Lgr5 marks stem/progenitor cells in ovary and tubal epithelia.

The ovary surface epithelium (OSE) undergoes ovulatory tear and remodelling throughout life. Resident stem cells drive such tissue homeostasis in many adult epithelia, but their existence in the ovary has not been definitively proven. Lgr5 marks stem cells in multiple epithelia. Here we use reporter mice and single-molecule fluorescent in situ hybridization to document candidate Lgr5(+) stem cells in the mouse ovary and associated structures. Lgr5 is broadly expressed during ovary organogenesis, but becomes limited to the OSE in neonate life. In adults, Lgr5 expression is predominantly restricted to proliferative regions of the OSE and mesovarian-fimbria junctional epithelia. Using in vivo lineage tracing, we identify embryonic and neonate Lgr5(+) populations as stem/progenitor cells contributing to the development of the OSE cell lineage, as well as epithelia of the mesovarian ligament and oviduct/fimbria. Adult Lgr5(+) populations maintain OSE homeostasis and ovulatory regenerative repair in vivo. Thus, Lgr5 marks stem/progenitor cells of the ovary and tubal epithelia.

Targeting glioma stem cells by functional inhibition of a prosurvival oncomiR-138 in malignant gliomas.

Malignant gliomas are the most aggressive forms of brain tumors, associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Recurrence and tumorigenesis are attributed to a subpopulation of tumor-initiating glioma stem cells (GSCs) that are intrinsically resistant to therapy. Initiation and progression of gliomas have been linked to alterations in microRNA expression. Here, we report the identification of microRNA-138 (miR-138) as a molecular signature of GSCs and demonstrate a vital role for miR-138 in promoting growth and survival of bona fide tumor-initiating cells with self-renewal potential. Sequence-specific functional inhibition of miR-138 prevents tumorsphere formation in vitro and impedes tumorigenesis in vivo. We delineate the components of the miR-138 regulatory network by loss-of-function analysis to identify specific regulators of apoptosis. Finally, the higher expression of miR-138 in GSCs compared to non-neoplastic tissue and association with tumor recurrence and survival highlights the clinical significance of miR-138 as a prognostic biomarker and a therapeutic target for treatment of malignant gliomas.

Gut stem cells in tissue renewal and disease: methods, markers, and myths.

Homeostasis in adult tissue is maintained by the activity of a minor population of long-lived resident stem cells. These adult stem cells are defined by two essential attributes, self-renewal and multipotency, and their physiological activity is regulated by a specialized microenvironment, the stem cell niche. These adult stem cells are generally considered to divide infrequently, and cell expansion is mainly achieved through the rapid proliferation of transit amplifying progenitors before they undergo terminal differentiation. Organs that operate in abrasive environments, such as the mucosa of the skin, intestine, and stomach, display a higher tissue turnover rate, which consequently places them at higher risk of developing cancer. Indeed, colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most frequent cancers worldwide, with over a million new cases every year. Our understanding of stem cell function in tissue homeostasis and their potential role in cancer development has been greatly hampered by the lack of reliable specific biomarkers, but recent discoveries of membrane bound biomarkers promise great progress in the field. Here we review the current advances toward identifying the stem cells of the gastrointestinal tract and in understanding their microenvironmental regulation, and also discuss their implications for human cancer.

MicroRNA-125b promotes neuronal differentiation in human cells by repressing multiple targets.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small noncoding RNAs that regulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level. Research on miRNAs has highlighted their importance in neural development, but the specific functions of neurally enriched miRNAs remain poorly understood. We report here the expression profile of miRNAs during neuronal differentiation in the human neuroblastoma cell line SH-SY5Y. Six miRNAs were significantly upregulated during differentiation induced by all-trans-retinoic acid and brain-derived neurotrophic factor. We demonstrated that the ectopic expression of either miR-124a or miR-125b increases the percentage of differentiated SH-SY5Y cells with neurite outgrowth. Subsequently, we focused our functional analysis on miR-125b and demonstrated the important role of this miRNA in both the spontaneous and induced differentiations of SH-SH5Y cells. miR-125b is also upregulated during the differentiation of human neural progenitor ReNcell VM cells, and miR-125b ectopic expression significantly promotes the neurite outgrowth of these cells. To identify the targets of miR-125b regulation, we profiled the global changes in gene expression following miR-125b ectopic expression in SH-SY5Y cells. miR-125b represses 164 genes that contain the seed match sequence of the miRNA and/or that are predicted to be direct targets of miR-125b by conventional methods. Pathway analysis suggests that a subset of miR-125b-repressed targets antagonizes neuronal genes in several neurogenic pathways, thereby mediating the positive effect of miR-125b on neuronal differentiation. We have further validated the binding of miR-125b to the miRNA response elements of 10 selected mRNA targets. Together, we report here for the first time the important role of miR-125b in human neuronal differentiation.

The alpha2-adrenoceptor antagonist dexefaroxan enhances hippocampal neurogenesis by increasing the survival and differentiation of new granule cells.

The generation of new neurons in the hippocampus is a dynamic process regulated by environmental, endocrine, and pharmacological factors. Since enhancement of hippocampal neurogenesis has been associated with learning and memory, and the locus coeruleus-noradrenergic system has been shown to modulate these cognitive functions, we hypothesized that activation of noradrenergic neurotransmission might enhance neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus. To test this hypothesis in vivo, we induced the release of noradrenaline in the hippocampus by blocking presynaptic inhibitory autoreceptors with the selective alpha2-adrenoceptor antagonist dexefaroxan. Confocal microscopy showed that noradrenergic afferents make contact with proliferating and differentiating cells, suggesting a direct noradrenergic influence on neurogenesis. Chronic systemic treatment of rats with dexefaroxan did not affect cell proliferation per se in the dentate gyrus (as monitored by bromodeoxyuridine-labeling), but promoted the long-term survival of newborn neurons by reducing apoptosis. Dexefaroxan treatment also enhanced the number and complexity of the dendritic arborizations of polysialated neural cell adhesion molecule-positive neurons. The trophic effects of dexefaroxan on newborn cells might involve an increase in brain-derived neurotrophic factor, which was upregulated in afferent noradrenergic fiber projection areas and in neurons in the granule cell layer. By promoting the survival of new endogenously formed neurons, dexefaroxan treatment represents a potential therapeutic strategy for maintaining adult neurogenesis in neurodegenerative conditions, such as Alzheimer's disease, that affect the hippocampus.

Dopamine depletion impairs precursor cell proliferation in Parkinson disease.

Cerebral dopamine depletion is the hallmark of Parkinson disease. Because dopamine modulates ontogenetic neurogenesis, depletion of dopamine might affect neural precursors in the subependymal zone and subgranular zone of the adult brain. Here we provide ultrastructural evidence showing that highly proliferative precursors in the adult subependymal zone express dopamine receptors and receive dopaminergic afferents. Experimental depletion of dopamine in rodents decreases precursor cell proliferation in both the subependymal zone and the subgranular zone. Proliferation is restored completely by a selective agonist of D2-like (D2L) receptors. Experiments with neural precursors from the adult subependymal zone grown as neurosphere cultures confirm that activation of D2L receptors directly increases the proliferation of these precursors. Consistently, the numbers of proliferating cells in the subependymal zone and neural precursor cells in the subgranular zone and olfactory bulb are reduced in postmortem brains of individuals with Parkinson disease. These observations suggest that the generation of neural precursor cells is impaired in Parkinson disease as a consequence of dopaminergic denervation.