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Hasan A, Macias JJ, Wood B, Malone-Perez M, Park G, Foster CA, Frazer JK. Dynamic Changes in Lymphocyte Populations Establish Zebrafish as a Thymic Involution Model. JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY (BALTIMORE, MD. : 1950) 2024; 212:1733-1743. [PMID: 38656392 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.2300495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 03/23/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
The thymus is the site of T lymphocyte development and T cell education to recognize foreign, but not self, Ags. B cells also reside and develop in the thymus, although their functions are less clear. During "thymic involution," a process of lymphoid atrophy and adipose replacement linked to sexual maturation, thymocytes decline. However, thymic B cells decrease far less than T cells, such that B cells comprise ∼1% of human neonatal thymocytes but up to ∼10% in adults. All jawed vertebrates possess a thymus, and we and others have shown zebrafish (Danio rerio) also have thymic B cells. In this article, we investigated the precise identities of zebrafish thymic T and B cells and how they change with involution. We assessed the timing and specific details of zebrafish thymic involution using multiple lymphocyte-specific, fluorophore-labeled transgenic lines, quantifying the changes in thymic T- and B-lymphocytes pre- versus postinvolution. Our results prove that, as in humans, zebrafish thymic B cells increase relative to T cells postinvolution. We also performed RNA sequencing on D. rerio thymic and marrow lymphocytes of four novel double-transgenic lines, identifying distinct populations of immature T and B cells. Collectively, this is, to our knowledge, the first comprehensive analysis of zebrafish thymic involution, demonstrating its similarity to human involution and establishing the highly genetically manipulatable zebrafish model as a template for involution studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ameera Hasan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - Jose J Macias
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - Brashé Wood
- Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - Megan Malone-Perez
- Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - Gilseung Park
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - Clay A Foster
- Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
| | - J Kimble Frazer
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
- Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
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Zhao X, Liu Y, Xie J, Zhang L, Zhu Q, Su L, Guo C, Li H, Wang G, Zhang W, Cheng Y, Wu N, Xia XQ. The manipulation of cell suspensions from zebrafish intestinal mucosa contributes to understanding enteritis. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1193977. [PMID: 37251394 PMCID: PMC10213505 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1193977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Although zebrafish are commonly used to study intestinal mucosal immunity, no dedicated procedure for isolating immune cells from zebrafish intestines is currently available. A speedy and simple operating approach for preparing cell suspension from mucosa has been devised to better understanding of intestinal cellular immunity in zebrafish. Methods and results The mucosal villi were separated away from the muscle layer by repeated blows. The complete deprivation of mucosa was done and evidenced by HE and qPCR results. Higher expression of both innate (mpeg1, mpx, and lck) and adaptive immune genes (zap70, blnk, foxp3a, and foxp3b) was revealed compared to cells obtained by typical mesh rubbing. The cytometric results also revealed that the tested operation group had a higher concentration and viability. Further, fluorescent-labelled immune cells from 3mo Tg(lyz:DsRED2), Tg(mpeg1:EGFP), Tg(Rag2:DsRED), and Tg(lck:EGFP), were isolated and evaluated for the proportion, and immune cells' type could be inferred from the expression of marker genes. The transcriptomic data demonstrated that the intestinal immune cell suspension made using the new technique was enriched in immune-related genes and pathways, including il17a/f, il22, cd59, and zap70, as well as pattern recognition receptor signaling and cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction. In addition, the low expression of DEG for the adherent and close junctions indicated less muscular contamination. Also, lower expression of gel-forming mucus-associated genes in the mucosal cell suspension was consistent with the current less viscous cell suspension. To apply and validate the developed manipulation, enteritis was induced by soybean meal diet, and immune cell suspensions were analyzed by flow cytometry and qPCR. The finding that in enteritis samples, there was inflammatory increase of neutrophils and macrophages, was in line with upregulated cytokines (il8 and il10) and cell markers (mpeg1 and mpx). Conclusion As a result, the current work created a realistic technique for studying intestinal immune cells in zebrafish. The immune cells acquired may aid in further research and knowledge of intestinal illness at the cellular level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuyang Zhao
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
| | - Yuhang Liu
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
| | - Jiayuan Xie
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Qingsong Zhu
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, China
| | - Lian Su
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Cheng Guo
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Heng Li
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Guangxin Wang
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Wanting Zhang
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Yingyin Cheng
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Nan Wu
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiao-Qin Xia
- Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
- College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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Weiss JM, Lumaquin-Yin D, Montal E, Suresh S, Leonhardt CS, White RM. Shifting the focus of zebrafish toward a model of the tumor microenvironment. eLife 2022; 11:69703. [PMID: 36538362 PMCID: PMC9767465 DOI: 10.7554/elife.69703] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2021] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Cancer cells exist in a complex ecosystem with numerous other cell types in the tumor microenvironment (TME). The composition of this tumor/TME ecosystem will vary at each anatomic site and affects phenotypes such as initiation, metastasis, and drug resistance. A mechanistic understanding of the large number of cell-cell interactions between tumor and TME requires models that allow us to both characterize as well as genetically perturb this complexity. Zebrafish are a model system optimized for this problem, because of the large number of existing cell-type-specific drivers that can label nearly any cell in the TME. These include stromal cells, immune cells, and tissue resident normal cells. These cell-type-specific promoters/enhancers can be used to drive fluorophores to facilitate imaging and also CRISPR cassettes to facilitate perturbations. A major advantage of the zebrafish is the ease by which large numbers of TME cell types can be studied at once, within the same animal. While these features make the zebrafish well suited to investigate the TME, the model has important limitations, which we also discuss. In this review, we describe the existing toolset for studying the TME using zebrafish models of cancer and highlight unique biological insights that can be gained by leveraging this powerful resource.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua M Weiss
- Weill-Cornel Medical College, Tri-Institutional M.D./Ph.D. ProgramNew YorkUnited States
| | - Dianne Lumaquin-Yin
- Weill-Cornel Medical College, Tri-Institutional M.D./Ph.D. ProgramNew YorkUnited States
| | - Emily Montal
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Department of Cancer Biology & GeneticsNew YorkUnited States
| | - Shruthy Suresh
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Department of Cancer Biology & GeneticsNew YorkUnited States
| | - Carl S Leonhardt
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Department of Cancer Biology & GeneticsNew YorkUnited States
| | - Richard M White
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Department of Cancer Biology & GeneticsNew YorkUnited States,Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer CenterNew YorkUnited States
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Park G, Burroughs-Garcia J, Foster CA, Hasan A, Borga C, Frazer JK. Zebrafish B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia: new findings in an old model. Oncotarget 2020; 11:1292-1305. [PMID: 32341750 PMCID: PMC7170496 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.27555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2019] [Accepted: 03/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common pediatric, and ninth most common adult, cancer. ALL can develop in either B or T lymphocytes, but B-lineage ALL (B-ALL) exceeds T-ALL clinically. As for other cancers, animal models allow study of the molecular mechanisms driving ALL. Several zebrafish (Danio rerio) T-ALL models have been reported, but until recently, robust D. rerio B-ALL models were not described. Then, D. rerio B-ALL was discovered in two related zebrafish transgenic lines; both were already known to develop T-ALL. Here, we report new B-ALL findings in one of these models, fish expressing transgenic human MYC (hMYC). We describe B-ALL incidence in a large cohort of hMYC fish, and show B-ALL in two new lines where T-ALL does not interfere with B-ALL detection. We also demonstrate B-ALL responses to steroid and radiation treatments, which effect ALL remissions, but are usually followed by prompt relapses. Finally, we report gene expression in zebrafish B lymphocytes and B-ALL, in both bulk samples and single B- and T-ALL cells. Using these gene expression profiles, we compare differences between the two new D. rerio B-ALL models, which are both driven by transgenic mammalian MYC oncoproteins. Collectively, these new data expand the utility of this new vertebrate B-ALL model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gilseung Park
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Jessica Burroughs-Garcia
- Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Clay A Foster
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Ameera Hasan
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Chiara Borga
- Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - J Kimble Frazer
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, Section of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.,Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
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Tackling Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia-One Fish at a Time. Int J Mol Sci 2019; 20:ijms20215313. [PMID: 31731471 PMCID: PMC6862667 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20215313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2019] [Revised: 10/22/2019] [Accepted: 10/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), a need for improved strategies to decrease morbidity and improve cure rates in relapsed/refractory ALL still exists. Such approaches include the identification and implementation of novel targeted combination regimens, and more precise upfront patient risk stratification to guide therapy. New curative strategies rely on an understanding of the pathobiology that derives from systematically dissecting each cancer’s genetic and molecular landscape. Zebrafish models provide a powerful system to simulate human diseases, including leukemias and ALL specifically. They are also an invaluable tool for genetic manipulation, in vivo studies, and drug discovery. Here, we highlight and summarize contributions made by several zebrafish T-ALL models and newer zebrafish B-ALL models in translating the underlying genetic and molecular mechanisms operative in ALL, and also highlight their potential utility for drug discovery. These models have laid the groundwork for increasing our understanding of the molecular basis of ALL to further translational and clinical research endeavors that seek to improve outcomes in this important cancer.
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