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Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Determination of the Relative Potency of an Anti-TNF Monoclonal Antibody (mAb) by Neutralizing TNF Using an In Vitro Bioanalytical Method
Published on: September 16, 2017
Nuclear receptor CAR represses TNFalpha-induced cell death by interacting with the anti-apoptotic GADD45B
Yukio Yamamoto1, Rick Moore, Richard A Flavell
1Laboratory of Reproductive and Developmental Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, United States of America.
Background:
Phenobarbital (PB) is the most well-known among numerous non-genotoxic carcinogens that cause the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). PB activates nuclear xenobiotic receptor Constitutive Active/Androstane Receptor (CAR; NR1I3) and this activation is shown to determine PB promotion of HCC in mice. The molecular mechanism of CAR-mediated tumor promotion, however, remains elusive at the present time. Here we have identified Growth Arrest and DNA Damage-inducible 45beta (GADD45B) as a novel CAR target, through which CAR represses cell death.
Methodology/Principal Findings:
PB activation of nuclear xenobiotic receptor CAR is found to induce the Gadd45b gene in mouse liver throughout the development of HCC as well as in liver tumors. Given the known function of GADD45B as a factor that represses Mitogen-activated protein Kinase Kinase 7 - c-Jun N-terminal Kinase (MKK7-JNK) pathway-mediated apoptosis, we have now demonstrated that CAR interacts with GADD45B to repress Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha ( TNFalpha)-induced JNK1 phosphorylation as well as cell death. Primary hepatocytes, prepared from Car(+/+), Car(-/-), Gadd45b(+/+) and Gadd45b(-/-) mice, were treated with TNFalpha and Actinomycin D to induce phosphorylation of JNK1 and cell death. Co-treatment with the CAR activating ligand TCPOBOP (1,4 bis[2-(3,5-dichloropyridyloxy)]benzene) has resulted in repression of both phosphorylation and cell death in the primary hepatocytes from Car(+/+) but not Car(-/-) mice. Repression by TCPOBOP was not observed in those prepared from Gadd45b(-/-) mice. In vitro protein-protein interaction and phosphorylation assays have revealed that CAR interacts with MKK7 and represses the MKK7-mediated phosphorylation of JNK1.
Conclusions/Significance:
CAR can form a protein complex with GADD45B, through which CAR represses MKK7-mediated phosphorylation of JNK1. In addition to activating the Gadd45b gene, CAR may repress death of mouse primary hepatocytes by forming a GADD45B complex and repressing MKK7-mediated phosphorylation of JNK1. The present finding that CAR can repress cell death via its interaction with GADD45B provides an insight for further investigations into the CAR-regulated molecular mechanism by which PB promotes development of HCC.
Insights
Phenobarbital (PB) promotes liver cancer by activating the CAR receptor. CAR targets GADD45B to repress cell death, offering new insights into PB-induced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development.
Area of Science:
- Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) research
- Molecular mechanisms of carcinogenesis
- Nuclear receptor signaling
Background:
- Phenobarbital (PB) is a non-genotoxic carcinogen linked to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
- The Constitutive Active/Androstane Receptor (CAR) is activated by PB and promotes HCC.
- The precise molecular mechanism of CAR-mediated tumor promotion is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify novel CAR targets involved in HCC promotion.
- To elucidate the mechanism by which CAR represses cell death.
- To investigate the role of Growth Arrest and DNA Damage-inducible 45beta (GADD45B) in CAR-mediated hepatocarcinogenesis.
Main Methods:
- Identification of GADD45B as a CAR target gene in mouse liver.
- Treatment of primary hepatocytes from wild-type and knockout mice with TNFalpha and Actinomycin D.
- Co-treatment with the CAR activator TCPOBOP.
- In vitro protein-protein interaction and phosphorylation assays.
Main Results:
- CAR activation by PB induces GADD45B expression in mouse liver during HCC development.
- CAR interacts with GADD45B to repress TNFalpha-induced JNK1 phosphorylation and cell death.
- TCPOBOP repressed JNK1 phosphorylation and cell death in wild-type but not CAR- or GADD45B-deficient hepatocytes.
- CAR directly interacts with MKK7, inhibiting JNK1 phosphorylation.
Conclusions:
- CAR forms a protein complex with GADD45B to inhibit MKK7-mediated JNK1 phosphorylation.
- CAR represses primary hepatocyte death through GADD45B complex formation and MKK7 inhibition.
- This study provides novel insights into the CAR-regulated molecular mechanisms underlying PB-induced HCC.
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