技术资料

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) have been identified in a variety of cancers and emerged as a new target for cancer therapy. CSCs are resistant to many current cancer treatments,including chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Therefore,eradication of this cell population is a primary objective in cancer therapy. Here,we report gold nanorods (AuNRs) mediated photothermal treatment can selectively eliminate CSCs in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. It significantly reduced the aldehyde dehydrogenase positive (ALDH(+)) cells subpopulation and the mammosphere formation ability of treated cells. Also,the gene expression of stem cell markers was decreased. Cellular uptake assay revealed that polyelectrolyte conjugated AuNRs could be internalized by CSCs much more and faster than non cancer stem cells (NCSCs),which might be the main reason for the selective elimination of CSCs. We further loaded salinomycin (SA),a CSCs inhibitor with polyelectrolyte conjugated AuNRs to get a synergistic CSCs inhibition. Enhanced inhibition of CSCs was obtained by NIR light triggered drug release and hyperthermia. This CSCs-targeted thermo-chemotherapy platform provides a new combinatorial strategy for efficient inhibition of CSCs,which is promising to improve cancer treatment and may overcome the chemoresistance and recurrence of cancer. View Publication

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a promising target for treating cancer,yet how CSC plasticity is maintained in vivo is unclear and is difficult to study in vitro. Here we establish a sustainable primary culture of Oct3/4(+)/Nanog(+) lung CSCs fed with CD90(+) cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) to further advance our knowledge of preserving stem cells in the tumour microenvironment. Using transcriptomics we identify the paracrine network by which CAFs enrich CSCs through de-differentiation and reacquisition of stem cell-like properties. Specifically,we find that IGF1R signalling activation in cancer cells in the presence of CAFs expressing IGF-II can induce Nanog expression and promote stemness. Moreover,this paracrine signalling predicts overall and relapse-free survival in stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. IGF-II/IGF1R signalling blockade inhibits Nanog expression and attenuates cancer stem cell features. Our data demonstrate that CAFs constitute a supporting niche for cancer stemness,and targeting this paracrine signalling may present a new therapeutic strategy for NSCLC. View Publication

GANT61 is a small-molecule inhibitor of glioma-associated oncogene 1 (GLI1)- and GLI2-mediated transcription at the nuclear level that exerts its effect by preventing DNA binding. It has been demonstrated to induce cell death against Ewing's sarcoma family tumor (ESFT) cell lines in a dose-dependent manner. The most sensitive cell line was SK-N-LO,which expresses the EWS-FLI1 fusion gene. SK-N-LO cells treated with GANT61 showed cellular and nuclear morphological changes,including cell shrinkage,chromatin condensation and nuclear fragmentation,in a concentration-dependent manner,as visualized by Hoechst 33342 staining. Furthermore,annexin V-propidium iodide (PI) double-staining revealed a significant increase in the number of late apoptotic cells. GANT61 induced a significant decrease in the proportion of cells in the S phase. Significant decrease of the protein levels of GLI2,survivin,cyclin A and claspin,and significant increase of p21 expression was also observed in the cells treated with GANT61. Moreover,poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) cleavage was observed,but no cleavage of caspase-3 or -7,or any change in the expressions of Bcl-2 or p53 were observed. These findings suggest that GANT61 induces cell death of SK-N-LO cells in a caspase-independent manner,by inhibiting DNA replication in the S phase. View Publication

A two-step separation procedure is described for the positive selection of cells based on their reactivity with mouse monoclonal antibodies. In the first step cells are specifically cross-linked to hapten-modified glass beads using tetrameric monoclonal antibody complexes. In the second step bound cells are selectively eluted by reductive cleavage of the tetrameric antibody complexes. The latter are comprised of two mouse IgG1 monoclonal antibodies (one recognizing a cell surface antigen on target cells and the other a hapten coupled to the glass beads) bound together by two F(ab')2 fragments of rat anti-mouse IgG1 monoclonal antibody. The complexes provide a specific cleavable cross-link between cell and bead because the disulfide bonds between the two Fab' arms of the F(ab')2 fragments can be broken under relatively mild conditions using dithiothreitol. This specific cleavage of the cross-linker allows elution of the specifically absorbed cells without co-elution of non-specifically bound cells. This is shown in the purification of CD3+ T cells from human peripheral blood,where the removed fractions were over 90% pure and approximately 50% of the positive cells were recovered. Separation of cells labelled with limiting amounts of tetrameric antibody complexes demonstrated that this separation technique was also effective for the purification of cells expressing low amounts of antigens. This was confirmed by the purification of CD34-positive cells from human bone marrow. With this approach,colony-forming cells were enriched 15-24-fold over density separated marrow. View Publication

Emerging studies suggested that murine podoplanin-positive monocytes (PPMs) are involved in lymphangiogenesis. The goal of this study was to demonstrate the therapeutic lymphangiogenesis of human PPMs by the interaction with platelets. Aggregation culture of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) resulted in cellular aggregates termed hematospheres. During 5-day culture,PPMs expanded exponentially and expressed several lymphatic endothelial cell-specific markers including vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)-3 and well-established lymphangiogenic transcription factors. Next,we investigated the potential interaction of PPMs with platelets that had C-type lectin-like receptor-2 (CLEC-2),a receptor of podoplanin. In vitro coculture of PPMs and platelets stimulated PPMs to strongly express lymphatic endothelial markers and upregulate lymphangiogenic cytokines. Recombinant human CLEC-2 also stimulated PPMs through Akt and Erk signaling. Likewise,platelets in coculture with PPMs augmented secretion of a lymphangiogenic cytokine,interleukin (IL)-1-β,via podoplanin/CLEC-2 axis. The supernatant obtained from coculture was able to enhance the migration,viability,and proliferation of lymphatic endothelial cell. Local injection of hematospheres with platelets significantly increased lymphatic neovascularization and facilitated wound healing in the full-thickness skin wounds of nude mice. Cotreatment with PPMs and platelets augments lymphangiogenesis through podoplanin/CLEC-2 axis,which thus would be a promising novel strategy of cell therapy to treat human lymphatic vessel disease. View Publication

Although modulation of protein levels is an important tool for study of protein function,it is difficult or impossible to knockdown or knockout genes that are critical for cell growth or viability. For such genes,a conditional knockdown approach would be valuable. The FKBP protein-based destabilization domain (DD)-tagging approach,which confers instability to the tagged protein in the absence of the compound Shield-1,has been shown to provide rapid control of protein levels determined by Shield-1 concentration. Although a strategy to knock-in DD-tagged protein at the endogenous loci has been employed in certain parasite studies,partly due to the relative ease of knock-in as a result of their mostly haploid lifecycles,this strategy has not been demonstrated in diploid or hyperploid mammalian cells due to the relative difficulty of achieving complete knock-in in all alleles. The recent advent of CRISPR/Cas9 homing endonuclease-mediated targeted genome cleavage has been shown to allow highly efficient homologous recombination at the targeted locus. We therefore assessed the feasibility of using CRISPR/Cas9 to achieve complete knock-in to DD-tag the essential gene Treacher Collins-Franceschetti syndrome 1 (TCOF1) in human 293T cells. Using a double antibiotic selection strategy to select clones with at least two knock-in alleles,we obtained numerous complete knock-in clones within three weeks of initial transfection. DD-TCOF1 expression in the knock-in cells was Shield-1 concentration-dependent,and removal of Shield-1 resulted in destabilization of DD-TCOF1 over the course of hours. We further confirmed that the tagged TCOF1 retained the nucleolar localization of the wild-type untagged protein,and that destabilization of DD-TCOF1 resulted in impaired cell growth,as expected for a gene implicated in ribosome biogenesis. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated homologous recombination to completely knock-in a DD tag likely represents a generalizable and efficient strategy to achieve rapid modulation of protein levels in mammalian cells. View Publication

Stem cells,especially human embryonic stem cells (hESCs),are useful models to study molecular mechanisms of human disorders that originate during gestation. Alcohol (ethanol,EtOH) consumption during pregnancy causes a variety of prenatal and postnatal disorders collectively referred to as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). To better understand the molecular events leading to FASDs,we performed a genome-wide analysis of EtOH's effects on the maintenance and differentiation of hESCs in culture. Gene Co-expression Network Analysis showed significant alterations in gene profiles of EtOH-treated differentiated or undifferentiated hESCs,particularly those associated with molecular pathways for metabolic processes,oxidative stress,and neuronal properties of stem cells. A genome-wide DNA methylome analysis revealed widespread EtOH-induced alterations with significant hypermethylation of many regions of chromosomes. Undifferentiated hESCs were more vulnerable to EtOH's effect than their differentiated counterparts,with methylation on the promoter regions of chromosomes 2,16 and 18 in undifferentiated hESCs most affected by EtOH exposure. Combined transcriptomic and DNA methylomic analysis produced a list of differentiation-related genes dysregulated by EtOH-induced DNA methylation changes,which likely play a role in EtOH-induced decreases in hESC pluripotency. DNA sequence motif analysis of genes epigenetically altered by EtOH identified major motifs representing potential binding sites for transcription factors. These findings should help in deciphering the precise mechanisms of alcohol-induced teratogenesis. ?? 2014 Published by Elsevier B.V. View Publication

Cord blood (CB) cells that express CD34 have extensive hematopoietic capacity and rapidly divide ex vivo in the presence of cytokine combinations; however,many of these CB CD34+ cells lose their marrow-repopulating potential. To overcome this decline in function,we treated dividing CB CD34+ cells ex vivo with several histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACIs). Treatment of CB CD34+ cells with the most active HDACI,valproic acid (VPA),following an initial 16-hour cytokine priming,increased the number of multipotent cells (CD34+CD90+) generated; however,the degree of expansion was substantially greater in the presence of both VPA and cytokines for a full 7 days. Treated CD34+ cells were characterized based on the upregulation of pluripotency genes,increased aldehyde dehydrogenase activity,and enhanced expression of CD90,c-Kit (CD117),integrin α6 (CD49f),and CXCR4 (CD184). Furthermore,siRNA-mediated inhibition of pluripotency gene expression reduced the generation of CD34+CD90+ cells by 89%. Compared with CB CD34+ cells,VPA-treated CD34+ cells produced a greater number of SCID-repopulating cells and established multilineage hematopoiesis in primary and secondary immune-deficient recipient mice. These data indicate that dividing CB CD34+ cells can be epigenetically reprogrammed by treatment with VPA so as to generate greater numbers of functional CB stem cells for use as transplantation grafts. View Publication

The transfer of somatic cell nuclei into oocytes can give rise to pluripotent stem cells that are consistently equivalent to embryonic stem cells,holding promise for autologous cell replacement therapy. Although methods to induce pluripotent stem cells from somatic cells by transcription factors are widely used in basic research,numerous differences between induced pluripotent stem cells and embryonic stem cells have been reported,potentially affecting their clinical use. Because of the therapeutic potential of diploid embryonic stem-cell lines derived from adult cells of diseased human subjects,we have systematically investigated the parameters affecting efficiency of blastocyst development and stem-cell derivation. Here we show that improvements to the oocyte activation protocol,including the use of both kinase and translation inhibitors,and cell culture in the presence of histone deacetylase inhibitors,promote development to the blastocyst stage. Developmental efficiency varied between oocyte donors,and was inversely related to the number of days of hormonal stimulation required for oocyte maturation,whereas the daily dose of gonadotropin or the total number of metaphase II oocytes retrieved did not affect developmental outcome. Because the use of concentrated Sendai virus for cell fusion induced an increase in intracellular calcium concentration,causing premature oocyte activation,we used diluted Sendai virus in calcium-free medium. Using this modified nuclear transfer protocol,we derived diploid pluripotent stem-cell lines from somatic cells of a newborn and,for the first time,an adult,a female with type 1 diabetes. View Publication

Human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC)-derived endothelial lineage cells constitutes a promising source for therapeutic revascularization,but progress in this arena has been hampered by a lack of clinically-scalable differentiation protocols and inefficient formation of a functional vessel network integrating with the host circulation upon transplantation. Using a human embryonic stem cell reporter cell line,where green fluorescent protein expression is driven by an endothelial cell-specific VE-cadherin (VEC) promoter,we screened for textgreater 60 bioactive small molecules that would promote endothelial differentiation,and found that administration of BMP4 and a GSK-3β inhibitor in an early phase and treatment with VEGF-A and inhibition of the Notch signaling pathway in a later phase led to efficient differentiation of hPSCs to the endothelial lineage within six days. This sequential approach generated textgreater 50% conversion of hPSCs to endothelial cells (ECs),specifically VEC(+)CD31(+)CD34(+)CD14(-)KDR(high) endothelial progenitors (EPs) that exhibited higher angiogenic and clonogenic proliferation potential among endothelial lineage cells. Pharmaceutical inhibition or genetical knockdown of Notch signaling,in combination with VEGF-A treatment,resulted in efficient formation of EPs via KDR(+) mesodermal precursors and blockade of the conversion of EPs to mature ECs. The generated EPs successfully formed functional capillary vessels in vivo with anastomosis to the host vessels when transplanted into immunocompromised mice. Manipulation of this VEGF-A-Notch signaling circuit in our protocol leads to rapid large-scale production of the hPSC-derived EPs by 12- to 20-fold vs current methods,which may serve as an attractive cell population for regenerative vascularization with superior vessel forming capability compared to mature ECs. View Publication

Recently,induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) were established as promising cell sources for revolutionary regenerative therapies. The initial culture system used for iPSC generation needed fetal calf serum in the culture medium and mouse embryonic fibroblast as a feeder layer,both of which could possibly transfer unknown exogenous antigens and pathogens into the iPSC population. Therefore,the development of culture systems designed to minimize such potential risks has become increasingly vital for future applications of iPSCs for clinical use. On another front,although donor cell types for generating iPSCs are wide-ranging,T cells have attracted attention as unique cell sources for iPSCs generation because T cell-derived iPSCs (TiPSCs) have a unique monoclonal T cell receptor genomic rearrangement that enables their differentiation into antigen-specific T cells,which can be applied to novel immunotherapies. In the present study,we generated transgene-free human TiPSCs using a combination of activated human T cells and Sendai virus under defined culture conditions. These TiPSCs expressed pluripotent markers by quantitative PCR and immunostaining,had a normal karyotype,and were capable of differentiating into cells from all three germ layers. This method of TiPSCs generation is more suitable for the therapeutic application of iPSC technology because it lowers the risks associated with the presence of undefined,animal-derived feeder cells and serum. Therefore this work will lead to establishment of safer iPSCs and extended clinical application. View Publication

Human induced pluripotent stem (hiPS) cell lines with tissue-specific or ubiquitous reporter genes are extremely useful for optimizing in vitro differentiation conditions as well as for monitoring transplanted cells in vivo. The adeno-associated virus integration site 1 (AAVS1) locus has been used as a safe harbor" locus for inserting transgenes because of its open chromatin structure� View Publication