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Rzhanova LA, Markitantova YV, Aleksandrova MA. Recent Achievements in the Heterogeneity of Mammalian and Human Retinal Pigment Epithelium: In Search of a Stem Cell. Cells 2024; 13:281. [PMID: 38334673 PMCID: PMC10854871 DOI: 10.3390/cells13030281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells are important fundamentally for the development and function of the retina. In this regard, the study of the morphological and molecular properties of RPE cells, as well as their regenerative capabilities, is of particular importance for biomedicine. However, these studies are complicated by the fact that, despite the external morphological similarity of RPE cells, the RPE is a population of heterogeneous cells, the molecular genetic properties of which have begun to be revealed by sequencing methods only in recent years. This review carries out an analysis of the data from morphological and molecular genetic studies of the heterogeneity of RPE cells in mammals and humans, which reveals the individual differences in the subpopulations of RPE cells and the possible specificity of their functions. Particular attention is paid to discussing the properties of "stemness," proliferation, and plasticity in the RPE, which may be useful for uncovering the mechanisms of retinal diseases associated with pathologies of the RPE and finding new ways of treating them.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yuliya V. Markitantova
- Koltzov Institute of Developmental Biology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 26 Vavilov Street, 119334 Moscow, Russia; (L.A.R.); (M.A.A.)
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Dehghan S, Mirshahi R, Shoae-Hassani A, Naseripour M. Human-induced pluripotent stem cells-derived retinal pigmented epithelium, a new horizon for cells-based therapies for age-related macular degeneration. Stem Cell Res Ther 2022; 13:217. [PMID: 35619143 PMCID: PMC9137077 DOI: 10.1186/s13287-022-02894-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2021] [Accepted: 05/02/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) degeneration is the hallmark of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). AMD, as one of the most common causes of irreversible visual impairment worldwide, remains in need of an appropriate approach to restore retinal function. Wet AMD, which is characterized by neovascular formation, can be stabilized by currently available therapies, including laser photocoagulation, photodynamic therapy, and intraocular injections of anti-VEFG (anti-vascular endothelial growth factor) therapy or a combination of these modalities. Unlike wet AMD, there is no effective therapy for progressive dry (non-neovascular) AMD. However, stem cell-based therapies, a part of regenerative medicine, have shown promising results for retinal degenerative diseases such as AMD. The goal of RPE cell therapy is to return the normal structure and function of the retina by re-establishing its interaction with photoreceptors, which is essential to vision. Considering the limited source of naturally occurring RPE cells, recent progress in stem cell research has allowed the generation of RPE cells from human pluripotent cells, both embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC). Since iPSCs face neither ethical arguments nor significant immunological considerations when compared to ESCs, they open a new horizon for cell therapy of AMD. The current study aims to discuss AMD, review the protocols for making human iPSCs-derived RPEs, and summarize recent developments in the field of iPSC-derived RPEs cell therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samaneh Dehghan
- Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
- Eye Research Center, The Five Senses Health Institute, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Reza Mirshahi
- Eye Research Center, The Five Senses Health Institute, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Alireza Shoae-Hassani
- Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Masood Naseripour
- Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
- Eye Research Center, The Five Senses Health Institute, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
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Pathogenic Effects of Mineralocorticoid Pathway Activation in Retinal Pigment Epithelium. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22179618. [PMID: 34502527 PMCID: PMC8431771 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22179618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2021] [Revised: 08/25/2021] [Accepted: 08/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Glucocorticoids are amongst the most used drugs to treat retinal diseases of various origins. Yet, the transcriptional regulations induced by glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) activation in retinal pigment epithelium cells (RPE) that form the outer blood-retina barrier are unknown. Levels of endogenous corticoids, ligands for MR and GR, were measured in human ocular media. Human RPE cells derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iRPE) were used to analyze the pan-transcriptional regulations induced by aldosterone-an MR-specific agonist, or cortisol or cortisol + RU486-a GR antagonist. The retinal phenotype of transgenic mice that overexpress the human MR (P1.hMR) was analyzed. In the human eye, the main ligand for GR and MR is cortisol. The iRPE cells express functional GR and MR. The subset of genes regulated by aldosterone and by cortisol + RU-486, and not by cortisol alone, mimics an imbalance toward MR activation. They are involved in extracellular matrix remodeling (CNN1, MGP, AMTN), epithelial-mesenchymal transition, RPE cell proliferation and migration (ITGB3, PLAUR and FOSL1) and immune balance (TNFSF18 and PTX3). The P1.hMR mice showed choroidal vasodilation, focal alteration of the RPE/choroid interface and migration of RPE cells together with RPE barrier function alteration, similar to human retinal diseases within the pachychoroid spectrum. RPE is a corticosteroid-sensitive epithelium. MR pathway activation in the RPE regulates genes involved in barrier function, extracellular matrix, neural regulation and epithelial differentiation, which could contribute to retinal pathology.
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Storti F, Klee K, Todorova V, Steiner R, Othman A, van der Velde-Visser S, Samardzija M, Meneau I, Barben M, Karademir D, Pauzuolyte V, Boye SL, Blaser F, Ullmer C, Dunaief JL, Hornemann T, Rohrer L, den Hollander A, von Eckardstein A, Fingerle J, Maugeais C, Grimm C. Impaired ABCA1/ABCG1-mediated lipid efflux in the mouse retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) leads to retinal degeneration. eLife 2019; 8:45100. [PMID: 30864945 PMCID: PMC6435327 DOI: 10.7554/elife.45100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2019] [Accepted: 03/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a progressive disease of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and the retina leading to loss of central vision. Polymorphisms in genes involved in lipid metabolism, including the ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1), have been associated with AMD risk. However, the significance of retinal lipid handling for AMD pathogenesis remains elusive. Here, we study the contribution of lipid efflux in the RPE by generating a mouse model lacking ABCA1 and its partner ABCG1 specifically in this layer. Mutant mice show lipid accumulation in the RPE, reduced RPE and retinal function, retinal inflammation and RPE/photoreceptor degeneration. Data from human cell lines indicate that the ABCA1 AMD risk-conferring allele decreases ABCA1 expression, identifying the potential molecular cause that underlies the genetic risk for AMD. Our results highlight the essential homeostatic role for lipid efflux in the RPE and suggest a pathogenic contribution of reduced ABCA1 function to AMD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federica Storti
- Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland
| | - Katrin Klee
- Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland.,Center for Integrative Human Physiology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Vyara Todorova
- Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland.,Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Regula Steiner
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland
| | - Alaa Othman
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland
| | | | - Marijana Samardzija
- Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland
| | - Isabelle Meneau
- Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Maya Barben
- Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland
| | - Duygu Karademir
- Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland.,Center for Integrative Human Physiology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Valda Pauzuolyte
- Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland
| | - Sanford L Boye
- Department of Ophthalmology, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Frank Blaser
- Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Christoph Ullmer
- Roche Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., Basel, Switzerland
| | - Joshua L Dunaief
- Department of Ophthalmology, Scheie Eye Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, United States
| | - Thorsten Hornemann
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland
| | - Lucia Rohrer
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland
| | - Anneke den Hollander
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Department of Ophthalmology, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | | | - Jürgen Fingerle
- Natural and Medical Sciences Institute, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Cyrille Maugeais
- Roche Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., Basel, Switzerland
| | - Christian Grimm
- Lab for Retinal Cell Biology, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland.,Center for Integrative Human Physiology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.,Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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