Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:3.4.21.73 (urokinase-type plasminogen activator)
 10,685 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The fosB gene encodes a nuclear protein that shows a high degree of homology with c-Fos in several of the known functionally crucial domains, e.g., the leucine zipper and the DNA-binding site, but shows considerable divergence in other regions. Here, we report that FosB, when placed under the control of a constitutive promoter, exhibits clear transforming properties in focus assays using mouse NIH3T3 or rat 208F fibroblasts. The transforming potential of FosB is considerably stronger than that of a corresponding c-fos construct and resembles that of viral fos genes. Using chimeric fos/fosB constructs we show that the C-terminal half of FosB is responsible for these stronger transforming properties, apparently by giving rise to significantly higher levels of protein as compared with the corresponding c-fos sequence. Surprisingly, substitution of the N-terminus of Fos with that of FosB decreases its transforming potential. These differences in the transforming potential are not related to DNA or protein expression, but rather seem to reflect differences in the molecular function(s) encoded in the N-terminal halves of Fos and FosB protein. Both, fosB- and v-fos transformed cells show increased expression of a number of endogenous genes, including c-jun, transin, alpha 1(III) collagen and tissue plasminogen activator. Transactivation by FosB and v-fos of the c-jun and alpha 1(III) collagen gene promoters and of a 3 x TRE-tk chimeric promoter could be shown in transient CAT assays. v-Fos, but not FosB-transformed cells, also show elevated levels of urokinase and plasminogen activator inhibitor mRNAs, pointing to potential differences in the gene regulatory properties of the two Fos family members.
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PMID:fosB is a transforming gene encoding a transcriptional activator. 190 95

Keratinocytes in culture represent cells which exhibit continued and controlled growth in the organism. We have investigated the synthesis of urokinase plasminogen activator mRNA in exponentially growing cultures of primary murine keratinocytes and the keratinocyte cell line BALB/MK. The tumor promotor 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) induced urokinase mRNA synthesis. We made a series of progressive 5' deletions as well as internal deletions in the region upstream of the murine uPA gene. These were joined to the cat reporter gene, and used to map the TPA and EGF responsive regions of the promoter. We found both responsive sequences within a 90 base pair Hae III fragment, located 2.4 kb. upstream of the mRNA cap site. This DNA fragment conferred TPA inducibility on reporter gene expression independent of its distance and orientation to the transcription initiation site. Footprinting and gel retardation studies identified the responsible sequence to be a binding site for PEA3 juxtaposed to an octameric TRE-element. Transfections with point mutants showed that these target sequences were necessary for TPA and EGF induction of transcription.
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PMID:Transcription factor PEA3 participates in the induction of urokinase plasminogen activator transcription in murine keratinocytes stimulated with epidermal growth factor or phorbol-ester. 211 94

Stable transfection of human tumor cell lines with the adenovirus-5 E1A gene repressed the expression of the secreted proteases, type IV collagenase, interstitial collagenase and urokinase. In addition, E1A blocked the 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol acetate (TPA) induction of interstitial collagenase transcription in HT1080 fibrosarcoma cells. Plasmids bearing the interstitial collagenase or type IV collagenase 5' flanking regions linked to a chloramphenicol acetyl transferase coding sequence were constructed and analysed for expression by transient cotransfections into HT1080 cells. Cotransfection with a plasmid bearing a functional E1A gene repressed transcription of the type IV collagenase promoter and blocked the TPA induction of the interstitial collagenase promoter. Furthermore, E1A repressed transcription from a TK promoter driven by AP-1 complex binding sites (TRE), suggesting that E1A interferes with the AP-1 trans-activation pathway. This effect was not, however, due to the repression of c-jun gene transcription by E1A. In fact, the expression of E1A rendered the c-jun gene hypersensitive to TPA induction. Concomitant with reduction in expression levels of secreted proteases, stable E1A transfectants showed reduced metastatic activity in vivo and reduced ability to traverse a reconstituted basement membrane in vitro. Monospecific anti-type IV collagenase antibodies inhibited invasive activity of parental tumor cell lines in the in vitro assay, suggesting a possible causal relationship between the repression of secreted proteases and loss of metastatic properties of the transformants.
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PMID:Adenovirus E1A represses protease gene expression and inhibits metastasis of human tumor cells. 215 83

Dimerization plays a pivotal role in modulating the activity of the c-Jun proto-oncogene product. Heterodimerization with activating transcription factor-2 (ATF-2) alters the DNA-binding specificity of c-Jun, allowing its targeting to several cAMP responsive element (CRE)-related sequences, which control a subset of AP-1-responsive genes. Here we show that a c-Jun/ATF-2 heterodimer binds to the AP-1 site (uPA 5'-TRE) essential for the activity of the human urokinase enhancer, conferring on this element several distinctive regulatory properties. The c-Jun/ATF-2 heterodimer was identified by binding competition assays, u.v. cross linking, and monospecific antibodies. In vitro binding studies revealed that the uPA 5'-TRE sequence is recognized by the cyclic AMP-unresponsive ATF-2 factor, but not by the cyclic AMP-inducible CREB. In addition, in vivo studies suggest that ATF-2 can mediate, at the same time, the activation of the c-Jun/ATF-2 site and the repression of the canonical collagenase AP-1 site. We report that heterodimerization with c-Fos does not increase the binding of c-Jun to the uPA 5'-TRE, in contrast to the increased binding at a consensus AP-1 site. Our data further suggest that c-Fos can act as a repressor of the c-Jun/ATF-2 binding site, revealing an important functional difference, with respect to canonical AP-1 elements.
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PMID:Heterodimerization of c-Jun with ATF-2 and c-Fos is required for positive and negative regulation of the human urokinase enhancer. 762 51

Proteolytic remodeling of the extracellular matrix occurs normally during development and pathologically in arthritis, tumor metastasis, wound healing, and angiogenesis. The major extracellular matrix-degrading proteinases belong to the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) and plasminogen activator gene families. Intracerebral injection of 72-kDa type IV collagenase (gelatinase A) opens the blood-brain barrier. During hemorrhagic brain injury or intracerebral injection of proinflammatory cytokines, endogenous production of 92-kDa type IV collagenase (gelatinase B) occurs. The gelatinase B gene contains a phorbol ester responsive region (TRE) that binds AP-1 proteins, including c-Fos/c-Jun dimer, the early immediate response gene products. Maximum production of gelatinase B in injury occurs between 16 and 24 h, making this a late effector gene. The serine proteinase, urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA), is also produced at that time. Gelatinases and plasminogen activators work in concert to disrupt basement membranes proteolytically. A similar process opens the blood-brain barrier after ischemic and hemorrhagic brain injury, leading to secondary vasogenic brain edema. Delayed damage by proteolytic cascade enzymes provides opportunities for treatment much later than had been thought possible. Potential treatments possible in this second therapeutic window include interfering with the genes that produce the MMPs or inhibiting the action of the gene products.
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PMID:Matrix metalloproteinases in brain injury. 859 11

This article will firstly briefly review the newer generation of immunosuppressant drugs, focusing mainly on tacrolimus (FK-506), sirolimus (rapamycin), mycophenolate mofetil (RS-61443) and leflunomide (HWA 486) and then describe work carried out at the Lilly Research Centre on analogues of leflunomide and subsequent diversion into a structurally distinct series of compounds, the naphthopyrans. A clear structure activity relationship exists within this series and selected data from a Concanavalin A stimulated T-cell proliferation assay are presented to illustrate this. Although the compounds proved to possess little in vivo activity in our rheumatoid arthritis program, examination of the compounds in in vitro and in vivo models within the diabetic complications group showed the compounds behaved as would be anticipated for inhibitors of protein kinase C, although this direct mode of action was clearly not correct. Mechanistic investigations revealed that the favoured compound 290181 blocks phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate-induced binding of transcription factor proteins to the PEA3/TRE sequence of the promoter region of the urokinase plasminogen activator gene. The compounds also showed antiproliferative effects on vascular smooth muscle cells, an in vitro activity that translated into in vivo efficacy in a rat model of restenosis. Mechanistic studies here demonstrated that 290181 blocks proliferation in the G2/M phase of the cell cycle by binding directly to a novel site on tubulin. Finally the compounds were shown to inhibit the release of neutral proteases from interleukin-1 stimulated articular chondrocytes, this activity having implications in the degenerative aspects of osteoarthritis.
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PMID:Antiproliferative naphthopyrans: biological activity, mechanistic studies and therapeutic potential. 956 1