James A. Shayman | |
---|---|
Born | James Alan Shayman |
Occupation(s) | Physician scientist, nephrologist, and pharmacologist |
Academic background | |
Alma mater | Cornell University Washington University School of Medicine |
Academic work | |
Institutions | University of Michigan Medical School Veterans Administration Medical Center |
James Alan Shayman is an American physician scientist,nephrologist,and pharmacologist. He is Professor of Internal Medicine and Pharmacology and the Agnes C. And Frank D. McKay Professor at the Medical School of the University of Michigan. [1] He also serves as a staff nephrologist at the Ann Arbor Veterans Administration Medical Center. [2]
Shayman's research interests span the study of lysosomal biology and related disorders. His group is most known for the development of small-molecule inhibitors of glycosphingolipid synthesis and their use in lysosomal glycosphingolipid storage disorders. His team also discovered and characterized a novel lysosomal phospholipase A2,PLA2G15 and is investigating its role in phospholipidosis. He has published over 160 articles. [3]
Shayman is a Fellow of the American Heart Association and American Society of Nephrology as well as a Life Fellow of Clare Hall at the University of Cambridge. He has served as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Clinical Investigation and Translational Research and is serving in the same role for the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology . [4]
Shayman obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree from Cornell University in 1976,and received an M.D. in 1980 from Washington University in St. Louis. From July 1980 to June 1983,he served as a house officer in Medicine at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis,Missouri. Beginning in 1983,he pursued a Postdoctoral Fellowship with a specialization in Nephrology and Pharmacology under the mentorship of Aubrey Morrison and Oliver H. Lowry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. [5]
Following his post-doctoral fellowship training,in 1985,Shayman began his academic career as an instructor in the Renal department of Washington University School of Medicine. He was recruited to the University of Michigan where from 1986 to 1992 he was appointed as assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine,Division of Nephrology. He subsequently was promoted to the positions of associate professor in 1992 and professor in 1997,respectively with a secondary appointment in Pharmacology. He has been serving as the Agnes C. and Frank D. McKay Professor. [1]
Shayman was the Associate Chair for Research Programs at the Department of Internal Medicine and Associate Vice President for Research in Health Sciences of the University of Michigan. [6] In addition,he has been serving as a staff nephrologist Veterans Administration Medical Center in Michigan. [2]
Shayman's research is focused on lysosomal biology,the pathophysiology of traditional lysosomal storage disorders,and the role of the lysosome in more prevalent diseases including diabetes mellitus and polycystic kidney disease. A particular emphasis has been on the development of drug therapeutics for disorders of glycosphingolipid metabolism. This work has resulted in several patents including "Amino ceramide-like compounds and therapeutic methods of use" [7] and "Pyridine inhibitors of glucosylceramide synthase and therapeutic methods using the same." [8]
An early collaboration with Norman Radin focused on substrate reduction as an alternative to enzyme replacement therapy for the treatment of lysosomal disorders such as Gaucher disease. It was suggested that substrate reduction posits that inhibition of metabolites that accumulate in the lysosome due to the loss of activity of a specific hydrolase can be treated with reversible inhibitors of specific anabolic enzymes. Following an early collaboration with Radin,the Shayman group went on to develop inhibitors of glucosylceramide synthase followed by proof of concept studies in models of Gaucher and Fabry disease that experimentally established the viability substrate reduction therapy. [9] [10] Although this concept was initially met with skepticism from the academic and pharmaceutical communities,these compounds were eventually licensed to the Genzyme Corporation for clinical development in 2000. In 2014 eliglustat tartrate was approved by the Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Association. Eliglustat tartrate was the first orally bioavailable agent approved as the first stand-alone substrate reduction therapy for Gaucher disease type 1. [11] [12]
Shayman's work on developing the "first in class" glycosphingolipid synthesis inhibitor led to the consideration of whether more common disorders might be amenable to targeting glucosylceramide synthase. [13] Based on fundamental studies by his group and others demonstrating a role for glucosylceramide metabolism in conditions associated with aerobic glycolysis, [14] including diabetes [15] and polycystic kidney disease,glucosylceramide synthase inhibitors have been the focus of preclinical and clinical studies evaluating the potential for extended use applications of eliglustat and related compounds. [16]
In collaboration with Scott D. Larsen,Shayman's work has also been directed toward the identification of brain-penetrant glycolipid synthesis inhibitors for the treatment of Gaucher disease types 2 and 3, [17] GM2 gangliosidoses including Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff disease,and GM1 gangliosidosis. [18] Using computational analysis comparing eliglustat to known CNS penetrant compounds,novel glucosylceramide synthase inhibitors were designed around the eliglustat pharmacophore,demonstrating the lower glucosylceramide and ganglioside levels within the brain. [19]
The Shayman group has worked on the elucidation of the mechanisms underlying the vasculopathy of Fabry disease. His initial work led to the identification of three inducible models of vascular disease in the alpha-galactosidase A knockout mouse. [20] These models included oxidant-induced arterial thrombosis,accelerated atherogenesis,and impaired arterial relaxation. Both decreased nitric oxide bioavailability [21] and endothelial nitric oxide synthase uncoupling have been demonstrated to underlie these abnormalities. The insights led to identifying 3-nitrotyrosine as a biomarker for endothelial dysfunction in both experimental models and patients affected by classic forms of Fabry disease. [22] [23]
Attempts to delineate potential off-target effects of eliglustat led to the discovery of a novel lysosomal hydrolase,phospholipase A2 group XV (PLA2GXV). This enzyme was initially identified as a transacylase and named 1-O-acylceramide synthase. [24] PLA2GXV is 50 percent identical to LCAT. In collaboration with John Tesmer and colleagues,the structure of PLA2GXV and,by extension,of lecithin cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) were solved. Mice engineered to be deficient in PLA2GXV developed a pulmonary phenotype associated with the conversion of alveolar macrophages to foam cells,a phenotype that resembles amiodarone toxicity. [25] A 2021 work has also identified PLA2GXV as the site of action for many drugs that cause a form of toxicity termed phospholipidosis. [26]
He is the father of American record producer Disco D,who helped popularize the music genre Ghettotech. [28] [29]
Gaucher's disease or Gaucher disease (GD) is a genetic disorder in which glucocerebroside accumulates in cells and certain organs. The disorder is characterized by bruising,fatigue,anemia,low blood platelet count and enlargement of the liver and spleen,and is caused by a hereditary deficiency of the enzyme glucocerebrosidase,which acts on glucocerebroside. When the enzyme is defective,glucocerebroside accumulates,particularly in white blood cells and especially in macrophages. Glucocerebroside can collect in the spleen,liver,kidneys,lungs,brain,and bone marrow.
Fabry disease,also known as Anderson–Fabry disease,is a rare genetic disease that can affect many parts of the body,including the kidneys,heart,brain,and skin. Fabry disease is one of a group of conditions known as lysosomal storage diseases. The genetic mutation that causes Fabry disease interferes with the function of an enzyme that processes biomolecules known as sphingolipids,leading to these substances building up in the walls of blood vessels and other organs. It is inherited in an X-linked manner.
Sphingolipids are a class of lipids containing a backbone of sphingoid bases,which are a set of aliphatic amino alcohols that includes sphingosine. They were discovered in brain extracts in the 1870s and were named after the mythological sphinx because of their enigmatic nature. These compounds play important roles in signal transduction and cell recognition. Sphingolipidoses,or disorders of sphingolipid metabolism,have particular impact on neural tissue. A sphingolipid with a terminal hydroxyl group is a ceramide. Other common groups bonded to the terminal oxygen atom include phosphocholine,yielding a sphingomyelin,and various sugar monomers or dimers,yielding cerebrosides and globosides,respectively. Cerebrosides and globosides are collectively known as glycosphingolipids.
The enzyme phospholipase A2 (EC 3.1.1.4,PLA2,systematic name phosphatidylcholine 2-acylhydrolase) catalyses the cleavage of fatty acids in position 2 of phospholipids,hydrolyzing the bond between the second fatty acid “tail”and the glycerol molecule:
Cerebrosides (monoglycosylceramides) are a group of glycosphingolipids which are important components of animal muscle and nerve cell membranes.
Enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) is a medical treatment which replaces an enzyme that is deficient or absent in the body. Usually,this is done by giving the patient an intravenous (IV) infusion of a solution containing the enzyme.
Clofazimine,sold under the brand name Lamprene,is a medication used together with rifampicin and dapsone to treat leprosy. It is specifically used for multibacillary (MB) leprosy and erythema nodosum leprosum. Evidence is insufficient to support its use in other conditions though a retrospective study found it 95% effective in the treatment of Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) when administered with a macrolide and ethambutol,as well as the drugs amikacin and clarithromycin. However,in the United States,clofazimine is considered an orphan drug,is unavailable in pharmacies,and its use in the treatment of MAC is overseen by the Food and Drug Administration. It is taken orally.
β-Glucocerebrosidase is an enzyme with glucosylceramidase activity that cleaves by hydrolysis the β-glycosidic linkage of the chemical glucocerebroside,an intermediate in glycolipid metabolism that is abundant in cell membranes. It is localized in the lysosome,where it remains associated with the lysosomal membrane. β-Glucocerebrosidase is 497 amino acids in length and has a molecular mass of 59,700 Da.
Glucocerebroside is any of the cerebrosides in which the monosaccharide head group is glucose.
Sphingolipidoses are a class of lipid storage disorders or degenerative storage disorders caused by deficiency of an enzyme that is required for the catabolism of lipids that contain ceramide,also relating to sphingolipid metabolism. The main members of this group are Niemann–Pick disease,Fabry disease,Krabbe disease,Gaucher disease,Tay–Sachs disease and metachromatic leukodystrophy. They are generally inherited in an autosomal recessive fashion,but notably Fabry disease is X-linked recessive. Taken together,sphingolipidoses have an incidence of approximately 1 in 10,000,but substantially more in certain populations such as Ashkenazi Jews. Enzyme replacement therapy is available to treat mainly Fabry disease and Gaucher disease,and people with these types of sphingolipidoses may live well into adulthood. The other types are generally fatal by age 1 to 5 years for infantile forms,but progression may be mild for juvenile- or adult-onset forms.
Lipid signaling, broadly defined,refers to any biological cell signaling event involving a lipid messenger that binds a protein target,such as a receptor,kinase or phosphatase,which in turn mediate the effects of these lipids on specific cellular responses. Lipid signaling is thought to be qualitatively different from other classical signaling paradigms because lipids can freely diffuse through membranes. One consequence of this is that lipid messengers cannot be stored in vesicles prior to release and so are often biosynthesized "on demand" at their intended site of action. As such,many lipid signaling molecules cannot circulate freely in solution but,rather,exist bound to special carrier proteins in serum.
β-Glucosidase is an enzyme that catalyses the following reaction:
Globosides are a sub-class of the lipid class glycosphingolipid with three to nine sugar molecules as the side chain of ceramide. The sugars are usually a combination of N-acetylgalactosamine,D-glucose or D-galactose. One characteristic of globosides is that the "core" sugars consists of Glucose-Galactose-Galactose (Ceramide-βGlc4-1βGal4-1αGal),like in the case of the most basic globoside,globotriaosylceramide (Gb3),also known as pk-antigen. Another important characteristic of globosides is that they are neutral at pH 7,because they usually do not contain neuraminic acid,a sugar with an acidic carboxy-group. However,some globosides with the core structure Cer-Glc-Gal-Gal do contain neuraminic acid,e.g. the globo-series glycosphingolipid "SSEA-4-antigen".
Miglustat,sold under the brand name Zavesca among others,is a medication used to treat type I Gaucher disease and Pompe disease.
Lapaquistat (TAK-475) is a cholesterol-lowering drug candidate that was abandoned before being marketed.
In enzymology,a ceramide kinase,also abbreviated as CERK,is an enzyme that catalyzes the chemical reaction:
LYPLA3,also known as Group XV phospholipase A2, is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the PLA2G15 gene.
The Lactosylceramides,also known as LacCer,are a class of glycosphingolipids composed of a variable hydrophobic ceramide lipid and a hydrophilic sugar moiety. Lactosylceramides are found in microdomains on the plasma layers of numerous cells. Moreover,they are a type of ceramide including lactose,which is an example of a globoside.
Substrate reduction therapy offers an approach to treatment of certain metabolic disorders,especially glycogen storage diseases and lysosomal storage disorders. In a storage disorder,a critical failure in a metabolic pathway prevents cellular breakdown and disposal of some large molecule. If residual breakdown through other pathways is insufficient to prevent harmful accumulation,the molecule accumulates in the cell and eventually interferes with normal biological processes. Examples of lysosomal storage disorders include Gaucher's disease,Tay–Sachs disease,Sandhoff disease,and Sanfilippo syndrome.
Eliglustat,sold under the brand name Cerdelga,is a medication used for the treatment of Gaucher's disease. It was discovered at the University of Michigan,developed by Genzyme Corp,and was approved by the FDA in August 2014. Commonly used as the tartrate salt,the compound is believed to work by inhibition of glucosylceramide synthase. According to an article in Journal of the American Medical Association the oral substrate reduction therapy resulted in "significant improvements in spleen volume,hemoglobin level,liver volume,and platelet count" in untreated adults with Gaucher disease Type 1.