The Multifaceted Roles of TAM Receptors during Viral Infection
VIROLOGICA SINICA
Authors: Wang, Zhao-Yang; Wang, Pei-Gang; An, Jing
Abstract
Tyro3,Axl, andMertk (TAM) receptors play multiple roles in a myriad of physiological and pathological processes, varying from promoting the phagocytic clearance of apoptotic cells, sustaining the immune and inflammatory homeostasis, maintaining the blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity and central nervous system (CNS) homeostasis, to mediating cancer malignancy and chemoresistance. Growth arrest-specific protein 6 (Gas6) and protein S (Pros1) are the two ligands that activate TAM receptors. Recently, TAM receptors have been reported to mediate cell entry and infection of multitudinous enveloped viruses in a manner called apoptotic mimicry. Moreover, TAM receptors are revitalized during viral entry and infection, which sequesters innate immune and inflammatory responses, facilitating viral replication and immune evasion. However, accumulating evidence have now proposed that TAM receptors are not required for the infection of these virusesin vivo. In addition, TAM receptors protect mice against the CNS infection of neuroinvasive viruses and relieve the brain lesions during encephalitis. These protective effects are achieved through maintaining BBB integrity, attenuating proinflammatory cytokine production, and promoting neural cell survival. TAM receptors also regulate the programmed cell death modes of virus-infected cells, which have profound impacts on the pathogenesis and outcome of infection. Here, we systematically review the functionalities and underlying mechanisms of TAM receptors and propose the potential application of TAM agonists to prevent severe viral encephalitis.
Upregulation of anticoagulant proteins, protein S and tissue factor pathway inhibitor, in the mouse myocardium with cardio-specific TNF-alpha overexpression
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY-HEART AND CIRCULATORY PHYSIOLOGY
Authors: Higuchi, Yoshihiro; Kubota, Toru; Koyanagi, Masamichi; Maeda, Toyoki; Feldman, Arthur M.; Makino, Naoki
Abstract
Higuchi Y, Kubota T, Koyanagi M, Maeda T, Feldman AM, Makino N. Upregulation of anticoagulant proteins, protein S and tissue factor pathway inhibitor, in the mouse myocardium with cardio-specific TNF-alpha overexpression. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol 302: H2352-H2362, 2012. First published April 6, 2012; doi:10.1152/ajpheart.01026.2011.-Heart failure (HF) has been recognized as a hypercoagulable state. However, the natural anticoagulation systems in the failing heart have not been studied. Recent experimental and clinical data have indicated that not only the thrombomodulin (TM)/protein C (PC) pathway but also the protein S (PS)/tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) system function as potent natural anticoagulants. To investigate the balance between procoagulant and anticoagulant activities in the failing heart, we measured the cardiac expression of tissue factor (TF), type 1 plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI-1), TM, PC, PS, and TFPI by RT-PCR and/or Western blot analysis in male transgenic (TG) mice with heart-specific overexpression of TNF-alpha. Both procoagulant (TF and PAI-1) and anticoagulant (PS and TFPI) factors were upregulated in the myocardium of 24-wk-old TG (end-stage HF) but not in that of 4-wk-old TG (early decompensated HF) compared with the wild-type mice. Both factors were also upregulated in the infarcted myocardium at 3 days after coronary ligation in the wild-type mice. The expression of TM was downregulated in the TG heart, and PC was not detected in the hearts. The transcript levels of PS orphan receptors, Mer and Tyro3, but not Axl, were significantly upregulated in the TG heart. Double immunohistochemical staining revealed that myocardial infiltrating CD3-positive T cells may produce PS in the TG myocardium. In conclusion, the PS/TFPI was upregulated in the myocardium of a different etiological model of HF, thus suggesting a role for the PS/TFPI system in the protection of the failing heart under both inflammatory and hypercoagulable states.