result from genetic deficiency in the level and/or activity of the protein dystrophin. The...
Duchenne and the less severe Becker form of muscular dystrophy (DMD,BMD) result from genetic deficiency in the level and/or activity of the protein dystrophin. The recent availability of cDNA based minigenes encoding recombinant dystrophin polypeptides has raised the possibility of somatic gene transfer as a therapeutic approach to treat dystrophin deficiency. In this respect, the mdx mouse provides a useful model of DMD exhibiting features characteristic of both the early myopathic and later fibrotic phases of the human disease. Using a mutated human cDNA, compatible in size with virus-based somatic gene transfer vectors, the pathophysiological consequences of restoring dystrophin expression have been examined in transgenic mdx mice. Transgene expression was correlated with a marked reduction of the skeletal myofibre necrosis and regeneration which is a major feature of the dystrophin-deficient phenotype in young mdx mice. The cDNA construct which is based on a very mild BMD phenotype thus encodes a highly functional dystrophin molecule whose reduced size renders it an attractive candidate for development as a therapeutic gene transfer reagent.
Topics: Animals; Blotting, Southern; Blotting, Western; Cloning, Molecular; Creatine Kinase; DNA; Dystrophin; Genetic Therapy; Humans; Male; Mice; Mice, Mutant Strains; Mice, Transgenic; Muscles; Muscular Dystrophy, Animal; Phenotype; Plasmids; Polymerase Chain Reaction
PubMed: 1301134
DOI: 10.1093/hmg/1.1.35 -
Journal of Biochemistry Nov 1992The molecular shape of dystrophin has been reported to be a 175 nm flexible rod [Pons, F. et al. (1990) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 87, 7851-7855] or a 120 nm dumbbell...
The molecular shape of dystrophin has been reported to be a 175 nm flexible rod [Pons, F. et al. (1990) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 87, 7851-7855] or a 120 nm dumbbell [Murayama, T. et al. (1990) Proc. Jpn. Acad. 66B, 96-99]. The present work revealed that 100 nm flexible rods with or without spheres were predominant in highly purified dystrophin preparations. When the sample was subjected to gel filtration, dystrophin oligomers were isolated just after the void volume and the fraction largely consisted of dumbbell-shaped molecules. From various rotary-shadowed images, it was suggested that dystrophin is a rod with spheres at both ends, approximately 110 nm long and 2 nm wide. It appeared that this monomer binds to another monomer in a staggered way, forming a dimer, and the dimers associate with each other side-by-side, forming a dumbbell-shaped tetramer, 130 nm long and 5 nm wide. The tetramers form an end-to-end aggregate. It seemed that the dumbbell structure was not affected by alkaline (pH 11) treatment to dissociate dystrophin associated glycoproteins, but was deteriorated by detergent, NP-40, Triton X-100, or CHAPS, used for solubilization of membrane-bound dystrophin.
Topics: Alkalies; Animals; Blotting, Western; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Detergents; Dystrophin; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; Polymers; Protein Conformation; Rabbits
PubMed: 1478922
DOI: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.jbchem.a123951 -
Muscle & Nerve Jul 2021
Topics: Biomarkers; Dystrophin; Humans; Muscular Dystrophy, Duchenne
PubMed: 34076279
DOI: 10.1002/mus.27342 -
Neuromuscular Disorders : NMD Dec 1997The possibility of using utrophin upregulation as a treatment for dystrophin-deficient muscular dystrophies has focused attention on the question of how many of...
The possibility of using utrophin upregulation as a treatment for dystrophin-deficient muscular dystrophies has focused attention on the question of how many of dystrophin's various functions can be performed by the closely-related protein, utrophin. In Xenopus heart, little or no dystrophin was found on Western blots but the dystrophin-related protein, utrophin, was abundant. This utrophin was shown by immunofluorescence microscopy to be associated with cardiac muscle membranes and its distribution was similar to that of dystrophin in rabbit heart. The utrophin distribution pattern in the frog heart was shared by beta-dystroglycan, a transmembrane protein responsible for localizing both dystrophin and utrophin at cell membranes. The results suggest that utrophin in Xenopus heart can perform similar functions to dystrophin in mammalian heart, lending further support to the possibility of utrophin upregulation therapy in muscular dystrophy. In skeletal muscle, however, Xenopus resembles mammals in expressing dystrophin at the sarcolemma and very little utrophin.
Topics: Animals; Cytoskeletal Proteins; Dystrophin; Membrane Proteins; Membranes; Microscopy, Fluorescence; Muscular Dystrophies; Muscular Dystrophy, Animal; Myocardium; Utrophin; Xenopus laevis
PubMed: 9447606
DOI: 10.1016/s0960-8966(97)00109-0 -
The Histochemical Journal Jul 1999Abnormal dystrophin expression is directly responsible for Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies. In skeletal muscle, dystrophin provides a link between the actin... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
Abnormal dystrophin expression is directly responsible for Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies. In skeletal muscle, dystrophin provides a link between the actin network and the extracellular matrix via the dystrophin-associated protein complex. In mature skeletal muscle, utrophin is a dystrophin-related protein localized mainly at the neuromuscular junction, with the same properties as dystrophin in terms of linking the protein complex. Utrophin could potentially overcome the absence of dystrophin in dystrophic skeletal muscles. In cardiac muscle, dystrophin and utrophin were both found to be present with a distinct subcellular distribution in Purkinje fibres, i.e. utrophin was limited to the cytoplasm, while dystrophin was located in the cytoplasmic membrane. In this study, we used this particular characteristic of cardiac Purkinje fibres and demonstrated that associated proteins of dystrophin and utrophin are different in this structure. We conclude, contrary to skeletal muscle, dystrophin-associated proteins do not form a complex in Purkinje fibres. In addition, we have indirect evidence of the presence of two different 400 kDa dystrophins in Purkinje fibres.
Topics: Animals; Blotting, Western; Cattle; Cytoskeletal Proteins; Dystroglycans; Dystrophin; Dystrophin-Associated Proteins; Membrane Glycoproteins; Membrane Proteins; Muscle Proteins; Organ Specificity; Purkinje Fibers; Sarcoglycans; Utrophin
PubMed: 10475570
DOI: 10.1023/a:1003805905456 -
The Journal of Biological Chemistry Mar 1995Aciculin is a recently identified 60-kDa cytoskeletal protein, highly homologous to the glycolytic enzyme phosphoglucomutase type 1, (Belkin, A. M., Klimanskaya, I. V.,...
Aciculin is a recently identified 60-kDa cytoskeletal protein, highly homologous to the glycolytic enzyme phosphoglucomutase type 1, (Belkin, A. M., Klimanskaya, I. V., Lukashev, M. E., Lilley, K., Critchley, D., and Koteliansky, V. E. (1994) J. Cell Sci. 107, 159-173). Aciculin expression in skeletal muscle is developmentally regulated, and this protein is particularly enriched at cell-matrix adherens junctions of muscle cells (Belkin, A. M., and Burridge, K. (1994) J. Cell Sci. 107, 1993-2003). The purpose of our study was to identify cytoskeletal protein(s) interacting with aciculin in various cell types. Using immunoprecipitation from cell lysates of metabolically labeled differentiating C2C12 muscle cells with anti-aciculin-specific antibodies, we detected a high molecular weight band (M(r) approximately 400,000), consistently coprecipitating with aciculin. We showed that this 400 kDa band comigrated with dystrophin and immunoblotted with anti-dystrophin antibodies. The association between aciculin and dystrophin in C2C12 cells was shown to resist Triton X-100 extraction and the majority of the complex could be extracted only in the presence of ionic detergents. In the reverse immunoprecipitation experiments, aciculin was detected in the precipitates with different anti-dystrophin antibodies. Immunodepletion experiments with lysates of metabolically labeled C2C12 myotubes showed that aciculin is a major dystrophin-associated protein in cultured skeletal muscle cells. Double immunostaining of differentiating and mature C2C12 myotubes with antibodies against aciculin and dystrophin revealed precise colocalization of these two cytoskeletal proteins throughout the process of myodifferentiation in culture. In skeletal muscle tissue, both proteins are concentrated at the sarcolemma and at myotendinous junctions. In contrast, utrophin, an autosomal homologue of dystrophin, was not codistributed with aciculin in muscle cell cultures and in skeletal muscle tissues. Analytical gel filtration experiments with purified aciculin and dystrophin showed interaction of these proteins in vitro, indicating that their association in skeletal muscle is due to direct binding. Whereas dystrophin was shown to be a major aciculin-associated protein in skeletal muscle, immunoblotting of anti-aciculin immunoprecipitates with antibodies against utrophin showed that aciculin is associated with utrophin in cultured A7r5 smooth muscle cells and REF52 fibroblasts. Immunodepletion experiments performed with lysates of metabolically labeled A7r5 cells demonstrated that aciculin is a major utrophin-binding protein in this cell type. Taken together, our data show that aciculin is a novel dystrophin- and utrophin-binding protein. Association of aciculin with dystrophin (utrophin) in various cell types might provide an additional cytoskeletal-matrix transmembrane link at sites where actin filaments terminate at the plasma membrane.
Topics: Animals; Cell Differentiation; Cell Line; Cell Membrane; Chickens; Chromatography, Affinity; Chromatography, Gel; Cysteine; Cytoskeletal Proteins; Dystrophin; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; Gizzard, Avian; Membrane Proteins; Methionine; Mice; Molecular Weight; Muscle, Skeletal; Muscle, Smooth; Phosphoglucomutase; Protein Binding; Sulfur Radioisotopes; Utrophin
PubMed: 7890770
DOI: 10.1074/jbc.270.11.6328