Overexpression of erbB2 in breast tumors is associated with poor prognosis and is a target of receptor-oriented cancer therapy. Trastuzumab (Herceptin), a monoclonal antibody against a membrane-proximal epitope in the extracellular region of erbB2, shows a therapeutic effect against a fraction of erbB2-amplified breast tumors. Unfortunately, resistance to Herceptin is common, and its cause is as yet unclear. Here we investigated the properties of erbB2 in a Herceptin-resistant cell line, JIMT-1, established from a breast cancer patient showing erbB2 gene amplification and primary resistance to Herceptin. The expression profile of erbB proteins, Herceptin-induced erbB2 internalization, and down-regulation in JIMT-1 were similar to those in Herceptin-sensitive lines. However, the mean number of Herceptin Mab binding sites in JIMT-1 was 1/5 that of the expressed erbB2 molecules, although 5% to 10% of the cells showed a ∼10-fold higher Herceptin binding than the main population. Herceptin Fab and Mab 2C4, an antibody binding to an epitope in the ectodomain further removed from the membrane, bound more efficiently to JIMT-1 cells than Herceptin Mab, implying that erbB2 was partly masked. The expression of MUC4, a membrane-associated mucin that according to reports contributes to the masking of membrane proteins, was higher in JIMT-1 than in Herceptin-sensitive lines, and its level was inversely correlated with the Herceptin binding capacity of single cells. Knockdown of MUC4 expression by RNA interference increased the binding of Herceptin. Western blotting showed a low level of proteolytic processing, shedding, and tyrosine phosphorylation of erbB2 in JIMT-1. The latter finding may explain its Herceptin-resistant phenotype characterizing both the low and high Herceptin binding subpopulations. We conclude that masking of erbB2 in JIMT-1 leads to diminished Herceptin binding and isolation of erbB2 from its normal interaction and activation partners.

The fluid mosaic membrane model proved to be a very useful hypothesis in explaining many, but certainly not all, phenomena taking place in biological membranes. New experimental data show that the compartmentalization of membrane components can be as important for effective signal transduction as is the fluidity of the membrane. In this work, we pay tribute to the Singer–Nicolson model, which is near its 30th anniversary, honoring its basic features, “mosaicism” and “diffusion,” which predict the interspersion of proteins and lipids and their ability to undergo dynamic rearrangement via Brownian motion. At the same time, modifications based on quantitative data are proposed, highlighting the often genetically predestined, yet flexible, multilevel structure implementing a vast complexity of cellular functions. This new “dynamically structured mosaic model” bears the following characteristics: emphasis is shifted from fluidity to mosaicism, which, in our interpretation, means nonrandom codistribution patterns of specific kinds of membrane proteins forming small-scale clusters at the molecular level and large-scale clusters (groups of clusters, islands) at the submicrometer level. The cohesive forces, which maintain these assemblies as principal elements of the membranes, originate from within a microdomain structure, where lipid–lipid, protein–protein, and protein–lipid interactions, as well as sub- and supramembrane (cytoskeletal, extracellular matrix, other cell) effectors, many of them genetically predestined, play equally important roles. The concept of fluidity in the original model now is interpreted as permissiveness of the architecture to continuous, dynamic restructuring of the molecular- and higher-level clusters according to the needs of the cell and as evoked by the environment.

The glycosylphosphatidylinositol‐anchored receptor CD14 plays a major role in the inflammatory response of monocytes to lipopolysaccharide. Here, we describe that ceramide, a constituent of atherogenic lipoproteins, binds to CD14 and induces clustering of CD14 to co‐receptors in rafts. In resting cells, CD14 was associated with CD55, the Fcγ‐receptors CD32 and CD64 and the pentaspan CD47. Ceramide further recruited the complement receptor 3 (CD11b/CD18) and CD36 into proximity of CD14. Lipopolysaccharide, in addition, induced co‐clustering with Toll‐like receptor 4, Fcγ‐RIIIa (CD16a) and the tetraspanin CD81 while CD47 was dissociated. The different receptor complexes may be linked to ligand‐specific cellular responses initiated by CD14.

Communication of molecular species through dynamic association and/or dissociation at various cellular sites governs biological functions. Understanding these physiological processes require delineation of molecular events occurring at the level of individual complexes in a living cell. Among the few non-invasive approaches with nanometer resolution are methods based on Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET). FRET is effective at a distance of 1–10 nm which is equivalent to the size of macromolecules, thus providing an unprecedented level of detail on molecular interactions. The emergence of fluorescent proteins and SNAP- and CLIP- tag proteins provided FRET with the capability to monitor changes in a molecular complex in real-time making it possible to establish the functional significance of the studied molecules in a native environment. Now, FRET is widely used in biological sciences, including the field of proteomics, signal transduction, diagnostics and drug development to address questions almost unimaginable with biochemical methods and conventional microscopies. However, the underlying physics of FRET often scares biologists. Therefore, in this review, our goal is to introduce FRET to non-physicists in a lucid manner. We will also discuss our contributions to various FRET methodologies based on microscopy and flow cytometry, while describing its application for determining the molecular heterogeneity of the plasma membrane in various cell types.

Trastuzumab is a recombinant antibody drug that is widely used for the treatment of breast cancer. Despite encouraging clinical results, some cancers are primarily resistant to trastuzumab, and a majority of those initially responding become resistant during prolonged treatment. The mechanisms of trastuzumab resistance have not been fully understood. We examined the role of antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) using JIMT-1 cells that are ErbB2 positive but intrinsically resistant to trastuzumab in vitro. Unexpectedly, in experiments mimicking adjuvant therapy of submacroscopic disease in vivo (JIMT-1 cells inoculated s.c. in severe combined immunodeficiency mice), trastuzumab was able to inhibit the outgrowth of macroscopically detectable xenograft tumors for up to 5–7 weeks. The effect is likely to be mediated via ADCC because trastuzumab-F(ab′)₂ was ineffective in this model. Moreover, in vitro ADCC reaction of human leukocytes was equally strong against breast cancer cells intrinsically sensitive (SKBR-3) or resistant (JIMT-1) to trastuzumab or even against a subline of JIMT-1 that was established from xenograft tumors growing despite trastuzumab treatment. These results suggest that ADCC may be the predominant mechanism of trastuzumab action on submacroscopic tumor spread. Thus, measuring the ADCC activity of patient's leukocytes against the tumor cells may be a relevant predictor of clinical trastuzumab responsiveness in vivo. [Mol Cancer Ther 2007;6(7):2065–72]