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The Kit receptor functions in hematopoiesis,lymphocyte development,gastrointestinal tract motility,melanogenesis,and gametogenesis. To investigate the roles of different Kit signaling pathways in vivo,we have generated knock-in mice in which docking sites for PI 3-kinase (KitY719) or Src kinase (KitY567) have been mutated. Whereas steady-state hematopoiesis is normal in KitY719F/Y719F and KitY567F/Y567F mice,lymphopoiesis is affected differentially. The KitY567F mutation,but not the KitY719F mutation,blocks pro T cell and pro B cell development in an age-dependent manner. Thus,the Src family kinase,but not the PI 3-kinase docking site in Kit,mediates a critical signal for lymphocyte development. In agreement with these results,treatment of normal mice with the Kit tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib (Gleevec) leads to deficits in pro T and pro B cell development,similar to those seen in KitY567F/Y567F and KitW/W mice. The two mutations do not affect embryonic gametogenesis but the KitY719F mutation blocks spermatogenesis at the spermatogonial stages and in contrast the KitY567F mutation does not affect this process. Therefore,Kit-mediated PI 3-kinase signaling and Src kinase family signaling is highly specific for different cellular contexts in vivo. View Publication

Recent evidence suggests that protease release by neutrophils in the bone marrow may contribute to hematopoietic progenitor cell (HPC) mobilization. Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9),neutrophil elastase (NE),and cathepsin G (CG) accumulate in the bone marrow during granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) treatment,where they are thought to degrade key substrates including vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and CXCL12. To test this hypothesis,HPC mobilization was characterized in transgenic mice deficient in one or more hematopoietic proteases. Surprisingly,HPC mobilization by G-CSF was normal in MMP-9-deficient mice,NE x CG-deficient mice,or mice lacking dipeptidyl peptidase I,an enzyme required for the functional activation of many hematopoietic serine proteases. Moreover,combined inhibition of neutrophil serine proteases and metalloproteinases had no significant effect on HPC mobilization. VCAM-1 expression on bone marrow stromal cells decreased during G-CSF treatment of wild-type mice but not NE x CG-deficient mice,indicating that VCAM-1 cleavage is not required for efficient HPC mobilization. G-CSF induced a significant decrease in CXCL12 alpha protein expression in the bone marrow of Ne x CG-deficient mice,indicating that these proteases are not required to down-regulate CXCL12 expression. Collectively,these data suggest a complex model in which both protease-dependent and -independent pathways may contribute to HPC mobilization. View Publication

The myeloproliferative disorder of mice lacking the Src homology 2 (SH2)-containing 5' phosphoinositol phosphatase,SHIP,underscores the need for closely regulating phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway activity,and hence levels of phosphatidylinositol species during hematopoiesis. The role of the 3' phosphoinositol phosphatase Pten in this process is less clear,as its absence leads to embryonic lethality. Despite Pten heterozygosity being associated with a lymphoproliferative disorder,we found no evidence of a hematopoietic defect in Pten(+/-) mice. Since SHIP shares the same substrate (PIP(3)) with Pten,we hypothesized that the former might compensate for Pten haploinsufficiency in the marrow. Thus,we examined the effect of Pten heterozygosity in SHIP(-/-) mice,predicting that further dysregulation of PIP(3) metabolism would exacerbate the pheno-type of the latter. Indeed,compared with SHIP(-/-) mice,Pten(+/-)SHIP(-/-) animals developed a myelodysplastic phenotype characterized by increased hepatosplenomegaly,extramedullary hematopoiesis,anemia,and thrombocytopenia. Consistent with a marrow defect,clonogenic assays demonstrated reductions in committed myeloid and megakaryocytic progenitors in these animals. Providing further evidence of a Pten(+/-)SHIP(-/-) progenitor abnormality,reconstitution of irradiated mice with marrows from these mice led to a marked defect in short-term repopulation of peripheral blood by donor cells. These studies suggest that the regulation of the levels and/or ratios of PI3K-derived phosphoinositol species by these 2 phosphatases is critical to normal hematopoiesis. View Publication

Primitive hematopoietic cells from several species are known to efflux both Hoechst 33342 and Rhodamine-123. We now show that murine hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) defined by long-term multilineage repopulation assays efflux both dyes variably according to their developmental or activation status. In day 14.5 murine fetal liver,very few HSCs efflux Hoechst 33342 efficiently,and they are thus not detected as side population" (SP) cells. HSCs in mouse fetal liver also fail to efflux Rhodamine-123. Both of these features are retained by most of the HSCs present until 4 weeks after birth but are reversed by 8 weeks of age or after a new HSC population is regenerated in adult mice that receive transplants with murine fetal liver cells. Activation of adult HSCs in vivo following 5-fluorouracil treatment� View Publication

The novel immunosuppressant FTY720 activates sphingosine 1-phosphate receptors (S1PRs) that affect responsiveness of lymphocytes to chemokines such as stromal cell-derived factor 1 (SDF-1),resulting in increased lymphocyte homing to secondary lymphoid organs. Since SDF-1 and its receptor CXCR4 are also involved in bone marrow (BM) homing of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HPCs),we analyzed expression of S1PRs and the influence of FTY720 on SDF-1/CXCR4-mediated effects in human HPCs. By reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR),S1PRs were expressed in mobilized CD34+ HPCs,particularly in primitive CD34+/CD38- cells. Incubation of HPCs with FTY720 resulted in prolonged SDF-1-induced calcium mobilization and actin polymerization,and substantially increased SDF-1-dependent in vitro transendothelial migration,without affecting VLA-4,VLA-5,and CXCR4 expression. In nonobese diabetic-severe combined immunodeficient (NOD/SCID) mice,the number of CD34+/CD38- cells that homed to the BM after 18 hours was significantly raised by pretreatment of animals and cells with FTY720,tending to result in improved engraftment. In addition,in vitro growth of HPCs (week-5 cobblestone area-forming cells [CAFCs]) was 2.4-fold increased. We conclude that activation of S1PRs by FTY720 increases CXCR4 function in HPCs both in vitro and in vivo,supporting homing and proliferation of HPCs. In the hematopoietic microenvironment,S1PRs are involved in migration and maintenance of HPCs by modulating the effects of SDF-1. View Publication

High-titer,HIV-1-based lentiviral vector particles were found to transduce cytokine-mobilized rhesus macaque CD34(+) cells and clonogenic progenitors very poorly (textless 1%),reflecting the postentry restriction in rhesus cells to HIV infection. To overcome this barrier,we developed a simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)-based vector system. A single exposure to a low concentration of amphotropic pseudotyped SIV vector particles encoding the green fluorescent protein (GFP) resulted in gene transfer into 68% +/- 1% of rhesus bulk CD34(+) cells and 75% +/- 1% of clonogenic progenitors. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis of DNA from individual hematopoietic colonies confirmed these relative transduction efficiencies. To evaluate SIV vector-mediated stem cell gene transfer in vivo,3 rhesus macaques underwent transplantation with transduced,autologous cytokine-mobilized peripheral blood CD34(+) cells following myeloablative conditioning. Hematopoietic reconstitution was rapid,and an average of 18% +/- 8% and 15% +/- 7% GFP-positive granulocytes and monocytes,respectively,were observed 4 to 6 months after transplantation,consistent with the average vector copy number of 0.19 +/- 0.05 in peripheral blood leukocytes as determined by real-time PCR. Vector insertion site analysis demonstrated polyclonal reconstitution with vector-containing cells. SIV vectors appear promising for evaluating gene therapy approaches in nonhuman primate models. View Publication

NUP98-Hox fusion genes are newly identified oncogenes isolated in myeloid leukemias. Intriguingly,only Abd-B Hox genes have been reported as fusion partners,indicating that they may have unique overlapping leukemogenic properties. To address this hypothesis,we engineered novel NUP98 fusions with Hox genes not previously identified as fusion partners: the Abd-B-like gene HOXA10 and two Antennepedia-like genes,HOXB3 and HOXB4. Notably,NUP98-HOXA10 and NUP98-HOXB3 but not NUP98-HOXB4 induced leukemia in a murine transplant model,which is consistent with the reported leukemogenic potential ability of HOXA10 and HOXB3 but not HOXB4. Thus,the ability of Hox genes to induce leukemia as NUP98 fusion partners,although apparently redundant for Abd-B-like activity,is not restricted to this group,but rather is determined by the intrinsic leukemogenic potential of the Hox partner. We also show that the potent leukemogenic activity of Abd-B-like Hox genes is correlated with their strong ability to block hematopoietic differentiation. Conversely,coexpression of the Hox cofactor Meis1 alleviated the requirement of a strong intrinsic Hox-transforming potential to induce leukemia. Our results support a model in which many if not all Hox genes can be leukemogenic and point to striking functional overlap not previously appreciated,presumably reflecting common regulated pathways. View Publication

The development of immunodeficient mouse xenograft models has greatly facilitated the investigation of some human hematopoietic malignancies,but application of this approach to the myelodysplastic syndromes (MDSs) has proven difficult. We now show that cells from most MDS patients (including all subtypes) repopulate nonobese diabetic-severe combined immunodeficient (scid)/scid-beta2 microglobulin null (NOD/SCID-beta2m(-/-)) mice at least transiently and produce abnormal differentiation patterns in this model. Normal marrow transplants initially produce predominantly erythroid cells and later predominantly B-lymphoid cells in these mice,whereas most MDS samples produced predominantly granulopoietic cells. In 4 of 4 MDS cases,the regenerated cells showed the same clonal markers (trisomy 8,n = 3; and 5q-,n = 1) as the original sample and,in one instance,regenerated trisomy 8(+) B-lymphoid as well as myeloid cells were identified. Interestingly,the enhanced growth of normal marrow obtained in NOD/SCID-beta2m(-/-) mice engineered to produce human interleukin-3,granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor,and Steel factor was seen only with 1 of 7 MDS samples. These findings support the concept that human MDS originates in a transplantable multilineage hematopoietic stem cell whose genetic alteration may affect patterns of differentiation and responsiveness to hematopoietic growth factors. They also demonstrate the potential of this new murine xenotransplant model for future investigations of MDS. View Publication

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is characterized by the block of differentiation,deregulated apoptosis,and an increased self-renewal of hematopoietic precursors. It is unclear whether the self-renewal of leukemic blasts results from the cumulative effects of blocked differentiation and impaired apoptosis or whether there are mechanisms directly increasing self-renewal. The AML-associated translocation products (AATPs) promyelocytic leukemia/retinoic acid receptor alpha (PML/RAR alpha),promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger (PLZF)/RAR alpha (X-RAR alpha),and AML-1/ETO block hematopoietic differentiation. The AATPs activate the Wnt signaling by up-regulating gamma-catenin. Activation of the Wnt signaling augments self-renewal of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Therefore,we investigated how AATPs influence self-renewal of HSCs and evaluated the role of gamma-catenin in the determination of the phenotype of HSCs expressing AATPs. Here we show that the AATPs directly activate the gamma-catenin promoter. The crucial role of gamma-catenin in increasing the self-renewal of HSCs upon expression of AATPs is demonstrated by (i) the abrogation of replating efficiency upon hindrance of gamma-catenin expression through RNA interference,and (ii) the augmentation of replating efficiency of HSCs upon overexpression of gamma-catenin itself. In addition,the inoculation of gamma-catenin-transduced HSCs into irradiated recipient mice establishes the clinical picture of AML. These data provide the first evidence that the aberrant activation of Wnt signaling by the AATP decisively contributes to the pathogenesis of AML. View Publication

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are defined by their ability to repopulate all of the hematopoietic lineages in vivo and sustain the production of these cells for the life span of the individual. In the absence of reliable direct markers for HSCs,their identification and enumeration depends on functional long-term,multilineage,in vivo repopulation assays. The extremely low frequency of HSCs in any tissue and the absence of a specific HSC phenotype have made their purification and characterization a highly challenging goal. HSCs and primitive hematopoietic cells can be distinguished from mature blood cells by their lack of lineage-specific markers and presence of certain other cell-surface antigens,such as CD133 (for human cells) and c-kit and Sca-1 (for murine cells). Functional analyses of purified subpopulations of primitive hematopoietic cells have led to the development of several procedures for isolating cell populations that are highly enriched in cells with in vivo stem cell activity. Simplified methods for obtaining these cells at high yield have been important to the practical exploitation of such advances. This article reviews recent progress in identifying human and mouse HSCs and current techniques for their purification. View Publication

We previously reported a transgenic mouse model expressing herpesvirus thymidine kinase (TK) gene under the control of a 2.3-kilobase fragment of the rat collagen alpha1 type I promoter (Col2.3 Delta TK). This construct confers lineage-specific expression in developing osteoblasts,allowing the conditional ablation of osteoblast lineage after treatment with ganciclovir (GCV). After GCV treatment these mice have profound alterations on bone formation leading to a progressive bone loss. In addition,treated animals also lose bone marrow cellularity. In this report we characterized hematopoietic parameters in GCV-treated Col2.3 Delta TK mice,and we show that after treatment transgenic animals lose lymphoid,erythroid,and myeloid progenitors in the bone marrow,followed by decreases in the number of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Together with the decrease in bone marrow hematopoiesis,active extramedullary hematopoiesis was observed in the spleen and liver,as measured by an increase in peripheral HSCs and active primary in vitro hematopoiesis. After withdrawal of GCV,osteoblasts reappeared in the bone compartment together with a recovery of medullary and decrease in extramedullary hematopoiesis. These observations directly demonstrate the role of osteoblasts in hematopoiesis and provide a model to study the interactions between the mesenchymal and hematopoietic compartments in the marrow. View Publication