Interaction between multi-functional mesenchymal stroma/stem cells (MSC) and human tumor cells involves the exchange of biological material via extracellular vesicles including exosomes. Protein analysis of MSC-derived exosomes demonstrated the presence of MMP-2 and MSC-specific markers including CD90 and ecto-5'-nucleotidase (CD73). Incubation of tumor cells with these membranous particles revealed a rapid uptake of MSC-released microvesicles whereby breast cancer cells incorporated ~19% and SCCOHT-1 cells representing a rare type of small cell ovarian cancer assimilated ~28% of available exosomes within 24 h. This interaction was accompanied by functional alterations of tumor cell properties during integration of exosomal content from MSC. Indeed, exosome-associated MMP-2 exhibited functional enzyme activity and MCF-7 breast cancer cells with undetectable MMP-2 protein acquired expression of this enzyme and corresponding gelatinase functionality after stimulation with MSC-derived exosomes. Similar effects were observed in SCCOHT-1 cells during culture in the presence of MSC-derived exosomes which enabled new metabolic activities in this tumor cell type. Together, these findings demonstrated that the internalization of MSC-derived exosomes was associated with the acquisition of new tumor cell properties by altering cellular functionalities and providing the capability to re-organize the tumor microenvironment.

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Fibrosis contributes to ~45% of deaths in western countries. In chronic liver disease, fibrosis is a major factor determining outcomes, but efficient antifibrotic therapies are lacking. Although platelet-derived growth factor and transforming growth factor–β constitute key fibrogenic mediators, they do not account for the well-established link between cell death and fibrosis in the liver. Here, we hypothesized that damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) may link epithelial cell death to fibrogenesis in the injured liver. DAMP receptor screening identified purinergic receptor P2Y14 among several candidates as highly enriched in hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), the main fibrogenic cell type of the liver. Conversely, P2Y14 ligands uridine 5′-diphosphate (UDP)–glucose and UDP-galactose were enriched in hepatocytes and were released upon different modes of cell death. Accordingly, ligand-receptor interaction analysis that combined proteomic and single-cell RNA sequencing data revealed P2Y14 ligands and P2Y14 receptor as a link between dying cells and HSCs, respectively. Treatment with P2Y14 ligands or coculture with dying hepatocytes promoted HSC activation in a P2Y14-dependent manner. P2Y14 ligands activated extracellular signal–regulated kinase (ERK) and Yes-associated protein (YAP) signaling in HSCs, resulting in ERK-dependent HSC activation. Global and HSC-selective P2Y14 deficiency attenuated liver fibrosis in multiple mouse models of liver injury. Functional expression of P2Y14 was confirmed in healthy and diseased human liver and human HSCs. In conclusion, P2Y14 ligands and their receptor constitute a profibrogenic DAMP pathway that directly links cell death to fibrogenesis.

Cyclic di‐AMP is an essential signalling molecule in Gram‐positive bacteria. This second messenger regulates the osmotic pressure of the cell by interacting directly with the regulatory domains, either RCK_C or CBS domains, of several potassium and osmolyte uptake membrane protein systems. Cyclic di‐AMP also targets stand‐alone CBS domain proteins such as DarB in Bacillus subtilis and CbpB in Listeria monocytogenes. We show here that the CbpB protein of Group B Streptococcus binds c‐di‐AMP with a very high affinity. Crystal structures of CbpB reveal the determinants of binding specificity and significant conformational changes occurring upon c‐di‐AMP binding. Deletion of the cbpB gene alters bacterial growth in low potassium conditions most likely due to a decrease in the amount of ppGpp caused by a loss of interaction between CbpB and Rel, the GTP/GDP pyrophosphokinase.