Establishment and characterization of CSCRi006-A: an induced pluripotent stem cell line generated from a patient with Diamond-Blackfan Anemia (DBA) carrying ribosomal protein S19 (RPS19) mutation

Diamond-Blackfan anemia (DBA) is a congenital hypoplastic anemia characterized by ineffective erythropoiesis. DBA is majorly caused by mutations in the ribosomal protein (RP) genes (Gadhiya and Wills in Diamond-Blackfan Anemia, https://www.statpearls.com/ ; 2023). A suitable disease model that yields a continuous supply of erythroid cells is required to study disease pathogenesis and drug discovery. Toward this, we reprogrammed dermal fibroblasts from a DBA patient with a heterozygous mutation c.22-23delAG in the RPS19 gene identified through exome sequencing. To generate induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), we induced episomal expression of the reprogramming factors OTC3/4, L-MYC, LIN28, SOX2, and KLF4, and a p53 shRNA2. The DBA-iPSC line CSCRi006-A generated during this study was extensively characterized for its pluripotency and genome stability. The clone retained normal karyotype and showed high expression levels of pluripotency markers, OCT4, NANOG, SOX2, TRA-I-60, TRA-I-81, and SSEA4. It could differentiate into cells originating from all three germ cell layers, as identified by immunostaining for SOX17 (endoderm), Brachyury (mesoderm), and PAX6 (ectoderm). IPSCs provide a renewable source of cells for in vitro disease modeling. CSCRi006-A, a thoroughly characterized iPSC line carrying heterozygous RPS19 c.22-23delAG mutation, is a valuable cell line for the disease modeling of DBA. This iPSC line can be differentiated into different blood cell types to study the mechanisms of disease development and identify potential treatments.

Robust, Automated Analysis of Electrophysiology in Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Micro-Heart Muscle for Drug Toxicity

Drugs are often removed from clinical trials or market progression owing to their unforeseen effects on cardiac action potential and calcium handling. Induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes and tissues fabricated from these cells are promising as screening tools for early identification of these potential cardiac liabilities. In this study, we describe an automated, open-source MATLAB-based analysis software for calculating cardiac action potentials and calcium transients from fluorescent reporters. We first identified the most robust manner in which to automatically identify the initiation point for action potentials and calcium transients in a user-independent manner, and used this approach to quantify the duration and morphology of these signals. We then demonstrate the software by assessing changes to action potentials and calcium transients in our micro-heart muscles after exposure to hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug with known cardiac liability. Consistent with clinical observations, our system predicted mild action potential prolongation. However, we also observed marked calcium transient suppression, highlighting the advantage of testing multiple physiologic readouts in cardiomyocytes rather than relying on heterologous overexpression of single channels such as the human ether-a-go-go-related gene channel. This open-source software can serve as a useful, high-throughput tool for analyzing cardiomyocyte physiology from fluorescence imaging.

Quantifying the Vasculogenic Potential of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Endothelial Progenitors in Collagen Hydrogels

IMPACT STATEMENT

Our work reinforces the role of extracellular matrix (ECM) density and matrix metalloprotease activity on the formation of microvasculature from induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived vascular cells. The cell-matrix interactions discussed in this study underscore the importance of understanding the role of mechanoregulation and matrix degradation on vasculogenesis and can potentially drive the development of ECM-mimicking angiogenic biomaterials. Furthermore, our work has broader implications concerning the response of iPSC-derived cells to the mechanics of engineered microenvironments. An understanding of these interactions will be critical to creating physiologically relevant transplantable tissue replacements.

Overview of the Moral Status of iPS Cells

The production of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells in 2006 by Takahashi and Yamanaka was a major breakthrough in stem cell research. IPS cells technology holds great promise for cell therapy, disease modelling, and drug testing, but it poses ethical questions concerning the moral status of somatic cells, which can re-gain pluripotency (iPS cells). This article provides an overview of the arguments that substantiate the debate on the moral assessment of iPS cells: potentiality argument; relational properties/standard view; and genetic basis for moral status.

Current progress of human trials using stem cell therapy as a treatment for diabetes mellitus

Diabetes mellitus affects millions of people worldwide, and is associated with serious complications that affect nearly all body systems. Because of the severity of this global health concern, there is a great deal of research being performed on alternative treatments and possible cures. Previous treatments for diabetes have included exogenous insulin injection and pancreatic islet transplantations. These treatment methods have several limitations; thus, the use of stem cells in treating diabetes is currently a significant area of research. This review outlines current research on stem cell therapy for diabetes mellitus. Numerous studies have been performed on animals using various types of stem cells, including mesenchymal stem cells and embryonic stem cells. Moreover, results and limitations of animal studies have been confirmed in various clinical trials. Overall, stem cell treatment shows prospective advantages over insulin injections and other current treatment options, and ongoing clinical trials suggest that this therapy may be a viable treatment option for diabetics in the near future.

Integration-Free Reprogramming of Lamina Propria Progenitor Cells

Producing induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from human tissue for use in personalized medicine strategies or therapeutic testing is at the forefront of medicine. Therefore, identifying a source of cells to reprogram that is easily accessible via a simple noninvasive procedure is of great clinical importance. Reprogramming these cells to iPSCs through nonintegrating methods for genetic manipulation is paramount for regenerative purposes. Here, we demonstrate reprogramming of oral mucosal lamina propria progenitor cells from patients undergoing routine dental treatment. Reprogramming was performed utilizing nonintegrating plasmids containing all 6 pluripotency genes (OCT4, SOX2, KLF4, NANOG, LIN28, and cMYC). Resulting iPSCs lacked genetic integration of the vector genes and had the ability to differentiate down mesoderm, ectoderm, and endoderm lineages, demonstrating pluripotency. In conclusion, oral mucosal lamina propria progenitor cells represent a source of cells that can be obtained with minimal invasion, as they can be taken concurrently with routine treatments. The resulting integration-free iPSCs therefore have great potential for use in personalized medicine strategies.

De- and re-differentiation of the melanocytic lineage

Terminally differentiated cells can be reprogrammed by the transient, ectopic overexpression of different sets of genes into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). This process not only has considerable implications for regenerative medicine but is also highly relevant to multiple stages of oncogenesis, including melanoma. In other settings, the de-differentiation of normal and tumor cells is also responsible for a phenotype switch which completely changes the cell fate. Conversely, iPSCs as well as embryonic stem cells (ESCs) can be differentiated in vitro toward specific lineages, for example melanocytes, which offer useful models to investigate the genetic and epigenetic mechanisms involved in cellular differentiation. Here, we summarize recent findings regarding the reprogramming and de-differentiation of melanocytic cells as well as the latest differentiation protocols of pluripotent stem cells into the melanocyte lineage.