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Jones A, Opejin A, Henderson JG, Gross C, Jain R, Epstein JA, Flavell RA, Hawiger D. Peripherally Induced Tolerance Depends on Peripheral Regulatory T Cells That Require Hopx To Inhibit Intrinsic IL-2 Expression. J Immunol 2015; 195:1489-97. [PMID: 26170384 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.1500174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2015] [Accepted: 06/15/2015] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Dendritic cells (DCs) can induce peripheral immune tolerance that prevents autoimmune responses. Ag presentation by peripheral DCs under steady-state conditions leads to a conversion of some peripheral CD4(+) T cells into regulatory T cells (Tregs) that require homeodomain-only protein (Hopx) to mediate T cell unresponsiveness. However, the roles of these peripheral Tregs (pTregs) in averting autoimmune responses, as well as immunological mechanisms of Hopx, remain unknown. We report that Hopx(+) pTregs converted by DCs from Hopx(-) T cells are indispensible to sustain tolerance that prevents autoimmune responses directed at self-Ags during experimental acute encephalomyelitis. Our studies further reveal that Hopx inhibits intrinsic IL-2 expression in pTregs after antigenic rechallenge. In the absence of Hopx, increased levels of IL-2 lead to death and decreased numbers of pTregs. Therefore, formation of Hopx(+) pTregs represents a crucial pathway of sustained tolerance induced by peripheral DCs, and the maintenance of such pTregs and tolerance requires functions of Hopx to block intrinsic IL-2 production in pTregs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Jones
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63104
| | - Adeleye Opejin
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63104
| | - Jacob G Henderson
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63104
| | - Cindy Gross
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63104
| | - Rajan Jain
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104; and
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104; and
| | - Richard A Flavell
- Department of Immunobiology and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06519
| | - Daniel Hawiger
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63104;
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Tomas-Roca L, Tsaalbi-Shtylik A, Jansen JG, Singh MK, Epstein JA, Altunoglu U, Verzijl H, Soria L, van Beusekom E, Roscioli T, Iqbal Z, Gilissen C, Hoischen A, de Brouwer APM, Erasmus C, Schubert D, Brunner H, Pérez Aytés A, Marin F, Aroca P, Kayserili H, Carta A, de Wind N, Padberg GW, van Bokhoven H. De novo mutations in PLXND1 and REV3L cause Möbius syndrome. Nat Commun 2015; 6:7199. [PMID: 26068067 PMCID: PMC4648025 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms8199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2014] [Accepted: 04/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Möbius syndrome (MBS) is a neurological disorder that is characterized by paralysis of the facial nerves and variable other congenital anomalies. The aetiology of this syndrome has been enigmatic since the initial descriptions by von Graefe in 1880 and by Möbius in 1888, and it has been debated for decades whether MBS has a genetic or a non-genetic aetiology. Here, we report de novo mutations affecting two genes, PLXND1 and REV3L in MBS patients. PLXND1 and REV3L represent totally unrelated pathways involved in hindbrain development: neural migration and DNA translesion synthesis, essential for the replication of endogenously damaged DNA, respectively. Interestingly, analysis of Plxnd1 and Rev3l mutant mice shows that disruption of these separate pathways converge at the facial branchiomotor nucleus, affecting either motoneuron migration or proliferation. The finding that PLXND1 and REV3L mutations are responsible for a proportion of MBS patients suggests that de novo mutations in other genes might account for other MBS patients. lt has been debated for decades if there is a genetic aetiology underlying Möbius syndrome, a neurological disorder characterized by facial paralysis. Here Tomas-Roca et al. use exome sequencing and identify de novo mutations in PLXND1 and REV3L, representing converging pathways in hindbrain development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Tomas-Roca
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands.,Department of Human Anatomy and Psychobiology, School of Medicine, University of Murcia, 30100 Espinardo (Murcia), Spain
| | - Anastasia Tsaalbi-Shtylik
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Jacob G Jansen
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Manvendra K Singh
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, 9-105 SCTR, 3400 Civic Center Boulevard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA.,Signature Research Program in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore, National Heart Center Singapore, 8 College Road, Singapore 169857, Singapore
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, 9-105 SCTR, 3400 Civic Center Boulevard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Umut Altunoglu
- Medical Genetics Department, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Millet Caddesi, Capa, Fatih 34093, Turkey
| | - Harriette Verzijl
- Department of Neurology, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Laura Soria
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Ellen van Beusekom
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Tony Roscioli
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands.,The Kinghorn Centre for Clinical Genomics, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales 2010, Australia
| | - Zafar Iqbal
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Christian Gilissen
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Alexander Hoischen
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sciences (RIMLS), PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Arjan P M de Brouwer
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Corrie Erasmus
- Department of Neurology, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Dirk Schubert
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Han Brunner
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands.,Department of Clinical Genetics, Maastricht University Medical Center, PO Box 5800, Maastricht 6200AZ, The Netherlands
| | - Antonio Pérez Aytés
- Dysmorphology and Reproductive Genetics Unit, Moebius Syndrome Foundation of Spain, University Hospital LA FE, Valencia 46540, Spain
| | - Faustino Marin
- Department of Human Anatomy and Psychobiology, School of Medicine, University of Murcia, 30100 Espinardo (Murcia), Spain
| | - Pilar Aroca
- Department of Human Anatomy and Psychobiology, School of Medicine, University of Murcia, 30100 Espinardo (Murcia), Spain
| | - Hülya Kayserili
- Medical Genetics Department, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Millet Caddesi, Capa, Fatih 34093, Turkey
| | - Arturo Carta
- Ophthalmology Unit, Department of Biomedical, Biotechnological and Translational Sciences (S.Bi.Bi.T.), University of Parma, via Gramsci 14, 43126, Parma, Italy
| | - Niels de Wind
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - George W Padberg
- Department of Neurology, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
| | - Hans van Bokhoven
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, PO Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands
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Zhou X, Crow AL, Hartiala J, Spindler TJ, Ghazalpour A, Barsky LW, Bennett BJ, Parks BW, Eskin E, Jain R, Epstein JA, Lusis AJ, Adams GB, Allayee H. The Genetic Landscape of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Frequency in Mice. Stem Cell Reports 2015; 5:125-38. [PMID: 26050929 PMCID: PMC4618249 DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2015.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2014] [Revised: 05/07/2015] [Accepted: 05/08/2015] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Prior efforts to identify regulators of hematopoietic stem cell physiology have relied mainly on candidate gene approaches with genetically modified mice. Here we used a genome-wide association study (GWAS) strategy with the hybrid mouse diversity panel to identify the genetic determinants of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell (HSPC) frequency. Among 108 strains, we observed ∼120- to 300-fold variation in three HSPC populations. A GWAS analysis identified several loci that were significantly associated with HSPC frequency, including a locus on chromosome 5 harboring the homeodomain-only protein gene (Hopx). Hopx previously had been implicated in cardiac development but was not known to influence HSPC biology. Analysis of the HSPC pool in Hopx−/− mice demonstrated significantly reduced cell frequencies and impaired engraftment in competitive repopulation assays, thus providing functional validation of this positional candidate gene. These results demonstrate the power of GWAS in mice to identify genetic determinants of the hematopoietic system. Genetic variation across mouse strains influences hematopoietic stem cell frequency This variation can be exploited for genome-wide association studies Hopx is a regulator of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell function This approach can be used to identify genetic determinants of other stem cell systems
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoying Zhou
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at USC, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Amanda L Crow
- Department of Preventive Medicine and Institute for Genetic Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Jaana Hartiala
- Department of Preventive Medicine and Institute for Genetic Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Tassja J Spindler
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at USC, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Anatole Ghazalpour
- Departments of Human Genetics, Medicine, and Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Lora W Barsky
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at USC, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA
| | - Brian J Bennett
- Department of Genetics and Nutrition Research Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Kannapolis, NC 28081, USA
| | - Brian W Parks
- Departments of Human Genetics, Medicine, and Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Eleazar Eskin
- Department of Computer Science and Inter-Departmental Program in Bioinformatics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Rajan Jain
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Aldons J Lusis
- Departments of Human Genetics, Medicine, and Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Gregor B Adams
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at USC, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA.
| | - Hooman Allayee
- Department of Preventive Medicine and Institute for Genetic Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033, USA.
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Jain R, Barkauskas CE, Takeda N, Bowie EJ, Aghajanian H, Wang Q, Padmanabhan A, Manderfield LJ, Gupta M, Li D, Li L, Trivedi CM, Hogan BLM, Epstein JA. Plasticity of Hopx(+) type I alveolar cells to regenerate type II cells in the lung. Nat Commun 2015; 6:6727. [PMID: 25865356 PMCID: PMC4396689 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms7727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 205] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2014] [Accepted: 02/23/2015] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The plasticity of differentiated cells in adult tissues undergoing repair is an area of intense research. Pulmonary alveolar type II cells produce surfactant and function as progenitors in the adult, demonstrating both self-renewal and differentiation into gas exchanging type I cells. In vivo, type I cells are thought to be terminally differentiated and their ability to give rise to alternate lineages has not been reported. Here we show that Hopx becomes restricted to type I cells during development. However, unexpectedly, lineage-labelled Hopx(+) cells both proliferate and generate type II cells during adult alveolar regrowth following partial pneumonectomy. In clonal 3D culture, single Hopx(+) type I cells generate organoids composed of type I and type II cells, a process modulated by TGFβ signalling. These findings demonstrate unanticipated plasticity of type I cells and a bidirectional lineage relationship between distinct differentiated alveolar epithelial cell types in vivo and in single-cell culture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajan Jain
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Christina E Barkauskas
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke Medicine, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA
| | - Norifumi Takeda
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Emily J Bowie
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke Medicine, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA
| | - Haig Aghajanian
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Qiaohong Wang
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Arun Padmanabhan
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Lauren J Manderfield
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Mudit Gupta
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Deqiang Li
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Li Li
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Duke Medicine, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA
| | - Chinmay M Trivedi
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
| | - Brigid L M Hogan
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke Medicine, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
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Butler MG, Iben JR, Marsden KC, Epstein JA, Granato M, Weinstein BM. SNPfisher: tools for probing genetic variation in laboratory-reared zebrafish. Development 2015; 142:1542-52. [PMID: 25813542 DOI: 10.1242/dev.118786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2014] [Accepted: 02/25/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are the benchmark molecular markers for modern genomics. Until recently, relatively few SNPs were known in the zebrafish genome. The use of next-generation sequencing for the positional cloning of zebrafish mutations has increased the number of known SNP positions dramatically. Still, the identified SNP variants remain under-utilized, owing to scant annotation of strain specificity and allele frequency. To address these limitations, we surveyed SNP variation in three common laboratory zebrafish strains using whole-genome sequencing. This survey identified an average of 5.04 million SNPs per strain compared with the Zv9 reference genome sequence. By comparing the three strains, 2.7 million variants were found to be strain specific, whereas the remaining variants were shared among all (2.3 million) or some of the strains. We also demonstrate the broad usefulness of our identified variants by validating most in independent populations of the same laboratory strains. We have made all of the identified SNPs accessible through 'SNPfisher', a searchable online database (snpfisher.nichd.nih.gov). The SNPfisher website includes the SNPfisher Variant Reporter tool, which provides the genomic position, alternate allele read frequency, strain specificity, restriction enzyme recognition site changes and flanking primers for all SNPs and Indels in a user-defined gene or region of the zebrafish genome. The SNPfisher site also contains links to display our SNP data in the UCSC genome browser. The SNPfisher tools will facilitate the use of SNP variation in zebrafish research as well as vertebrate genome evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew G Butler
- Section on Vertebrate Development, Program in the Genomics of Differentiation, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - James R Iben
- Section on Molecular Dysmorphology, Program in Developmental Endocrinology and Genetics, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Kurt C Marsden
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Section on Molecular Dysmorphology, Program in Developmental Endocrinology and Genetics, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Michael Granato
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Brant M Weinstein
- Section on Vertebrate Development, Program in the Genomics of Differentiation, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
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Roger VL, Boerwinkle E, Crapo JD, Douglas PS, Epstein JA, Granger CB, Greenland P, Kohane I, Psaty BM. Roger et al. respond to "future of population studies". Am J Epidemiol 2015; 181:372-3. [PMID: 25743323 DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwv009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
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Roger VL, Boerwinkle E, Crapo JD, Douglas PS, Epstein JA, Granger CB, Greenland P, Kohane I, Psaty BM. Strategic transformation of population studies: recommendations of the working group on epidemiology and population sciences from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Advisory Council and Board of External Experts. Am J Epidemiol 2015; 181:363-8. [PMID: 25743324 DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwv011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
In 2013, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute assembled a working group on epidemiology and population sciences from its Advisory Council and Board of External Experts. The working group was charged with making recommendations to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Advisory Council about how the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute could take advantage of new scientific opportunities and delineate future directions for the epidemiology of heart, lung, blood, and sleep diseases. Seven actionable recommendations were proposed for consideration. The themes included 1) defining the compelling scientific questions and challenges in population sciences and epidemiology of heart, lung, blood, and sleep diseases; 2) developing methods and training mechanisms to integrate "big data" science into the practice of epidemiology; 3) creating a cohort consortium and inventory of major studies to optimize the efficient use of data and specimens; and 4) fostering a more open, competitive approach to evaluating large-scale longitudinal epidemiology and population studies. By building on the track record of success of the heart, lung, blood, and sleep cohorts to leverage new data science opportunities and encourage broad research and training partnerships, these recommendations lay a strong foundation for the transformation of heart, lung, blood, and sleep epidemiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The Institute for Regenerative Medicine and the Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - David A Ingram
- Department of Pediatrics and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Angela C Hirbe
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - David H Gutmann
- Department of Neurology, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO 63110, USA.
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Abstract
Semaphorins were originally identified as neuronal guidance molecules mediating their attractive or repulsive signals by forming complexes with plexin and neuropilin receptors. Subsequent research has identified functions for semaphorin signaling in many organs and tissues outside of the nervous system. Vital roles for semaphorin signaling in vascular patterning and cardiac morphogenesis have been demonstrated, and impaired semaphorin signaling has been associated with various human cardiovascular disorders, including persistent truncus arteriosus, sinus bradycardia and anomalous pulmonary venous connections. Here, we review the functions of semaphorins and their receptors in cardiovascular development and disease and highlight important recent discoveries in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA.
| | - Haig Aghajanian
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
| | - Manvendra K Singh
- Program in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders, Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore, and the National Heart Research Institute Singapore, National Heart Center Singapore, Singapore.
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Manderfield LJ, Engleka KA, Aghajanian H, Gupta M, Yang S, Li L, Baggs JE, Hogenesch JB, Olson EN, Epstein JA. Pax3 and hippo signaling coordinate melanocyte gene expression in neural crest. Cell Rep 2014; 9:1885-1895. [PMID: 25466249 PMCID: PMC4267159 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2014.10.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2014] [Revised: 10/13/2014] [Accepted: 10/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Loss of Pax3, a developmentally regulated transcription factor expressed in premigratory neural crest, results in severe developmental defects and embryonic lethality. Although Pax3 mutations produce profound phenotypes, the intrinsic transcriptional activation exhibited by Pax3 is surprisingly modest. We postulated the existence of transcriptional coactivators that function with Pax3 to mediate developmental functions. A high-throughput screen identified the Hippo effector proteins Taz and Yap65 as Pax3 coactivators. Synergistic coactivation of target genes by Pax3-Taz/Yap65 requires DNA binding by Pax3, is Tead independent, and is regulated by Hippo kinases Mst1 and Lats2. In vivo, Pax3 and Yap65 colocalize in the nucleus of neural crest progenitors in the dorsal neural tube. Neural crest deletion of Taz and Yap65 results in embryo-lethal neural crest defects and decreased expression of the Pax3 target gene, Mitf. These results suggest that Pax3 activity is regulated by the Hippo pathway and that Pax factors are Hippo effectors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren J Manderfield
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kurt A Engleka
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Haig Aghajanian
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Mudit Gupta
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Steven Yang
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Li Li
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Julie E Baggs
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - John B Hogenesch
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Eric N Olson
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Penn Cardiovascular Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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Chen HI, Sharma B, Akerberg BN, Numi HJ, Kivelä R, Saharinen P, Aghajanian H, McKay AS, Bogard PE, Chang AH, Jacobs AH, Epstein JA, Stankunas K, Alitalo K, Red-Horse K. The sinus venosus contributes to coronary vasculature through VEGFC-stimulated angiogenesis. Development 2014; 141:4500-12. [PMID: 25377552 DOI: 10.1242/dev.113639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 151] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Identifying coronary artery progenitors and their developmental pathways could inspire novel regenerative treatments for heart disease. Multiple sources of coronary vessels have been proposed, including the sinus venosus (SV), endocardium and proepicardium, but their relative contributions to the coronary circulation and the molecular mechanisms regulating their development are poorly understood. We created an ApjCreER mouse line as a lineage-tracing tool to map SV-derived vessels onto the heart and compared the resulting lineage pattern with endocardial and proepicardial contributions to the coronary circulation. The data showed a striking compartmentalization to coronary development. ApjCreER-traced vessels contributed to a large number of arteries, capillaries and veins on the dorsal and lateral sides of the heart. By contrast, untraced vessels predominated in the midline of the ventral aspect and ventricular septum, which are vessel populations primarily derived from the endocardium. The proepicardium gave rise to a smaller fraction of vessels spaced relatively uniformly throughout the ventricular walls. Dorsal (SV-derived) and ventral (endocardial-derived) coronary vessels developed in response to different growth signals. The absence of VEGFC, which is expressed in the epicardium, dramatically inhibited dorsal and lateral coronary growth but left vessels on the ventral side unaffected. We propose that complementary SV-derived and endocardial-derived migratory routes unite to form the coronary vasculature and that the former requires VEGFC, revealing its role as a tissue-specific mediator of blood endothelial development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heidi I Chen
- Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Bikram Sharma
- Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Brynn N Akerberg
- Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | - Harri J Numi
- Wihuri Research Institute and Translational Cancer Biology Program, University of Helsinki, Biomedicum Helsinki, 00290 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Riikka Kivelä
- Wihuri Research Institute and Translational Cancer Biology Program, University of Helsinki, Biomedicum Helsinki, 00290 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Pipsa Saharinen
- Wihuri Research Institute and Translational Cancer Biology Program, University of Helsinki, Biomedicum Helsinki, 00290 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Haig Aghajanian
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Andrew S McKay
- Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | | | - Andrew H Chang
- Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA Department of Developmental Biology, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Andrew H Jacobs
- Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, The Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kryn Stankunas
- Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | - Kari Alitalo
- Wihuri Research Institute and Translational Cancer Biology Program, University of Helsinki, Biomedicum Helsinki, 00290 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Kristy Red-Horse
- Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
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Wolman MA, de Groh ED, McBride SM, Jongens TA, Granato M, Epstein JA. Modulation of cAMP and ras signaling pathways improves distinct behavioral deficits in a zebrafish model of neurofibromatosis type 1. Cell Rep 2014; 8:1265-70. [PMID: 25176649 PMCID: PMC5850931 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2014.07.054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2014] [Revised: 07/20/2014] [Accepted: 07/29/2014] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a common autosomal-dominant disorder associated with attention deficits and learning disabilities. The primary known function of neurofibromin, encoded by the NF1 gene, is to downregulate Ras activity. We show that nf1-deficient zebrafish exhibit learning and memory deficits and that acute pharmacological inhibition of downstream targets of Ras (MAPK and PI3K) restores memory consolidation and recall but not learning. Conversely, acute pharmacological enhancement of cAMP signaling restores learning but not memory. Our data provide compelling evidence that neurofibromin regulates learning and memory by distinct molecular pathways in vertebrates and that deficits produced by genetic loss of function are reversible. These findings support the investigation of cAMP signaling enhancers as a companion therapy to Ras inhibition in the treatment of cognitive dysfunction in NF1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc A Wolman
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Eric D de Groh
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Sean M McBride
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Thomas A Jongens
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Michael Granato
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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Hogan BLM, Barkauskas CE, Chapman HA, Epstein JA, Jain R, Hsia CCW, Niklason L, Calle E, Le A, Randell SH, Rock J, Snitow M, Krummel M, Stripp BR, Vu T, White ES, Whitsett JA, Morrisey EE. Repair and regeneration of the respiratory system: complexity, plasticity, and mechanisms of lung stem cell function. Cell Stem Cell 2014; 15:123-38. [PMID: 25105578 PMCID: PMC4212493 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2014.07.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 591] [Impact Index Per Article: 59.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Respiratory disease is the third leading cause of death in the industrialized world. Consequently, the trachea, lungs, and cardiopulmonary vasculature have been the focus of extensive investigations. Recent studies have provided new information about the mechanisms driving lung development and differentiation. However, there is still much to learn about the ability of the adult respiratory system to undergo repair and to replace cells lost in response to injury and disease. This Review highlights the multiple stem/progenitor populations in different regions of the adult lung, the plasticity of their behavior in injury models, and molecular pathways that support homeostasis and repair.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brigid L M Hogan
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke Medicine, Durham, NC 27705, USA.
| | - Christina E Barkauskas
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, Duke Medicine, Durham, NC 27705, USA
| | - Harold A Chapman
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Rajan Jain
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Connie C W Hsia
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Laura Niklason
- Departments of Anesthesiology and Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
| | - Elizabeth Calle
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke Medicine, Durham, NC 27705, USA
| | - Andrew Le
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke Medicine, Durham, NC 27705, USA
| | - Scott H Randell
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, The University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Jason Rock
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Melinda Snitow
- Perleman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Matthew Krummel
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Barry R Stripp
- Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Thiennu Vu
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Eric S White
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Jeffrey A Whitsett
- Section of Neonatology, Perinatal and Pulmonary Biology, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Edward E Morrisey
- Departments of Medicine and Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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Aghajanian H, Choi C, Ho VC, Gupta M, Singh MK, Epstein JA. Semaphorin 3d and semaphorin 3e direct endothelial motility through distinct molecular signaling pathways. J Biol Chem 2014; 289:17971-9. [PMID: 24825896 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m113.544833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Class 3 semaphorins were initially described as axonal growth cone guidance molecules that signal through plexin and neuropilin coreceptors and since then have been established to be regulators of vascular development. Semaphorin 3e (Sema3e) has been shown previously to repel endothelial cells and is the only class 3 semaphorin known to be capable of signaling via a plexin receptor without a neuropilin coreceptor. Sema3e signals through plexin D1 (Plxnd1) to regulate vascular patterning by modulating the cytoskeleton and focal adhesion structures. We showed recently that semaphorin 3d (Sema3d) mediates endothelial cell repulsion and pulmonary vein patterning during embryogenesis. Here we show that Sema3d and Sema3e affect human umbilical vein endothelial cells similarly but through distinct molecular signaling pathways. Time-lapse imaging studies show that both Sema3d and Sema3e can inhibit cell motility and migration, and tube formation assays indicate that both can impede tubulogenesis. Endothelial cells incubated with either Sema3d or Sema3e demonstrate a loss of actin stress fibers and focal adhesions. However, the addition of neuropilin 1 (Nrp1)-blocking antibody or siRNA knockdown of Nrp1 inhibits Sema3d-mediated, but not Sema3e-mediated, cytoskeletal reorganization, and siRNA knockdown of Nrp1 abrogates Sema3d-mediated, but not Sema3e-mediated, inhibition of tubulogenesis. On the other hand, endothelial cells deficient in Plxnd1 are resistant to endothelial repulsion mediated by Sema3e but not Sema3d. Unlike Sema3e, Sema3d incubation results in phosphorylation of Akt in human umbilical vein endothelial cells, and inhibition of the PI3K/Akt pathway blocks the endothelial guidance and cytoskeletal reorganization functions of Sema3d but not Sema3e.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haig Aghajanian
- From the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and the Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Connie Choi
- From the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and the Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Vivienne C Ho
- From the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and the Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Mudit Gupta
- From the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and the Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Manvendra K Singh
- From the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and the Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Jonathan A Epstein
- From the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and the Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
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Gerhardt DM, Pajcini KV, D'altri T, Tu L, Jain R, Xu L, Chen MJ, Rentschler S, Shestova O, Wertheim GB, Tobias JW, Kluk M, Wood AW, Aster JC, Gimotty PA, Epstein JA, Speck N, Bigas A, Pear WS. The Notch1 transcriptional activation domain is required for development and reveals a novel role for Notch1 signaling in fetal hematopoietic stem cells. Genes Dev 2014; 28:576-93. [PMID: 24637115 PMCID: PMC3967047 DOI: 10.1101/gad.227496.113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Notch1 is required to generate the earliest embryonic hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), and Notch-deficient embryos die early in gestation. Gerhardt et al. show that, unlike Notch1-deficient mice, mice lacking the Notch1 transcriptional activation domain (TAD) survive until late gestation. Notch1 TAD-deficient HSCs emerge and successfully migrate to the fetal liver but are decreased in frequency by E14.5. The Notch1 TAD is important to properly assemble the Notch1/Rbpj/Maml transcription complex. These results reveal an essential role for the Notch1 TAD in fetal development. Notch1 is required to generate the earliest embryonic hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs); however since Notch-deficient embryos die early in gestation, additional functions for Notch in embryonic HSC biology have not been described. We used two complementary genetic models to address this important biological question. Unlike Notch1-deficient mice, mice lacking the conserved Notch1 transcriptional activation domain (TAD) show attenuated Notch1 function in vivo and survive until late gestation, succumbing to multiple cardiac abnormalities. Notch1 TAD-deficient HSCs emerge and successfully migrate to the fetal liver but are decreased in frequency by embryonic day 14.5. In addition, TAD-deficient fetal liver HSCs fail to compete with wild-type HSCs in bone marrow transplant experiments. This phenotype is independently recapitulated by conditional knockout of Rbpj, a core Notch pathway component. In vitro analysis of Notch1 TAD-deficient cells shows that the Notch1 TAD is important to properly assemble the Notch1/Rbpj/Maml trimolecular transcription complex. Together, these studies reveal an essential role for the Notch1 TAD in fetal development and identify important cell-autonomous functions for Notch1 signaling in fetal HSC homeostasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dawson M Gerhardt
- Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
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Ifkovits JL, Addis RC, Epstein JA, Gearhart JD. Inhibition of TGFβ signaling increases direct conversion of fibroblasts to induced cardiomyocytes. PLoS One 2014; 9:e89678. [PMID: 24586958 PMCID: PMC3935923 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0089678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 142] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2013] [Accepted: 01/21/2014] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent studies have been successful at utilizing ectopic expression of transcription factors to generate induced cardiomyocytes (iCMs) from fibroblasts, albeit at a low frequency in vitro. This work investigates the influence of small molecules that have been previously reported to improve differentiation to cardiomyocytes as well as reprogramming to iPSCs in conjunction with ectopic expression of the transcription factors Hand2, Nkx2.5, Gata4, Mef2C, and Tbx5 on the conversion to functional iCMs. We utilized a reporter system in which the calcium indicator GCaMP is driven by the cardiac Troponin T promoter to quantify iCM yield. The TGFβ inhibitor, SB431542 (SB), was identified as a small molecule capable of increasing the conversion of both mouse embryonic fibroblasts and adult cardiac fibroblasts to iCMs up to ∼5 fold. Further characterization revealed that inhibition of TGFβ by SB early in the reprogramming process led to the greatest increase in conversion of fibroblasts to iCMs in a dose-responsive manner. Global transcriptional analysis at Day 3 post-induction of the transcription factors revealed an increased expression of genes associated with the development of cardiac muscle in the presence of SB compared to the vehicle control. Incorporation of SB in the reprogramming process increases the efficiency of iCM generation, one of the major goals necessary to enable the use of iCMs for discovery-based applications and for the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie L. Ifkovits
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- * E-mail: (JLI); (JDG)
| | - Russell C. Addis
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Jonathan A. Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - John D. Gearhart
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- * E-mail: (JLI); (JDG)
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Zhao T, Gan Q, Stokes A, Lassiter RNT, Wang Y, Chan J, Han JX, Pleasure DE, Epstein JA, Zhou CJ. β-catenin regulates Pax3 and Cdx2 for caudal neural tube closure and elongation. Development 2013; 141:148-57. [PMID: 24284205 DOI: 10.1242/dev.101550] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Non-canonical Wnt/planar cell polarity (PCP) signaling plays a primary role in the convergent extension that drives neural tube closure and body axis elongation. PCP signaling gene mutations cause severe neural tube defects (NTDs). However, the role of canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling in neural tube closure and NTDs remains poorly understood. This study shows that conditional gene targeting of β-catenin in the dorsal neural folds of mouse embryos represses the expression of the homeobox-containing genes Pax3 and Cdx2 at the dorsal posterior neuropore (PNP), and subsequently diminishes the expression of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling target genes T, Tbx6 and Fgf8 at the tail bud, leading to spina bifida aperta, caudal axis bending and tail truncation. We demonstrate that Pax3 and Cdx2 are novel downstream targets of Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Transgenic activation of Pax3 cDNA can rescue the closure defect in the β-catenin mutants, suggesting that Pax3 is a key downstream effector of β-catenin signaling in the PNP closure process. Cdx2 is known to be crucial in posterior axis elongation and in neural tube closure. We found that Cdx2 expression is also repressed in the dorsal PNPs of Pax3-null embryos. However, the ectopically activated Pax3 in the β-catenin mutants cannot restore Cdx2 mRNA in the dorsal PNP, suggesting that the presence of both β-catenin and Pax3 is required for regional Cdx2 expression. Thus, β-catenin signaling is required for caudal neural tube closure and elongation, acting through the transcriptional regulation of key target genes in the PNP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianyu Zhao
- Institute for Pediatric Regenerative Medicine at Shriners Hospitals for Children-Northern California, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA
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Choi YI, Duke-Cohan JS, Tan J, Gui J, Singh MK, Epstein JA, Reinherz EL. Plxnd1 expression in thymocytes regulates their intrathymic migration while that in thymic endothelium impacts medullary topology. Front Immunol 2013; 4:392. [PMID: 24312099 PMCID: PMC3832804 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2013.00392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2013] [Accepted: 11/07/2013] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
An important role for plexinD1 in thymic development is inferred from studies of germline Plxnd1 knockout (KO) mice where mislocalized CD69+ thymocytes as well as ectopic thymic subcapsular medullary structures were observed. Given embryonic lethality of the Plxnd1−/− genotype, fetal liver transplantation was employed in these prior analyses. Such embryonic hematopoietic reconstitution may have transferred Plxnd1 KO endothelial and/or epithelial stem cells in addition to Plxnd1 KO lymphoid progenitors, thereby contributing to that phenotype. Here we use Plxnd1flox/flox mice crossed to pLck-Cre, pKeratin14-Cre, or pTek-Cre transgenic animals to create cell-type specific conditional knockout (CKO) lines involving thymocytes (D1ThyCKO), thymic epithelium (D1EpCKO), and thymic endothelium (D1EnCKO), respectively. These CKOs allowed us to directly assess the role of plexinD1 in each lineage. Loss of plexinD1 expression on double positive (DP) thymocytes leads to their aberrant migration and cortical retention after TCR-mediated positive selection. In contrast, ectopic medulla formation is a consequence of loss of plexinD1 expression on endothelial cells, in turn linked to dysregulation of thymic angiogenesis. D1EpCKO thymi manifest neither abnormality. Collectively, our findings underscore the non-redundant roles for plexinD1 on thymocytes and endothelium, including the dynamic nature of medulla formation resulting from crosstalk between these thymic cellular components.
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Affiliation(s)
- Young I Choi
- Laboratory of Immunobiology, Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute , Boston, MA , USA ; Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School , Boston, MA , USA
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Addis RC, Ifkovits JL, Pinto F, Kellam LD, Esteso P, Rentschler S, Christoforou N, Epstein JA, Gearhart JD. Optimization of direct fibroblast reprogramming to cardiomyocytes using calcium activity as a functional measure of success. J Mol Cell Cardiol 2013; 60:97-106. [PMID: 23591016 PMCID: PMC3679282 DOI: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2013.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 170] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2013] [Revised: 04/03/2013] [Accepted: 04/05/2013] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Direct conversion of fibroblasts to induced cardiomyocytes (iCMs) has great potential for regenerative medicine. Recent publications have reported significant progress, but the evaluation of reprogramming has relied upon non-functional measures such as flow cytometry for cardiomyocyte markers or GFP expression driven by a cardiomyocyte-specific promoter. The issue is one of practicality: the most stringent measures - electrophysiology to detect cell excitation and the presence of spontaneously contracting myocytes - are not readily quantifiable in the large numbers of cells screened in reprogramming experiments. However, excitation and contraction are linked by a third functional characteristic of cardiomyocytes: the rhythmic oscillation of intracellular calcium levels. We set out to optimize direct conversion of fibroblasts to iCMs with a quantifiable calcium reporter to rapidly assess functional transdifferentiation. We constructed a reporter system in which the calcium indicator GCaMP is driven by the cardiomyocyte-specific Troponin T promoter. Using calcium activity as our primary outcome measure, we compared several published combinations of transcription factors along with novel combinations in mouse embryonic fibroblasts. The most effective combination consisted of Hand2, Nkx2.5, Gata4, Mef2c, and Tbx5 (HNGMT). This combination is >50-fold more efficient than GMT alone and produces iCMs with cardiomyocyte marker expression, robust calcium oscillation, and spontaneous beating that persist for weeks following inactivation of reprogramming factors. HNGMT is also significantly more effective than previously published factor combinations for the transdifferentiation of adult mouse cardiac fibroblasts to iCMs. Quantification of calcium function is a convenient and effective means for the identification and evaluation of cardiomyocytes generated by direct reprogramming. Using this stringent outcome measure, we conclude that HNGMT produces iCMs more efficiently than previously published methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Russell C. Addis
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jamie L. Ifkovits
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Filipa Pinto
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Lori D. Kellam
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Paul Esteso
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Stacey Rentschler
- Department of Internal Medicine, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | | | - Jonathan A. Epstein
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - John D. Gearhart
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Takeda N, Jain R, Li D, Li L, Lu MM, Epstein JA. Lgr5 Identifies Progenitor Cells Capable of Taste Bud Regeneration after Injury. PLoS One 2013; 8:e66314. [PMID: 23824276 PMCID: PMC3688887 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0066314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2013] [Accepted: 05/04/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Taste buds are composed of a variety of taste receptor cell types that develop from tongue epithelium and are regularly replenished under normal homeostatic conditions as well as after injury. The characteristics of cells that give rise to regenerating taste buds are poorly understood. Recent studies have suggested that Lgr5 (leucine-rich repeat-containing G-protein coupled receptor 5) identifies taste bud stem cells that contribute to homeostatic regeneration in adult circumvallate and foliate taste papillae, which are located in the posterior region of the tongue. Taste papillae in the adult anterior region of the tongue do not express Lgr5. Here, we confirm and extend these studies by demonstrating that Lgr5 cells give rise to both anterior and posterior taste buds during development, and are capable of regenerating posterior taste buds after injury induced by glossopharyngeal nerve transection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Norifumi Takeda
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- * E-mail: (NT); (JAE)
| | - Rajan Jain
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Deqiang Li
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Li Li
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Min Min Lu
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Jonathan A. Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- * E-mail: (NT); (JAE)
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Degenhardt K, Singh MK, Aghajanian H, Massera D, Wang Q, Li J, Li L, Choi C, Yzaguirre AD, Francey LJ, Gallant E, Krantz ID, Gruber PJ, Epstein JA. Semaphorin 3d signaling defects are associated with anomalous pulmonary venous connections. Nat Med 2013; 19:760-5. [PMID: 23685842 DOI: 10.1038/nm.3185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2012] [Accepted: 04/04/2013] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC) is a potentially lethal congenital disorder that occurs when the pulmonary veins do not connect normally to the left atrium, allowing mixing of pulmonary and systemic blood. In contrast to the extensive knowledge of arterial vascular patterning, little is known about the patterning of veins. Here we show that the secreted guidance molecule semaphorin 3d (Sema3d) is crucial for the normal patterning of pulmonary veins. Prevailing models suggest that TAPVC occurs when the midpharyngeal endothelial strand (MES), the precursor of the common pulmonary vein, does not form at the proper location on the dorsal surface of the embryonic common atrium. However, we found that TAPVC occurs in Sema3d mutant mice despite normal formation of the MES. In these embryos, the maturing pulmonary venous plexus does not anastomose uniquely with the properly formed MES. In the absence of Sema3d, endothelial tubes form in a region that is normally avascular, resulting in aberrant connections. Normally, Sema3d provides a repulsive cue to endothelial cells in this area, establishing a boundary. Sequencing of SEMA3D in individuals with anomalous pulmonary veins identified a phenylalanine-to-leucine substitution that adversely affects SEMA3D function. These results identify Sema3d as a crucial pulmonary venous patterning cue and provide experimental evidence for an alternate developmental model to explain abnormal pulmonary venous connections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karl Degenhardt
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Cardiology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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73
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Abstract
Wamstad et al have provided a robust global analysis of histone markers and gene expression at 4 stages of murine embryonic stem (ES) cell differentiation into cardiac myocytes. This detailed data set will provide a rich opportunity for generating and testing hypotheses related to combinatorial transcriptional regulation of gene expression and epigenetic regulation of cell fate decisions in cardiac lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael S Parmacek
- Cardiovascular Institute, Department of Medicine, Institute for Regenerative Medicine and the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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74
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Meadows SM, Ratliff LA, Singh MK, Epstein JA, Cleaver O. Resolution of defective dorsal aortae patterning in Sema3E-deficient mice occurs via angiogenic remodeling. Dev Dyn 2013; 242:580-90. [PMID: 23444297 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.23949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2012] [Revised: 02/07/2013] [Accepted: 02/07/2013] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Neuronal guidance cues influence endothelial cell (EC) behavior to shape the embryonic vascular system. The repulsive neuronal guidance cue, Semaphorin 3E (Sema3E), is critical for creating avascular zones that instruct and subsequently pattern the first embryonic vessels, the paired dorsal aortae (DA). Sema3E(-) (/) (-) embryos develop highly branched plexus-like vessels during vasculogenesis, instead of smooth paired vessels. Unexpectedly, despite these severe DA patterning defects, mutant mice are viable throughout adulthood. RESULTS Examination of Sema3E(-) (/) (-) mice reveals that the plexus-like DA resolve into single, unbranched vessels between embryonic day (E) E8.25 and E8.75. Although fusion of Sema3E(-) (/) (-) DA occurs slightly earlier than in heterozygotes, the DA are otherwise indistinguishable, suggesting a complete "rescue" in their development. Resolution of the DA null plexuses occurs by remodeling rather than by means of changes in cell proliferation or death. CONCLUSIONS Normalization of Sema3E(-) (/) (-) DA patterning defects demonstrates resilience of embryonic vascular patterning programs. Additional repulsive guidance cues within the lateral plate mesoderm likely re-establish avascular zones lost in Sema3E(-) (/) (-) embryos and guide resolution of mutant plexus into branchless, parallel aortae. Our observations explain how Sema3E(-) (/) (-) mice survive throughout development and into adulthood, despite severe initial vascular defects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stryder M Meadows
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas 75390-9148, USA
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75
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Singh N, Gupta M, Trivedi CM, Singh MK, Li L, Epstein JA. Murine craniofacial development requires Hdac3-mediated repression of Msx gene expression. Dev Biol 2013; 377:333-44. [PMID: 23506836 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2013.03.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2012] [Revised: 03/04/2013] [Accepted: 03/09/2013] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Craniofacial development is characterized by reciprocal interactions between neural crest cells and neighboring cell populations of ectodermal, endodermal and mesodermal origin. Various genetic pathways play critical roles in coordinating the development of cranial structures by modulating the growth, survival and differentiation of neural crest cells. However, the regulation of these pathways, particularly at the epigenomic level, remains poorly understood. Using murine genetics, we show that neural crest cells exhibit a requirement for the class I histone deacetylase Hdac3 during craniofacial development. Mice in which Hdac3 has been conditionally deleted in neural crest demonstrate fully penetrant craniofacial abnormalities, including microcephaly, cleft secondary palate and dental hypoplasia. Consistent with these abnormalities, we observe dysregulation of cell cycle genes and increased apoptosis in neural crest structures in mutant embryos. Known regulators of cell cycle progression and apoptosis in neural crest, including Msx1, Msx2 and Bmp4, are upregulated in Hdac3-deficient cranial mesenchyme. These results suggest that Hdac3 serves as a critical regulator of craniofacial morphogenesis, in part by repressing core apoptotic pathways in cranial neural crest cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikhil Singh
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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76
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Takeda N, Jain R, Leboeuf MR, Padmanabhan A, Wang Q, Li L, Lu MM, Millar SE, Epstein JA. Hopx expression defines a subset of multipotent hair follicle stem cells and a progenitor population primed to give rise to K6+ niche cells. Development 2013; 140:1655-64. [PMID: 23487314 DOI: 10.1242/dev.093005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
The mammalian hair follicle relies on adult resident stem cells and their progeny to fuel and maintain hair growth throughout the life of an organism. The cyclical and initially synchronous nature of hair growth makes the hair follicle an ideal system with which to define homeostatic mechanisms of an adult stem cell population. Recently, we demonstrated that Hopx is a specific marker of intestinal stem cells. Here, we show that Hopx specifically labels long-lived hair follicle stem cells residing in the telogen basal bulge. Hopx(+) cells contribute to all lineages of the mature hair follicle and to the interfollicular epidermis upon epidermal wounding. Unexpectedly, our analysis identifies a previously unappreciated progenitor population that resides in the lower hair bulb of anagen-phase follicles and expresses Hopx. These cells co-express Lgr5, do not express Shh and escape catagen-induced apoptosis. They ultimately differentiate into the cytokeratin 6-positive (K6) inner bulge cells in telogen, which regulate the quiescence of adjacent hair follicle stem cells. Although previous studies have suggested that K6(+) cells arise from Lgr5-expressing lower outer root sheath cells in anagen, our studies indicate an alternative origin, and a novel role for Hopx-expressing lower hair bulb progenitor cells in contributing to stem cell homeostasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Norifumi Takeda
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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77
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Abstract
Despite many innovative advances in cardiology over the past 50 years, heart disease remains a major killer. The steady progress that continues to be made in diagnostics and therapeutics is offset by the cardiovascular consequences of the growing epidemics of obesity and diabetes. Truly innovative approaches on the horizon have been greatly influenced by new insights in cardiovascular development. In particular, research in stem cell biology, the cardiomyocyte lineage, and the interactions of the myocardium and epicardium have opened the door to new approaches for healing the injured heart.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karl Degenhardt
- Division of Cardiology, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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78
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Abstract
The understanding of cardiovascular development has begun a transformation from the descriptive science of anatomy and embryology to a molecular understanding of the cellular and subcellular events leading to proper cardiac morphogenesis. Powerful tools available to molecular geneticists have identified numerous examples of specific gene defects that result in predictable cardiovascular abnormalities. Not only have certain genes been "knocked out" (mutated by homologous recombination in embryonic stem cells), but also single gene defects have been found to underlie the cardiovascular derangements observed in certain inbred mouse lines. Such is the case for the mouse mutant Splotch, which was first described in 1954 as a spontaneously occurring mutation resulting in a white belly spot. More recently, the genetic defect of all of the various Splotch alleles has been found to be due to mutations or deletions of a gene called Pax-3. In the homozygous state, these mutations result in embryonic lethality at about day 13.5 of mouse embryogenesis (E13.5). These embryos display abnormalities strikingly reminiscent of human DiGeorge syndrome. These include outflow tract abnormalities of the heart, such as double-outlet right ventricle (DORV) and persistent truncus arteriosus (PTA), as well as abnormalities of the great vessels and the thyroid and parathyroid glands. These defects suggest an underlying abnormality of neural crest, including its contribution to the cardiovascular system. © 1996, Elsevier Science Inc. (Trends Cardiovasc Med 1996;6:255-261).
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Affiliation(s)
- J A Epstein
- Jonathan A. Epstein is at the Division of Cardiology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania,Philadelphia, PA 19104,USA
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79
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Rentschler S, Yen AH, Lu J, Petrenko NB, Lu MM, Manderfield LJ, Patel VV, Fishman GI, Epstein JA. Myocardial Notch signaling reprograms cardiomyocytes to a conduction-like phenotype. Circulation 2012; 126:1058-66. [PMID: 22837163 DOI: 10.1161/circulationaha.112.103390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Notch signaling has previously been shown to play an essential role in regulating cell fate decisions and differentiation during cardiogenesis in many systems including Drosophila, Xenopus, and mammals. We hypothesized that Notch may also be involved in directing the progressive lineage restriction of cardiomyocytes into specialized conduction cells. METHODS AND RESULTS In hearts where Notch signaling is activated within the myocardium from early development onward, Notch promotes a conduction-like phenotype based on ectopic expression of conduction system-specific genes and cell autonomous changes in electrophysiology. With the use of an in vitro assay to activate Notch in newborn cardiomyocytes, we observed global changes in the transcriptome, and in action potential characteristics, consistent with reprogramming to a conduction-like phenotype. CONCLUSIONS Notch can instruct the differentiation of chamber cardiac progenitors into specialized conduction-like cells. Plasticity remains in late-stage cardiomyocytes, which has potential implications for engineering of specialized cardiovascular tissues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stacey Rentschler
- Cardiovascular Institute, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Blvd, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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80
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Shin J, Padmanabhan A, de Groh ED, Lee JS, Haidar S, Dahlberg S, Guo F, He S, Wolman MA, Granato M, Lawson ND, Wolfe SA, Kim SH, Solnica-Krezel L, Kanki JP, Ligon KL, Epstein JA, Look AT. Zebrafish neurofibromatosis type 1 genes have redundant functions in tumorigenesis and embryonic development. Dis Model Mech 2012; 5:881-94. [PMID: 22773753 PMCID: PMC3484870 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.009779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a common, dominantly inherited genetic disorder that results from mutations in the neurofibromin 1 (NF1) gene. Affected individuals demonstrate abnormalities in neural-crest-derived tissues that include hyperpigmented skin lesions and benign peripheral nerve sheath tumors. NF1 patients also have a predisposition to malignancies including juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML), optic glioma, glioblastoma, schwannoma and malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs). In an effort to better define the molecular and cellular determinants of NF1 disease pathogenesis in vivo, we employed targeted mutagenesis strategies to generate zebrafish harboring stable germline mutations in nf1a and nf1b, orthologues of NF1. Animals homozygous for loss-of-function alleles of nf1a or nf1b alone are phenotypically normal and viable. Homozygous loss of both alleles in combination generates larval phenotypes that resemble aspects of the human disease and results in larval lethality between 7 and 10 days post fertilization. nf1-null larvae demonstrate significant central and peripheral nervous system defects. These include aberrant proliferation and differentiation of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs), dysmorphic myelin sheaths and hyperplasia of Schwann cells. Loss of nf1 contributes to tumorigenesis as demonstrated by an accelerated onset and increased penetrance of high-grade gliomas and MPNSTs in adult nf1a+/−; nf1b−/−; p53e7/e7 animals. nf1-null larvae also demonstrate significant motor and learning defects. Importantly, we identify and quantitatively analyze a novel melanophore phenotype in nf1-null larvae, providing the first animal model of the pathognomonic pigmentation lesions of NF1. Together, these findings support a role for nf1a and nf1b as potent tumor suppressor genes that also function in the development of both central and peripheral glial cells as well as melanophores in zebrafish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jimann Shin
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Children's Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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81
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Katz TC, Singh MK, Degenhardt K, Rivera-Feliciano J, Johnson RL, Epstein JA, Tabin CJ. Distinct compartments of the proepicardial organ give rise to coronary vascular endothelial cells. Dev Cell 2012; 22:639-50. [PMID: 22421048 DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2012.01.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 261] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2011] [Revised: 11/13/2011] [Accepted: 01/18/2012] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
The proepicardial organ is an important transient structure that contributes cells to various cardiac lineages. However, its contribution to the coronary endothelium has been disputed, with conflicting data arising in chick and mouse. Here we resolve this conflict by identifying two proepicardial markers, Scleraxis (Scx) and Semaphorin3D (Sema3D), that genetically delineate heretofore uncharacterized proepicardial subcompartments. In contrast to previously fate-mapped Tbx18/WT-1-expressing cells that give rise to vascular smooth muscle, Scx- and Sema3D-expressing proepicardial cells give rise to coronary vascular endothelium both in vivo and in vitro. Furthermore, Sema3D(+) and Scx(+) proepicardial cells contribute to the early sinus venosus and cardiac endocardium, respectively, two tissues linked to vascular endothelial formation at later stages. Taken together, our studies demonstrate that the proepicardial organ is a molecularly compartmentalized structure, reconciling prior chick and mouse data and providing a more complete understanding of the progenitor populations that establish the coronary vascular endothelium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamar C Katz
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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82
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Abstract
The Notch pathway is a crucial cell-fate regulator in the developing heart. Attention in the past centered on Notch function in cardiomyocytes. However, recent advances demonstrate that region-specific endocardial Notch activity orchestrates the patterning and morphogenesis of cardiac chambers and valves through regulatory interaction with multiple myocardial and neural crest signals. Notch also regulates cardiomyocyte proliferation and differentiation during ventricular chamber development and is required for coronary vessel specification. Here, we review these data and highlight disease connections, including evidence that Notch-Hey-Bmp2 interplay impacts adult heart valve disease and that Notch contributes to cardiac arrhythmia and pre-excitation syndromes.
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Affiliation(s)
- José Luis de la Pompa
- Program of Cardiovascular Developmental Biology, Department of Cardiovascular Development and Repair, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC), Melchor Fernández Almagro 3, E-28029 Madrid, Spain.
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83
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Rentschler S, Yen A, Lu J, Petrenko N, Patel VV, Fishman GI, Epstein JA. Myocardial Notch Signaling Reprograms Cardiomyoctes to a Conduction‐Like Phenotype. FASEB J 2012. [DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.26.1_supplement.209.4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Alberta Yen
- Cardiovascular InstituteUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPA
| | - Jia Lu
- New York UniversityNew YorkNY
| | | | - Vickas V Patel
- Cardiovascular InstituteUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPA
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84
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Abstract
The epicardium is derived from the proepicardial organ, a source of multipotent progenitor cells. Epicardium contribution to the developing coronary vasculature and to cardiac interstitial cells has been established. Studies over the past several years have suggested that epicardium-derived cells can adopt cardiomyocyte and vascular smooth muscle fates and can contribute to cardiac repair when activated by injury1, 2. Recently, Chong et al have provided a detailed characterization of a population of epicardial–derived multipotent cardiac-progenitor cells (cardiac CFU-Fs). These cells, which do not arise from the bone marrow, neural crest or myocardium, resemble mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and may participate in cardiac development, homeostasis and repair3.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jonathan A. Epstein
- To whom correspondence may be addressed: Jonathan A. Epstein, M.D., 1154 BRB II/III, 421 Curie Blvd., Philadelphia, PA 19104, Phone- 215-898-8731, Fax- 215-898-9871,
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85
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Banerjee A, Trivedi CM, Damera G, Jiang M, Jester W, Hoshi T, Epstein JA, Panettieri RA. Trichostatin A abrogates airway constriction, but not inflammation, in murine and human asthma models. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol 2012; 46:132-8. [PMID: 22298527 DOI: 10.1165/rcmb.2010-0276oc] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors may offer novel approaches in the treatment of asthma. We postulate that trichostatin A (TSA), a Class 1 and 2 inhibitor of HDAC, inhibits airway hyperresponsiveness in antigen-challenged mice. Mice were sensitized and challenged with Aspergillus fumigatus antigen (AF) and treated with TSA, dexamethasone, or vehicle. Lung resistance (R(L)) and dynamic compliance were measured, and bronchial alveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was analyzed for numbers of leukocytes and concentrations of cytokines. Human precision-cut lung slices (PCLS) were treated with TSA and their agonist-induced bronchoconstriction was measured, and TSA-treated human airway smooth muscle (ASM) cells were evaluated for the agonist-induced activation of Rho and intracellular release of Ca(2+). The activity of HDAC in murine lungs was enhanced by antigen and abrogated by TSA. TSA also inhibited methacholine (Mch)-induced increases in R(L) and decreases in dynamic compliance in naive control mice and in AF-sensitized and -challenged mice. Total cell counts, concentrations of IL-4, and numbers of eosinophils in BALF were unchanged in mice treated with TSA or vehicle, whereas dexamethasone inhibited the numbers of eosinophils in BALF and concentrations of IL-4. TSA inhibited the carbachol-induced contraction of PCLS. Treatment with TSA inhibited the intracellular release of Ca(2+) in ASM cells in response to histamine, without affecting the activation of Rho. The inhibition of HDAC abrogates airway hyperresponsiveness to Mch in both naive and antigen-challenged mice. TSA inhibits the agonist-induced contraction of PCLS and mobilization of Ca(2+) in ASM cells. Thus, HDAC inhibitors demonstrate a mechanism of action distinct from that of anti-inflammatory agents such as steroids, and represent a promising therapeutic agent for airway disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audreesh Banerjee
- Translational Research Laboratories, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, 125 South 31st St., Translational Research Laboratories, Philadelphia, PA 19104-3403, USA.
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86
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Engleka KA, Manderfield LJ, Brust RD, Li L, Cohen A, Dymecki SM, Epstein JA. Islet1 derivatives in the heart are of both neural crest and second heart field origin. Circ Res 2012; 110:922-6. [PMID: 22394517 DOI: 10.1161/circresaha.112.266510] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Islet1 (Isl1) has been proposed as a marker of cardiac progenitor cells derived from the second heart field and is utilized to identify and purify cardiac progenitors from murine and human specimens for ex vivo expansion. The use of Isl1 as a specific second heart field marker is dependent on its exclusion from other cardiac lineages such as neural crest. OBJECTIVE Determine whether Isl1 is expressed by cardiac neural crest. METHODS AND RESULTS We used an intersectional fate-mapping system using the RC::FrePe allele, which reports dual Flpe and Cre recombination. Combining Isl1(Cre/+), a SHF driver, and Wnt1::Flpe, a neural crest driver, with Rc::FrePe reveals that some Isl1 derivatives in the cardiac outflow tract derive from Wnt1-expressing neural crest progenitors. In contrast, no overlap was observed between Wnt1-derived neural crest and an alternative second heart field driver, Mef2c-AHF-Cre. CONCLUSIONS Isl1 is not restricted to second heart field progenitors in the developing heart but also labels cardiac neural crest. The intersection of Isl1 and Wnt1 lineages within the heart provides a caveat to using Isl1 as an exclusive second heart field cardiac progenitor marker and suggests that some Isl1-expressing progenitor cells derived from embryos, embryonic stem cultures, or induced pluripotent stem cultures may be of neural crest lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kurt A Engleka
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Cardiovascular Institute and Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA
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87
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Zhang H, Qiao H, Frank RS, Huang B, Propert KJ, Margulies S, Ferrari VA, Epstein JA, Zhou R. Spin-labeling magnetic resonance imaging detects increased myocardial blood flow after endothelial cell transplantation in the infarcted heart. Circ Cardiovasc Imaging 2012; 5:210-7. [PMID: 22311739 DOI: 10.1161/circimaging.111.966317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND We quantified absolute myocardial blood flow (MBF) using a spin-labeling MRI (SL-MRI) method after transplantation of endothelial cells (ECs) into the infarcted heart. Our aims were to study the temporal changes in MBF in response to EC transplantation and to compare regional MBF with contractile function (wall motion) and microvascular density. METHODS AND RESULTS We first validated the SL-MRI method with the standard microsphere technique in normal rats. We then induced myocardial infarction in athymic rats and injected 5 million ECs (human umbilical vein endothelial cells) suspended in Matrigel or Matrigel alone (vehicle) along the border of the blanched infarcted area. At 2 weeks after myocardial infarction, MBF averaged over the entire slice (P=0.038) and in the infarcted region (P=0.0086) was significantly higher in EC versus vehicle group; the greater MBF was accompanied by an increase of microvasculature density in the infarcted region (P=0.0105 versus vehicle). At 4 weeks after myocardial infarction, MBF in the remote region was significantly elevated in EC-treated hearts (P=0.0277); this was accompanied by increased wall motion in this region assessed by circumferential strains (P=0.0075). Intraclass correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plot revealed a good reproducibility of the SL-MRI method. CONCLUSIONS MBF in free-breathing rats measured by SL-MRI is validated by the standard color microsphere technique. SL-MRI allows quantification of temporal changes of regional MBF in response to EC treatment. The proof-of-principle study indicates that MBF is a unique and sensitive index to evaluate EC-mediated therapy for the infarcted heart.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hualei Zhang
- Laboratories of Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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88
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Boudou T, Legant WR, Mu A, Borochin MA, Thavandiran N, Radisic M, Zandstra PW, Epstein JA, Margulies KB, Chen CS. A microfabricated platform to measure and manipulate the mechanics of engineered cardiac microtissues. Tissue Eng Part A 2012; 18:910-9. [PMID: 22092279 DOI: 10.1089/ten.tea.2011.0341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 291] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Engineered myocardial tissues can be used to elucidate fundamental features of myocardial biology, develop organotypic in vitro model systems, and as engineered tissue constructs for replacing damaged heart tissue in vivo. However, a key limitation is an inability to test the wide range of parameters (cell source, mechanical, soluble and electrical stimuli) that might impact the engineered tissue in a high-throughput manner and in an environment that mimics native heart tissue. Here we used microelectromechanical systems technology to generate arrays of cardiac microtissues (CMTs) embedded within three-dimensional micropatterned matrices. Microcantilevers simultaneously constrain CMT contraction and report forces generated by the CMTs in real time. We demonstrate the ability to routinely produce ~200 CMTs per million cardiac cells (<1 neonatal rat heart) whose spontaneous contraction frequency, duration, and forces can be tracked. Independently varying the mechanical stiffness of the cantilevers and collagen matrix revealed that both the dynamic force of cardiac contraction as well as the basal static tension within the CMT increased with boundary or matrix rigidity. Cell alignment is, however, reduced within a stiff collagen matrix; therefore, despite producing higher force, CMTs constructed from higher density collagen have a lower cross-sectional stress than those constructed from lower density collagen. We also study the effect of electrical stimulation on cell alignment and force generation within CMTs and we show that the combination of electrical stimulation and auxotonic load strongly improves both the structure and the function of the CMTs. Finally, we demonstrate the suitability of our technique for high-throughput monitoring of drug-induced changes in spontaneous frequency or contractility in CMTs as well as high-speed imaging of calcium dynamics using fluorescent dyes. Together, these results highlight the potential for this approach to quantitatively demonstrate the impact of physical parameters on the maturation, structure, and function of cardiac tissue and open the possibility to use high-throughput, low volume screening for studies on engineered myocardium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Boudou
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
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89
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Abstract
Intestinal epithelial stem cell identity and location have been the subject of substantial research. Cells in the +4 niche are slow-cycling and label-retaining, whereas a different stem cell niche located at the crypt base is occupied by crypt base columnar (CBC) cells. CBCs are distinct from +4 cells, and the relationship between them is unknown, though both give rise to all intestinal epithelial lineages. We demonstrate that Hopx, an atypical homeobox protein, is a specific marker of +4 cells. Hopx-expressing cells give rise to CBCs and all mature intestinal epithelial lineages. Conversely, CBCs can give rise to +4 Hopx-positive cells. These findings demonstrate a bidirectional lineage relationship between active and quiescent stem cells in their niches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Norifumi Takeda
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Rajan Jain
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Matthew R. LeBoeuf
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Dermatology Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Qiaohong Wang
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Min Min Lu
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jonathan A. Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Penn Cardiovascular Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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90
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Abstract
BACKGROUND Notch signaling in vascular smooth muscle precursors is required for smooth muscle differentiation. Jagged1 expression on endothelium activates Notch in vascular smooth muscle precursors including those of neural crest origin to initiate the formation of a smooth muscle layer in a maturing blood vessel. METHODS AND RESULTS Here, we show that Jagged1 is a direct Notch target in smooth muscle, resulting in a positive feedback loop and lateral induction that propagates a wave of smooth muscle differentiation during aortic arch artery development. In vivo, we show that Notch inhibition in cardiac neural crest impairs Jagged1 messenger RNA expression and results in deficient smooth muscle differentiation and resultant aortic arch artery defects. Ex vivo, Jagged1 ligand activates Notch in neural crest explants and results in activation of Jagged1 messenger RNA, a response that is blocked by Notch inhibition. We examine 15 evolutionary conserved regions within the Jagged1 genomic locus and identify a single Notch response element within the second intron. This element contains a functional Rbp-J binding site demonstrated by luciferase reporter and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays and is sufficient to recapitulate aortic arch artery expression of Jagged1 in transgenic mice. Loss of Jagged1 in neural crest impairs vascular smooth muscle differentiation and results in aortic arch artery defects. CONCLUSIONS Taken together, these results provide a mechanism for lateral induction that allows for a multilayered smooth muscle wall to form around a nascent arterial endothelial tube and identify Jagged1 as a direct Notch target.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren J Manderfield
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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91
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Singh MK, Lu MM, Massera D, Epstein JA. MicroRNA-processing enzyme Dicer is required in epicardium for coronary vasculature development. J Biol Chem 2011; 286:41036-45. [PMID: 21969379 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m111.268573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The epicardium is a sheet of epithelial cells covering the heart during early cardiac development. In recent years, the epicardium has been identified as an important contributor to cardiovascular development, and epicardium-derived cells have the potential to differentiate into multiple cardiac cell lineages. Some epicardium-derived cells that undergo epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and delaminate from the surface of the developing heart subsequently invade the myocardium and differentiate into vascular smooth muscle of the developing coronary vasculature. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been implicated broadly in tissue patterning and development, including in the heart, but a role in epicardium is unknown. To examine the role of miRNAs during epicardial development, we conditionally deleted the miRNA-processing enzyme Dicer in the proepicardium using Gata5-Cre mice. Epicardial Dicer mutant mice are born in expected Mendelian ratios but die immediately after birth with profound cardiac defects, including impaired coronary vessel development. We found that loss of Dicer leads to impaired epicardial epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and a reduction in epicardial cell proliferation and differentiation into coronary smooth muscle cells. These results demonstrate a critical role for Dicer, and by implication miRNAs, in murine epicardial development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manvendra K Singh
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA.
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92
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Zhu C, Smith T, McNulty J, Rayla AL, Lakshmanan A, Siekmann AF, Buffardi M, Meng X, Shin J, Padmanabhan A, Cifuentes D, Giraldez AJ, Look AT, Epstein JA, Lawson ND, Wolfe SA. Evaluation and application of modularly assembled zinc-finger nucleases in zebrafish. Development 2011; 138:4555-64. [PMID: 21937602 PMCID: PMC3177320 DOI: 10.1242/dev.066779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/03/2011] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs) allow targeted gene inactivation in a wide range of model organisms. However, construction of target-specific ZFNs is technically challenging. Here, we evaluate a straightforward modular assembly-based approach for ZFN construction and gene inactivation in zebrafish. From an archive of 27 different zinc-finger modules, we assembled more than 70 different zinc-finger cassettes and evaluated their specificity using a bacterial one-hybrid assay. In parallel, we constructed ZFNs from these cassettes and tested their ability to induce lesions in zebrafish embryos. We found that the majority of zinc-finger proteins assembled from these modules have favorable specificities and nearly one-third of modular ZFNs generated lesions at their targets in the zebrafish genome. To facilitate the application of ZFNs within the zebrafish community we constructed a public database of sites in the zebrafish genome that can be targeted using this archive. Importantly, we generated new germline mutations in eight different genes, confirming that this is a viable platform for heritable gene inactivation in vertebrates. Characterization of one of these mutants, gata2a, revealed an unexpected role for this transcription factor in vascular development. This work provides a resource to allow targeted germline gene inactivation in zebrafish and highlights the benefit of a definitive reverse genetic strategy to reveal gene function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cong Zhu
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Tom Smith
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Joseph McNulty
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Amy L. Rayla
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Abirami Lakshmanan
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Arndt F. Siekmann
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Matthew Buffardi
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Xiangdong Meng
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Jimann Shin
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Arun Padmanabhan
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6058, USA
| | - Daniel Cifuentes
- Department of Genetics, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Antonio J. Giraldez
- Department of Genetics, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - A. Thomas Look
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Jonathan A. Epstein
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6058, USA
| | - Nathan D. Lawson
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
| | - Scot A. Wolfe
- Program in Gene Function and Expression, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01605, USA
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93
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Singh N, Trivedi CM, Lu M, Mullican SE, Lazar MA, Epstein JA. Histone deacetylase 3 regulates smooth muscle differentiation in neural crest cells and development of the cardiac outflow tract. Circ Res 2011; 109:1240-9. [PMID: 21959220 DOI: 10.1161/circresaha.111.255067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE The development of the cardiac outflow tract (OFT) and great vessels is a complex process that involves coordinated regulation of multiple progenitor cell populations. Among these populations, neural crest cells make important contributions to OFT formation and aortic arch remodeling. Although numerous signaling pathways, including Notch, have been implicated in this process, the role of epigenetics in OFT development remains largely unexplored. OBJECTIVE Because histone deacetylases (Hdacs) play important roles in the epigenetic regulation of mammalian development, we have investigated the function of Hdac3, a class I Hdac, during cardiac neural crest development in mouse. METHODS AND RESULTS Using 2 neural crest drivers, Wnt1-Cre and Pax3(Cre), we show that loss of Hdac3 in neural crest results in perinatal lethality and cardiovascular abnormalities, including interrupted aortic arch type B, aortic arch hypoplasia, double-outlet right ventricle, and ventricular septal defect. Affected embryos are deficient in aortic arch artery smooth muscle during midgestation, despite intact neural crest cell migration and preserved development of other cardiac and truncal neural crest derivatives. The Hdac3-dependent block in smooth muscle differentiation is cell autonomous and is associated with downregulation of the Notch ligand Jagged1, a key driver of smooth muscle differentiation in the aortic arch arteries. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that Hdac3 plays a critical and specific regulatory role in the neural crest-derived smooth muscle lineage and in formation of the OFT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikhil Singh
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, the Cardiovascular Institute, Pereleman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 19104, USA
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94
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Affiliation(s)
- Deqiang Li
- From the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, the Cardiovascular Institute, and the Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
| | - Jonathan A. Epstein
- From the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, the Cardiovascular Institute, and the Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
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95
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Abstract
We live in a time of increased spending, mounting debt, and few remedies for balancing the federal budget that have bipartisan support. Unfortunately, one recent target for decreased allocations of the federal budget is the NIH; the discussion of the awarded grants and the grant funding process has been skewed and altered to present medical research in an unfriendly light, and this can have very damaging repercussions. Politicizing this process could ultimately challenge human health, technology, and economic growth.
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96
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Zygmunt T, Gay CM, Blondelle J, Singh MK, Flaherty KM, Means PC, Herwig L, Krudewig A, Belting HG, Affolter M, Epstein JA, Torres-Vázquez J. Semaphorin-PlexinD1 signaling limits angiogenic potential via the VEGF decoy receptor sFlt1. Dev Cell 2011; 21:301-14. [PMID: 21802375 PMCID: PMC3156278 DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2011.06.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 125] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2011] [Revised: 05/20/2011] [Accepted: 06/27/2011] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Sprouting angiogenesis expands the embryonic vasculature enabling survival and homeostasis. Yet how the angiogenic capacity to form sprouts is allocated among endothelial cells (ECs) to guarantee the reproducible anatomy of stereotypical vascular beds remains unclear. Here we show that Sema-PlxnD1 signaling, previously implicated in sprout guidance, represses angiogenic potential to ensure the proper abundance and stereotypical distribution of the trunk's segmental arteries (SeAs). We find that Sema-PlxnD1 signaling exerts this effect by antagonizing the proangiogenic activity of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Specifically, Sema-PlxnD1 signaling ensures the proper endothelial abundance of soluble flt1 (sflt1), an alternatively spliced form of the VEGF receptor Flt1 encoding a potent secreted decoy. Hence, Sema-PlxnD1 signaling regulates distinct but related aspects of angiogenesis: the spatial allocation of angiogenic capacity within a primary vessel and sprout guidance.
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MESH Headings
- Angiogenesis Inhibitors/pharmacology
- Animals
- Animals, Genetically Modified
- Aorta/anatomy & histology
- Aorta/embryology
- Cell Movement/drug effects
- Cell Movement/genetics
- Cell Transplantation/physiology
- Embryo, Nonmammalian
- Endothelial Cells/cytology
- Endothelial Cells/drug effects
- Endothelial Cells/physiology
- Endothelium/cytology
- Endothelium/embryology
- Endothelium/metabolism
- Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental/drug effects
- Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental/genetics
- In Vitro Techniques
- Indoles/pharmacology
- Luminescent Proteins/genetics
- Molecular Sequence Data
- Neovascularization, Physiologic/genetics
- Neovascularization, Physiologic/physiology
- Oligodeoxyribonucleotides, Antisense/pharmacology
- Pyrroles/pharmacology
- Quinoxalines/pharmacology
- RNA, Messenger/metabolism
- Receptors, Cell Surface/genetics
- Receptors, Cell Surface/metabolism
- Receptors, Notch/genetics
- Receptors, Notch/metabolism
- Semaphorins/genetics
- Semaphorins/metabolism
- Signal Transduction/drug effects
- Signal Transduction/physiology
- Thiazolidinediones/pharmacology
- Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-1/deficiency
- Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-1/metabolism
- Zebrafish
- Zebrafish Proteins/genetics
- Zebrafish Proteins/metabolism
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomasz Zygmunt
- Department of Cell Biology, Helen L. and Martin S. Kimmel Center for Biology and Medicine at the Skirball Institute, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA
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97
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Sun Z, Singh N, Mullican SE, Everett LJ, Li L, Yuan L, Liu X, Epstein JA, Lazar MA. Diet-induced lethality due to deletion of the Hdac3 gene in heart and skeletal muscle. J Biol Chem 2011; 286:33301-9. [PMID: 21808063 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m111.277707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Many human diseases result from the influence of the nutritional environment on gene expression. The environment interacts with the genome by altering the epigenome, including covalent modification of nucleosomal histones. Here, we report a novel and dramatic influence of diet on the phenotype and survival of mice in which histone deacetylase 3 (Hdac3) is deleted postnatally in heart and skeletal muscle. Although embryonic deletion of myocardial Hdac3 causes major cardiomyopathy that reduces survival, we found that excision of Hdac3 in heart and muscle later in development leads to a much milder phenotype and does not reduce survival when mice are fed normal chow. Remarkably, upon switching to a high fat diet, the mice begin to die within weeks and display signs of severe hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and heart failure. Down-regulation of myocardial mitochondrial bioenergetic genes, specifically those involved in lipid metabolism, precedes the full development of cardiomyopathy, suggesting that HDAC3 is important in maintaining proper mitochondrial function. These data suggest that loss of the epigenomic modifier HDAC3 causes dietary lethality by compromising the ability of cardiac mitochondria to respond to changes of nutritional environment. In addition, this study provides a mouse model for diet-inducible heart failure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng Sun
- Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, Department of Medicine and Department of Genetics, and Institute for Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
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98
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Anokye-Danso F, Trivedi CM, Juhr D, Gupta M, Cui Z, Tian Y, Zhang Y, Yang W, Gruber PJ, Epstein JA, Morrisey EE. Highly efficient miRNA-mediated reprogramming of mouse and human somatic cells to pluripotency. Cell Stem Cell 2011; 8:376-88. [PMID: 21474102 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2011.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 869] [Impact Index Per Article: 66.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2010] [Revised: 02/02/2011] [Accepted: 03/03/2011] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Transcription factor-based cellular reprogramming has opened the way to converting somatic cells to a pluripotent state, but has faced limitations resulting from the requirement for transcription factors and the relative inefficiency of the process. We show here that expression of the miR302/367 cluster rapidly and efficiently reprograms mouse and human somatic cells to an iPSC state without a requirement for exogenous transcription factors. This miRNA-based reprogramming approach is two orders of magnitude more efficient than standard Oct4/Sox2/Klf4/Myc-mediated methods. Mouse and human miR302/367 iPSCs display similar characteristics to Oct4/Sox2/Klf4/Myc-iPSCs, including pluripotency marker expression, teratoma formation, and, for mouse cells, chimera contribution and germline contribution. We found that miR367 expression is required for miR302/367-mediated reprogramming and activates Oct4 gene expression, and that suppression of Hdac2 is also required. Thus, our data show that miRNA and Hdac-mediated pathways can cooperate in a powerful way to reprogram somatic cells to pluripotency.
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99
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Olson MT, Epstein JA, Sackett DL, Yergey AL. Production of reliable MALDI spectra with quality threshold clustering of replicates. J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 2011; 22:969-975. [PMID: 21953038 DOI: 10.1007/s13361-011-0097-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2010] [Revised: 01/21/2011] [Accepted: 01/22/2011] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
We present the first application of the quality threshold (QT) clustering algorithm to mass spectrometry (MS) data. The unique abilities of QT clustering to yield precision nodes that are commensurate with the mass measurement precision of the instrument are exploited to generate a consensus spectrum out of multiple replicate spectra. The spectral dot product and confidence intervals are used as a tool for evaluating the similarity and reproducibility between the consensus and replicates. The method is equally applicable to high and low resolution measurements. This paper demonstrates applications to linear spectra from a matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) time of flight (TOF) instrument as well as peptide fragmentation data obtained from a TOF/TOF after unimolecular decomposition. The advantages of clustering to mitigate the inherent precision the shortcomings of MALDI data are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew T Olson
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA
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100
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Abstract
The National Institutes of Health and many of our biomedical institutions face significant budgetary challenges that are likely to persist for the foreseeable future. The paylines for Research Project Grant (RO1) applications to the NIH will be near or below the tenth percentile, and many investigators are growing increasingly concerned about maintaining their research programs. One of the most concerning potential results of limited grant dollars is the natural tendency for researchers to propose conservative projects that are more likely to succeed, to do well in peer review, and to be funded, but that may not dramatically advance the field, and a concurrent tendency among study sections to reward proposals that are seen as safe, if uninspiring. Established and well-respected investigators may be (perhaps appropriately) given the benefit of the doubt when compared with less-established colleagues and may therefore command a growing percentage of the total available grant dollars, while simultaneously avoiding bold and potentially groundbreaking approaches. At the same time, fewer dollars are available for new investigators with unproven track records and for the expansion of newly successful programs.
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