AGE-RAGE signal generates a specific NF-κB RelA "barcode" that directs collagen I expression

Sci Rep. 2016 Jan 5:6:18822. doi: 10.1038/srep18822.

Abstract

Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are sugar-modified biomolecules that accumulate in the body with advancing age, and are implicated in the development of multiple age-associated structural and functional abnormities and diseases. It has been well documented that AGEs signal via their receptor RAGE to activate several cellular programs including NF-κB, leading to inflammation. A large number of stimuli can activate NF-κB; yet different stimuli, or the same stimulus for NF-κB in different cellular settings, produce a very different transcriptional landscape and physiological outcome. The NF-κB barcode hypothesis posits that cellular network dynamics generate signal-specific post-translational modifications, or a "barcode" to NF-κB, and that a signature "barcode" mediates a specific gene expression pattern. In the current study, we established that AGE-RAGE signaling results in NF-κB activation that directs collagen Ia1 and Ia2 expression. We further demonstrated that AGE-RAGE signal induces phosphorylation of RelA at three specific residues, T254, S311, and S536. These modifications are required for transcription of collagen I genes and are a consequence of cellular network dynamics. The increase of collagen content is a hallmark of arterial aging, and our work provides a potential mechanistic link between RAGE signaling, NF-κB activation, and aging-associated arterial alterations in structure and function.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Chromatin Immunoprecipitation
  • Collagen Type I / genetics*
  • Collagen Type I, alpha 1 Chain
  • Fibroblasts
  • Gene Expression Regulation*
  • Gene Knockout Techniques
  • Glycation End Products, Advanced / metabolism*
  • High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing
  • MAP Kinase Signaling System
  • Macrophages / metabolism
  • Mice
  • Mutation
  • Protein Binding
  • Protein Processing, Post-Translational
  • Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products / metabolism*
  • Regulatory Sequences, Nucleic Acid
  • Signal Transduction*
  • Transcription Factor RelA / genetics
  • Transcription Factor RelA / metabolism*
  • Transcription, Genetic

Substances

  • Collagen Type I
  • Collagen Type I, alpha 1 Chain
  • Glycation End Products, Advanced
  • Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products
  • Transcription Factor RelA