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The cytotoxicity of paclitaxel against eight human tumour cell lines has been studied with in vitro clonogenic assays. The fraction of surviving cells fell sharply after exposure for 24 h to paclitaxel concentrations ranging from 2 to 20 nM; the paclitaxel IC50 was found to range between 2.5 and 7.5 nM. Increasing the paclitaxel concentration above 50 nM,however,resulted in no additional cytotoxicity after a 24 h drug exposure. Cells incubated in very high concentrations of paclitaxel (10,000 nM) had an increase in survival compared with cells treated with lower concentrations of the drug. Prolonging the time of exposure of cells to paclitaxel from 24 to 72 h increased cytotoxicity from 5 to 200 fold in different cell lines. Exponentially growing cells were more sensitive to paclitaxel than were cells in the plateau phase of growth. Cremophor EL,the diluent in which the clinical preparation of paclitaxel is formulated,antagonised paclitaxel at concentrations of 0.135% (v/v). These data suggest that paclitaxel will be most effective clinically when there is prolonged exposure of tumour to the drug. Further,it appears that modest concentrations (i.e.,50 nM) should be as effective as higher concentrations of paclitaxel. Finally,we have noted that Cremophor EL is a biologically active diluent and,at high concentrations (0.135% v/v),can antagonise paclitaxel cytotoxicity. View Publication

Thrombopoietin (TPO),a lineage-specific cytokine affecting the proliferation and maturation of megakaryocytes from committed progenitor cells,is believed to be the major physiological regulator of circulating platelet levels. Recently we have isolated a cDNA encoding a ligand for the murine c-mpl protooncogene and shown it to be TPO. By employing a murine cDNA probe,we have isolated a gene encoding human TPO from a human genomic library. The TPO locus spans over 6 kb and has a structure similar to that of the erythropoietin gene (EPO). Southern blot analysis of human genomic DNA reveals a hybridization pattern consistent with a single gene locus. The locus was mapped by in situ hybridization of metaphase chromosome preparations to chromosome 3q26-27,a site where a number of chromosomal abnormalities associated with thrombocythemia in cases of acute myeloid leukemia have been mapped. A human TPO cDNA was isolated by PCR from kidney mRNA. The cDNA encodes a protein with 80% identity to previously described murine TPO and is capable of initiating a proliferative signal to murine interleukin 3-dependent BaF3 cells expressing the murine or human TPO receptor. View Publication

Xenopus in vitro studies have implicated both transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) and fibroblast growth factor (FGF) families in mesoderm induction. Although members of both families are present during mouse mesoderm formation,there is little evidence for their functional role in mesoderm induction. We show that mouse embryonic stem cells,which resemble primitive ectoderm,can differentiate to mesoderm in vitro in a chemically defined medium (CDM) in the absence of fetal bovine serum. In CDM,this differentiation is responsive to TGF-beta family members in a concentration-dependent manner,with activin A mediating the formation of dorsoanterior-like mesoderm and bone morphogenetic protein 4 mediating the formation of ventral mesoderm,including hematopoietic precursors. These effects are not observed in CDM alone or when TGF-beta 1,-beta 2,or -beta 3,acid FGF,or basic FGF is added individually to CDM. In vivo,at day 6.5 of mouse development,activin beta A RNA is detectable in the decidua and bone morphogenetic protein 4 RNA is detectable in the egg cylinder. Together,our data strongly implicate the TGF-beta family in mammalian mesoderm development and hematopoietic cell formation. View Publication

Thiazolidinedione derivatives are antidiabetic agents that increase the insulin sensitivity of target tissues in animal models of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. In vitro,thiazolidinediones promote adipocyte differentiation of preadipocyte and mesenchymal stem cell lines; however,the molecular basis for this adipogenic effect has remained unclear. Here,we report that thiazolidinediones are potent and selective activators of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR gamma),a member of the nuclear receptor superfamily recently shown to function in adipogenesis. The most potent of these agents,BRL49653,binds to PPAR gamma with a Kd of approximately 40 nM. Treatment of pluripotent C3H10T1/2 stem cells with BRL49653 results in efficient differentiation to adipocytes. These data are the first demonstration of a high affinity PPAR ligand and provide strong evidence that PPAR gamma is a molecular target for the adipogenic effects of thiazolidinediones. Furthermore,these data raise the intriguing possibility that PPAR gamma is a target for the therapeutic actions of this class of compounds. View Publication

A class of pyridinyl imidazoles inhibit the MAP kinase homologue,termed here reactivating kinase (RK) [Lee et al. (1994) Nature 372,739-746]. We now show that one of these compounds (SB 203580) inhibits RK in vitro (IC50 = 0.6 microM),suppresses the activation of MAPKAP kinase-2 and prevents the phosphorylation of heat shock protein (HSP) 27 in response to interleukin-1,cellular stresses and bacterial endotoxin in vivo. These results establish that MAPKAP kinase-2 is a physiological RK substrate,and that HSP27 is phosphorylated by MAPKAP kinase-2 in vivo. The specificity of SB 203580 was indicated by its failure to inhibit 12 other protein kinases in vitro,and by its lack of effect on the activation of RK kinase and other MAP kinase cascades in vivo. We suggest that SB 203580 will be useful for identifying other physiological roles and targets of RK and MAPKAP kinase-2. View Publication

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is believed to protect cells against environmental stress (e.g. heat shock) by switching off biosynthetic pathways,the key signal being elevation of AMP. Identification of novel targets for the kinase cascade would be facilitated by development of a specific agent for activating the kinase in intact cells. Incubation of rat hepatocytes with 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleoside (AICAR) results in accumulation of the monophosphorylated derivative (5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleoside; ZMP) within the cell. ZMP mimics both activating effects of AMP on AMPK,i.e. direct allosteric activation and promotion of phosphorylation by AMPK kinase. Unlike existing methods for activating AMPK in intact cells (e.g. fructose,heat shock),AICAR does not perturb the cellular contents of ATP,ADP or AMP. Incubation of hepatocytes with AICAR activates AMPK due to increased phosphorylation,causes phosphorylation and inactivation of a known target for AMPK (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase),and almost total cessation of two of the known target pathways,i.e. fatty acid and sterol synthesis. Incubation of isolated adipocytes with AICAR antagonizes isoprenaline-induced lipolysis. This provides direct evidence that the inhibition by AMPK of activation of hormone-sensitive lipase by cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase,previously demonstrated in cell-free assays,also operates in intact cells. AICAR should be a useful tool for identifying new target pathways and processes regulated by the protein kinase cascade. View Publication

Cytosolic aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH),an enzyme responsible for oxidizing intracellular aldehydes,has an important role in ethanol,vitamin A,and cyclophosphamide metabolism. High expression of this enzyme in primitive stem cells from multiple tissues,including bone marrow and intestine,appears to be an important mechanism by which these cells are resistant to cyclophosphamide. However,although hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) express high levels of cytosolic ALDH,isolating viable HSC by their ALDH expression has not been possible because ALDH is an intracellular protein. We found that a fluorescent aldehyde,dansyl aminoacetaldehyde (DAAA),could be used in flow cytometry experiments to isolate viable mouse and human cells based on their ALDH content. The level of dansyl fluorescence exhibited by cells after incubation with DAAA paralleled cytosolic ALDH levels determined by Western blotting and the sensitivity of the cells to cyclophosphamide. Moreover,DAAA appeared to be a more sensitive means of assessing cytosolic ALDH levels than Western blotting. Bone marrow progenitors treated with DAAA proliferated normally. Furthermore,marrow cells expressing high levels of dansyl fluorescence after incubation with DAAA were enriched for hematopoietic progenitors. The ability to isolate viable cells that express high levels of cytosolic ALDH could be an important component of methodology for identifying and purifying HSC and for studying cyclophosphamide-resistant tumor cell populations. View Publication

Sphingolipids,particularly gangliosides,are enriched in neuronal membranes where they have been implicated as mediators of various regulatory events. We recently provided evidence that sphingolipid synthesis is necessary to maintain neuronal growth by demonstrating that in hippocampal neurons,inhibition of ceramide synthesis by Fumonisin B1 (FB1) disrupted axonal outgrowth (Harel,R. and Futerman,A. H. (1993) J. Biol. Chem. 268,14476-14481). We now analyze further the relationship between neuronal growth and sphingolipid metabolism by examining the effect of an inhibitor of glucosylceramide synthesis,D-threo-1-phenyl-2-decanoylamino-3-morpholino-1- propanol (PDMP) and by examining the effects of both FB1 and PDMP at various stages of neuronal development. No effects of FB1 or PDMP were observed during the first 2 days in culture,but by day 3 axonal morphology was significantly altered,irrespective of the time of addition of the inhibitors to the cultures. Cells incubated with FB1 or PDMP had a shorter axon plexus and less axonal branches. FB1 appeared to cause a retraction of axonal branches between days 2 and 3,although long term incubation had no apparent effect on neuronal morphology or on the segregation of axonal or dendritic proteins. In contrast,incubation of neurons with conduritol B-epoxide,an inhibitor of glucosylceramide degradation,caused an increase in the number of axonal branches and a corresponding increase in the length of the axon plexus. A direct correlation was observed between the number of axonal branch points per cell and the extent of inhibition of either sphingolipid synthesis or degradation. These results suggest that sphingolipids play an important role in the formation or stabilization of axonal branches. View Publication

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA; 1-acyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphate) is a platelet-derived lipid mediator that activates its own G-protein-coupled receptor to trigger phospholipase C-mediated Ca2+ mobilization and other effector pathways in numerous cell types. In this study we have examined the structural features of LPA that are important for activation of the Ca(2+)-mobilizing receptor in human A431 carcinoma cells,which show an EC50 for oleoyl-LPA as low as 0.2 nM. When the acyl chain at the sn-1 position is altered,the rank order of potency is oleoyl-LPA textgreater arachidonoyl-LPA textgreater linolenoyl-LPA textgreater linoleoyl-LPA textgreater stearoyl-LPA = palmitoyl-LPA textgreater myristoyl-LPA. The shorter-chain species,lauroyl- and decanoyl-LPA,show little or no activity. Ether-linked LPA (1-O-hexadecyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphate) is somewhat less potent than the corresponding ester-linked LPA; its stereoisomer is about equally active. Deletion of the glycerol backbone causes a 1000-fold decrease in potency. Replacement of the phosphate group in palmitoyl-LPA by a hydrogen- or methyl-phosphonate moiety results in complete loss of activity. A phosphonate analogue with a methylene group replacing the oxygen at sn-3 has strongly decreased activity. All three phosphonate analogues induce cell lysis at doses textgreater 15 microM. Similarly,the methyl and ethyl esters of palmitoyl-LPA are virtually inactive and become cytotoxic at micromolar doses. None of the LPA analogues tested has antagonist activity. Sphingosine 1-phosphate,a putative messenger with some structural similarities to LPA,elicits a transient rise in intracellular [Ca2+] only at micromolar doses; however,cross-desensitization experiments indicate that sphingosine 1-phosphate does not act through the LPA receptor. The results indicate that,although many features of the LPA structure are important for optimal activity,the phosphate group is most critical,suggesting that this moiety is directly involved in receptor activation. View Publication

Mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells cultured as aggregates and exposed to retinoic acid are induced to express multiple phenotypes normally associated with neurons. A large percentage of treated aggregates produce a rich neuritic outgrowth. Dissociating the induced aggregates with trypsin and plating the cells as a monolayer results in cultures in which a sizable percentage of the cells have a neuronal appearance. These neuron-like cells express class III beta-tubulin and the neurofilament M subunit. Induced cultures express transcripts for neural-associated genes including the neurofilament L subunit,glutamate receptor subunits,the transcription factor Brn-3,and GFAP. Levels of neurofilament L and GAD67 and GAD65 transcripts rise dramatically upon induction. Physiological studies show that the neuron-like cells generate action potentials and express TTX-sensitive sodium channels,as well as voltage-gated potassium channels and calcium channels. We conclude that a complex system of neuronal gene expression can be activated in cultured ES cells. This system should be favorable for investigating some of the mechanisms that regulate neuronal differentiation. View Publication