1
|
Trovato F, Stefani FR, Li J, Zetterdahl OG, Canals I, Ahlenius H, Bengzon J. Transcription Factor-Forced Astrocytic Differentiation Impairs Human Glioblastoma Growth In Vitro and In Vivo. Mol Cancer Ther 2023; 22:274-286. [PMID: 36508391 PMCID: PMC9890139 DOI: 10.1158/1535-7163.mct-21-0903] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [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: 11/07/2021] [Revised: 07/26/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Direct cellular reprogramming has recently gained attention of cancer researchers for the possibility to convert undifferentiated cancer cells into more differentiated, postmitotic cell types. While a few studies have attempted reprogramming of glioblastoma (GBM) cells toward a neuronal fate, this approach has not yet been used to induce differentiation into other lineages and in vivo data on reduction in tumorigenicity are limited. Here, we employ cellular reprogramming to induce astrocytic differentiation as a therapeutic approach in GBM. To this end, we overexpressed key transcriptional regulators of astroglial development in human GBM and GBM stem cell lines. Treated cells undergo a remarkable shift in structure, acquiring an astrocyte-like morphology with star-shaped bodies and radial branched processes. Differentiated cells express typical glial markers and show a marked decrease in their proliferative state. In addition, forced differentiation induces astrocytic functions such as induced calcium transients and ability to respond to inflammatory stimuli. Most importantly, forced differentiation substantially reduces tumorigenicity of GBM cells in an in vivo xenotransplantation model. The current study capitalizes on cellular plasticity with a novel application in cancer. We take advantage of the similarity between neural developmental processes and cancer hierarchy to mitigate, if not completely abolish, the malignant nature of tumor cells and pave the way for new intervention strategies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Trovato
- Stem Cell Center, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Neurosurgery, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Neurology, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Corresponding Author: Francesco Trovato, Stem Cell Center/Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Klinikgatan 26, Lund, Scania 221 84, Sweden. Phone: 46-222-3159; E-mail:
| | - Francesca Romana Stefani
- Stem Cell Center, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Neurosurgery, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
| | - Jiaxin Li
- Stem Cell Center, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Neurosurgery, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
| | - Oskar G. Zetterdahl
- Stem Cell Center, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Neurology, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
| | - Isaac Canals
- Stem Cell Center, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Neurology, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
| | - Henrik Ahlenius
- Stem Cell Center, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Neurology, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
| | - Johan Bengzon
- Stem Cell Center, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Neurosurgery, Lund University, Lund, Scania, Sweden
- Department of Neurosurgery, Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Scania, Sweden
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Quist E, Trovato F, Avaliani N, Zetterdahl OG, Gonzalez-Ramos A, Hansen MG, Kokaia M, Canals I, Ahlenius H. Transcription factor-based direct conversion of human fibroblasts to functional astrocytes. Stem Cell Reports 2022; 17:1620-1635. [PMID: 35750047 PMCID: PMC9287681 DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2022.05.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [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: 09/24/2021] [Revised: 05/20/2022] [Accepted: 05/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Astrocytes are emerging key players in neurological disorders. However, their role in disease etiology is poorly understood owing to inaccessibility of primary human astrocytes. Pluripotent stem cell-derived cells fail to mimic age and due to their clonal origin do not mimic genetic heterogeneity of patients. In contrast, direct conversion constitutes an attractive approach to generate human astrocytes that capture age and genetic diversity. We describe efficient direct conversion of human fibroblasts to functional induced astrocytes (iAs). Expression of the minimal combination Sox9 and Nfib generates iAs with molecular, phenotypic, and functional properties resembling primary human astrocytes. iAs could be obtained by conversion of fibroblasts covering the entire human lifespan. Importantly, iAs supported function of induced neurons obtained through direct conversion from the same fibroblast population. Fibroblast-derived iAs will become a useful tool to elucidate the biology of astrocytes and complement current in vitro models for studies of late-onset neurological disorders. Effective direct conversion of human fibroblasts to induced astrocytes (iAs) iAs resemble human primary astrocytes at molecular, phenotypic, and functional levels iAs can be generated from fibroblasts covering the entire human lifespan iAs support function of induced neurons obtained from the same starting population
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ella Quist
- Lund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Neurology, Stem Cells, Aging and Neurodegeneration, Lund, Sweden; Lund Stem Cell Center, Lund, Sweden.
| | - Francesco Trovato
- Lund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Neurology, Stem Cells, Aging and Neurodegeneration, Lund, Sweden; Lund Stem Cell Center, Lund, Sweden; Lund University, Skane University Hospital, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Neurosurgery, Lund, Sweden
| | | | - Oskar G Zetterdahl
- Lund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Neurology, Stem Cells, Aging and Neurodegeneration, Lund, Sweden; Lund Stem Cell Center, Lund, Sweden; Lund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Neurology, Glial and Neuronal Biology, Lund, Sweden
| | - Ana Gonzalez-Ramos
- Lund University, Skane University Hospital, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Epilepsy Center, Lund, Sweden
| | | | - Merab Kokaia
- Lund University, Skane University Hospital, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Epilepsy Center, Lund, Sweden
| | - Isaac Canals
- Lund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Neurology, Glial and Neuronal Biology, Lund, Sweden
| | - Henrik Ahlenius
- Lund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Neurology, Stem Cells, Aging and Neurodegeneration, Lund, Sweden; Lund Stem Cell Center, Lund, Sweden.
| |
Collapse
|