Repository logo
 

I- Artigos

Permanent URI for this collection

Browse

Recent Submissions

Now showing 1 - 10 of 24
  • Ferritin H Deficiency in Myeloid Compartments Dysregulates Host Energy Metabolism and Increases Susceptibility to Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection
    Publication . Reddy, Vineel P.; Chinta, Krishna C.; Saini, Vikram; Glasgow, Joel N.; Hull, Travis D.; Traylor, Amie; Rey-Stolle, Fernanda; Soares, Miguel P.; Madansein, Rajhmun; Rahman, Md Aejazur; Barbas, Coral; Nargan, Kievershen; Naidoo, Threnesan; Ramdial, Pratistadevi K.; George, James F.; Agarwal, Anupam; Steyn, Adrie J. C.
    Iron is an essential factor for the growth and virulence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). However, little is known about the mechanisms by which the host controls iron availability during infection. Since ferritin heavy chain (FtH) is a major intracellular source of reserve iron in the host, we hypothesized that the lack of FtH would cause dysregulated iron homeostasis to exacerbate TB disease. Therefore, we used knockout mice lacking FtH in myeloid-derived cell populations to study Mtb disease progression. We found that FtH plays a critical role in protecting mice against Mtb, as evidenced by increased organ burden, extrapulmonary dissemination, and decreased survival in Fth−/− mice. Flow cytometry analysis showed that reduced levels of FtH contribute to an excessive inflammatory response to exacerbate disease. Extracellular flux analysis showed that FtH is essential for maintaining bioenergetic homeostasis through oxidative phosphorylation. In support of these findings, RNAseq and mass spectrometry analyses demonstrated an essential role for FtH in mitochondrial function and maintenance of central intermediary metabolism in vivo. Further, we show that FtH deficiency leads to iron dysregulation through the hepcidin–ferroportin axis during infection. To assess the clinical significance of our animal studies, we performed a clinicopathological analysis of iron distribution within human TB lung tissue and showed that Mtb severely disrupts iron homeostasis in distinct microanatomic locations of the human lung. We identified hemorrhage as a major source of metabolically inert iron deposition. Importantly, we observed increased iron levels in human TB lung tissue compared to healthy tissue. Overall, these findings advance our understanding of the link between iron-dependent energy metabolism and immunity and provide new insight into iron distribution within the spectrum of human pulmonary TB. These metabolic mechanisms could serve as the foundation for novel host-directed strategies.
  • Characterization of Plasma Labile Heme in Hemolytic Conditions
    Publication . Gouveia, Zélia; Carlos, Ana Rita; Yuan, Xiaojing; Aires-da-Silva, Frederico; Stocker, Roland; J. Maghzal, Ghassan; Leal, Sónia S.; Gomes, Cláudio M.; Todorovic, Smilja; Iranzo, Olga; Ramos, Susana; Santos, Ana Catarina; Hamza, Iqbal; Gonçalves, João; Soares, Miguel P.
    Extracellular hemoglobin (Hb), a byproduct of hemolysis, can release its prosthetic heme groups upon oxidation. This produces metabolically active heme that is exchangeable between acceptor proteins, macromolecules and low molecular weight ligands, termed here labile heme. As it accumulates in plasma labile heme acts in a pro-oxidant manner and regulates cellular metabolism while exerting pro-inflammatory and cytotoxic effects that foster the pathogenesis of hemolytic diseases. Here we developed and characterized a panel of heme-specific single domain antibodies (sdAbs) that together with a cellular-based heme reporter assay, allow for quantification and characterization of labile heme in plasma during hemolytic conditions. Using these approaches we demonstrate that labile heme generated during hemolytic conditions is bound to plasma molecules with an affinity higher than 10(-7) M and that 2-8% (~2-5 μM) of the total amount of heme detected in plasma can be internalized by bystander cells, i.e. bioavailable heme. Acute, but not chronic, hemolysis is associated with transient reduction of plasma heme binding capacity (HBC1/2 ), that is, the ability of plasma molecules to bind labile heme with an affinity higher than 10(-7) M. The heme-specific sdAbs neutralize the pro-oxidant activity of soluble heme in vitro, suggesting that these maybe used to counter the pathologic effects of labile heme during hemolytic conditions. Finally, we show that heme-specific sdAbs can be used to visualize cellular heme. In conclusion, we describe a panel of heme-specific sdAbs that when used with other approaches provide novel insights to the pathophysiology of heme. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
  • Involvement of the p62/NRF2 signal transduction pathway on erythrophagocytosis
    Publication . Santarino, Inês B.; Viegas, Michelle S.; Domingues, Neuza S.; Ribeiro, Ana M.; Soares, Miguel P.; Vieira, Otília V.
    Erythrophagocytosis, the phagocytic removal of damaged red blood cells (RBC), and subsequent phagolysosome biogenesis are important processes in iron/heme metabolism and homeostasis. Phagolysosome biogenesis implies the interaction of nascent phagosomes with endocytic compartments and also autophagy effectors. Here, we report that besides recruitment of microtubule-associated protein-1-light chain 3 (LC3), additional autophagy machinery such as sequestosome 1 (p62) is also acquired by single-membrane phagosomes at very early stages of the phagocytic process and that its acquisition is very important to the outcome of the process. In bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDM) silenced for p62, RBC degradation is inhibited. P62, is also required for nuclear translocation and activation of the transcription factor Nuclear factor E2-related Factor 2 (NRF2) during erythrophagocytosis. Deletion of the Nrf2 allele reduces p62 expression and compromises RBC degradation. In conclusion, we reveal that erythrophagocytosis relies on an interplay between p62 and NRF2, potentially acting as protective mechanism to maintain reactive oxygen species at basal levels and preserve macrophage homeostasis.
  • The Microglial α7-Acetylcholine Nicotinic Receptor Is a Key Element in Promoting Neuroprotection by Inducing Heme Oxygenase-1viaNuclear Factor Erythroid-2-Related Factor 2
    Publication . Parada, Esther; Egea, Javier; Buendia, Izaskun; Negredo, Pilar; Cunha, Ana C.; Cardoso, Silvia; Soares, Miguel P.; López, Manuela G.
    We asked whether the neuroprotective effect of cholinergic microglial stimulation during an ischemic event acts via a mechanism involving the activation of nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and/or the expression of its target cytoprotective gene, heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1). Specifically, the protective effect of the pharmacologic alpha-7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7 nAChR) agonist PNU282987 was analyzed in organotypic hippocampal cultures (OHCs) subjected to oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD) in vitro as well as in photothrombotic stroke in vivo.
  • Tissue damage control in disease tolerance
    Publication . Soares, Miguel P; Gozzelino, Raffaella; Weis, Sebastian
    Immune-driven resistance mechanisms are the prevailing host defense strategy against infection. By contrast, disease tolerance mechanisms limit disease severity by preventing tissue damage or ameliorating tissue function without interfering with pathogen load. We propose here that tissue damage control underlies many of the protective effects of disease tolerance. We explore the mechanisms of cellular adaptation that underlie tissue damage control in response to infection as well as sterile inflammation, integrating both stress and damage responses. Finally, we discuss the potential impact of targeting these mechanisms in the treatment of disease.
  • Macrophage and epithelial cell H-ferritin expression regulates renal inflammation
    Publication . Bolisetty, Subhashini; Zarjou, Abolfazl; Hull, Travis D.; Traylor, Amie M.; Perianayagam, Anjana; Joseph, Reny; Kamal, Ahmed I.; Arosio, Paolo; Soares, Miguel P.; Jeney, Viktoria; Balla, Jozsef; George, James F.; Agarwal, Anupam
    Inflammation culminating in fibrosis contributes to progressive kidney disease. Cross-talk between the tubular epithelium and interstitial cells regulates inflammation by a coordinated release of cytokines and chemokines. Here we studied the role of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and the heavy subunit of ferritin (FtH) in macrophage polarization and renal inflammation. Deficiency in HO-1 was associated with increased FtH expression, accumulation of macrophages with a dysregulated polarization profile, and increased fibrosis following unilateral ureteral obstruction in mice: a model of renal inflammation and fibrosis. Macrophage polarization in vitro was predominantly dependent on FtH expression in isolated bone marrow-derived mouse monocytes. Using transgenic mice with conditional deletion of FtH in the proximal tubules (FtH(PT-/-)) or myeloid cells (FtH(LysM-/-)), we found that myeloid FtH deficiency did not affect polarization or accumulation of macrophages in the injured kidney compared with wild-type (FtH(+/+)) controls. However, tubular FtH deletion led to a marked increase in proinflammatory macrophages. Furthermore, injured kidneys from FtH(PT-/-) mice expressed significantly higher levels of inflammatory chemokines and fibrosis compared with kidneys from FtH(+/+) and FtH(LysM-/-) mice. Thus, there are differential effects of FtH in macrophages and epithelial cells, which underscore the critical role of FtH in tubular-macrophage cross-talk during kidney injury.
  • Red alert: labile heme is an alarmin
    Publication . Soares, Miguel P; Bozza, Marcelo T
    Alarmins are a heterogeneous group of endogenous molecules that signal cellular damage when sensed extracellularly. Heme is an endogenous molecule that acts as a prosthetic group of hemoproteins, such as hemoglobin and myoglobin. When released from damaged red blood cells or muscle cells, oxidized hemoglobin and myoglobin release their prosthetic heme groups, respectively. This generates labile heme, which is sensed by pattern recognition receptors (PRR) expressed by innate immune cells and possibly regulatory T cells (TREG). The ensuing adaptive response, which alerts for the occurrence of red blood cell or muscle cell damage, regulates the pathologic outcome of hemolysis or rhabdomyolysis, respectively. In conclusion, we propose that labile heme is an alarmin.
  • Microbiota Control of Malaria Transmission
    Publication . Soares, Miguel P.; Yilmaz, Bahtiyar
    Stable mutualistic interactions between multicellular organisms and microbes are an evolutionarily conserved process with a major impact on host physiology and fitness. Humans establish such interactions with a consortium of microorganisms known as the microbiota. Despite the mutualistic nature of these interactions, some bacterial components of the human microbiota express immunogenic glycans that elicit glycan-specific antibody (Ab) responses. The ensuing circulating Abs are protective against infections by pathogens that express those glycans, as demonstrated for Plasmodium, the causative agent of malaria. Presumably, a similar protective Ab response acts against other vector-borne diseases.
  • Disease tolerance and immunity in host protection against infection
    Publication . Soares, Miguel P.; Teixeira, Luis; Moita, Luis F.
    The immune system probably evolved to limit the negative effects exerted by pathogens on host homeostasis. This defence strategy relies on the concerted action of innate and adaptive components of the immune system, which sense and target pathogens for containment, destruction or expulsion. Resistance to infection refers to these immune functions, which reduce the pathogen load of an infected host as the means to preserve homeostasis. Immune-driven resistance to infection is coupled to an additional, and arguably as important, defence strategy that limits the extent of dysfunction imposed on host parenchymal tissues during infection, without exerting a direct negative effect on pathogens. This defence strategy, known as disease tolerance, relies on tissue damage control mechanisms that prevent the deleterious effects of pathogens and that uncouples immune-driven resistance mechanisms from immunopathology and disease. In this Review, we provide a unifying view of resistance and disease tolerance in the framework of immunity to infection.
  • IL-22 controls iron-dependent nutritional immunity against systemic bacterial infections
    Publication . Sakamoto, Kei; Kim, Yun-Gi; Hara, Hideki; Kamada, Nobuhiko; Caballero-Flores, Gustavo; Tolosano, Emanuela; Soares, Miguel P.; Puente, José L.; Inohara, Naohiro; Núñez, Gabriel
    Host immunity limits iron availability to pathogenic bacteria, but whether immunity limits pathogenic bacteria from accessing host heme, the major source of iron in the body, remains unclear. Using Citrobacter rodentium, a mouse enteric pathogen and Escherichia coli, a major cause of sepsis in humans as models, we find that interleukin-22, a cytokine best known for its ability to promote epithelial barrier function, also suppresses the systemic growth of bacteria by limiting iron availability to the pathogen. Using an unbiased proteomic approach to understand the mechanistic basis of IL-22 dependent iron retention in the host, we have identified that IL-22 induces the production of the plasma hemoglobin scavenger haptoglobin and heme scavenger hemopexin. Moreover, the anti-microbial effect of IL-22 depends on the induction of hemopexin expression, while haptogloblin is dispensable. Impaired pathogen clearance in infected Il22(-/-) mice was restored by administration and hemopexin-deficient mice had increased pathogen loads after infection. These studies reveal a previously unrecognized host defense mechanism regulated by IL-22 that relies on the induction of hemopexin to limit heme availability to bacteria leading to suppression of bacterial growth during systemic infections.