ASCL1 promotes Scrt2 expression in the neural tube.

ASCL1 is a transcription factor that directs neural progenitors towards lineage differentiation. Although many of the molecular mechanisms underlying its action have been described, several of its targets remain unidentified. We identified in the chick genome a putative enhancer (cE1) upstream of the transcription factor Scratch2 (Scrt2) locus with a predicted heterodimerization motif for ASCL1 and POU3F2. In this study, we investigated the role of ASCL1 and this enhancer in regulating the expression of the Scrt2 in the embryonic spinal cord. We confirmed that cE1 region interacted with the Scrt2 promoter. cE1 was sufficient to mediate ASCL1-driven expression in the neural tube through the heterodimerization sites. Moreover, Scrt2 expression was inhibited when we removed cE1 from the genome. These findings strongly indicate that ASCL1 regulates Scrt2 transcription in the neural tube through cE1.

Scratch2, a Snail Superfamily Member, Is Regulated by miR-125b.

Scratch2 is a transcription factor expressed in a very restricted population of vertebrate embryonic neural cell precursors involved in their survival, differentiation, and migration. The mechanisms that control its expression remain unknown and could contribute towards our understanding of gene regulation during neural differentiation and evolution. Here we investigate the role of microRNAs (miRNAs) in the Scrt2 post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism. We identified binding sites for miR-125b and -200b in the Scrt2 3'UTR in silico. We confirmed the repressive-mediated activity of the Scrt2 3'UTR through electroporation of luciferase constructs into chick embryos. Further, both CRISPR/Cas9-mediated deletion of miR-125b/-200b responsive elements from chicken Scrt2 3'UTR and expression of miRNAs sponges increased Scrt2 expression field, suggesting a role for these miRNAs as post-transcriptional regulators of Scrt2. The biological effect of miR-125b titration was much more pronounced than that of miR-200b. Therefore, we propose that, after transcription, miR-125b fine-tunes the Scrt2 expression domain.

miR-29c improves skeletal muscle mass and function throughout myocyte proliferation and differentiation and by repressing atrophy-related genes.

AIM: To identify microRNAs (miRs) involved in the regulation of skeletal muscle mass. For that purpose, we have initially utilized an in silico analysis, resulting in the identification of miR-29c as a positive regulator of muscle mass. METHODS: miR-29c was electrotransferred to the tibialis anterior to address its morphometric and functional properties and to determine the level of satellite cell proliferation and differentiation. qPCR was used to investigate the effect of miR-29c overexpression on trophicity-related genes. C2C12 cells were used to determine the impact of miR-29c on myogenesis and a luciferase reporter assay was used to evaluate the ability of miR-29c to bind to the MuRF1 3'UTR. RESULTS: The overexpression of miR-29c in the tibialis anterior increased muscle mass by 40%, with a corresponding increase in fibre cross-sectional area and force and a 30% increase in length. In addition, satellite cell proliferation and differentiation were increased. In C2C12 cells, miR-29c oligonucleotides caused increased levels of differentiation, as evidenced by an increase in eMHC immunostaining and the myotube fusion index. Accordingly, the mRNA levels of myogenic markers were also increased. Mechanistically, the overexpression of miR-29c inhibited the expression of the muscle atrophic factors MuRF1, Atrogin-1 and HDAC4. For the key atrogene MuRF1, we found that miR-29c can bind to its 3'UTR to mediate repression. CONCLUSIONS: The results herein suggest that miR-29c can improve skeletal muscle size and function by stimulating satellite cell proliferation and repressing atrophy-related genes. Taken together, our results indicate that miR-29c might be useful as a future therapeutic device in diseases involving decreased skeletal muscle mass.

Neonatal- maternal separation primes zymogenic cells in the rat gastric mucosa through glucocorticoid receptor activity.

Neonatal- Maternal Separation (NMS) deprives mammals from breastfeeding and maternal care, influencing growth during suckling- weaning transition. In the gastric mucosa, Mist1 (encoded by Bhlha15 gene) and moesin organize the secretory apparatus for pepsinogen C in zymogenic cells. Our current hypothesis was that NMS would change corticosterone activity through receptors (GR), which would modify molecules involved in zymogenic cell differentiation in rats. We found that NMS increased corticosterone levels from 18 days onwards, as GR decreased in the gastric mucosa. However, as nuclear GR was detected, we investigated receptor binding to responsive elements (GRE) and observed an augment in NMS groups. Next, we demonstrated that NMS increased zymogenic population (18 and and 30 days), and targeted Mist1 and moesin. Finally, we searched for evolutionarily conserved sequences that contained GRE in genes involved in pepsinogen C secretion, and found that the genomic regions of Bhlha15 and PgC contained sites highly likely to be responsive to glucocorticoids. We suggest that NMS triggers GR- GRE to enhance the expression and to prime genes that organize cellular architecture in zymogenic population for PgC function. As pepsinogen C- pepsin is essential for digestion, disturbance of parenting through NMS might alter functions of gastric mucosa in a permanent manner.

Multifunctional nanoemulsions for intraductal delivery as a new platform for local treatment of breast cancer.

Considering that breast cancer usually begins in the lining of the ducts, local drug administration into the ducts could target cancers and pre-tumor lesions locally while reducing systemic adverse effects. In this study, a cationic bioadhesive nanoemulsion was developed for intraductal administration of C6 ceramide, a sphingolipid that mediates apoptotic and non-apoptotic cell death. Bioadhesive properties were obtained by surface modification with chitosan. The optimized nanoemulsion displayed size of 46.3 nm and positive charge, properties that were not affected by ceramide encapsulation (0.4%, w/w). C6 ceramide concentration necessary to reduce MCF-7 cells viability to 50% (EC50) decreased by 4.5-fold with its nanoencapsulation compared to its solution; a further decrease (2.6-fold) was observed when tributyrin (a pro-drug of butyric acid) was part of the oil phase of the nanocarrier, a phenomenon attributed to synergism. The unloaded nanocarrier was considered safe, as indicated by a score <0.1 in HET-CAM models, by the high survival rates of Galleria mellonella larvae exposed to concentrations ≤500 mg/mL, and absence of histological changes when intraductally administered in rats. Intraductal administration of the nanoemulsion prolonged drug localization for more than 120 h in the mammary tissue compared to its solution. These results support the advantage of the optimized nanoemulsion to enable mammary tissue localization of C6 ceramide.

Par3 in chick lens placode development.

The lens originates from a simple cuboidal epithelium, which, on its basal side, contacts the optic vesicle, whilst facing the extraembryonic environment on its apical side. As this epithelium changes into the pseudostratified lens placode, its cells elongate and become narrower at their apical ends. This is due to the formation of an apical actin network, whose appearance is restricted to cells of the placodal region, as a result of region-specific signaling mechanisms that remain largely unknown. Here, we investigated the role of the polarity protein PAR3 and the phosphorylation state of its Threonine 833 (T833) aPKC-binding site in the recruitment of aPKC and in the establishment of actin network in the chick lens placode. Overexpression of wild type PAR3 recruited aPKC and punctate actin clusters to the basolateral membranes of the placodal cells. Recruitment of aPKC depended on the charge of the residue that replaced the T833 residue. In contrast, induction of the ectopic actin spots was independent on the charge of this residue.

Rho GTPases control ciliary epithelium cells proliferation and progenitor profile induction in vivo.

PURPOSE: Rho GTPases play a central role in actin-based cytoskeleton reorganization and regulate multiple signaling pathways that control gene transcription, cell survival, and proliferation. We investigated the effect of Rho GTPases on cell cycle regulation and progenitor genes expression on mouse ciliary epithelium (CE), a potential source of progenitor/stem cells in the adult retina. METHODS: Rho GTPases were activated by intraocular injection of lysophosphatidic acid and inactivated by Clostridium difficile Toxin A (general Rho GTPase inhibitor), NSC23766 (Rac1 activation inhibitor), or Y27632 (Rho-associated protein kinase [ROCK] inhibitor). Thereafter, we assayed for RhoA, RhoB, and Rac1 protein localization in CE cells. Proliferation was examined by the expression levels of cell cycle regulators p27(kip), p16(INK4a), and Ki67 and the effects on progenitors by determining the changes in Pax6 and Chx10 progenitor markers expression. RESULTS: All GTPases investigated were expressed in mouse CE cells. Activation increased the coexpression of Pax6 and Chx10, but had no significant effect on the proliferation of CE cells. In contrast, Rho GTPases inactivation increased cell proliferation and potentiated the proliferative effect of growth factors. Specific inactivation of Rac1 or ROCK increased the levels of Ki67 and decreased the expression of the cell cycle inhibitors p27(kip) and p16(INK4a). CONCLUSIONS: This study reports that Rho GTPase modulation (activation and inactivation) controls the expression of retinal progenitor genes and proliferation, respectively, in the adult ciliary epithelial progenitor/stem cells of rodent eyes. The modulation of these two different mechanisms (proliferation and reprogramming) may provide a potential new approach in retinal repair.

Role of myosin Va in neuritogenesis of chick dorsal root ganglia nociceptive neurons.

Myosin-Va, widely distributed throughout the developing nervous system, is involved in the transport of vesicles and other intracellular components with its globular tail domain (GTD) implicated in cargo recognition/interaction. Inactivation of myosin-Va in dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons of chick embryos, in vitro, decreases the rate of filopodial extension. MYO5A mutant mice have severe neurological defects. We have found that the overexpression of GTD in DRG cultures reduces the number of neurons with long neurites (above fourfold cell body length) and increased the number of neurons with short or no neurites. However, if transfection occurred after the onset of neuritogenesis, this was not seen. In embryo, we characterized the expression pattern of myosin-Va during neuritogenesis of TrkA-positive cells at different stages of chick DRG development. Myosin-Va expression was detected starting from HH25. At this stage, it was present in cells both with and without neurites. The presence of myosin-Va in DRG neurites persisted throughout the last stage analysed (HH34). The data suggest that Myosin Va can participate in embryonic DRG neuritogenesis.

The transcription factor chicken Scratch2 is expressed in a subset of early postmitotic neural progenitors.

Scratch proteins are members of the Snail superfamily which have been shown to regulate invertebrate neural development. However, in vertebrates, little is known about the function of Scratch or its relationship to other neural transcription factors. We report the cloning of chicken Scratch2 (cScrt2) and describe its expression pattern in the chick embryo from HH15 through HH29. cScrt2 was detected in cranial ganglia, the nasal placode and neural tube. At all stages examined, cScrt2 expression is only detected within a subregion of the intermediate zone of the neural tube. cScrt2 is also expressed in the developing dorsal root ganglia from HH22-23 onwards and becomes limited to its dorsal medial domain at HH29. phospho-Histone H3 and BrdU-labeling revealed that the cScrt2 expression domain is located immediately external to the proliferative region. In contrast, cScrt2 domain overlapped almost completely with that of the postmitotic neural transcription factor NeuroM/Ath3/NEUROD4. Together, these data define cScrt2-positive cells as a subset of immediately postmitotic neural progenitors. Previous data has shown that Scrt2 is a repressor of E-box-driven transcription whereas NeuroM is an E-box-transactivator. In light of these data, the co-localization detected here suggests that Scrt2 and NeuroM may have opposing roles during definition of neural subtypes.

Rho signaling pathway and apical constriction in the early lens placode.

Epithelial invagination in many model systems is driven by apical cell constriction, mediated by actin and myosin II contraction regulated by GTPase activity. Here we investigate apical constriction during chick lens placode invagination. Inhibition of actin polymerization and myosin II activity by cytochalasin D or blebbistatin prevents lens invagination. To further verify if lens placode invaginate through apical constriction, we analyzed the role of Rho-ROCK pathway. Rho GTPases expression at the apical portion of the lens placode occurs with the same dynamics as that of the cytoskeleton. Overexpression of the pan-Rho inhibitor C3 exotoxin abolished invagination and had a strong effect on apical myosin II enrichment and a mild effect on apical actin localization. In contrast, pharmacological inhibition of ROCK activity interfered significantly with apical enrichment of both actin and myosin. These results suggest that apical constriction in lens invagination involves ROCK but apical concentration of actin and myosin are regulated through different pathways upstream of ROCK. genesis 49:368-379, 2011.

Samba, a Xenopus hnRNP expressed in neural and neural crest tissues.

RNA binding proteins regulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level and play important roles in embryonic development. Here, we report the cloning and expression of Samba, a Xenopus hnRNP that is maternally expressed and persists at least until tail bud stages. During gastrula stages, Samba is enriched in the dorsal regions. Subsequently, its expression is elevated only in neural and neural crest tissues. In the latter, Samba expression overlaps with that of Slug in migratory neural crest cells. Thereafter, Samba is maintained in the neural crest derivatives, as well as other neural tissues, including the anterior and posterior neural tube and the eyes. Overexpression of Samba in the animal pole leads to defects in neural crest migration and cranial cartilage development. Thus, Samba encodes a Xenopus hnRNP that is expressed early in neural and neural crest derivatives and may regulate crest cells migratory behavior.

Expression of connexins 36, 43, and 45 during postnatal development of the mouse retina.

Gap junction channels formed by connexins (Cx) may play essential roles in some processes that occur during retinal development, such as apoptosis and calcium wave spread. The present study was undertaken to determine the distribution pattern of Cx36, Cx43, and Cx45 by immunofluorescence, as well as their gene expression levels by quantitative PCR during postnatal development of the mouse retina. Our results showed an increased expression of neuronal Cx36 from P1 until P10, when this Cx reached adult levels, and it was mainly distributed in the outer and inner plexiform layers. In turn, Cx43 was almost absent in retinal progenitor cells at P1, it became more prominent in glial cell processes about P10, and did not change until adulthood. Double-labeling studies in situ and in vitro with antivimentin, a Müller cell marker, confirmed that Cx43 was expressed by these cells. In addition, quantitative PCR showed that Cx43 and vimentin shared very similar temporal expression patterns. Finally, in contrast to Cx36 and Cx43, Cx45 mRNA was strongly down-regulated during development. In early postnatal days, Cx45 was seen ubiquitously distributed throughout the retina in cells undergoing proliferation and differentiation, as well in differentiated neurons. In adult retina, this protein had a more restricted distribution both in neurons and glial cells, as confirmed in situ and in vitro. In conclusion, we observed a distinct temporal expression pattern for Cx36, Cx43, and Cx45, which is probably related to particular roles in retinal function and maintenance of homeostasis during development of the mouse retina.