搜索结果: 'methocult media formulations for human hematopoietic cells serum containing'

BACKGROUND: Specific populations of highly tumorigenic cells are thought to exist in many human tumors,including pancreatic adenocarcinoma. However,the clinical significance of these tumor-initiating (ie,cancer stem) cells remains unclear. Aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity can identify tumor-initiating cells and normal stem cells from several human tissues. We examined the prognostic significance and functional features of ALDH expression in pancreatic adenocarcinoma. METHODS: ALDH expression was analyzed by immunohistochemistry in 269 primary surgical specimens of pancreatic adenocarcinoma and examined for association with clinical outcomes and in paired primary tumors and metastatic lesions from eight pancreatic cancer patients who had participated in a rapid autopsy program. The clonogenic growth potential of ALDH-positive pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells was assessed in vitro by a colony formation assay and by tumor growth in immunodeficient mice (10-14 mice per group). Mesenchymal features of ALDH-positive pancreatic tumor cells were examined by using quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and an in vitro cell invasion assay. Gene expression levels and the invasive potential of ADLH-positive pancreatic cancer cells relative to the bulk cell population were examined by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and an in vitro invasion assays,respectively. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS: ALDH-positive tumor cells were detected in 90 of the 269 primary surgical specimens,and their presence was associated with worse survival (median survival for patients with ALDH-positive vs ALDH-negative tumors: 14 vs 18 months,hazard ratio of death = 1.28,95% confidence interval = 1.02 to 1.68,P = .05). Six (75%) of the eight patients with matched primary and metastatic tumor samples had ALDH-negative primary tumors,and in four (67%) of these six patients,the matched metastatic lesions (located in liver and lung) contained ALDH-positive cells. ALDH-positive cells were approximately five- to 11-fold more clonogenic in vitro and in vivo compared with unsorted or ALHD-negative cells,expressed genes consistent with a mesenchymal state,and had in vitro migratory and invasive potentials that were threefold greater than those of unsorted cells. CONCLUSIONS: ALDH expression marks pancreatic cancer cells that have stem cell and mesenchymal features. The enhanced clonogenic growth and migratory properties of ALDH-positive pancreatic cancer cells suggest that they play a key role in the development of metastatic disease that negatively affects the overall survival of patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma. View Publication

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are an essential tool for modeling how causal genetic variants impact cellular function in disease,as well as an emerging source of tissue for regenerative medicine. The preparation of somatic cells,their reprogramming and the subsequent verification of iPSC pluripotency are laborious,manual processes limiting the scale and reproducibility of this technology. Here we describe a modular,robotic platform for iPSC reprogramming enabling automated,high-throughput conversion of skin biopsies into iPSCs and differentiated cells with minimal manual intervention. We demonstrate that automated reprogramming and the pooled selection of polyclonal pluripotent cells results in high-quality,stable iPSCs. These lines display less line-to-line variation than either manually produced lines or lines produced through automation followed by single-colony subcloning. The robotic platform we describe will enable the application of iPSCs to population-scale biomedical problems including the study of complex genetic diseases and the development of personalized medicines. View Publication

Group 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILC3) are major regulators of inflammation and infection at mucosal barriers. ILC3 development is thought to be programmed,but how ILC3 perceive,integrate and respond to local environmental signals remains unclear. Here we show that ILC3 in mice sense their environment and control gut defence as part of a glial"ILC3"epithelial cell unit orchestrated by neurotrophic factors. We found that enteric ILC3 express the neuroregulatory receptor RET. ILC3-autonomous Ret ablation led to decreased innate interleukin-22 (IL-22),impaired epithelial reactivity,dysbiosis and increased susceptibility to bowel inflammation and infection. Neurotrophic factors directly controlled innate Il22 downstream of the p38 MAPK/ERK-AKT cascade and STAT3 activation. Notably,ILC3 were adjacent to neurotrophic-factor-expressing glial cells that exhibited stellate-shaped projections into ILC3 aggregates. Glial cells sensed microenvironmental cues in a MYD88-dependent manner to control neurotrophic factors and innate IL-22. Accordingly,glial-intrinsic Myd88 deletion led to impaired production of ILC3-derived IL-22 and a pronounced propensity towards gut inflammation and infection. Our work sheds light on a novel multi-tissue defence unit,revealing that glial cells are central hubs of neuron and innate immune regulation by neurotrophic factor signals. View Publication

View Publication

We reconstituted type I collagen nanofibers prepared by electrospin technology and examined the morphology,growth,adhesion,cell motility,and osteogenic differentiation of human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) on three nano-sized diameters (50-200,200-500,and 500-1,000 nm). Results from scanning electron microscopy showed that cells on the nanofibers had a more polygonal and flattened cell morphology. MTS (3-[4,5-dimethythiazol-2-yl]-5-[3-carboxy-methoxyphenyl]-2-[4-sul-fophenyl]-2H-tetrazolium compound) assay demonstrated that the MSCs grown on 500-1,000-nm nanofibers had significantly higher cell viability than the tissue culture polystyrene control. A decreased amount of focal adhesion formation was apparent in which quantifiable staining area of the cytoplasmic protein vinculin for the 200-500-nm nanofibers was 39% less compared with control,whereas the area of quantifiable vinculin staining was 45% less for both the 200-500-nm and 500-1,000-nm nanofibers. The distances of cell migration were quantified on green fluorescent protein-nucleofected cells and was 56.7%,37.3%,and 46.3% for 50-200,200-500,and 500-1,000 nm,respectively,compared with those on the control. Alkaline phosphatase activity demonstrated no differences after 12 days of osteogenic differentiation,and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis showed comparable osteogenic gene expression of osteocalcin,osteonectin,and ostepontin between cells differentiated on polystyrene and nanofiber surfaces. Moreover,single-cell RT-PCR of type I collagen gene expression demonstrated higher expression on cells seeded on the nanofibers. Therefore,type I collagen nanofibers support the growth of MSCs without compromising their osteogenic differentiation capability and can be used as a scaffold for bone tissue engineering to facilitate intramembranous bone formation. Further efforts are necessary to enhance their biomimetic properties. View Publication

BACKGROUND: Patients generally die of cancer after the failure of current therapies to eliminate residual disease. A subpopulation of tumor cells,termed cancer stem cells (CSC),appears uniquely able to fuel the growth of phenotypically and histologically diverse tumors. It has been proposed,therefore,that failure to effectively treat cancer may in part be due to preferential resistance of these CSC to chemotherapeutic agents. The subpopulation of human colorectal tumor cells with an ESA(+)CD44(+) phenotype are uniquely responsible for tumorigenesis and have the capacity to generate heterogeneous tumors in a xenograft setting (i.e. CoCSC). We hypothesized that if non-tumorigenic cells are more susceptible to chemotherapeutic agents,then residual tumors might be expected to contain a higher frequency of CoCSC. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Xenogeneic tumors initiated with CoCSC were allowed to reach approximately 400 mm(3),at which point mice were randomized and chemotherapeutic regimens involving cyclophosphamide or Irinotecan were initiated. Data from individual tumor phenotypic analysis and serial transplants performed in limiting dilution show that residual tumors are enriched for cells with the CoCSC phenotype and have increased tumorigenic cell frequency. Moreover,the inherent ability of residual CoCSC to generate tumors appears preserved. Aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 gene expression and enzymatic activity are elevated in CoCSC and using an in vitro culture system that maintains CoCSC as demonstrated by serial transplants and lentiviral marking of single cell-derived clones,we further show that ALDH1 enzymatic activity is a major mediator of resistance to cyclophosphamide: a classical chemotherapeutic agent. CONCLUSIONS: CoCSC are enriched in colon tumors following chemotherapy and remain capable of rapidly regenerating tumors from which they originated. By focusing on the biology of CoCSC,major resistance mechanisms to specific chemotherapeutic agents can be attributed to specific genes,thereby suggesting avenues for improving cancer therapy. View Publication