技术资料

INTRODUCTION: The induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology allows generation of patient-specific pluripotent stem cells,thereby providing a novel cell-therapy platform for severe degenerative diseases. One of the key issues for clinical-grade iPSC derivation is the accessibility of donor cells used for reprogramming. METHODS: We examined the feasibility of reprogramming mobilized GMP-grade hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and tested the pluripotency of derived iPS clones. RESULTS: Ectopic expression of OCT4,SOX2,KLF4,and c-MYC in HPCs and PBMCs resulted in rapid iPSC derivation. Long-term time-lapse imaging revealed efficient iPSC growth under serum- and feeder-free conditions with frequent mitotic events. HPC- and PBMC-derived iPS cells expressed pluripotency-associated markers,including SSEA-4,TRA-1-60,and NANOG. The global gene-expression profiles demonstrated the induction of endogenous pluripotent genes,such as LIN28,TERT,DPPA4,and PODXL,in derived iPSCs. iPSC clones from blood and other cell sources showed similar ultrastructural morphologies and genome-wide gene-expression profiles. On spontaneous and guided differentiation,HPC- and PBMC-derived iPSCs were differentiated into cells of three germ layers,including insulin-producing cells through endodermal lineage,verifying the pluripotency of the blood-derived iPSC clones. CONCLUSIONS: Because the use of blood cells allows minimally invasive tissue procurement under GMP conditions and rapid cellular reprogramming,mobilized HPCs and unmobilized PBMCs would be ideal somatic cell sources for clinical-grade iPSC derivation,especially from diabetes patients complicated by slow-healing wounds. View Publication

The mechanisms underlying pluripotency and differentiation in embryonic and reprogrammed stem cells are unclear. In this work,we characterized the pluripotent state towards neural differentiated state through analysis of trace elements distribution using the Synchrotron Radiation X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy. Naive and neural-stimulated embryoid bodies (EB) derived from embryonic and induced pluripotent stem (ES and iPS) cells were irradiated with a spatial resolution of 20 µm to make elemental maps and qualitative chemical analyses. Results show that these embryo-like aggregates exhibit self-organization at the atomic level. Metallic elements content rises and consistent elemental polarization pattern of P and S in both mouse and human pluripotent stem cells were observed,indicating that neural differentiation and elemental polarization are strongly correlated. View Publication

We have observed karyotypic changes involving the gain of chromosome 17q in three independent human embryonic stem (hES) cell lines on five independent occasions. A gain of chromosome 12 was seen occasionally. This implies that increased dosage of chromosome 17q and 12 gene(s) provides a selective advantage for the propagation of undifferentiated hES cells. These observations are instructive for the future application of hES cells in transplantation therapies in which the use of aneuploid cells could be detrimental. View Publication

Differentiating embryonic stem (ES) cells are an increasingly important source of hematopoietic progenitors,useful for both basic research and clinical applications. Besides their characterization in colony assays,protocols exist for the cultivation of lymphoid,myeloid,and erythroid cells. With the possible exception of mast cells,however,long-term expansion of pure hematopoietic progenitors from ES cells has not been possible without immortalization caused by overexpression of exogenous genes. Here,we describe for the first time an efficient yet easy strategy to generate mass cultures of pure,immature erythroid progenitors from mouse ES cells (ES-EPs),using serum-free medium plus recombinant cytokines and hormones. ES-EPs represent long-lived,adult,definitive erythroid progenitors that resemble immature erythroid cells expanding in vivo during stress erythropoiesis. When exposed to terminal differentiation conditions,ES-EPs differentiated into mature,enucleated erythrocytes. Importantly,ES-EPs injected into mice did not exhibit tumorigenic potential but differentiated into normal erythrocytes. Both the virtually unlimited supply of cells and the defined culture conditions render our system a valuable tool for the analysis of factors influencing proliferation and maturation of erythroid progenitors. In addition,the system allows detailed characterization of processes during erythroid proliferation and differentiation using wild-type (wt) and genetically modified ES cells. View Publication

HIV-1 Tat-interacting protein of 110 kDa [Tip110; p110(nrb)/SART3/p110] is an RNA binding nuclear protein implicated in regulation of HIV-1 gene and host gene transcription,pre-mRNA splicing,and cancer immunology. Recently,we demonstrated a role for Tip110 in regulation of hematopoiesis. Here,we show that TIP110 is also expressed in human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and expression was decreased with differentiation of these ESCs. TIP110 was found,through up- and down-modulation of expression of Tip110,to be important in maintaining pluripotent factor (NANOG,OCT4,and SOX2) expression in and pluripotency of hESCs,although the mechanisms involved and whether the Tip110 effects are direct remain to be determined. View Publication

Pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (PSC-CMs) are a potentially unlimited source of cardiomyocytes (CMs) for cardiac transplantation therapies. The establishment of pure PSC-CM populations is important for this application,but is hampered by a lack of CM-specific surface markers suitable for their identification and sorting. Contemporary purification techniques are either non-specific or require genetic modification. We report a second harmonic generation (SHG) signal detectable in PSC-CMs that is attributable to sarcomeric myosin,dependent on PSC-CM maturity,and retained while PSC-CMs are in suspension. Our study demonstrates the feasibility of developing a SHG-activated flow cytometer for the non-invasive purification of PSC-CMs. View Publication

Here we describe a protocol for generating 3D human intestinal tissues (called organoids) in vitro from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). To generate intestinal organoids,pluripotent stem cells are first differentiated into FOXA2(+)SOX17(+) endoderm by treating the cells with activin A for 3 d. After endoderm induction,the pluripotent stem cells are patterned into CDX2(+) mid- and hindgut tissue using FGF4 and WNT3a. During this patterning step,3D mid- or hindgut spheroids bud from the monolayer epithelium attached to the tissue culture dish. The 3D spheroids are further cultured in Matrigel along with prointestinal growth factors,and they proliferate and expand over 1-3 months to give rise to intestinal tissue,complete with intestinal mesenchyme and epithelium comprising all of the major intestinal cell types. To date,this is the only method for efficiently directing the differentiation of hPSCs into 3D human intestinal tissue in vitro. View Publication

INTRODUCTION: The reprogramming of a patient's somatic cells back into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) holds significant promise for future autologous cellular therapeutics. The continued presence of potentially oncogenic transgenic elements following reprogramming,however,represents a safety concern that should be addressed prior to clinical applications. The polycistronic stem cell cassette (STEMCCA),an excisable lentiviral reprogramming vector,provides,in our hands,the most consistent reprogramming approach that addresses this safety concern. Nevertheless,most viral integrations occur in genes,and exactly how the integration,epigenetic reprogramming,and excision of the STEMCCA reprogramming vector influences those genes and whether these cells still have clinical potential are not yet known. METHODS: In this study,we used both microarray and sensitive real-time PCR to investigate gene expression changes following both intron-based reprogramming and excision of the STEMCCA cassette during the generation of human iPSCs from adult human dermal fibroblasts. Integration site analysis was conducted using nonrestrictive linear amplification PCR. Transgene-free iPSCs were fully characterized via immunocytochemistry,karyotyping and teratoma formation,and current protocols were implemented for guided differentiation. We also utilized current good manufacturing practice guidelines and manufacturing facilities for conversion of our iPSCs into putative clinical grade conditions. RESULTS: We found that a STEMCCA-derived iPSC line that contains a single integration,found to be located in an intronic location in an actively transcribed gene,PRPF39,displays significantly increased expression when compared with post-excised stem cells. STEMCCA excision via Cre recombinase returned basal expression levels of PRPF39. These cells were also shown to have proper splicing patterns and PRPF39 gene sequences. We also fully characterized the post-excision iPSCs,differentiated them into multiple clinically relevant cell types (including oligodendrocytes,hepatocytes,and cardiomyocytes),and converted them to putative clinical-grade conditions using the same approach previously approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the conversion of human embryonic stem cells from research-grade to clinical-grade status. CONCLUSION: For the first time,these studies provide a proof-of-principle for the generation of fully characterized transgene-free human iPSCs and,in light of the limited availability of current good manufacturing practice cellular manufacturing facilities,highlight an attractive potential mechanism for converting research-grade cell lines into putatively clinical-grade biologics for personalized cellular therapeutics. View Publication

IkappaB kinase (IKK) complex plays a key regulatory role in macrophages for NF-kappaB activation during both innate and adaptive immune responses. Because IKK1-/- mice died at birth,we differentiated functional macrophages from embryonic day 15.5 IKK1 mutant embryonic liver. The embryonic liver-derived macrophage (ELDM) showed enhanced phagocytotic clearance of bacteria,more efficient antigen-presenting capacity,elevated secretion of several key proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines,and known NFkappaB target genes. Increased NFkappaB activity in IKK1 mutant ELDM was the result of prolonged degradation of IkappaBalpha in response to infectious pathogens. The delayed restoration of IkappaBalpha in pathogen-activated IKK1-/- ELDM was a direct consequence of uncontrolled IKK2 kinase activity. We hypothesize that IKK1 plays a checkpoint role in the proper control of IkappaBalpha kinase activity in innate and adaptive immunity. View Publication