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Peslak SA, Demirci S, Chandra V, Ryu B, Bhardwaj SK, Jiang J, Rupon JW, Throm RE, Uchida N, Leonard A, Essawi K, Bonifacino AC, Krouse AE, Linde NS, Donahue RE, Ferrara F, Wielgosz M, Abdulmalik O, Hamagami N, Germino-Watnick P, Le A, Chu R, Hinds M, Weiss MJ, Tong W, Tisdale JF, Blobel GA. Forced enhancer-promoter rewiring to alter gene expression in animal models. MOLECULAR THERAPY. NUCLEIC ACIDS 2023; 31:452-465. [PMID: 36852088 PMCID: PMC9958407 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2023.01.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 01/25/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Transcriptional enhancers can be in physical proximity of their target genes via chromatin looping. The enhancer at the β-globin locus (locus control region [LCR]) contacts the fetal-type (HBG) and adult-type (HBB) β-globin genes during corresponding developmental stages. We have demonstrated previously that forcing proximity between the LCR and HBG genes in cultured adult-stage erythroid cells can activate HBG transcription. Activation of HBG expression in erythroid cells is of benefit to patients with sickle cell disease. Here, using the β-globin locus as a model, we provide proof of concept at the organismal level that forced enhancer rewiring might present a strategy to alter gene expression for therapeutic purposes. Hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) from mice bearing human β-globin genes were transduced with lentiviral vectors expressing a synthetic transcription factor (ZF-Ldb1) that fosters LCR-HBG contacts. When engrafted into host animals, HSPCs gave rise to adult-type erythroid cells with elevated HBG expression. Vectors containing ZF-Ldb1 were optimized for activity in cultured human and rhesus macaque erythroid cells. Upon transplantation into rhesus macaques, erythroid cells from HSPCs expressing ZF-Ldb1 displayed elevated HBG production. These findings in two animal models suggest that forced redirection of gene-regulatory elements may be used to alter gene expression to treat disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott A. Peslak
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Selami Demirci
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Vemika Chandra
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Byoung Ryu
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Saurabh K. Bhardwaj
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jing Jiang
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- CAS Engineering Laboratory for Nanozyme, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China
| | - Jeremy W. Rupon
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Robert E. Throm
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Naoya Uchida
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
- Division of Molecular and Medical Genetics, Center for Gene and Cell Therapy, The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Alexis Leonard
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Khaled Essawi
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
- Department of Medical Laboratory Science, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Jazan University, Jazan, Saudi Arabia
| | | | - Allen E. Krouse
- Translational Stem Cell Biology Branch, NHLBI, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA
| | - Nathaniel S. Linde
- Translational Stem Cell Biology Branch, NHLBI, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA
| | - Robert E. Donahue
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Francesca Ferrara
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Matthew Wielgosz
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Osheiza Abdulmalik
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Nicole Hamagami
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Paula Germino-Watnick
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Anh Le
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Rebecca Chu
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Malikiya Hinds
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Mitchell J. Weiss
- Department of Hematology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Wei Tong
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - John F. Tisdale
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Gerd A. Blobel
- Division of Hematology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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Lv K, Gong C, Antony C, Han X, Ren JG, Donaghy R, Cheng Y, Pellegrino S, Warren AJ, Paralkar VR, Tong W. HectD1 controls hematopoietic stem cell regeneration by coordinating ribosome assembly and protein synthesis. Cell Stem Cell 2021; 28:1275-1290.e9. [PMID: 33711283 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2021.02.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2020] [Revised: 12/28/2020] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Impaired ribosome function is the underlying etiology in a group of bone marrow failure syndromes called ribosomopathies. However, how ribosomes are regulated remains poorly understood, as are approaches to restore hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) function loss because of defective ribosome biogenesis. Here we reveal a role of the E3 ubiquitin ligase HectD1 in regulating HSC function via ribosome assembly and protein translation. Hectd1-deficient HSCs exhibit a striking defect in transplantation ability and ex vivo maintenance concomitant with reduced protein synthesis and growth rate under stress conditions. Mechanistically, HectD1 ubiquitinates and degrades ZNF622, an assembly factor for the ribosomal 60S subunit. Hectd1 loss leads to accumulation of ZNF622 and the anti-association factor eIF6 on 60S, resulting in 60S/40S joining defects. Importantly, Znf622 depletion in Hectd1-deficient HSCs restored ribosomal subunit joining, protein synthesis, and HSC reconstitution capacity. These findings highlight the importance of ubiquitin-coordinated ribosome assembly in HSC regeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaosheng Lv
- Division of Hematology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Division of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Chujie Gong
- Division of Hematology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Division of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Charles Antony
- Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Xu Han
- Division of Hematology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Division of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jian-Gang Ren
- Division of Hematology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Division of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ryan Donaghy
- Division of Hematology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Division of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ying Cheng
- Division of Hematology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Division of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Simone Pellegrino
- Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, Cambridge, UK; Department of Haematology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Wellcome Trust-Medical Research Council Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Alan J Warren
- Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, Cambridge, UK; Department of Haematology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Wellcome Trust-Medical Research Council Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Vikram R Paralkar
- Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Wei Tong
- Division of Hematology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Division of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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Aranyossy T, Thielecke L, Glauche I, Fehse B, Cornils K. Genetic Barcodes Facilitate Competitive Clonal Analyses In Vivo. Hum Gene Ther 2018; 28:926-937. [PMID: 28847169 DOI: 10.1089/hum.2017.124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Monitoring the fate of individual cell clones is an important task to better understand normal tissue regeneration, for example after hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation, but also cancerogenesis. Based on their integration into the host cell's genome, retroviral vectors are commonly used to stably mark target cells and their progeny. The development of genetic barcoding techniques has opened new possibilities to determine clonal composition and dynamics in great detail. A modular genetic barcode was recently introduced consisting of 32 variable positions (BC32) with a customized backbone, and its advantages were demonstrated with regard to barcode calling and quantification. The study presented applied the BC32 system in a complex in vivo situation, namely to analyze clonal reconstitution dynamics for HSC grafts consisting of up to three cell populations with distinguishable barcodes using different alpha- and lentiviral vectors. In a competitive transplantation setup, it was possible to follow the differently marked cell populations within individual animals. This enabled the clonal contribution of the different BC32 constructs during reconstitution and long-term hematopoiesis in the peripheral blood and the spatial distribution in bone marrow and spleen to be identified. Thus, it was demonstrated that the system allows the output of individually marked cells to be tracked in vivo and their influence on clonal dynamics to be analyzed. Successful application of the BC32 system in a complex, competitive in vivo situation provided proof-of-principle that its high complexity and the large Hamming distance between individual barcodes, combined with the easy customization, facilitate efficient and precise quantification, even without prior knowledge of individual barcode sequences. Importantly, simultaneous high-sensitivity analyses of different cell populations in single animals may significantly reduce numbers of animals required to investigate specific scientific questions in accordance with RRR principles. It is concluded that this BC32 system will be excellently suited for various research applications in regenerative medicine and cancer biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim Aranyossy
- 1 Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Hamburg, Germany
| | - Lars Thielecke
- 2 Institute for Medical Informatics and Biometry, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Ingmar Glauche
- 2 Institute for Medical Informatics and Biometry, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Boris Fehse
- 1 Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Hamburg, Germany
| | - Kerstin Cornils
- 1 Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Hamburg, Germany .,3 Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Division Pediatric Stem Cell Transplantation and Immunology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Hamburg, Germany .,4 Research Institute Children's Cancer Center Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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Stahlhut M, Schambach A, Kustikova OS. Multimodal Lentiviral Vectors for Pharmacologically Controlled Switching Between Constitutive Single Gene Expression and Tetracycline-Regulated Multiple Gene Collaboration. Hum Gene Ther Methods 2017; 28:191-204. [PMID: 28683573 DOI: 10.1089/hgtb.2017.073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Multimodal lentiviral vectors (LVs) allow switching between constitutive and tetracycline-regulated gene co-expressions in genetically modified cells. Transduction of murine primary hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) with multimodal LVs in the absence of doxycycline ensures the constitutive expression of gene of interest 1 (GOI1) only. In the presence of doxycycline, induced tetracycline-regulated expression of a second GOI (GOI2) allows evaluation of the collaboration between two genes. Drug removal retains constitutive expression, which allows the contribution of an individual gene into created networks to be studied. Doxycycline-dependent switching can be tracked via fluorescent markers coupled to constitutive and tetracycline-regulated GOIs. This article describes transduction of murine primary HPCs with different doses of multimodal LVs, distinct cytokine conditions, and their influence on the number and viability of cells co-expressing both collaborating GOIs upon doxycycline induction. A 2-week protocol is provided for multimodal LV production, titer determination, and evaluation of tetracycline responsive promoter background activity in a murine fibroblast cell line. The power of this model to assess the dose/time/order-controlled contribution of single and multiple genes into hematopoietic networks opens new routes in reprogramming, stem cell, and leukemia biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maike Stahlhut
- 1 Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany .,2 Cluster of Excellence REBIRTH, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany
| | - Axel Schambach
- 1 Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany .,2 Cluster of Excellence REBIRTH, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany .,3 Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School , Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Olga S Kustikova
- 1 Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany .,2 Cluster of Excellence REBIRTH, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany
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