技术资料

Growing evidence suggests that a physiological activity of the cellular prion protein (PrP(C)) plays a crucial role in several neurodegenerative disorders,including prion and Alzheimer's diseases. However,how the functional activity of PrP(C) is subverted to deliver neurotoxic signals remains uncertain. Transgenic (Tg) mice expressing PrP with a deletion of residues 105-125 in the central region (referred to as ΔCR PrP) provide important insights into this problem. Tg(ΔCR) mice exhibit neonatal lethality and massive degeneration of cerebellar granule neurons,a phenotype that is dose dependently suppressed by the presence of wild-type PrP. When expressed in cultured cells,ΔCR PrP induces large,ionic currents that can be detected by patch-clamping techniques. Here,we tested the hypothesis that abnormal ion channel activity underlies the neuronal death seen in Tg(ΔCR) mice. We find that ΔCR PrP induces abnormal ionic currents in neurons in culture and in cerebellar slices and that this activity sensitizes the neurons to glutamate-induced,calcium-mediated death. In combination with ultrastructural and biochemical analyses,these results demonstrate a role for glutamate-induced excitotoxicity in PrP-mediated neurodegeneration. A similar mechanism may operate in other neurodegenerative disorders attributable to toxic,β-rich oligomers that bind to PrP(C). View Publication

Methamphetamine (METH) is a highly addictive psychostimulant drug of abuse that negatively interferes with neurogenesis. In fact,we have previously shown that METH triggers stem/progenitor cell death and decreases neuronal differentiation in the dentate gyrus (DG). Still,little is known regarding its effect on DG stem cell properties. Herein,we investigate the impact of METH on mice DG stem/progenitor cell self-renewal functions. METH (10nM) decreased DG stem cell self-renewal,while 1nM delayed cell cycle in the G0/G1-to-S phase transition and increased the number of quiescent cells (G0 phase),which correlated with a decrease in cyclin E,pEGFR and pERK1/2 protein levels. Importantly,both drug concentrations (1 or 10nM) did not induce cell death. In accordance with the impairment of self-renewal capacity,METH (10nM) decreased Sox2(+)/Sox2(+) while increased Sox2(-)/Sox2(-) pairs of daughter cells. This effect relied on N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) signaling,which was prevented by the NMDA receptor antagonist,MK-801 (10μM). Moreover,METH (10nM) increased doublecortin (DCX) protein levels consistent with neuronal differentiation. In conclusion,METH alters DG stem cell properties by delaying cell cycle and decreasing self-renewal capacities,mechanisms that may contribute to DG neurogenesis impairment followed by cognitive deficits verified in METH consumers. View Publication

Although inhibition of p16(INK4a) expression is critical to preserve the proliferative capacity of stem cells,the molecular mechanisms responsible for silencing p16(INK4a) expression remain poorly characterized. Here,we show that the histone acetyltransferase (HAT) monocytic leukemia zinc finger protein (MOZ) controls the proliferation of both hematopoietic and neural stem cells by modulating the transcriptional repression of p16(INK4a) . In the absence of the HAT activity of MOZ,expression of p16(INK4a) is upregulated in progenitor and stem cells,inducing an early entrance into replicative senescence. Genetic deletion of p16(INK4a) reverses the proliferative defect in both Moz(HAT) (-) (/) (-) hematopoietic and neural progenitors. Our results suggest a critical requirement for MOZ HAT activity to silence p16(INK4a) expression and to protect stem cells from early entrance into replicative senescence. View Publication

Tumor-initiating cells (TICs) often survive therapy and give rise to second-line tumors. We tested the plausibility of sphere cultures as models of TICs. Microarray data and microRNA data analysis confirmed the validity of spheres as models of TICs for breast and prostate cancer as well as mesothelioma cell lines. Microarray data analysis revealed the Trp pathway as the only pathway upregulated significantly in all types of studied TICs,with increased levels of indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase-1 (IDO1),the rate-limiting enzyme of Trp metabolism along the kynurenine pathway. All types of TICs also expressed higher levels of the Trp uptake system consisting of CD98 and LAT1 with functional consequences. IDO1 expression was regulated via both transcriptional and posttranscriptional mechanisms,depending on the cancer type. Serial transplantation of TICs in mice resulted in gradually increased IDO1. Mitocans,represented by α-tocopheryl succinate and mitochondrially targeted vitamin E succinate (MitoVES),suppressed IDO1 in TICs. MitoVES suppressed IDO1 in TICs with functional mitochondrial complex II,involving transcriptional and posttranscriptional mechanisms. IDO1 increase and its suppression by VE analogues were replicated in TICs from primary human glioblastomas. Our work indicates that IDO1 is increased in TICs and that mitocans suppress the protein. View Publication

Zika virus (ZIKV) infection has been associated with severe complications both in the developing and adult nervous system. To investigate the deleterious effects of ZIKV infection,we used human neural progenitor cells (NPC),derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC). We found that NPC are highly susceptible to ZIKV and the infection results in cell death. ZIKV infection led to a marked reduction in cell proliferation,ultrastructural alterations and induction of autophagy. Induction of apoptosis of Sox2 + cells was demonstrated by activation of caspases 3/7,8 and 9,and by ultrastructural and flow cytometry analyses. ZIKV-induced death of Sox2 + cells was prevented by incubation with the pan-caspase inhibitor,Z-VAD-FMK. By confocal microscopy analysis we found an increased number of cells with supernumerary centrosomes. Live imaging showed a significant increase in mitosis abnormalities,including multipolar spindle,chromosome laggards,micronuclei and death of progeny after cell division. FISH analysis for chromosomes 12 and 17 showed increased frequency of aneuploidy,such as monosomy,trisomy and polyploidy. Our study reinforces the link between ZIKV and abnormalities in the developing human brain,including microcephaly. View Publication

Fatty-acid-binding proteins (FABPs) are key intracellular molecules involved in the uptake,transportation and storage of fatty acids and in the mediation of signal transduction and gene transcription. However,little is known regarding their expression and function in the oligodendrocyte lineage. We evaluate the in vivo and in vitro expression of FABP5 and FABP7 in oligodendrocyte lineage cells in the cortex and corpus callosum of adult mice,mixed cortical culture and oligosphere culture by immunofluorescent counter-staining with major oligodendrocyte lineage markers. In all settings,FABP7 expression was detected in NG2(+)/PDGFRα(+) oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) that did not express FABP5. FABP5 was detected in mature CC1(+)/MBP(+) oligodendrocytes that did not express FABP7. Analysis of cultured OPCs showed a significant decrease in the population of FABP7-knockout (KO) OPCs and their BrdU uptake compared with wild-type (WT) OPCs. Upon incubation of OPCs in oligodendrocyte differentiation medium,a significantly lower percentage of FABP7-KO OPCs differentiated into O4(+) oligodendrocytes. The percentage of mature MBP(+) oligodendrocytes relative to whole O4(+)/MBP(+) oligodendrocytes was significantly lower in FABP7-KO and FABP5-KO than in WT cell populations. The percentage of terminally mature oligodendrocytes with membrane sheet morphology was significantly lower in FABP5-KO compared with WT cell populations. Thus,FABP7 and FABP5 are differentially expressed in oligodendrocyte lineage cells and regulate their proliferation and/or differentiation. Our findings suggest the involvement of FABP7 and FABP5 in the pathophysiology of demyelinating disorders,neuropsychiatric disorder and glioma,conditions in which OPCs/oligodendrocytes play central roles. View Publication

The bacterial CRISPR/Cas9 system allows sequence-specific gene editing in many organisms and holds promise as a tool to generate models of human diseases,for example,in human pluripotent stem cells. CRISPR/Cas9 introduces targeted double-stranded breaks (DSBs) with high efficiency,which are typically repaired by non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) resulting in nonspecific insertions,deletions or other mutations (indels). DSBs may also be repaired by homology-directed repair (HDR) using a DNA repair template,such as an introduced single-stranded oligo DNA nucleotide (ssODN),allowing knock-in of specific mutations. Although CRISPR/Cas9 is used extensively to engineer gene knockouts through NHEJ,editing by HDR remains inefficient and can be corrupted by additional indels,preventing its widespread use for modelling genetic disorders through introducing disease-associated mutations. Furthermore,targeted mutational knock-in at single alleles to model diseases caused by heterozygous mutations has not been reported. Here we describe a CRISPR/Cas9-based genome-editing framework that allows selective introduction of mono- and bi-allelic sequence changes with high efficiency and accuracy. We show that HDR accuracy is increased dramatically by incorporating silent CRISPR/Cas-blocking mutations along with pathogenic mutations,and establish a method termed 'CORRECT' for scarless genome editing. By characterizing and exploiting a stereotyped inverse relationship between a mutation's incorporation rate and its distance to the DSB,we achieve predictable control of zygosity. Homozygous introduction requires a guide RNA targeting close to the intended mutation,whereas heterozygous introduction can be accomplished by distance-dependent suboptimal mutation incorporation or by use of mixed repair templates. Using this approach,we generated human induced pluripotent stem cells with heterozygous and homozygous dominant early onset Alzheimer's disease-causing mutations in amyloid precursor protein (APP(Swe)) and presenilin 1 (PSEN1(M146V)) and derived cortical neurons,which displayed genotype-dependent disease-associated phenotypes. Our findings enable efficient introduction of specific sequence changes with CRISPR/Cas9,facilitating study of human disease. View Publication

A critical challenge to deciphering the pathophysiology of neurodevelopmental disease is identifying which of the myriad abnormalities that emerge during CNS maturation persist to contribute to long-term brain dysfunction. Childhood-onset dystonia caused by a loss-of-function mutation in the AAA+ protein torsinA exemplifies this challenge. Neurons lacking torsinA develop transient nuclear envelope (NE) malformations during CNS maturation,but no NE defects are described in mature torsinA null neurons. We find that during postnatal CNS maturation torsinA null neurons develop mislocalized and dysfunctional nuclear pore complexes (NPC) that lack NUP358,normally added late in NPC biogenesis. SUN1,a torsinA-related molecule implicated in interphase NPC biogenesis,also exhibits localization abnormalities. Whereas SUN1 and associated nuclear membrane abnormalities resolve in juvenile mice,NPC defects persist into adulthood. These findings support a role for torsinA function in NPC biogenesis during neuronal maturation and implicate altered NPC function in dystonia pathophysiology. View Publication

Glycolipids are amphipathic molecules which are highly expressed on cell membranes in skin and brain where they mediate several key cellular processes. Neural stem cells are defined as undifferentiated,proliferative,multipotential cells with extensive self-renewal and are responsive to brain injury. Di-rhamnolipid: α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-2)α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-3-hydroxydecanoyl-3-hydroxydecanoic acid,also referred to as di-rhamnolipid BAC-3,is a glycolipid isolated from the bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In the previous studies,di-rhamnolipid enhanced dermal tissue healing and regeneration. The present study provides the first assessment of di-rhamnolipid,and glycolipid biosurfactants in general,on the nervous system. Treatment of neural stem cells isolated from the lateral ventricle of adult mice and cultured in defined media containing growth factors at 0.5 and 1 μg/ml of di-rhamnolipid increased the number of neurospheres (2.7- and 2.8-fold,respectively) compared to controls and this effect remained even after passaging in the absence of di-rhamnolipid. In addition,neural stem cells treated with di-rhamnolipid at 50 and 100 μg/ml in defined media supplemented with fetal calf serum and without growth factors exhibited increased cell viability,indicating an interaction between di-rhamnolipid and serum components in the regulation of neural stem cells and neuroprogenitors. Intracerebroventricular administration of di-rhamnolipid at 300 and 120 ng/day increased the number of neurospheres (1.3- and 1.63-fold,respectively) that could be derived from the anterior lateral ventricles of adult mice. These results indicate that di-rhamnolipid stimulates proliferation of neural stem cells and increases their endogenous pools which may have therapeutic potential in managing neurodegenerative or neuropsychiatric disorders and promoting nervous tissue regeneration following injury. View Publication

Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CAMK2) plays fundamental roles in synaptic plasticity that underlies learning and memory. Here,we describe a new recessive neurodevelopmental syndrome with global developmental delay,seizures and intellectual disability. Using linkage analysis and exome sequencing,we found that this disease maps to chromosome 5q31.1-q34 and is caused by a biallelic germline mutation in CAMK2A. The missense mutation,p.His477Tyr is located in the CAMK2A association domain that is critical for its function and localization. Biochemically,the p.His477Tyr mutant is defective in self-oligomerization and unable to assemble into the multimeric holoenzyme.In vivo,CAMK2AH477Y failed to rescue neuronal defects in C. elegans lacking unc-43,the ortholog of human CAMK2A. In vitro,neurons derived from patient iPSCs displayed profound synaptic defects. Together,our data demonstrate that a recessive germline mutation in CAMK2A leads to neurodevelopmental defects in humans and suggest that dysfunctional CAMK2 paralogs may contribute to other neurological disorders. View Publication