Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0027947 (neutropenia)
17,527 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Cyclic and congenital neutropenia are caused by mutations in the human neutrophil elastase (HNE) gene (ELA2), leading to an immunodeficiency characterized by decreased or oscillating levels of neutrophils in the blood. The HNE mutations presumably cause loss of enzyme activity, consequently leading to compromised immune system function. To understand the structural basis for the disease, we implemented methods from bioinformatics to analyze all the known HNE missense mutations at both the sequence and structural level. Our results demonstrate that the 32 different mutations have diverse effects on HNE structure and function, affecting structural disorder and aggregation tendencies, stability maintaining contacts, and electrostatic properties. A large proportion of the mutations are located at conserved amino acids, which are usually essential in determining protein structure and function. The majority of the disease-causing HNE missense mutations lead to major structural changes and loss of stability in the protein. A few mutations also affect functional residues, leading into decreased catalytic activity or altered ligand binding. Our analysis reveals the putative effects of all known missense mutations in HNE, thus allowing the structural basis of cyclic and congenital neutropenia to be elucidated. We have employed and analyzed a set of some 30 different methods for predicting the effects of amino acid substitutions. We present results and experience from the analysis of the applicability of these methods in the analysis of numerous genes, proteins, and diseases to reveal protein structure-function relationships and disease genotype-phenotype correlations.
...
PMID:Bioinformatic analysis of protein structure-function relationships: case study of leukocyte elastase (ELA2) missense mutations. 1698 21

Mutations in ELA2 encoding the neutrophil granule protease, neutrophil elastase (NE), are the major cause of the 2 main forms of hereditary neutropenia, cyclic neutropenia and severe congenital neutropenia (SCN). Genetic evaluation of other forms of neutropenia in humans and model organisms has helped to illuminate the role of NE. A canine form of cyclic neutropenia corresponds to human Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome type 2 (HPS2) and results from mutations in AP3B1 encoding a subunit of a complex involved in the subcellular trafficking of vesicular cargo proteins (among which NE appears to be one). Rare cases of SCN are attributable to mutations in the transcriptional repressor Gfi1 (among whose regulatory targets also include ELA2). The ultimate biochemical consequences of the mutations are not yet known, however. Gene targeting of ELA2 has thus far failed to recapitulate neutropenia in mice. The cycling phenomenon and origins of leukemic transformation in SCN remain puzzling. Nevertheless, mutations in all 3 genes are capable of causing the mislocalization of NE and may also induce the unfolded protein response, suggesting that there might a convergent pathogenic mechanism focusing on NE.
...
PMID:Neutrophil elastase in cyclic and severe congenital neutropenia. 1705 55

This report presents the case of a 15-year-old male with severe chronic neutropenia, leukopenia, and persistent tetraploid mosaicism in the bone marrow and peripheral blood. His father had mild neutropenia and bone marrow tetraploidy. Flow cytometric analysis of DNA content peripheral blood showed tetraploidy in 20% of granulocytes and 15% of monocytes. Sequence analysis of the ELA2 gene was normal, but the GFI1 gene exhibited transient appearance of single base changes the coding region and promoter. We speculate that an underlying genetic defect, inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern, leads to both disordered mitosis and neutropenia in this kindred.
...
PMID:Mosaic tetraploidy and transient GFI1 mutation in a patient with severe chronic neutropenia. 1709 7

Congenital neutropenia is a rare hematopoietic disease, which occurs sporadically or as an auto-somal dominant inherited disorder. Pathogenesis of congenital neutropenia can now be attributed to mutations of the ELA2 gene encoding neutrophil elastase. A child with severe congenital neutropenia with a heterozygous mutation G1887A in exon 2 of ELA2 gene is reported.
...
PMID:Molecular screening of the neutrophil elastase gene in congenital neutropenia. 1720 6

Granule proteins play a major role in bacterial killing by neutrophils. Serglycin proteoglycan, the major intracellular proteoglycan of hematopoietic cells, has been proposed to play a role in sorting and packing of granule proteins. We examined the content of major neutrophil granule proteins in serglycin knockout mice and found neutrophil elastase absent from mature neutrophils as shown by activity assay, Western blotting, and immunocytochemistry, whereas neutrophil elastase mRNA was present. The localization of other neutrophil granule proteins did not differ between wild-type and serglycin knockout mice. Differential counts and neutrophil ultrastructure were unaffected by the lack of serglycin, indicating that defective localization of neutrophil elastase does not induce neutropenia itself, albeit mutations in the neutrophil elastase gene can cause severe congenital neutropenia or cyclic neutropenia. The virulence of intraperitoneally injected Gram-negative bacteria (Klebsiella pneumoniae) was increased in serglycin knockout mice compared with wild-type mice, as previously reported for neutrophil elastase knockout mice. Thus, serglycin proteoglycan has an important role in localizing neutrophil elastase in azurophil granules of neutrophils, while localization of other granule proteins must be mediated by other mechanisms.
...
PMID:Neutrophil elastase depends on serglycin proteoglycan for localization in granules. 1727 11

The treatment of children affected by severe congenital neutropenia (SCN) with G-CSF strongly reduces the risk of sepsis by reversing neutropenia. However, SCN patients who respond to the treatment with the growth factor still have an elevated risk of succumbing to sepsis. Because the disease is usually caused by heterozygous mutations of ELA2, a gene encoding for neutrophil elastase (NE), we have investigated in G-CSF-responder and nonresponder patients affected by SCN the expression of polypeptides that constitute the antimicrobial machinery of these cells. In peripheral blood-derived neutrophils of patients with heterozygous mutations of ELA2 who were treated with G-CSF, NE was nearly absent as detected by immunofluorescence and immunoblotting, suggesting that production of the mutant protein interferes with normal gene expression. This defect was associated with abnormal expression of other granule-associated proteins such as myeloperoxidase, lactoferrin, cathepsin G, and human-neutrophil-peptide. Moreover, in one patient with partial response to G-CSF, we observed an impairment of neutrophil antimicrobial activity against Candida albicans, and, to a lower extent against Escherichia coli. Thereby, we propose that the treatment with G-CSF is not sufficient to correct all of the functional deficiency of neutrophils, and this might account for the consistent risk of infections observed in SCN patients.
...
PMID:G-CSF treatment of severe congenital neutropenia reverses neutropenia but does not correct the underlying functional deficiency of the neutrophil in defending against microorganisms. 1788 43

Heterozygous mutations of ELA2, encoding the protease neutrophil elastase (NE), cause either autosomal dominant cyclic neutropenia or severe congenital neutropenia (SCN). Three hypotheses have been proposed for how allelic mutations produce these different disorders: 1) disruption of proteolytic activity; 2) mislocalization of the protein; or 3) destabilization of the protein resulting in induction of the unfolded protein response. As with other dominant diseases with reduced reproductive fitness, sporadic cases can result from new mutations not inherited from either parent. Here we report an exceptional genetic phenomenon in which both a cyclic neutropenia patient and an SCN patient each possess two new ELA2 mutations. Because of the rarity of the phenomenon, we investigated the origins of the mutations and found that both arise nonmosaically and in cis from the paternally-inherited allele. Moreover, these cases offer a unique opportunity to investigate molecular pathways distinguishing these two forms of hereditary neutropenia. We have characterized the mutants separately and in combination, with respect to their effects on proteolysis, subcellular trafficking, and induction of the unfolded protein response. Each pair of mutations acts more or less additively to produce equivalent net effects on reducing proteolytic activity and induction of the unfolded protein response, yet each has different and somewhat opposing effects on disturbing subcellular localization, thus offering support for a role for protein mistrafficking as a disease mechanism.
...
PMID:Double de novo mutations of ELA2 in cyclic and severe congenital neutropenia. 1743 13

Mutations in the neutrophil elastase (NE) gene have been postulated to interfere with normal intracellular trafficking of NE as an AP3-interacting membrane integrated protein and to cause severe congenital or cyclic neutropenia in humans. Here, we show that in U937 promonocytes NE is synthesized as a predominantly soluble proenzyme and is completely secreted in the presence of phorbol esters similarly to serglycin. Using chemical cross-linking NE is shown to be associated with serglycin as 34 kDa proenzyme in the trans-Golgi region of these cells indicating that it is delivered to lysosomes associated with serglycin.
...
PMID:Neutrophil elastase is associated with serglycin on its way to lysosomes in U937 cells. 1761 93

During microbial infection, neutrophils (polymorphonuclear leukocytes; PMNs) activate dendritic cells (DCs). However, early reports illustrated that neutrophil-derived mediators may suppress responses to mitogens. In the present study, we investigated the mechanism used by PMNs to modulate the immunostimulatory ability of DCs. Autologous syngeneic PMNs decreased T-cell proliferation induced by allogeneic DCs. Culture supernatant (CS) derived from PMNs also decreased allostimulation ability of immature DCs and increased the expression of transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1 on DCs. A TGF-beta1 monoclonal antibody, a CD40 monoclonal antibody, or a serine protease inhibitor reversed the effect of PMN CS on DC allostimulatory ability. Furthermore, elastase reproduced the inhibitory effect of PMN CS on DC allostimulatory ability and the TGF-beta1 production. The role of elastase was confirmed by examining PMN CS from two patients with cyclic neutropenia, a disease due to mutations in the neutrophil elastase gene. These PMN CS samples had reduced elastase activity and were unable to increase DC TGF-beta1 production. Moreover, elastase and PMN CS induced IkappaBalpha degradation in DCs. We conclude that PMNs decrease DC allostimulatory ability via production of elastase leading to a switch of immature DCs into TGF-beta1-secreting cells.
...
PMID:Neutrophil elastase converts human immature dendritic cells into transforming growth factor-beta1-secreting cells and reduces allostimulatory ability. 1769 Jan 84

Severe congenital neutropenia (SCN) is an inborn disorder of granulopoiesis. Mutations of the ELA2 gene encoding neutrophil elastase (NE) are responsible for most cases of SCN and cyclic neutropenia (CN), a related but milder disorder of granulopoiesis. However, the mechanisms by which these mutations disrupt granulopoiesis are unclear. We hypothesize that the ELA2 mutations result in the production of misfolded NE protein, activation of the unfolded protein response (UPR), and ultimately apoptosis of granulocytic precursors. Expression of mutant NE but not wild-type NE strongly induced BiP/GRP78 mRNA expression and XBP1 mRNA splicing, 2 classic markers of the UPR. The magnitude of UPR activation by a specific ELA2 mutation correlated with its associated clinical phenotype. Consistent with the UPR model, expression of mutant NE in primary human granulocytic precursors increased expression of CHOP (DDITS) and induced apoptosis in a protease-independent fashion. Most strikingly, UPR activation and decreased NE protein expression were detected in primary granulocytic precursors from SCN patients. Collectively, these data provide strong support for a UPR model of SCN disease pathogenesis and place SCN in a growing list of human diseases caused by misfolded proteins.
...
PMID:Mutations of the ELA2 gene found in patients with severe congenital neutropenia induce the unfolded protein response and cellular apoptosis. 1776 33


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next >>