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Query: UNIPROT:P42574 (
caspase-3
)
45,978
document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)
Erythropoietin
(EP) is required by late-stage erythroid progenitor cells to prevent apoptosis. Several lines of evidence suggest that it is this action of EP that regulates erythrocyte production in vivo. To study the control of apoptosis in mouse and human erythroblasts, the expression of members of the Bcl-2 family of proteins and the expression and activation of the apoptosis-linked cysteine protease Yama/CPP32/apopain were examined. These proteins have been implicated as regulators of apoptosis in several cell models. The Bcl-2 family members analyzed were Bcl-2, Bcl-X, Bax, Bad, Bak, A1, and Mcl-1. Bcl-X expression in proerythroblasts was highly EP-dependent. Bcl-X was strongly increased during the terminal differentiation stages of human and mouse erythroblasts, reaching maximum transcript and protein levels at the time of maximum hemoglobin synthesis. This increase in Bcl-X expression led to an apparent level of approximately 50 times the level in proerythroblasts. In contrast, neither mouse nor human erythroblasts expressed Bcl-2 transcript or protein. Bax and Bad proteins remained relatively constant throughout differentiation, but diminished near the time of enucleation. Bak protein was present in early erythroblasts, but diminished progressively during differentiation. EP deprivation in both mouse and human erythroblasts led to activation of the cysteine protease, apopain, as was indicated by cleavage of the proenzyme into its proteolytically active fragments.
Apopain
activation was detectable within 2 hours of EP deprivation in mouse erythroblasts. These findings suggest an important role for Bcl-X in late erythroid differentiation and for apopain in apoptosis of erythroblasts caused by deprivation of EP.
...
PMID:The roles of Bcl-X(L) and apopain in the control of erythropoiesis by erythropoietin. 922 63
Erythropoietin
(EP) is required by late stage erythroid progenitor cells to prevent apoptosis. In a previous study (Gregoli and Bondurant, 1997, Blood 90:630-640), it was shown that rapid proteolytic conversion of procaspase 3 to the fully activated enzyme occurred when erythroblasts were deprived of EP for as little as 2 h. In the present study, protein and mRNA analyses of erythroblasts indicated the presence of the proenzyme precursors of caspases 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9. The effects of various caspase inhibitors on
caspase 3
processing and on apoptosis were examined. These inhibitors were benzyloxycarbonyl (z-) and fluoromethyl-ketone (FMK) derivatives of peptides that serve as substrates for selected caspases. z-VAD-FMK, t-butoxycarbonyl-aspartate-FMK (Boc-D-FMK), and z-IETD-FMK blocked the initial cleavage of procaspase 3, while z-DEVD-FMK, z-VEID-FMK, and z-VDVAD-FMK did not block the initial cleavage but had some effect on blocking apoptosis. The peptide inhibitor z-FA-FMK, which inhibits cathepsins B and L but is not known to inhibit caspases, altered
caspase 3
processing to a final 19 kDa large subunit that appeared to retain enzymatic activity. The action of z-FA-FMK in preventing the usual conversion to a 1 7 kDa subunit suggests the possibility that a noncaspase protease may be involved in
caspase 3
processing. Studies with the peptide inhibitors and EP were done to determine the short- and long-term effectiveness of the caspase inhibitors in protecting EP-deprived cells from apoptosis. Although several of the inhibitors were effective, z-IETD-FMK was studied most extensively because of its specificity for enzymes which cleave procaspase 3 at aspartate 175 (IETD175). Large percentages of EP-deprived erythroblasts treated with z-IETD-FMK appeared morphologically normal and negative by a DNA strand breakage (TUNEL) assay at 24 h (75%) compared to EP-deprived controls (10%) which were not treated with inhibitor. However, inhibitor-treated erythroid progenitors deprived of EP for 24 h and then resupplied with EP showed only a modest improvement in long-term survival compared to cells which did not receive the caspase inhibitor during the 24 h EP deprivation. Thus, while the manifestations of apoptosis were delayed in most cells by inhibiting caspase activity, the processes initiating the loss of cell viability due to EP deprivation were irreparablein the majority of the cells and eventually led to their deaths.
...
PMID:Function of caspases in regulating apoptosis caused by erythropoietin deprivation in erythroid progenitors. 1004 77
Erythropoietin
(
EPO
) modulates primarily the proliferation of immature erythroid precursors, but little is known of the potential protective mechanisms of
EPO
in the central nervous system. We therefore examined the ability of
EPO
to modulate a series of death-related cellular pathways during anoxia and free radical induced neuronal degeneration. Neuronal injury was evaluated by trypan blue, DNA fragmentation, membrane phosphatidylserine exposure, protein kinase B phosphorylation, cysteine protease activity, mitochondrial membrane potential, and mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase phosphorylation. We demonstrate that constitutive neuronal
EPO
is insufficient to prevent cellular injury, but that signaling through the
EPO
receptor remains biologically responsive to exogenous
EPO
administration. Exogenous
EPO
is both necessary and sufficient to prevent acute genomic DNA destruction and subsequent phagocytosis through membrane PS exposure, because neuronal protection by
EPO
is completely abolished by co-treatment with an anti-
EPO
neutralizing antibody. Through pathways that involve the initial activation of protein kinase B,
EPO
maintains mitochondrial membrane potential. Subsequently,
EPO
inhibits caspase 8-, caspase 1-, and
caspase 3
-like activities linked to cytochrome c release through mechanisms that are independent from the MAP kinase systems of p38 and JNK. Elucidating some of the novel neuroprotective pathways employed by
EPO
may further the development of new therapeutic strategies for neurodegenerative disorders.
...
PMID:Erythropoietin prevents early and late neuronal demise through modulation of Akt1 and induction of caspase 1, 3, and 8. 1258 24
Erythropoietin
(
EPO
) plays a prominent role in the regulation of the hematopoietic system, but the potential function of this trophic factor as a cytoprotectant in the cerebral vascular system is not known. The authors examined the ability of
EPO
to modulate a series of death-related cellular pathways during free radical-induced injury in cerebral microvascular endothelial cells (ECs). Endothelial cell injury was evaluated by trypan blue, DNA fragmentation, membrane phosphatidylserine exposure, apoptotic protease-activating factor-1 (Apaf-1), and Bcl-XL expression, mitochondrial membrane potential, cytochrome c release, and cysteine protease activity. They show that constitutive
EPO
is present in ECs but is insufficient to prevent cellular injury. Signaling through the
EPO
receptor, however, remains biologically responsive to exogenous
EPO
administration to offer significant protection against nitric oxide-induced injury. Exogenous
EPO
maintains both genomic DNA integrity and cellular membrane asymmetry through parallel pathways that prevent the induction of Apaf-1 and preserve mitochondrial membrane potential in conjunction with enhanced Bcl-XL expression. Consistent with the modulation of Apaf-1 and the release of cytochrome c,
EPO
also inhibits the activation of caspase-9 and
caspase-3
-like activities. Identification of novel cytoprotective pathways used by
EPO
may serve as therapeutic targets for cerebral vascular disease.
...
PMID:Apaf-1, Bcl-xL, cytochrome c, and caspase-9 form the critical elements for cerebral vascular protection by erythropoietin. 1262 7
Erythropoietin
(
EPO
) can rescue erythroid cells from apoptosis during erythroid development, leading to red cell production. However, the detailed mechanism of how
EPO
protects erythroid cells from apoptosis is still open to question. To address this problem, we used a human
EPO
-dependent leukemia cell line UT-7/
EPO
and normal erythroid progenitor cells. After deprivation of
EPO
, UT-7/
EPO
cells underwent apoptosis, accompanied by down-regulation of the Bcl-xL protein. In addition, the cleaved products of
caspase-3
, p11 and p21, and a few cleaved forms of inhibitor of caspase-activated DNase (ICAD) were detected in these cells. When the cells were pre-treated with the pancaspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK, the ratio of apoptotic cells was significantly reduced, suggesting that
EPO
protects the UT-7/
EPO
cells from apoptosis via inhibition of caspase activities. When an MEK 1/2 inhibitor U0126 inhibited activities of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs), the expression of Bcl-xL protein was down-regulated and subsequently apoptosis was induced. Interestingly, Z-VAD-FMK blocked U0126-induced down-regulation of Bcl-xL protein and apoptosis, strongly suggesting that Bcl-xL expression is regulated by caspases which lies downstream of ERK activation pathway in
EPO
signaling. Importantly, these findings were also observed in normal erythroid progenitor cells. In conclusion, the activation of ERKs by
EPO
up-regulates Bcl-xL expression via inhibition of caspase activities, resulting in the protection of erythroid cells from apoptosis.
...
PMID:Activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases ERK1 and ERK2 induces Bcl-xL up-regulation via inhibition of caspase activities in erythropoietin signaling. 1265 55
Erythropoietin
(
EPO
) and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) are cytokines that inhibit neuronal apoptosis. However, their maximal antiapoptotic effect, even at high concentrations, is observed only when neurons are pretreated for several hours before insult. Here we show that simultaneous administration of
EPO
and IGF-I (EPO+IGF-I) eliminates the preincubation period required to prevent N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-induced apoptosis in cultured rat cerebrocortical neurons. The synergistic effect of EPO+IGF-I was mediated, at least in part, by activation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-K). EPO+IGF-I synergistically activated Akt (protein kinase B), a downstream target of PI3-K, and prevented dephosphorylation of Akt. Overexpression of a dominant interfering form of Akt (dnAkt) abrogated EPO+IGF-I-mediated neuroprotection. EPO+IGF-I treatment did not prevent initial NMDA-induced
caspase-3
activation, which was observed within 6 h of insult; however, EPO+IGF-I-treated neurons survived at least 2 days after NMDA insult. These cytokines prevented neuronal apoptosis downstream of caspase activation by facilitating association between X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein, an inhibitor of caspase proteolytic activity, and activated
caspase-3
. These results imply that EPO+IGF-I exert cooperative actions that afford acute neuroprotection via activation of the PI3-K-Akt pathway.
...
PMID:Acute neuroprotective synergy of erythropoietin and insulin-like growth factor I. 1521 Sep 45
Erythropoietin
(
EPO
) is upregulated by hypoxia and causes proliferation and differentiation of erythroid progenitors in the bone marrow through inhibition of apoptosis.
EPO
receptors are expressed in many tissues, including the kidney. Here it is shown that a single systemic administration of
EPO
either preischemia or just before reperfusion prevents ischemia-reperfusion injury in the rat kidney. Specifically,
EPO
(300 U/kg) reduced glomerular dysfunction and tubular injury (biochemical and histologic assessment) and prevented
caspase-3
, -8, and -9 activation in vivo and reduced apoptotic cell death. In human (HK-2) proximal tubule epithelial cells,
EPO
attenuated cell death in response to oxidative stress and serum starvation.
EPO
reduced DNA fragmentation and prevented
caspase-3
activation, with upregulation of Bcl-X(L) and XIAP. The antiapoptotic effects of
EPO
were dependent on JAK2 signaling and the phosphorylation of Akt by phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase. These findings may have major implications in the treatment of acute renal tubular damage.
...
PMID:Erythropoietin protects the kidney against the injury and dysfunction caused by ischemia-reperfusion. 1528 11
Erythropoietin
(
EPO
) is a hormone known to stimulate hematopoiesis. However, recent research suggests additional properties of
EPO
, such as protection against ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in various tissues. We studied the effect of timing of
EPO
administration on cardioprotection during I/R in the heart. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to 45 minutes of coronary occlusion, followed by 24 hours of reperfusion. Animals were randomized to receive saline or single dose of
EPO
(5,000 IU/kg) either 2 hours before I/R, at the start of ischemia, or after the onset of reperfusion. The ratio of infarct area/area at risk (planimetry), left ventricular (LV) function (pressure development), and apoptosis (number of active
caspase-3
positive cells) were determined after 24-hour reperfusion. Administration of
EPO
during different time points resulted in a 19 to 23% (P < 0.05) reduction in the infarct area/area at risk, which was accompanied by a trend toward better LV hemodynamic parameters. Apoptosis was significantly attenuated in groups treated with
EPO
at the start of ischemia (29% reduction) and after the onset of reperfusion (38%), and to a lesser extent (16%) in the group pre-treated with
EPO
. Thus, in vivo administration of
EPO
at different time points protects the myocardial structure and preserves cardiac function during I/R. Cardioprotective effect of
EPO
is associated with inhibition of apoptosis.
...
PMID:Timing of erythropoietin treatment for cardioprotection in ischemia/reperfusion. 1545 56
Erythropoietin
(Epo) has been reported to inhibit apoptosis of neuron and erythroid cells. In this study, we examined an effect of high glucose on apoptosis of endothelial cells and investigated an anti-apoptotic effect of Epo. Human aortic endothelial cells were incubated with normal or high glucose for 72 h, and apoptotic cells were detected by TUNEL assay. Simultaneously, Epo (100 U/ml) was added to the high glucose medium to examine an inhibitory effect on the apoptosis induced by high glucose. Activity of
caspase-3
was also measured using a specific substrate. To investigate a possible mechanism of Epo's action on apoptosis, phosphorylation of Akt was examined by applying Epo. Incubation with high glucose increased apoptosis of endothelial cells, whereas this effect was prevented by co-incubation with Epo.
Caspase-3
activity was also increased (1.4-fold) by incubation with high glucose, and the activation of
caspase-3
was normalized to the control level by co-incubation with Epo. Furthermore, Epo-induced phosphorylation of Akt in dose-dependent manner. In conclusion, we demonstrated that incubation with high glucose activated
caspase-3
and induced apoptosis of endothelial cells. Epo was shown to phosphorylate Akt, leading to the inhibition of
caspase-3
activation and apoptosis induced by high glucose. These results suggest that reduced production of Epo in patients with end-stage of nephropathy may accelerate diabetic angiopathy and that replacing therapy with Epo might inhibit endothelial cell apoptosis and diabetic angiopathy.
...
PMID:Effect of erythropoietin on endothelial cell apoptosis induced by high glucose. 1556 57
High glucose-induced apoptosis in vascular endothelial cells may contribute to the acceleration of atherosclerosis associated with diabetes. Here, we show that erythropoietin attenuates high glucose-induced apoptosis in cultured human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs). Exposure of HAECs to high glucose level for 72h significantly increased the number of apoptotic cells compared with normal glucose level, as evaluated by TUNEL assay. Simultaneous addition of erythropoietin (100 U/ml) significantly attenuated high glucose-induced apoptosis. In parallel, exposure to high glucose level induced
caspase-3
activation and erythropoietin also prevented it.
Erythropoietin
stimulated Akt phosphorylation in a dose-dependent manner (1-100 U/ml). PI3 kinase inhibitor, wortmannin or LY294002 eliminated erythropoietin's inhibitory effect on
caspase-3
activity. In conclusion, erythropoietin may attenuate high glucose-induced endothelial cell apoptosis via PI-3 kinase pathway. Replacing therapy with erythropoietin is often used for correction of renal anemia, but may have potential in preventing atherosclerosis in diabetic patients with end-stage renal failure.
...
PMID:Erythropoietin attenuated high glucose-induced apoptosis in cultured human aortic endothelial cells. 1599 82
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