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Molecular and Cellular Biology, March 2005, p. 1922-1941, Vol. 25, No. 5
0270-7306/05/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/MCB.25.5.1922-1941.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
and
Alan Wells*
Department of Pathology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Received 4 July 2004/ Returned for modification 3 September 2004/ Accepted 1 December 2004
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Active cell locomotion requires the coordination of a number of cellular processes that should be common among cell types (18, 28). Thus, as numerous external signals can modulate cell motility, two key questions are which biochemical pathway is actuated to promote migration during regeneration and whether these differ between cell types. Any such signaling pathway needs to affect key biophysical processes. During cell migration, tail de-adhesion may be rate-limiting; in experimental models, failure to detach limits cell motility (23, 44). Activation of calpain (EC 3.4.22.17), an intracellular limited protease, is required for integrin-mediated tail de-adhesion on moderately and highly adhesive substrata (30, 37) and for growth factor-induced motility (17, 43). This intracellular protease is a key switch, as calpain inhibitors convert EGFR-mediated signals from cell motility to matrix contractility (1). Thus, calpain activators appear to shift a wide range of cells to motility-permissive adhesion regimens, while inhibitory signals for calpain block productive locomotion. As such, we proposed that keratinocyte motility was dependent on calpain activity.
This requirement for calpain activity provides a target for regulating cell motility (18). Confounding any analysis, two calpain isoforms with seemingly identical target specificities are present in practically all cells (48). In vitro, calpain 1 (µ-calpain) is activated at nearly micromolar concentrations of calcium; calpain 2 (M-calpain) requires millimolar calcium levels. While calcium fluxes have been postulated to regulate µ-calpain, this has yet to be demonstrated conclusively in living cells (5), and the signaling cascade that triggers this isoform during cell locomotion remain undefined (30). Furthermore, the physiologically relevant activators of M-calpain are unknown since intracellular calcium levels fail to reach the nearly millimolar concentrations required in vitro (22). Still, we know that plasma membrane-localized M-calpain is activated subsequent to growth factor signaling by direct extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAP kinase) phosphorylation (12, 16, 17, 44). However, what signals and respective intracellular signaling pathways operate during reepithelialization by keratinocytes remains an open question (42).
In an initial exploration (43, 44), we reported that ELR-negative CXC chemokines, present during the process of wound repair (13, 42), can block fibroblast motility by preventing activation of M-calpain and subsequent de-adhesion, demonstrating that this might be a physiologically operative pathway. Of this family of chemokines, interferon-inducible protein 10 (IP-10) appears to be produced by the neovasculature deep in the dermis (13). A related ELR-negative CXC chemokine, IP-9, also called beta-R1 (40), H174 (24), and I-TAC (10), is produced by basal keratinocytes in response to immune-mediated injuries (52). Previously, we demonstrated that IP-9 is a wound response factor (42).
These ELR-negative CXC chemokines were originally found as modulators of cells of the hematopoietic lineage, but chemokine receptors have been found on endothelial and epithelial cells (36, 38, 44, 47, 63). The ELR-negative members of the CXC family of chemokines, all of which bind to a common CXCR3 receptor (2, 14, 27), inhibit endothelial cell proliferation, migration (21, 31, 51), and fibroblast migration (44). These appear to act dominantly over promitogenic and promotility chemokines and growth factors (43, 44). IP-9 is a wound response factor situated in the right place to limit fibroblast repopulation and promote the remodeling phase (42). However, with IP-9 being produced by keratinocytes in or near the wound bed, the situation for the reepithelializing keratinocytes is of great interest; would this chemokine, which serves to "mature" the dermis, also have the collateral effect of slowing reepithelialization?
Here we report that keratinocyte motility is promoted by both EGF and IP-9 through their activation of calpains. Furthermore, IP-9 does not block EGF-induced motility in keratinocytes, opposite to its effects on fibroblasts. Keratinocyte motility induced by EGF requires the pathway previously described in fibroblasts, which culminates in activation of the calpain 2 isoform, M-calpain (17). In undifferentiated keratinocytes, IP-9 also activated calpain, though it was the µ-calpain isoform and not the M-calpain isoform that was both triggered and required. This chemokine activation occurred through a phospholipase Cß (PLCß)-mediated calcium flux in distinction to the ERK MAP kinase signaling cascade that growth factors utilize to activate M-calpain (17). These two pathways converge at cell-diminished cell adhesion to substratum as mirrored in vinculin aggregate disassembly and cleavage of the focal adhesion kinase (FAK). This is the first demonstration, to our knowledge, of different isoforms of calpain being activated by distinct signals in the same cell to accomplish the same phenotypic end point, cell migration. We also show for the first time that IP-9 increased the intracellular calcium flux and resulted in triggering of the µ-calpain isoform, in turn resulting in productive cell motility.
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Keratinocyte cultures. Human primary epidermal keratinocytes (HEKn) were grown in serum-free medium with human EGF (10.2 ng/ml), hydrocortisone (0.18 µg/ml), bovine pituitary extract (0.2%, vol/vol), bovine insulin (5 µg/ml), and transferrin (5 µg/ml) (EpiLife medium, Cascade Biologicals) containing a low calcium concentration (0.06 mM) to maintain a dedifferentiated, proliferative, and migratory state. This state of the keratinocytes will be referred to as undifferentiated to distinguish them from polarized keratinocytes noted upon a switch to high calcium (0.37 mM) (42). Cells were allowed to become quiescent in EpiLife medium without EGF (or bovine pituitary extract or insulin) for 48 h prior to testing. All primary epithelial cultures were used at passage 2 to 9, as this preceded any culture-induced or in vitro aging changes in phenotype, as confirmed empirically.
HaCaT cells, a spontaneously immortalized but not transformed human keratinocyte cell line (4), has been used as a model for human keratinocytes. HaCaT cells was kindly provided by N. Fusenig, German Cancer Research Center (Heidelberg, Germany). The cells were maintained as monolayer cultures in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (Life Technologies, Gaithersburg, Md.), supplemented with 10% fetal calf serum (Life Technologies) along with 2 mM L-glutamine, 1 mM sodium pyruvate, 0.1 mM minimal essential medium, nonessential amino acids, and the antibiotics penicillin (100 U/ml) and streptomycin (100 µg/ml). Subconfluent cells were passaged with a 1:8 split ratio at 3-day intervals with 0.25% trypsin with 0.25 mM EDTA. Cells were allowed to become quiescent for 48 h with 0.1% dialyzed fetal calf serum prior to experiments.
Cell migration assay. An in vitro wound healing assay was performed in keratinocytes plated in tissue culture dishes (seeded at 40,000 per cm2) (6). At 80% confluence the cells were allowed to become quiescent in EpiLife medium without EGF, bovine pituitary extract, and insulin or in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium with 0.1% fetal bovine serum for 48 h. The undifferentiated keratinocytes (HEKn) and HaCaT cells were then treated or not with EGF (1 nM) and/or IP-9 (50 ng/ml) and incubated at 37oC for 24 h. Photographs were taken at 0 and 24 h, and the relative distance traveled by the cells at the acellular front was determined by computer-assisted image analysis; markings on the plate ensured measurement of the same site for the photographs. The distance migrated was then expressed as a percentage of the EGF-induced distance within each experiment, allowing direct interexperiment comparisons.
Cell de-adhesion assay. The cell substratum adhesiveness of undifferentiated keratinocytes was quantitated with an inverted centrifugation assay (62). Cells were plated at a concentration of 103 cells per ml in a 24-well plate. Cells were allowed to become quiescent for 24 h and then treated with antisense oligonucleotides specific for M-calpain and µ-calpain for 8 h along with EGF and IP-9 to deplete the existing calpain. Cells were then washed and incubated for a further 12 to 14 h in the presence of antisense oligonucleotides but not EGF and IP-9 to allow recovery from EGF and IP-9 to allow recovery from EGF and IP-9 exposure but prevent de novo calpain synthesis (17). After 14 h the cells were again stimulated or not with IP-9 for 2 h and/or EGF for 30 min. Wells were completely filled with EpiLife supplemented with 1% bovine serum albumin and 25 mM HEPES (pH 7.4) and then sealed with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay sealing tape (Corning, Cambridge, Mass,) and centrifuged inverted for 10 min at 2,920 x g at 37oC with a Beckman CS6R plate centrifuge. Before and after the centrifugation, the number of cells on the plates was counted under phase-contrast microscopy.
Calpain activity assays. Calpain activity was determined with a variety of assays to detect calpain isoforms (casein zymography) and activation status in living cells (Boc fluorescence) and cell extracts (MAP2 fluorescence).
Casein (7.5 mg/ml) was copolymerized with 30% acrylamide-bisacrylamide (wt/vol), with 5x and 2x HEPES-imidazole buffer and 200 mM EGTA as the separating gel and 30% acrylamide-bisacrylamide (wt/vol) and 5x HEPES-imidazole buffer as the stacking gel was poured into Minigel casts (Bio-Rad, Hercules, Calif.) (11). Ammonium persulfate (10%, wt/vol) and TEMED (tetramethylethylenediamine) were used to catalyze the polymerization. The casein gels were run with a buffer containing 1x HEPES-imidazole buffer, 5 mM EDTA, and 20 mM 2-mercaptoethanol for 15 min at 4°C. Samples were lysed in 25 mM MOPS (morpholinepropanesulfonic acid; pH 7.5)-10 mM EGTA-10 mM EDTA-5 mM 2-mercaptoethanol with 5 µg/ml of calpain inhibitor I to downregulate endogenous calpain production. An equal volume of sample buffer (25 mM Tris [pH 6.8], 25 mM EDTA, 50% glycerol, 50 mM 2-mercaptoethanol, 0.5% [wt/vol] bromophenol blue) was added to the sample. Equal amounts of protein (approximately 40 µg of sample) were loaded for each condition. Samples were loaded and the gels were run at 125 V for 3 h in the cold. The gel was then removed and incubated in 20 mM MOPS (pH 7.5)-5 mM 2-mercaptoethanol with or without calcium (5 mM) for 24 h at ambient temperature. To visualize the areas of calpain proteolysis, the gel was stained with Coomassie blue.
For all the live cell experiments, we used IP-9 (50 ng/ml), EGF (1 nM), calpain inhibitor 1 (5 µg/ml), PD98059 (2 µM), ET-18-OCH3 (100 nM), Z-LLY-FMK (10 µM), propranolol (100 µM), Boc-LM-CMAC (50 µM), and BAPTA-AM (5 µM); cells were incubated at 37oC (17). The concentrations of inhibitors were determined empirically as the minimal dose required to inhibit that specific target without altering cell viability or inhibiting nontarget pathways; the doses of most of the inhibitors are from published experimental studies. For the inhibitors for which the optimal dose was not available, dosage studies were performed, and reported here are the optimal concentrations which did not affect the cell shape and morphology but were sufficient to inhibit calpain activity.
The calpain activity in individual living cells was detected with a Boc-LM-CMAC assay for in vivo proteolysis. In brief, keratinocytes were plated on glass coverslips. The cells were allowed to become quiescent at 50% confluence for 48 h and then treated in the presence or absence of IP-9, calpain inhibitor 1, ET-18-OCH3, and/or EGF for 2 h, 1 h, 30 min, and 10 min, respectively. BAPTA-AM, a cell-permeating acetoxymethyl (AM) ester derivative of 1,2-bis(O-aminophenoxy)-ethane-N,N,N,N-tetraacetic acid, is an intracellular calcium chelator and was used to determine the requirement of intracellular calcium for induced calpain activity. BAPTA-AM was loaded for 30 min prior to Boc-LM-CMAC and in the presence or absence of EGF and/or IP-9. All cells were loaded with Boc-LM-CMAC for 20 min prior to mounting on glass slides. The treated and control cells were then observed for CMAC fluorescence with an Olympus fluorescent microscope (model BX40, Olympus M-NUA filter). Representative images of each slide were captured with a SPOTII charge-coupled device camera (Diagnostic Instruments, Sterling Heights, Mich.). The image exposure settings were identical within each experiment (i.e., for no-EGF and EGF treatment) but did vary slightly between experiments; thus, one can directly compare fluorescence intensity within an experiment but not between experiments. Cell shape did not vary appreciably between treatments and controls when analyzed for cross-sectional area (data not shown). Images shown are representative of three or more separate experiments.
A second assay of calpain activity used is the hydrolysis of microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2)-dichlorotriazinylaminofluorescein (DTAF) by cell lysates (17, 57). Briefly, MAP2 (Cytoskeleton, Denver, Colo.) was conjugated with DTAF by incubation in a pH 8.5 PIPES (piperazine ethanesulfonic acid) buffer for 30 min at 4°C. Labeled MAP2 was isolated by size exclusion column chromatography and dialyzed against pH 7.5 HEPES buffer overnight. Cells were grown to confluence and allowed to become quiescent for 48 h. After a 2-h treatment with IP-9, 30 min with calpain inhibitor I, and/or 5 min with EGF, cells were washed twice with ice-cold phosphate-buffered saline and lysed in 20 nM HEPES (pH 7.4)-10% glycerol-0.1% Triton X-100-500 mM sodium chloride-1 mM sodium vanadate. After removing the cell debris by centrifugation, 0.9 µg of DTAF-labeled MAP2 and 2 µl of 0.1 mM CaCl2 were added to 100 µl of lysate. Fluorescence was immediately measured with an AmincoBowman Series II spectrofluorometer (Spectronic Instruments Inc., Rochester, N.Y.) at excitation and emission wavelengths of 490 and 520 nm, respectively, for 3 min at room temperature.
Immunoblotting. Undifferentiated keratinocytes were treated with IP-9 (50 ng/ml), EGF (1 nM), or forskolin (25 µM) for 2 h, 10 min, and 15 min, respectively, as determined for optimal effects empirically and in prior efforts (42, 43). HaCat cells were treated with IP-9 (200 ng/ml) and EGF (10 nM) for 30 min and calpain inhibitor 1 (5 µM) for 30 min to determine the cleavage of the calpain substrate FAK. Cells were then lysed and proteins separated on sodium dodecyl sulfate-7.5% polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, transferred to a polyvinylidene difluoride membrane, and probed with anti-phospho-ERK antibody (New England Biolabs) or anti-FAK (clone 77; BD Biosciences Pharmingen, San Diego, Calif.) before visualizing with alkaline phosphatase-conjugated secondary antibody and nitroblue tetrazolium-5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolylphosphate (NBT-BCIP) substrate (Promega, Madison, Wis.).
Calpain antisense downregulation. The isoform-specific role of calpain activity in cell migration with and without EGF and IP-9 treatment was determined by downregulating M-calpain and µ-calpain with antisense phosphothiorate oligonucleotides (17). Cells were treated with 20 µM oligonucleotide (Life Technologies) throughout the cell motility assay. The oligonucleotides were designed to hybridize with the initiation codon for each isoform (5'-ATGCCCGCCATGCTGCGT-3') for M-calpain (calpain 2) and (5'-ATCTCCTCCGACATCCTG-3') for µ-calpain (calpain 1).
To determine the efficacy of downregulation of calpain isoforms, the Boc-LM-CMAC assay was used. Cells were treated or not with EGF and/or IP-9, and the calpain levels were then analyzed under conditions similar to those seen during the productive locomotive phase of the motility experiment. In brief, cells were treated with EGF, IP-9 and oligonucleotides for 8 h to deplete the existing calpain. Cells were then incubated for a further 12 to 14 h in the presence of oligonucleotide but not EGF and IP-9 to allow recovery from EGF and IP-9 exposure but prevent de novo calpain synthesis. After 12 h the cells were again stimulated or not with IP-9 for 2 h and/or EGF for 10 min, followed by treatment with Boc-LM-CMAC for 20 min, and calpain activity was assessed.
siRNA transfections. Short interfering RNA (siRNA) duplexes (siRNAs) were synthesized and purified by IDT (Coralville, Iowa). The siRNA sequence for targeting human M-calpain (GenBank accession number NM_001748) was M-calpain siRNA (5'-GGCAUUAGAAGAAGCAGGUTT). The siRNA sequence for targeting human µ-calpain (GenBank accession number X04366) was done with two sequences of µ-calpain siRNA (5'-GCCAGGAAGGCAGCUUUCGC-3' and 5'-GAGGAGAUUGACGAGAACTT). Green fluorescent protein (GFP) siRNA(5'-GACCCGCGCCGAGGUGAAGTT-3') was used as a negative control.
Transfection of siRNAs was
performed with the manufacturer's protocol for Lipofectamine 2000
(Invitrogen). Briefly, 4 µl of 20 µM siRNA was
mixed with 200 µl of Opti-MEM; 4 µl of Lipofectamine
2000 was diluted in 200 µl of Opti-MEM and incubated at room
temperature for 5 min. After the incubation, the diluted Lipofectamine
2000 was combined with the diluted siRNA and then incubated
for an additional 20 min at room temperature. Total 400 µl of
siRNA-Lipofectamine 2000 complexes was applied to each well of
cultured HaCaT keratinocytes at
70% confluence
in a six-well plate. The cells were stimulated with EGF or IP-9 during
the entire time of motility and activation studies. The cells were
analyzed 48 h after siRNA transfection by
immunoblotting with calpain antibodies specific for M-calpain
(Santacruz Biologicals, Santacruz, Calif.) and µ-calpain
(Biomol) or FAK (BD Biosciences Pharmigen), to assess calpain activity
with Boc-LM-CMAC assay, by immunofluorescence to visualize vinculin
aggregates, and to determine cell motility and
adhesiveness.
PLC-ß3 antisense downregulation.
The role of
PLC-ß3 in transmitting IP-9 signals was elucidated by
downregulating PLC-ß3 with two antisense phosphothiorate
oligonucleotide; the sequences of the oligonucleotides were
5'-CTGGGCGCCCGCCATGGCCCG-3' and
5'-GTACAAGAAGAAGCCATTGGG-3'.
Cells were treated with 20 µM oligonucleotide (Life
Technologies) for 48 h, after which the cells were
stimulated with IP-9 or EGF for 2 h or 10 min,
respectively. This was followed by treatment with Boc-LM-CMAC for 20
min, and calpain activity was assessed. Antisense downregulation of
PLC-
1 was used as control for the experiments
(8). The extent of
downregulation was assessed by immunoblotting with a primary antibody
specific for PLC-ß3 (Santa Cruz
Biologicals).
Intracellular calcium measurements. Fluo-3-AM (1-[2-amino-5-(2,7-dichloro-6-hydroxy-3-oxy-9-xanthenyl) phenoxy]-2-[2-amino-5-methylphenoxy]ethane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid was used as the membrane-permeable acetoxymethyl ester as described (53). HEKn and HaCaT cells were grown to 75% confluence in a cover glass slide and allowed to become quiescent for 24 h. After 24 h, cells were incubated with IP-9 (50 ng/ml) for 2 h or platelet-derived growth factor (100 ng/ml) for 30 min and BAPTA-AM (20 µM) for 40 min prior to loading of 10 µM fluo-3 AM for 1 h, allowing cell esterases to release the membrane-impermeant free calcium-binding polycarboxylic acids. After washing with phosphate-buffered saline several times, cells were placed in HEPES buffer (10 mM) for HEKn or for HaCaT cells in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium without sodium bicarbonate, 10 mM HEPES, 10% fetal calf serum, along with 1% streptomycin and adjusting the pH to 7.3. Following this, the fluorescence was measured as a function of time at 525 nM with excitation at 488 nM. Twelve images were captured at 10 seconds apart with 200 millisecond fluorescence integration at 100x magnification with a inverted confocal microscope.
Experimental analysis. Background fluorescence was subtracted and fluorescence was calculated as a function of time for individual cells over the entire measurement period. The number of cells analyzed was 18 (12 frames) for different treatments along with nontreated cells. Six cells each from three different experiments gave similar findings.
Vinculin staining and image acquisition. HaCaT keratinocytes were seeded at 8,000 cells per well on eight-well chamber slides, and the cells were allowed to become quiescent for 48 h once they reached subconfluence. Prior to fixing the cells with freshly prepared 4% paraformaldehyde (vol/vol), the cells were treated with EGF (10 nM) or IP-9 (50 ng/ml) for 30 min and 60 min, along with calpain inhibitor 1. Transfections with M-calpain siRNA and µ-calpain siRNA were accomplished as above with the modification that cells were seeded on a glass coverslip in a six-well plate. After the transfection and staining for vinculin, the coverslips were mounted onto a glass slide to view focal adhesions. In brief, after fixing and the initial steps of blocking with 5% bovine serum albumin and washing with Tris-buffered saline with Tween 20 (TBST), the cells were incubated for 1 h with monoclonal mouse vinculin clone HVIN-1 V-1931 (1:400) obtained from Sigma. After washing three times with TBST, the cells were incubated with Alexa fluorescein isothiocyanate (1:100)-conjugated goat anti-mouse immunoglobulin G along with propidium iodide (30 µg/ml) for nuclear staining, followed by mounting the cells with Gelvatol (Aldrich Chemical, Milwaukee, Wis,).
With the confocal laser-scanning microscope (LSM 510, Zeiss, Jena, Germany),double-labeled immunofluorescence was examined. Illumination was provided by argon (458, 477, 488, and 514 nm, 30 mW), HeNe (543 nm, 1 mW), and HeN (633 nm, 5 mW) lasers. Digital images were captured with LSM 510 3.2 software (Zeiss). The acquired eight-bit images at a resolution of 1,240 pixels was processed with Adobe Photoshop 7.0.1 software (Adobe Systems, San Jose, Calif.).
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FIG. 1. IP-9
expressed in wounded keratinocytes induces motility of undifferentiated
keratinocytes (HEKn cells) (a) and immortalized keratinocytes
(HaCaT cells) (b) expressing both calpain isoforms (c). (a)
Early-passage human keratinocytes were tested for induced motility in
an in vitro wound healing assay. Cells were treated with EGF (1 nM) or
IP-9 (50 ng/ml) and a pharmacological inhibitor of calpain, calpain
inhibitor 1 (5 µM), throughout the assay. The values are shown
as the ratio of EGF (1 nM)-induced cell motility. The values are means
± standard error of the mean of three independent studies each
performed in triplicate. Statistical analysis was performed by
Student's t test. (b) Human immortalized keratinocytes,
HaCaT cells, were treated with EGF (1 nM) or IP-9 (50 ng/ml)
and calpain inhibitor 1 (5 µM) throughout the assay. The values
are mean ± standard error of the mean of three independent
studies, each performed in triplicate. Statistical analysis was
performed by Student's t test. (c) Casein zymography
demonstrates that both HEKn and HaCaT keratinocytes possess
potential calpain activity from both ubiquitous isoforms. Proteins
(approximately 40 µg) from both HEKn and HaCaT
keratinocytes were electrophoresed into a casein gel and subsequently
incubated in buffer containing 20 mM MOPS, pH 7.5-5 mM
2-mercaptoethanol and calcium (5 mM). Shown here are the Coomassie
blue-stained casein gels. Purified porcine M- and µ-calpains (1
µg each) served as controls. Images are representative of three
separate experiments. The data presented in part a are independently
derived but similar to those published
before(42); the data are
provided herein for
context.
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IP-9 induces calpain activity in undifferentiated keratinocytes. The two main isoforms of calpain, M- and µ-calpain, are defined by their in vitro sensitivity to calcium for activation(48). Both of these isoforms are expressed in HEKn and HaCaT keratinocytes (Fig. 1c). Thus, the signals initiated by IP-9 (and EGF) might regulate either isoform, as the earlier study utilized agents that inhibit both isoforms (42) (Fig. 1). Calpain activity was assessed by the Boc-LM-CMAC assay, which provides an in vivo measurement under physiological conditions, since it identifies cells in which calpain is activated (41). EGF increased calpain activity more than twofold compared to nontreated HEKn and HaCaT cells (Figs. 2a and 2b), in concordance with what we measured in other epithelial cells (32). Calpain activity was also increased in IP-9-treated cells compared to basal activity in nontreated cells. Increased activation of calpain was also noted in the ex vivo MAP2 cleavage assay, which was used to confirm the Boc-LM-CMAC fluorescence (Fig. 2c). The Boc fluorescence induced by either EGF or IP-9 was due to calpain activity as determined by inhibition by the pharmacological inhibitors calpain inhibitor 1 (ALLN) (5 µg/ml) (Fig. 2a and 2b) and calpain inhibitor IV (Z-LLY-FMK) (10 µM) (Fig. 2a). It must be noted that both Boc-LM-CMAC and MAP2 assays determine only relative calpain activation and thus comparison of absolute activity cannot be made between M-and µ-calpain-mediated cleavage. These data demonstrate that EGF and IP-9 can induce calpain activity in both undifferentiated keratinocytes (HEKn) and immortalized HaCaT cells.
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FIG. 2. IP-9
and EGF activate calpain in undifferentiated keratinocytes.
Undifferentiated keratinocytes (HEKn cells) (a) and immortalized
keratinocytes (HaCaT cells) (b) were tested for calpain
activity following stimulation by IP-9 (50 ng/ml) for 120 min or EGF (1
nM) for 10 min by intracellular cleavage of the synthetic substrate
Boc-LM-CMAC and subsequent fluorescence, as shown by a representative
experiment of three to five experiments. (a) The calpain inhibitor
calpain inhibitor 1 (5 µg/ml) and the second calpain inhibitor
Z-LLY-FMK (10 µM) were added for 30 min prior to the addition
of ligand. (c) The involvement of calpain was confirmed by ex vivo MAP2
cleavage in HEKn cells as described. Shown is MAP2 fluorescence over
unstimulated cells of two experiments performed in triplicate.
Statistical analysis was performed by Student's t test.
The Boc-LM-CMAC fluorescence is not cell size dependent, and the
addition of the substrate Boc-LM-CMAC to the cells does not change cell
size or shape
significantly.
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FIG. 3. Molecular
interventions downregulate ubiquitous calpains in an isoform-specific
manner. siRNAs targeted against either µ-calpain (a)
or M-calpain (b) were transfected into HaCaT cells, and the
protein level of the isoforms was determined 48 h later by
isoform-specific immunoblotting. Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate
dehydrogenase (GAPDH) staining demonstrates equal cell loading. Shown
is one of up to four similar immunoblots for each
analysis.
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FIG. 4. IP-9
requires µ-calpain for calpain activity. (a and b)
IP-9 activates µ-calpain, whereas EGF triggers M-calpain.
Undifferentiated primary keratinocytes (HEKn cells) were treated with
IP-9 (50 ng/ml) or/and EGF (1 nM) in the presence or absence of
antisense oligonucleotides (20 µM) to M- and µ-calpain
or a scrambled oligonucleotide for 8 h to deplete endogenous
calpain (17). IP-9 and
EGF were removed, and the oligonucleotides were replenished for an
additional 12 h. Cells were then again stimulated with IP-9
or EGF for 120 min and 10 min, respectively, and calpain cleavage of
the substrate Boc-LM-CMAC was observed. Representative experiment
images (of three experiments) are shown in a and quantified in b.
Values are means ± standard errors of the means of two
independent studies, each performed in duplicate. Statistical analysis
was performed by Student's t test. (c) siRNA
elimination of µ-calpain limits IP-9 induction of BOC
fluorescence in HaCaT cells; 48 h after transfection
with isoform-specific siRNA or GFP-targeted siRNA,
HaCaT cells were exposed to IP-9 or EGF for 120 min and 10
min, respectively, and calpain cleavage of the substrate Boc-LM-CMAC
was observed. Representative experiment images (of two experiments) are
shown.
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FIG. 5. IP-9
requires µ-calpain for cell migration and cell de-adhesion. (a)
Antisense downregulation of µ-calpain but not M-calpain blocks
IP-9-induced motility of HEKn keratinocytes in an in vitro wound
healing assay. Cells were treated in the presence or absence of EGF (1
nM) or IP-9 (50 ng/ml) in the presence of antisense oligonucleotides
directed against the initiation codon regions of M- and
µ-calpain or a scrambled oligonucleotide (not shown) for
24 h. Cell motility was calculated as a percentage of
EGF-induced responses in the absence of oligonucleotide exposure.
Values are means ± standard errors of the means of three
independent studies, each performed in triplicate. (b and c)
siRNA downregulation of µ-calpain but not M-calpain
blocks IP-9-induced motility and siRNA downregulation of M-
calpain but not µ-calpain blocks EGF induced motility of
HaCaT cells; 48 h after transfection, HaCaT
cells were exposed to EGF or IP-9 in an in vitro wound healing assay.
The values are shown as the ratio of EGF (1 nM)-induced cell motility.
Values are means ± standard errors of the means of three
independent studies, each performed in duplicate. (d) Antisense
downregulation of µ-calpain blocks IP-9 induced de-adhesion and
antisense downregulation of M-calpain blocks EGF induced deadhesion in
undifferentiated keratinocytes. Cells were treated with EGF (1 nM) and
IP-9 (50 ng/ml) and antisense oligonucleotides specific for M-calpain
or µ-calpain for 8 h, recovered in the presence of
antisense oligonucleotides for 14 h, and then stimulated with
IP-9 or EGF for 2 h and 30 min, respectively. Values are
calculated as a percentage of precentrifugation cells remaining
adherent. Values are means ± standard errors of the means of
two independent studies, each performed in duplicate. Statistical
analyses were performed with Student's t
test.
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FIG. 6. IP-9
and EGF induce disassembly of vinculin aggregates. HaCaT
keratinocytes were exposed to EGF or IP-9 for 60 min prior to fixing
and staining for vinculin by immunofluorescence (a time course
demonstrated loss of aggregates starting by 30 min; data not shown).
One subset of cells was exposed to calpain inhibitor 1 during the
factor exposure. In another series of experiments, the keratinocytes
were treated with isoform-specific siRNA to target M- or
µ-calpain independently. Vinculin staining was imaged by
confocal microscopy, and representative cells are shown (three
independent experiments were performed for each inhibitory
challenge).
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FIG. 7. IP-9-induced
FAK cleavage is µ-calpain-dependent. EGF (10 nM) and IP-9 (200
ng/ml) stimulation resulted in the appearance of a 84-kDa
cleavage product of FAK as detected by immunoblotting. The appearance
of this fragment was maximal at 30 to 60 min (shown are 30-min
challenges). Concomitant treatment with calpain inhibitor 1 (a) or
isoform-specific siRNA (b) reduced the level of this cleavage
product of FAK. Shown is one of three similar immunoblots for each
situation.
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FIG. 8. Calcium
flux elicited by IP-9 was inhibited by intracellular calcium chelator
BAPTA-AM. (a) Intracellular calcium concentration rose in response to
IP-9 stimulation in HaCaT cells. The frames shown were taken
60 s after addition of IP-9 or diluent (Notx); BAPTA-AM was
added 40 min prior to IP-9. HEKn cells demonstrated a
similar, BAPTA-AM-quenchable rise in calcium concentration upon IP-9
exposure (data not shown). (b) Representative graph of a single cell
trace of fluorescence showing average intracellular calcium in control
cells (middle line) and calcium traces in specific cells showing
transients in IP-9-stimulated cells (top line). No calcium fluxes were
observed when IP-9 was added along with BAPTA-AM (bottomline). The mean intracellular calcium concentration of all IP-9-treated
cells was greater on average from the control cells (see panel a and
also the movie in the supplemental material), but the average rise in
calcium concentration is not provided due to expected temporal offsets
of the peaks in intracellular calcium concentration. Shown is a
representative experiment of three, each done in triplicate, for both
HaCaT and HEKn
cells.
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![]() View larger version (30K): [in a new window] |
FIG. 9. Intracellular
calcium is required for IP-9-induced calpain activity. Undifferentiated
keratinocytes were treated in the presence or
absence of IP-9 (50 ng/ml) for 120 min or EGF (1 nM) for 10
min and visualized (a) and quantitated (mean ± standard error
of the mean of >15 cells/experiment) (b) for calpain
activity. BAPTA-AM, a membrane-permeant acetoxymethyl ester of an
intracellular calcium chelator, was used to determine the requirement
of intracellular calcium for IP-9-induced calpain activity. BAPTA-AM (5
µM) was loaded 30 min prior to Boc-LM-CMAC and in the presence
or absence of EGF and IP-9. This experiment was performed three times.
Statistical analysis was performed by Student's t test.
(c) A similar experiment was performed in human immortalized
keratinocytes (HaCaT cells) to reproduce the results obtained
with undifferentiated
keratinocytes.
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![]() View larger version (26K): [in a new window] |
FIG. 10. ERK
is required for EGF-induced cell migration. a) EGF (1 nM, 10 min) but
not IP-9 (50 ng/ml, 120 min) induces ERK MAP kinase in undifferentiated
keratinocytes. Forskolin (25 µM, 15 min prior to ligand) served
as an independent activator of cyclic AMP. Activation of ERK was
determined by immunoblotting equal protein lysates for phospho-ERK. (b)
Pharmacological inhibition of MAP kinase kinase with PD98059 (2
µM, 30 min prior to ligand) prevents EGF-induced calpain
cleavage of the Boc-LM-CMAC substrate. Images are representative of
three experiments. (c) PD98059 (2 µm) blocked cell migration in
undifferentiated keratinocytes induced by EGF (1 nM) but not IP-9 (50
ng/ml) (n = 3). Statistical analysis was performed by
Student's t
test.
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signaling to enable cytoskeletal reorganization
(59). The need for PLC
signaling is not simply permissive, as basal haptokinetic motility was
unaffected by U-73122, similar to what has been found for fibroblasts
(8).
![]() View larger version (27K): [in a new window] |
FIG. 11. IP-9-induced
cell migration requires PLC-dependent calpain activation. (a)
Pharmacological inhibition of all PLC isoforms by U-73122 (2
µM) blocked both EGF- and IP-9-induced cell motility in
undifferentiated keratinocytes. The values are shown as ratios of the
EGF (1 nM)-induced cell motility. The
values are means ± standard errors of the means of six
independent studies, each performed in triplicate.
Statistical analysis was performed by Student's
t test. (b) Undifferentiated keratinocytes were tested for
calpain activity following stimulation by IP-9 (50 ng/ml) for 120 min
or EGF (1 nM) for 10 min. The pan-PLC inhibitor ET-18-OCH3 (100 nM) and
the phospholipase D inhibitor propranolol (100 µM) (as a
nonspecific control in addition to molecular downregulation) were added
for 30 min prior to the addition of ligand. Calpain activity was
monitored by intracellular cleavage of the synthetic
substrate Boc-LM-CMAC and subsequent fluorescence. Shown is
a representative experiment of three to five
experiments.
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The requirement for PLC-ß3 signaling was
demonstrated by molecular downregulation (Fig.
12a and b). Antisense
oligonucleotides downregulate PLC-ß3 levels to less than half
in the presence of IP-9 stimulation (Fig.
12c). Such a
stimulation-dependent downregulation is not unprecedented for
long-half-life proteins, as antisense downregulation of M-calpain also
requires costimulation by EGF
(17). These antisense
oligonucleotides to PLC-ß3 but not those against PLC-
1
inhibited calpain activation (Fig.
12a). The PLC-
1
antisense oligonucleotide was functional, as it inhibited EGF-induced
motility secondary to preventing cytoskeletal reorganization
(7) (data not shown).
Thus, the concordance of the pharmacological and molecular
interventions points to PLC-ß3 as being required for
IP-9-induced calpain
activation.
![]() View larger version (40K): [in a new window] |
FIG. 12. PLC-ß3signaling is required for IP-9 induced calpain activation and motility.
Undifferentiated keratinocytes were grown in the presence or
absence of antisense oligonucleotides (20 µM) to PLC-ß3
(or PLC- 1) for 48 h in quiescence medium. After this
time, cells were stimulated with IP-9 (50 ng/ml) or EGF (1
nM) for 120 min or 10 min, respectively, and calpain cleavage of the
substrate Boc-LM-CMAC was ob served. Representative
experiment images (of three experiments) are shown (a) and quantified
(mean ± standard error of the mean of >15
cells/experiment) (b). Statistical analysis was performed by
Student's t test. (c) PLC-ß3 levels were assessed
by immunoblotting cells exposed to specific (antisense PLC-ß3)
or irrelevant (trnfx control) oligonucleotides. Shown is a
representative of at least three such immunoblots. trnfx,
transfection.
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The present investigation shows that two signaling pathways might be operative during migration of undifferentiated keratinocytes, the PLCß pathway through which IP-9-induced motility occurs and the ERK MAP kinase signaling cascade pathway which actuates EGF-induced cell migration. These parallel paths to calpain activation appear to occur in isolation from each other. Unlike EGF, in undifferentiated keratinocytes IP-9 did not activate the ERK MAP kinase pathway (Fig. 9). There are reports of the related IP-10 activating ERK MAP kinase in astrocytes (61) but not in T cells (54); however, this activation might not be a direct effect but due to secondary autocrine signaling (39), as it occurs in ovarian cancer cells through an EGFR autocrine loop (58).
In fibroblasts, we find that IP-9 acts similarly to its related ELR-negative CXC chemokines that share the CXCR3 by inhibiting EGF-induced M-calpain activation (data not shown) (42). Interestingly, the positive motogenic effect of IP-9 in undifferentiated keratinocytes occurs via activation of the µ-calpain isoform. This activation pathway is independent of the EGFR signaling pathway which occurs through ERK activating M-calpain (17). IP-9 is additive with EGF, and IP-9 signaling is not blocked by inhibitors of MAP kinase kinase or downregulation of M-calpain. To our knowledge this is the first report showing the stimulation of cell migration by a growth factor (EGF) and by a chemokine (IP-9) in undifferentiated keratinocytes at least in part via activation of different isoforms of calpain, M- and µ-calpain.
We herein demonstrate that
IP-9 stimulates intracellular calcium flux, which results in the
activation of µ-calpain. Our data do not point to whether this
is from internal stores or influx through the membrane, though the
latter would be favored on the grounds that it is only in calcium puffs
that one approaches the nearly micromolar concentration of calcium that
activates µ-calpain in vitro
(3,
22,
48). There has been
debate as to whether such physiological transients can activate
cellular calpains, at least in nonischemic situations
(20,
49). For growth factor
induction of M-calpain activity, the answer seems clearly no
(16). However, even the
nearly to low micromolar calcium concentrations in puffs and sparks are
less than the published pCa of the purified enzyme. Thus, cofactors
have been invoked as reducing the calcium requirement
(33,
56). Alternately, a low
level of activation, coupled with rapid autolysis, may be an
attenuation mechanism that prevents excess activation. At low
micromolar calcium concentrations, µ-calpain would be activated
at
5% of its total activity but still significantly
more active than at the approximately 200 nM calcium present in the
cytosol of unstimulated cells
(34,
46). As proteolytic
signal transduction is not reversible, any cell molecular cascades
would be considered to be amplified or persistent. Obviously, the two
modes of µ-calpain activation, cofactors and limited
activation, are not mutually exclusive and will require further
experimentation.
The use of µ-calpain for motility-associated de-adhesion has a number of implications. First, IP-9 activation of calpain may occur throughout a greater volume of the cytosol than that induced by growth factors. EGFR-mediated activation of M-calpain occurs in the periplasma membrane space at or near where EGF binds to its receptor (19), which, coupled with rapid autodegradation of activated calpain (49), likely limits actions to the adhesion plaque itself. On the other hand, IP-9-mediated µ-calpain activation has not been localized and could occur throughout the cytosol; the intermediaries IP3 and calcium are freely diffusible. Still, activation of µ-calpain could be localized by the source of the calcium flux, as domain III of the molecules has C2-like phosphoinositide binding properties (15), though the translocation to the membrane may occur after calcium influx (55). Thus, whether M- and µ-calpain share physiological targets would depend on the sites of activation or activity.
At least some of the same targets are shared, as both calpains lead to FAK cleavage and vinculin aggregate disassembly in these keratinocytes (Fig. 6 and 7). Even if µ-calpain was activated in the periplasma membrane space secondary to influx, this might occur over a broader expanse of membrane, as the modes of enabling calcium channels could allow broader distribution than the tightly linked EGFR-ERK-M-calpain pathway (16, 19). One last point to be made is that these diverse signals for motility, one via a classical receptor with intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity and the other through a classic seven-transmembrane G protein-coupled receptor, converge at the penultimate biochemical step of calpain activation. Thus, inhibition of motility would best be accomplished by targeting these convergent nodes, calpains or their substrates, rather than targeting upstream inducers or signaling pathways.
Our findings unravel a phenomenon wherein one chemokine inhibited cell migration in dermal fibroblasts while promoting migration in keratinocytes. These opposite cell behaviors induced by a soluble chemokine would be required for appropriate wound healing (29). Fibroblasts from the dermis and keratinocytes from the epidermis enter the wound and migrate (45), but the cells migrating into the wound should be limited at the appropriate time to prepare the wound bed for the remodeling phase. Fibroblasts underlying the healed margin wouldfunctionally need to be in the remodeling phase, for which migration is minimized. Inhibition of rear detachment channels the motility-associated contractile forces into matrix contraction (1).
The ELR-negative CXC chemokines would accomplish this phenotypic change, with IP-10 being produced by the neovascular endothelial cells (31) and IP-9 by the basal keratinocytes. However, as IP-9 is soluble and diffusible, it would reach and affect the adjacent migrating keratinocytes that are required for reepithelialization. We predicted that these cells might be resistant to the antimotility effects; however, these keratinocytes respond to IP-9 by increased migration, presumably accomplishing this by altering G protein isoform use. Due to the complexity of the biological process of repair and the fact that the signaling pathways occur via ubiquitous enzymes that have pleiotropic roles (i.e., PLCß and calcium fluxes), such future studies lie beyond the present scope. Despite this caveat, one ends up with an elegant system in which one signal, IP-9, might serve to synchronize the separate dermal and epidermal compartments during wound repair.
We thank the members of the Wells lab for their suggestions and comments, particularly R. Bodnar for help in completing the confocal microscopy studies. We thank N. Fusenig, German Cancer Research Center (Heidelberg, Germany), for the kind gift of HaCaT cells; all inquiries concerning these cells should be directed to him.
Supplemental
material for this article may be found at
http://mcb.asm.org/. ![]()
Present
address: University of California at San Diego, La Jolla,
Calif. ![]()
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, MCP-1,
IP-10, and Mig are sequentially and differentially expressed during
phase-specific infiltration of leukocyte subsets in human wound
healing. Am. J. Pathol.
153:1849-1860.
. J. Biol. Chem.
271:22878-22884.
-inducible protein 10 (IP-10), a
member of the C-X-C chemokine family, is an inhibitor of angiogenesis.Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun.
210:51-57.[CrossRef][Medline]
signaling pathway. J. Cell Sci.
111:615-624.[Abstract]
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