Development and function of chicken XCR1+ conventional dendritic cells.

Conventional dendritic cells (cDCs) are antigen-presenting cells (APCs) that play a central role in linking innate and adaptive immunity. cDCs have been well described in a number of different mammalian species, but remain poorly characterised in the chicken. In this study, we use previously described chicken cDC specific reagents, a novel gene-edited chicken line and single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq) to characterise chicken splenic cDCs. In contrast to mammals, scRNAseq analysis indicates that the chicken spleen contains a single, chemokine receptor XCR1 expressing, cDC subset. By sexual maturity the XCR1+ cDC population is the most abundant mononuclear phagocyte cell subset in the chicken spleen. scRNAseq analysis revealed substantial heterogeneity within the chicken splenic XCR1+ cDC population. Immature MHC class II (MHCII)LOW XCR1+ cDCs expressed a range of viral resistance genes. Maturation to MHCIIHIGH XCR1+ cDCs was associated with reduced expression of anti-viral gene expression and increased expression of genes related to antigen presentation via the MHCII and cross-presentation pathways. To visualise and transiently ablate chicken XCR1+ cDCs in situ, we generated XCR1-iCaspase9-RFP chickens using a CRISPR-Cas9 knockin transgenesis approach to precisely edit the XCR1 locus, replacing the XCR1 coding region with genes for a fluorescent protein (TagRFP), and inducible Caspase 9. After inducible ablation, the chicken spleen is initially repopulated by immature CD1.1+ XCR1+ cDCs. XCR1+ cDCs are abundant in the splenic red pulp, in close association with CD8+ T-cells. Knockout of XCR1 prevented this clustering of cDCs with CD8+ T-cells. Taken together these data indicate a conserved role for chicken and mammalian XCR1+ cDCs in driving CD8+ T-cells responses.

A Perceptual Measure for Deep Single Image Camera and Lens Calibration.

Image editing and compositing have become ubiquitous in entertainment, from digital art to AR and VR experiences. To produce beautiful composites, the camera needs to be geometrically calibrated, which can be tedious and requires a physical calibration target. In place of the traditional multi-image calibration process, we propose to infer the camera calibration parameters such as pitch, roll, field of view, and lens distortion directly from a single image using a deep convolutional neural network. We train this network using automatically generated samples from a large-scale panorama dataset, yielding competitive accuracy in terms of standard l2 error. However, we argue that minimizing such standard error metrics might not be optimal for many applications. In this work, we investigate human sensitivity to inaccuracies in geometric camera calibration. To this end, we conduct a large-scale human perception study where we ask participants to judge the realism of 3D objects composited with correct and biased camera calibration parameters. Based on this study, we develop a new perceptual measure for camera calibration and demonstrate that our deep calibration network outperforms previous single-image based calibration methods both on standard metrics as well as on this novel perceptual measure. Finally, we demonstrate the use of our calibration network for several applications, including virtual object insertion, image retrieval, and compositing.

Avian Primordial Germ Cells Are Bipotent for Male or Female Gametogenesis.

In birds, males are the homogametic sex (ZZ) and females are the heterogametic sex (ZW). Here, we investigate the role of chromosomal sex and germ cell competition on avian germ cell differentiation. We recently developed genetically sterile layer cockerels and hens for use as surrogate hosts for primordial germ cell (PGC) transplantation. Using in vitro propagated and cryopreserved PGCs from a pedigree Silkie broiler breed, we now demonstrate that sterile surrogate layer hosts injected with same sex PGCs have normal fertility and produced pure breed Silkie broiler offspring when directly mated to each other in Sire Dam Surrogate mating. We found that female sterile hosts carrying chromosomally male (ZZ) PGCs formed functional oocytes and eggs, which gave rise to 100% male offspring after fertilization. Unexpectedly, we also observed that chromosomally female (ZW) PGCs carried by male sterile hosts formed functional spermatozoa and produced viable offspring. These findings demonstrate that avian PGCs are not sexually restricted for functional gamete formation and provide new insights for the cryopreservation of poultry and other bird species using diploid stage germ cells.

A high-Z inorganic scintillator-based detector for time-resolved in vivo dosimetry during brachytherapy.

PURPOSE: High-dose rate (HDR) and pulsed-dose rate (PDR) brachytherapy would benefit from an independent treatment verification system to monitor treatment delivery and to detect errors in real time. This paper characterizes and provides an uncertainty budget for a detector based on a fiber-coupled high-Z inorganic scintillator capable of performing time-resolved in vivo dosimetry during HDR and PDR brachytherapy. METHOD: The detector was composed of a detector probe and an optical reader. The detector probe consisted of either a 0.5 × 0.4 × 0.4 mm3 (HDR) or a 1.0 × 0.4 × 0.4 mm3 (PDR) cuboid ZnSe:O crystal glued onto an optical-fiber cable. The outer diameter of the detector probes was 1 mm, and fit inside standard brachytherapy catheters. The signal from the detector probe was read out at 20 Hz by a photodiode and a data acquisition device inside the optical reader. In order to construct an uncertainty budget for the detector, six characteristics were determined: (1) temperature dependence of the detector probe, (2) energy dependence as a function of the probe-to-source position in 2D (determined with 2 mm resolution using a robotic arm), (3) the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), (4) short-term stability over 8 h, and (5) long-term stability of three optical readers and four probes used for in vivo monitoring in HDR and PDR treatments over 21 months (196 treatments and 189 detector calibrations, and (6) dose-rate dependence. RESULTS: The total uncertainty of the detector at a 20 mm probe-to-source distance was < 5.1% and < 5.8% for the HDR and PDR versions, respectively. Regarding the above characteristics, (1) the sensitivity of the detector decreased by an average of 1.4%/°C for detector probe temperatures varying from 22 to 37°C; (2) the energy dependence of the detector was nonlinear and depended on both probe-to-source distance and the angle between the probe and the brachytherapy source; (3) the median SNRs were 187 and 34 at a 20 mm probe-to-source distance for the HDR and PDR versions, respectively (corresponding median source activities of 4.8 and 0.56 Ci, respectively); (4) the detector response varied by 0.6% in 11 identical irradiations over 8 h; (5) the sensitivity of the four detector probes decreased systematically by 0-1.2%/100 Gy of dose delivered to the probes, and random fluctuations of 4.8% in the sensitivity were observed for the three probes used in PDR and 1.9% for the probe used in HDR; and (6) the detector response was linear with dose rate. CONCLUSION: ZnSe:O detectors can be used effectively for in vivo dosimetry and with high accuracy for HDR and PDR brachytherapy applications.

Divergent roles of HDAC1 and HDAC2 in the regulation of epidermal development and tumorigenesis.

The histone deacetylases HDAC1 and HDAC2 remove acetyl moieties from lysine residues of histones and other proteins and are important regulators of gene expression. By deleting different combinations of Hdac1 and Hdac2 alleles in the epidermis, we reveal a dosage-dependent effect of HDAC1/HDAC2 activity on epidermal proliferation and differentiation. Conditional ablation of either HDAC1 or HDAC2 in the epidermis leads to no obvious phenotype due to compensation by the upregulated paralogue. Strikingly, deletion of a single Hdac2 allele in HDAC1 knockout mice results in severe epidermal defects, including alopecia, hyperkeratosis, hyperproliferation and spontaneous tumour formation. These mice display impaired Sin3A co-repressor complex function, increased levels of c-Myc protein, p53 expression and apoptosis in hair follicles (HFs) and misregulation of HF bulge stem cells. Surprisingly, ablation of HDAC1 but not HDAC2 in a skin tumour model leads to accelerated tumour development. Our data reveal a crucial function of HDAC1/HDAC2 in the control of lineage specificity and a novel role of HDAC1 as a tumour suppressor in the epidermis.

Expression analysis of proline rich 15 (Prr15) in mouse and human gastrointestinal tumors.

Proline rich 15 (Prr15), which encodes a protein of unknown function, is expressed almost exclusively in postmitotic cells both during fetal development and in adult tissues, such as the intestinal epithelium and the testis. To determine if this specific expression is lost in intestinal neoplasias, we examined Prr15 expression by in situ hybridization (ISH) on mouse intestinal tumors caused by different gene mutations, and on human colorectal cancer (CRC) samples. Prr15/PRR15 expression was consistently observed in mouse gastrointestinal (GI) tumors caused by mutations in the Apc gene, as well as in several advanced stage human CRCs. In contrast, no Prr15 expression was detected in intestinal tumors derived from mice carrying mutations in the Smad3, Smad4, or Cdkn1b genes. These findings, combined with the fact that a majority of sporadic human CRCs carry APC mutations, strongly suggest that the expression of Prr15/PRR15 in mouse and human GI tumors is linked, directly or indirectly, to the absence of the APC protein or, more generally, to the disruption of the Wnt signaling pathway.

Crucial function of histone deacetylase 1 for differentiation of teratomas in mice and humans.

Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors induce cell cycle arrest, differentiation or apoptosis in tumour cells and are, therefore, promising anti-cancer reagents. However, the specific HDAC isoforms that mediate these effects are not yet identified. To explore the role of HDAC1 in tumourigenesis and tumour proliferation, we established an experimental teratoma model using wild-type and HDAC1-deficient embryonic stem cells. HDAC1-deficient teratomas showed no significant difference in size compared with wild-type teratomas. Surprisingly, loss of HDAC1 was not only linked to increased apoptosis, but also to significantly enhanced proliferation. Epithelial structures showed reduced differentiation as monitored by Oct3/4 expression and changed E-cadherin localization and displayed up-regulated expression of SNAIL1, a regulator of epithelial cell plasticity. Increased levels of the transcriptional regulator SNAIL1 are crucial for enhanced proliferation and reduced differentiation of HDAC1-deficient teratoma. Importantly, the analysis of human teratomas revealed a similar link between loss of HDAC1 and enhanced tumour malignancy. These findings reveal a novel role for HDAC1 in the control of tumour proliferation and identify HDAC1 as potential marker for benign teratomas.

The cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21 is a crucial target for histone deacetylase 1 as a regulator of cellular proliferation.

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) are chromatin-modifying enzymes that are involved in the regulation of proliferation, differentiation and development. HDAC inhibitors induce cell cycle arrest, differentiation, or apoptosis in tumor cells and are therefore promising antitumor agents. Numerous genes were found to be deregulated upon HDAC inhibitor treatment; however, the relevant target enzymes are still unidentified. HDAC1 is required for mouse development and unrestricted proliferation of embryonic stem cells. We show here that HDAC1 reversibly regulates cellular proliferation and represses the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21 in embryonic stem cells. Disruption of the p21 gene rescues the proliferation phenotype of HDAC1(-/-) embryonic stem cells but not the embryonic lethality of HDAC1(-/-) mice. In the absence of HDAC1, mouse embryonic fibroblasts scarcely undergo spontaneous immortalization and display increased p21 expression. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays demonstrate a direct regulation of the p21 gene by HDAC1 in mouse embryonic fibroblasts. Transformation with simian virus 40 large T antigen or ablation of p21 restores normal immortalization of primary HDAC1(-/-) fibroblasts. Our data demonstrate that repression of the p21 gene is crucial for HDAC1-mediated control of proliferation and immortalization. HDAC1 might therefore be one of the relevant targets for HDAC inhibitors as anticancer drugs.

Fetal loss in homozygous mutant Norrie disease mice: a new role of Norrin in reproduction.

Mutations in the Norrie disease pseudoglioma gene (NDP) are known to cause X-linked recessive Norrie disease. In addition, NDP mutations have been found in other vasoproliferative retinopathies such as familial exudative vitreoretinopathy, retinopathy of prematurity, and Coats disease, suggesting a role for Norrin in vascular development. Here we report that female mice homozygous for the Norrie disease pseudoglioma homolog (Ndph) knockout allele exhibit almost complete infertility, while heterozygous females and hemizygous males are fertile. Histological examinations and RNA in situ hybridization analyses revealed defects in vascular development and decidualization in pregnant Ndph-/- females from embryonic day 7 (E7) onwards, resulting in embryonic loss. Using RT-PCR analyses we also demonstrate, for the first time, the expression of Ndph in mouse uteri and deciduae as well as the expression of NDP in human placenta. Taken together, these data provide strong evidence for Norrin playing an important role in female reproductive tissues.

Perturbed thyroid morphology and transient hypothyroidism symptoms in Hoxa5 mutant mice.

The Hox family of transcriptional regulators has been extensively studied for their role in axial and appendicular patterning. Genetic analyses have also unveiled Hox gene function in organogenesis and postnatal development. A phenotypical survey of the Hoxa5(-/-) mutant mice shows that the surviving mutants display symptoms of hypothyroidism, including transient growth retardation, and delayed eye opening and ear elevation. Thyroid gland morphogenesis initiates normally, but follicle formation and thyroglobulin processing are abnormal at late gestation. The expression of several molecular markers essential for thyroid gland formation and function, namely Nkx2.1, Pax8, and Titf2, is affected in the developing thyroid gland of Hoxa5(-/-) mutants. As a consequence, the expression of thyroid effector genes, including the thyroglobulin and thyroperoxidase genes, is perturbed. Our characterization reveals that the loss of Hoxa5 function transiently affects thyroid development in a non-cell autonomous manner.

Preferential expression of the G90 gene in post-mitotic cells during mouse embryonic development.

G90 is a novel mouse gene that does not belong to any known gene family. It has previously been shown that this gene is expressed exclusively in post-mitotic cells of the adult mouse intestine and testis, therefore suggesting a role in the control of proliferation and/or differentiation. Here we report the detailed spatio-temporal expression pattern of G90 during mouse embryonic development. We found G90 expression in specific structures of the developing head, namely the brain, inner and middle ear, olfactory epithelium, vomeronasal organ, nasopharynx, oropharynx, papillae of the tongue and oral cavity, pituitary gland and epiglottis. Interestingly, there was a clear correlation between G90 expression and absence of proliferation in most of the cells showing expression of this gene during embryonic development; this finding supported our functional hypothesis.

Expression of mouse Tbx22 supports its role in palatogenesis and glossogenesis.

TBX22 belongs to the T-box family of transcription factors and was originally found in an in silico approach designed to identify new genes on the human Xq12-q21 region. Mutations in TBX22 have been reported in families with X-linked cleft palate and ankyloglossia (CPX), but the underlying pathogenetic mechanism remained unknown. We have identified mouse Tbx22 and analyzed its expression during embryogenesis by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and in situ hybridization. In mouse embryos, it is expressed in distinct areas of the head, namely the mesenchyme of the inferior nasal septum, the posterior palatal shelf before fusion, the attachment of the tongue, and mesenchymal cells surrounding the eye anlage. The localization in the tongue frenulum perfectly correlates with the ankyloglossia phenotype in CPX. Furthermore, we identified positionally conserved binding sites for transcription factors, two of which have been implicated previously in palatogenesis (MSX1, PRX2).