No abstract

Serine proteases are proteolytic enzymes that are involved in the regulation of various physiological processes. We generated mice lacking the membrane-anchored channel-activating serine protease (CAP) 1 (also termed protease serine S1 family member 8 [Prss8] and prostasin) in skin, and these mice died within 60 h after birth. They presented a lower body weight and exhibited severe malformation of the stratum corneum (SC). This aberrant skin development was accompanied by an impaired skin barrier function, as evidenced by dehydration and skin permeability assay and transepidermal water loss measurements leading to rapid, fatal dehydration. Analysis of differentiation markers revealed no major alterations in CAP1/Prss8-deficient skin even though the epidermal deficiency of CAP1/Prss8 expression disturbs SC lipid composition, corneocyte morphogenesis, and the processing of profilaggrin. The examination of tight junction proteins revealed an absence of occludin, which did not prevent the diffusion of subcutaneously injected tracer (∼600 D) toward the skin surface. This study shows that CAP1/Prss8 expression in the epidermis is crucial for the epidermal permeability barrier and is, thereby, indispensable for postnatal survival.

Elevated plasma urate levels are associated with metabolic, cardiovascular, and renal diseases. Urate may also form crystals, which can be deposited in joints causing gout and in kidney tubules inducing nephrolithiasis. In mice, plasma urate levels are controlled by hepatic breakdown, as well as, by incompletely understood renal processes of reabsorption and secretion. Here, we investigated the role of the recently identified urate transporter, Glut9, in the physiological control of urate homeostasis using mice with systemic or liver-specific inactivation of the Glut9 gene. We show that Glut9 is expressed in the basolateral membrane of hepatocytes and in both apical and basolateral membranes of the distal nephron. Mice with systemic knockout of Glut9 display moderate hyperuricemia, massive hyperuricosuria, and an early-onset nephropathy, characterized by obstructive lithiasis, tubulointerstitial inflammation, and progressive inflammatory fibrosis of the cortex, as well as, mild renal insufficiency. In contrast, liver-specific inactivation of the Glut9 gene in adult mice leads to severe hyperuricemia and hyperuricosuria, in the absence of urate nephropathy or any structural abnormality of the kidney. Together, our data show that Glut9 plays a major role in urate homeostasis by its dual role in urate handling in the kidney and uptake in the liver.gout ͉ knockout ͉ nephrolithiasis ͉ uric acid

T he cardiac action potential (AP) is initiated by the Na + channel Na V 1.5, an established key element for cardiac excitability and impulse propagation. The importance of Na V 1.5 is exemplified by the myriad of cardiac disorders caused by hundreds of mutations identified in SCN5A, the gene coding for Na V 1.5.1 For some SCN5A mutation carriers, cardiac conduction slowing or block, secondary to reduced Na + channel function, predisposes them to ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. Editorial see p 132 Clinical Perspective on p 160The cardiac Na + channel is composed of a 220-kDa α-subunit, Na V 1.5, constituting the pore of the channel, which is known to associate with four ≈30-kDa β-subunits. Recent studies have demonstrated that many proteins interact with and regulate Na V 1.5. 2 The physiological relevance of these interactions, however, is poorly understood, mainly due to a lack of in vivo studies. Many protein-protein interaction motifs for these regulatory proteins are located at the C-terminus of Na V 1.5. 2 In particular, we have previously demonstrated that Na V 1.5 associates with the dystrophinsyntrophin multiprotein complex (DMC) in cardiac cells.3 InBackground-Sodium channel Na V 1.5 underlies cardiac excitability and conduction. The last 3 residues of Na V 1.5 (Ser-IleVal) constitute a PDZ domain-binding motif that interacts with PDZ proteins such as syntrophins and SAP97 at different locations within the cardiomyocyte, thus defining distinct pools of Na V 1.5 multiprotein complexes. Here, we explored the in vivo and clinical impact of this motif through characterization of mutant mice and genetic screening of patients. Methods and Results-To investigate in vivo the regulatory role of this motif, we generated knock-in mice lacking the SIV domain (∆SIV). ∆SIV mice displayed reduced Na V 1.5 expression and sodium current (I Na ), specifically at the lateral myocyte membrane, whereas Na V 1.5 expression and I Na at the intercalated disks were unaffected. Optical mapping of ∆SIV hearts revealed that ventricular conduction velocity was preferentially decreased in the transversal direction to myocardial fiber orientation, leading to increased anisotropy of ventricular conduction. Internalization of wild-type and ΔSIV channels was unchanged in HEK293 cells. However, the proteasome inhibitor MG132 rescued ΔSIV I Na , suggesting that the SIV motif is important for regulation of Na V 1.5 degradation. A missense mutation within the SIV motif (p.V2016M) was identified in a patient with Brugada syndrome. The mutation decreased Na V 1.5 cell surface expression and I Na when expressed in HEK293 cells. Conclusions-Our results demonstrate the in vivo significance of the PDZ domain-binding motif in the correct expression of Na V 1.5 at the lateral cardiomyocyte membrane and underline the functional role of lateral Na V 1.5 in ventricular conduction. Recherche 1087, L'Institut du Thorax, Nantes, France (R.R.); Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 6291, Nantes, France...