OCT4-induced oligodendrocyte progenitor cells promote remyelination and ameliorate disease.

The generation of human oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) may be therapeutically valuable for human demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis. Here, we report the direct reprogramming of human somatic cells into expandable induced OPCs (iOPCs) using a combination of OCT4 and a small molecule cocktail. This method enables generation of A2B5+ (an early marker for OPCs) iOPCs within 2 weeks retaining the ability to differentiate into MBP-positive mature oligodendrocytes. RNA-seq analysis revealed that the transcriptome of O4+ iOPCs was similar to that of O4+ OPCs and ChIP-seq analysis revealed that putative OCT4-binding regions were detected in the regulatory elements of CNS development-related genes. Notably, engrafted iOPCs remyelinated the brains of adult shiverer mice and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis mice with MOG-induced 14 weeks after transplantation. In conclusion, our study may contribute to the development of therapeutic approaches for neurological disorders, as well as facilitate the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying glial development.

Generation of a WA14 hESC sub-line carrying a hemizygous ABCD1 (C.1696_1710 del) mutation introduced by CRISPR/Cas9 technology.

ATP-binding cassette transporter subfamily D member 1 (ABCD1) gene is a member of ABC transporter super family, which conduct peroxisomal import of very long chain fatty acid and crucial underlying factor that induces X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) when the gene is defected. Here, we report the generation of a human embryonic stem cell sub-line harboring a hemizygous ABCD1 mutation (C.1696_1710 del) using CRISPR/Cas9 system. Established line expresses pluripotency marker genes, can be differentiated to three germ layers, and maintains a normal karyotype.

Wnt3A Induces GSK-3ß Phosphorylation and ß-Catenin Accumulation Through RhoA/ROCK.

In canonical pathway, Wnt3A has been known to stabilize ß-catenin through the dissociation between ß-catenin and glycogen synthase kinase-3ß (GSK-3ß) that suppresses the phosphorylation and degradation of ß-catenin. In non-canonical signaling pathway, Wnt was known to activate Rho GTPases and to induce cell migration. The cross-talk between canonical and non-canonical pathways by Wnt signaling; however, has not been fully elucidated. Here, we revealed that Wnt3A induces not only the phosphorylation of GSK-3ß and accumulation of ß-catenin but also RhoA activation in RAW264.7 and HEK293 cells. Notably, sh-RhoA and Tat-C3 abolished both the phosphorylation of GSK-3ß and accumulation of ß-catenin. Y27632, an inhibitor of Rho-associated coiled coil kinase (ROCK) and si-ROCK inhibited both GSK-3ß phosphorylation and ß-catenin accumulation. Furthermore, active domain of ROCK directly phosphorylated the purified recombinant GSK-3ß in vitro. In addition, Wnt3A-induced cell proliferation and migration, which were inhibited by Tat-C3 and Y27632. Taken together, we propose the cross-talk between canonical and non-canonical signaling pathways of Wnt3A, which induces GSK-3ß phosphorylation and ß-catenin accumulation through RhoA and ROCK activation. J. Cell. Physiol. 232: 1104-1113, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Bioconversion of p-coumaric acid to p-hydroxystyrene using phenolic acid decarboxylase from B. amyloliquefaciens in biphasic reaction system.

Phenolic acid decarboxylase (PAD) catalyzes the non-oxidative decarboxylation of p-coumaric acid (pCA) to p-hydroxystyrene (pHS). PAD from Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (BAPAD), which showed k (cat)/K (m) value for pCA (9.3 × 10³ mM⁻¹ s⁻¹), was found as the most active one using the "Subgrouping Automata" program and by comparing enzyme activity. However, the production of pHS of recombinant Escherichia coli harboring BAPAD showed only a 22.7 % conversion yield due to product inhibition. Based on the partition coefficient of pHS and biocompatibility of the cell, 1-octanol was selected for the biphasic reaction. The conversion yield increased up to 98.0 % and 0.83 g/h/g DCW productivity was achieved at 100 mM pCA using equal volume of 1-octanol as an organic solvent. In the optimized biphasic reactor, using a three volume ratio of 1-octanol to phosphate buffer phase (50 mM, pH 7.0), the recombinant E. coli produced pHS with a 88.7 % conversion yield and 1.34 g/h/g DCW productivity at 300 mM pCA.