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Kinase D interacting substrate of 220 kDa (Kidins220), also known as ankyrin repeat-rich membrane spanning (ARMS), is a protein that is mainly expressed in brain and neural cells where its function is only starting to be characterized. Here, we show that Kidins220/ARMS is also expressed in T lymphocytes where it is highly concentrated at the uropod of polarized T cells. In this cellular model, Kidins220/ARMS colocalizes with typical uropod T-cell molecules and coimmunoprecipitates with ICAM-3. Furthermore, Kidins220/ARMS associates with raft domains at the uropod and coimmunoprecipitates with caveolin-1, a molecule we show here to be also expressed in T cells. Importantly, induction of morphological polarization in primary T lymphocytes and Jurkat cells enhances Kidins220/ARMS colocalization with ICAM-3. Conversely, disruption of cell polarity provokes Kidins220/ARMS redistribution from the uropod to other cellular regions and drastically impairs its association with ICAM-3 in a protein kinase C-dependent manner. Finally, Kidins220/ARMS knockdown in human polarized T-cell lines promotes both basal and stromal cell-derived factor-1α-induced directed migration, identifying a novel function for this molecule. Altogether, our findings show that Kidins220/ARMS is a novel component of the uropod involved in the regulation of T-cell motility, an essential process for the immune response., (Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Kidins220, a protein predominantly expressed in neural tissues, is the first physiological substrate for protein kinase D (PKD). We show that Kidins220 is expressed in monocyte-derived and in peripheral blood immature dendritic cells (im DC). Immature DC (im DC) migrate onto extracellular matrices changing cyclically from a highly polarized morphology (monopolar (MP) stage) to a morphologically symmetrical shape (bipolar (BP) stage). Kidins220 was localized on membrane protrusions at the leading edge or on both poles in MP and BP cells, respectively. CD43, CD44, ICAM-3 and DC-SIGN, and signaling molecules PKD, Arp2/3 were found at the leading edge in MP or on both edges in BP cells, showing an intriguing parallelism between morphology and localization of molecular components on the poles of the motile DC. F-actin co-localized and it was necessary for Kidins220 localization on the membrane in MP and BP cells. Kidins220 was also found in a raft compartment. Disruption of rafts with methyl-beta-cyclodextrin induced rounding of the cells, inhibition of motility and lost of Kidins220 polarization. Our results describe for the first time the molecular components of the poles of motile im DC and indicate that a novel neuronal protein may be an important component among these molecules.

Leukocyte adhesion to and subsequent spreading on the endothelium are the initial steps in the migration of these cells to the surrounding tissues. We have investigated the participation of different VLA heterodimers in cell spreading by using the anti-beta 1 TS2/16 monoclonal antibody (mAb) which induces a conformational change of different VLA integrin receptors, enabling a high-affinity interaction with their ligands. Both VLA-4 and VLA-5 fibronectin (FN), as well as VLA-2 collagen (COL) receptors mediated cell spreading and morphological changes. The spreading of U-937 and alpha 4-transfected K-562 cells was induced in both FN and VCAM-1, suggesting that the morphological changes may be induced by cell-cell as well as cell-extracellular matrix (ECM) interactions. Furthermore, the beta 1-regulated cell spreading on VCAM-1 and COL took place independently of the VLA-5 FN receptor function. The enhancing effect on cell attachment induced by anti-beta 1 TS2/16 mAb was observed in the presence of different doses of cytochalasin D, whereas cell spreading was abolished. Signal transduction during beta 1-stimulated integrin-ligand interaction was also investigated. We have found the co-localization of beta 1 integrins and tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins during the spreading of U-937 and alpha 2- and alpha 4-transfected K-562 cells on both ECM (FN and COL) and cellular (VCAM-1) ligands. Kinetic studies showed that tyrosine phosphorylation was almost coincident with cellular spreading. The tyrosine phosphorylation of polypeptides of 130 kDa and 77 kDa was triggered in U-937 cells by the interaction of FN with the VLA-5 receptor in a high-affinity conformation. However, no signaling was observed by inducing the high-affinity state of receptor in the absence of appropriate ligand. These data suggest that tyrosine kinase activation is a post-receptor occupancy event that might be critical in regulating the adhesive properties of integrins.

Whereas all of the integrins in the VLA protein subfamily are involved in cell-extracellular matrix interactions, only VLA-4 (through the alpha 4 subunit) has been implicated in the triggering of intercellular adhesion. Here we describe that the VLA protein beta 1 subunit (CD29) is also involved in the induction of homotypic cell aggregation. We have obtained three novel anti-beta 1 monoclonal antibodies (mAb) with the ability to induce cell aggregation on different leukocyte cell types. These mAb recognize an antigenic site on the common beta 1 chain of VLA proteins which is topographically and/or functionally distinct from other epitopes previously defined by several prototype anti-beta 1 mAb. Induction of cell aggregation by anti-beta 1 mAb is epitope specific, isotype and Fc independent, and displays kinetics similar to alpha 4-mediated aggregation. This cell aggregation requires an intact cellular metabolism, the presence of divalent cations in the extracellular medium, and the integrity of the cytoskeleton. We also have found that the Na+/H+ antiporter may be essential for this process. For Ramos cells, which bear only the VLA alpha 4/beta 1 heterodimer, intercellular adhesion induced through the VLA-beta 1 chain could be selectively inhibited by other anti-beta 1 mAb as well as by anti-alpha 4 mAb. Interestingly, anti-beta 1 mAb which induced strong aggregation of VLA-alpha 2- or VLA-alpha 4-transfected K562 cells, had minimal effect on the alpha 2- alpha 4- alpha 5+ K562 cell line. Furthermore, the beta 1-mediated induction of cell aggregation on alpha 2-K562- and alpha 4-K562-transfected cells was blocked by preincubation with either anti-alpha 2 or anti-alpha 4 mAb, respectively, as well as by other anti-beta 1 mAb. Interestingly, parental K562 cells were able to interact with both alpha 2- and alpha 4-transfected K562 cells, thus suggesting that counter-receptors for both integrins (VLA-2 and VLA-4) might exist on these cells. Together these results provide strong evidence supporting the involvement of alpha 2/beta 1 and alpha 4/beta 1 heterodimers in intercellular interactions and underline the pivotal role of the common beta 1 chain of VLA proteins in the integrin-mediated induction of cell aggregation.

Human activation inducer molecule (AIM/CD69), a dimeric glycoprotein structure of 33 and 27 kDa, is the earliest inducible cell surface antigen expressed during lymphocyte activation and is implicated in the induction of T and B cell proliferative responses. Cross-competition monoclonal antibodies (mAb) binding assays have allowed the definition of four antigenic epitopes. Three of them (antigenic sites E1-3) are extracellular while the fourth (site I) is a sequential epitope localized intracellularly and highly conserved interspecies. Site E1 is shown to be an immunodominant antigenic determinant closely related to a functional domain of AIM important for triggering of T cell proliferation. Studies of peptide fragmentation of the two isolated AIM subunits with different proteases have demonstrated that both AIM chains are differentially glycosylated forms of a single 24-kDa core protein. Moreover, the two denatured and isolated AIM chains share common epitope(s) as demonstrated by their reactivity with an mAb by both Western blot analysis and immunoprecipitation of the separated AIM subunits. Biosynthesis studies revealed the rapid appearance of two intermediate precursor forms of 29 and 26 kDa which arise from the 24-kDa unglycosylated AIM polypeptide. This 24-kDa unglycosylated form could be also precipitated from iodinated cells pretreated with tunicamycin, indicating that glycosylation of the protein was neither required for AIM cell surface expression nor for acquisition of external epitopes E1-E3. Cell treatment with pronase resulted in the loss of the external epitopes E1-3 and the generation of a proteolytic peptide of 16 kDa that could be precipitated by the anti-AIM mAb specific for the internal site I. This proteolytic fragment retained the transmembrane and cytoplasmic regions of the molecule where both epitope I and phosphorylation sites reside. These results demonstrate that AIM is an integral membrane homodimeric glycoprotein with a large cytoplasmic domain probably involved in the activation signals transduced through this molecule to lymphocytes.