RESUMEN
To understand regulatory systems, it would be useful to uniformly determine how different components contribute to the expression of all other genes. We therefore monitored mRNA expression genome-wide, for individual deletions of one-quarter of yeast genes, focusing on (putative) regulators. The resulting genetic perturbation signatures reflect many different properties. These include the architecture of protein complexes and pathways, identification of expression changes compatible with viability, and the varying responsiveness to genetic perturbation. The data are assembled into a genetic perturbation network that shows different connectivities for different classes of regulators. Four feed-forward loop (FFL) types are overrepresented, including incoherent type 2 FFLs that likely represent feedback. Systematic transcription factor classification shows a surprisingly high abundance of gene-specific repressors, suggesting that yeast chromatin is not as generally restrictive to transcription as is often assumed. The data set is useful for studying individual genes and for discovering properties of an entire regulatory system.
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Regulación Fúngica de la Expresión Génica , Redes Reguladoras de Genes , Técnicas Genéticas , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/genética , Transcriptoma , Eliminación de Gen , Técnicas de Inactivación de GenesRESUMEN
Accessible chromatin is important for RNA polymerase II recruitment and transcription initiation at eukaryotic promoters. We investigated the mechanistic links between promoter DNA sequence, nucleosome positioning, and transcription. Our results indicate that positioning of the transcription start site-associated +1 nucleosome in yeast is critical for efficient TBP binding and is driven by two key factors, the essential chromatin remodeler RSC and a small set of ubiquitous general regulatory factors (GRFs). Our findings indicate that the strength and directionality of RSC action on promoter nucleosomes depends on the arrangement and proximity of two specific DNA motifs. This, together with the effect on nucleosome position observed in double depletion experiments, suggests that, despite their widespread co-localization, RSC and GRFs predominantly act through independent signals to generate accessible chromatin. Our results provide mechanistic insight into how the promoter DNA sequence instructs trans-acting factors to control nucleosome architecture and stimulate transcription initiation.
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Ensamble y Desensamble de Cromatina , Nucleosomas/metabolismo , ARN Polimerasa II/metabolismo , Proteínas de Saccharomyces cerevisiae/metabolismo , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/metabolismo , Transcripción Genética , Nucleosomas/genética , ARN Polimerasa II/genética , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/genética , Proteínas de Saccharomyces cerevisiae/genéticaRESUMEN
This corrects the article DOI: 10.1038/nature23015.
RESUMEN
After liver injury, regeneration occurs through self-replication of hepatocytes. In severe liver injury, hepatocyte proliferation is impaired-a feature of human chronic liver disease. It is unclear whether other liver cell types can regenerate hepatocytes. Here we use two independent systems to impair hepatocyte proliferation during liver injury to evaluate the contribution of non-hepatocytes to parenchymal regeneration. First, loss of ß1-integrin in hepatocytes with liver injury triggered a ductular reaction of cholangiocyte origin, with approximately 25% of hepatocytes being derived from a non-hepatocyte origin. Second, cholangiocytes were lineage traced with concurrent inhibition of hepatocyte proliferation by ß1-integrin knockdown or p21 overexpression, resulting in the significant emergence of cholangiocyte-derived hepatocytes. We describe a model of combined liver injury and inhibition of hepatocyte proliferation that causes physiologically significant levels of regeneration of functional hepatocytes from biliary cells.
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Conductos Biliares Intrahepáticos/citología , Hepatocitos/patología , Regeneración Hepática , Hígado/citología , Hígado/patología , Células Madre/citología , Animales , Linaje de la Célula , Proliferación Celular , Femenino , Integrina beta1/genética , Hígado/lesiones , Hepatopatías/patología , Masculino , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos C57BLRESUMEN
BACKGROUND & AIMS: Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a cancer of the hepatic bile ducts that is rarely resectable and is associated with poor prognosis. Tumour necrosis factor-like weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK) is known to signal via its receptor fibroblast growth factor-inducible 14 (Fn14) and induce cholangiocyte and myofibroblast proliferation in liver injury. We aimed to characterise its role in CCA. METHODS: The expression of the TWEAK ligand and Fn14 receptor was assessed immunohistochemically and by bulk RNA and single cell transcriptomics of human liver tissue. Spatiotemporal dynamics of pathway regulation were comprehensively analysed in rat and mouse models of thioacetamide (TAA)-mediated CCA. Flow cytometry, qPCR and proteomic analyses of CCA cell lines and conditioned medium experiments with primary macrophages were performed to evaluate the downstream functions of TWEAK/Fn14. In vivo pathway manipulation was assessed via TWEAK overexpression in NICD/AKT-induced CCA or genetic Fn14 knockout during TAA-mediated carcinogenesis. RESULTS: Our data reveal TWEAK and Fn14 overexpression in multiple human CCA cohorts, and Fn14 upregulation in early TAA-induced carcinogenesis. TWEAK regulated the secretion of factors from CC-SW-1 and SNU-1079 CCA cells, inducing polarisation of proinflammatory CD206+ macrophages. Pharmacological blocking of the TWEAK downstream target chemokine monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1 or CCL2) significantly reduced CCA xenograft growth, while TWEAK overexpression drove cancer-associated fibroblast proliferation and collagen deposition in the tumour niche. Genetic Fn14 ablation significantly reduced inflammatory, fibrogenic and ductular responses during carcinogenic TAA-mediated injury. CONCLUSION: These novel data provide evidence for the action of TWEAK/Fn14 on macrophage recruitment and phenotype, and cancer-associated fibroblast proliferation in CCA. Targeting TWEAK/Fn14 and its downstream signals may provide a means to inhibit CCA niche development and tumour growth. LAY SUMMARY: Cholangiocarcinoma is an aggressive, chemotherapy-resistant liver cancer. Interactions between tumour cells and cells that form a supportive environment for the tumour to grow are a source of this aggressiveness and resistance to chemotherapy. Herein, we describe interactions between tumour cells and their supportive environment via a chemical messenger, TWEAK and its receptor Fn14. TWEAK/Fn14 alters the recruitment and type of immune cells in tumours, increases the growth of cancer-associated fibroblasts in the tumour environment, and is a potential target to reduce tumour formation.
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Neoplasias de los Conductos Biliares , Quimiocina CCL2/metabolismo , Colangiocarcinoma , Citocina TWEAK/metabolismo , Factores de Crecimiento de Fibroblastos/metabolismo , Animales , Neoplasias de los Conductos Biliares/metabolismo , Neoplasias de los Conductos Biliares/patología , Carcinogénesis/metabolismo , Línea Celular Tumoral , Proliferación Celular , Colangiocarcinoma/metabolismo , Colangiocarcinoma/patología , Descubrimiento de Drogas , Humanos , Ratones , Ratas , Transducción de Señal , Microambiente Tumoral , Factor de Necrosis Tumoral alfa/metabolismo , Regulación hacia ArribaRESUMEN
An important distinction is frequently made between constitutively expressed housekeeping genes versus regulated genes. Although generally characterized by different DNA elements, chromatin architecture and cofactors, it is not known to what degree promoter classes strictly follow regulatability rules and which molecular mechanisms dictate such differences. We show that SAGA-dominated/TATA-box promoters are more responsive to changes in the amount of activator, even compared to TFIID/TATA-like promoters that depend on the same activator Hsf1. Regulatability is therefore an inherent property of promoter class. Further analyses show that SAGA/TATA-box promoters are more dynamic because TATA-binding protein recruitment through SAGA is susceptible to removal by Mot1. In addition, the nucleosome configuration upon activator depletion shifts on SAGA/TATA-box promoters and seems less amenable to preinitiation complex formation. The results explain the fundamental difference between housekeeping and regulatable genes, revealing an additional facet of combinatorial control: an activator can elicit a different response dependent on core promoter class.
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Regulación Fúngica de la Expresión Génica , Genes Esenciales , Regiones Promotoras Genéticas , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/genética , Factor de Transcripción TFIID/genética , Activación Transcripcional , Adenosina Trifosfatasas/metabolismo , Proteínas de Saccharomyces cerevisiae/metabolismo , Factores Asociados con la Proteína de Unión a TATA/metabolismo , Proteína de Unión a TATA-Box/metabolismoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND & AIM: Following acetaminophen (APAP) overdose, acute liver injury (ALI) can occur in patients that present too late for N-acetylcysteine treatment, potentially leading to acute liver failure, systemic inflammation, and death. Macrophages influence the progression and resolution of ALI due to their innate immunological function and paracrine activity. Syngeneic primary bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) were tested as a cell-based therapy in a mouse model of APAP-induced ALI (APAP-ALI). METHODS: Several phenotypically distinct BMDM populations were delivered intravenously to APAP-ALI mice when hepatic necrosis was established, and then evaluated based on their effects on injury, inflammation, immunity, and regeneration. In vivo phagocytosis assays were used to interrogate the phenotype and function of alternatively activated BMDMs (AAMs) post-injection. Finally, primary human AAMs sourced from healthy volunteers were evaluated in immunocompetent APAP-ALI mice. RESULTS: BMDMs rapidly localised to the liver and spleen within 4 h of administration. Injection of AAMs specifically reduced hepatocellular necrosis, HMGB1 translocation, and infiltrating neutrophils following APAP-ALI. AAM delivery also stimulated proliferation in hepatocytes and endothelium, and reduced levels of several circulating proinflammatory cytokines within 24 h. AAMs displayed a high phagocytic activity both in vitro and in injured liver tissue post-injection. Crosstalk with the host innate immune system was demonstrated by reduced infiltrating host Ly6Chi macrophages in AAM-treated mice. Importantly, therapeutic efficacy was partially recapitulated using clinical-grade primary human AAMs in immunocompetent APAP-ALI mice, underscoring the translational potential of these findings. CONCLUSION: We identify that AAMs have value as a cell-based therapy in an experimental model of APAP-ALI. Human AAMs warrant further evaluation as a potential cell-based therapy for APAP overdose patients with established liver injury. LAY SUMMARY: After an overdose of acetaminophen (paracetamol), some patients present to hospital too late for the current antidote (N-acetylcysteine) to be effective. We tested whether macrophages, an injury-responsive leukocyte that can scavenge dead/dying cells, could serve as a cell-based therapy in an experimental model of acetaminophen overdose. Injection of alternatively activated macrophages rapidly reduced liver injury and reduced several mediators of inflammation. Macrophages show promise to serve as a potential cell-based therapy for acute liver injury.
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Acetaminofén/envenenamiento , Tratamiento Basado en Trasplante de Células y Tejidos/métodos , Enfermedad Hepática Inducida por Sustancias y Drogas , Macrófagos , Comunicación Paracrina/inmunología , Animales , Enfermedad Hepática Inducida por Sustancias y Drogas/inmunología , Enfermedad Hepática Inducida por Sustancias y Drogas/metabolismo , Enfermedad Hepática Inducida por Sustancias y Drogas/patología , Citocinas/sangre , Modelos Animales de Enfermedad , Humanos , Inmunidad Innata , Péptidos y Proteínas de Señalización Intercelular , Regeneración Hepática/inmunología , Macrófagos/inmunología , Macrófagos/metabolismo , Ratones , Fagocitosis , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
The disposal of apoptotic bodies by professional phagocytes is crucial to effective inflammation resolution. Our ability to improve the disposal of apoptotic bodies by professional phagocytes is impaired by a limited understanding of the molecular mechanisms that regulate the engulfment and digestion of the efferocytic cargo. Macrophages are professional phagocytes necessary for liver inflammation, fibrosis, and resolution, switching their phenotype from proinflammatory to restorative. Using sterile liver injury models, we show that the STAT3-IL-10-IL-6 axis is a positive regulator of macrophage efferocytosis, survival, and phenotypic conversion, directly linking debris engulfment to tissue repair.
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Interleucina-10/metabolismo , Interleucina-6/metabolismo , Cirrosis Hepática/patología , Hígado/lesiones , Macrófagos/inmunología , Fagocitosis/inmunología , Factor de Transcripción STAT3/metabolismo , Traslado Adoptivo , Animales , Apoptosis/inmunología , Humanos , Hígado/patología , Macrófagos/trasplante , Masculino , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos C57BL , Ratones Noqueados , Necrosis/inmunología , Regeneración/fisiología , Pez Cebra/embriologíaRESUMEN
During embryonic development, axons extend over long distances to establish functional connections. In contrast, axon regeneration in the adult mammalian CNS is limited in part by a reduced intrinsic capacity for axon growth. Therefore, insight into the intrinsic control of axon growth may provide new avenues for enhancing CNS regeneration. Here, we performed one of the first miRNome-wide functional miRNA screens to identify miRNAs with robust effects on axon growth. High-content screening identified miR-135a and miR-135b as potent stimulators of axon growth and cortical neuron migration in vitro and in vivo in male and female mice. Intriguingly, both of these developmental effects of miR-135s relied in part on silencing of Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4), a well known intrinsic inhibitor of axon growth and regeneration. These results prompted us to test the effect of miR-135s on axon regeneration after injury. Our results show that intravitreal application of miR-135s facilitates retinal ganglion cell (RGC) axon regeneration after optic nerve injury in adult mice in part by repressing KLF4. In contrast, depletion of miR-135s further reduced RGC axon regeneration. Together, these data identify a novel neuronal role for miR-135s and the miR-135-KLF4 pathway and highlight the potential of miRNAs as tools for enhancing CNS axon regeneration.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Axon regeneration in the adult mammalian CNS is limited in part by a reduced intrinsic capacity for axon growth. Therefore, insight into the intrinsic control of axon growth may provide new avenues for enhancing regeneration. By performing an miRNome-wide functional screen, our studies identify miR-135s as stimulators of axon growth and neuron migration and show that intravitreal application of these miRNAs facilitates CNS axon regeneration after nerve injury in adult mice. Intriguingly, these developmental and regeneration-promoting effects rely in part on silencing of Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4), a well known intrinsic inhibitor of axon regeneration. Our data identify a novel neuronal role for the miR-135-KLF4 pathway and support the idea that miRNAs can be used for enhancing CNS axon regeneration.
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Regulación de la Expresión Génica/fisiología , Factores de Transcripción de Tipo Kruppel/metabolismo , MicroARNs/metabolismo , Regeneración Nerviosa/fisiología , Animales , Axones/metabolismo , Femenino , Humanos , Factor 4 Similar a Kruppel , Masculino , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos C57BL , Células Ganglionares de la Retina/fisiologíaRESUMEN
Patients diagnosed with glioblastoma (GBM) continue to face a bleak prognosis. It is critical that new effective therapeutic strategies are developed. GBM stem cells have molecular hallmarks of neural stem and progenitor cells and it is possible to propagate both non-transformed normal neural stem cells and GBM stem cells, in defined, feeder-free, adherent culture. These primary stem cell lines provide an experimental model that is ideally suited to cell-based drug discovery or genetic screens in order to identify tumour-specific vulnerabilities. For many solid tumours, including GBM, the genetic disruptions that drive tumour initiation and growth have now been catalogued. CRISPR/Cas-based genome editing technologies have recently emerged, transforming our ability to functionally annotate the human genome. Genome editing opens prospects for engineering precise genetic changes in normal and GBM-derived neural stem cells, which will provide more defined and reliable genetic models, with critical matched pairs of isogenic cell lines. Generation of more complex alleles such as knock in tags or fluorescent reporters is also now possible. These new cellular models can be deployed in cell-based phenotypic drug discovery (PDD). Here we discuss the convergence of these advanced technologies (iPS cells, neural stem cell culture, genome editing and high content phenotypic screening) and how they herald a new era in human cellular genetics that should have a major impact in accelerating glioblastoma drug discovery.
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Antineoplásicos/uso terapéutico , Neoplasias Encefálicas/tratamiento farmacológico , Descubrimiento de Drogas/métodos , Edición Génica , Glioblastoma/tratamiento farmacológico , Animales , Neoplasias Encefálicas/genética , Neoplasias Encefálicas/patología , Repeticiones Palindrómicas Cortas Agrupadas y Regularmente Espaciadas/genética , Genoma Humano/genética , Glioblastoma/genética , Glioblastoma/patología , Humanos , Células Madre Pluripotentes Inducidas/metabolismoRESUMEN
Extracellular vesicles (ECVs) facilitate intercellular communication along the nephron, with the potential to change the function of the recipient cell. However, it is not known whether this is a regulated process analogous to other signaling systems. We investigated the potential hormonal regulation of ECV transfer and report that desmopressin, a vasopressin analogue, stimulated the uptake of fluorescently loaded ECVs into a kidney collecting duct cell line (mCCDC11) and into primary cells. Exposure of mCCDC11 cells to ECVs isolated from cells overexpressing microRNA-503 led to downregulated expression of microRNA-503 target genes, but only in the presence of desmopressin. Mechanistically, ECV entry into mCCDC11 cells required cAMP production, was reduced by inhibiting dynamin, and was selective for ECVs from kidney tubular cells. In vivo, we measured the urinary excretion and tissue uptake of fluorescently loaded ECVs delivered systemically to mice before and after administration of the vasopressin V2 receptor antagonist tolvaptan. In control-treated mice, we recovered 2.5% of administered ECVs in the urine; tolvaptan increased recovery five-fold and reduced ECV deposition in kidney tissue. Furthermore, in a patient with central diabetes insipidus, desmopressin reduced the excretion of ECVs derived from glomerular and proximal tubular cells. These data are consistent with vasopressin-regulated uptake of ECVs in vivo We conclude that ECV uptake is a specific and regulated process. Physiologically, ECVs are a new mechanism of intercellular communication; therapeutically, ECVs may be a vehicle by which RNA therapy could be targeted to specific cells for the treatment of kidney disease.
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Vesículas Extracelulares/fisiología , Túbulos Renales Colectores/citología , Vasopresinas/fisiología , Adolescente , Animales , Desamino Arginina Vasopresina/farmacología , Vesículas Extracelulares/efectos de los fármacos , Humanos , Túbulos Renales Colectores/ultraestructura , Masculino , Ratones , RatasRESUMEN
Messenger RNA (mRNA) synthesis and export are tightly linked, but the molecular mechanisms of this coupling are largely unknown. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the conserved TREX complex couples transcription to mRNA export and mediates mRNP formation. Here, we show that TREX is recruited to the transcription machinery by direct interaction of its subcomplex THO with the serine 2-serine 5 (S2/S5) diphosphorylated CTD of RNA polymerase II. S2 and/or tyrosine 1 (Y1) phosphorylation of the CTD is required for TREX occupancy in vivo, establishing a second interaction platform necessary for TREX recruitment in addition to RNA. Genome-wide analyses show that the occupancy of THO and the TREX components Sub2 and Yra1 increases from the 5' to the 3' end of the gene in accordance with the CTD S2 phosphorylation pattern. Importantly, in a mutant strain, in which TREX is recruited to genes but does not increase towards the 3' end, the expression of long transcripts is specifically impaired. Thus, we show for the first time that a 5'-3' increase of a protein complex is essential for correct expression of the genome. In summary, we provide insight into how the phospho-code of the CTD directs mRNP formation and export through TREX recruitment.
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Adenosina Trifosfatasas/genética , Complejos Multiproteicos , Proteínas Nucleares/genética , ARN Polimerasa II/genética , Proteínas de Unión al ARN/genética , Ribonucleoproteínas/genética , Proteínas de Saccharomyces cerevisiae/genética , Adenosina Trifosfatasas/metabolismo , Fosforilación , ARN Mensajero/biosíntesis , Ribonucleoproteínas/metabolismo , Saccharomyces cerevisiae , Serina/genética , Factores de Transcripción/genética , Transcripción Genética , Tirosina/genéticaRESUMEN
Growth condition perturbation or gene function disruption are commonly used strategies to study cellular systems. Although it is widely appreciated that such experiments may involve indirect effects, these frequently remain uncharacterized. Here, analysis of functionally unrelated Saccharyomyces cerevisiae deletion strains reveals a common gene expression signature. One property shared by these strains is slower growth, with increased presence of the signature in more slowly growing strains. The slow growth signature is highly similar to the environmental stress response (ESR), an expression response common to diverse environmental perturbations. Both environmental and genetic perturbations result in growth rate changes. These are accompanied by a change in the distribution of cells over different cell cycle phases. Rather than representing a direct expression response in single cells, both the slow growth signature and ESR mainly reflect a redistribution of cells over different cell cycle phases, primarily characterized by an increase in the G1 population. The findings have implications for any study of perturbation that is accompanied by growth rate changes. Strategies to counter these effects are presented and discussed.
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Eliminación de Gen , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/crecimiento & desarrollo , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/genética , Ciclo Celular , Medios de Cultivo , Bases de Datos Genéticas , Perfilación de la Expresión Génica , Regulación Fúngica de la Expresión Génica , Genes Fúngicos , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/clasificación , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/citología , Estrés FisiológicoRESUMEN
Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (mTLE) is a chronic neurological disorder characterized by recurrent seizures. The pathogenic mechanisms underlying mTLE may involve defects in the post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are non-coding RNAs that control the expression of genes at the post-transcriptional level. Here, we performed a genome-wide miRNA profiling study to examine whether miRNA-mediated mechanisms are affected in human mTLE. miRNA profiles of the hippocampus of autopsy control patients and two mTLE patient groups were compared. This revealed segregated miRNA signatures for the three different patient groups and 165 miRNAs with up- or down-regulated expression in mTLE. miRNA in situ hybridization detected cell type-specific changes in miRNA expression and an abnormal nuclear localization of select miRNAs in neurons and glial cells of mTLE patients. Of several cellular processes implicated in mTLE, the immune response was most prominently targeted by deregulated miRNAs. Enhanced expression of inflammatory mediators was paralleled by a reduction in miRNAs that were found to target the 3'-untranslated regions of these genes in reporter assays. miR-221 and miR-222 were shown to regulate endogenous ICAM1 expression and were selectively co-expressed with ICAM1 in astrocytes in mTLE patients. Our findings suggest that miRNA changes in mTLE affect the expression of immunomodulatory proteins thereby further facilitating the immune response. This mechanism may have broad implications given the central role of astrocytes and the immune system in human neurological disease. Overall, this work extends the current concepts of human mTLE pathogenesis to the level of miRNA-mediated gene regulation.
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Epilepsia del Lóbulo Temporal/genética , Epilepsia del Lóbulo Temporal/inmunología , Genes MHC Clase II , MicroARNs , Adulto , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Astrocitos/patología , Secuencia de Bases , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Epilepsia del Lóbulo Temporal/patología , Femenino , Perfilación de la Expresión Génica , Genoma Humano , Hipocampo/patología , Humanos , Mediadores de Inflamación/inmunología , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Datos de Secuencia Molecular , Neuroglía/patología , Neuronas/fisiologíaRESUMEN
Glioblastoma (GBM) stem cells (GSCs) display phenotypic and molecular features reminiscent of normal neural stem cells and exhibit a spectrum of cell cycle states (dormant, quiescent, proliferative). However, mechanisms controlling the transition from quiescence to proliferation in both neural stem cells (NSCs) and GSCs are poorly understood. Elevated expression of the forebrain transcription factor FOXG1 is often observed in GBMs. Here, using small-molecule modulators and genetic perturbations, we identify a synergistic interaction between FOXG1 and Wnt/ß-catenin signaling. Increased FOXG1 enhances Wnt-driven transcriptional targets, enabling highly efficient cell cycle re-entry from quiescence; however, neither FOXG1 nor Wnt is essential in rapidly proliferating cells. We demonstrate that FOXG1 overexpression supports gliomagenesis in vivo and that additional ß-catenin induction drives accelerated tumor growth. These data indicate that elevated FOXG1 cooperates with Wnt signaling to support the transition from quiescence to proliferation in GSCs.
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Factores de Transcripción Forkhead , Glioblastoma , Vía de Señalización Wnt , Humanos , beta Catenina/metabolismo , División Celular , Proliferación Celular , Factores de Transcripción Forkhead/genética , Factores de Transcripción Forkhead/metabolismo , Glioblastoma/patología , Proteínas del Tejido Nervioso/genética , Proteínas del Tejido Nervioso/metabolismo , Células-Madre Neurales/metabolismoRESUMEN
Biliary diseases can cause inflammation, fibrosis, bile duct destruction, and eventually liver failure. There are no curative treatments for biliary disease except for liver transplantation. New therapies are urgently required. We have therefore purified human biliary epithelial cells (hBECs) from human livers that were not used for liver transplantation. hBECs were tested as a cell therapy in a mouse model of biliary disease in which the conditional deletion of Mdm2 in cholangiocytes causes senescence, biliary strictures, and fibrosis. hBECs are expandable and phenotypically stable and help restore biliary structure and function, highlighting their regenerative capacity and a potential alternative to liver transplantation for biliary disease.
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Trasplante de Hígado , Animales , Conductos Biliares/patología , Células Epiteliales/patología , Fibrosis , Humanos , Donadores Vivos , RatonesRESUMEN
There is a large amount of information in brightfield images that was previously inaccessible by using traditional microscopy techniques. This information can now be exploited by using machine-learning approaches for both image segmentation and the classification of objects. We have combined these approaches with a label-free assay for growth and differentiation of leukemic colonies, to generate a novel platform for phenotypic drug discovery. Initially, a supervised machine-learning algorithm was used to identify in-focus colonies growing in a three-dimensional (3D) methylcellulose gel. Once identified, unsupervised clustering and principle component analysis of texture-based phenotypic profiles were applied to group similar phenotypes. In a proof-of-concept study, we successfully identified a novel phenotype induced by a compound that is currently in clinical trials for the treatment of leukemia. We believe that our platform will be of great benefit for the utilization of patient-derived 3D cell culture systems for both drug discovery and diagnostic applications.
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Descubrimiento de Drogas , Imagenología Tridimensional , Leucemia/diagnóstico por imagen , Leucemia/tratamiento farmacológico , Aprendizaje Automático , Fenotipo , Antineoplásicos/uso terapéutico , Diferenciación Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Proliferación Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Células Cultivadas , Humanos , Tamaño de la Partícula , Propiedades de Superficie , Células THP-1RESUMEN
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common cause of liver disease in developed countries. An in vitro NAFLD model would permit mechanistic studies and enable high-throughput therapeutic screening. While hepatic cancer-derived cell lines are a convenient, renewable resource, their genomic, epigenomic and functional alterations mean their utility in NAFLD modelling is unclear. Additionally, the epigenetic mark 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC), a cell lineage identifier, is rapidly lost during cell culture, alongside expression of the Ten-eleven-translocation (TET) methylcytosine dioxygenase enzymes, restricting meaningful epigenetic analysis. Hepatocyte-like cells (HLCs) derived from human embryonic stem cells can provide a non-neoplastic, renewable model for liver research. Here, we have developed a model of NAFLD using HLCs exposed to lactate, pyruvate and octanoic acid (LPO) that bear all the hallmarks, including 5hmC profiles, of liver functionality. We exposed HLCs to LPO for 48 h to induce lipid accumulation. We characterized the transcriptome using RNA-seq, the metabolome using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and the epigenome using 5-hydroxymethylation DNA immunoprecipitation (hmeDIP) sequencing. LPO exposure induced an NAFLD phenotype in HLCs with transcriptional and metabolomic dysregulation consistent with those present in human NAFLD. HLCs maintain expression of the TET enzymes and have a liver-like epigenome. LPO exposure-induced 5hmC enrichment at lipid synthesis and transport genes. HLCs treated with LPO recapitulate the transcriptional and metabolic dysregulation seen in NAFLD and additionally retain TET expression and 5hmC. This in vitro model of NAFLD will be useful for future mechanistic and therapeutic studies.This article is part of the theme issue 'Designer human tissue: coming to a lab near you'.
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Hepatocitos/fisiología , Enfermedad del Hígado Graso no Alcohólico/fisiopatología , Transcriptoma/fisiología , Caprilatos/farmacología , Humanos , Ácido Láctico/farmacología , Enfermedad del Hígado Graso no Alcohólico/inducido químicamente , Ácido Pirúvico/farmacologíaRESUMEN
Cellular senescence is a mechanism that provides an irreversible barrier to cell cycle progression to prevent undesired proliferation. However, under pathological circumstances, senescence can adversely affect organ function, viability and regeneration. We have developed a mouse model of biliary senescence, based on the conditional deletion of Mdm2 in bile ducts under the control of the Krt19 promoter, that exhibits features of biliary disease. Here we report that senescent cholangiocytes induce profound alterations in the cellular and signalling microenvironment, with recruitment of myofibroblasts and macrophages causing collagen deposition, TGFß production and induction of senescence in surrounding cholangiocytes and hepatocytes. Finally, we study how inhibition of TGFß-signalling disrupts the transmission of senescence and restores liver function. We identify cellular senescence as a detrimental mechanism in the development of biliary injury. Our results identify TGFß as a potential therapeutic target to limit senescence-dependent aggravation in human cholangiopathies.
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Conductos Biliares/lesiones , Conductos Biliares/patología , Senescencia Celular/fisiología , Colangitis Esclerosante/patología , Cirrosis Hepática Biliar/patología , Hígado/patología , Regeneración/fisiología , Animales , Células Cultivadas , Colangitis Esclerosante/terapia , Colágeno/metabolismo , Modelos Animales de Enfermedad , Femenino , Hepatocitos/patología , Humanos , Queratina-19/genética , Cirrosis Hepática Biliar/terapia , Macrófagos/metabolismo , Masculino , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos C57BL , Ratones Noqueados , Miofibroblastos/metabolismo , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-mdm2/genética , Factor de Crecimiento Transformador beta1/antagonistas & inhibidores , Factor de Crecimiento Transformador beta1/metabolismoRESUMEN
CRISPR/Cas9 can be used for precise genetic knock-in of epitope tags into endogenous genes, simplifying experimental analysis of protein function. However, Cas9-assisted epitope tagging in primary mammalian cell cultures is often inefficient and reliant on plasmid-based selection strategies. Here, we demonstrate improved knock-in efficiencies of diverse tags (V5, 3XFLAG, Myc, HA) using co-delivery of Cas9 protein pre-complexed with two-part synthetic modified RNAs (annealed crRNA:tracrRNA) and single-stranded oligodeoxynucleotide (ssODN) repair templates. Knock-in efficiencies of ~5-30%, were achieved without selection in embryonic stem (ES) cells, neural stem (NS) cells, and brain-tumor-derived stem cells. Biallelic-tagged clonal lines were readily derived and used to define Olig2 chromatin-bound interacting partners. Using our novel web-based design tool, we established a 96-well format pipeline that enabled V5-tagging of 60 different transcription factors. This efficient, selection-free and scalable epitope tagging pipeline enables systematic surveys of protein expression levels, subcellular localization, and interactors across diverse mammalian stem cells.