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J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 276, Issue 45, 42575-42579, November 9, 2001
From the Division of Life Sciences, Graduate School of
Biotechnology, Korea University, Seoul 136-701, Korea
Received for publication, August 13, 2001, and in revised form, August 28, 2001
It has been proposed that human neutrophil
lactoferrin (Lf) could be involved in gene expression as a
DNA-binding protein after its translocation into the nucleus. However,
the molecular basis of Lf action has not been defined, and Lf-regulated
target genes have not been identified. We report here that
overexpressed Lf functions as a specific trans-activator of
matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP1) gene, and that induction of this
AP-1-responsive gene is mediated via the stress-activated MAPK
signaling modules. Transactivation of the MMP1 promoter by
overexpressed Lf requires the presence of an AP-1 binding site. In gel
shift experiments, Lf did not interact directly with AP-1-containing
fragments of the MMP1 promoter. However, nuclear extracts from
Lf-expressing cells contained increased levels of proteins that bound
to AP-1 elements. This Lf-induced AP-1 DNA binding activity was reduced
by a p38 MAPK inhibitor. Inhibitors of the MEK kinases had little
effect on Lf-induced AP-1. However, expression of dominant-negative
MKK4 or JNK1 inhibited Lf-induced gene expression. The JNK activity
stimulated by Lf correlates with the enhanced AP-1 binding ability.
These findings demonstrate that the Lf-induced activation of AP-1 is
mediated via JNK and p38 MAPK pathways.
Human Lf1 derived from
neutrophils is secreted in high concentration in colostrum but is
normally present in low concentration in most other exocrine fluids,
such as saliva, tears, bile, and pancreatic fluid (1). In addition to
the iron binding capacity of Lf, a variety of other biological
functions are attributed to Lf by as yet unknown mechanisms. For
example, Lf exerts several effects on the inflammatory and immune
responses against various tumors (2). During this process, circulating
levels of Lf increase significantly. On the other hand, Lf has been
reported to act as an inhibitor of cytokine response in
vitro at a very low concentration by suppressing the release of
cytokines such as interleukins and tumor necrosis factor (3). Lf also
may act as a potent activator of natural killer cells and a direct
inhibitor of tumor cell growth (4). Therefore, the balanced synthesis
and exocrine secretion of the Lf in the cell suggest its precise roles
in various biological systems.
A previous report revealed that Lf enters the cell from the serum and
is transported into the nucleus where it binds to DNA (5). Recently
random DNA sequences capable of binding to Lf have been demonstrated,
which may imply an Lf-mediated regulation of gene expression (6).
However, little information on naturally occurring target genes that
are directly responsive to Lf is available. Therefore, we have
investigated one of the roles of Lf as a multifunctional regulatory
protein. To do so, the exogenous human neutrophil Lf gene was
overexpressed in various mammalian cells. There is considerable interest in the role of Lf because it acts as a
trans-activator for the expression of a subset of responsive
genes, particularly AP-1-inducible genes such as fibroblast
collagenase-1, matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP1), and monocyte
chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1). The MMP1 exerts important effects on
physiological and pathological conditions of cells including tumor
metastasis (7), although its exact mechanism remains unclear.
In this study, we have focused on the elucidation of the molecular
mechanism by which the overexpressed Lf mediates the stimulation of
MMP1 production. Nested deletion and point mutations have allowed us to
narrow down the Lf-responsive promoter region of the MMP1 gene to a
specific element. By performing EMSA, we have attempted to see whether
Lf could interact directly or indirectly with the promoter of the
target gene. To test potential roles for specific signaling pathways in
mediating Lf-induced gene expression, we have used several specific
kinase inhibitors and dominant-negative mutant forms of kinase
cDNAs. We demonstrate here that the activation of stress-activated
MAPK signaling pathways by Lf plays a crucial role in the up-regulation
of the MMP1 gene.
Cell Culture and Transfection Assay--
Balb/c-3T3, HeLa,
Jurkat, and COS-1 cells were purchased from American Type Culture
Collection (Manassas, VA). The cells were grown and transfected using
DEAE-dextran (8), an equal amount (5 µg) of the human neutrophil Lf
expression vector pLf, and CAT construct. Cotransfection with the
pRSV- Plasmids--
Plasmid pLf was the generous gift of P. Furmanski
(6). Plasmid pCollCAT-517 and MMP1 probe were generously provided by P. Angel (10). The 5' deletion mutant plasmids pCollCAT-517, pCollCAT-296,
pCollCAT-177, and pCollCAT-73 contain Preparation of Nuclear Extracts and EMSAs--
Nuclear extracts
of Balb/c-pCI-neo and B-hLf2 cells were prepared by the method
of Andrews and Faller (15). EMSAs were performed as described
previously (12). Oligonucleotides with an AP-1 consensus binding site
(5'-CGCTTGATGAGTCAGCCGGAA-3') were end-labeled with
[ Zymography Assay--
After washing cells with cold
phosphate-buffered saline, cells were harvested and solubilized in a
SDS sample buffer. An 8% polyacrylamide gel containing 0.1% type A
gelatin (Sigma) was used for gelatin zymograms. After running the gel
at 4 °C, the gels were washed twice in 100 ml of 2.5% Triton X-100
for 1 h and incubated overnight at 37 °C in substrate buffer
(100 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5), 150 mM NaCl, and 10 mM CaCl2). Gels were visualized by staining
with Coomassie Blue.
Reverse Transcription-PCR (RT-PCR)--
Total RNA was isolated
from HeLa or H-hLf6 cells by the guanidinium thiocyanate-CsCl
extraction method (12). Reverse transcription and PCR amplification
were performed by using murine leukemia virus
reverse transcriptase and Taq polymerase (Life Technologies, Inc.). The sequences of primers used in the PCR were as follows: human
MMP1, 5'-GGTGATGAAGCAGCCCAG-3' (sense) and 5'-CAGTAGAATGGGAGAGTC-3' (antisense); glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase,
5'-CGGAGTCAACGGATTTGGTCGTAT-3' (sense) and
5'-AGCCTTCTCCATGGTGGTGAAGAC-3' (antisense).
Protein Kinase Activity Assays--
JNK activity in cell lysates
was determined by immunocomplex protein kinase assays using the
substrate glutathione S-transferase-c-Jun (16). Immunoblot
analysis was performed according to the instructions of the
manufacturer (New England Biolabs). Cellular lysates of the
BALB/c-pCI-neo and B-hLf2 cells were prepared, and each 100 µg
of cellular protein was run on a 10% SDS-polyacrylamide gel, electrotransferred to an Immobilon-P membrane (Millipore), and probed
with the anti-phospho-c-Jun (Ser-73) antibody (New England Biolabs).
The membrane was then incubated with horseradish peroxidase-conjugated secondary antibody and checked with a chemiluminescence kit (ECL, Amersham Pharmacia Biotech). The blots were exposed to Kodak x-ray film
for 3-5 min. Anti-JNK1 antibody was purchased from Santa Cruz
Biotechnology, Inc. (Santa Cruz, CA).
To identify Lf-responsive promoters, a set of putative gene
promoters linked to the reporter gene CAT was cotransfected with an Lf
expression vector (pLf). Transcriptional activities of the MMP1 and
MCP-1 gene promoters (Fig. 1A,
compare pCollCAT-517 and MCP-1-CAT, respectively)
were stimulated at least 30-40-fold, whereas the interleukin-2 gene
promoter was not affected by the Lf expression in Balb/c fibroblast
cells. To examine the influences of Lf on the expression of endogenous
cellular genes, Balb/c and HeLa cells were stably transfected with pLf.
As expected, after neomycin selection, the resulting stable
transfectants (designated B-hLf2 and H-hLf6) were found to
express Lf protein (data not shown). Expression of MMP1 mRNA was
elevated 15-fold in H-hLf6 as compared with the expression of the
control gene glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase as shown by
RT-PCRs, which generated a 438-base pair product with a primer pair for
the MMP1 coding region (Fig. 1B). In COS-1 cells transiently
transfected with pLf, the level of the MMP1 enzyme activity was also
increased as measured by the zymography (Fig. 1C). These
results suggest that the Lf acts as a transcriptional activator of the
MMP1 gene in intact cells and functions in trans.
The promoter of the TPA-inducible MMP1 gene was further analyzed to
identify a cis-acting element for the Lf. A putative
responsive region on the MMP1 gene promoter was identified by deletion
analysis. Nested deletion of the MMP1 gene promoter linked to the
reporter gene CAT up to the TPA-responsive element (TRE) ( We were interested in elucidating the mechanism of MMP1
trans-activation by Lf. Other workers have shown that
Lf can bind to DNA. Therefore, we hypothesized that Lf-induced
trans-activation of MMP1 resulted from direct interaction of
Lf with TRE or TRE-like sequences. To address this hypothesis, EMSAs
were performed using radiolabeled TRE probes in the presence of highly
purified iron-saturated Lf proteins (Fig.
3A). However, neither the TRE
consensus oligonucleotides nor the DNA fragment containing the
Many transcription factors including c-Jun, c-Fos, and ATF2 are
effectors of three distinct groups of MAPKs: extracellular signal-regulated kinase, p38 MAPK, and JNK. To determine whether Lf-induced AP-1 activation possibly resulted from activation of any one
of the MAPK pathways, the effect of specific kinase inhibitors (SB203580, PD98059, and U0126) was tested. As measured by EMSAs using
nuclear extracts from B-hLf2 cells treated with SB203580, which
is a specific inhibitor of p38
Human Lf has been implicated in various biological processes including the regulation of cell growth and inflammation as well as the primary defense against bacterial infection (21). Lf has been considered to exert a control function in the balance of cellular components as a nuclear factor (6, 22). It has been demonstrated that sequence-specific binding of Lf to DNA occurs under stringent conditions. Here we demonstrate that overexpressed Lf is capable of regulating the expression of the MCP-1 and MMP1 genes, which are implicated in inflammation and metastasis (23, 24). Moreover, we found that Lf specifically trans-activates MMP1, an AP-1-inducible gene, by altering the DNA binding properties of AP-1 in both fibroblasts and T lymphocytes. The biological significance of the up-regulation of the MMP1 gene by Lf is unclear. Circulating levels of Lf increase significantly during the inflammatory process (2). Additionally activated leukocytes and many tumor cells secrete large amounts of the metalloproteinases (25). Therefore, it is likely that the activation of MCP-1 and MMP1 genes in response to Lf may be involved in physiological and pathological processes such as inflammation and tumorigenesis (3, 26). In this study, we also found that Lf required a TRE site for the trans-activation of the MMP1 gene and that AP-1 binding activity was substantially enhanced in cells expressing Lf. AP-1 activity in cells is known to be regulated by upstream signal transduction pathways such as the MAPK cascades (20). Therefore, it seemed likely that Lf-mediated AP-1 activation might be mediated via known signaling networks. Our studies with specific kinase inhibitor drugs and dominant-negative components of the MKK4 pathway indicated that both JNK and p38 MAPK might contribute to Lf-induced AP-1 activation. Consistent with a role for MKK4 in Lf-responsive AP-1 activation, the MKK4 effector kinase JNK was activated by Lf. Together these data strongly suggest that SAPK and c-Jun may mainly mediate the Lf-induced signaling pathway. We do not rule out the possibility that the SAPK can also activate other transcription factors such as Elk1, MEF2c, and ATF2 so that their subsequent transcriptional and/or posttranslational targets in turn may contribute indirectly to the activation of AP-1 in cells expressing Lf (27). The transcriptional targets of the Lf-mediated SAPK signaling pathway
have not been fully established. However, we have observed that human
neutrophil Lf greatly up-regulated AP-1-inducible inflammatory mediator
cytokines and some particular genes in the immunoglobulin gene
superfamily.2 Although the
biological functions of Lf have been controversial (3, 22, 28), our new
results suggest an important role for Lf in gene regulation and
eventually cellular activity. We demonstrated that the constitutively
overexpressed Lf induced the MKK4-SAPK signaling pathway leading to
AP-1 activation and MCP-1 expression. The increased expression of
chemoattractants such as MCP-1 by the AP-1 causes leukocyte
recruitment, resulting in the enhancement of the inflammatory response
by releasing the protease MMP1 (25). This AP-1-induced expression of
MMP1 is likely to have a number of consequences, including remodeling of matrix, oxidative burst, and cell injury (29). It is likely that the
circulating level of Lf is an important factor for the regulation of
Lf-induced genes. Indeed, the effect of Lf on natural killer cell
cytotoxicity depends on the level of Lf (30). Furthermore, multihormone
signaling pathways may be involved in modulating Lf gene activity and
its circulating level, and the activated human blood lymphocytes may
express Lf receptors (31). The autocrine property of the Lf molecule
and its role in the specific gene activation imply the involvement of
Lf receptors in further upstream signaling immediately following
binding of Lf to its receptor. Therefore, studies are under way to
investigate whether the expression level of Lf and its translocation
through the receptor will be crucially related with the cellular
activity in the response to a variety of stresses.
We thank C. Vaziri for helpful suggestions and critical comments on the manuscript and R. Conrad for critical reading of the manuscript.
* This work was supported by Grant 1998-019-F00016 from the Korea Research Foundation (to S.-Y. C.).The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. The article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.
§ To whom correspondence should be addressed: Graduate School of Biotechnology, Korea University, 5-1 Anam-dong, Sungbuk-gu, Seoul 136-701, Korea. Tel.: 82-2-3290-3441; Fax: 82-2-927-3091; E-mail: esychoi@korea.ac.kr.
Published, JBC Papers in Press, September 4, 2001, DOI 10.1074/jbc.M107724200
2 S.-M. Oh and S.-Y. Choi, manuscript in preparation.
The abbreviations used are: Lf, lactoferrin; MMP1, matrix metalloproteinase 1; MCP-1, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1; TPA, 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate; TRE, TPA-responsive element; CAT, chloramphenicol acetyltransferase; EMSA, electrophoretic mobility shift assay; MAPK, mitogen-activated protein kinase; MEK, mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase kinase; JNK, c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase; RT, reverse transcription; PCR, polymerase chain reaction; SAPK, stress-activated protein kinase; DN, dominant-negative.
Copyright © 2001 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc. This article has been cited by other articles:
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