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

Chondrogenesis of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is typically induced when they are condensed into a single aggregate and exposed to transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta). Hypoxia,like aggregation and TGF-beta delivery,may be crucial for complete chondrogenesis. However,the pellet dimensions and associated self-induced oxygen gradients of current chondrogenic methods may limit the effectiveness of in vitro differentiation and subsequent therapeutic uses. Here we describe the use of embryoid body-forming technology to produce microscopic aggregates of human bone marrow MSCs (BM-MSCs) for chondrogenesis. The use of micropellets reduces the formation of gradients within the aggregates,resulting in a more homogeneous and controlled microenvironment. These micropellet cultures (approximately 170 cells/micropellet) as well as conventional pellet cultures (approximately 2 x 10(5) cells/pellet) were chondrogenically induced under 20% and 2% oxygen environments for 14 days. Compared to conventional pellets under both environments,micropellets differentiated under 2% O(2) showed significantly increased sulfated glycosaminoglycan (sGAG) production and more homogeneous distribution of proteoglycans and collagen II. Aggrecan and collagen II gene expressions were increased in pellet cultures differentiated under 2% O(2) relative to 20% O(2) pellets but 2% O(2) micropellets showed even greater increases in these genes,as well as increased SOX9. These results suggest a more advanced stage of chondrogenesis in the micropellets accompanied by more homogeneous differentiation. Thus,we present a new method for enhancing MSC chondrogenesis that reveals a unique relationship between oxygen tension and aggregate size. The inherent advantages of chondrogenic micropellets over a single macroscopic aggregate should allow for easy integration with a variety of cartilage engineering strategies. View Publication

Regulation of gene expression in immune cells is known to be under genetic control,and likely contributes to susceptibility to autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). How this occurs in concert across multiple immune cell types is poorly understood. Using a mouse model that harnesses the genetic diversity of wild-derived mice,more accurately reflecting genetically diverse human populations,we provide an extensive characterization of the genetic regulation of gene expression in five different naive immune cell types relevant to MS. The immune cell transcriptome is shown to be under profound genetic control,exhibiting diverse patterns: global,cell-specific and sex-specific. Bioinformatic analysis of the genetically controlled transcript networks reveals reduced cell type specificity and inflammatory activity in wild-derived PWD/PhJ mice,compared with the conventional laboratory strain C57BL/6J. Additionally,candidate MS-GWAS (genome-wide association study candidate genes for MS susceptibility) genes were significantly enriched among transcripts overrepresented in C57BL/6J cells compared with PWD. These expression level differences correlate with robust differences in susceptibility to experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis,the principal model of MS,and skewing of the encephalitogenic T-cell responses. Taken together,our results provide functional insights into the genetic regulation of the immune transcriptome,and shed light on how this in turn contributes to susceptibility to autoimmune disease.Genes and Immunity advance online publication,22 September 2016; doi:10.1038/gene.2016.37. View Publication

IL2 is an immunostimulatory cytokine for key immune cells including T cells and natural killer (NK) cells. Systemic IL2 supplementation could enhance NK-mediated immunity in a variety of diseases ranging from neoplasms to viral infection. However,its systemic use is restricted by its serious side effects and limited efficacy due to activation of T regulatory cells (Tregs). IL2 signaling is mediated through interactions with a multi-subunit receptor complex containing IL2Rα,IL2Rβ,and IL2Rγ. Adult natural killer (NK) cells express only IL2Rβ and IL2Rγ subunits and are therefore relatively insensitive to IL2. To overcome these limitations,we created a novel chimeric IL2-IL2Rβ fusion protein of IL2 and its receptor IL2Rβ joined via a peptide linker (CIRB). NK92 cells expressing CIRB (NK92CIRB) were highly activated and expanded indefinitely without exogenous IL2. When compared with an IL2-secreting NK92 cell line,NK92CIRB were more activated,cytotoxic,and resistant to growth inhibition. Direct contact with cancer cells enhanced the cytotoxic character of NK92CIRB cells,which displayed superior in vivo antitumor effects in mice. Overall,our results showed how tethering IL2 to its receptor IL2Rβ eliminates the need for IL2Rα and IL2Rβ,offering a new tool to selectively activate and empower immune therapy. Cancer Res; 77(21); 5938-51. textcopyright2017 AACR. View Publication

Therapeutic modulation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/PTEN signaling is currently being explored for multiple neurological indications including brain tumors and seizure disorders associated with cortical malformations. The effects of PI3K/PTEN signaling are highly cell context dependent but the function of this pathway in specific subsets of neural stem/progenitor cells generating oligodendroglial lineage cells has not been fully studied. To address this,we created Olig2-cre:Pten(fl/fl) mice that showed a unique pattern of Pten loss and PI3K activation in Olig2-lineage cells. Olig2-cre:Pten(fl/fl) animals progressively developed central nervous system white matter hypermyelination by 3 weeks of age leading to later onset leukodystrophy,chronic neurodegeneration,and death by 9 months. In contrast,during immediate postnatal development,oligodendroglia were unaffected but abnormal and accelerated differentiation of lateral subventricular zone stem cells produced calretinin-positive interneuron dysplasia. Neural stem cells isolated from Olig2-cre:Pten(fl/fl) mice also exhibited accelerated differentiation and proliferation into calretinin-positive interneurons and oligodendrocytes indicating such effects are cell autonomous. Opposition of the pathway by treatment of human primary neural progenitor cells (NPCs) with the PI3K inhibitor,NVP-BKM120,blocked in vitro differentiation of neurons and oligodendroglia indicating PI3K/PTEN effects on NPCs can be bidirectional. In summary,our results suggest Pten is a developmental rheostat regulating interneuron and oligodendroglial differentiation and support testing of PI3K modulating drugs as treatment for developmental and myelination disorders. However,such agents may need to be administered at ages that minimize potential effects on early stem/progenitor cell development. View Publication

Recent large-scale genomics efforts to characterize the cis-regulatory sequences that orchestrate genome-wide expression patterns have produced impressive catalogues of putative regulatory elements. Most of these sequences have not been functionally tested,and our limited understanding of the non-coding genome prevents us from predicting which sequences are bona fide cis-regulatory elements. Recently,massively parallel reporter assays (MPRAs) have been deployed to measure the activity of putative cis-regulatory sequences in several biological contexts,each with specific advantages and distinct limitations. We developed LV-MPRA,a novel lentiviral-based,massively parallel reporter gene assay,to study the function of genome-integrated regulatory elements in any mammalian cell type; thus,making it possible to apply MPRAs in more biologically relevant contexts. We measured the activity of 2,600 sequences in U87 glioblastoma cells and human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs) and explored how regulatory activity is encoded in DNA sequence. We demonstrate that LV-MPRA can be applied to estimate the effects of local DNA sequence and regional chromatin on regulatory activity. Our data reveal that primary DNA sequence features,such as GC content and dinucleotide composition,accurately distinguish sequences with high activity from sequences with low activity in a full chromosomal context,and may also function in combination with different transcription factor binding sites to determine cell type specificity. We conclude that LV-MPRA will be an important tool for identifying cis-regulatory elements and stimulating new understanding about how the non-coding genome encodes information. View Publication

Garcinol is a polyisoprenylated benzophenone derivative found in Garcinia indica fruit rind and other species. The potential antioxidative and neuroprotective effects of garcinol in rat cortical astrocyte were demonstrated in our laboratory recently. Here,the effects of garcinol on the neuritogenesis process in cultured cortical progenitor cells were investigated to understand the roles of garcinol in neuronal survival and differentiation. These cells,derived from embryonic day 17 rats,differentiated into EGF-responsive neural precursor cells,would further form neurospheres. Our data exhibited garcinol induced neurite outgrowth in early developing EGF-treated neurospheres and significantly enhanced the expression of neuronal proteins,microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP-2),and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). Furthermore,the neuronal marker,high-molecular-weight subunit of neurofilaments (NFH),was highly expressed after 5 μM garcinol treatment in neural precursor cells for 20 days. To identify the extracellular mechanism,rat cortical progenitor cells were treated garcinol and accordingly mediated the sustained activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) for different periods up to 20 h. In this regard,NMDA receptor-mediated calcium influx led to excitotoxic death and activated tyrosine phosphatase which limited the duration of ERK in cultured neurons. MK801,the NMDA receptor antagonist,treatment also induced the sustained phosphorylation of ERK and therefore enhanced neuronal survival. In our observation,garcinol treatment reduced growth factor deprivation-mediated cell death and nuclear import of C/EBPβ levels. Noteworthy,garcinol could promote neurite outgrowth in EGF-responsive neural precursor cells and modulate the ERK pathway in the enhancement of neuronal survival. View Publication

Pluripotency,the ability of a cell to differentiate and give rise to all embryonic lineages,defines a small number of mammalian cell types such as embryonic stem (ES) cells. While it has been generally held that pluripotency is the product of a transcriptional regulatory network that activates and maintains the expression of key stem cell genes,accumulating evidence is pointing to a critical role for epigenetic processes in establishing and safeguarding the pluripotency of ES cells,as well as maintaining the identity of differentiated cell types. In order to better understand the role of epigenetic mechanisms in pluripotency,we have examined the dynamics of chromatin modifications genome-wide in human ES cells (hESCs) undergoing differentiation into a mesendodermal lineage. We found that chromatin modifications at promoters remain largely invariant during differentiation,except at a small number of promoters where a dynamic switch between acetylation and methylation at H3K27 marks the transition between activation and silencing of gene expression,suggesting a hierarchy in cell fate commitment over most differentially expressed genes. We also mapped over 50 000 potential enhancers,and observed much greater dynamics in chromatin modifications,especially H3K4me1 and H3K27ac,which correlate with expression of their potential target genes. Further analysis of these enhancers revealed potentially key transcriptional regulators of pluripotency and a chromatin signature indicative of a poised state that may confer developmental competence in hESCs. Our results provide new evidence supporting the role of chromatin modifications in defining enhancers and pluripotency. View Publication

Reversal of promoter DNA hypermethylation and associated gene silencing is an attractive cancer therapy approach. The DNA methylation inhibitors decitabine and azacitidine are efficacious for hematological neoplasms at lower,less toxic,doses. Experimentally,high doses induce rapid DNA damage and cytotoxicity,which do not explain the prolonged time to response observed in patients. We show that transient exposure of cultured and primary leukemic and epithelial tumor cells to clinically relevant nanomolar doses,without causing immediate cytotoxicity,produce an antitumor memory" response View Publication

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) are a promising cell source for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine,especially in the field of neurobiology. Neural differentiation protocols have been developed to differentiate hPSCs into specific neural cells,but these predominantly rely on biochemical cues. Recently,differentiation protocols have incorporated topographical cues to increase the total neuronal yield. However,the means by which these topographical cues improve neuronal yield remains unknown. In this study,we explored the effect of topography on the neural differentiation of hPSC by quantitatively studying the changes in marker expression at a transcript and protein level. We found that 2 ??m gratings increase the rate of neural differentiation,and that an additional culture period of 2 ??m gratings in the absence of neurotrophic signals can improve the neural differentiation of hPSCs. We envisage that this work can be incorporated into future differentiation protocols to decrease the differentiation period as well as the biochemical signals added,thus generating hPSC-derived neural cells in a more cost effective and efficient manner. ?? 2012 Elsevier Ltd. View Publication

The protocol described here efficiently directs human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) to functional cardiomyocytes in a completely defined,growth factor- and serum-free system by temporal modulation of regulators of canonical Wnt signaling. Appropriate temporal application of a glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) inhibitor combined with the expression of β-catenin shRNA or a chemical Wnt inhibitor is sufficient to produce a high yield (0.8-1.3 million cardiomyocytes per cm(2)) of virtually pure (80-98%) functional cardiomyocytes in 14 d from multiple hPSC lines without cell sorting or selection. Qualitative (immunostaining) and quantitative (flow cytometry) characterization of differentiated cells is described to assess the expression of cardiac transcription factors and myofilament proteins. Flow cytometry of BrdU incorporation or Ki67 expression in conjunction with cardiac sarcomere myosin protein expression can be used to determine the proliferative capacity of hPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. Functional human cardiomyocytes differentiated via these protocols may constitute a potential cell source for heart disease modeling,drug screening and cell-based therapeutic applications. View Publication

In this study,we demonstrate that constitutive activation of Raf-1 oncogenic signaling induces stabilization and accumulation of Aurora-A mitotic kinase that ultimately drives the transition from an epithelial to a highly invasive mesenchymal phenotype in estrogen receptor $$-positive (ER$$(+)) breast cancer cells. The transition from an epithelial- to a mesenchymal-like phenotype was characterized by reduced expression of ER$$,HER-2/Neu overexpression and loss of CD24 surface receptor (CD24(-/low)). Importantly,expression of key epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers and upregulation of the stemness gene SOX2 was linked to acquisition of stem cell-like properties such as the ability to form mammospheres in vitro and tumor self-renewal in vivo. Moreover,aberrant Aurora-A kinase activity induced phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of SMAD5,indicating a novel interplay between Aurora-A and SMAD5 signaling pathways in the development of EMT,stemness and ultimately tumor progression. Importantly,pharmacological and molecular inhibition of Aurora-A kinase activity restored a CD24(+) epithelial phenotype that was coupled to ER$$ expression,downregulation of HER-2/Neu,inhibition of EMT and impaired self-renewal ability,resulting in the suppression of distant metastases. Taken together,our findings show for the first time the causal role of Aurora-A kinase in the activation of EMT pathway responsible for the development of distant metastases in ER$$(+) breast cancer cells. Moreover,this study has important translational implications because it highlights the mitotic kinase Aurora-A as a novel promising therapeutic target to selectively eliminate highly invasive cancer cells and improve the disease-free and overall survival of ER$$(+) breast cancer patients resistant to conventional endocrine therapy. View Publication

The purpose of this study was to investigate the chondrogenic features of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) and examine the differences in the chondrogenesis between hiPSCs and human bone marrow-derived MSCs (hBMMSCs). Embryoid bodies (EBs) were formed from undifferentiated hiPSCs. After EBs were dissociated into single cells,chondrogenic culture was performed in pellets and alginate hydrogel. Chondro-induced hiPSCs were implanted in osteochondral defects created on the patellar groove of immunosuppressed rats and evaluated after 12 weeks. The ESC markers NANOG,SSEA4 and OCT3/4 disappeared while the mesodermal marker BMP-4 appeared in chondro-induced hiPSCs. After 21 days of culture,greater glycosaminoglycan contents and better chondrocytic features including lacuna and abundant matrix formation were observed from chondro-induced hiPSCs compared to chondro-induced hBMMSCs. The expression of chondrogenic markers including SOX-9,type II collagen,and aggrecan in chondro-induced hiPSCs was comparable to or greater than chondro-induced hBMMSCs. A remarkably low level of hypertrophic and osteogenic markers including type X collagen,type I collagen and Runx-2 was noted in chondro-induced hiPSCs compared to chondro-induced hBMMSCs. hiPSCs had significantly greater methylation of several CpG sites in COL10A1 promoter than hBMMSCs in either undifferentiated or chondro-induced state,suggesting an epigenetic cause of the difference in hypertrophy. The defects implanted with chondro-induced hiPSCs showed a significantly better quality of cartilage repair than the control defects,and the majority of cells in the regenerated cartilage consisted of implanted hiPSCs. ?? 2014 Elsevier Ltd. View Publication