Università della Svizzera italiana

Oxidation state dependent conformational changes of HMGB1 regulate the formation of the CXCL12/HMGB1 heterocomplex

Fassi, Enrico M.A. ; Sgrignani, Jacopo ; D'Agostino, Gianluca ; Cecchinato, Valentina ; Garofalo, Maura ; Grazioso, Giovanni ; Uguccioni, Mariagrazia ; Cavalli, Andrea

In: Computational and structural biotechnology journal, 2019, vol. 17, p. 886-894

High-mobility Group Box 1 (HMGB1) is an abundant protein present in all mammalian cells and involved in several processes. During inflammation or tissue damage, HMGB1 is released in the extracellular space and, depending on its redox state, can form a heterocomplex with CXCL12. The heterocomplex acts exclusively via the chemokine receptor CXCR4 enhancing leukocyte recruitment. Here, we used...

Università della Svizzera italiana

Chemokine heterocomplexes and cancer : A novel chapter to be written in tumor immunity

D'Agostino, Gianluca ; Cecchinato, Valentina ; Uguccioni, Mariagrazia

In: Frontiers in immunology, 2018, vol. 9, p. 2185

Infiltrating immune cells are a key component of the tumor microenvironment and play central roles in dictating tumor fate, either promoting anti-tumor immune responses, or sustaining tumor growth, angiogenesis and metastasis. A distinctive microenvironment is often associated to different tumor types, with substantial differences in prognosis. The production of a variety of chemotactic...

Università della Svizzera italiana

Redox-mediated mechanisms fuel monocyte responses to CXCL12/HMGB1 in active rheumatoid arthritis

Cecchinato, Valentina ; D'Agostino, Gianluca ; Raeli, Lorenzo ; Nerviani, Alessandra ; Schiraldi, Milena ; Danelon, Gabriela ; Manzo, Antonio ; Thelen, Marcus ; Ciurea, Adrian ; Bianchi, Marco E. ; Rubartelli, Anna ; Pitzalis, Costantino ; Uguccioni, Mariagrazia

In: Frontiers in immunology, 2018, vol. 9, p. 2118

Chemokine synergy-inducing molecules are emerging as regulating factors in cell migration. The alarmin HMGB1, in its reduced form, can complex with CXCL12 enhancing its activity on monocytes via the chemokine receptor CXCR4, while the form containing a disulfide bond, by binding to TLR2 or TLR4, initiates a cascade of events leading to production of cytokines and chemokines. So far, the...