技术资料

Oncogenic Kit mutations are found in somatic gastrointestinal (GI) stromal tumors (GISTs) and mastocytosis. A mouse model for the study of constitutive activation of Kit in oncogenesis has been produced by a knock-in strategy introducing a Kit exon 11-activating mutation into the mouse genome based on a mutation found in a case of human familial GIST syndrome. Heterozygous mutant KitV558Delta/+ mice develop symptoms of disease and eventually die from pathology in the GI tract. Patchy hyperplasia of Kit-positive cells is evident within the myenteric plexus of the entire GI tract. Neoplastic lesions indistinguishable from human GISTs were observed in the cecum of the mutant mice with high penetrance. In addition,mast cell numbers in the dorsal skin were increased. Therefore KitV558Delta/+ mice reproduce human familial GISTs,and they may be used as a model for the study of the role and mechanisms of Kit in neoplasia. Importantly,these results demonstrate that constitutive Kit signaling is critical and sufficient for induction of GIST and hyperplasia of interstitial cells of Cajal. 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

Pathogen induced migration of neutrophils across mucosal epithelial barriers requires epithelial production of the chemotactic lipid mediator,hepoxilin A3 (HXA3). HXA3 is an eicosanoid derived from arachidonic acid. Although eosinophils are also capable of penetrating mucosal surfaces,eosinophilic infiltration occurs mainly during allergic processes whereas neutrophils dominate mucosal infection. Both neutrophils and eosinophils can respond to chemotactic gradients of certain eicosanoids,however,it is not known whether eosinophils respond to pathogen induced lipid mediators such as HXA3. In this study,neutrophils and eosinophils were isolated from human blood and placed on the basolateral side of polarized epithelial monolayers grown on permeable Transwell filters and challenged by various chemotactic gradients of distinct lipid mediators. We observed that both cell populations migrated across epithelial monolayers in response to a leukotriene B4 (LTB4) gradient,whereas only eosinophils migrated toward a prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) gradient. Interestingly,while pathogen induced neutrophil trans-epithelial migration was substantial,pathogen induced eosinophil trans-epithelial migration was not observed. Further,gradients of chemotactic lipids derived from pathogen infected epithelial cells known to be enriched for HXA3 as well as purified HXA3 drove significant numbers of neutrophils across epithelial barriers,whereas eosinophils failed to respond to these gradients. These data suggest that although the eicosanoid HXA3 serves as an important neutrophil chemo-attractant at mucosal surfaces during pathogenic infection,HXA3 does not appear to exhibit chemotactic activity toward eosinophils. ?? 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. View Publication

Mammalian presenilins (PS) consist of two highly homologous proteins,PS1 and PS2. Because of their indispensable activity in the gamma-secretase cleavage of amyloid precursor protein to generate Abeta peptides,inhibition of PS gamma-secretase activity is considered a potential therapy for Abeta blockage and Alzheimer's disease intervention. However,a variety of other substrates are also subject to PS-dependent processing,and it is thus imperative to understand the consequences of PS inactivation in vivo. Here we report a pivotal role of PS in hematopoiesis. Mice heterozygous for PS1 and homozygous for PS2 (PS1(+/)(-)PS2(-)(/)(-)) developed splenomegaly with severe granulocyte infiltration. This was preceded by an overrepresentation of granulocytic cells in the bone marrow and a greatly increased multipotent granulocyte-monocyte progenitor in the spleen. In contrast,hematopoietic stem cells and T- and B-lymphocytes were not affected. Importantly,treatment of wild-type splenocytes with a gamma-secretase inhibitor directly promoted the granulocyte-macrophage colony-forming unit (GM-CFU). These results establish a critical role of PS in myelopoiesis. Our finding that this activity can be directly modulated by its gamma-secretase activity has important safety implications concerning these inhibitors. View Publication

Mobile sensing based on the integration of microfluidic device and smartphone,so-called MS2 technology,has enabled many applications over recent years,and continues to stimulate growing interest in both research communities and industries. In particular,it has been envisioned that MS2 technology can be developed for various cell functional assays to enable basic research and clinical applications. Toward this direction,in this paper,we describe the development of a MS2-based cell functional assay for testing cell migration (the Mkit). The system is constructed as an integrated test kit,which includes microfluidic chips,a smartphone-based imaging platform,the phone apps for image capturing and data analysis,and a set of reagent and accessories for performing the cell migration assay. We demonstrated that the Mkit can effectively measure purified neutrophil and cancer cell chemotaxis. Furthermore,neutrophil chemotaxis can be tested from a drop of whole blood using the Mkit with red blood cell (RBC) lysis. The effects of chemoattractant dose and gradient profile on neutrophil chemotaxis were also tested using the Mkit. In addition to research applications,we demonstrated the effective use of the Mkit for on-site test at the hospital and for testing clinical samples from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patient. Thus,this developed Mkit provides an easy and integrated experimental platform for cell migration related research and potential medical diagnostic applications. View Publication

Severe congenital neutropenia (SCN) is an inborn disorder of granulopoiesis that in many cases is caused by mutations of the ELANE gene,which encodes neutrophil elastase (NE). Recent data suggest a model in which ELANE mutations result in NE protein misfolding,induction of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress,activation of the unfolded protein response (UPR),and ultimately a block in granulocytic differentiation. To test this model,we generated transgenic mice carrying a targeted mutation of Elane (G193X) reproducing a mutation found in SCN. The G193X Elane allele produces a truncated NE protein that is rapidly degraded. Granulocytic precursors from G193X Elane mice,though without significant basal UPR activation,are sensitive to chemical induction of ER stress. Basal and stress granulopoiesis after myeloablative therapy are normal in these mice. Moreover,inaction of protein kinase RNA-like ER kinase (Perk),one of the major sensors of ER stress,either alone or in combination with G193X Elane,had no effect on basal granulopoiesis. However,inhibition of the ER-associated degradation (ERAD) pathway using a proteosome inhibitor resulted in marked neutropenia in G193X Elane. The selective sensitivity of G913X Elane granulocytic cells to ER stress provides new and strong support for the UPR model of disease patho-genesis in SCN. View Publication

A large membrane proteinase 3 (mPR3)-positive neutrophil subset (mPR3high) is a risk for Wegener's granulomatosis (WG). The relationship between mPR3 expression and clinical manifestations was investigated in 81 WG patients and mPR3 expression was studied in CD34+ stem cell-derived human neutrophils. The mPR3high neutrophil percentage correlated with renal function,anemia,and albumin at the time of presentation. The mPR3high neutrophil percentage and renal failure severity correlated directly after 5 yr. For elucidating mechanisms that govern mPR3 expression,studies were conducted to determine whether the genetic information that governs mPR3 expression resides within the neutrophils,even without stimuli possibly related to disease. CD34+ hematopoietic stem cells were differentiated to neutrophils,and their mPR3 expression was determined. A two-step amplification/differentiation protocol was used to differentiate human CD34+ hematopoietic stem cells into neutrophils with G-CSF. The cells progressively expressed the neutrophil surface markers CD66b,CD35,and CD11b. The ferricytochrome C assay demonstrated a strong respiratory burst at day 14 in response to PMA but none at day 0. Intracellular PR3 was detectable from day 4 by Western blotting. An increasing percentage of a mPR3-positive neutrophil subset became detectable by flow cytometry,whereas a second subset remained negative,consistent with a bimodal expression. Finally,human PR3-anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibodies induced a stronger respiratory burst,compared with human control IgG in stem cell-derived neutrophils. Taken together,these studies underscore the clinical importance of the WG mPR3 phenotype. The surface mPR3 on resting cells is probably genetically determined rather than being dictated by external factors. View Publication

Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) are critical for the formation,maintenance,and resolution of bacterial abscesses. However,the mechanisms that regulate PMN survival and proliferation during the evolution of an abscess are not well defined. Using a mouse model of Staphylococcus aureus abscess formation within a cutaneous wound,combined with real-time imaging of genetically tagged PMNs,we observed that a high bacterial burden elicited a sustained mobilization of PMNs from the bone marrow to the infected wound,where their lifespan was markedly extended. A continuous rise in wound PMN number,which was not accounted for by trafficking from the bone marrow or by prolonged survival,was correlated with the homing of c-kit(+)-progenitor cells from the blood to the wound,where they proliferated and formed mature PMNs. Furthermore,by blocking their recruitment with an antibody to c-kit,which severely limited the proliferation of mature PMNs in the wound and shortened mouse survival,we confirmed that progenitor cells are not only important contributors to PMN expansion in the wound,but are also functionally important for immune protection. We conclude that the abscess environment provides a niche capable of regulating PMN survival and local proliferation of bone marrow-derived c-kit(+)-progenitor cells. View Publication

The FIP1L1-PDGFRA fusion is seen in a fraction of cases with a presumptive diagnosis of hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES). However,because most HES patients lack FIP1L1-PDGFRA,we studied whether they harbor activating mutations of the PDGFRA gene. Sequencing of 87 FIP1L1-PDGFRA-negative HES patients revealed several novel PDGFRA point mutations (R481G,L507P,I562M,H570R,H650Q,N659S,L705P,R748G,and Y849S). When cloned into 32D cells,N659S and Y849S and-on selection for high expressors-also H650Q and R748G mutants induced growth factor-independent proliferation,clonogenic growth,and constitutive phosphorylation of PDGFRA and Stat5. Imatinib antagonized Stat5 phosphorylation. Mutations involving positions 659 and 849 had been shown previously to possess transforming potential in gastrointestinal stromal tumors. Because H650Q and R748G mutants possessed only weak transforming activity,we injected 32D cells harboring these mutants or FIP1L1-PDGFRA into mice and found that they induced a leukemia-like disease. Oral imatinib treatment significantly decreased leukemic growth in vivo and prolonged survival. In conclusion,our data provide evidence that imatinib-sensitive PDGFRA point mutations play an important role in the pathogenesis of HES and we propose that more research should be performed to further define the frequency and treatment response of PDGFRA mutations in FIP1L1-PDGFRA-negative HES patients. View Publication

BACKGROUND: Basophils are increasingly utilized as indicators of allergic inflammation and as primary allergic effector cells to study signalling pathways. However,until the present,their enrichment has been time consuming,costly and limited to relatively few specialized laboratories. OBJECTIVE: We have therefore devised a reproducible and rapid method for the purification of human basophils from small quantities of peripheral blood within 1.5 h,which does not require the use of specialized equipment such as elutriators. METHODS: Human basophils were obtained from healthy volunteers undergoing venipuncture. Heparinized or K3-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid blood samples were first subjected to centrifugation in Hetasep,directly followed by negative selection using immunomagnetic beads. Basophil morphology and purity were assessed by May-Grünwald staining of cytospins. IgE-mediated histamine release was analysed spectrofluorometrically and IL-4 and IL-13 production by quantitative RT-PCR. CD203c and CD63 surface expression was measured using flow cytometry before and after activation with anti-IgE. RESULTS: Using this protocol,basophils were enriched close to homogeneity in most cases with a mean purity of 99.34+/-0.88% (range 97-100%,n=18) and a mean recovery of 75.6 (range 39-100%,n=8). Basophil viability following purification was 99.6+/-0.89% using Trypan blue exclusion. The purification procedure gave rise to basophils with normal functional responses to anti-IgE regarding histamine release as well as IL-4 and IL-13 mRNA expression. Moreover,constitutive cell-surface CD203c/CD63 expressions were not elevated before anti-IgE stimulation. CONCLUSION: The rapidity,simplicity and reproducibility of this method will facilitate the employment of basophils in high-output ex vivo studies. View Publication