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The heart wall tissue,or the myocardium,is one of the main targets in cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment. Animal models have not been sufficient in mimicking the human myocardium as evident by the very low clinical translation rates of cardiovascular drugs. Additionally,current in vitro models of the human myocardium possess several shortcomings such as lack of physiologically relevant co-culture of myocardial cells,lack of a 3D biomimetic environment,and the use of non-human cells. In this study,we address these shortcomings through the design and manufacture of a myocardium-on-chip (MOC) using 3D cell-laden hydrogel constructs and human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) derived myocardial cells. The MOC utilizes 3D spatially controlled co-culture of hiPSC derived cardiomyocytes (iCMs) and hiPSC derived endothelial cells (iECs) integrated among iCMs as well as in capillary-like side channels,to better mimic the microvasculature seen in native myocardium. We first fully characterized iCMs using immunostaining,genetic,and electrochemical analysis and iECs through immunostaining and alignment analysis to ensure their functionality,and then seeded these cells sequentially into the MOC device. We showed that iECs could be cultured within the microfluidic device without losing their phenotypic lineage commitment,and align with the flow upon physiological level shear stresses. We were able to incorporate iCMs within the device in a spatially controlled manner with the help of photocrosslinkable polymers. The iCMs were shown to be viable and functional within the device up to 7 days,and were integrated with the iECs. The iCMs and iECs in this study were derived from the same hiPSC cell line,essentially mimicking the myocardium of an individual human patient. Such devices are essential for personalized medicine studies where the individual drug response of patients with different genetic backgrounds can be tested in a physiologically relevant manner. View Publication

BACKGROUND Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a recognized risk factor for the development of cognitive impairment (CI) and/or dementia,although the exact nature of the molecular pathology of T2D-associated CI remains obscure. One link between T2D and CI might involve decreased insulin signaling in brain and/or neurons in either animal or postmortem human brains as has been reported as a feature of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Here we asked if neuronal insulin resistance is a cell autonomous phenomenon in a familial form of AD. METHODS We have applied a newly developed protocol for deriving human basal forebrain cholinergic neurons (BFCN) from skin fibroblasts via induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology. We generated wildtype and familial AD mutant PSEN2 N141I (presenilin 2) BFCNs and assessed if insulin signaling,insulin regulation of the major AD proteins Abeta$ and/or tau,and/or calcium fluxes is altered by the PSEN2 N141I mutation. RESULTS We report herein that wildtype,PSEN2 N141I and CRISPR/Cas9-corrected iPSC-derived BFCNs (and their precursors) show indistinguishable insulin signaling profiles as determined by the phosphorylation of canonical insulin signaling pathway molecules. Chronic insulin treatment of BFCNs of all genotypes led to a reduction in the Abeta$42/40 ratio. Unexpectedly,we found a CRISPR/Cas9-correctable effect of PSEN2 N141I on calcium flux,which could be prevented by chronic exposure of BFCNs to insulin. CONCLUSIONS Our studies indicate that the familial AD mutation PSEN2 N141I does not induce neuronal insulin resistance in a cell autonomous fashion. The ability of insulin to correct calcium fluxes and to lower Abeta$42/40 ratio suggests that insulin acts to oppose an AD-pathophysiology. Hence,our results are consistent with a potential physiological role for insulin as a mediator of resilience by counteracting specific metabolic and molecular features of AD. View Publication

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) were generated from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) obtained from a 62-year-old female with familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). PBMCs were reprogrammed to a pluripotent state following transfection with non-integrative episomal vectors carrying reprogramming factors OCT4,SOX2,LIN28,KLF4 and L-MYC. iPSCs were shown to express pluripotency markers,possess trilineage differentiation potential,carry rare variants identified in DNA isolated directly from the patient's whole blood,have a normal karyotype and no longer carry episomal vectors for reprogramming. This line is a useful resource for identifying unknown genetic causes of HCM. View Publication

BACKGROUND Human microRNAs (miRNAs) have diverse functions in biology,and play a role in nearly every biological process. Here we report that miR-520d-5p (520d-5p) causes undifferentiated cancer cells to adopt benign or normal status in vivo in immunodeficient mice via demethylation and P53 upregulation. Further we found that 520-5p causes normal cells to elongate cellular lifetime and mesenchymal stem cell-like status with CD105 positivity. We hypothesized that ectopic 520d-5p expression reduced mutations in undifferentiated type of hepatoma (HLF) cells through synergistic modulation of methylation-related enzymatic expression. METHODS To examine whether there were any changes in mutation status in cells treated with 520d-5p,we performed next generation sequencing (NGS) in HLF cells and human iPSC-derivative cells in pre-mesenchymal stem cell status. We analyzed the data using both genome-wide and individual gene function approaches. RESULTS 520d-5p induced a shift towards a wild type or non-malignant phenotype,which was regulated by nucleotide mutations in both HLF cells and iPSCs. Further,520d-5p reduced mutation levels in both the whole genome and genomic fragment assemblies. CONCLUSIONS Cancer cell genomic mutations cannot be repaired in most contexts. However,these findings suggest that applied development of 520d-5p would allow new approaches to cancer research and improve the quality of iPSCs used in regenerative medicine. View Publication

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are a valuable tool for investigating complex cellular and molecular events that occur in several human diseases. Importantly,the ability to differentiate hiPSCs into any human cell type provides a unique way for investigating disease mechanisms such as complex mental health diseases. The in vitro transformation of human lymphocytes into lymphoblasts (LCLs) using the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) has been the main method for generating immortalized human cell lines for half a century. However,the derivation of iPSCs from LCLs has emerged as an alternative source from which these cell lines can be generated. We show that iPSCs derived from LCLs using the Sendai virus procedure can be successfully differentiated into cardiomyocytes,neurons,and myotubes that express neuron- and myocyte-specific markers. We further show that these cardiac and neuronal cells are functional and generate action potentials that are required for cell excitability. We conclude that the ability to differentiate LCLs into neurons and myocytes will increase the use of LCLs in the future as a potential source of cells for modelling a number of diseases. View Publication

Mesenchymal stem or stromal cells (MSCs) have many potential therapeutic applications including therapies for cancers and tissue damages caused by cancers or radical cancer treatments. However,tissue-derived MSCs such as bone marrow MSCs (BM-MSCs) may promote cancer progression and have considerable donor variations and limited expandability. These issues hinder the potential applications of MSCs,especially those in cancer patients. To circumvent these issues,we derived MSCs from transgene-free human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) efficiently with a modified protocol that eliminated the need of flow cytometric sorting. Our iPSC-derived MSCs were readily expandable,but still underwent senescence after prolonged culture and did not form teratomas. These iPSC-derived MSCs homed to cancers with efficiencies similar to BM-MSCs but were much less prone than BM-MSCs to promote the epithelial-mesenchymal transition,invasion,stemness,and growth of cancer cells. The observations were probably explained by the much lower expression of receptors for interleukin-1 and TGFβ,downstream protumor factors,and hyaluronan and its cofactor TSG6,which all contribute to the protumor effects of BM-MSCs. The data suggest that iPSC-derived MSCs prepared with the modified protocol are a safer and better alternative to BM-MSCs for therapeutic applications in cancer patients. The protocol is scalable and can be used to prepare the large number of cells required for off-the-shelf" therapies and bioengineering applications." View Publication

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder associated with mutations in either MECP2,CDKL5 or FOXG1. The precise molecular mechanisms that lead to the pathogenesis of RTT have yet to be elucidated. We recently reported that expression of GluD1 (orphan glutamate receptor $\$-1 subunit) is increased in iPSC-derived neurons obtained from patients with mutations in either MECP2 or CDKL5. GluD1 controls synaptic differentiation and shifts the balance between excitatory and inhibitory synapses toward the latter. Thus,an increase in GluD1 might be a critical factor in the etiology of RTT by affecting the excitatory/inhibitory balance in the developing brain. To test this hypothesis,we generated iPSC-derived neurons from FOXG1(+/-) patients. We analyzed mRNA and protein levels of GluD1 together with key markers of excitatory and inhibitory synapses in these iPSC-derived neurons and in Foxg1(+/-) mouse fetal (E11.5) and adult (P70) brains. We found strong correlation between iPSC-derived neurons and fetal mouse brains,where GluD1 and inhibitory synaptic markers (GAD67 and GABA AR-$\$1) were increased,whereas the levels of a number of excitatory synaptic markers (VGLUT1,GluA1,GluN1 and PSD-95) were decreased. In adult mice,GluD1 was decreased along with all GABAergic and glutamatergic markers. Our findings further the understanding of the etiology of RTT by introducing a new pathological event occurring in the brain of FOXG1(+/-) patients during embryonic development and its time-dependent shift toward a general decrease in brain synapses. View Publication

Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia are amongst the most common forms of dementia characterized by the formation and deposition of abnormal TAU in the brain. In order to develop a translational human TAU aggregation model suitable for screening,we transduced TAU harboring the pro-aggregating P301L mutation into control hiPSC-derived neural progenitor cells followed by differentiation into cortical neurons. TAU aggregation and phosphorylation was quantified using AlphaLISA technology. Although no spontaneous aggregation was observed upon expressing TAU-P301L in neurons,seeding with preformed aggregates consisting of the TAU-microtubule binding repeat domain triggered robust TAU aggregation and hyperphosphorylation already after 2 weeks,without affecting general cell health. To validate our model,activity of two autophagy inducers was tested. Both rapamycin and trehalose significantly reduced TAU aggregation levels suggesting that iPSC-derived neurons allow for the generation of a biologically relevant human Tauopathy model,highly suitable to screen for compounds that modulate TAU aggregation. View Publication

Glioma tumour-initiating cells (GTICs) can originate upon the transformation of neural progenitor cells (NPCs). Studies on GTICs have focused on primary tumours from which GTICs could be isolated and the use of human embryonic material. Recently,the somatic genomic landscape of human gliomas has been reported. RTK (receptor tyrosine kinase) and p53 signalling were found dysregulated in ∼90% and 86% of all primary tumours analysed,respectively. Here we report on the use of human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) for modelling gliomagenesis. Dysregulation of RTK and p53 signalling in hiPSC-derived NPCs (iNPCs) recapitulates GTIC properties in vitro. In vivo transplantation of transformed iNPCs leads to highly aggressive tumours containing undifferentiated stem cells and their differentiated derivatives. Metabolic modulation compromises GTIC viability. Last,screening of 101 anti-cancer compounds identifies three molecules specifically targeting transformed iNPCs and primary GTICs. Together,our results highlight the potential of hiPSCs for studying human tumourigenesis. View Publication

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a ligand activated transcription factor that increases the expression of detoxifying enzymes upon ligand stimulation. Recent studies now suggest that novel endogenous roles of the AHR exist throughout development. In an effort to create an optimized model system for the study of AHR signaling in several cellular lineages,we have employed a CRISPR/CAS9 genome editing strategy in induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to incorporate a reporter cassette at the transcription start site of one of its canonical targets,cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1). This cell line faithfully reports on CYP1A1 expression,with luciferase levels as its functional readout,when treated with an endogenous AHR ligand (FICZ) at escalating doses. iPSC-derived fibroblast-like cells respond to acute exposure to environmental and endogenous AHR ligands,and iPSC-derived hepatocytes increase CYP1A1 in a similar manner to primary hepatocytes. This cell line is an important innovation that can be used to map AHR activity in discrete cellular subsets throughout developmental ontogeny. As further endogenous ligands are proposed,this line can be used to screen for safety and efficacy and can report on the ability of small molecules to regulate critical cellular processes by modulating the activity of the AHR. View Publication