THIP, a hypnotic and antinociceptive drug, enhances a tonic GABAA receptor mediated conductance in mouse neocortex

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Drasbek, Kim Ryun; Jensen, Kimmo

2006-01-01

its cellular actions in the neocortex are uncertain, we studied the effects of THIP on neurons in slices of frontoparietal neocortex of 13- to 19-day-old (P13-19) mice. Using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings, we found that the clinically relevant THIP concentration of 1 μM induced a robust tonic GABA...... suggest that THIP activates an extrasynaptic GABA(A) receptor-mediated conductance in the neocortex, which may alter the cortical network activity....

Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells into Ventral Foregut Precursors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rothová, Michaela; Hölzenspies, Jurriaan J; Livigni, Alessandra

2016-01-01

Anterior definitive endoderm (ADE), the ventral foregut precursor, is both an important embryonic signaling center and a unique multipotent precursor of liver, pancreas, and other organs. Here, a method is described for the differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) to definitive...... endoderm with pronounced anterior character. ADE-containing cultures can be produced in vitro by suspension (embryoid body) culture or in a serum-free adherent monolayer culture. ESC-derived ADE cells are committed to endodermal fates and can undergo further differentiation in vitro towards ventral foregut...

Thalidomide induced early gene expression perturbations indicative of human embryopathy in mouse embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao, Xiugong; Sprando, Robert L.; Yourick, Jeffrey J.

2015-01-01

Developmental toxicity testing has traditionally relied on animal models which are costly, time consuming, and require the sacrifice of large numbers of animals. In addition, there are significant disparities between human beings and animals in their responses to chemicals. Thalidomide is a species-specific developmental toxicant that causes severe limb malformations in humans but not in mice. Here, we used microarrays to study transcriptomic changes induced by thalidomide in an in vitro model based on differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). C57BL/6 mESCs were allowed to differentiate spontaneously and RNA was collected at 24, 48, and 72 h after exposure to 0.25 mM thalidomide. Global gene expression analysis using microarrays revealed hundreds of differentially expressed genes upon thalidomide exposure that were enriched in gene ontology (GO) terms and canonical pathways associated with embryonic development and differentiation. In addition, many genes were found to be involved in small GTPases-mediated signal transduction, heart development, and inflammatory responses, which coincide with clinical evidences and may represent critical embryotoxicities of thalidomide. These results demonstrate that transcriptomics in combination with mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation is a promising alternative model for developmental toxicity assessment. - Highlights: • Studied genomic changes in mouse embryonic stem cells upon thalidomide exposure • Identified gene expression changes that may represent thalidomide embryotoxicity • The toxicogenomic changes coincide well with known thalidomide clinical outcomes. • The mouse embryonic stem cell model is suitable for developmental toxicity testing. • The model has the potential for high-throughput screening of a multitude of compounds

Thalidomide induced early gene expression perturbations indicative of human embryopathy in mouse embryonic stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gao, Xiugong, E-mail: xiugong.gao@fda.hhs.gov; Sprando, Robert L.; Yourick, Jeffrey J.

2015-08-15

Developmental toxicity testing has traditionally relied on animal models which are costly, time consuming, and require the sacrifice of large numbers of animals. In addition, there are significant disparities between human beings and animals in their responses to chemicals. Thalidomide is a species-specific developmental toxicant that causes severe limb malformations in humans but not in mice. Here, we used microarrays to study transcriptomic changes induced by thalidomide in an in vitro model based on differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). C57BL/6 mESCs were allowed to differentiate spontaneously and RNA was collected at 24, 48, and 72 h after exposure to 0.25 mM thalidomide. Global gene expression analysis using microarrays revealed hundreds of differentially expressed genes upon thalidomide exposure that were enriched in gene ontology (GO) terms and canonical pathways associated with embryonic development and differentiation. In addition, many genes were found to be involved in small GTPases-mediated signal transduction, heart development, and inflammatory responses, which coincide with clinical evidences and may represent critical embryotoxicities of thalidomide. These results demonstrate that transcriptomics in combination with mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation is a promising alternative model for developmental toxicity assessment. - Highlights: • Studied genomic changes in mouse embryonic stem cells upon thalidomide exposure • Identified gene expression changes that may represent thalidomide embryotoxicity • The toxicogenomic changes coincide well with known thalidomide clinical outcomes. • The mouse embryonic stem cell model is suitable for developmental toxicity testing. • The model has the potential for high-throughput screening of a multitude of compounds.

Mouse oocytes nucleoli rescue embryonic development of porcine enucleolated oocytes.

Science.gov (United States)

Morovic, Martin; Strejcek, Frantisek; Nakagawa, Shoma; Deshmukh, Rahul S; Murin, Matej; Benc, Michal; Fulka, Helena; Kyogoku, Hirohisa; Pendovski, Lazo; Fulka, Josef; Laurincik, Jozef

2017-12-01

It is well known that nucleoli of fully grown mammalian oocytes are indispensable for embryonic development. Therefore, the embryos originated from previously enucleolated (ENL) oocytes undergo only one or two cleavages and then their development ceases. In our study the interspecies (mouse/pig) nucleolus transferred embryos (NuTE) were produced and their embryonic development was analyzed by autoradiography, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and immunofluorescence (C23 and upstream binding factor (UBF)). Our results show that the re-injection of isolated oocyte nucleoli, either from the pig (P + P) or mouse (P + M), into previously enucleolated and subsequently matured porcine oocytes rescues their development after parthenogenetic activation and some of these develop up to the blastocyst stage (P + P, 11.8%; P + M, 13.5%). In nucleolus re-injected 8-cell and blastocyst stage embryos the number of nucleoli labeled with C23 in P + P and P + M groups was lower than in control (non-manipulated) group. UBF was localized in small foci within the nucleoli of blastocysts in control and P + P embryos, however, in P + M embryos the labeling was evenly distributed in the nucleoplasm. The TEM and autoradiographic evaluations showed the formation of functional nucleoli and de novo rRNA synthesis at the 8-cell stage in both, control and P + P group. In the P + M group the formation of comparable nucleoli was delayed. In conclusion, our results indicate that the mouse nucleolus can rescue embryonic development of enucleolated porcine oocytes, but the localization of selected nucleolar proteins, the timing of transcription activation and the formation of the functional nucleoli in NuTE compared with control group show evident aberrations.

Embryonic Lethality of Mitochondrial Pyruvate Carrier 1 Deficient Mouse Can Be Rescued by a Ketogenic Diet

OpenAIRE

Vanderperre, Beno?t; Herzig, S?bastien; Krznar, Petra; H?rl, Manuel; Ammar, Zeinab; Montessuit, Sylvie; Pierredon, Sandra; Zamboni, Nicola; Martinou, Jean-Claude

2016-01-01

Mitochondrial import of pyruvate by the mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) is a central step which links cytosolic and mitochondrial intermediary metabolism. To investigate the role of the MPC in mammalian physiology and development, we generated a mouse strain with complete loss of MPC1 expression. This resulted in embryonic lethality at around E13.5. Mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) derived from mutant mice displayed defective pyruvate-driven respiration as well as perturbed metabolic p...

Comparison of the metabolic activation of environmental carcinogens in mouse embryonic stem cells and mouse embryonic fibroblasts

Science.gov (United States)

Krais, Annette M.; Mühlbauer, Karl-Rudolf; Kucab, Jill E.; Chinbuah, Helena; Cornelius, Michael G.; Wei, Quan-Xiang; Hollstein, Monica; Phillips, David H.; Arlt, Volker M.; Schmeiser, Heinz H.

2015-01-01

We compared mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells and fibroblasts (MEFs) for their ability to metabolically activate the environmental carcinogens benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), 3-nitrobenzanthrone (3-NBA) and aristolochic acid I (AAI), measuring DNA adduct formation by 32P-postlabelling and expression of xenobiotic-metabolism genes by quantitative real-time PCR. At 2 μM, BaP induced Cyp1a1 expression in MEFs to a much greater extent than in ES cells and formed 45 times more adducts. Nqo1 mRNA expression was increased by 3-NBA in both cell types but induction was higher in MEFs, as was adduct formation. For AAI, DNA binding was over 450 times higher in MEFs than in ES cells, although Nqo1 and Cyp1a1 transcriptional levels did not explain this difference. We found higher global methylation of DNA in ES cells than in MEFs, which suggests higher chromatin density and lower accessibility of the DNA to DNA damaging agents in ES cells. However, AAI treatment did not alter DNA methylation. Thus mouse ES cells and MEFs have the metabolic competence to activate a number of environmental carcinogens, but MEFs have lower global DNA methylation and higher metabolic capacity than mouse ES cells. PMID:25230394

Inference of Transcriptional Network for Pluripotency in Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aburatani, S

2015-01-01

In embryonic stem cells, various transcription factors (TFs) maintain pluripotency. To gain insights into the regulatory system controlling pluripotency, I inferred the regulatory relationships between the TFs expressed in ES cells. In this study, I applied a method based on structural equation modeling (SEM), combined with factor analysis, to 649 expression profiles of 19 TF genes measured in mouse Embryonic Stem Cells (ESCs). The factor analysis identified 19 TF genes that were regulated by several unmeasured factors. Since the known cell reprogramming TF genes (Pou5f1, Sox2 and Nanog) are regulated by different factors, each estimated factor is considered to be an input for signal transduction to control pluripotency in mouse ESCs. In the inferred network model, TF proteins were also arranged as unmeasured factors that control other TFs. The interpretation of the inferred network model revealed the regulatory mechanism for controlling pluripotency in ES cells

In vitro differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells into functional ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Studies have shown that embryonic stem (ES) cells can be successfully differentiated into liver cells, which offer the potential unlimited cell source for a variety of end-stage liver disease. In our study, in order to induce mouse ES cells to differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells under chemically defined conditions, ES cells ...

Pluripotent State Induction in Mouse Embryonic Fibroblast Using mRNAs of Reprogramming Factors

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Ahmed Kamel El-Sayed

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Reprogramming of somatic cells has great potential to provide therapeutic treatments for a number of diseases as well as provide insight into mechanisms underlying early embryonic development. Improvement of induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs generation through mRNA-based methods is currently an area of intense research. This approach provides a number of advantages over previously used methods such as DNA integration and insertional mutagenesis. Using transfection of specifically synthesized mRNAs of various pluripotency factors, we generated iPSCs from mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF cells. The genetic, epigenetic and functional properties of the iPSCs were evaluated at different times during the reprogramming process. We successfully introduced synthesized mRNAs, which localized correctly inside the cells and exhibited efficient and stable translation into proteins. Our work demonstrated a robust up-regulation and a gradual promoter de-methylation of the pluripotency markers, including non-transfected factors such as Nanog, SSEA-1 (stage-specific embryonic antigen 1 and Rex-1 (ZFP-42, zinc finger protein 42. Using embryonic stem cells (ESCs conditions to culture the iPS cells resulted in formation of ES-like colonies after approximately 12 days with only five daily repeated transfections. The colonies were positive for alkaline phosphatase and pluripotency-specific markers associated with ESCs. This study revealed the ability of pluripotency induction and generation of mouse mRNA induced pluripotent stem cells (mRNA iPSCs using transfection of specifically synthesized mRNAs of various pluripotency factors into mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF cells. These generated iPSCs exhibited molecular and functional properties similar to ESCs, which indicate that this method is an efficient and viable alternative to ESCs and can be used for further biological, developmental and therapeutic investigations.

Cultured embryonic non-innervated mouse muzzle is capable of generating a whisker pattern.

Science.gov (United States)

Andrés, F L; Van Der Loos, H

1983-01-01

The whisker pattern on the muzzle of the mouse is mapped in the contralateral parietal neocortex, each whisker follicle projecting to its own multineuronal unit ('barrel'). To determine the role, if any, of the peripheral innervation in the establishment of the vibrissal array, we cultured non-innervated prospective whiskerpads from 9- and 10-day-old embryos, mostly on chorioallantoic membrane. The results show that skin, alone, is capable of generating the whisker pattern, thus adducing a strong argument for the hypothesis that the central brain maps have their origin in the periphery. Copyright © 1983. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

DGCR8 Promotes Neural Progenitor Expansion and Represses Neurogenesis in the Mouse Embryonic Neocortex

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Nadin Hoffmann

2018-04-01

Full Text Available DGCR8 and DROSHA are the minimal functional core of the Microprocessor complex essential for biogenesis of canonical microRNAs and for the processing of other RNAs. Conditional deletion of Dgcr8 and Drosha in the murine telencephalon indicated that these proteins exert crucial functions in corticogenesis. The identification of mechanisms of DGCR8- or DROSHA-dependent regulation of gene expression in conditional knockout mice are often complicated by massive apoptosis. Here, to investigate DGCR8 functions on amplification/differentiation of neural progenitors cells (NPCs in corticogenesis, we overexpress Dgcr8 in the mouse telencephalon, by in utero electroporation (IUEp. We find that DGCR8 promotes the expansion of NPC pools and represses neurogenesis, in absence of apoptosis, thus overcoming the usual limitations of Dgcr8 knockout-based approach. Interestingly, DGCR8 selectively promotes basal progenitor amplification at later developmental stages, entailing intriguing implications for neocortical expansion in evolution. Finally, despite a 3- to 5-fold increase of DGCR8 level in the mouse telencephalon, the composition, target preference and function of the DROSHA-dependent Microprocessor complex remain unaltered. Thus, we propose that DGCR8-dependent modulation of gene expression in corticogenesis is more complex than previously known, and possibly DROSHA-independent.

Impact of 2-bromopropane on mouse embryonic stem cells and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study shows that 2-BP (5 to 10 μM) induces apoptotic processes in mouse embryonic stem cells (ESC-B5), but exerts no effects at treatment dosages below 5 μM. In ESC-B5 cells, 2-BP directly increased the content of reactive oxygen species (ROS), significantly increased the cytoplasmic free calcium and nitric oxide ...

[Activation of nucleolar organizers during in vitro cultivation of mouse R1 embryonic stem cells].

Science.gov (United States)

Kunafina, E R; Chaplina, M V; Filiasova, E I; Gibanova, N V; Khodarovich, Iu M; Larionov, O A; Zatsepina, O V

2005-01-01

We studies the activities of ribosomal genes (nucleolus forming regions of chromosomes) at successive stages of cultivation of the mouse R1 embryonic stem cells. The total number and number of active nucleolar organizers were estimated by means of in situ hybridization with mouse rDNA probes and argentophilic staining of nucleolus forming chromosomes regions from the 16th until the 32nd passages. The data we obtained suggest that the total number of nucleolar organizers per metaphase plate was constant (as a rule, eight), while the mean number of active nucleolar organizers progressively increased from the early (16th) to the late (32nd) passages: 5.2 +/- 0.4 versus 7.4 +/- 0.9 argentophilic organizers per cell. Cell heterogeneity by the number of active nucleolar organizers also increased during the late passages. Taken together, these data suggest activation of DNA transcription and synthesis of ribosomes during cultivation of mouse R1 embryonic stem cells. Based on the experimental and published data, it has been proposed that activation of ribosomal genes correlates in time with a decreased capacity of embryonic stem cells for pluripotent differentiation.

The building of the neocortex with non-hyperpolarizing neurotransmitters.

Science.gov (United States)

Ascenzi, Matteo; Bony, Guillaume

2017-09-01

The development of the neocortex requires the synergic action of several secreted molecules to achieve the right amount of proliferation, differentiation, and migration of neural cells. Neurons are well known to release neurotransmitters (NTs) in adult and a growing body of evidences describes the presence of NTs already in the embryonic brain, long before the generation of synapses. NTs are classified as inhibitory or excitatory based on the physiological responses of the target neuron. However, this view is challenged by the fact that glycine and GABA NTs are excitatory during development. Many reviews have described the role of nonhyperpolarizing GABA at this stage. Nevertheless, a global consideration of the inhibitory neurotransmitters and their downstream signaling during the embryonic cortical development is still needed. For example, taurine, the most abundant neurotransmitter during development is poorly studied regarding its role during cortical development. In the light of recent discoveries, we will discuss the functions of glycine, GABA, and taurine during embryonic cortical development with an emphasis on their downstream signaling. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 77: 1023-1037, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Rab3 proteins involved in vesicle biogenesis and priming in embryonic mouse chromaffin cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schonn, Jean-Sébastien; van Weering, Jan R T; Mohrmann, Ralf

2010-01-01

The four Rab3 paralogs A-D are involved in exocytosis, but their mechanisms of action are hard to study due to functional redundancy. Here we used a quadruple Rab3 knock-out (rab3a, rab3b, rab3c, rab3d null, here denoted ABCD(-/-)) mouse line to investigate Rab3 function in embryonic mouse adrena...

Mouse Rad9b is essential for embryonic development and promotes resistance to DNA damage

Science.gov (United States)

Leloup, Corinne; Hopkins, Kevin M.; Wang, Xiangyuan; Zhu, Aiping; Wolgemuth, Debra J.; Lieberman, Howard B.

2010-01-01

RAD9 participates in promoting resistance to DNA damage, cell cycle checkpoint control, DNA repair, apoptosis, embryogenesis, and regulation of transcription. A paralogue of RAD9 (named RAD9B) has been identified. To define the function of mouse Rad9b (Mrad9b), embryonic stem (ES) cells with a targeted gene deletion were constructed and used to generate Mrad9b mutant mice. Mrad9b−/− embryos are resorbed after E7.5 while some of the heterozygotes die between E12.5 and a few days after birth. Mrad9b is expressed in embryonic brain and Mrad9b+/− embryos exhibit abnormal neural tube closure. Mrad9b−/− mouse embryonic fibroblasts are not viable. Mrad9b−/− ES cells are more sensitive to gamma rays and mitomycin C than Mrad9b+/+ controls, but show normal gamma-ray-induced G2/M checkpoint control. There is no evidence of spontaneous genomic instability in Mrad9b−/− cells. Our findings thus indicate that Mrad9b is essential for embryonic development and mediates resistance to certain DNA damaging agents. PMID:20842695

Essential roles of BCCIP in mouse embryonic development and structural stability of chromosomes.

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Huimei Lu

2011-09-01

Full Text Available BCCIP is a BRCA2- and CDKN1A(p21-interacting protein that has been implicated in the maintenance of genomic integrity. To understand the in vivo functions of BCCIP, we generated a conditional BCCIP knockdown transgenic mouse model using Cre-LoxP mediated RNA interference. The BCCIP knockdown embryos displayed impaired cellular proliferation and apoptosis at day E7.5. Consistent with these results, the in vitro proliferation of blastocysts and mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs of BCCIP knockdown mice were impaired considerably. The BCCIP deficient mouse embryos die before E11.5 day. Deletion of the p53 gene could not rescue the embryonic lethality due to BCCIP deficiency, but partially rescues the growth delay of mouse embryonic fibroblasts in vitro. To further understand the cause of development and proliferation defects in BCCIP-deficient mice, MEFs were subjected to chromosome stability analysis. The BCCIP-deficient MEFs displayed significant spontaneous chromosome structural alterations associated with replication stress, including a 3.5-fold induction of chromatid breaks. Remarkably, the BCCIP-deficient MEFs had a ∼20-fold increase in sister chromatid union (SCU, yet the induction of sister chromatid exchanges (SCE was modestly at 1.5 fold. SCU is a unique type of chromatid aberration that may give rise to chromatin bridges between daughter nuclei in anaphase. In addition, the BCCIP-deficient MEFs have reduced repair of irradiation-induced DNA damage and reductions of Rad51 protein and nuclear foci. Our data suggest a unique function of BCCIP, not only in repair of DNA damage, but also in resolving stalled replication forks and prevention of replication stress. In addition, BCCIP deficiency causes excessive spontaneous chromatin bridges via the formation of SCU, which can subsequently impair chromosome segregations in mitosis and cell division.

Ochratoxin A Inhibits Mouse Embryonic Development by Activating a Mitochondrion-Dependent Apoptotic Signaling Pathway

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Yan-Der Hsuuw

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Ochratoxin A (OTA, a mycotoxin found in many foods worldwide, causes nephrotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, and immunotoxicity, both in vitro and in vivo. In the present study, we explored the cytotoxic effects exerted by OTA on the blastocyst stage of mouse embryos, on subsequent embryonic attachment, on outgrowth in vitro, and following in vivo implantation via embryo transfer. Mouse blastocysts were incubated with or without OTA (1, 5, or 10 μM for 24 h. Cell proliferation and growth were investigated using dual differential staining; apoptosis was measured using the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL assay; and embryo implantation and post-implantation development were assessed by examination of in vitro growth and the outcome of in vivo embryo transfer, respectively. Blastocysts treated with 10 μM OTA displayed a significantly increased level of apoptosis and a reduction in total cell number. Interestingly, we observed no marked difference in implantation success rate between OTA-pretreated and control blastocysts either during in vitro embryonic development (following implantation in a fibronectin-coated culture dish or after in vivo embryo transfer. However, in vitro treatment with 10 μM OTA was associated with increased resorption of post-implantation embryos by the mouse uterus, and decreased fetal weight upon embryo transfer. Our results collectively indicate that in vitro exposure to OTA triggers apoptosis and retards early post-implantation development after transfer of embryos to host mice. In addition, OTA induces apoptosis-mediated injury of mouse blastocysts, via reactive oxygen species (ROS generation, and promotes mitochondrion-dependent apoptotic signaling processes that impair subsequent embryonic development.

Assessment of a 42 metal salts chemical library in mouse embryonic stem cells

Science.gov (United States)

The developmental effects of xenobiotics on differentiation can be profiled using mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). The adherent cell differentiation and cytotoxicity (ACDC) technique was used to evaluate a library of 42 metal and metaloid salts. Jl mESCs were allowed to prolif...

The phenotype of FancB-mutant mouse embryonic stem cells

OpenAIRE

Kim, Tae Moon; Ko, Jun Ho; Choi, Yong Jun; Hu, Lingchuan; Hasty, Paul

2011-01-01

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a rare autosomal recessive disease characterized by bone marrow failure, developmental defects and cancer. There are multiple FA genes that enable the repair of interstrand crosslinks (ICLs) in coordination with a variety of other DNA repair pathways in a way that is poorly understood. Here we present the phenotype of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells mutated for FancB. We found FancB-mutant cells exhibited reduced cellular proliferation, hypersensitivity to the crosslink...

REDOX DISRUPTING POTENTIAL OF TOXCAST CHEMICALS RANKED BY ACTIVITY IN MOUSE EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS

Science.gov (United States)

To gain insight regarding the adverse outcome pathways leading to developmental toxicity following exposure to chemicals, we evaluated ToxCast™ Phase I chemicals in an adherent mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) assay and identified a redox sensitive pathway that correlated with al...

Fingerprinting of neurotoxic compounds using a mouse embryonic stem cell dual luminescence reporter assay

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Colaianna, M.; Ilmjärv, S.; Peterson, H.; Ilse Kern, I.; Julien, S.; Baquié, M.; allocca, G.; Bosgra, S.; Sachinidis, A.; Hengstler, J.G.; Leist, M.; Krause, K.H.

2017-01-01

Identification of neurotoxic drugs and environmental chemicals is an important challenge. However, only few tools to address this topic are available. The aim of this study was to develop a neurotoxicity/developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) test system, using the pluripotent mouse embryonic stem cell

Enhanced astrocytic nitric oxide production and neuronal modifications in the neocortex of a NOS2 mutant mouse.

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Yossi Buskila

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: It has been well accepted that glial cells in the central nervous system (CNS produce nitric oxide (NO through the induction of a nitric oxide synthase isoform (NOS2 only in response to various insults. Recently we described rapid astroglial, NOS2-dependent, NO production in the neocortex of healthy mice on a time scale relevant to neuronal activity. To explore a possible role for astroglial NOS2 in normal brain function we investigated a NOS2 knockout mouse (B6;129P2-Nos2(tm1Lau/J, Jackson Laboratory. Previous studies of this mouse strain revealed mainly altered immune responses, but no compensatory pathways and no CNS abnormalities have been reported. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To our surprise, using NO imaging in brain slices in combination with biochemical methods we uncovered robust NO production by neocortical astrocytes of the NOS2 mutant. These findings indicate the existence of an alternative pathway that increases basal NOS activity. In addition, the astroglial mutation instigated modifications of neuronal attributes, shown by changes in the membrane properties of pyramidal neurons, and revealed in distinct behavioral abnormalities characterized by an increase in stress-related parameters. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The results strongly indicate the involvement of astrocytic-derived NO in modifying the activity of neuronal networks. In addition, the findings corroborate data linking NO signaling with stress-related behavior, and highlight the potential use of this genetic model for studies of stress-susceptibility. Lastly, our results beg re-examination of previous studies that used this mouse strain to examine the pathophysiology of brain insults, assuming lack of astrocytic nitrosative reaction.

Lipofection improves gene targeting efficiency in E14 TG2a mouse embryonic stem cells

OpenAIRE

Sandra M. López-Heydeck

2009-01-01

Electroporation has been the method of election for transfection of murine embryonic stem cells for over 15 years; however, it is a time consuming protocol because it requires large amounts of DNA and cells, as well as expensive and delicate equipment. Lipofection is a transfection method that requires lower amounts of cells and DNA than electroporation, and has proven to be effi cient in a large number of cell lines. It has been shown that after lipofection, mouse embryonic stem cells remain...

Redox Disrupting Potential of ToxCast™Chemicals Ranked by Activity in Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Little is known regarding the adverse outcome pathways responsible for developmental toxicity following exposure to chemicals. An evaluation of Toxoast™ Phase I chemicals in an adherent mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) assay revealed a redox sensitive pathway that correlated with...

Human amniotic epithelial cell feeder layers maintain mouse embryonic stem cell pluripotency via epigenetic regulation of the c-Myc promoter.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Te; Cheng, Weiwei; Liu, Tianjin; Guo, Lihe; Huang, Qin; Jiang, Lizhen; Du, Xiling; Xu, Fuhui; Liu, Zhixue; Lai, Dongmei

2010-02-01

Mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are typically cultured on a feeder layer of mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs), with leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) added to maintain them in an undifferentiated state. We have previously shown that human amniotic epithelial cells (hAECs) can be used as feeder cells to maintain mouse ESC pluripotency, but the mechanism for this is unknown. In the present study, we found that CpG islands 5' of the c-Myc gene remain hypomethylated in mouse ESCs cultured on hAECs. In addition, levels of acetylation of histone H3 and trimethylation of histone H3K4 in the c-Myc gene promoter were higher in ES cells cultured on hAECs than those in ES cells cultured on MEFs. These data suggested that hAECs can alter mouse ESC gene expression via epigenetic modification of c-Myc, providing a possible mechanism for the hAEC-induced maintenance of ESCs in an undifferentiated state.

Embryonic Lethality of Mitochondrial Pyruvate Carrier 1 Deficient Mouse Can Be Rescued by a Ketogenic Diet

Science.gov (United States)

Krznar, Petra; Hörl, Manuel; Ammar, Zeinab; Montessuit, Sylvie; Pierredon, Sandra; Zamboni, Nicola; Martinou, Jean-Claude

2016-01-01

Mitochondrial import of pyruvate by the mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) is a central step which links cytosolic and mitochondrial intermediary metabolism. To investigate the role of the MPC in mammalian physiology and development, we generated a mouse strain with complete loss of MPC1 expression. This resulted in embryonic lethality at around E13.5. Mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) derived from mutant mice displayed defective pyruvate-driven respiration as well as perturbed metabolic profiles, and both defects could be restored by reexpression of MPC1. Labeling experiments using 13C-labeled glucose and glutamine demonstrated that MPC deficiency causes increased glutaminolysis and reduced contribution of glucose-derived pyruvate to the TCA cycle. Morphological defects were observed in mutant embryonic brains, together with major alterations of their metabolome including lactic acidosis, diminished TCA cycle intermediates, energy deficit and a perturbed balance of neurotransmitters. Strikingly, these changes were reversed when the pregnant dams were fed a ketogenic diet, which provides acetyl-CoA directly to the TCA cycle and bypasses the need for a functional MPC. This allowed the normal gestation and development of MPC deficient pups, even though they all died within a few minutes post-delivery. This study establishes the MPC as a key player in regulating the metabolic state necessary for embryonic development, neurotransmitter balance and post-natal survival. PMID:27176894

Excess thyroid hormone inhibits embryonic neural stem/progenitor cells proliferation and maintenance through STAT3 signalling pathway.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Chunhai; Zhou, Zhou; Zhong, Min; Li, Maoquan; Yang, Xuesen; Zhang, Yanwen; Wang, Yuan; Wei, Aimin; Qu, Mingyue; Zhang, Lei; Xu, Shangcheng; Chen, Shude; Yu, Zhengping

2011-07-01

Hyperthyroidism is prevalent during pregnancy, but little is known about the effects of excess thyroid hormone on the development of embryonic neural stem/progenitor cells (NSCs), and the mechanisms underlying these effects. Previous studies indicate that STAT3 plays a crucial role in determining NSC fate during neurodevelopment. In this study, we investigated the effects of a supraphysiological dose of 3,5,3'-L-triiodothyronine (T3) on the proliferation and maintenance of NSCs derived from embryonic day 13.5 mouse neocortex, and the involvement of STAT3 in this process. Our results suggest that excess T3 treatment inhibits NSC proliferation and maintenance. T3 decreased tyrosine phosphorylation of JAK1, JAK2 and STAT3, and subsequently inhibited STAT3-DNA binding activity. Furthermore, proliferation and maintenance of NSCs were decreased by inhibitors of JAKs and STAT3, indicating that the STAT3 signalling pathway is involved in the process of NSC proliferation and maintenance. Taken together, these results suggest that the STAT3 signalling pathway is involved in the process of T3-induced inhibition of embryonic NSC proliferation and maintenance. These findings provide data for understanding the effects of hyperthyroidism during pregnancy on fetal brain development, and the mechanisms underlying these effects.

Circadian clock components in the rat neocortex

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rath, Martin Fredensborg; Rohde, Kristian; Fahrenkrug, Jan

2013-01-01

in the rat neocortex. Among these, Per1, Per2, Per3, Cry1, Bmal1, Nr1d1 and Dbp were found to exhibit daily rhythms. The amplitude of circadian oscillation in neocortical clock gene expression was damped and the peak delayed as compared with the SCN. Lesions of the SCN revealed that rhythmic clock gene...... expression in the neocortex is dependent on the SCN. In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry showed that products of the canonical clock gene Per2 are located in perikarya throughout all areas of the neocortex. These findings show that local circadian oscillators driven by the SCN reside within...... neurons of the neocortex....

UTX and UTY demonstrate histone demethylase-independent function in mouse embryonic development.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karl B Shpargel

2012-09-01

Full Text Available UTX (KDM6A and UTY are homologous X and Y chromosome members of the Histone H3 Lysine 27 (H3K27 demethylase gene family. UTX can demethylate H3K27; however, in vitro assays suggest that human UTY has lost enzymatic activity due to sequence divergence. We produced mouse mutations in both Utx and Uty. Homozygous Utx mutant female embryos are mid-gestational lethal with defects in neural tube, yolk sac, and cardiac development. We demonstrate that mouse UTY is devoid of in vivo demethylase activity, so hemizygous X(Utx- Y(+ mutant male embryos should phenocopy homozygous X(Utx- X(Utx- females. However, X(Utx- Y(+ mutant male embryos develop to term; although runted, approximately 25% survive postnatally reaching adulthood. Hemizygous X(+ Y(Uty- mutant males are viable. In contrast, compound hemizygous X(Utx- Y(Uty- males phenocopy homozygous X(Utx- X(Utx- females. Therefore, despite divergence of UTX and UTY in catalyzing H3K27 demethylation, they maintain functional redundancy during embryonic development. Our data suggest that UTX and UTY are able to regulate gene activity through demethylase independent mechanisms. We conclude that UTX H3K27 demethylation is non-essential for embryonic viability.

Visualization of Functional Neuropeptide Y Receptors in the Mouse Hippocampus and Neocortex Using [35S]GTPγS Binding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Elbrønd-Bek, Heidi; Gøtzsche, Casper René; Skinbjerg, Mette

2015-01-01

The peptide transmitter neuropeptide Y (NPY) has been implicated in a plethora of actions in the central nervous system, including the hippocampus and neocortex (NeoCx). Previous studies using traditional receptor autoradiography show that NPY receptor binding is altered under various pathophysio......The peptide transmitter neuropeptide Y (NPY) has been implicated in a plethora of actions in the central nervous system, including the hippocampus and neocortex (NeoCx). Previous studies using traditional receptor autoradiography show that NPY receptor binding is altered under various...

LASP-01: Distribution of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells Expressing MicroRNAs | Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research

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The Laboratory Animal Sciences Program manages the expansion, processing, and distribution of1,501 genetically engineered mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) linesharboring conditional microRNA transgenes. The Laboratory Animal Sciences Prog

Developing predictions of in vivo developmental toxicity of ToxCast chemicals using mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Developing predictions of in vivo developmental toxicity of ToxCast chemicals using mouse embryonic stem cells S. Hunter, M. Rosen, M. Hoopes, H. Nichols, S. Jeffay, K. Chandler1, Integrated Systems Toxicology Division, National Health and Environmental Effects Research Labor...

Msx-2 expression and glucocorticoid-induced overexpression in embryonic mouse submandibular glands.

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Jaskoll, T; Luo, W; Snead, M L

1998-01-01

It is well known that the process of branching morphogenesis requires epithelial-mesenchymal interactions. One outstanding model for the study of tissue interactions during branching morphogenesis is the embryonic mouse submandibular gland (SMG). Although it has been clearly demonstrated that the branching pattern is dependent on interactions between the epithelium and the surrounding mesenchyme, little is known about the molecular mechanism underlying the branching process. One group of transcription factors that likely participates in the control of epithelial-mesenchymal inductive interactions are the Msx-class of homeodomain-containing proteins. In this paper, we focus on Msx-2 because its developmental expression is correlated with inductive interactions, suggesting that Msx-2 may play a functional role during cell-cell interactions. We demonstrate the expression of Msx-2 mRNA and protein to be primarily in the branching epithelia with progressive embryonic (E13 to E15) SMG development and, to a lesser extent, in the mesenchyme. We also show that Msx-2 is expressed by embryonic SMG primordia cultured under defined conditions. In addition, to begin to delineate a functional role for Msx-2, we employed an experimental strategy by using exogenous glucocorticoid (CORT) treatment of embryonic SMGs in vitro and in vivo to significantly enhance branching morphogenesis and evaluate the effect of CORT treatment on embryonic SMG Msx-2 expression. A marked increase in Msx-2 transcripts and protein is detected with in vitro and in vivo CORT treatment. Our studies indicate that one mechanism of CORT regulation of salivary gland morphogenesis is likely through the modulation of Msx-2 gene expression.

Differential radiosensitivity of mouse embryonic neurons and glia in cell culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dambergs, R.; Kidson, C.

1977-01-01

The responses of neurons and glial cells to ultraviolet and γ-radiation were studied in cell cultures of embryonic mouse brains. A decrease in the ratio of glia to neurons occurred after both forms of irradiation. [ 3 H]thymidine labelling followed by autoradiography revealed that all glia were capable of replication, whereas 70 percent of neurons were non-replicating under the conditions of the study. Ultraviolet radiation caused a decrease in the proportion of replicating neurons but did not affect the proportion of replicating glia, whereas γ-radiation caused a decrease in DNA replication in both cell types. Levels of ultraviolet radiation-induced unscheduled DNA synthesis were lower in neurons than in glia. It is concluded that sensitivity to both ionizing and ultraviolet radiation of neurons and glial cells in embryonic brain cultures is determined primarily by the capacity for and state of DNA replication. Neurons which have already reached the stage of terminal differentiation are more resistant than replicating neurons of glial cells

Selective attention without a neocortex.

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Krauzlis, Richard J; Bogadhi, Amarender R; Herman, James P; Bollimunta, Anil

2018-05-01

Selective attention refers to the ability to restrict neural processing and behavioral responses to a relevant subset of available stimuli, while simultaneously excluding other valid stimuli from consideration. In primates and other mammals, descriptions of this ability typically emphasize the neural processing that takes place in the cerebral neocortex. However, non-mammals such as birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish, which completely lack a neocortex, also have the ability to selectively attend. In this article, we survey the behavioral evidence for selective attention in non-mammals, and review the midbrain and forebrain structures that are responsible. The ancestral forms of selective attention are presumably selective orienting behaviors, such as prey-catching and predator avoidance. These behaviors depend critically on a set of subcortical structures, including the optic tectum (OT), thalamus and striatum, that are highly conserved across vertebrate evolution. In contrast, the contributions of different pallial regions in the forebrain to selective attention have been subject to more substantial changes and reorganization. This evolutionary perspective makes plain that selective attention is not a function achieved de novo with the emergence of the neocortex, but instead is implemented by circuits accrued and modified over hundreds of millions of years, beginning well before the forebrain contained a neocortex. Determining how older subcortical circuits interact with the more recently evolved components in the neocortex will likely be crucial for understanding the complex properties of selective attention in primates and other mammals, and for identifying the etiology of attention disorders. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Protective effects of resveratrol on ethanol-induced apoptosis in embryonic stem cells and disruption of embryonic development in mouse blastocysts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, L.-H.; Shiao, N.-H.; Hsuuw, Y.-D.; Chan, W.-H.

2007-01-01

Previous studies have established that ethanol induces apoptosis, but the precise molecular mechanisms are currently unclear. Here, we show that 0.3-1.0% (w/v) ethanol induces apoptosis in mouse blastocysts and that resveratrol, a grape-derived phytoalexin with known antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, prevents ethanol-induced apoptosis and inhibition of cell proliferation. Moreover, ethanol-treated blastocysts show normal levels of implantation on culture dishes in vitro but a reduced ability to reach the later stages of embryonic development. Pretreatment with resveratrol prevented ethanol-induced disruption of embryonic development in vitro and in vivo. In an in vitro cell-based assay, we further found that ethanol increases the production of reactive oxygen species in ESC-B5 embryonic stem cells, leading to an increase in the intracellular concentrations of cytoplasmic free Ca 2+ and NO, loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, mitochondrial release of cytochrome c, activation of caspase-9 and -3, and apoptosis. These changes were blocked by pretreatment with resveratrol. Based on these results, we propose a model for the protective effect of resveratrol on ethanol-induced cell injury in blastocysts and ESC-B5 cells

A vector-based system for the differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells toward germ-line cells

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Reza Ebrahimzadeh-Vesal

2014-08-01

Conclusion: In this study, we demonstrated the in vitro generation of mouse embryonic stem cells to germ cells by using a backbone vector containing the fusion gene Stra8-EGFP. The Stra8 gene is a retinoic acid-responsive protein and is able to regulate meiotic initiation.

Study on the immunity state of mouse exposed to mobile phone radiation during embryonic phase

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pei Yinhui; Gao Hui

2008-01-01

Objective: To study the effect of mobile phone radiation on mouse which exposed to radiation during embryonic phase. Methods: Pregnant mice were exposed to mobile phone radiation. The mice's netrophile phage percentage and spleen lymphocyte transformation rate were detected respectively 2 months after birth. Results: The netrophile phage percentage of experimental mice was seemly the same as that of control group, and there was no significant difference (P>0.05), but the spleen transformation rate showed the diverse trend. Conclusion: The specific cellular immunity of mice, which ex- posed to mobile phone radiation during embryonic phase, was seen to be in a state of decreasement. (authors)

Sertad1 encodes a novel transcriptional co-activator of SMAD1 in mouse embryonic hearts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peng, Yin [Department of Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294 (United States); Zhao, Shaomin [Department of Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294 (United States); School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069 (China); Song, Langying [Department of Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294 (United States); Wang, Manyuan [School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069 (China); Jiao, Kai, E-mail: kjiao@uab.edu [Department of Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294 (United States)

2013-11-29

Highlights: •SERTAD1 interacts with SMAD1. •Sertad1 is expressed in mouse embryonic hearts. •SERTAD1 is localized in both cytoplasm and nucleus of cardiomyocytes. •SERTAD1 enhances expression of BMP target cardiogenic genes as a SMAD1 co-activator. -- Abstract: Despite considerable advances in surgical repairing procedures, congenital heart diseases (CHDs) remain the leading noninfectious cause of infant morbidity and mortality. Understanding the molecular/genetic mechanisms underlying normal cardiogenesis will provide essential information for the development of novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies against CHDs. BMP signaling plays complex roles in multiple cardiogenic processes in mammals. SMAD1 is a canonical nuclear mediator of BMP signaling, the activity of which is critically regulated through its interaction partners. We screened a mouse embryonic heart yeast two-hybrid library using Smad1 as bait and identified SERTAD1 as a novel interaction partner of SMAD1. SERTAD1 contains multiple potential functional domains, including two partially overlapping transactivation domains at the C terminus. The SERTAD1-SMAD1 interaction in vitro and in mammalian cells was further confirmed through biochemical assays. The expression of Sertad1 in developing hearts was demonstrated using RT-PCR, western blotting and in situ hybridization analyses. We also showed that SERTAD1 was localized in both the cytoplasm and nucleus of immortalized cardiomyocytes and primary embryonic cardiomyocyte cultures. The overexpression of SERTAD1 in cardiomyocytes not only enhanced the activity of two BMP reporters in a dose-dependent manner but also increased the expression of several known BMP/SMAD regulatory targets. Therefore, these data suggest that SERTAD1 acts as a SMAD1 transcriptional co-activator to promote the expression of BMP target genes during mouse cardiogenesis.

Rhein Induces Oxidative Stress and Apoptosis in Mouse Blastocysts and Has Immunotoxic Effects during Embryonic Development

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Chien-Hsun Huang

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Rhein, a glucoside chemical compound found in a traditional Chinese medicine derived from the roots of rhubarb, induces cell apoptosis and is considered to have high potential as an antitumor drug. Several previous studies showed that rhein can inhibit cell proliferation and trigger mitochondria-related or endoplasmic reticulum (ER stress-dependent apoptotic processes. However, the side effects of rhein on pre- and post-implantation embryonic development remain unclear. Here, we show that rhein has cytotoxic effects on blastocyst-stage mouse embryos and induces oxidative stress and immunotoxicity in mouse fetuses. Blastocysts incubated with 5–20 μM rhein showed significant cell apoptosis, as well as decreases in their inner cell mass cell numbers and total cell numbers. An in vitro development assay showed that rhein affected the developmental potentials of both pre- and post-implantation embryos. Incubation of blastocysts with 5–20 μM rhein was associated with increased resorption of post-implantation embryos and decreased fetal weight in an embryo transfer assay. Importantly, in an in vivo model, intravenous injection of dams with rhein (1, 3, and 5 mg/kg body weight/day for four days resulted in apoptosis of blastocyst-stage embryos, early embryonic developmental injury, and decreased fetal weight. Intravenous injection of dams with 5 mg/kg body weight/day rhein significantly increased the total reactive oxygen species (ROS content of fetuses and the transcription levels of antioxidant proteins in fetal livers. Additional work showed that rhein induced apoptosis through ROS generation, and that prevention of apoptotic processes effectively rescued the rhein-induced injury effects on embryonic development. Finally, the transcription levels of the innate-immunity related genes, CXCL1, IL-1 β and IL-8, were down-regulated in the fetuses of dams that received intravenous injections of rhein. These results collectively show that rhein has

Combinatorial binding in human and mouse embryonic stem cells identifies conserved enhancers active in early embryonic development.

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Jonathan Göke

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Transcription factors are proteins that regulate gene expression by binding to cis-regulatory sequences such as promoters and enhancers. In embryonic stem (ES cells, binding of the transcription factors OCT4, SOX2 and NANOG is essential to maintain the capacity of the cells to differentiate into any cell type of the developing embryo. It is known that transcription factors interact to regulate gene expression. In this study we show that combinatorial binding is strongly associated with co-localization of the transcriptional co-activator Mediator, H3K27ac and increased expression of nearby genes in embryonic stem cells. We observe that the same loci bound by Oct4, Nanog and Sox2 in ES cells frequently drive expression in early embryonic development. Comparison of mouse and human ES cells shows that less than 5% of individual binding events for OCT4, SOX2 and NANOG are shared between species. In contrast, about 15% of combinatorial binding events and even between 53% and 63% of combinatorial binding events at enhancers active in early development are conserved. Our analysis suggests that the combination of OCT4, SOX2 and NANOG binding is critical for transcription in ES cells and likely plays an important role for embryogenesis by binding at conserved early developmental enhancers. Our data suggests that the fast evolutionary rewiring of regulatory networks mainly affects individual binding events, whereas "gene regulatory hotspots" which are bound by multiple factors and active in multiple tissues throughout early development are under stronger evolutionary constraints.

Quantitative analysis of neuronal mosaic formation in the mouse neocortex and hippocampus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reznikov, K.Yu.; Nazarevskaya, G.D.; Deryabin, V.E.

1987-01-01

The authors obtain mathematical confirmation of the nonrandomness of mosaic formation of neuronal groups in the cerebral cortex, characterize this process quantitatively, and compare its scale with the formation of the modular organization of the cortex. Mice were used in the experiments and were injected with 3 H-thymidine while pregnant. Mapping in the neocortex was carried out on frontal semithin brain sections from mice receiving 3 H-thymidine from E15 through E17, whereas mapping in the hippocampus was carried out on paraffin and semithin frontal brain sections from animals receiving the isotope from E13 through E17

Two pore channel 2 differentially modulates neural differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Zhe-Hao Zhang

Full Text Available Nicotinic acid adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NAADP is an endogenous Ca(2+ mobilizing nucleotide presented in various species. NAADP mobilizes Ca(2+ from acidic organelles through two pore channel 2 (TPC2 in many cell types and it has been previously shown that NAADP can potently induce neuronal differentiation in PC12 cells. Here we examined the role of TPC2 signaling in the neural differentiation of mouse embryonic stem (ES cells. We found that the expression of TPC2 was markedly decreased during the initial ES cell entry into neural progenitors, and the levels of TPC2 gradually rebounded during the late stages of neurogenesis. Correspondingly, TPC2 knockdown accelerated mouse ES cell differentiation into neural progenitors but inhibited these neural progenitors from committing to neurons. Overexpression of TPC2, on the other hand, inhibited mouse ES cell from entering the early neural lineage. Interestingly, TPC2 knockdown had no effect on the differentiation of astrocytes and oligodendrocytes of mouse ES cells. Taken together, our data indicate that TPC2 signaling plays a temporal and differential role in modulating the neural lineage entry of mouse ES cells, in that TPC2 signaling inhibits ES cell entry to early neural progenitors, but is required for late neuronal differentiation.

Laser fusion of mouse embryonic cells and intra-embryonic fusion of blastomeres without affecting the embryo integrity.

Science.gov (United States)

Krivokharchenko, Alexander; Karmenyan, Artashes; Sarkisov, Oleg; Bader, Michael; Chiou, Arthur; Shakhbazyan, Avetik

2012-01-01

Manipulation with early mammalian embryos is the one of the most important approach to study preimplantation development. Artificial cell fusion is a research tool for various biotechnological experiments. However, the existing methods have various disadvantages, first of them impossibility to fuse selected cells within multicellular structures like mammalian preimplantation embryos. In our experiments we have successfully used high repetition rate picosecond near infrared laser beam for fusion of pairs of oocytes and oocytes with blastomeres. Fused cells looked morphologically normal and keep their ability for further divisions in vitro. We also fused two or three blastomeres inside four-cell mouse embryos. The presence of one, two or three nuclei in different blastomeres of the same early preimplantation mouse embryo was confirmed under UV-light after staining of DNA with the vital dye Hoechst-33342. The most of established embryos demonstrated high viability and developed in vitro to the blastocyst stage. We demonstrated for the first time the use of laser beam for the fusion of various embryonic cells of different size and of two or three blastomeres inside of four-cell mouse embryos without affecting the embryo's integrity and viability. These embryos with blastomeres of various ploidy maybe unique model for numerous purposes. Thus, we propose laser optical manipulation as a new tool for investigation of fundamental mechanisms of mammalian development.

Redundant role of protein kinase C delta and epsilon during mouse embryonic development.

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Sergio Carracedo

Full Text Available Protein Kinase C delta and epsilon are mediators of important cellular events, such as cell proliferation, migration or apoptosis. The formation of blood vessels, i.e., vasculo- and angiogenesis, is a process where these isoforms have also been shown to participate. However, mice deficient in either Protein Kinase C delta or epsilon are viable and therefore their individual contribution to the formation of the vasculature appeared so far dispensable. In this study, we show that double null mutation of Protein Kinase C delta and epsilon causes embryonic lethality at approximately E9.5. At this stage, whole mount staining of the endothelial marker CD31 in double null embryos revealed defective blood vessel formation. Moreover, culture of double deficient mouse allantois showed impaired endothelial cell organization, and analyses of double deficient embryo sections showed dilated vessels, decreased endothelial-specific adherent junctions, and decreased contact of endothelial cells with mural cells. Protein kinase C delta and epsilon also appeared essential for vascular smooth muscle cell differentiation, since α-smooth muscle actin, a classical marker for vascular smooth muscle cells, was almost undetectable in double deficient embryonic aorta at E9.5. Subsequent qPCR analyses showed decreased VE-cadherin, Vegfr2, Cd31, Cdh2, Ets1, and Fli-1, among other angiogenesis related transcripts in double deficient embryos. Taken together, these data suggest for the first time an in vivo redundant role between members of the novel Protein Kinase C subfamily that allows for mutual compensation during mouse embryonic development, with vasculogenesis/angiogenesis as an obvious common function of these two Protein Kinase Cs. Protein Kinase C delta and epsilon might therefore be useful targets for inhibiting vasculo- and/or angiogenesis.

14-3-3σ regulates β-catenin-mediated mouse embryonic stem cell proliferation by sequestering GSK-3β.

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Tzu-Ching Chang

Full Text Available Pluripotent embryonic stem cells are considered to be an unlimited cell source for tissue regeneration and cell-based therapy. Investigating the molecular mechanism underlying the regulation of embryonic stem cell expansion is thus important. 14-3-3 proteins are implicated in controlling cell division, signaling transduction and survival by interacting with various regulatory proteins. However, the function of 14-3-3 in embryonic stem cell proliferation remains unclear.In this study, we show that all seven 14-3-3 isoforms were detected in mouse embryonic stem cells. Retinoid acid suppressed selectively the expression of 14-3-3σ isoform. Knockdown of 14-3-3σ with siRNA reduced embryonic stem cell proliferation, while only 14-3-3σ transfection increased cell growth and partially rescued retinoid acid-induced growth arrest. Since the growth-enhancing action of 14-3-3σ was abrogated by β-catenin knockdown, we investigated the influence of 14-3-3σ overexpression on β-catenin/GSK-3β. 14-3-3σ bound GSK-3β and increased GSK-3β phosphorylation in a PI-3K/Akt-dependent manner. It disrupted β-catenin binding by the multiprotein destruction complex. 14-3-3σ overexpression attenuated β-catenin phosphorylation and rescued the decline of β-catenin induced by retinoid acid. Furthermore, 14-3-3σ enhanced Wnt3a-induced β-catenin level and GSK-3β phosphorylation. DKK, an inhibitor of Wnt signaling, abolished Wnt3a-induced effect but did not interfere GSK-3β/14-3-3σ binding.Our findings show for the first time that 14-3-3σ plays an important role in regulating mouse embryonic stem cell proliferation by binding and sequestering phosphorylated GSK-3β and enhancing Wnt-signaled GSK-3β inactivation. 14-3-3σ is a novel target for embryonic stem cell expansion.

ZO-1 and ZO-2 are required for extra-embryonic endoderm integrity, primitive ectoderm survival and normal cavitation in embryoid bodies derived from mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Dominic C Y Phua

Full Text Available The Zonula Occludens proteins ZO-1 and ZO-2 are cell-cell junction-associated adaptor proteins that are essential for the structural and regulatory functions of tight junctions in epithelial cells and their absence leads to early embryonic lethality in mouse models. Here, we use the embryoid body, an in vitro peri-implantation mouse embryogenesis model, to elucidate and dissect the roles ZO-1 and ZO-2 play in epithelial morphogenesis and de novo tight junction assembly. Through the generation of individual or combined ZO-1 and ZO-2 null embryoid bodies, we show that their dual deletion prevents tight junction formation, resulting in the disorganization and compromised barrier function of embryoid body epithelial layers. The disorganization is associated with poor microvilli development, fragmented basement membrane deposition and impaired cavity formation, all of which are key epithelial tissue morphogenetic processes. Expression of Podocalyxin, which positively regulates the formation of microvilli and the apical membrane, is repressed in embryoid bodies lacking both ZO-1 and ZO-2 and this correlates with an aberrant submembranous localization of Ezrin. The null embryoid bodies thus give an insight into how the two ZO proteins influence early mouse embryogenesis and possible mechanisms underlying the embryonic lethal phenotype.

Implantable Self-Powered Low-Level Laser Cure System for Mouse Embryonic Osteoblasts' Proliferation and Differentiation.

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Tang, Wei; Tian, Jingjing; Zheng, Qiang; Yan, Lin; Wang, Jiangxue; Li, Zhou; Wang, Zhong Lin

2015-08-25

Bone remodeling or orthodontic treatment is usually a long-term process. It is highly desirable to speed up the process for effective medical treatment. In this work, a self-powered low-level laser cure system for osteogenesis is developed using the power generated by the triboelectric nanogenerator. It is found that the system significantly accelerated the mouse embryonic osteoblasts' proliferation and differentiation, which is essential for bone and tooth healing. The system is further demonstrated to be driven by a living creature's motions, such as human walking or a mouse's breathing, suggesting its practical use as a portable or implantable clinical cure for bone remodeling or orthodontic treatment.

BIG1 is required for the survival of deep layer neurons, neuronal polarity, and the formation of axonal tracts between the thalamus and neocortex in developing brain.

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Jia-Jie Teoh

Full Text Available BIG1, an activator protein of the small GTPase, Arf, and encoded by the Arfgef1 gene, is one of candidate genes for epileptic encephalopathy. To know the involvement of BIG1 in epileptic encephalopathy, we analyzed BIG1-deficient mice and found that BIG1 regulates neurite outgrowth and brain development in vitro and in vivo. The loss of BIG1 decreased the size of the neocortex and hippocampus. In BIG1-deficient mice, the neuronal progenitor cells (NPCs and the interneurons were unaffected. However, Tbr1+ and Ctip2+ deep layer (DL neurons showed spatial-temporal dependent apoptosis. This apoptosis gradually progressed from the piriform cortex (PIR, peaked in the neocortex, and then progressed into the hippocampus from embryonic day 13.5 (E13.5 to E17.5. The upper layer (UL and DL order in the neocortex was maintained in BIG1-deficient mice, but the excitatory neurons tended to accumulate before their destination layers. Further pulse-chase migration assay showed that the migration defect was non-cell autonomous and secondary to the progression of apoptosis into the BIG1-deficient neocortex after E15.5. In BIG1-deficient mice, we observed an ectopic projection of corticothalamic axons from the primary somatosensory cortex (S1 into the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN. The thalamocortical axons were unable to cross the diencephalon-telencephalon boundary (DTB. In vitro, BIG1-deficient neurons showed a delay in neuronal polarization. BIG1-deficient neurons were also hypersensitive to low dose glutamate (5 μM, and died via apoptosis. This study showed the role of BIG1 in the survival of DL neurons in developing embryonic brain and in the generation of neuronal polarity.

Contribution of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells to Chimeras through Injection and Coculture of Embryos

OpenAIRE

Guo, Jitong; Wu, Baojiang; Li, Shuyu; Bao, Siqin; Zhao, Lixia; Hu, Shuxiang; Sun, Wei; Su, Jie; Dai, Yanfeng; Li, Xihe

2014-01-01

Blastocyst injection and morula aggregation are commonly used to evaluate stem cell pluripotency based on chimeric contribution of the stem cells. To assess the protocols for generating chimeras from stem cells, 8-cell mouse embryos were either injected or cocultured with mouse embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, respectively. Although a significantly higher chimera rate resulted from blastocyst injection, the highest germline contribution resulted from injection of 8-cel...

Characterization of Bovine 5′-flanking Region during Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

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Hye-Jeong Jang

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Embryonic stem cells (ESCs have been used as a powerful tool for research including gene manipulated animal models and the study of developmental gene regulation. Among the critical regulatory factors that maintain the pluripotency and self-renewal of undifferentiated ESCs, NANOG plays a very important role. Nevertheless, because pluripotency maintaining factors and specific markers for livestock ESCs have not yet been probed, few studies of the NANOG gene from domestic animals including bovine have been reported. Therefore, we chose mouse ESCs in order to understand and compare NANOG expression between bovine, human, and mouse during ESCs differentiation. We cloned a 600 bp (−420/+181 bovine NANOG 5′-flanking region, and tagged it with humanized recombinant green fluorescent protein (hrGFP as a tracing reporter. Very high GFP expression for bovine NANOG promoter was observed in the mouse ESC line. GFP expression was monitored upon ESC differentiation and was gradually reduced along with differentiation toward neurons and adipocyte cells. Activity of bovine NANOG (−420/+181 promoter was compared with already known mouse and human NANOG promoters in mouse ESC and they were likely to show a similar pattern of regulation. In conclusion, bovine NANOG 5-flanking region functions in mouse ES cells and has characteristics similar to those of mouse and human. These results suggest that bovine gene function studied in mouse ES cells should be evaluated and extrapolated for application to characterization of bovine ES cells.

In vitro generation of motor neuron precursors from mouse embryonic stem cells using mesoporous nanoparticles

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Garcia-Bennett, Alfonso E; König, Niclas; Abrahamsson, Ninnie

2014-01-01

nanoparticles could be effective for stem cell differentiation in vitro. Materials & methods: We used a mouse embryonic stem cell line expressing green fluorescent protein under the promoter for the MN-specific gene Hb9 to visualize the level of MN differentiation. The differentiation of stem cells......Aim: Stem cell-derived motor neurons (MNs) are utilized to develop replacement strategies for spinal cord disorders. Differentiation of embryonic stem cells into MN precursors involves factors and their repeated administration. We investigated if delivery of factors loaded into mesoporous...... was evaluated by expression of MN-specific transcription factors monitored by quantitative real-time PCR reactions and immunocytochemistry. Results: Mesoporous nanoparticles have strong affiliation to the embryoid bodies, penetrate inside the embryoid bodies and come in contact with differentiating cells...

Effects of different feeder layers on culture of bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells in vitro.

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Cong, Shan; Cao, Guifang; Liu, Dongjun

2014-12-01

To find a suitable feeder layer is important for successful culture conditions of bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells. In this study, expression of pluripotency-related genes OCT4, SOX2 and NANOG in bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells on mouse embryonic fibroblast feeder layers at 1-5 passages were monitored in order to identify the possible reason that bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells could not continue growth and passage. Here, we developed two novel feeder layers, mixed embryonic fibroblast feeder layers of mouse and bovine embryonic fibroblast at different ratios and sources including mouse fibroblast cell lines. The bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells generated in our study displayed typical stem cell morphology and expressed specific markers such as OCT4, stage-specific embryonic antigen 1 and 4, alkaline phosphatase, SOX2, and NANOG mRNA levels. When feeder layers and cell growth factors were removed, the bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells formed embryoid bodies in a suspension culture. Furthermore, we compared the expression of the pluripotent markers during bovine embryonic stem cell-like cell in culture on mixed embryonic fibroblast feeder layers, including mouse fibroblast cell lines feeder layers and mouse embryonic fibroblast feeder layers by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results suggested that mixed embryonic fibroblast and sources including mouse fibroblast cell lines feeder layers were more suitable for long-term culture and growth of bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells than mouse embryonic fibroblast feeder layers. The findings may provide useful experimental data for the establishment of an appropriate culture system for bovine embryonic stem cell lines.

Preclinical study of mouse pluripotent parthenogenetic embryonic stem cell derivatives for the construction of tissue-engineered skin equivalent.

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Rao, Yang; Cui, Jihong; Yin, Lu; Liu, Wei; Liu, Wenguang; Sun, Mei; Yan, Xingrong; Wang, Ling; Chen, Fulin

2016-10-22

Embryonic stem cell (ESC) derivatives hold great promise for the construction of tissue-engineered skin equivalents (TESE). However, harvesting of ESCs destroys viable embryos and may lead to political and ethical concerns over their application. In the current study, we directed mouse parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells (pESCs) to differentiate into fibroblasts, constructed TESE, and evaluated its function in vivo. The stemness marker expression and the pluripotent differentiation ability of pESCs were tested. After embryoid body (EB) formation and adherence culture, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were enriched and directed to differentiate into fibroblastic lineage. Characteristics of derived fibroblasts were assessed by quantitative real-time PCR and ELISA. Functional ability of the constructed TESE was tested by a mouse skin defects repair model. Mouse pESCs expressed stemness marker and could form teratoma containing three germ layers. MSCs could be enriched from outgrowths of EBs and directed to differentiate into fibroblastic lineage. These cells express a high level of growth factors including FGF, EGF, VEGF, TGF, PDGF, and IGF1, similar to those of ESC-derived fibroblasts and mouse fibroblasts. Seeded into collagen gels, the fibroblasts derived from pESCs could form TESE. Mouse skin defects could be successfully repaired 15 days after transplantation of TESE constructed by fibroblasts derived from pESCs. pESCs could be induced to differentiate into fibroblastic lineage, which could be applied to the construction of TESE and skin defect repair. Particularly, pESC derivatives avoid the limitations of political and ethical concerns, and provide a promising source for regenerative medicine.

Refined mapping of a quantitative trait locus on chromosome 1 responsible for mouse embryonic death.

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Magalie Vatin

Full Text Available Recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA is defined as the loss of three or more consecutive pregnancies during the first trimester of embryonic intrauterine development. This kind of human infertility is frequent among the general population since it affects 1 to 5% of women. In half of the cases the etiology remains unelucidated. In the present study, we used interspecific recombinant congenic mouse strains (IRCS in the aim to identify genes responsible for embryonic lethality. Applying a cartographic approach using a genotype/phenotype association, we identified a minimal QTL region, of about 6 Mb on chromosome 1, responsible for a high rate of embryonic death (∼30%. Genetic analysis suggests that the observed phenotype is linked to uterine dysfunction. Transcriptomic analysis of the uterine tissue revealed a preferential deregulation of genes of this region compared to the rest of the genome. Some genes from the QTL region are associated with VEGF signaling, mTOR signaling and ubiquitine/proteasome-protein degradation pathways. This work may contribute to elucidate the molecular basis of a multifactorial and complex human disorder as RSA.

Mouse embryonic stem cells, but not somatic cells, predominantly use homologous recombination to repair double-strand DNA breaks.

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Tichy, Elisia D; Pillai, Resmi; Deng, Li; Liang, Li; Tischfield, Jay; Schwemberger, Sandy J; Babcock, George F; Stambrook, Peter J

2010-11-01

Embryonic stem (ES) cells give rise to all cell types of an organism. Since mutations at this embryonic stage would affect all cells and be detrimental to the overall health of an organism, robust mechanisms must exist to ensure that genomic integrity is maintained. To test this proposition, we compared the capacity of murine ES cells to repair DNA double-strand breaks with that of differentiated cells. Of the 2 major pathways that repair double-strand breaks, error-prone nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ) predominated in mouse embryonic fibroblasts, whereas the high fidelity homologous recombinational repair (HRR) predominated in ES cells. Microhomology-mediated end joining, an emerging repair pathway, persisted at low levels in all cell types examined. The levels of proteins involved in HRR and microhomology-mediated end joining were highly elevated in ES cells compared with mouse embryonic fibroblasts, whereas those for NHEJ were quite variable, with DNA Ligase IV expression low in ES cells. The half-life of DNA Ligase IV protein was also low in ES cells. Attempts to increase the abundance of DNA Ligase IV protein by overexpression or inhibition of its degradation, and thereby elevate NHEJ in ES cells, were unsuccessful. When ES cells were induced to differentiate, however, the level of DNA Ligase IV protein increased, as did the capacity to repair by NHEJ. The data suggest that preferential use of HRR rather than NHEJ may lend ES cells an additional layer of genomic protection and that the limited levels of DNA Ligase IV may account for the low level of NHEJ activity.

Depletion of Tcf3 and Lef1 maintains mouse embryonic stem cell self-renewal

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Ye, Shoudong; Zhang, Tao; Tong, Chang; Zhou, Xingliang; He, Kan; Ban, Qian; Liu, Dahai; Ying, Qi-Long

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT Mouse and rat embryonic stem cell (ESC) self-renewal can be maintained by dual inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) and mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK). Inhibition of GSK3 promotes ESC self-renewal by abrogating T-cell factor 3 (TCF3)-mediated repression of the pluripotency network. How inhibition of MEK mediates ESC self-renewal, however, remains largely unknown. Here, we show that inhibition of MEK can significantly suppress lymphoid enhancer factor 1 (LEF1...

Endogenous production of fibronectin is required for self-renewal of cultured mouse embryonic stem cells

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Hunt, Geoffrey C.; Singh, Purva; Schwarzbauer, Jean E.

2012-01-01

Pluripotent cells are attached to the extracellular matrix (ECM) as they make cell fate decisions within the stem cell niche. Here we show that the ubiquitous ECM protein fibronectin is required for self-renewal decisions by cultured mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells. Undifferentiated mES cells produce fibronectin and assemble a fibrillar matrix. Increasing the level of substrate fibronectin increased cell spreading and integrin receptor signaling through focal adhesion kinase, while concomita...

Derivation of mouse embryonic stem cell lines from tyrosine hydroxylase reporter mice crossed with a human SNCA transgenic mouse model of Parkinson's disease

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Margarita Chumarina

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC lines were derived by crossing heterozygous transgenic (tg mice expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP under the control of the rat tyrosine hydroxylase (TH promoter, with homozygous alpha-synuclein (aSYN mice expressing human mutant SNCAA53T under the control of the mouse Prion promoter (MoPrP, or wildtype (WT mice. The expression of GFP and human aSYN was validated by immunocytochemistry in midbrain neuron cultures upon differentiation of mESC lines using stromal cell-derived inducing activity. These mESC lines can help to study the impact of human aSYN expression in neurons and oligodendrocytes, and also trace GFP-expressing midbrain neurons.

Specialized mouse embryonic stem cells for studying vascular development.

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Glaser, Drew E; Burns, Andrew B; Hatano, Rachel; Medrzycki, Magdalena; Fan, Yuhong; McCloskey, Kara E

2014-01-01

Vascular progenitor cells are desirable in a variety of therapeutic strategies; however, the lineage commitment of endothelial and smooth muscle cell from a common progenitor is not well-understood. Here, we report the generation of the first dual reporter mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) lines designed to facilitate the study of vascular endothelial and smooth muscle development in vitro. These mESC lines express green fluorescent protein (GFP) under the endothelial promoter, Tie-2, and Discomsoma sp. red fluorescent protein (RFP) under the promoter for alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA). The lines were then characterized for morphology, marker expression, and pluripotency. The mESC colonies were found to exhibit dome-shaped morphology, alkaline phosphotase activity, as well as expression of Oct 3/4 and stage-specific embryonic antigen-1. The mESC colonies were also found to display normal karyotypes and are able to generate cells from all three germ layers, verifying pluripotency. Tissue staining confirmed the coexpression of VE (vascular endothelial)-cadherin with the Tie-2 GFP+ expression on endothelial structures and smooth muscle myosin heavy chain with the α-SMA RFP+ smooth muscle cells. Lastly, it was verified that the developing mESC do express Tie-2 GFP+ and α-SMA RFP+ cells during differentiation and that the GFP+ cells colocalize with the vascular-like structures surrounded by α-SMA-RFP cells. These dual reporter vascular-specific mESC permit visualization and cell tracking of individual endothelial and smooth muscle cells over time and in multiple dimensions, a powerful new tool for studying vascular development in real time.

Mouse androgenetic embryonic stem cells differentiated to multiple cell lineages in three embryonic germ layers in vitro.

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Teramura, Takeshi; Onodera, Yuta; Murakami, Hideki; Ito, Syunsuke; Mihara, Toshihiro; Takehara, Toshiyuki; Kato, Hiromi; Mitani, Tasuku; Anzai, Masayuki; Matsumoto, Kazuya; Saeki, Kazuhiro; Fukuda, Kanji; Sagawa, Norimasa; Osoi, Yoshihiko

2009-06-01

The embryos of some rodents and primates can precede early development without the process of fertilization; however, they cease to develop after implantation because of restricted expressions of imprinting genes. Asexually developed embryos are classified into parthenote/gynogenote and androgenote by their genomic origins. Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) derived from asexual origins have also been reported. To date, ESCs derived from parthenogenetic embryos (PgESCs) have been established in some species, including humans, and the possibility to be alternative sources for autologous cell transplantation in regenerative medicine has been proposed. However, some developmental characteristics, which might be important for therapeutic applications, such as multiple differentiation capacity and transplantability of the ESCs of androgenetic origin (AgESCs) are uncertain. Here, we induced differentiation of mouse AgESCs and observed derivation of neural cells, cardiomyocytes and hepatocytes in vitro. Following differentiated embryoid body (EB) transplantation in various mouse strains including the strain of origin, we found that the EBs could engraft in theoretically MHC-matched strains. Our results indicate that AgESCs possess at least two important characteristics, multiple differentiation properties in vitro and transplantability after differentiation, and suggest that they can also serve as a source of histocompatible tissues for transplantation.

Evaluation of an adherent mouse embryonic stem cell in vitro assay to predict developmental toxicity of ToxCast chemicals.

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The potential for most environmental chemicals to produce developmental toxicity is unknown. Mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) assays are an alternative in vitro model to assess chemicals. The chemical space evaluated using mESC and compared to in vivo is limited. We used an adher...

Mechanical control of notochord morphogenesis by extra-embryonic tissues in mouse embryos.

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Imuta, Yu; Koyama, Hiroshi; Shi, Dongbo; Eiraku, Mototsugu; Fujimori, Toshihiko; Sasaki, Hiroshi

2014-05-01

Mammalian embryos develop in coordination with extraembryonic tissues, which support embryonic development by implanting embryos into the uterus, supplying nutrition, providing a confined niche, and also providing patterning signals to embryos. Here, we show that in mouse embryos, the expansion of the amniotic cavity (AC), which is formed between embryonic and extraembryonic tissues, provides the mechanical forces required for a type of morphogenetic movement of the notochord known as convergent extension (CE) in which the cells converge to the midline and the tissue elongates along the antero-posterior (AP) axis. The notochord is stretched along the AP axis, and the expansion of the AC is required for CE. Both mathematical modeling and physical simulation showed that a rectangular morphology of the early notochord caused the application of anisotropic force along the AP axis to the notochord through the isotropic expansion of the AC. AC expansion acts upstream of planar cell polarity (PCP) signaling, which regulates CE movement. Our results highlight the importance of extraembryonic tissues as a source of the forces that control the morphogenesis of embryos. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The phenotype of FancB-mutant mouse embryonic stem cells

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Kim, Tae Moon; Ko, Jun Ho; Choi, Yong Jun; Hu Lingchuan; Hasty, Paul

2011-01-01

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a rare autosomal recessive disease characterized by bone marrow failure, developmental defects and cancer. There are multiple FA genes that enable the repair of interstrand crosslinks (ICLs) in coordination with a variety of other DNA repair pathways in a way that is poorly understood. Here we present the phenotype of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells mutated for FancB. We found FancB-mutant cells exhibited reduced cellular proliferation, hypersensitivity to the crosslinking agent mitomycin C (MMC), increased spontaneous and MMC-induced chromosomal abnormalities, reduced spontaneous sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs), reduced gene targeting, reduced MMC-induced Rad51 foci and absent MMC-induced FancD2 foci. Since FancB is on the X chromosome and since ES cells are typically XY, FancB is an excellent target for an epistatic analysis to elucidate FA's role in ICL repair.

Single-Step Generation of Conditional Knockout Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

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Matyas Flemr

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Induction of double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs by engineered nucleases, such as CRISPR/Cas9 or transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs, stimulates knockin of exogenous DNA fragments via homologous recombination (HR. However, the knockin efficiencies reported so far have not allowed more complex in vitro genome modifications such as, for instance, simultaneous integration of a DNA fragment at two distinct genomic sites. We developed a reporter system to enrich for cells with engineered nuclease-assisted HR events. Using this system in mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs, we achieve single-step biallelic and seamless integration of two loxP sites for Cre recombinase-mediated inducible gene knockout, as well as biallelic endogenous gene tagging with high efficiency. Our approach reduces the time and resources required for conditional knockout mESC generation dramatically.

Mouse embryonic stem cell culture for generation of three-dimensional retinal and cortical tissues.

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Eiraku, Mototsugu; Sasai, Yoshiki

2011-12-15

Generation of compound tissues with complex structures is a major challenge in cell biology. In this article, we describe a protocol for mouse embryonic stem cell (ESC) culture for in vitro generation of three-dimensional retinal tissue, comparing it with the culture protocol for cortical tissue generation. Dissociated ESCs are reaggregated in a 96-well plate with reduced cell-plate adhesion and cultured as floating aggregates. Retinal epithelium is efficiently generated when ESC aggregates are cultured in serum-free medium containing extracellular matrix proteins, spontaneously forming hemispherical vesicles and then progressively transforming into a shape reminiscent of the embryonic optic cup in 9-10 d. In long-term culture, the ESC-derived optic cup generates a fully stratified retinal tissue consisting of all major neural retinal components. In contrast, the cortical differentiation culture can be started without exogenous extracellular matrix proteins, and it generates stratified cortical epithelia consisting of four distinct layers in 13 d.

Systematic identification of cis-regulatory sequences active in mouse and human embryonic stem cells.

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Marica Grskovic

2007-08-01

Full Text Available Understanding the transcriptional regulation of pluripotent cells is of fundamental interest and will greatly inform efforts aimed at directing differentiation of embryonic stem (ES cells or reprogramming somatic cells. We first analyzed the transcriptional profiles of mouse ES cells and primordial germ cells and identified genes upregulated in pluripotent cells both in vitro and in vivo. These genes are enriched for roles in transcription, chromatin remodeling, cell cycle, and DNA repair. We developed a novel computational algorithm, CompMoby, which combines analyses of sequences both aligned and non-aligned between different genomes with a probabilistic segmentation model to systematically predict short DNA motifs that regulate gene expression. CompMoby was used to identify conserved overrepresented motifs in genes upregulated in pluripotent cells. We show that the motifs are preferentially active in undifferentiated mouse ES and embryonic germ cells in a sequence-specific manner, and that they can act as enhancers in the context of an endogenous promoter. Importantly, the activity of the motifs is conserved in human ES cells. We further show that the transcription factor NF-Y specifically binds to one of the motifs, is differentially expressed during ES cell differentiation, and is required for ES cell proliferation. This study provides novel insights into the transcriptional regulatory networks of pluripotent cells. Our results suggest that this systematic approach can be broadly applied to understanding transcriptional networks in mammalian species.

Gene function in early mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation

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Campbell Pearl A

2007-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Little is known about the genes that drive embryonic stem cell differentiation. However, such knowledge is necessary if we are to exploit the therapeutic potential of stem cells. To uncover the genetic determinants of mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC differentiation, we have generated and analyzed 11-point time-series of DNA microarray data for three biologically equivalent but genetically distinct mESC lines (R1, J1, and V6.5 undergoing undirected differentiation into embryoid bodies (EBs over a period of two weeks. Results We identified the initial 12 hour period as reflecting the early stages of mESC differentiation and studied probe sets showing consistent changes of gene expression in that period. Gene function analysis indicated significant up-regulation of genes related to regulation of transcription and mRNA splicing, and down-regulation of genes related to intracellular signaling. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the genes showing the largest expression changes were more likely to have originated in metazoans. The probe sets with the most consistent gene changes in the three cell lines represented 24 down-regulated and 12 up-regulated genes, all with closely related human homologues. Whereas some of these genes are known to be involved in embryonic developmental processes (e.g. Klf4, Otx2, Smn1, Socs3, Tagln, Tdgf1, our analysis points to others (such as transcription factor Phf21a, extracellular matrix related Lama1 and Cyr61, or endoplasmic reticulum related Sc4mol and Scd2 that have not been previously related to mESC function. The majority of identified functions were related to transcriptional regulation, intracellular signaling, and cytoskeleton. Genes involved in other cellular functions important in ESC differentiation such as chromatin remodeling and transmembrane receptors were not observed in this set. Conclusion Our analysis profiles for the first time gene expression at a very early stage of m

Metastable primordial germ cell-like state induced from mouse embryonic stem cells by Akt activation

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Yamano, Noriko [Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, 2-2 Yamada-oka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan); Kimura, Tohru, E-mail: tkimura@patho.med.osaka-u.ac.jp [Department of Pathology, Medical School, Osaka University, 2-2 Yamada-oka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan); Watanabe-Kushima, Shoko [Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, 2-2 Yamada-oka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan); Shinohara, Takashi [Department of Molecular Genetics, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8501 (Japan); Nakano, Toru, E-mail: tnakano@patho.med.osaka-u.ac.jp [Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, 2-2 Yamada-oka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan); Department of Pathology, Medical School, Osaka University, 2-2 Yamada-oka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871 (Japan)

2010-02-12

Specification to primordial germ cells (PGCs) is mediated by mesoderm-induction signals during gastrulation. We found that Akt activation during in vitro mesodermal differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) generated self-renewing spheres with differentiation states between those of ESCs and PGCs. Essential regulators for PGC specification and their downstream germ cell-specific genes were expressed in the spheres, indicating that the sphere cells had commenced differentiation to the germ lineage. However, the spheres did not proceed to spermatogenesis after transplantation into testes. Sphere cell transfer to the original feeder-free ESC cultures resulted in chaotic differentiation. In contrast, when the spheres were cultured on mouse embryonic fibroblasts or in the presence of ERK-cascade and GSK3 inhibitors, reversion to the ESC-like state was observed. These results indicate that Akt signaling promotes a novel metastable and pluripotent state that is intermediate to those of ESCs and PGCs.

The phenotype of FancB-mutant mouse embryonic stem cells

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Kim, Tae Moon; Ko, Jun Ho; Choi, Yong Jun; Hu Lingchuan [Department of Molecular Medicine and Institute of Biotechnology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, 15355 Lambda Drive, San Antonio, TX 78245 (United States); Hasty, Paul, E-mail: hastye@uthscsa.edu [Department of Molecular Medicine and Institute of Biotechnology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, 15355 Lambda Drive, San Antonio, TX 78245 (United States)

2011-07-01

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a rare autosomal recessive disease characterized by bone marrow failure, developmental defects and cancer. There are multiple FA genes that enable the repair of interstrand crosslinks (ICLs) in coordination with a variety of other DNA repair pathways in a way that is poorly understood. Here we present the phenotype of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells mutated for FancB. We found FancB-mutant cells exhibited reduced cellular proliferation, hypersensitivity to the crosslinking agent mitomycin C (MMC), increased spontaneous and MMC-induced chromosomal abnormalities, reduced spontaneous sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs), reduced gene targeting, reduced MMC-induced Rad51 foci and absent MMC-induced FancD2 foci. Since FancB is on the X chromosome and since ES cells are typically XY, FancB is an excellent target for an epistatic analysis to elucidate FA's role in ICL repair.

RANTES modulates the release of glutamate in human neocortex.

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Musante, Veronica; Longordo, Fabio; Neri, Elisa; Pedrazzi, Marco; Kalfas, Fotios; Severi, Paolo; Raiteri, Maurizio; Pittaluga, Anna

2008-11-19

The effects of the recombinant chemokine human RANTES (hRANTES) on the release of glutamate from human neocortex glutamatergic nerve endings were investigated. hRANTES facilitated the spontaneous release of d [(3)H]D-aspartate ([(3)H]DASP-) by binding Pertussis toxin-sensitive G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), whose activation caused Ca(2+) mobilization from inositol trisphosphate-sensitive stores and cytosolic tyrosine kinase-mediated phosphorylations. Facilitation of release switched to inhibition when the effects of hRANTES on the 12 mM K(+)-evoked [(3)H]D-ASP exocytosis were studied. Inhibition of exocytosis relied on activation of Pertussis toxin-sensitive GPCRs negatively coupled to adenylyl cyclase. Both hRANTES effects were prevented by met-RANTES, an antagonist at the chemokine receptors (CCRs) of the CCR1, CCR3, and CCR5 subtypes. Interestingly, human neocortex glutamatergic nerve endings seem to possess all three receptor subtypes. Blockade of CCR1 and CCR5 by antibodies against the extracellular domain of CCRs prevented both the hRANTES effect on [(3)H]D-ASP release, whereas blockade of CCR3 prevented inhibition, but not facilitation, of release. The effects of RANTES on the spontaneous and the evoked release of [(3)H]D-ASP were also observed in experiments with mouse cortical synaptosomes, which may therefore represent an appropriate animal model to study RANTES-induced effects on neurotransmission. It is concluded that glutamate transmission can be modulated in opposite directions by RANTES acting at distinct CCR receptor subtypes coupled to different transduction pathways, consistent with the multiple and sometimes contrasting effects of the chemokine.

Investigation of a redox-sensitive predictive model of mouse embryonic stem cells differentiation using quantitative nuclease protection assays and glutathione redox status

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Investigation of a redox-sensitive predictive model of mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation via quantitative nuclease protection assays and glutathione redox status Chandler KJ,Hansen JM, Knudsen T,and Hunter ES 1. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangl...

Flow-cytometric analysis of mouse embryonic stem cell lipofection using small and large DNA constructs.

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McLenachan, Samuel; Sarsero, Joseph P; Ioannou, Panos A

2007-06-01

Using the lipofection reagent LipofectAMINE 2000 we have examined the delivery of plasmid DNA (5-200 kb) to mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells by flow cytometry. To follow the physical uptake of lipoplexes we labeled DNA molecules with the fluorescent dye TOTO-1. In parallel, expression of an EGFP reporter cassette in constructs of different sizes was used as a measure of nuclear delivery. The cellular uptake of DNA lipoplexes is dependent on the uptake competence of mES cells, but it is largely independent of DNA size. In contrast, nuclear delivery was reduced with increasing plasmid size. In addition, linear DNA is transfected with lower efficiency than circular DNA. Inefficient cytoplasmic trafficking appears to be the main limitation in the nonviral delivery of large DNA constructs to the nucleus of mES cells. Overcoming this limitation should greatly facilitate functional studies with large genomic fragments in embryonic stem cells.

Development of pacemaker properties and rhythmogenic mechanisms in the mouse embryonic respiratory network

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Chevalier, Marc; Toporikova, Natalia; Simmers, John; Thoby-Brisson, Muriel

2016-01-01

Breathing is a vital rhythmic behavior generated by hindbrain neuronal circuitry, including the preBötzinger complex network (preBötC) that controls inspiration. The emergence of preBötC network activity during prenatal development has been described, but little is known regarding inspiratory neurons expressing pacemaker properties at embryonic stages. Here, we combined calcium imaging and electrophysiological recordings in mouse embryo brainstem slices together with computational modeling to reveal the existence of heterogeneous pacemaker oscillatory properties relying on distinct combinations of burst-generating INaP and ICAN conductances. The respective proportion of the different inspiratory pacemaker subtypes changes during prenatal development. Concomitantly, network rhythmogenesis switches from a purely INaP/ICAN-dependent mechanism at E16.5 to a combined pacemaker/network-driven process at E18.5. Our results provide the first description of pacemaker bursting properties in embryonic preBötC neurons and indicate that network rhythmogenesis undergoes important changes during prenatal development through alterations in both circuit properties and the biophysical characteristics of pacemaker neurons. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.16125.001 PMID:27434668

DNA context represents transcription regulation of the gene in mouse embryonic stem cells

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Ha, Misook; Hong, Soondo

2016-04-01

Understanding gene regulatory information in DNA remains a significant challenge in biomedical research. This study presents a computational approach to infer gene regulatory programs from primary DNA sequences. Using DNA around transcription start sites as attributes, our model predicts gene regulation in the gene. We find that H3K27ac around TSS is an informative descriptor of the transcription program in mouse embryonic stem cells. We build a computational model inferring the cell-type-specific H3K27ac signatures in the DNA around TSS. A comparison of embryonic stem cell and liver cell-specific H3K27ac signatures in DNA shows that the H3K27ac signatures in DNA around TSS efficiently distinguish the cell-type specific H3K27ac peaks and the gene regulation. The arrangement of the H3K27ac signatures inferred from the DNA represents the transcription regulation of the gene in mESC. We show that the DNA around transcription start sites is associated with the gene regulatory program by specific interaction with H3K27ac.

Omcg1 is critically required for mitosis in rapidly dividing mouse intestinal progenitors and embryonic stem cells.

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Léguillier, Teddy; Vandormael-Pournin, Sandrine; Artus, Jérôme; Houlard, Martin; Picard, Christel; Bernex, Florence; Robine, Sylvie; Cohen-Tannoudji, Michel

2012-07-15

Recent studies have shown that factors involved in transcription-coupled mRNA processing are important for the maintenance of genome integrity. How these processes are linked and regulated in vivo remains largely unknown. In this study, we addressed in the mouse model the function of Omcg1, which has been shown to participate in co-transcriptional processes, including splicing and transcription-coupled repair. Using inducible mouse models, we found that Omcg1 is most critically required in intestinal progenitors. In absence of OMCG1, proliferating intestinal epithelial cells underwent abnormal mitosis followed by apoptotic cell death. As a consequence, the crypt proliferative compartment of the small intestine was quickly and totally abrogated leading to the rapid death of the mice. Lack of OMCG1 in embryonic stem cells led to a similar cellular phenotype, with multiple mitotic defects and rapid cell death. We showed that mutant intestinal progenitors and embryonic stem cells exhibited a reduced cell cycle arrest following irradiation, suggesting that mitotic defects may be consecutive to M phase entry with unrepaired DNA damages. These findings unravel a crucial role for pre-mRNA processing in the homeostasis of the small intestine and point to a major role of OMCG1 in the maintenance of genome integrity.

Omcg1 is critically required for mitosis in rapidly dividing mouse intestinal progenitors and embryonic stem cells

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Teddy Léguillier

2012-05-01

Recent studies have shown that factors involved in transcription-coupled mRNA processing are important for the maintenance of genome integrity. How these processes are linked and regulated in vivo remains largely unknown. In this study, we addressed in the mouse model the function of Omcg1, which has been shown to participate in co-transcriptional processes, including splicing and transcription-coupled repair. Using inducible mouse models, we found that Omcg1 is most critically required in intestinal progenitors. In absence of OMCG1, proliferating intestinal epithelial cells underwent abnormal mitosis followed by apoptotic cell death. As a consequence, the crypt proliferative compartment of the small intestine was quickly and totally abrogated leading to the rapid death of the mice. Lack of OMCG1 in embryonic stem cells led to a similar cellular phenotype, with multiple mitotic defects and rapid cell death. We showed that mutant intestinal progenitors and embryonic stem cells exhibited a reduced cell cycle arrest following irradiation, suggesting that mitotic defects may be consecutive to M phase entry with unrepaired DNA damages. These findings unravel a crucial role for pre-mRNA processing in the homeostasis of the small intestine and point to a major role of OMCG1 in the maintenance of genome integrity.

GATA-1 directly regulates Nanog in mouse embryonic stem cells

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Li, Wen-Zhong; Ai, Zhi-Ying [College of Life Sciences, Northwest A& F University, Yangling 712100 (China); Key Laboratory of Animal Biotechnology, Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A& F University, Yangling 712100 (China); Wang, Zhi-Wei [School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027 (China); Chen, Lin-Lin [College of Life Sciences, Northwest A& F University, Yangling 712100 (China); Key Laboratory of Animal Biotechnology, Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A& F University, Yangling 712100 (China); Guo, Ze-Kun, E-mail: gzknwaf@126.com [College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A& F University, Yangling 712100 (China); Key Laboratory of Animal Biotechnology, Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A& F University, Yangling 712100 (China); Zhang, Yong, E-mail: zylabnwaf@126.com [College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A& F University, Yangling 712100 (China); Key Laboratory of Animal Biotechnology, Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A& F University, Yangling 712100 (China)

2015-09-25

Nanog safeguards pluripotency in mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). Insight into the regulation of Nanog is important for a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms that control pluripotency of mESCs. In a silico analysis, we identify four GATA-1 putative binding sites in Nanog proximal promoter. The Nanog promoter activity can be significantly repressed by ectopic expression of GATA-1 evidenced by a promoter reporter assay. Mutation studies reveal that one of the four putative binding sites counts for GATA-1 repressing Nanog promoter activity. Direct binding of GATA-1 on Nanog proximal promoter is confirmed by electrophoretic mobility shift assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation. Our data provide new insights into the expanded regulatory circuitry that coordinates Nanog expression. - Highlights: • The Nanog proximal promoter conceives functional element for GATA-1. • GATA-1 occupies the Nanog proximal promoter in vitro and in vivo. • GATA-1 transcriptionally suppresses Nanog.

Inhibitory Interneurons of The Human Neocortex after Clinical Death

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V. A. Akulinin

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Objective: to analyze the human neocortex interneurons (areas 4, 10, 17 and 21 by Brodmann after cardiac arrest (clinical death.Materials and methods. The main group included patients (n=7, men who survived 7—10 days and 70—90 days after cardiac arrest and later died due to heart failure. The control group (n=4, men included individuals after sudden fatal accidents. The morphometric and histological analysis of 420 neocortical fields (Nissl#staining,calbindin D28k, neuropeptide Y was performed using light and confocal microscopy.Results. We verified all main types of interneurons (Basket, Martinotti, and neurogliaform interneurons in neocortex based on the morphology of their bodies and dendritic processes in both groups. The number of calbindin- and NPY-positive neurons in the neocortex was similar in the control and in the postoperative period.However, calbindin- and NPY-immunopositive structure fields including neuronal cell bodies and their dendrites were significantly more represented in neocortex of patients from the main group. Maximum increase in common square in the relative areas of calbindin-immunopositive structures was observed 90 days after ischemia. The squares of NPY#immunopositive fields became larger seven days after resuscitation and remained increased on 90th day post-resuscitation.Conclusion. Our findings demonstrate an increase of calbindin and NPY expression in human neocortex after clinical death, which can be explained by a compensatory  eaction of undamaged inhibitory cortical interneurons directed to protectbrain from ischemia.

Vitamin B12 Metabolism during Pregnancy and in Embryonic Mouse Models

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Maira A. Moreno-Garcia

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Vitamin B12 (cobalamin, Cbl is required for cellular metabolism. It is an essential coenzyme in mammals for two reactions: the conversion of homocysteine to methionine by the enzyme methionine synthase and the conversion of methylmalonyl-CoA to succinyl-CoA by the enzyme methylmalonyl-CoA mutase. Symptoms of Cbl deficiency are hematological, neurological and cognitive, including megaloblastic anaemia, tingling and numbness of the extremities, gait abnormalities, visual disturbances, memory loss and dementia. During pregnancy Cbl is essential, presumably because of its role in DNA synthesis and methionine synthesis; however, there are conflicting studies regarding an association between early pregnancy loss and Cbl deficiency. We here review the literature about the requirement for Cbl during pregnancy, and summarized what is known of the expression pattern and function of genes required for Cbl metabolism in embryonic mouse models.

Sleep-dependent directional coupling between human neocortex and hippocampus.

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Wagner, Tobias; Axmacher, Nikolai; Lehnertz, Klaus; Elger, Christian E; Fell, Jürgen

2010-02-01

Complex interactions between neocortex and hippocampus are the neural basis of memory formation. Two-step theories of memory formation suggest that initial encoding of novel information depends on the induction of rapid plasticity within the hippocampus, and is followed by a second sleep-dependent step of memory consolidation. These theories predict information flow from the neocortex into the hippocampus during waking state and in the reverse direction during sleep. However, experimental evidence that interactions between hippocampus and neocortex have a predominant direction which reverses during sleep rely on cross-correlation analysis of data from animal experiments and yielded inconsistent results. Here, we investigated directional coupling in intracranial EEG data from human subjects using a phase-modeling approach which is well suited to reveal functional interdependencies in oscillatory data. In general, we observed that the anterior hippocampus predominantly drives nearby and remote brain regions. Surprisingly, however, the influence of neocortical regions on the hippocampus significantly increased during sleep as compared to waking state. These results question the standard model of hippocampal-neocortical interactions and suggest that sleep-dependent consolidation is accomplished by an active retrieval of hippocampal information by the neocortex. Copyright 2009 Elsevier Srl. All rights reserved.

Golga5 is dispensable for mouse embryonic development and postnatal survival.

Science.gov (United States)

McGee, Lynessa J; Jiang, Alex L; Lan, Yu

2017-07-01

Golgins are a family of coiled-coil proteins located at the cytoplasmic surface of the Golgi apparatus and have been implicated in maintaining Golgi structural integrity through acting as tethering factors for retrograde vesicle transport. Whereas knockdown of several individual golgins in cultured cells caused Golgi fragmentation and disruption of vesicle trafficking, analysis of mutant mouse models lacking individual golgins have discovered tissue-specific developmental functions. Recently, homozygous loss of function of GOLGA2, of which previous in vitro studies suggested an essential role in maintenance of Golgi structure and in mitosis, has been associated with a neuromuscular disorder in human patients, which highlights the need for understanding the developmental roles of the golgins in vivo. We report here generation of Golga5-deficient mice using CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing. Although knockdown studies in cultured cells have implicated Golga5 in maintenance of Golgi organization, we show that Golga5 is not required for mouse embryonic development, postnatal survival, or fertility. Moreover, whereas Golga5 is structurally closely related to Golgb1, we show that inactivation of Golga5 does not enhance the severity of developmental defects in Golgb1-deficient mice. The Golga5-deficient mice enable further investigation of the roles and functional specificity of golgins in development and diseases. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Interspecies chimera between primate embryonic stem cells and mouse embryos: monkey ESCs engraft into mouse embryos, but not post-implantation fetuses.

Science.gov (United States)

Simerly, Calvin; McFarland, Dave; Castro, Carlos; Lin, Chih-Cheng; Redinger, Carrie; Jacoby, Ethan; Mich-Basso, Jocelyn; Orwig, Kyle; Mills, Parker; Ahrens, Eric; Navara, Chris; Schatten, Gerald

2011-07-01

Unequivocal evidence for pluripotency in which embryonic stem cells contribute to chimeric offspring has yet to be demonstrated in human or nonhuman primates (NHPs). Here, rhesus and baboons ESCs were investigated in interspecific mouse chimera generated by aggregation or blastocyst injection. Aggregation chimera produced mouse blastocysts with GFP-nhpESCs at the inner cell mass (ICM), and embryo transfers (ETs) generated dimly-fluorescencing abnormal fetuses. Direct injection of GFP-nhpESCs into blastocysts produced normal non-GFP-fluorescencing fetuses. Injected chimera showed >70% loss of GFP-nhpESCs after 21 h culture. Outgrowths of all chimeric blastocysts established distinct but separate mouse- and NHP-ESC colonies. Extensive endogenous autofluorescence compromised anti-GFP detection and PCR analysis did not detect nhpESCs in fetuses. NhpESCs localize to the ICM in chimera and generate pregnancies. Because primate ESCs do not engraft post-implantation, and also because endogenous autofluorescence results in misleading positive signals, interspecific chimera assays for pluripotency with primate stem cells is unreliable with the currently available ESCs. Testing primate ESCs reprogrammed into even more naïve states in these inter-specific chimera assays will be an important future endeavor. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Influence of high- and low-LET radiation on the cardiac differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Helm, Alexander

2013-07-19

The in utero exposure to ionising radiation poses a risk for the radiosensitive developing embryo. Effects of low-LET radiation on different developmental stages of the embryo are relatively well known due to experimental studies and epidemiological data. Data for effects on the very early stage of the embryonic development, particularly the effects of high-LET radiation instead are rather limited. However, unanticipated exposures of the early embryo to ionising radiation may occur through diagnostic or therapeutic applications or through radiation accidents. Additionally, protons and carbon ions are increasingly used in radiotherapy. Thus, a risk estimation of high-LET exposure especially to the early embryo is of a certain importance. To address this topic, pluripotent mouse embryonic stem cells resembling the blastocyst stage were irradiated with high-LET carbon ions or low-LET X-rays and subsequently differentiated to mimic the early embryonic development. The occurrence of spontaneously contracting cardiomyocytes was used as a marker to asses the radiation effects on the differentiation. Among others, cell inactivation, cell death and gene expression were analysed. A delay in the cardiac differentiation after radiation exposure was found. The results point to radiation-induced cell killing as the main effector of the developmental delay. Carbon ions were found to be more effective than X-rays.

Combined serial analysis of gene expression and transcription factor binding site prediction identifies novel-candidate-target genes of Nr2e1 in neocortex development.

Science.gov (United States)

Schmouth, Jean-François; Arenillas, David; Corso-Díaz, Ximena; Xie, Yuan-Yun; Bohacec, Slavita; Banks, Kathleen G; Bonaguro, Russell J; Wong, Siaw H; Jones, Steven J M; Marra, Marco A; Simpson, Elizabeth M; Wasserman, Wyeth W

2015-07-24

Nr2e1 (nuclear receptor subfamily 2, group e, member 1) encodes a transcription factor important in neocortex development. Previous work has shown that nuclear receptors can have hundreds of target genes, and bind more than 300 co-interacting proteins. However, recognition of the critical role of Nr2e1 in neural stem cells and neocortex development is relatively recent, thus the molecular mechanisms involved for this nuclear receptor are only beginning to be understood. Serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE), has given researchers both qualitative and quantitative information pertaining to biological processes. Thus, in this work, six LongSAGE mouse libraries were generated from laser microdissected tissue samples of dorsal VZ/SVZ (ventricular zone and subventricular zone) from the telencephalon of wild-type (Wt) and Nr2e1-null embryos at the critical development ages E13.5, E15.5, and E17.5. We then used a novel approach, implementing multiple computational methods followed by biological validation to further our understanding of Nr2e1 in neocortex development. In this work, we have generated a list of 1279 genes that are differentially expressed in response to altered Nr2e1 expression during in vivo neocortex development. We have refined this list to 64 candidate direct-targets of NR2E1. Our data suggested distinct roles for Nr2e1 during different neocortex developmental stages. Most importantly, our results suggest a possible novel pathway by which Nr2e1 regulates neurogenesis, which includes Lhx2 as one of the candidate direct-target genes, and SOX9 as a co-interactor. In conclusion, we have provided new candidate interacting partners and numerous well-developed testable hypotheses for understanding the pathways by which Nr2e1 functions to regulate neocortex development.

Generation of eggs from mouse embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Hayashi, Katsuhiko; Saitou, Mitinori

2013-08-01

Oogenesis is an integrated process through which an egg acquires the potential for totipotency, a fundamental condition for creating new individuals. Reconstitution of oogenesis in a culture that generates eggs with proper function from pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) is therefore one of the key goals in basic biology as well as in reproductive medicine. Here we describe a stepwise protocol for the generation of eggs from mouse PSCs, such as embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). ESCs and iPSCs are first induced into primordial germ cell-like cells (PGCLCs) that are in turn aggregated with somatic cells of female embryonic gonads, the precursors for adult ovaries. Induction of PGCLCs followed by aggregation with the somatic cells takes up to 8 d. The aggregations are then transplanted under the ovarian bursa, in which PGCLCs grow into germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes in ∼1 month. The PGCLC-derived GV oocytes can be matured into eggs in 1 d by in vitro maturation (IVM), and they can be fertilized with spermatozoa by in vitro fertilization (IVF) to obtain healthy and fertile offspring. This method provides an initial step toward reconstitution of the entire process of oogenesis in vitro.

BLM has early and late functions in homologous recombination repair in mouse embryonic stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chu, W K; Hanada, K; Kanaar, R

2010-01-01

function of BLM remains unclear. Multiple roles have been proposed for BLM in the homologous recombination (HR) repair pathway, including 'early' functions, such as the stimulation of resection of DNA double-strand break ends or displacement of the invading strand of DNA displacement loops, and 'late......' roles, such as dissolution of double Holliday junctions. However, most of the evidence for these putative roles comes from in vitro biochemical data. In this study, we report the characterization of mouse embryonic stem cells with disruption of Blm and/or Rad54 genes. We show that Blm has roles both...

Data on the potential impact of food supplements on the growth of mouse embryonic stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Correia, Marcelo; Sousa, Maria I; Rodrigues, Ana S; Perestrelo, Tânia; Pereira, Sandro L; Ribeiro, Marcelo F; Ramalho-Santos, João

2016-06-01

The use of new compounds as dietary supplements is increasing, but little is known in terms of possible consequences of their use. Pluripotent stem cells are a promising research tool for citotoxicological research for evaluation of proliferation, cell death, pluripotency and differentiation. Using the mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) model, we present data on three different compounds that have been proposed as new potential supplements for co-adjuvant disease treatments: kaempferol, berberine and Tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA). Cell number and viability were monitored following treatment with increased concentrations of each drug in pluripotent culture conditions.

Dissecting Transcriptional Heterogeneity in Pluripotency: Single Cell Analysis of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells.

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Guedes, Ana M V; Henrique, Domingos; Abranches, Elsa

2016-01-01

Mouse Embryonic Stem cells (mESCs) show heterogeneous and dynamic expression of important pluripotency regulatory factors. Single-cell analysis has revealed the existence of cell-to-cell variability in the expression of individual genes in mESCs. Understanding how these heterogeneities are regulated and what their functional consequences are is crucial to obtain a more comprehensive view of the pluripotent state.In this chapter we describe how to analyze transcriptional heterogeneity by monitoring gene expression of Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2, using single-molecule RNA FISH in single mESCs grown in different cell culture medium. We describe in detail all the steps involved in the protocol, from RNA detection to image acquisition and processing, as well as exploratory data analysis.

Inhibition of chondroitin sulfate glycosaminoglycans incorporation affected odontoblast differentiation in cultured embryonic mouse molars.

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Liu, Lipei; Chen, Weiting; Li, Lefeng; Xu, Fangfang; Jiang, Beizhan

2017-12-01

Chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan (CSPG) is an important component of extracellular matrix (ECM), it is composed of a core protein and one or more chondroitin sulfate glycosaminoglycan side chains (CS-GAGs). To investigate the roles of its CS-GAGs in dentinogenesis, the mouse mandibular first molar tooth germs at early bell stage were cultivated with or without β-xyloside. As expected, the CS-GAGs were inhibited on their incorporation to CSPGs by β-xyloside, accompanied by the change of morphology of the cultured tooth germs. The histological results and the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) investigation indicated that β-xyloside exhibited obvious inhibiting effects on odontoblasts differentiation compared with the control group. Meanwhile the results of immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridization and quantitative RT-PCR for type I collagen, dentin matrix acidic phosphoprotein 1 and dentin sialophosphoprotein, the products of differentiated odontoblasts, further proved that odontoblasts differentiation was inhibited. Collagen fibers detected in TEM decreased and arranged in disorder as well. Thus we conclude that the inhibition of CS-GAGs incorporation to CSPGs can affect odontoblast differentiation in cultured embryonic mouse molars.

Quantitative relationships in delphinid neocortex

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mortensen, Heidi S.; Pakkenberg, Bente; Dam, Maria

2014-01-01

total number of brain cells in cetaceans, and even fewer have used unbiased counting methods. In this study, using stereological methods, we estimated the total number of cells in the neocortex of the long-finned pilot whale (Globicephala melas) brain. For the first time, we show that a species...

Optimization of a serum-free culture medium for mouse embryonic stem cells using design of experiments (DoE) methodology.

Science.gov (United States)

Knöspel, Fanny; Schindler, Rudolf K; Lübberstedt, Marc; Petzolt, Stephanie; Gerlach, Jörg C; Zeilinger, Katrin

2010-12-01

The in vitro culture behaviour of embryonic stem cells (ESC) is strongly influenced by the culture conditions. Current culture media for expansion of ESC contain some undefined substances. Considering potential clinical translation work with such cells, the use of defined media is desirable. We have used Design of Experiments (DoE) methods to investigate the composition of a serum-free chemically defined culture medium for expansion of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESC). Factor screening analysis according to Plackett-Burman revealed that insulin and leukaemia inhibitory factor (LIF) had a significant positive influence on the proliferation activity of the cells, while zinc and L: -cysteine reduced the cell growth. Further analysis using minimum run resolution IV (MinRes IV) design indicates that following factor adjustment LIF becomes the main factor for the survival and proliferation of mESC. In conclusion, DoE screening assays are applicable to develop and to refine culture media for stem cells and could also be employed to optimize culture media for human embryonic stem cells (hESC).

Merkel Cell Polyomavirus Small T Antigen Induces Cancer and Embryonic Merkel Cell Proliferation in a Transgenic Mouse Model.

Science.gov (United States)

Shuda, Masahiro; Guastafierro, Anna; Geng, Xuehui; Shuda, Yoko; Ostrowski, Stephen M; Lukianov, Stefan; Jenkins, Frank J; Honda, Kord; Maricich, Stephen M; Moore, Patrick S; Chang, Yuan

2015-01-01

Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCV) causes the majority of human Merkel cell carcinomas (MCC) and encodes a small T (sT) antigen that transforms immortalized rodent fibroblasts in vitro. To develop a mouse model for MCV sT-induced carcinogenesis, we generated transgenic mice with a flox-stop-flox MCV sT sequence homologously recombined at the ROSA locus (ROSAsT), allowing Cre-mediated, conditional MCV sT expression. Standard tamoxifen (TMX) administration to adult UbcCreERT2; ROSAsT mice, in which Cre is ubiquitously expressed, resulted in MCV sT expression in multiple organs that was uniformly lethal within 5 days. Conversely, most adult UbcCreERT2; ROSAsT mice survived low-dose tamoxifen administration but developed ear lobe dermal hyperkeratosis and hypergranulosis. Simultaneous MCV sT expression and conditional homozygous p53 deletion generated multi-focal, poorly-differentiated, highly anaplastic tumors in the spleens and livers of mice after 60 days of TMX treatment. Mouse embryonic fibroblasts from these mice induced to express MCV sT exhibited anchorage-independent cell growth. To examine Merkel cell pathology, MCV sT expression was also induced during mid-embryogenesis in Merkel cells of Atoh1CreERT2/+; ROSAsT mice, which lead to significantly increased Merkel cell numbers in touch domes at late embryonic ages that normalized postnatally. Tamoxifen administration to adult Atoh1CreERT2/+; ROSAsT and Atoh1CreERT2/+; ROSAsT; p53flox/flox mice had no effects on Merkel cell numbers and did not induce tumor formation. Taken together, these results show that MCV sT stimulates progenitor Merkel cell proliferation in embryonic mice and is a bona fide viral oncoprotein that induces full cancer cell transformation in the p53-null setting.

Generation of tooth-periodontium complex structures using high-odontogenic potential dental epithelium derived from mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Zhang, Yancong; Li, Yongliang; Shi, Ruirui; Zhang, Siqi; Liu, Hao; Zheng, Yunfei; Li, Yan; Cai, Jinglei; Pei, Duanqing; Wei, Shicheng

2017-06-08

A number of studies have shown that tooth-like structures can be regenerated using induced pluripotent stem cells and mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells. However, few studies have reported the regeneration of tooth-periodontium complex structures, which are more suitable for clinical tooth transplantation. We established an optimized approach to induce high-odontogenic potential dental epithelium derived from mES cells by temporally controlling bone morphogenic protein 4 (BMP4) function and regenerated tooth-periodontium complex structures in vivo. First, immunofluorescence and quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction were used to identify the watershed of skin and the oral ectoderm. LDN193189 was then used to inhibit the BMP4 receptor around the watershed, followed by the addition of exogenous BMP4 to promote BMP4 function. The generated dental epithelium was confirmed by western blot analysis and immunofluorescence. The generated epithelium was ultimately combined with embryonic day 14.5 mouse mesenchyme and transplanted into the renal capsules of nude mice. After 4 weeks, the tooth-periodontium complex structure was examined by micro-computed tomography (CT) and hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. Our study found that the turning point of oral ectoderm differentiation occurred around day 3 after the embryoid body was transferred to a common culture plate. Ameloblastin-positive dental epithelial cells were detected following the temporal regulation of BMP4. Tooth-periodontium complex structures, which included teeth, a periodontal membrane, and alveolar bone, were formed when this epithelium was combined with mouse dental mesenchyme and transplanted into the renal capsules of nude mice. Micro-CT and H&E staining revealed that the generated tooth-periodontium complex structures shared a similar histological structure with normal mouse teeth. An optimized induction method was established to promote the differentiation of mES cells into dental

Dual Function of Wnt Signaling during Neuronal Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

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Hanjun Kim

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Activation of Wnt signaling enhances self-renewal of mouse embryonic and neural stem/progenitor cells. In contrast, undifferentiated ES cells show a very low level of endogenous Wnt signaling, and ectopic activation of Wnt signaling has been shown to block neuronal differentiation. Therefore, it remains unclear whether or not endogenous Wnt/β-catenin signaling is necessary for self-renewal or neuronal differentiation of ES cells. To investigate this, we examined the expression profiles of Wnt signaling components. Expression levels of Wnts known to induce β-catenin were very low in undifferentiated ES cells. Stable ES cell lines which can monitor endogenous activity of Wnt/β-catenin signaling suggest that Wnt signaling was very low in undifferentiated ES cells, whereas it increased during embryonic body formation or neuronal differentiation. Interestingly, application of small molecules which can positively (BIO, GSK3β inhibitor or negatively (IWR-1-endo, Axin stabilizer control Wnt/β-catenin signaling suggests that activation of that signaling at different time periods had differential effects on neuronal differentiation of 46C ES cells. Further, ChIP analysis suggested that β-catenin/TCF1 complex directly regulated the expression of Sox1 during neuronal differentiation. Overall, our data suggest that Wnt/β-catenin signaling plays differential roles at different time points of neuronal differentiation.

Choline acetyltransferase-containing neurons in the human parietal neocortex

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V Benagiano

2009-06-01

Full Text Available A number of immunocytochemical studies have indicated the presence of cholinergic neurons in the cerebral cortex of various species of mammals. Whether such cholinergic neurons in the human cerebral cortex are exclusively of subcortical origin is still debated. In this immunocytochemical study, the existence of cortical cholinergic neurons was investigated on surgical samples of human parietal association neocortex using a highly specific monoclonal antibody against choline acetyltransferase (ChAT, the acetylcholine biosynthesising enzyme. ChAT immunoreactivity was detected in a subpopulation of neurons located in layers II and III. These were small or medium-sized pyramidal neurons which showed cytoplasmic immunoreactivity in the perikarya and processes, often in close association to blood microvessels. This study, providing demonstration of ChAT neurons in the human parietal neocortex, strongly supports the existence of intrinsic cholinergic innervation of the human neocortex. It is likely that these neurons contribute to the cholinergic innervation of the intracortical microvessels.

In vitro differentiation and maturation of mouse embryonic stem cells into hepatocytes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishii, Takamichi; Yasuchika, Kentaro; Fujii, Hideaki; Hoppo, Toshitaka; Baba, Shinji; Naito, Masato; Machimoto, Takafumi; Kamo, Naoko; Suemori, Hirofumi; Nakatsuji, Norio; Ikai, Iwao

2005-01-01

It is difficult to induce the maturation of embryonic stem (ES) cells into hepatocytes in vitro. We previously reported that Thy1-positive mesenchymal cells derived from the mouse fetal liver promote the maturation of hepatic progenitor cells. Here, we isolated alpha-fetoprotein (AFP)-producing cells from mouse ES cells for subsequent differentiation into hepatocytes in vitro by coculture with Thy1-positive cells. ES cells expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) under the control of an AFP promoter were cultured under serum- and feeder layer-free culture conditions. The proportion of GFP-positive cells plateaued at 41.6 ± 12.2% (means ± SD) by day 7. GFP-positive cells, isolated by flow cytometry, were cultured in the presence or absence of Thy1-positive cells as a feeder layer. Isolated GFP-positive cells were stained for AFP, Foxa2, and albumin. The expression of mRNAs encoding tyrosine amino transferase, tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase, and glucose-6-phosphatase were only detected following coculture with Thy1-positive cells. Following coculture with Thy1-positive cells, the isolated cells produced and stored glycogen. Ammonia clearance activity was also enhanced following coculture. Electron microscopic analysis indicated that the cocultured cells exhibited the morphologic features of mature hepatocytes. In conclusion, coculture with Thy1-positive cells in vitro induced the maturation of AFP-producing cells isolated from ES cell cultures into hepatocytes

Growth and morphogenesis of embryonic mouse organs on non-coated and extracellular matrix-coated Biopore membrane

Science.gov (United States)

Hardman, P.; Klement, B. J.; Spooner, B. S.

1993-01-01

Embryonic mouse salivary glands, pancreata, and kidneys were isolated from embryos of appropriate gestational age by microdissection, and were cultured on Biopore membrane either non-coated or coated with type I collagen or Matrigel. As expected, use of Biopore membrane allowed high quality photomicroscopy of the living organs. In all organs extensive mesenchymal spreading was observed in the presence of type I collagen or Matrigel. However, differences were noted in the effects of extracellular matrix (ECM) coatings on epithelial growth and morphogenesis: salivary glands were minimally affected, pancreas morphogenesis was adversely affected, and kidney growth and branching apparently was enhanced. It is suggested that these differences in behaviour reflect differences in the strength of interactions between the mesenchymal cells and their surrounding endogenous matrix, compared to the exogenous ECM macromolecules. This method will be useful for culture of these and other embryonic organs. In particular, culture of kidney rudiments on ECM-coated Biopore offers a great improvement over previously used methods which do not allow morphogenesis to be followed in vitro.

Embryoid bodies formation and differentiation from mouse embryonic stem cells in collagen/Matrigel scaffolds.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Jin; Zhang, Ye; Lin, Qiuxia; Liu, Zhiqiang; Wang, Haibin; Duan, Cuimi; Wang, Yanmeng; Hao, Tong; Wu, Kuiwu; Wang, Changyong

2010-07-01

Embryonic stem (ES) cells have the potential to develop into any type of tissue and are considered as a promising source of seeding cells for tissue engineering and transplantation therapy. The main catalyst for ES cells differentiation is the growth into embryoid bodies (EBs), which are utilized widely as the trigger of in vitro differentiation. In this study, a novel method for generating EBs from mouse ES cells through culture in collagen/Matrigel scaffolds was successfully established. When single ES cells were seeded in three dimensional collagen/Matrigel scaffolds, they grew into aggregates gradually and formed simple EBs with circular structures. After 7 days' culture, they formed into cystic EBs that would eventually differentiate into the three embryonic germ layers. Evaluation of the EBs in terms of morphology and potential to differentiate indicated that they were typical in structure and could generate various cell types; they were also able to form into tissue-like structures. Moreover, with introduction of ascorbic acid, ES cells differentiated into cardiomyocytes efficiently and started contracting synchronously at day 19. The results demonstrated that collagen/Matrigel scaffolds supported EBs formation and their subsequent differentiation in a single three dimensional environment. Copyright 2010 Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology and the Genetics Society of China. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hypoxia preferentially destroys GABAergic neurons in developing rat neocortex explants in culture

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Romijn, H. J.; Ruijter, J. M.; Wolters, P. S.

1988-01-01

The hypothesis that hypoxic ischemia before or during the human birth process preferentially destroys GABAergic nerve cells, particularly in the neocortex, was tested in a tissue culture model system. To that end, rat neocortex explants dissected from 6-day-old rat pups and cultured to a

In vitro differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells into functional ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Jane

2011-08-22

Aug 22, 2011 ... hepatocyte transplantation therapy and toxicity screening in drug discovery. Key words: Embryonic stem cells, hepatic-like cells, in vitro differentiation, sodium butyrate, ... from embryonic stem (ES) cell or induced pluripotent.

A reliable and economical method for gaining mouse embryonic fibroblasts capable of preparing feeder layers.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Guangming; Wan, Xiaoju; Wang, Ming; Zhou, Jianhua; Pan, Jian; Wang, Baolong

2016-08-01

Mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) are widely used to prepare feeder layers for culturing embryonic stem cells (ESCs) or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) in vitro. Transportation lesions and exorbitant prices make the commercially obtained MEFs unsuitable for long term research. The aim of present study is to establish a method, which enables researchers to gain MEFs from mice and establish feeder layers by themselves in ordinary laboratories. MEFs were isolated from ICR mouse embryos at 12.5-17.5 day post-coitum (DPC) and cultured in vitro. At P2-P7, the cells were inactivated with mitomycin C or by X-ray irradiation. Then they were used to prepare feeder layers. The key factors of the whole protocol were analyzed to determine the optimal conditions for the method. The results revealed MEFs isolated at 12.5-13.5 DPC, and cultured to P3 were the best choice for feeder preparation, those P2 and P4-P5 MEFs were also suitable for the purpose. The P3-P5 MEFs treated with 10 μg/ml of mitomycin C for 3 h, or irradiated with X-ray at 1.5 Gy/min for 25 Gy were the most suitable feeder cells. Treating MEFs with 10 μg/ml of mitomycin C for 2.5 h, 15 μg/ml for 2.0 h, or irradiating the cells with 20 Gy of X-ray at 2.0 Gy/min could all serve as alternative methods for P3-P4 cells. Our study provides a reliable and economical way to obtain large amount of qualified MEFs for long term research of ESCs or iPSCs.

Microstructural imaging of human neocortex in vivo.

Science.gov (United States)

Edwards, Luke J; Kirilina, Evgeniya; Mohammadi, Siawoosh; Weiskopf, Nikolaus

2018-03-24

The neocortex of the human brain is the seat of higher brain function. Modern imaging techniques, chief among them magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), allow non-invasive imaging of this important structure. Knowledge of the microstructure of the neocortex has classically come from post-mortem histological studies of human tissue, and extrapolations from invasive animal studies. From these studies, we know that the scale of important neocortical structure spans six orders of magnitude, ranging from the size of axonal diameters (microns), to the size of cortical areas responsible for integrating sensory information (centimetres). MRI presents an opportunity to move beyond classical methods, because MRI is non-invasive and MRI contrast is sensitive to neocortical microstructure over all these length scales. MRI thus allows inferences to be made about neocortical microstructure in vivo, i.e. MRI-based in vivo histology. We review recent literature that has applied and developed MRI-based in vivo histology to probe the microstructure of the human neocortex, focusing specifically on myelin, iron, and neuronal fibre mapping. We find that applications such as cortical parcellation (using R 1 maps as proxies for myelin content) and investigation of cortical iron deposition with age (using R 2 * maps) are already contributing to the frontiers of knowledge in neuroscience. Neuronal fibre mapping in the cortex remains challenging in vivo, but recent improvements in diffusion MRI hold promise for exciting applications in the near future. The literature also suggests that utilising multiple complementary quantitative MRI maps could increase the specificity of inferences about neocortical microstructure relative to contemporary techniques, but that further investment in modelling is required to appropriately combine the maps. In vivo histology of human neocortical microstructure is undergoing rapid development. Future developments will improve its specificity, sensitivity, and

Symmetry breaking, germ layer specification and axial organisation in aggregates of mouse embryonic stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

van den Brink, Susanne C; Baillie-Johnson, Peter; Balayo, Tina; Hadjantonakis, Anna-Katerina; Nowotschin, Sonja; Turner, David A; Martinez Arias, Alfonso

2014-11-01

Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) are clonal populations derived from preimplantation mouse embryos that can be propagated in vitro and, when placed into blastocysts, contribute to all tissues of the embryo and integrate into the normal morphogenetic processes, i.e. they are pluripotent. However, although they can be steered to differentiate in vitro into all cell types of the organism, they cannot organise themselves into structures that resemble embryos. When aggregated into embryoid bodies they develop disorganised masses of different cell types with little spatial coherence. An exception to this rule is the emergence of retinas and anterior cortex-like structures under minimal culture conditions. These structures emerge from the cultures without any axial organisation. Here, we report that small aggregates of mESCs, of about 300 cells, self-organise into polarised structures that exhibit collective behaviours reminiscent of those that cells exhibit in early mouse embryos, including symmetry breaking, axial organisation, germ layer specification and cell behaviour, as well as axis elongation. The responses are signal specific and uncouple processes that in the embryo are tightly associated, such as specification of the anteroposterior axis and anterior neural development, or endoderm specification and axial elongation. We discuss the meaning and implications of these observations and the potential uses of these structures which, because of their behaviour, we suggest to call 'gastruloids'. © 2014. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Isolation and characterization of node/notochord-like cells from mouse embryonic stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Winzi, Maria K.; Hyttel, Poul; Dale, Jacqueline Kim

2011-01-01

The homeobox gene Noto is expressed in the node and its derivative the notochord. Here we use a targeted Noto-GFP reporter to isolate and characterize node/notochord-like cells derived from mouse embryonic stem cells. We find very few Noto-expressing cells after spontaneous differentiation. However......, the number of Noto-expressing cells was increased when using Activin A to induce a Foxa2- and Brachyury-expressing progenitor population, whose further differentiation into Noto-expressing cells was improved by simultaneous inhibition of BMP, Wnt, and retinoic acid signaling. Noto-GFP(+) cells expressed...... the node/notochord markers Noto, Foxa2, Shh, Noggin, Chordin, Foxj1, and Brachyury; showed a vacuolarization characteristic of notochord cells; and can integrate into midline structures when grafted into Hensen's node of gastrulating chicken embryos. The ability to generate node/notochord-like cells...

Efficient Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells into Insulin-Producing Cells

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Szu-Hsiu Liu

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Embryonic stem (ES cells are a potential source of a variety of differentiated cells for cell therapy, drug discovery, and toxicology screening. Here, we present an efficacy strategy for the differentiation of mouse ES cells into insulin-producing cells (IPCs by a two-step differentiation protocol comprising of (i the formation of definitive endoderm in monolayer culture by activin A, and (ii this monolayer endoderm being induced to differentiate into IPCs by nicotinamide, insulin, and laminin. Differentiated cells can be obtained within approximately 7 days. The differentiation IPCs combined application of RT-PCR, ELISA, and immunofluorescence to characterize phenotypic and functional properties. In our study, we demonstrated that IPCs produced pancreatic transcription factors, endocrine progenitor marker, definitive endoderm, pancreatic β-cell markers, and Langerhans α and δ cells. The IPCs released insulin in a manner that was dose dependent upon the amount of glucose added. These techniques may be able to be applied to human ES cells, which would have very important ramifications for treating human disease.

A chronological expression profile of gene activity during embryonic mouse brain development.

Science.gov (United States)

Goggolidou, P; Soneji, S; Powles-Glover, N; Williams, D; Sethi, S; Baban, D; Simon, M M; Ragoussis, I; Norris, D P

2013-12-01

The brain is a functionally complex organ, the patterning and development of which are key to adult health. To help elucidate the genetic networks underlying mammalian brain patterning, we conducted detailed transcriptional profiling during embryonic development of the mouse brain. A total of 2,400 genes were identified as showing differential expression between three developmental stages. Analysis of the data identified nine gene clusters to demonstrate analogous expression profiles. A significant group of novel genes of as yet undiscovered biological function were detected as being potentially relevant to brain development and function, in addition to genes that have previously identified roles in the brain. Furthermore, analysis for genes that display asymmetric expression between the left and right brain hemispheres during development revealed 35 genes as putatively asymmetric from a combined data set. Our data constitute a valuable new resource for neuroscience and neurodevelopment, exposing possible functional associations between genes, including novel loci, and encouraging their further investigation in human neurological and behavioural disorders.

Differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells into cardiomyocytes via the hanging-drop and mass culture methods.

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Fuegemann, Christopher J; Samraj, Ajoy K; Walsh, Stuart; Fleischmann, Bernd K; Jovinge, Stefan; Breitbach, Martin

2010-12-01

Herein, we describe two protocols for the in vitro differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) into cardiomyocytes. mESCs are pluripotent and can be differentiated into cells of all three germ layers, including cardiomyocytes. The methods described here facilitate the differentiation of mESCs into the different cardiac subtypes (atrial-, ventricular-, nodal-like cells). The duration of cell culture determines whether preferentially early- or late-developmental stage cardiomyocytes can be obtained preferentially. This approach allows the investigation of cardiomyocyte development and differentiation in vitro, and also allows for the enrichment and isolation of physiologically intact cardiomyocytes for transplantation purposes. © 2010 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

The macro-structural variability of the human neocortex.

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Kruggel, Frithjof

2018-05-15

The human neocortex shows a considerable individual structural variability. While primary gyri and sulci are found in all normally developed brains and bear clear-cut gross structural descriptions, secondary structures are highly variable and not present in all brains. The blend of common and individual structures poses challenges when comparing structural and functional results from quantitative neuroimaging studies across individuals, and sets limits on the precision of location information much above the spatial resolution of current neuroimaging methods. This work aimed at quantifying structural variability on the neocortex, and at assessing the spatial relationship between regions common to all brains and their individual structural variants. Based on structural MRI data provided as the "900 Subjects Release" of the Human Connectome Project, a data-driven analytic approach was employed here from which the definition of seven cortical "communities" emerged. Apparently, these communities comprise common regions of structural features, while the individual variability is confined within a community. Similarities between the community structure and the state of the brain development at gestation week 32 lead suggest that communities are segregated early. Subdividing the neocortex into communities is suggested as anatomically more meaningful than the traditional lobar structure. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effects of network resolution on topological properties of human neocortex

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Romero-Garcia, Rafael; Atienza, Mercedes; Clemmensen, Line Katrine Harder

2012-01-01

Graph theoretical analyses applied to neuroimaging datasets have provided valuable insights into the large-scale anatomical organization of the human neocortex. Most of these studies were performed with different cortical scales leading to cortical networks with different levels of small-world or......Graph theoretical analyses applied to neuroimaging datasets have provided valuable insights into the large-scale anatomical organization of the human neocortex. Most of these studies were performed with different cortical scales leading to cortical networks with different levels of small...

Resveratrol Enhances Self-Renewal of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Na; Du, Zhaoyu; Shen, Qiaoyan; Lei, Qijing; Zhang, Ying; Zhang, Mengfei; Hua, Jinlian

2017-07-01

Resveratrol (RSV) has been shown to affect the differentiation of several types of stem cells, while the detailed mechanism is elusive. Here, we aim to investigate the function of RSV in self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and the related mechanisms. In contrast with its reported roles, we found unexpectedly that differentiated ESCs or iPSCs treated by RSV would not show further differentiation, but regained a naïve pluripotency state with higher expressions of core transcriptional factors and with the ability to differentiate into all three germ layers when transplanted in vivo. In accordance with these findings, RSV also enhanced cell cycle progression of ESCs via regulating cell cycle-related proteins. Finally, enhanced activation of JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway and suppressed activation of mTOR were found essential in enhancing the self-renewal of ESCs by RSV. Our finding discovered a novel function of RSV in enhancing the self-renewal of ESCs, and suggested that the timing of treatment and concentration of RSV determined the final effect of it. Our work may contribute to understanding of RSV in the self-renewal maintenance of pluripotent stem cells, and may also provide help to the generation and maintenance of iPSCs in vitro. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 1928-1935, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Genome engineering via homologous recombination in mouse embryonic stem (ES cells: an amazingly versatile tool for the study of mammalian biology

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BABINET CHARLES

2001-01-01

Full Text Available The ability to introduce genetic modifications in the germ line of complex organisms has been a long-standing goal of those who study developmental biology. In this regard, the mouse, a favorite model for the study of the mammals, is unique: indeed not only is it possible since the late seventies, to add genes to the mouse genome like in several other complex organisms but also to perform gene replacement and modification. This has been made possible via two technological breakthroughs: 1 the isolation and culture of embryonic stem cells (ES, which have the unique ability to colonize all the tissues of an host embryo including its germ line; 2 the development of methods allowing homologous recombination between an incoming DNA and its cognate chromosomal sequence (gene ''targeting''. As a result, it has become possible to create mice bearing null mutations in any cloned gene (knock-out mice. Such a possibility has revolutionized the genetic approach of almost all aspects of the biology of the mouse. In recent years, the scope of gene targeting has been widened even more, due to the refinement of the knock-out technology: other types of genetic modifications may now be created, including subtle mutations (point mutations, micro deletions or insertions, etc. and chromosomal rearrangements such as large deletions, duplications and translocations. Finally, methods have been devised which permit the creation of conditional mutations, allowing the study of gene function throughout the life of an animal, when gene inactivation entails embryonic lethality. In this paper, we present an overview of the methods and scenarios used for the programmed modification of mouse genome, and we underline their enormous interest for the study of mammalian biology.

Mouse Embryonic Fibroblasts (MEF) Exhibit a Similar but not Identical Phenotype to Bone Marrow Stromal Stem Cells (BMSC)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Saeed, Hamid; Taipaleenmäki, Hanna; Aldahmash, Abdullah M

2012-01-01

Mouse embryonic fibroblasts have been utilized as a surrogate stem cell model for the postnatal bone marrow-derived stromal stem cells (BMSC) to study mesoderm-type cell differentiation e.g. osteoblasts, adipocytes and chondrocytes. However, no formal characterization of MEF phenotype has been...... by real-time PCR analysis. Compared to BMSC, MEF exhibited a more enhanced differentiation into adipocyte and chondrocyte lineages. Interestingly, both MEF and BMSC formed the same amount of heterotopic bone and bone marrow elements upon in vivo subcutaneous implantation with hydroxyapatite...... and differentiation to osteoblasts, adipocytes and chondrocytes....

The miR-17-92 cluster regulates FOG-2 expression and inhibits proliferation of mouse embryonic cardiomyocytes

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Rui Xiang

2012-02-01

Full Text Available MicroRNAs (miRNAs have gradually been recognized as regulators of embryonic development; however, relatively few miRNAs have been identified that regulate cardiac development. A series of recent papers have established an essential role for the miRNA-17-92 (miR-17-92 cluster of miRNAs in the development of the heart. Previous research has shown that the Friend of Gata-2 (FOG-2 is critical for cardiac development. To investigate the possibility that the miR-17-92 cluster regulates FOG-2 expression and inhibits proliferation in mouse embryonic cardiomyocytes we initially used bioinformatics to analyze 3’ untranslated regions (3’UTR of FOG-2 to predict the potential of miR-17-92 to target it. We used luciferase assays to demonstrate that miR-17-5p and miR-20a of miR-17-92 interact with the predicted target sites in the 3’UTR of FOG-2. Furthermore, RT-PCR and Western blot were used to demonstrate the post-transcriptional regulation of FOG-2 by miR-17-92 in embryonic cardiomyocytes from E12.5-day pregnant C57BL/6J mice. Finally, EdU cell assays together with the FOG-2 rescue strategy were employed to evaluate the effect of proliferation on embryonic cardiomyocytes. We first found that the miR-17-5p and miR-20a of miR-17-92 directly target the 3’UTR of FOG-2 and post-transcriptionally repress the expression of FOG-2. Moreover, our findings demonstrated that over-expression of miR-17-92 may inhibit cell proliferation via post-transcriptional repression of FOG-2 in embryonic cardiomyocytes. These results indicate that the miR-17-92 cluster regulates the expression of FOG-2 protein and suggest that the miR-17-92 cluster might play an important role in heart development.

The miR-17-92 cluster regulates FOG-2 expression and inhibits proliferation of mouse embryonic cardiomyocytes.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiang, Rui; Lei, Han; Chen, Mianzhi; Li, Qinwei; Sun, Huan; Ai, Jianzhong; Chen, Tielin; Wang, Honglian; Fang, Yin; Zhou, Qin

2012-02-01

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have gradually been recognized as regulators of embryonic development; however, relatively few miRNAs have been identified that regulate cardiac development. A series of recent papers have established an essential role for the miRNA-17-92 (miR-17-92) cluster of miRNAs in the development of the heart. Previous research has shown that the Friend of Gata-2 (FOG-2) is critical for cardiac development. To investigate the possibility that the miR-17-92 cluster regulates FOG-2 expression and inhibits proliferation in mouse embryonic cardiomyocytes we initially used bioinformatics to analyze 3' untranslated regions (3'UTR) of FOG-2 to predict the potential of miR-17-92 to target it. We used luciferase assays to demonstrate that miR-17-5p and miR-20a of miR-17-92 interact with the predicted target sites in the 3'UTR of FOG-2. Furthermore, RT-PCR and Western blot were used to demonstrate the post-transcriptional regulation of FOG-2 by miR-17-92 in embryonic cardiomyocytes from E12.5-day pregnant C57BL/6J mice. Finally, EdU cell assays together with the FOG-2 rescue strategy were employed to evaluate the effect of proliferation on embryonic cardiomyocytes. We first found that the miR-17-5p and miR-20a of miR-17-92 directly target the 3'UTR of FOG-2 and post-transcriptionally repress the expression of FOG-2. Moreover, our findings demonstrated that over-expression of miR-17-92 may inhibit cell proliferation via post-transcriptional repression of FOG-2 in embryonic cardiomyocytes. These results indicate that the miR-17-92 cluster regulates the expression of FOG-2 protein and suggest that the miR-17-92 cluster might play an important role in heart development.

Dioxin induces genomic instability in mouse embryonic fibroblasts.

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Merja Korkalainen

Full Text Available Ionizing radiation and certain other exposures have been shown to induce genomic instability (GI, i.e., delayed genetic damage observed many cell generations later in the progeny of the exposed cells. The aim of this study was to investigate induction of GI by a nongenotoxic carcinogen, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD. Mouse embryonic fibroblasts (C3H10T1/2 were exposed to 1, 10 or 100 nM TCDD for 2 days. Micronuclei (MN and expression of selected cancer-related genes were assayed both immediately and at a delayed point in time (8 days. For comparison, similar experiments were done with cadmium, a known genotoxic agent. TCDD treatment induced an elevated frequency of MN at 8 days, but not directly after the exposure. TCDD-induced alterations in gene expression were also mostly delayed, with more changes observed at 8 days than at 2 days. Exposure to cadmium produced an opposite pattern of responses, with pronounced effects immediately after exposure but no increase in MN and few gene expression changes at 8 days. Although all responses to TCDD alone were delayed, menadione-induced DNA damage (measured by the Comet assay, was found to be increased directly after a 2-day TCDD exposure, indicating that the stability of the genome was compromised already at this time point. The results suggested a flat dose-response relationship consistent with dose-response data reported for radiation-induced GI. These findings indicate that TCDD, although not directly genotoxic, induces GI, which is associated with impaired DNA damage response.

Cytoarchitecture in cultured rat neocortex explants

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Jong, B. M.; Ruijter, J. M.; Romijn, H. J.

1988-01-01

Neocortex explants obtained from 6-day-old rat pups and cultured in a serum-free medium from 5 hr to 13 days in vitro (DIV) show preservation of cytoarchitectural characteristics. Major changes in the size of the explants and their layers occur during the first 2 DIV. A radial arrangement of neurons

Somatic donor cell type correlates with embryonic, but not extra-embryonic, gene expression in postimplantation cloned embryos.

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Ryutaro Hirasawa

Full Text Available The great majority of embryos generated by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT display defined abnormal phenotypes after implantation, such as an increased likelihood of death and abnormal placentation. To gain better insight into the underlying mechanisms, we analyzed genome-wide gene expression profiles of day 6.5 postimplantation mouse embryos cloned from three different cell types (cumulus cells, neonatal Sertoli cells and fibroblasts. The embryos retrieved from the uteri were separated into embryonic (epiblast and extraembryonic (extraembryonic ectoderm and ectoplacental cone tissues and were subjected to gene microarray analysis. Genotype- and sex-matched embryos produced by in vitro fertilization were used as controls. Principal component analysis revealed that whereas the gene expression patterns in the embryonic tissues varied according to the donor cell type, those in extraembryonic tissues were relatively consistent across all groups. Within each group, the embryonic tissues had more differentially expressed genes (DEGs (>2-fold vs. controls than did the extraembryonic tissues (P<1.0 × 10(-26. In the embryonic tissues, one of the common abnormalities was upregulation of Dlk1, a paternally imprinted gene. This might be a potential cause of the occasional placenta-only conceptuses seen in SCNT-generated mouse embryos (1-5% per embryos transferred in our laboratory, because dysregulation of the same gene is known to cause developmental failure of embryos derived from induced pluripotent stem cells. There were also some DEGs in the extraembryonic tissues, which might explain the poor development of SCNT-derived placentas at early stages. These findings suggest that SCNT affects the embryonic and extraembryonic development differentially and might cause further deterioration in the embryonic lineage in a donor cell-specific manner. This could explain donor cell-dependent variations in cloning efficiency using SCNT.

Isolation and characterization of node/notochord-like cells from mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Winzi, Maria K; Hyttel, Poul; Dale, Jacqueline Kim; Serup, Palle

2011-11-01

The homeobox gene Noto is expressed in the node and its derivative the notochord. Here we use a targeted Noto-GFP reporter to isolate and characterize node/notochord-like cells derived from mouse embryonic stem cells. We find very few Noto-expressing cells after spontaneous differentiation. However, the number of Noto-expressing cells was increased when using Activin A to induce a Foxa2- and Brachyury-expressing progenitor population, whose further differentiation into Noto-expressing cells was improved by simultaneous inhibition of BMP, Wnt, and retinoic acid signaling. Noto-GFP(+) cells expressed the node/notochord markers Noto, Foxa2, Shh, Noggin, Chordin, Foxj1, and Brachyury; showed a vacuolarization characteristic of notochord cells; and can integrate into midline structures when grafted into Hensen's node of gastrulating chicken embryos. The ability to generate node/notochord-like cells in vitro will aid the biochemical characterization of these developmentally important structures.

Chondroitin Sulfate Is Indispensable for Pluripotency and Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

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Izumikawa, Tomomi; Sato, Ban; Kitagawa, Hiroshi

2014-01-01

Chondroitin sulfate (CS) proteoglycans are present on the surfaces of virtually all cells and in the extracellular matrix and are required for cytokinesis at early developmental stages. Studies have shown that heparan sulfate (HS) is essential for maintaining mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) that are primed for differentiation, whereas the function of CS has not yet been elucidated. To clarify the role of CS, we generated glucuronyltransferase-I-knockout ESCs lacking CS. We found that CS was required to maintain the pluripotency of ESCs and promoted initial ESC commitment to differentiation compared with HS. In addition, CS-A and CS-E polysaccharides, but not CS-C polysaccharides, bound to E-cadherin and enhanced ESC differentiation. Multiple-lineage differentiation was inhibited in chondroitinase ABC-digested wild-type ESCs. Collectively, these results suggest that CS is a novel determinant in controlling the functional integrity of ESCs via binding to E-cadherin.

I-SceI-mediated double-strand break does not increase the frequency of homologous recombination at the Dct locus in mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Fenina, Myriam; Simon-Chazottes, Dominique; Vandormael-Pournin, Sandrine; Soueid, Jihane; Langa, Francina; Cohen-Tannoudji, Michel; Bernard, Bruno A; Panthier, Jean-Jacques

2012-01-01

Targeted induction of double-strand breaks (DSBs) at natural endogenous loci was shown to increase the rate of gene replacement by homologous recombination in mouse embryonic stem cells. The gene encoding dopachrome tautomerase (Dct) is specifically expressed in melanocytes and their precursors. To construct a genetic tool allowing the replacement of Dct gene by any gene of interest, we generated an embryonic stem cell line carrying the recognition site for the yeast I-SceI meganuclease embedded in the Dct genomic segment. The embryonic stem cell line was electroporated with an I-SceI expression plasmid, and a template for the DSB-repair process that carried sequence homologies to the Dct target. The I-SceI meganuclease was indeed able to introduce a DSB at the Dct locus in live embryonic stem cells. However, the level of gene targeting was not improved by the DSB induction, indicating a limited capacity of I-SceI to mediate homologous recombination at the Dct locus. These data suggest that homologous recombination by meganuclease-induced DSB may be locus dependent in mammalian cells.

Toxicity of silver nanoparticles in mouse embryonic stem cells and chemical based reprogramming of somatic cells to sphere cells

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Rajanahalli Krishnamurthy, Pavan

Abstract 1: Silver nanoparticles (Ag Np's) have an interesting surface chemistry and unique plasmonic properties. They are used in a wide variety of applications ranging from consumer products like socks, medical dressing, computer chips and it is also shown to have antimicrobial, anti bacterial activity and wound healing. Ag Np toxicity studies have been limited to date which needs to be critically addressed due to its wide applications. Mouse embryonic stem (MES) cells represent a unique cell population with the ability to undergo both self renewal and differentiation. They exhibit very stringent and tightly regulated mechanisms to circumvent DNA damage and stress response. We used 10 nm coated (polysaccharide) and uncoated Ag Np's to test its toxic effects on MES cells. MES cells and embryoid bodies (EB's) were treated with two concentrations of Ag Np's: 5 microg/ml and 50 ug/ml and exposed for 24, 48 and 72 hours. Increased cell death, ROS production and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential and alkaline phosphatase (AP) occur in a time and a concentration dependant manner. Due to increased cell death, there is a progressive increase in Annexin V (apoptosis) and Propidium Iodide (PI) staining (necrosis). Oct4 and Nanog undergo ubiquitination and dephosphorylation post-translational modifications in MES cells thereby altering gene expression of pluripotency factors and differentiation of EB's into all the three embryonic germ layers with specific growth factors were also inhibited after Ag Np exposure. Flow cytometry analysis revealed Ag Np's treated cells had altered cell cycle phases correlating with altered self renewal capacity. Our results suggest that Ag Np's effect MES cell self renewal, pluripotency and differentiation and serves as a perfect model system for studying toxicity induced by engineered Ag Np's. Abstract 2: The reprogramming of fibroblasts to pluripotent stem cells and the direct conversion of fibroblasts to functional neurons has been

Cerium oxide nanoparticles stimulate proliferation of primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts in vitro

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Popov, Anton L., E-mail: antonpopovleonid@gmail.com [Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow region (Russian Federation); Popova, Nelly R. [Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow region (Russian Federation); Selezneva, Irina I. [Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow region (Russian Federation); Pushchino State Institute of Natural sciences, Pushchino, Moscow region (Russian Federation); Akkizov, Azamat Y. [Kabardino-Balkarian State University, Nalchik (Russian Federation); Ivanov, Vladimir K. [Kurnakov Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow (Russian Federation); National Research Tomsk State University, Tomsk (Russian Federation)

2016-11-01

The increasing application of cell therapy technologies in the treatment of various diseases requires the development of new effective methods for culturing primary cells. The major limitation for the efficient use of autologous cell material is the low rate of cell proliferation. Successful cell therapy requires sufficient amounts of cell material over a short period of time with the preservation of their differentiation and proliferative potential. In this regard, the development of novel, highly efficient stimulators of proliferative activity in stem cells is a truly urgent task. In this paper we have demonstrated that citrate-stabilized cerium oxide nanoparticles (nanoceria) enhance the proliferative activity of primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts in vitro. Cerium oxide nanoparticles stimulate cell proliferation in a wide range of concentrations (10{sup −3} M–10{sup −9} M) through reduction of intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) during the lag phase of cell growth and by modulating the expression level of the major antioxidant enzymes. We found the optimal concentration of nanoceria, which provides the greatest acceleration of cell proliferation in vitro, while maintaining the levels of intracellular ROS and mRNA of antioxidant enzymes in the physiological range. Our results confirm that nanocrystalline ceria can be considered as a basis for effective and inexpensive supplements in cell culturing. - Highlights: • Citrate-stabilized cerium oxide nanoparticles are shown to stimulate proliferation of primary embryonic cells in vitro. • Some of mechanisms involved in stimulating of the proliferation by CeO{sub 2} have been uncovered. • The most effective (optimal) concentration of CeO{sub 2} nanoparticles for stimulation of proliferation was determined.

Rigid microenvironments promote cardiac differentiation of mouse and human embryonic stem cells

Science.gov (United States)

Arshi, Armin; Nakashima, Yasuhiro; Nakano, Haruko; Eaimkhong, Sarayoot; Evseenko, Denis; Reed, Jason; Stieg, Adam Z.; Gimzewski, James K.; Nakano, Atsushi

2013-04-01

While adult heart muscle is the least regenerative of tissues, embryonic cardiomyocytes are proliferative, with embryonic stem (ES) cells providing an endless reservoir. In addition to secreted factors and cell-cell interactions, the extracellular microenvironment has been shown to play an important role in stem cell lineage specification, and understanding how scaffold elasticity influences cardiac differentiation is crucial to cardiac tissue engineering. Though previous studies have analyzed the role of matrix elasticity on the function of differentiated cardiomyocytes, whether it affects the induction of cardiomyocytes from pluripotent stem cells is poorly understood. Here, we examine the role of matrix rigidity on cardiac differentiation using mouse and human ES cells. Culture on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrates of varied monomer-to-crosslinker ratios revealed that rigid extracellular matrices promote a higher yield of de novo cardiomyocytes from undifferentiated ES cells. Using a genetically modified ES system that allows us to purify differentiated cardiomyocytes by drug selection, we demonstrate that rigid environments induce higher cardiac troponin T expression, beating rate of foci, and expression ratio of adult α- to fetal β- myosin heavy chain in a purified cardiac population. M-mode and mechanical interferometry image analyses demonstrate that these ES-derived cardiomyocytes display functional maturity and synchronization of beating when co-cultured with neonatal cardiomyocytes harvested from a developing embryo. Together, these data identify matrix stiffness as an independent factor that instructs not only the maturation of already differentiated cardiomyocytes but also the induction and proliferation of cardiomyocytes from undifferentiated progenitors. Manipulation of the stiffness will help direct the production of functional cardiomyocytes en masse from stem cells for regenerative medicine purposes.

Structural organization and chromosomal assignment of the mouse embryonic TEA domain-containing factor (ETF) gene.

Science.gov (United States)

Suzuki, K; Yasunami, M; Matsuda, Y; Maeda, T; Kobayashi, H; Terasaki, H; Ohkubo, H

1996-09-01

Embryonic TEA domain-containing factor (ETF) belongs to the family of proteins structurally related to transcriptional enhancer factor-1 (TEF-1) and is implicated in neural development. Isolation and characterization of the cosmid clones encoding the mouse ETF gene (Etdf) revealed that Etdf spans approximately 17.9 kb and consists of 12 exons. The exon-intron structure of Etdf closely resembles that of the Drosophila scalloped gene, indicating that these genes may have evolved from a common ancestor. The multiple transcription initiation sites revealed by S1 protection and primer extension analyses are consistent with the absence of the canonical TATA and CAAT boxes in the 5'-flanking region, which contains many potential regulatory sequences, such as the E-box, N-box, Sp1 element, GATA-1 element, TAATGARAT element, and B2 short interspersed element (SINE) as well as several direct and inverted repeat sequences. The Etdf locus was assigned to the proximal region of mouse chromosome 7 using fluorescence in situ hybridization and linkage mapping analyses. These results provide the molecular basis for studying the regulation, in vivo function, and evolution of Etdf.

Generation of Pax6-IRES-EGFP knock-in mouse via the cloning-free CRISPR/Cas9 system to reliably visualize neurodevelopmental dynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Inoue, Yukiko U; Morimoto, Yuki; Hoshino, Mikio; Inoue, Takayoshi

2018-07-01

Pax6 encodes a transcription factor that plays pivotal roles in eye development, early brain patterning, neocortical arealization, and so forth. Visualization of Pax6 expression dynamics in these events could offer numerous advantages to neurodevelopmental studies. While CRISPR/Cas9 system has dramatically accelerated one-step generation of knock-out mouse, establishment of gene-cassette knock-in mouse via zygote injection has been considered insufficient due to its low efficiency. Recently, an improved CRISPR/Cas9 system for effective gene-cassette knock-in has been reported, where the native form of guide RNAs (crRNA and tracrRNA) assembled with recombinant Cas9 protein are directly delivered into mouse fertilized eggs. Here we apply this strategy to insert IRES-EGFP-pA cassette into Pax6 locus and achieve efficient targeted insertions of the 1.8 kb reporter gene. In Pax6-IRES-EGFP mouse we have generated, EGFP-positive cells reside in the eyes and cerebellum as endogenous Pax6 expressing cells at postnatal day 2. At the early embryonic stages when the embryos are transparent, EGFP-positive regions can be easily identified without PCR-based genotyping, precisely recapitulating the endogenous Pax6 expression patterns. Remarkably, at E12.5, the graded expression patterns of Pax6 in the developing neocortex now become recognizable in our knock-in mice, serving a sufficiently sensitive and useful tool to precisely visualize neurodevelopmental processes. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. and Japan Neuroscience Society. All rights reserved.

Proliferation assay of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells exposed to atmospheric-pressure plasmas at room temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miura, Taichi; Hirano, Kazumi; Ogura, Chika; Ikeguchi, Masamichi; Seki, Atsushi; Nishihara, Shoko; Ando, Ayumi; Kanazawa, Tatsuya; Hamaguchi, Satoshi

2014-01-01

Proliferation assays of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells have been performed with cell culture media exposed to atmospheric-pressure plasmas (APPs), which generate reactive species in the media at room temperature. It is found that serum in cell culture media functions as a scavenger of highly reactive species and tends to protect cells in the media against cellular damage. On the other hand, if serum is not present in a cell culture medium when it is exposed to APP, the medium becomes cytotoxic and cannot be detoxified by serum added afterwards. Plasma-induced cytotoxic media hinder proliferation of mouse ES cells and may even cause cell death. It is also shown by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy that organic compounds in cell culture media are in general not significantly modified by plasma exposure. These results indicate that if there is no serum in media when they are exposed to APPs, highly reactive species (such as OH radicals) generated in the media by the APP exposure are immediately converted to less reactive species (such as H 2 O 2 ), which can no longer readily react with serum that is added to the medium after plasma exposure. This study has clearly shown that it is these less reactive species, rather than highly reactive species, that make the medium cytotoxic to mouse ES cells. (paper)

Cyclic mechanical strain maintains Nanog expression through PI3K/Akt signaling in mouse embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horiuchi, Rie; Akimoto, Takayuki; Hong, Zhang; Ushida, Takashi

2012-01-01

Mechanical strain has been reported to affect the proliferation/differentiation of many cell types; however, the effects of mechanotransduction on self-renewal as well as pluripotency of embryonic stem (ES) cells remains unknown. To investigate the effects of mechanical strain on mouse ES cell fate, we examined the expression of Nanog, which is an essential regulator of self-renewal and pluripotency as well as Nanog-associated intracellular signaling during uniaxial cyclic mechanical strain. The mouse ES cell line, CCE was plated onto elastic membranes, and we applied 10% strain at 0.17 Hz. The expression of Nanog was reduced during ES cell differentiation in response to the withdrawal of leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF); however, two days of cyclic mechanical strain attenuated this reduction of Nanog expression. On the other hand, the cyclic mechanical strain promoted PI3K-Akt signaling, which is reported as an upstream of Nanog transcription. The cyclic mechanical strain-induced Akt phosphorylation was blunted by the PI3K inhibitor wortmannin. Furthermore, cytochalasin D, an inhibitor of actin polymerization, also inhibited the mechanical strain-induced increase in phospho-Akt. These findings imply that mechanical force plays a role in regulating Nanog expression in ES cells through the actin cytoskeleton-PI3K-Akt signaling. -- Highlights: ► The expression of Nanog, which is an essential regulator of “stemness” was reduced during embryonic stem (ES) cell differentiation. ► Cyclic mechanical strain attenuated the reduction of Nanog expression. ► Cyclic mechanical strain promoted PI3K-Akt signaling and mechanical strain-induced Akt phosphorylation was blunted by the PI3K inhibitor and an inhibitor of actin polymerization.

Extract of mouse embryonic stem cells induces the expression of pluripotency genes in human adipose tissue-derived stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Salehi, Paria Motamen; Foroutan, Tahereh; Javeri, Arash; Taha, Masoumeh Fakhr

2017-11-01

In some previous studies, the extract of embryonic carcinoma cells (ECCs) and embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have been used to reprogram somatic cells to more dedifferentiated state. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of mouse ESCs extract on the expression of some pluripotency markers in human adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ADSCs). Human ADSCs were isolated from subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue and characterized by flow cytometric analysis for the expression of some mesenchymal stem cell markers and adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation. Frequent freeze-thaw technique was used to prepare cytoplasmic extract of ESCs. Plasma membranes of the ADSCs were reversibly permeabilized by streptolysin-O (SLO). Then the permeabilized ADSCs were incubated with the ESC extract and cultured in resealing medium. After reprogramming, the expression of some pluripotency genes was evaluated by RT-PCR and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) analyses. Third-passaged ADSCs showed a fibroblast-like morphology and expressed mesenchymal stem cell markers. They also showed adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation potential. QPCR analysis revealed a significant upregulation in the expression of some pluripotency genes including OCT4 , SOX2 , NANOG , REX1 and ESG1 in the reprogrammed ADSCs compared to the control group. These findings showed that mouse ESC extract can be used to induce reprogramming of human ADSCs. In fact, this method is applicable for reprogramming of human adult stem cells to a more pluripotent sate and may have a potential in regenerative medicine.

Activation of GSK3β by Sirt2 is required for early lineage commitment of mouse embryonic stem cell.

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Xiaoxing Si

Full Text Available Sirt2, a member of the NAD(+-dependent protein deacetylase family, is increasingly recognized as a critical regulator of the cell cycle, cellular necrosis and cytoskeleton organization. However, its role in embryonic stem cells (ESCs remains unclear. Here we demonstrate that Sirt2 is up-regulated during RA (retinoic acid-induced and embryoid body (EB differentiation of mouse ESCs. Using lentivirus-mediated shRNA methods, we found that knockdown of Sirt2 compromises the differentiation of mouse ESCs into ectoderm while promoting mesoderm and endoderm differentiation. Knockdown of Sirt2 expression also leads to the activation of GSK3β through decreased phosphorylation of the serine at position 9 (Ser9 but not tyrosine at position 216 (Tyr216. Moreover, the constitutive activation of GSK3β during EB differentiation mimics the effect of Sirt2 knockdown, while down-regulation of GSK3β rescues the effect of Sirt2 knockdown on differentiation. In contrast to the effect on lineage differentiation, Sirt2 knockdown and GSK3β up-regulation do not change the self-renewal state of mouse ESCs. Overall, our report reveals a new function for Sirt2 in regulating the proper lineage commitment of mouse ESCs.

The orphan adhesion-GPCR GPR126 is required for embryonic development in the mouse.

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Helen Waller-Evans

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Adhesion-GPCRs provide essential cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions in development, and have been implicated in inherited human diseases like Usher Syndrome and bilateral frontoparietal polymicrogyria. They are the second largest subfamily of seven-transmembrane spanning proteins in vertebrates, but the function of most of these receptors is still not understood. The orphan Adhesion-GPCR GPR126 has recently been shown to play an essential role in the myelination of peripheral nerves in zebrafish. In parallel, whole-genome association studies have implicated variation at the GPR126 locus as a determinant of body height in the human population. The physiological function of GPR126 in mammals is still unknown. We describe a targeted mutation of GPR126 in the mouse, and show that GPR126 is required for embryonic viability and cardiovascular development.

The emergence of mind and emotion in the evolution of neocortex.

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Freeman, Walter J

2011-01-01

The most deeply transformative concept for the growth of 21st Century psychiatry is the constellation of the chaotic dynamics of the brain. Brains are no longer seen as rational systems that are plagued with emotional disorders reflecting primitives inherited from our animal ancestors. Brains are dynamical systems that continually create patterns by acting intentionally into the environment and shaping themselves in accord with the sensory consequences of their intended actions. Emotions are now seen not as reversions to animal behaviors but as the sources of force and energy that brains require for the actions they take to understand the world and themselves. Humans are unique in experiencing consciousness of their own actions, which they experience as conscience: guilt, shame, pride and joy. Chaotic brain dynamics strives always for unity and harmony, but as a necessary condition for adaptation to a changing world, it repeatedly lapses into disorder. The successes are seen in the normal unity of consciousness; the failures are seen in the disorders that we rightly label the schizophrenias and the less severe character disorders. The foundation for healthy unity is revealed by studies in the evolution of brains, in particular the way in which neocortex of mammals emerged from the primitive allocortex of reptiles. The amazing facts of brain dynamics are now falling into several places. The power-law connectivity of cortex supports the scale-free dynamics of the global workspace in brains ranging from mouse to whale. That dynamics in humans holds the secrets of speech and symbol utilization. By recursive interactions in vast areas of human neocortex the scale-free connectivity supports our unified consciousness. Here in this dynamics are to be sought the keys to understanding and treating the disorders that uniquely plague the human mind.

Exogenous transforming growth factor-β1 enhances smooth muscle differentiation in embryonic mouse jejunal explants.

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Coletta, Riccardo; Roberts, Neil A; Randles, Michael J; Morabito, Antonino; Woolf, Adrian S

2017-01-13

An ex vivo experimental strategy that replicates in vivo intestinal development would in theory provide an accessible setting with which to study normal and dysmorphic gut biology. The current authors recently described a system in which mouse embryonic jejunal segments were explanted onto semipermeable platforms and fed with chemically defined serum-free media. Over 3 days in organ culture, explants formed villi and they began to undergo spontaneous peristalsis. As defined in the current study, the wall of the explanted gut failed to form a robust longitudinal smooth muscle (SM) layer as it would do in vivo over the same time period. Given the role of transforming growth factor β1 (TGFβ1) in SM differentiation in other organs, it was hypothesized that exogenous TGFβ1 would enhance SM differentiation in these explants. In vivo, TGFβ receptors I and II were both detected in embryonic longitudinal jejunal SM cells and, in organ culture, exogenous TGFβ1 induced robust differentiation of longitudinal SM. Microarray profiling showed that TGFβ1 increased SM specific transcripts in a dose dependent manner. TGFβ1 proteins were detected in amniotic fluid at a time when the intestine was physiologically herniated. By analogy with the requirement for exogenous TGFβ1 for SM differentiation in organ culture, the TGFβ1 protein that was demonstrated to be present in the amniotic fluid may enhance intestinal development when it is physiologically herniated in early gestation. Future studies of embryonic intestinal cultures should include TGFβ1 in the defined media to produce a more faithful model of in vivo muscle differentiation. Copyright © 2017 The Authors Journal of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 The Authors Journal of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Suppression of Red Blood Cell Autofluorescence for Immunocytochemistry on Fixed Embryonic Mouse Tissue.

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Whittington, Niteace C; Wray, Susan

2017-10-23

Autofluorescence is a problem that interferes with immunofluorescent staining and complicates data analysis. Throughout the mouse embryo, red blood cells naturally fluoresce across multiple wavelengths, spanning the emission and excitation spectra of many commonly used fluorescent reporters, including antibodies, dyes, stains, probes, and transgenic proteins, making it difficult to distinguish assay fluorescence from endogenous fluorescence. Several tissue treatment methods have been developed to bypass this issue with varying degrees of success. Sudan Black B dye has been commonly used to quench autofluorescence, but can also introduce background fluorescence. Here we present a protocol for an alternative called TrueBlack Lipofuscin Autofluorescence Quencher. The protocol described in this unit demonstrates how TrueBlack efficiently quenches red blood cell autofluorescence across red and green wavelengths in fixed embryonic tissue without interfering with immunofluorescent signal intensity or introducing background staining. We also identify optimal incubation, concentration, and multiple usage conditions for routine immunofluorescence microscopy. © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Generation of organized germ layers from a single mouse embryonic stem cell.

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Poh, Yeh-Chuin; Chen, Junwei; Hong, Ying; Yi, Haiying; Zhang, Shuang; Chen, Junjian; Wu, Douglas C; Wang, Lili; Jia, Qiong; Singh, Rishi; Yao, Wenting; Tan, Youhua; Tajik, Arash; Tanaka, Tetsuya S; Wang, Ning

2014-05-30

Mammalian inner cell mass cells undergo lineage-specific differentiation into germ layers of endoderm, mesoderm and ectoderm during gastrulation. It has been a long-standing challenge in developmental biology to replicate these organized germ layer patterns in culture. Here we present a method of generating organized germ layers from a single mouse embryonic stem cell cultured in a soft fibrin matrix. Spatial organization of germ layers is regulated by cortical tension of the colony, matrix dimensionality and softness, and cell-cell adhesion. Remarkably, anchorage of the embryoid colony from the 3D matrix to collagen-1-coated 2D substrates of ~1 kPa results in self-organization of all three germ layers: ectoderm on the outside layer, mesoderm in the middle and endoderm at the centre of the colony, reminiscent of generalized gastrulating chordate embryos. These results suggest that mechanical forces via cell-matrix and cell-cell interactions are crucial in spatial organization of germ layers during mammalian gastrulation. This new in vitro method could be used to gain insights on the mechanisms responsible for the regulation of germ layer formation.

The effect of minimal concentration of ethylene glycol (EG) combined with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) on mouse oocyte survival and subsequent embryonic development following vitrification.

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Wang, Yao; Okitsu, Osamu; Zhao, Xiao-Ming; Sun, Yun; Di, Wen; Chian, Ri-Cheng

2014-01-01

Vitrification techniques employ a relatively high concentration of cryoprotectant in vitrification solutions. Exposure of oocytes to high concentrations of cryoprotectant is known to damage the oocytes via both cytotoxic and osmotic effects. Therefore, the key to successful vitrification of oocytes is to strike a balance between the usage of minimal concentration of cryoprotectant without compromising their cryoprotective actions. The minimal concentration of ethylene glycol (EG) on mouse oocyte survival and subsequent embryonic development was evaluated following vitrification-warming and parthenogenetic activation. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) combined with EG on mouse oocyte survival and subsequent embryonic development as well as morphology of the spindle and chromosome alignment were also evaluated. Vitrification system was adapted with JY Straw and the cooling rate was approximately 442-500 °C/min. In contrast, the warming rate was approximately 2,210-2,652 °C/min. Survival rate of oocytes increased significantly when 15 % EG was combined with 2 % PVP in vitrification solution (VS). The effect of combination of EG and PVP was not significant when the concentration of EG was 20 % and higher. Although there were no significant differences in embryonic development, the percentage of abnormal spindle and chromosome alignment was significantly higher in the oocytes without 2 % PVP in VS. Our data provide a proof of principle for oocyte vitrification that may not require a high concentration of cryoprotectant. There are synergic effects of EG combined with PVP for oocyte vitrification, which may provide important information to the field in developing less cytotoxic VS.

Loss of ATF2 function leads to cranial motoneuron degeneration during embryonic mouse development.

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Julien Ackermann

2011-04-01

Full Text Available The AP-1 family transcription factor ATF2 is essential for development and tissue maintenance in mammals. In particular, ATF2 is highly expressed and activated in the brain and previous studies using mouse knockouts have confirmed its requirement in the cerebellum as well as in vestibular sense organs. Here we present the analysis of the requirement for ATF2 in CNS development in mouse embryos, specifically in the brainstem. We discovered that neuron-specific inactivation of ATF2 leads to significant loss of motoneurons of the hypoglossal, abducens and facial nuclei. While the generation of ATF2 mutant motoneurons appears normal during early development, they undergo caspase-dependent and independent cell death during later embryonic and foetal stages. The loss of these motoneurons correlates with increased levels of stress activated MAP kinases, JNK and p38, as well as aberrant accumulation of phosphorylated neurofilament proteins, NF-H and NF-M, known substrates for these kinases. This, together with other neuropathological phenotypes, including aberrant vacuolisation and lipid accumulation, indicates that deficiency in ATF2 leads to neurodegeneration of subsets of somatic and visceral motoneurons of the brainstem. It also confirms that ATF2 has a critical role in limiting the activities of stress kinases JNK and p38 which are potent inducers of cell death in the CNS.

Mitomycin-treated undifferentiated embryonic stem cells as a safe and effective therapeutic strategy in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease.

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Mariana eAcquarone

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Parkinson’s disease (PD is an incurable progressive neurodegenerative disorder. Clinical presentation of PD stems largely from the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway, motivating experimental strategies aimed at replacing dopaminergic innervation by cellular therapy. Transplantation of dopaminergic neurons derived from embryonic stem cells significantly improves motor functions in rodent and non-human primate models of PD. However, protocols to generate dopaminergic neurons from embryonic stem cells generally meet with low efficacy and high risk of teratoma development upon transplantation. To address these issues, we have pre-treated undifferentiated mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs with the DNA alkylating agent mitomycin C (MMC before transplantation. MMC treatment of cultures prevented tumor formation in a 12-week follow-up after mESCs were injected in nude mice. In 6-OH-dopamine-lesioned mice, intrastriatal injection of MMC-treated mESCs markedly improved motor function without tumor formation for as long as 15 months. Furthermore, we show that halting mitotic activity of undifferentiated mESCs induces a four-fold increase in dopamine release following in vitro differentiation. Our findings indicate that treating mESCs with mitomycin C prior to intrastriatal transplant is an effective strategy that could be further investigated as a novel alternative for treatment of Parkinson's disease.

The evolution of neocortex in primates.

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Kaas, Jon H

2012-01-01

We can learn about the evolution of neocortex in primates through comparative studies of cortical organization in primates and those mammals that are the closest living relatives of primates, in conjunction with brain features revealed by the skull endocasts of fossil archaic primates. Such studies suggest that early primates had acquired a number of features of neocortex that now distinguish modern primates. Most notably, early primates had an array of new visual areas, and those visual areas widely shared with other mammals had been modified. Posterior parietal cortex was greatly expanded with sensorimotor modules for reaching, grasping, and personal defense. Motor cortex had become more specialized for hand use, and the functions of primary motor cortex were enhanced by the addition and development of premotor and cingulate motor areas. Cortical architecture became more varied, and cortical neuron populations became denser overall than in nonprimate ancestors. Primary visual cortex had the densest population of neurons, and this became more pronounced in the anthropoid radiation. Within the primate clade, considerable variability in cortical size, numbers of areas, and architecture evolved. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Mouse adhalin

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liu, L; Vachon, P H; Kuang, W

1997-01-01

. To analyze the biological roles of adhalin, we cloned the mouse adhalin cDNA, raised peptide-specific antibodies to its cytoplasmic domain, and examined its expression and localization in vivo and in vitro. The mouse adhalin sequence was 80% identical to that of human, rabbit, and hamster. Adhalin...... was specifically expressed in striated muscle cells and their immediate precursors, and absent in many other cell types. Adhalin expression in embryonic mouse muscle was coincident with primary myogenesis. Its expression was found to be up-regulated at mRNA and protein levels during myogenic differentiation...

Mouse but not human embryonic stem cells are deficient in rejoining of ionizing radiation-induced DNA double-strand breaks.

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Bañuelos, C A; Banáth, J P; MacPhail, S H; Zhao, J; Eaves, C A; O'Connor, M D; Lansdorp, P M; Olive, P L

2008-09-01

Mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells will give rise to all of the cells of the adult mouse, but they failed to rejoin half of the DNA double-strand breaks (dsb) produced by high doses of ionizing radiation. A deficiency in DNA-PK(cs) appears to be responsible since mES cells expressed strand breaks more rapidly. Consistent with more rapid dsb rejoining, H2AX(-/-) mES cells also expressed 6 times more DNA-PK(cs) than wild-type mES cells. Similar results were obtained for ATM(-/-) mES cells. Differentiation of mES cells led to an increase in DNA-PK(cs), an increase in dsb rejoining rate, and a decrease in Ku70/80. Unlike mouse ES, human ES cells were proficient in rejoining of dsb and expressed high levels of DNA-PK(cs). These results confirm the importance of homologous recombination in the accurate repair of double-strand breaks in mES cells, they help explain the chromosome abnormalities associated with deficiencies in H2AX and ATM, and they add to the growing list of differences in the way rodent and human cells deal with DNA damage.

Cyclic mechanical strain maintains Nanog expression through PI3K/Akt signaling in mouse embryonic stem cells

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Horiuchi, Rie [Division of Regenerative Medical Engineering, Center for Disease Biology and Integrative Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-0033 (Japan); Akimoto, Takayuki, E-mail: akimoto@m.u-tokyo.ac.jp [Division of Regenerative Medical Engineering, Center for Disease Biology and Integrative Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-0033 (Japan); Institute for Biomedical Engineering, Consolidated Research Institute for Advanced Science and Medical Care, Waseda University, 513 Waseda-tsurumaki, Shinjuku, Tokyo 162-0041 (Japan); Hong, Zhang [Institute for Biomedical Engineering, Consolidated Research Institute for Advanced Science and Medical Care, Waseda University, 513 Waseda-tsurumaki, Shinjuku, Tokyo 162-0041 (Japan); Ushida, Takashi [Division of Regenerative Medical Engineering, Center for Disease Biology and Integrative Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-0033 (Japan)

2012-08-15

Mechanical strain has been reported to affect the proliferation/differentiation of many cell types; however, the effects of mechanotransduction on self-renewal as well as pluripotency of embryonic stem (ES) cells remains unknown. To investigate the effects of mechanical strain on mouse ES cell fate, we examined the expression of Nanog, which is an essential regulator of self-renewal and pluripotency as well as Nanog-associated intracellular signaling during uniaxial cyclic mechanical strain. The mouse ES cell line, CCE was plated onto elastic membranes, and we applied 10% strain at 0.17 Hz. The expression of Nanog was reduced during ES cell differentiation in response to the withdrawal of leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF); however, two days of cyclic mechanical strain attenuated this reduction of Nanog expression. On the other hand, the cyclic mechanical strain promoted PI3K-Akt signaling, which is reported as an upstream of Nanog transcription. The cyclic mechanical strain-induced Akt phosphorylation was blunted by the PI3K inhibitor wortmannin. Furthermore, cytochalasin D, an inhibitor of actin polymerization, also inhibited the mechanical strain-induced increase in phospho-Akt. These findings imply that mechanical force plays a role in regulating Nanog expression in ES cells through the actin cytoskeleton-PI3K-Akt signaling. -- Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The expression of Nanog, which is an essential regulator of 'stemness' was reduced during embryonic stem (ES) cell differentiation. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Cyclic mechanical strain attenuated the reduction of Nanog expression. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Cyclic mechanical strain promoted PI3K-Akt signaling and mechanical strain-induced Akt phosphorylation was blunted by the PI3K inhibitor and an inhibitor of actin polymerization.

Novel insights into embryonic stem cell self-renewal revealed through comparative human and mouse systems biology networks.

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Dowell, Karen G; Simons, Allen K; Bai, Hao; Kell, Braden; Wang, Zack Z; Yun, Kyuson; Hibbs, Matthew A

2014-05-01

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs), characterized by their ability to both self-renew and differentiate into multiple cell lineages, are a powerful model for biomedical research and developmental biology. Human and mouse ESCs share many features, yet have distinctive aspects, including fundamental differences in the signaling pathways and cell cycle controls that support self-renewal. Here, we explore the molecular basis of human ESC self-renewal using Bayesian network machine learning to integrate cell-type-specific, high-throughput data for gene function discovery. We integrated high-throughput ESC data from 83 human studies (~1.8 million data points collected under 1,100 conditions) and 62 mouse studies (~2.4 million data points collected under 1,085 conditions) into separate human and mouse predictive networks focused on ESC self-renewal to analyze shared and distinct functional relationships among protein-coding gene orthologs. Computational evaluations show that these networks are highly accurate, literature validation confirms their biological relevance, and reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) validation supports our predictions. Our results reflect the importance of key regulatory genes known to be strongly associated with self-renewal and pluripotency in both species (e.g., POU5F1, SOX2, and NANOG), identify metabolic differences between species (e.g., threonine metabolism), clarify differences between human and mouse ESC developmental signaling pathways (e.g., leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF)-activated JAK/STAT in mouse; NODAL/ACTIVIN-A-activated fibroblast growth factor in human), and reveal many novel genes and pathways predicted to be functionally associated with self-renewal in each species. These interactive networks are available online at www.StemSight.org for stem cell researchers to develop new hypotheses, discover potential mechanisms involving sparsely annotated genes, and prioritize genes of interest for experimental validation

FRS2α is Essential for the Fibroblast Growth Factor to Regulate the mTOR Pathway and Autophagy in Mouse Embryonic Fibroblasts

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Xiang Lin, Yongyou Zhang, Leyuan Liu, Wallace L. McKeehan, Yuemao Shen, Siyang Song, Fen Wang

2011-01-01

Although the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling axis plays important roles in cell survival, proliferation, and differentiation, the molecular mechanism underlying how the FGF elicits these diverse regulatory signals is not well understood. By using the Frs2α null mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) in conjunction with inhibitors to multiple signaling pathways, here we report that the FGF signaling axis activates mTOR via the FGF receptor substrate 2α (FRS2α)-mediated PI3K/A...

Differentiation and Transplantation of Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Cone Photoreceptors into a Mouse Model of End-Stage Retinal Degeneration

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Kamil Kruczek

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The loss of cone photoreceptors that mediate daylight vision represents a leading cause of blindness, for which cell replacement by transplantation offers a promising treatment strategy. Here, we characterize cone differentiation in retinas derived from mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs. Similar to in vivo development, a temporal pattern of progenitor marker expression is followed by the differentiation of early thyroid hormone receptor β2-positive precursors and, subsequently, photoreceptors exhibiting cone-specific phototransduction-related proteins. We establish that stage-specific inhibition of the Notch pathway increases cone cell differentiation, while retinoic acid signaling regulates cone maturation, comparable with their actions in vivo. MESC-derived cones can be isolated in large numbers and transplanted into adult mouse eyes, showing capacity to survive and mature in the subretinal space of Aipl1−/− mice, a model of end-stage retinal degeneration. Together, this work identifies a robust, renewable cell source for cone replacement by purified cell suspension transplantation.

Overexpression of histone demethylase Fbxl10 leads to enhanced migration in mouse embryonic fibroblasts

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Rohde, Magdalena; Sievers, Elisabeth; Janzer, Andreas [Institute of Pathology, University of Bonn, Sigmund-Freud-Strasse 25, 53127 Bonn (Germany); Willmann, Dominica [Urologische Klinik/Frauenklinik und Zentrale Klinische Forschung, Klinikum der Universität Freiburg, Breisacherstrasse 66, 79106 Freiburg (Germany); Egert, Angela; Schorle, Hubert [Department of Developmental Pathology, Institute of Pathology, University of Bonn, Sigmund-Freud-Strasse 25, 53127 Bonn (Germany); Schüle, Roland [Urologische Klinik/Frauenklinik und Zentrale Klinische Forschung, Klinikum der Universität Freiburg, Breisacherstrasse 66, 79106 Freiburg (Germany); Kirfel, Jutta, E-mail: Jutta.Kirfel@ukb.uni-bonn.de [Institute of Pathology, University of Bonn, Sigmund-Freud-Strasse 25, 53127 Bonn (Germany)

2016-11-01

Cell migration is a central process in the development and maintenance of multicellular organisms. Tissue formation during embryonic development, wound healing, immune responses and invasive tumors all require the orchestrated movement of cells to specific locations. Histone demethylase proteins alter transcription by regulating the chromatin state at specific gene loci. FBXL10 is a conserved and ubiquitously expressed member of the JmjC domain-containing histone demethylase family and is implicated in the demethylation of H3K4me3 and H3K36me2 and thereby removing active chromatin marks. However, the physiological role of FBXL10 in vivo remains largely unknown. Therefore, we established an inducible gain of function model to analyze the role of Fbxl10 and compared wild-type with Fbxl10 overexpressing mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs). Our study shows that overexpression of Fbxl10 in MEFs doesn’t influence the proliferation capability but leads to an enhanced migration capacity in comparison to wild-type MEFs. Transcriptome and ChIP-seq experiments demonstrated that Fbxl10 binds to genes involved in migration like Areg, Mdk, Lmnb1, Thbs1, Mgp and Cxcl12. Taken together, our results strongly suggest that Fbxl10 plays a critical role in migration by binding to the promoter region of migration-associated genes and thereby might influences cell behaviour to a possibly more aggressive phenotype. - Highlights: • Migration capability of MEFs is enhanced after Fbxl10 upregulation. • Overexpression of Fbxl10 induced migration-associated genes. • Fbxl10 binds directly to migration-associated genes.

Overexpression of histone demethylase Fbxl10 leads to enhanced migration in mouse embryonic fibroblasts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rohde, Magdalena; Sievers, Elisabeth; Janzer, Andreas; Willmann, Dominica; Egert, Angela; Schorle, Hubert; Schüle, Roland; Kirfel, Jutta

2016-01-01

Cell migration is a central process in the development and maintenance of multicellular organisms. Tissue formation during embryonic development, wound healing, immune responses and invasive tumors all require the orchestrated movement of cells to specific locations. Histone demethylase proteins alter transcription by regulating the chromatin state at specific gene loci. FBXL10 is a conserved and ubiquitously expressed member of the JmjC domain-containing histone demethylase family and is implicated in the demethylation of H3K4me3 and H3K36me2 and thereby removing active chromatin marks. However, the physiological role of FBXL10 in vivo remains largely unknown. Therefore, we established an inducible gain of function model to analyze the role of Fbxl10 and compared wild-type with Fbxl10 overexpressing mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs). Our study shows that overexpression of Fbxl10 in MEFs doesn’t influence the proliferation capability but leads to an enhanced migration capacity in comparison to wild-type MEFs. Transcriptome and ChIP-seq experiments demonstrated that Fbxl10 binds to genes involved in migration like Areg, Mdk, Lmnb1, Thbs1, Mgp and Cxcl12. Taken together, our results strongly suggest that Fbxl10 plays a critical role in migration by binding to the promoter region of migration-associated genes and thereby might influences cell behaviour to a possibly more aggressive phenotype. - Highlights: • Migration capability of MEFs is enhanced after Fbxl10 upregulation. • Overexpression of Fbxl10 induced migration-associated genes. • Fbxl10 binds directly to migration-associated genes.

Dissecting human cerebral organoids and fetal neocortex using single-cell RNAseq

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Treutlein, Barbara

Cerebral organoids - three-dimensional cultures of human cerebral tissue derived from pluripotent stem cells - have emerged as models of human cortical development. However, the extent to which in vitro organoid systems recapitulate neural progenitor cell proliferation and neuronal differentiation programs observed in vivo remains unclear. Here we use single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to dissect and compare cell composition and progenitor-to-neuron lineage relationships in human cerebral organoids and fetal neocortex. Covariation network analysis using the fetal neocortex data reveals known and novel interactions among genes central to neural progenitor proliferation and neuronal differentiation. In the organoid, we detect diverse progenitors and differentiated cell types of neuronal and mesenchymal lineages, and identify cells that derived from regions resembling the fetal neocortex. We find that these organoid cortical cells use gene expression programs remarkably similar to those of the fetal tissue in order to organize into cerebral cortex-like regions. Our comparison of in vivo and in vitro cortical single cell transcriptomes illuminates the genetic features underlying human cortical development that can be studied in organoid cultures.

Establishment of new murine embryonic stem cell lines for the generation of mouse models of human genetic diseases

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M.A. Sukoyan

2002-05-01

Full Text Available Embryonic stem cells are totipotent cells derived from the inner cell mass of blastocysts. Recently, the development of appropriate culture conditions for the differentiation of these cells into specific cell types has permitted their use as potential therapeutic agents for several diseases. In addition, manipulation of their genome in vitro allows the creation of animal models of human genetic diseases and for the study of gene function in vivo. We report the establishment of new lines of murine embryonic stem cells from preimplantation stage embryos of 129/Sv mice. Most of these cells had a normal karyotype and an XY sex chromosome composition. The pluripotent properties of the cell lines obtained were analyzed on the basis of their alkaline phosphatase activity and their capacity to form complex embryoid bodies with rhythmically contracting cardiomyocytes. Two lines, USP-1 and USP-3, with the best in vitro characteristics of pluripotency were used in chimera-generating experiments. The capacity to contribute to the germ line was demonstrated by the USP-1 cell line. This cell line is currently being used to generate mouse models of human diseases.

Canonical Wnt signaling induces a primitive endoderm metastable state in mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Price, Feodor D; Yin, Hang; Jones, Andrew; van Ijcken, Wilfred; Grosveld, Frank; Rudnicki, Michael A

2013-04-01

Activation of the canonical Wnt signaling pathway synergizes with leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) to maintain pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). However, in the absence of LIF, Wnt signaling is unable to maintain ESCs in the undifferentiated state. To investigate the role of canonical Wnt signaling in pluripotency and lineage specification, we expressed Wnt3a in mESCs and characterized them in growth and differentiation. We found that activated canonical Wnt signaling induced the formation of a reversible metastable primitive endoderm state in mESC. Upon subsequent differentiation, Wnt3a-stimulated mESCs gave rise to large quantities of visceral endoderm. Furthermore, we determined that the ability of canonical Wnt signaling to induce a metastable primitive endoderm state was mediated by Tbx3. Our data demonstrates a specific role for canonical Wnt signaling in promoting pluripotency while at the same time priming cells for subsequent differentiation into the primitive endoderm lineage. Copyright © 2013 AlphaMed Press.

CD71(high) population represents primitive erythroblasts derived from mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Chao, Ruihua; Gong, Xueping; Wang, Libo; Wang, Pengxiang; Wang, Yuan

2015-01-01

The CD71/Ter119 combination has been widely used to reflect dynamic maturation of erythrocytes in vivo. However, because CD71 is expressed on all proliferating cells, it is unclear whether it can be utilized as an erythrocyte-specific marker during differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs). In this study, we revealed that a population expressing high level of CD71 (CD71(high)) during mouse ESC differentiation represented an in vitro counterpart of yolk sac-derived primitive erythroblasts (EryPs) isolated at 8.5days post coitum. In addition, these CD71(high) cells went through "maturational globin switching" and enucleated during terminal differentiation in vitro that were similar to the yolk sac-derived EryPs in vivo. We further demonstrated that the formation of CD71(high) population was regulated differentially by key factors including Scl, HoxB4, Eaf1, and Klf1. Taken together, our study provides a technical advance that allows efficient segregation of EryPs from differentiated ESCs in vitro for further understanding molecular regulation during primitive erythropoiesis. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Expression of interleukin-17B in mouse embryonic limb buds and regulation by BMP-7 and bFGF

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

You Zongbing; DuRaine, Grayson; Tien, Janet Y.L.; Lee, Corinne; Moseley, Timothy A.; Reddi, A. Hari

2005-01-01

Interleukin-17B (IL-17B) is a member of interleukin-17 family that displays a variety of proinflammatory and immune modulatory activities. In this study, we found that IL-17B mRNA was maximally expressed in the limb buds of 14.5 days post coitus (dpc) mouse embryo and declined to low level at 19.5 dpc. By immunohistochemical staining, the strongest IL-17B signals were observed in the cells of the bone collar in the primary ossification center. The chondrocytes in the resting and proliferative zones were stained moderately, while little staining was seen in the hypertrophic zone. Furthermore, in both C3H10T1/2 and MC3T3-E1 cells, the IL-17B mRNA was up-regulated by recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-7, but down-regulated by basic fibroblast growth factor via the extracellular signal-regulated kinase pathway. This study provides the first evidence that IL-17B is expressed in the mouse embryonic limb buds and may play a role in chondrogenesis and osteogenesis

Wnt/β-catenin and LIF-Stat3 signaling pathways converge on Sp5 to promote mouse embryonic stem cell self-renewal.

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Ye, Shoudong; Zhang, Dongming; Cheng, Fei; Wilson, Daniel; Mackay, Jeffrey; He, Kan; Ban, Qian; Lv, Feng; Huang, Saifei; Liu, Dahai; Ying, Qi-Long

2016-01-15

Activation of leukemia inhibitor factor (LIF)-Stat3 or Wnt/β-catenin signaling promotes mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) self-renewal. A myriad of downstream targets have been identified in the individual signal pathways, but their common targets remain largely elusive. In this study, we found that the LIF-Stat3 and Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathways converge on Sp5 to promote mESC self-renewal. Forced Sp5 expression can reproduce partial effects of Wnt/β-catenin signaling but mimics most features of LIF-Stat3 signaling to maintain undifferentiated mESCs. Moreover, Sp5 is able to convert mouse epiblast stem cells into a naïve pluripotent state. Thus, Sp5 is an important component of the regulatory network governing mESC naïve pluripotency. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Requirement of B-Raf, C-Raf, and A-Raf for the growth and survival of mouse embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guo, Wenjing; Hao, Baixia; Wang, Qian; Lu, Yingying; Yue, Jianbo

2013-01-01

Extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs) have been implicated to be dispensable for self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells, and simultaneous inhibition of both ERK signaling and glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) not only allows mouse ES cells to self-renew independent of extracellular stimuli but also enables more efficient derivation of naïve ES cells from mouse and rat strains. Interestingly, some ERKs stay active in mouse ES cells which are maintained in regular medium containing leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP). Yet, the upstream signaling for ERK activation and their roles in mouse ES cells, other than promoting or priming differentiation, have not been determined. Here we found that mouse ES cells express three forms of Raf kinases, A-Raf, B-Raf, and C-Raf. Knocking-down each single Raf member failed to affect the sustained ERK activity, neither did A-Raf and B-Raf double knockdown or B-Raf and C-Raf double knockdown change it in ES cells. Interestingly, B-Raf and C-Raf double knockdown, not A-Raf and B-Raf knockdown, inhibited the maximal ERK activation induced by LIF, concomitant with the slower growth of ES cells. On the other hand, A-Raf, B-Raf, and C-Raf triple knockdown markedly inhibited both the maximal and sustained ERK activity in ES cells. Moreover, Raf triple knockdown, similar to the treatment of U-0126, an MEK inhibitor, significantly inhibited the survival and proliferation of ES cells, thereby compromising the colony propagation of mouse ES cells. In summary, our data demonstrate that all three Raf members are required for ERK activation in mouse ES cells and are involved in growth and survival of mouse ES cells. - Highlights: ●Mouse ES (mES) cells express all three Raf members, A-Raf, B-Raf, and C-Raf. ●Leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) temporally activates ERKs in mES cells. ●B-Raf and C-Raf are required for LIF-induced maximal ERKs activity in mES cells. ●All Raf members are

Requirement of B-Raf, C-Raf, and A-Raf for the growth and survival of mouse embryonic stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guo, Wenjing; Hao, Baixia; Wang, Qian; Lu, Yingying; Yue, Jianbo, E-mail: jbyue@me.com

2013-11-01

Extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs) have been implicated to be dispensable for self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells, and simultaneous inhibition of both ERK signaling and glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) not only allows mouse ES cells to self-renew independent of extracellular stimuli but also enables more efficient derivation of naïve ES cells from mouse and rat strains. Interestingly, some ERKs stay active in mouse ES cells which are maintained in regular medium containing leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP). Yet, the upstream signaling for ERK activation and their roles in mouse ES cells, other than promoting or priming differentiation, have not been determined. Here we found that mouse ES cells express three forms of Raf kinases, A-Raf, B-Raf, and C-Raf. Knocking-down each single Raf member failed to affect the sustained ERK activity, neither did A-Raf and B-Raf double knockdown or B-Raf and C-Raf double knockdown change it in ES cells. Interestingly, B-Raf and C-Raf double knockdown, not A-Raf and B-Raf knockdown, inhibited the maximal ERK activation induced by LIF, concomitant with the slower growth of ES cells. On the other hand, A-Raf, B-Raf, and C-Raf triple knockdown markedly inhibited both the maximal and sustained ERK activity in ES cells. Moreover, Raf triple knockdown, similar to the treatment of U-0126, an MEK inhibitor, significantly inhibited the survival and proliferation of ES cells, thereby compromising the colony propagation of mouse ES cells. In summary, our data demonstrate that all three Raf members are required for ERK activation in mouse ES cells and are involved in growth and survival of mouse ES cells. - Highlights: ●Mouse ES (mES) cells express all three Raf members, A-Raf, B-Raf, and C-Raf. ●Leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) temporally activates ERKs in mES cells. ●B-Raf and C-Raf are required for LIF-induced maximal ERKs activity in mES cells. ●All Raf members are

Inducible and reversible suppression of Npm1 gene expression using stably integrated small interfering RNA vector in mouse embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Beibei; Lu Rui; Wang Weicheng; Jin Ying

2006-01-01

The tetracycline (Tc)-inducible small interference RNA (siRNA) is a powerful tool for studying gene function in mammalian cells. However, the system is infrequently utilized in embryonic stem (ES) cells. Here, we present First application of the Tc-inducible, stably integrated plasmid-based siRNA system in mouse ES cells to down-regulate expression of Npm1, an essential gene for embryonic development. The physiological role of Npm1 in ES cells has not been defined. Our data show that the knock-down of Npm1 expression by this siRNA system was not only highly efficient, but also Tc- dose- and induction time-dependent. Particularly, the down-regulation of Npm1 expression was reversible. Importantly, suppression of Npm1 expression in ES cells resulted in reduced cell proliferation. Taken together, this system allows for studying gene function in a highly controlled manner, otherwise difficult to achieve in ES cells. Moreover, our results demonstrate that Npm1 is essential for ES cell proliferation

A short G1 phase imposes constitutive replication stress and fork remodelling in mouse embryonic stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ahuja, Akshay K.; Jodkowska, Karolina; Teloni, Federico

2016-01-01

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) represent a transient biological state, where pluripotency is coupled with fast proliferation. ESCs display a constitutively active DNA damage response (DDR), but its molecular determinants have remained elusive. Here we show in cultured ESCs and mouse embryos that H2AX...... these marks of replication stress do not impair the mitotic process and are rapidly lost at differentiation onset. Delaying the G1/S transition in ESCs allows formation of 53BP1 nuclear bodies and suppresses ssDNA accumulation, fork slowing and reversal in the following S-phase. Genetic inactivation of fork...... slowing and reversal leads to chromosomal breakage in unperturbed ESCs. We propose that rapid cell cycle progression makes ESCs dependent on effective replication-coupled mechanisms to protect genome integrity....

CRISPR reveals a distal super-enhancer required for Sox2 expression in mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Yan Li

Full Text Available The pluripotency of embryonic stem cells (ESCs is maintained by a small group of master transcription factors including Oct4, Sox2 and Nanog. These core factors form a regulatory circuit controlling the transcription of a number of pluripotency factors including themselves. Although previous studies have identified transcriptional regulators of this core network, the cis-regulatory DNA sequences required for the transcription of these key pluripotency factors remain to be defined. We analyzed epigenomic data within the 1.5 Mb gene-desert regions around the Sox2 gene and identified a 13kb-long super-enhancer (SE located 100kb downstream of Sox2 in mouse ESCs. This SE is occupied by Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, and the mediator complex, and physically interacts with the Sox2 locus via DNA looping. Using a simple and highly efficient double-CRISPR genome editing strategy we deleted the entire 13-kb SE and characterized transcriptional defects in the resulting monoallelic and biallelic deletion clones with RNA-seq. We showed that the SE is responsible for over 90% of Sox2 expression, and Sox2 is the only target gene along the chromosome. Our results support the functional significance of a SE in maintaining the pluripotency transcription program in mouse ESCs.

Effects of different feeder layers on culture of bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells in vitro

OpenAIRE

Cong, Shan; Cao, Guifang; Liu, Dongjun

2014-01-01

To find a suitable feeder layer is important for successful culture conditions of bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells. In this study, expression of pluripotency-related genes OCT4, SOX2 and NANOG in bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells on mouse embryonic fibroblast feeder layers at 1–5 passages were monitored in order to identify the possible reason that bovine embryonic stem cell-like cells could not continue growth and passage. Here, we developed two novel feeder layers, mixed embryonic ...

Acellular Mouse Kidney ECM can be Used as a Three-Dimensional Substrate to Test the Differentiation Potential of Embryonic Stem Cell Derived Renal Progenitors.

Science.gov (United States)

Sambi, Manpreet; Chow, Theresa; Whiteley, Jennifer; Li, Mira; Chua, Shawn; Raileanu, Vanessa; Rogers, Ian M

2017-08-01

The development of strategies for tissue regeneration and bio-artificial organ development is based on our understanding of embryogenesis. Differentiation protocols attempt to recapitulate the signaling modalities of gastrulation and organogenesis, coupled with cell selection regimens to isolate the cells of choice. This strategy is impeded by the lack of optimal in vitro culture systems since traditional culture systems do not allow for the three-dimensional interaction between cells and the extracellular matrix. While artificial three-dimensional scaffolds are available, using the natural extracellular matrix scaffold is advantageous because it has a distinct architecture that is difficult to replicate. The adult extracellular matrix is predicted to mediate signaling related to tissue repair not embryogenesis but existing similarities between the two argues that the extracellular matrix will influence the differentiation of stem and progenitor cells. Previous studies using undifferentiated embryonic stem cells grown directly on acellular kidney ECM demonstrated that the acellular kidney supported cell growth but limited differentiation occurred. Using mouse kidney extracellular matrix and mouse embryonic stem cells we report that the extracellular matrix can support the development of kidney structures if the stem cells are first differentiated to kidney progenitor cells before being applied to the acellular organ.

Differentiate or Die: 3-Bromopyruvate and Pluripotency in Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells.

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Ana Sofia Rodrigues

Full Text Available Pluripotent embryonic stem cells grown under standard conditions (ESC have a markedly glycolytic profile, which is shared with many different types of cancer cells. Thus, some therapeutic strategies suggest that pharmacologically shifting cancer cells towards an oxidative phenotype, using glycolysis inhibitors, may reduce cancer aggressiveness. Given the metabolic parallels between cancer and stemness would chemotherapeutical agents have an effect on pluripotency, and could a strategy involving these agents be envisioned to modulate stem cell fate in an accessible manner? In this manuscript we attempted to determine the effects of 3-bromopyruvate (3BrP in pluripotency. Although it has other intracellular targets, this compound is a potent inhibitor of glycolysis enzymes thought to be important to maintain a glycolytic profile. The goal was also to determine if we could contribute towards a pharmacologically accessible metabolic strategy to influence cell differentiation.Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESC grown under standard pluripotency conditions (in the presence of Leukemia Inducing Factor- LIF were treated with 3BrP. As a positive control for differentiation other mESCs were grown without LIF. Overall our results demonstrate that 3BrP negatively affects pluripotency, forcing cells to become less glycolytic and with more active mitochondria. These changes in metabolism are correlated with increased differentiation, even under pluripotency conditions (i.e. in the presence of LIF. However, 3BrP also significantly impaired cell function, and may have other roles besides affecting the metabolic profile of mESCs.Treatment of mESCs with 3BrP triggered a metabolic switch and loss of pluripotency, even in the presence of LIF. Interestingly, the positive control for differentiation allowed for a distinction between 3BrP effects and changes associated with spontaneous differentiation/loss of pluripotency in the absence of LIF. Additionally, there was a

Differentiate or Die: 3-Bromopyruvate and Pluripotency in Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodrigues, Ana Sofia; Pereira, Sandro L; Correia, Marcelo; Gomes, Andreia; Perestrelo, Tânia; Ramalho-Santos, João

2015-01-01

Pluripotent embryonic stem cells grown under standard conditions (ESC) have a markedly glycolytic profile, which is shared with many different types of cancer cells. Thus, some therapeutic strategies suggest that pharmacologically shifting cancer cells towards an oxidative phenotype, using glycolysis inhibitors, may reduce cancer aggressiveness. Given the metabolic parallels between cancer and stemness would chemotherapeutical agents have an effect on pluripotency, and could a strategy involving these agents be envisioned to modulate stem cell fate in an accessible manner? In this manuscript we attempted to determine the effects of 3-bromopyruvate (3BrP) in pluripotency. Although it has other intracellular targets, this compound is a potent inhibitor of glycolysis enzymes thought to be important to maintain a glycolytic profile. The goal was also to determine if we could contribute towards a pharmacologically accessible metabolic strategy to influence cell differentiation. Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESC) grown under standard pluripotency conditions (in the presence of Leukemia Inducing Factor- LIF) were treated with 3BrP. As a positive control for differentiation other mESCs were grown without LIF. Overall our results demonstrate that 3BrP negatively affects pluripotency, forcing cells to become less glycolytic and with more active mitochondria. These changes in metabolism are correlated with increased differentiation, even under pluripotency conditions (i.e. in the presence of LIF). However, 3BrP also significantly impaired cell function, and may have other roles besides affecting the metabolic profile of mESCs. Treatment of mESCs with 3BrP triggered a metabolic switch and loss of pluripotency, even in the presence of LIF. Interestingly, the positive control for differentiation allowed for a distinction between 3BrP effects and changes associated with spontaneous differentiation/loss of pluripotency in the absence of LIF. Additionally, there was a slight

Neocortex and allocortex respond differentially to cellular stress in vitro and aging in vivo.

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Jessica M Posimo

Full Text Available In Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, the allocortex accumulates aggregated proteins such as synuclein and tau well before neocortex. We present a new high-throughput model of this topographic difference by microdissecting neocortex and allocortex from the postnatal rat and treating them in parallel fashion with toxins. Allocortical cultures were more vulnerable to low concentrations of the proteasome inhibitors MG132 and PSI but not the oxidative poison H2O2. The proteasome appeared to be more impaired in allocortex because MG132 raised ubiquitin-conjugated proteins and lowered proteasome activity in allocortex more than neocortex. Allocortex cultures were more vulnerable to MG132 despite greater MG132-induced rises in heat shock protein 70, heme oxygenase 1, and catalase. Proteasome subunits PA700 and PA28 were also higher in allocortex cultures, suggesting compensatory adaptations to greater proteasome impairment. Glutathione and ceruloplasmin were not robustly MG132-responsive and were basally higher in neocortical cultures. Notably, neocortex cultures became as vulnerable to MG132 as allocortex when glutathione synthesis or autophagic defenses were inhibited. Conversely, the glutathione precursor N-acetyl cysteine rendered allocortex resilient to MG132. Glutathione and ceruloplasmin levels were then examined in vivo as a function of age because aging is a natural model of proteasome inhibition and oxidative stress. Allocortical glutathione levels rose linearly with age but were similar to neocortex in whole tissue lysates. In contrast, ceruloplasmin levels were strikingly higher in neocortex at all ages and rose linearly until middle age. PA28 levels rose with age and were higher in allocortex in vivo, also paralleling in vitro data. These neo- and allocortical differences have implications for the many studies that treat the telencephalic mantle as a single unit. Our observations suggest that the topographic progression of protein

High glucose suppresses embryonic stem cell differentiation into neural lineage cells

OpenAIRE

Yang, Penghua; Shen, Wei-bin; Reece, E. Albert; Chen, Xi; Yang, Peixin

2016-01-01

Abnormal neurogenesis occurs during embryonic development in human diabetic pregnancies and in animal models of diabetic embryopathy. Our previous studies in a mouse model of diabetic embryopathy have implicated that high glucose of maternal diabetes delays neurogenesis in the developing neuroepithelium leading to neural tube defects. However, the underlying process in high glucose-impaired neurogenesis is uncharacterized. Neurogenesis from embryonic stem (ES) cells provides a valuable model ...

EXAMINATION OF THE GERM CELL CHIMERA FORMING POTENTIAL OF MOUSE EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS

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V.B. CÂRSTEA

2007-05-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to examine the factors, which influence the chimeraforming potential of mouse embryonic stem cells (ES cells. In our work, we examinethe chimera producing ability of R1 and R1/E mouse ES cell lines. We found that thepassage number affects chimera-forming capability of the ES cells. With theincreasing of the passage number, it could be getting less chimera animal, and onlythe R1/E ES cell line derived cells could contribute to the germ cells. At first, wecompared the marker of pluripotency using immunostaining and RT PCR, but wecould not find any difference between the R1 and R1/E cell in this way. Atchromosome analysis, we found, that the number of aneuploid cells, in R1 ES cellline, dramatically increased after 10 passages. We thought that the reason is thatduring the cell division Y chromosome could not arrange correctly between the twonewly derived progeny cells. To prove our conception, we made X and YchromosomeFISH analyses. We found, that the aneuploid R1 and R1/E ES cellscontain only one X and one Y chromosome, so not the loss of Y chromosome causethe problem at the germ cell formation. At last, we made the karyotypeanalysis of R1 and R1/E ES cells at different passages. The karyotype analysisdemonstrated that in the case of R1 ES cell line, the 41 and 42-chromosomecontaining cells hold trisomy. With the increasing of the passages number, thenumber of trisomy containing aneuploid cells increased. The aneuploid ES cells cancontribute to the different tissuses of chimera animals, but cannot form viable germcells.

EXAMINATION OF THE GERM CELL CHIMERA FORMING POTENTIAL OF MOUSE EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS

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CÂRSTEA V. B

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to examine the factors, which influence the chimeraforming potential of mouse embryonic stem cells (ES cells. In our work, we examinethe chimera producing ability of R1 and R1/E mouse ES cell lines. We found that thepassage number affects chimera-forming capability of the ES cells. With theincreasing of the passage number, it could be getting less chimera animal, and onlythe R1/E ES cell line derived cells could contribute to the germ cells. At first, wecompared the marker of pluripotency using immunostaining and RT PCR, but wecould not find any difference between the R1 and R1/E cell in this way. Atchromosome analysis, we found, that the number of aneuploid cells, in R1 ES cellline, dramatically increased after 10 passages. We thought that the reason is thatduring the cell division Y chromosome could not arrange correctly between the twonewly derived progeny cells. To prove our conception, we made X and YchromosomeFISH analyses. We found, that the aneuploid R1 and R1/E ES cellscontain only one X and one Y chromosome, so not the loss of Y chromosome causethe problem at the germ cell formation. At last, we made the karyotypeanalysis of R1 and R1/E ES cells at different passages. The karyotype analysisdemonstrated that in the case of R1 ES cell line, the 41 and 42-chromosomecontaining cells hold trisomy. With the increasing of the passages number, thenumber of trisomy containing aneuploid cells increased. The aneuploid ES cells cancontribute to the different tissuses of chimera animals, but cannot form viable germcells.

In vitro pancreas organogenesis from dispersed mouse embryonic progenitors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Greggio, Chiara; De Franceschi, Filippo; Figueiredo-Larsen, Evan Manuel

2014-01-01

The pancreas is an essential organ that regulates glucose homeostasis and secretes digestive enzymes. Research on pancreas embryogenesis has led to the development of protocols to produce pancreatic cells from stem cells (1). The whole embryonic organ can be cultured at multiple stages...... expanding progenitors and differentiate into endocrine, acinar and ductal cells and which spontaneously self-organize to resemble the embryonic pancreas. We show here that the in vitro process recapitulates many aspects of natural pancreas development. This culture system is suitable to investigate how...... cells cooperate to form an organ by reducing its initial complexity to few progenitors. It is a model that reproduces the 3D architecture of the pancreas and that is therefore useful to study morphogenesis, including polarization of epithelial structures and branching. It is also appropriate to assess...

Transcriptional regulatory program in wild-type and retinoblastoma gene-deficient mouse embryonic fibroblasts during adipocyte differentiation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hakim-Weber, Robab; Krogsdam, Anne-M; Jørgensen, Claus

2011-01-01

Although many molecular regulators of adipogenesis have been identified a comprehensive catalogue of components is still missing. Recent studies showed that the retinoblastoma protein (pRb) was expressed in the cell cycle and late cellular differentiation phase during adipogenesis. To investigate...... this dual role of pRb in the early and late stages of adipogenesis we used microarrays to perform a comprehensive systems-level analysis of the common transcriptional program of the classic 3T3-L1 preadipocyte cell line, wild-type mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs), and retinoblastoma gene-deficient MEFs...... of experimental data and computational analyses pinpointed a feedback-loop between Pparg and Foxo1.To analyze the effects of the retinoblastoma protein at the transcriptional level we chose a perturbated system (Rb-/- MEFs) for comparison to the transcriptional program of wild-type MEFs. Gene ontology analysis...

Gene expression response to EWS–FLI1 in mouse embryonic cartilage

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Miwa Tanaka

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Ewing's sarcoma is a rare bone tumor that affects children and adolescents. We have recently succeeded to induce Ewing's sarcoma-like small round cell tumor in mice by expression of EWS–ETS fusion genes in murine embryonic osteochondrogenic progenitors. The Ewing's sarcoma precursors are enriched in embryonic superficial zone (eSZ cells of long bone. To get insights into the mechanisms of Ewing's sarcoma development, gene expression profiles between EWS–FLI1-sensitive eSZ cells and EWS–FLI1-resistant embryonic growth plate (eGP cells were compared using DNA microarrays. Gene expression of eSZ and eGP cells (total, 30 samples was evaluated with or without EWS–FLI1 expression 0, 8 or 48 h after gene transduction. Our data provide useful information for gene expression responses to fusion oncogenes in human sarcoma.

Nuclei pulposi formation from the embryonic notochord occurs normally in GDF-5-deficient mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Maier, Jennifer A; Harfe, Brian D

2011-11-15

The transition of the mouse embryonic notochord into nuclei pulposi was determined ("fate mapped") in vivo in growth and differentiating factor-5 (GDF-5)-null mice using the Shhcre and R26R alleles. To determine whether abnormal nuclei pulposi formation from the embryonic notochord was responsible for defects present in adult nuclei pulposi of Gdf-5-null mice. The development, maintenance, and degeneration of the intervertebral disc are not understood. Previously, we demonstrated that all cells in the adult nucleus pulposus of normal mice are derived from the embryonic notochord. Gdf-5-null mice have been reported to contain intervertebral discs in which the nucleus pulposus is abnormal. It is currently unclear if disc defects in Gdf-5-null mice arise during the formation of nuclei pulposi from the notochord during embryogenesis or result from progressive postnatal degeneration of nuclei pulposi. Gdf-5 messenger RNA expression was examined in the discs of wild-type embryos by RNA in situ hybridization to determine when and where this gene was expressed. To examine nucleus pulposus formation in Gdf-5-null mice, intervertebral discs in which embryonic notochord cells were marked were analyzed in newborn and 24-week-old mice. Our Gdf-5 messenger RNA in situ experiments determined that this gene is localized to the annulus fibrosus and not the nucleus pulposus in mouse embryos. Notochord fate-mapping experiments revealed that notochord cells in Gdf-5-null mice correctly form nuclei pulposi. Our data suggest that the defects reported in the nucleus pulposus of adult Gdf-5-null mice do not result from abnormal patterning of the embryonic notochord. The use of mouse alleles to mark cells that produce all cell types that reside in the adult nucleus pulposus will allow for a detailed examination of disc formation in other mouse mutants that have been reported to contain disc defects.

MicroRNA-130b targets Fmr1 and regulates embryonic neural progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gong, Xi; Zhang, Kunshan; Wang, Yanlu; Wang, Junbang; Cui, Yaru; Li, Siguang; Luo, Yuping

2013-01-01

Highlights: •We found that the 3′ UTR of the Fmr1 mRNA is a target of miR-130b. •MiR-130b suppresses the expression of Fmr1 in mouse embryonic stem cell. •MiR-130b alters the proliferation of mouse embryonic stem cell. •MiR-130b alters fate specification of mouse embryonic stem cell. -- Abstract: Fragile X syndrome, one of the most common forms of inherited mental retardation, is caused by expansion of the CGG repeat in the 5′-untranslated region of the X-linked Fmr1 gene, which results in transcriptional silencing and loss of expression of its encoded protein FMRP. The loss of FMRP increases proliferation and alters fate specification in adult neural progenitor cells (aNPCs). However, little is known about Fmr1 mRNA regulation at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. In the present study, we report that miR-130b regulated Fmr1 expression by directly targeting its 3′-untranslated region (3′ UTR). Up-regulation of miR-130b in mouse embryonic neural progenitor cells (eNPCs) decreased Fmr1 expression, markedly increased eNPC proliferation and altered the differentiation tendency of eNPCs, suggesting that antagonizing miR-130b may be a new therapeutic entry point for treating Fragile X syndrome

MicroRNA-130b targets Fmr1 and regulates embryonic neural progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gong, Xi [State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, College of Life Sciences and Food Engineering, Nanchang University, Nanchang 330047 (China); Zhang, Kunshan [Department of Regenerative Medicine, Stem Cell Center, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092 (China); Wang, Yanlu; Wang, Junbang; Cui, Yaru [State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, College of Life Sciences and Food Engineering, Nanchang University, Nanchang 330047 (China); Li, Siguang, E-mail: siguangli@163.com [Department of Regenerative Medicine, Stem Cell Center, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092 (China); Luo, Yuping, E-mail: luoyuping@163.com [State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, College of Life Sciences and Food Engineering, Nanchang University, Nanchang 330047 (China)

2013-10-04

Highlights: •We found that the 3′ UTR of the Fmr1 mRNA is a target of miR-130b. •MiR-130b suppresses the expression of Fmr1 in mouse embryonic stem cell. •MiR-130b alters the proliferation of mouse embryonic stem cell. •MiR-130b alters fate specification of mouse embryonic stem cell. -- Abstract: Fragile X syndrome, one of the most common forms of inherited mental retardation, is caused by expansion of the CGG repeat in the 5′-untranslated region of the X-linked Fmr1 gene, which results in transcriptional silencing and loss of expression of its encoded protein FMRP. The loss of FMRP increases proliferation and alters fate specification in adult neural progenitor cells (aNPCs). However, little is known about Fmr1 mRNA regulation at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. In the present study, we report that miR-130b regulated Fmr1 expression by directly targeting its 3′-untranslated region (3′ UTR). Up-regulation of miR-130b in mouse embryonic neural progenitor cells (eNPCs) decreased Fmr1 expression, markedly increased eNPC proliferation and altered the differentiation tendency of eNPCs, suggesting that antagonizing miR-130b may be a new therapeutic entry point for treating Fragile X syndrome.

Estrogen receptor beta-selective agonists stimulate calcium oscillations in human and mouse embryonic stem cell-derived neurons.

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Lili Zhang

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Estrogens are used extensively to treat hot flashes in menopausal women. Some of the beneficial effects of estrogens in hormone therapy on the brain might be due to nongenomic effects in neurons such as the rapid stimulation of calcium oscillations. Most studies have examined the nongenomic effects of estrogen receptors (ER in primary neurons or brain slices from the rodent brain. However, these cells can not be maintained continuously in culture because neurons are post-mitotic. Neurons derived from embryonic stem cells could be a potential continuous, cell-based model to study nongenomic actions of estrogens in neurons if they are responsive to estrogens after differentiation. In this study ER-subtype specific estrogens were used to examine the role of ERalpha and ERbeta on calcium oscillations in neurons derived from human (hES and mouse embryonic stem cells. Unlike the undifferentiated hES cells the differentiated cells expressed neuronal markers, ERbeta, but not ERalpha. The non-selective ER agonist 17beta-estradiol (E(2 rapidly increased [Ca2+]i oscillations and synchronizations within a few minutes. No change in calcium oscillations was observed with the selective ERalpha agonist 4,4',4''-(4-Propyl-[1H]-pyrazole-1,3,5-triyltrisphenol (PPT. In contrast, the selective ERbeta agonists, 2,3-bis(4-Hydroxyphenyl-propionitrile (DPN, MF101, and 2-(3-fluoro-4-hydroxyphenyl-7-vinyl-1,3 benzoxazol-5-ol (ERB-041; WAY-202041 stimulated calcium oscillations similar to E(2. The ERbeta agonists also increased calcium oscillations and phosphorylated PKC, AKT and ERK1/2 in neurons derived from mouse ES cells, which was inhibited by nifedipine demonstrating that ERbeta activates L-type voltage gated calcium channels to regulate neuronal activity. Our results demonstrate that ERbeta signaling regulates nongenomic pathways in neurons derived from ES cells, and suggest that these cells might be useful to study the nongenomic mechanisms of estrogenic compounds.

Genetic enrichment of cardiomyocytes derived from mouse ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Genetic enrichment of cardiomyocytes derived from mouse embryonic stem cells. WJ He, SC Li, LL Ye, H Liu, QW Wang, WD Han, XB Fu, ZL Chen. Abstract. Pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESC) have the ability to differentiate into a variety of cell lineages in vitro, including cardiomyocytes. Successful applications of ...

Cytotoxic Effects of Dillapiole on Embryonic Development of Mouse Blastocysts in Vitro and in Vivo

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Wen-Hsiung Chan

2014-06-01

Full Text Available We examined the cytotoxic effects of dillapiole, a phenylpropanoid with antileishmanial, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, and acaricidal activities, on the blastocyst stage of mouse embryos, subsequent embryonic attachment and outgrowth in vitro, and in vivo implantation via embryo transfer. Blastocysts treated with 2.5–10 μM dillapiole exhibited a significant increase in apoptosis and corresponding decrease in total cell number. Notably, the implantation success rates of blastocysts pretreated with dillapiole were lower than those of their control counterparts. Moreover, in vitro treatment with 2.5–10 μM dillapiole was associated with increased resorption of post-implantation embryos and decreased fetal weight. Our results collectively indicate that dillapiole induces apoptosis and retards early post-implantation development, both in vitro and in vivo. However, the extent to which this organic compound exerts teratogenic effects on early human development is not known at present. Further studies are required to establish effective protection strategies against the cytotoxic effects of dillapiole.

Evaluation of hollow fiber culture for large-scale production of mouse embryonic stem cell-derived hematopoietic stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakano, Yu; Iwanaga, Shinya; Mizumoto, Hiroshi; Kajiwara, Toshihisa

2018-03-03

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) have the ability to differentiate into all types of blood cells and can be transplanted to treat blood disorders. However, it is difficult to obtain HSCs in large quantities because of the shortage of donors. Recent efforts have focused on acquiring HSCs by differentiation of pluripotent stem cells. As a conventional differentiation method of pluripotent stem cells, the formation of embryoid bodies (EBs) is often employed. However, the size of EBs is limited by depletion of oxygen and nutrients, which prevents them from being efficient for the production of HSCs. In this study, we developed a large-scale hematopoietic differentiation approach for mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells by applying a hollow fiber (HF)/organoid culture method. Cylindrical organoids, which had the potential for further spontaneous differentiation, were established inside of hollow fibers. Using this method, we improved the proliferation rate of mouse ES cells to produce an increased HSC population and achieved around a 40-fold higher production volume of HSCs in HF culture than in conventional EB culture. Therefore, the HF/organoid culture method may be a new mass culture method to acquire pluripotent stem cell-derived HSCs.

Increasing mouse embryonic fibroblast cells adhesion on superhydrophilic vertically aligned carbon nanotube films

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Lobo, A.O., E-mail: loboao@yahoo.com [Laboratory of Biomedical Nanotechnology (NanoBio), Instituto de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento (IP and D), Universidade do Vale do Paraiba UniVap, Avenida Shishima Hifumi 2911, Sao Jose dos Campos, 12244-000, SP (Brazil) and Laboratory of Biomedical Vibrational Spectroscopy (LEVB), Instituto de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento (IP and D), Universidade do Vale do Paraiba UniVap, Avenida Shishima Hifumi 2911, Sao Jose dos Campos, 12244-000, SP (Brazil); Marciano, F.R. [Laboratory of Biomedical Nanotechnology (NanoBio), Instituto de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento (IP and D), Universidade do Vale do Paraiba UniVap, Avenida Shishima Hifumi 2911, Sao Jose dos Campos, 12244-000, SP (Brazil); Laboratory of Biomedical Vibrational Spectroscopy LEVB, Instituto de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento (IP and D), Universidade do Vale do Paraiba (UniVap), Avenida Shishima Hifumi 2911, Sao Jose dos Campos, 12244-000, SP (Brazil); Ramos, S.C. [Laboratorio Associado de Sensores e Materiais (LAS), Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE), Avenida dos Astronautas 1758, Sao Jose dos Campos, 12.245-970, SP (Brazil); Machado, M.M. [Centro Multidisciplinar para Investigacao Biologica na Area da Ciencia em Animais de Laboratorio (CEMIB), Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Rua 05 de Junho s/no, Cidade Universitaria ' Zeferino Vaz' , 13083-877, Campinas (Brazil); Corat, E.J. [Laboratorio Associado de Sensores e Materiais (LAS), Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE), Avenida dos Astronautas 1758, Sao Jose dos Campos, 12.245-970, SP (Brazil); Corat, M.A.F. [Centro Multidisciplinar para Investigacao Biologica na Area da Ciencia em Animais de Laboratorio (CEMIB), Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Rua 05 de Junho s/no, Cidade Universitaria ' Zeferino Vaz' , 13083-877, Campinas (Brazil)

2011-10-10

We have analyzed the adhesion of mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) genetically modified by green fluorescence protein (GFP) gene cultured on vertically-aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) after 6 days. The VACNTs films grown on Ti were obtained by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition process using Fe catalyst and submitted to an oxygen plasma treatment, for 2 min, at 400 V and 80 mTorr, to convert them to superhydrophilic. Cellular adhesion and morphology were analyzed by scanning electron, fluorescence microscopy, and thermodynamics analysis. Characterizations of superhydrophilic VACNTs films were evaluated by contact angle and X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy. Differences of crowd adhered cells, as well as their spreading on superhydrophilic VACNTs scaffolds, were evaluated using focal adhesion analysis. This study was the first to demonstrate, in real time, that the wettability of VACNTs scaffolds might have enhanced and differential adherence patterns to the MEF-GFP on VACNTs substrates. Highlights: {yields} A simple oxygen plasma treatment was used to obtain superhydrophilic CNT films. {yields} Superhydrophilic CNTs films were successfully produced by incorporation of carboxylic groups. {yields} Cellular adhesion on superhydrophilic VACNT films was analyzed in real time. {yields} Wettability of CNT films directly affects the cellular migration, proliferation and adhesion.

Induction of superficial cortical layer neurons from mouse embryonic stem cells by valproic acid.

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Juliandi, Berry; Abematsu, Masahiko; Sanosaka, Tsukasa; Tsujimura, Keita; Smith, Austin; Nakashima, Kinichi

2012-01-01

Within the developing mammalian cortex, neural progenitors first generate deep-layer neurons and subsequently more superficial-layer neurons, in an inside-out manner. It has been reported recently that mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) can, to some extent, recapitulate cortical development in vitro, with the sequential appearance of neurogenesis markers resembling that in the developing cortex. However, mESCs can only recapitulate early corticogenesis; superficial-layer neurons, which are normally produced in later developmental periods in vivo, are under-represented. This failure of mESCs to reproduce later corticogenesis in vitro implies the existence of crucial factor(s) that are absent or uninduced in existing culture systems. Here we show that mESCs can give rise to superficial-layer neurons efficiently when treated with valproic acid (VPA), a histone deacetylase inhibitor. VPA treatment increased the production of Cux1-positive superficial-layer neurons, and decreased that of Ctip2-positive deep-layer neurons. These results shed new light on the mechanisms of later corticogenesis. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd and the Japan Neuroscience Society. All rights reserved.

Deciphering the Mechanisms of Developmental Disorders (DMDD: a new programme for phenotyping embryonic lethal mice

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Timothy Mohun

2013-05-01

International efforts to test gene function in the mouse by the systematic knockout of each gene are creating many lines in which embryonic development is compromised. These homozygous lethal mutants represent a potential treasure trove for the biomedical community. Developmental biologists could exploit them in their studies of tissue differentiation and organogenesis; for clinical researchers they offer a powerful resource for investigating the origins of developmental diseases that affect newborns. Here, we outline a new programme of research in the UK aiming to kick-start research with embryonic lethal mouse lines. The ‘Deciphering the Mechanisms of Developmental Disorders’ (DMDD programme has the ambitious goal of identifying all embryonic lethal knockout lines made in the UK over the next 5 years, and will use a combination of comprehensive imaging and transcriptomics to identify abnormalities in embryo structure and development. All data will be made freely available, enabling individual researchers to identify lines relevant to their research. The DMDD programme will coordinate its work with similar international efforts through the umbrella of the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium [see accompanying Special Article (Adams et al., 2013] and, together, these programmes will provide a novel database for embryonic development, linking gene identity with molecular profiles and morphology phenotypes.

Somatic Donor Cell Type Correlates with Embryonic, but Not Extra-Embryonic, Gene Expression in Postimplantation Cloned Embryos

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Inoue, Kimiko; Ogura, Atsuo

2013-01-01

The great majority of embryos generated by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) display defined abnormal phenotypes after implantation, such as an increased likelihood of death and abnormal placentation. To gain better insight into the underlying mechanisms, we analyzed genome-wide gene expression profiles of day 6.5 postimplantation mouse embryos cloned from three different cell types (cumulus cells, neonatal Sertoli cells and fibroblasts). The embryos retrieved from the uteri were separated into embryonic (epiblast) and extraembryonic (extraembryonic ectoderm and ectoplacental cone) tissues and were subjected to gene microarray analysis. Genotype- and sex-matched embryos produced by in vitro fertilization were used as controls. Principal component analysis revealed that whereas the gene expression patterns in the embryonic tissues varied according to the donor cell type, those in extraembryonic tissues were relatively consistent across all groups. Within each group, the embryonic tissues had more differentially expressed genes (DEGs) (>2-fold vs. controls) than did the extraembryonic tissues (Pcloning efficiency using SCNT. PMID:24146866

Differentiation of embryonic stem cells towards hematopoietic cells: progress and pitfalls.

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Tian, Xinghui; Kaufman, Dan S

2008-07-01

Hematopoietic development from embryonic stem cells has been one of the most productive areas of stem cell biology. Recent studies have progressed from work with mouse to human embryonic stem cells. Strategies to produce defined blood cell populations can be used to better understand normal and abnormal hematopoiesis, as well as potentially improve the generation of hematopoietic cells with therapeutic potential. Molecular profiling, phenotypic and functional analyses have all been utilized to demonstrate that hematopoietic cells derived from embryonic stem cells most closely represent a stage of hematopoiesis that occurs at embryonic/fetal developmental stages. Generation of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells comparable to hematopoietic stem cells found in the adult sources, such as bone marrow and cord blood, still remains challenging. However, genetic manipulation of intrinsic factors during hematopoietic differentiation has proven a suitable approach to induce adult definitive hematopoiesis from embryonic stem cells. Concrete evidence has shown that embryonic stem cells provide a powerful approach to study the early stage of hematopoiesis. Multiple hematopoietic lineages can be generated from embryonic stem cells, although most of the evidence suggests that hematopoietic development from embryonic stem cells mimics an embryonic/fetal stage of hematopoiesis.

BTG/Tob family members Tob1 and Tob2 inhibit proliferation of mouse embryonic stem cells via Id3 mRNA degradation

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Chen, Yuanfan; Wang, Chenchen; Wu, Jenny; Li, Lingsong

2015-01-01

The mammalian BTG/Tob family is a group of proteins with anti-proliferative ability, and there are six members including BTG1, BTG2/PC3/Tis21, BTG3/ANA, BTG4/PC3B, Tob1/Tob and Tob2. Among them, Tob subfamily members, specifically Tob1/Tob and Tob2, have the most extensive C-terminal regions. As previously reported, overexpression of BTG/Tob proteins is associated with the inhibition of G1 to S-phase cell cycle progression and decreased cell proliferation in a variety of cell types. Tob subfamily proteins have similar anti-proliferative effects on cell cycle progression in cultured tumor cells. An important unresolved question is whether or not they have function in rapidly proliferating cells, such as embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Tob1 and Tob2 were expressed ubiquitously in mouse ESCs (mESCs), suggesting a possible role in early embryonic development and mESCs. To address the above question and explore the possible functions of the Tob subfamily in ESCs, we established ESCs from different genotypic knockout inner cell mass (ICM). We found that Tob1 −/− , Tob2 −/− , and Tob1/2 double knockout (DKO, Tob1 −/− & Tob2 −/− ) ESCs grew faster than wild type (WT) ESCs without losing pluripotency, and we provide a possible mechanistic explanation for these observations: Tob1 and Tob2 inhibit the cell cycle via degradation of Id3 mRNA, which is a set of directly targeted genes of BMP4 signaling in mESCs that play critical roles in the maintenance of ESC properties. Together, our data suggest that BTG/Tob family protein Tob1 and Tob2 regulation cell proliferation does not compromise the basic properties of mESCs. - Highlights: • We established mouse Tob1/2 double knockout embryonic stem cells. • Tob1 and Tob2 inhibit the proliferation of ESCs without effect on pluripotency. • Tob1 and Tob2 involved in the degradation of Id3 in mESCs

BTG/Tob family members Tob1 and Tob2 inhibit proliferation of mouse embryonic stem cells via Id3 mRNA degradation

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Chen, Yuanfan; Wang, Chenchen [Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191 (China); Peking University Stem Cell Research Center, China National Center for International Research, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191 (China); SARI Center for Stem Cell and Nanomedicine, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200120 (China); Wu, Jenny [SARI Center for Stem Cell and Nanomedicine, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200120 (China); Li, Lingsong, E-mail: lils@sari.ac.cn [Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191 (China); Peking University Stem Cell Research Center, China National Center for International Research, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191 (China); SARI Center for Stem Cell and Nanomedicine, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200120 (China)

2015-07-03

The mammalian BTG/Tob family is a group of proteins with anti-proliferative ability, and there are six members including BTG1, BTG2/PC3/Tis21, BTG3/ANA, BTG4/PC3B, Tob1/Tob and Tob2. Among them, Tob subfamily members, specifically Tob1/Tob and Tob2, have the most extensive C-terminal regions. As previously reported, overexpression of BTG/Tob proteins is associated with the inhibition of G1 to S-phase cell cycle progression and decreased cell proliferation in a variety of cell types. Tob subfamily proteins have similar anti-proliferative effects on cell cycle progression in cultured tumor cells. An important unresolved question is whether or not they have function in rapidly proliferating cells, such as embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Tob1 and Tob2 were expressed ubiquitously in mouse ESCs (mESCs), suggesting a possible role in early embryonic development and mESCs. To address the above question and explore the possible functions of the Tob subfamily in ESCs, we established ESCs from different genotypic knockout inner cell mass (ICM). We found that Tob1{sup −/−}, Tob2{sup −/−}, and Tob1/2 double knockout (DKO, Tob1{sup −/−} & Tob2{sup −/−}) ESCs grew faster than wild type (WT) ESCs without losing pluripotency, and we provide a possible mechanistic explanation for these observations: Tob1 and Tob2 inhibit the cell cycle via degradation of Id3 mRNA, which is a set of directly targeted genes of BMP4 signaling in mESCs that play critical roles in the maintenance of ESC properties. Together, our data suggest that BTG/Tob family protein Tob1 and Tob2 regulation cell proliferation does not compromise the basic properties of mESCs. - Highlights: • We established mouse Tob1/2 double knockout embryonic stem cells. • Tob1 and Tob2 inhibit the proliferation of ESCs without effect on pluripotency. • Tob1 and Tob2 involved in the degradation of Id3 in mESCs.

Resveratrol protects mouse embryonic stem cells from ionizing radiation by accelerating recovery from DNA strand breakage.

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Denissova, Natalia G; Nasello, Cara M; Yeung, Percy L; Tischfield, Jay A; Brenneman, Mark A

2012-01-01

Resveratrol has elicited many provocative anticancer effects in laboratory animals and cultured cells, including reduced levels of oxidative DNA damage, inhibition of tumor initiation and progression and induction of apoptosis in tumor cells. Use of resveratrol as a cancer-preventive agent in humans will require that its anticancer effects not be accompanied by damage to normal tissue stem or progenitor cells. In mouse embryonic stem cells (mESC) or early mouse embryos exposed to ethanol, resveratrol has been shown to suppress apoptosis and promote survival. However, in cells exposed to genotoxic stress, survival may come at the expense of genome stability. To learn whether resveratrol can protect stem cells from DNA damage and to study its effects on genomic integrity, we exposed mESC pretreated with resveratrol to ionizing radiation (IR). Forty-eight hours pretreatment with a comparatively low concentration of resveratrol (10 μM) improved survival of mESC >2-fold after exposure to 5 Gy of X-rays. Cells pretreated with resveratrol sustained the same levels of reactive oxygen species and DNA strand breakage after IR as mock-treated controls, but repaired DNA damage more rapidly and resumed cell division sooner. Frequencies of IR-induced mutation at a chromosomal reporter locus were not increased in cells pretreated with resveratrol as compared with controls, indicating that resveratrol can improve viability in mESC after DNA damage without compromising genomic integrity.

EDA-containing fibronectin increases proliferation of embryonic stem cells.

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Noelia Losino

Full Text Available Embryonic stem cells (ESC need a set of specific factors to be propagated. They can also grow in conditioned medium (CM derived from a bovine granulosa cell line BGC (BGC-CM, a medium that not only preserves their main features but also increases ESC´s proliferation rate. The mitogenic properties of this medium were previously reported, ascribing this effect to an alternative spliced generated fibronectin isoform that contains the extra domain A (FN EDA(+. Here, we investigated if the FN EDA(+ isoform increased proliferation of mouse and human ES cells. We analyzed cell proliferation using conditioned media produced by different mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF lines genetically engineered to express FN constitutively including or excluding the EDA domain (FN EDA(-, and in media supplemented with recombinant peptides containing or not the EDA. We found that the presence of EDA in the medium increased mouse and human ESC's proliferation rate. Here we showed for the first time that this FN isoform enhances ESC's proliferation. These findings suggest a possible conserved behavior for regulation of ES cells proliferation by this FN isoform and could contribute to improve their culturing conditions both for research and cell therapy.

Modulatory Effects of Dopamine D2 Receptors on Spreading Depression in Rat Somatosensory Neocortex

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Anna Maria Haarmann

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Spreading depression (SD is a propagating wave of depolarization followed by depression of the neuroglial activities and can modulate extracellular dopamine concentrations in the neocortex. It has been shown that the dopaminergic system plays a role in migraine. SD has been suggested as a critical phenomenon in the pathophysiology of migraine. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of dopamine D2 receptors on the characteristic features of SD in rat neocortical tissues. Methods: The effect of dopamine D2 receptor agonist quinpirole and D2 receptor antagonist sulpiride was tested on different characteristic features (amplitude, duration and velocity of KCl-induced SD in somatosensory neocortical slices of adult rats. The effect of above-mentioned substances on production of long-term potentiation (LTP in the neocortex was also evaluated. Results: The present data revealed a dose-dependent suppression of the amplitude and duration of SD in the presence of the dopamine D2 receptor antagonist sulpiride in the neocortex. D2 dopamine receptor agonist quinpirole dose-dependently enhanced the amplitude and duration of the neocortical SD. Furthermore, application of D2 receptor antagonist significantly suppressed induction of LTP. Discussion: These results indicate that D2 receptors modulate the initiation of SD in the neocortex. This finding refers to the potential role of D2 receptor antagonist in treatment of migraine pain.

Random mtDNA mutations modulate proliferation capacity in mouse embryonic fibroblasts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kukat, Alexandra; Edgar, Daniel; Bratic, Ivana; Maiti, Priyanka; Trifunovic, Aleksandra

2011-01-01

Highlights: → Increased mtDNA mutations in MEFs lead to high level of spontaneous immortalization. → This process is independent of endogenous ROS production. → Aerobic glycolysis significantly contributes to spontaneous immortalization of MEFs. -- Abstract: An increase in mtDNA mutation load leads to a loss of critical cells in different tissues thereby contributing to the physiological process of organismal ageing. Additionally, the accumulation of senescent cells that display changes in metabolic function might act in an active way to further disrupt the normal tissue function. We believe that this could be the important link missing in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of premature ageing in the mtDNA mutator mice. We tested proliferation capacity of mtDNA mutator cells in vitro. When cultured in physiological levels of oxygen (3%) their proliferation capacity is somewhat lower than wild-type cells. Surprisingly, in conditions of increased oxidative stress (20% O 2 ) mtDNA mutator mouse embryonic fibroblasts exhibit continuous proliferation due to spontaneous immortalization, whereas the same conditions promote senescence in wild-type cells. We believe that an increase in aerobic glycolysis observed in mtDNA mutator mice is a major mechanism behind this process. We propose that glycolysis promotes proliferation and allows a fast turnover of metabolites, but also leads to energy crisis due to lower ATP production rate. This could lead to compromised replication and/or repair and therefore, in rare cases, might lead to mutations in tumor suppressor genes and spontaneous immortalization.

2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin specifically reduces mRNA for the mineralization-related dentin sialophosphoprotein in cultured mouse embryonic molar teeth

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Kiukkonen, Anu; Sahlberg, Carin; Lukinmaa, Pirjo-Liisa; Alaluusua, Satu; Peltonen, Eija; Partanen, Anna-Maija

2006-01-01

Previous studies show that the most toxic dioxin congener, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), interferes with mineralization of the dental matrices in developing mouse and rat teeth. Culture of mouse embryonic molar teeth with TCDD leads to the failure of enamel to be deposited and dentin to undergo mineralization. Lactationally exposed rats show defectively matured enamel and retardation of dentin mineralization. To see if the impaired mineralization is associated with changes in the expression of dentin sialophosphoprotein (Dspp), Bono1 and/or matrix metalloproteinase-20 (MMP-20), thought to be involved in mineralization of the dental hard tissues, we cultured mouse (NMRI) E18 mandibular molars for 3, 5 or 7 days and exposed them to 1 μM TCDD after 2 days of culture. As detected by in situ hybridization of tissue sections, localization and intensity of Bono1 and MMP-20 expression showed no definite difference between the control and exposed tooth explants, suggesting that TCDD does not affect their expression. On the contrary, TCDD reduced or prevented the expression of Dspp in secretory odontoblasts and decreased it in presecretory ameloblasts. The results suggest that the retardation of dentin mineralization by TCDD in mouse molar teeth involves specific interference with Dspp expression

NDR Kinases Are Essential for Somitogenesis and Cardiac Looping during Mouse Embryonic Development.

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Debora Schmitz-Rohmer

Full Text Available Studies of mammalian tissue culture cells indicate that the conserved and distinct NDR isoforms, NDR1 and NDR2, play essential cell biological roles. However, mice lacking either Ndr1 or Ndr2 alone develop normally. Here, we studied the physiological consequences of inactivating both NDR1 and NDR2 in mice, showing that the lack of both Ndr1/Ndr2 (called Ndr1/2-double null mutants causes embryonic lethality. In support of compensatory roles for NDR1 and NDR2, total protein and activating phosphorylation levels of the remaining NDR isoform were elevated in mice lacking either Ndr1 or Ndr2. Mice retaining one single wild-type Ndr allele were viable and fertile. Ndr1/2-double null embryos displayed multiple phenotypes causing a developmental delay from embryonic day E8.5 onwards. While NDR kinases are not required for notochord formation, the somites of Ndr1/2-double null embryos were smaller, irregularly shaped and unevenly spaced along the anterior-posterior axis. Genes implicated in somitogenesis were down-regulated and the normally symmetric expression of Lunatic fringe, a component of the Notch pathway, showed a left-right bias in the last forming somite in 50% of all Ndr1/2-double null embryos. In addition, Ndr1/2-double null embryos developed a heart defect that manifests itself as pericardial edemas, obstructed heart tubes and arrest of cardiac looping. The resulting cardiac insufficiency is the likely cause of the lethality of Ndr1/2-double null embryos around E10. Taken together, we show that NDR kinases compensate for each other in vivo in mouse embryos, explaining why mice deficient for either Ndr1 or Ndr2 are viable. Ndr1/2-double null embryos show defects in somitogenesis and cardiac looping, which reveals their essential functions and shows that the NDR kinases are critically required during the early phase of organogenesis.

Generation of stomach tissue from mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Noguchi, Taka-aki K; Ninomiya, Naoto; Sekine, Mari; Komazaki, Shinji; Wang, Pi-Chao; Asashima, Makoto; Kurisaki, Akira

2015-08-01

Successful pluripotent stem cell differentiation methods have been developed for several endoderm-derived cells, including hepatocytes, β-cells and intestinal cells. However, stomach lineage commitment from pluripotent stem cells has remained a challenge, and only antrum specification has been demonstrated. We established a method for stomach differentiation from embryonic stem cells by inducing mesenchymal Barx1, an essential gene for in vivo stomach specification from gut endoderm. Barx1-inducing culture conditions generated stomach primordium-like spheroids, which differentiated into mature stomach tissue cells in both the corpus and antrum by three-dimensional culture. This embryonic stem cell-derived stomach tissue (e-ST) shared a similar gene expression profile with adult stomach, and secreted pepsinogen as well as gastric acid. Furthermore, TGFA overexpression in e-ST caused hypertrophic mucus and gastric anacidity, which mimicked Ménétrier disease in vitro. Thus, in vitro stomach tissue derived from pluripotent stem cells mimics in vivo development and can be used for stomach disease models.

Single cell analysis facilitates staging of Blimp1-dependent primordial germ cells derived from mouse embryonic stem cells.

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John J Vincent

Full Text Available The cell intrinsic programming that regulates mammalian primordial germ cell (PGC development in the pre-gonadal stage is challenging to investigate. To overcome this we created a transgene-free method for generating PGCs in vitro (iPGCs from mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs. Using labeling for SSEA1 and cKit, two cell surface molecules used previously to isolate presumptive iPGCs, we show that not all SSEA1+/cKit+ double positive cells exhibit a PGC identity. Instead, we determined that selecting for cKit(bright cells within the SSEA1+ fraction significantly enriches for the putative iPGC population. Single cell analysis comparing SSEA1+/cKit(bright iPGCs to ESCs and embryonic PGCs demonstrates that 97% of single iPGCs co-express PGC signature genes Blimp1, Stella, Dnd1, Prdm14 and Dazl at similar levels to e9.5-10.5 PGCs, whereas 90% of single mouse ESC do not co-express PGC signature genes. For the 10% of ESCs that co-express PGC signature genes, the levels are significantly lower than iPGCs. Microarray analysis shows that iPGCs are transcriptionally distinct from ESCs and repress gene ontology groups associated with mesoderm and heart development. At the level of chromatin, iPGCs contain 5-methyl cytosine bases in their DNA at imprinted and non-imprinted loci, and are enriched in histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation, yet do not have detectable levels of Mvh protein, consistent with a Blimp1-positive pre-gonadal PGC identity. In order to determine whether iPGC formation is dependent upon Blimp1, we generated Blimp1 null ESCs and found that loss of Blimp1 significantly depletes SSEA1/cKit(bright iPGCs. Taken together, the generation of Blimp1-positive iPGCs from ESCs constitutes a robust model for examining cell-intrinsic regulation of PGCs during the Blimp1-positive stage of development.

p75 neurotrophin receptor is involved in proliferation of undifferentiated mouse embryonic stem cells

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Moscatelli, Ilana; Pierantozzi, Enrico; Camaioni, Antonella; Siracusa, Gregorio [Department of Public Health and Cell Biology, Section of Histology and Embryology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133 Rome (Italy); Campagnolo, Luisa, E-mail: campagno@med.uniroma2.it [Department of Public Health and Cell Biology, Section of Histology and Embryology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133 Rome (Italy)

2009-11-01

Neurotrophins and their receptors are known to play a role in the proliferation and survival of many different cell types of neuronal and non-neuronal lineages. In addition, there is much evidence in the literature showing that the p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75{sup NTR}), alone or in association with members of the family of Trk receptors, is expressed in a wide variety of stem cells, although its role in such cells has not been completely elucidated. In the present work we have investigated the expression of p75{sup NTR} and Trks in totipotent and pluripotent cells, the mouse pre-implantation embryo and embryonic stem and germ cells (ES and EG cells). p75{sup NTR} and TrkA can be first detected in the blastocyst from which ES cell lines are derived. Mouse ES cells retain p75{sup NTR}/TrkA expression. Nerve growth factor is the only neurotrophin able to stimulate ES cell growth in culture, without affecting the expression of stem cell markers, alkaline phosphatase, Oct4 and Nanog. Such proliferation effect was blocked by antagonizing either p75{sup NTR} or TrkA. Interestingly, immunoreactivity to anti-p75{sup NTR} antibodies is lost upon ES cell differentiation. The expression pattern of neurotrophin receptors in murine ES cells differs from human ES cells, that only express TrkB and C, and do not respond to NGF. In this paper we also show that, while primordial germ cells (PGC) do not express p75{sup NTR}, when they are made to revert to an ES-like phenotype, becoming EG cells, expression of p75{sup NTR} is turned on.

p75 neurotrophin receptor is involved in proliferation of undifferentiated mouse embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moscatelli, Ilana; Pierantozzi, Enrico; Camaioni, Antonella; Siracusa, Gregorio; Campagnolo, Luisa

2009-01-01

Neurotrophins and their receptors are known to play a role in the proliferation and survival of many different cell types of neuronal and non-neuronal lineages. In addition, there is much evidence in the literature showing that the p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75 NTR ), alone or in association with members of the family of Trk receptors, is expressed in a wide variety of stem cells, although its role in such cells has not been completely elucidated. In the present work we have investigated the expression of p75 NTR and Trks in totipotent and pluripotent cells, the mouse pre-implantation embryo and embryonic stem and germ cells (ES and EG cells). p75 NTR and TrkA can be first detected in the blastocyst from which ES cell lines are derived. Mouse ES cells retain p75 NTR /TrkA expression. Nerve growth factor is the only neurotrophin able to stimulate ES cell growth in culture, without affecting the expression of stem cell markers, alkaline phosphatase, Oct4 and Nanog. Such proliferation effect was blocked by antagonizing either p75 NTR or TrkA. Interestingly, immunoreactivity to anti-p75 NTR antibodies is lost upon ES cell differentiation. The expression pattern of neurotrophin receptors in murine ES cells differs from human ES cells, that only express TrkB and C, and do not respond to NGF. In this paper we also show that, while primordial germ cells (PGC) do not express p75 NTR , when they are made to revert to an ES-like phenotype, becoming EG cells, expression of p75 NTR is turned on.

Selection-independent generation of gene knockout mouse embryonic stem cells using zinc-finger nucleases.

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Anna Osiak

Full Text Available Gene knockout in murine embryonic stem cells (ESCs has been an invaluable tool to study gene function in vitro or to generate animal models with altered phenotypes. Gene targeting using standard techniques, however, is rather inefficient and typically does not exceed frequencies of 10(-6. In consequence, the usage of complex positive/negative selection strategies to isolate targeted clones has been necessary. Here, we present a rapid single-step approach to generate a gene knockout in mouse ESCs using engineered zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs. Upon transient expression of ZFNs, the target gene is cleaved by the designer nucleases and then repaired by non-homologous end-joining, an error-prone DNA repair process that introduces insertions/deletions at the break site and therefore leads to functional null mutations. To explore and quantify the potential of ZFNs to generate a gene knockout in pluripotent stem cells, we generated a mouse ESC line containing an X-chromosomally integrated EGFP marker gene. Applying optimized conditions, the EGFP locus was disrupted in up to 8% of ESCs after transfection of the ZFN expression vectors, thus obviating the need of selection markers to identify targeted cells, which may impede or complicate downstream applications. Both activity and ZFN-associated cytotoxicity was dependent on vector dose and the architecture of the nuclease domain. Importantly, teratoma formation assays of selected ESC clones confirmed that ZFN-treated ESCs maintained pluripotency. In conclusion, the described ZFN-based approach represents a fast strategy for generating gene knockouts in ESCs in a selection-independent fashion that should be easily transferrable to other pluripotent stem cells.

Perfluorooctane sulfonate disturbs Nanog expression through miR-490-3p in mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Bo Xu

Full Text Available Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS poses potential risks to reproduction and development. Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs are ideal models for developmental toxicity testing of environmental contaminants in vitro. However, the mechanism by which PFOS affects early embryonic development is still unclear. In this study, mESCs were exposed to PFOS for 24 h, and then general cytotoxicity and pluripotency were evaluated. MTT assay showed that neither PFOS (0.2 µM, 2 µM, 20 µM, and 200 µM nor control medium (0.1% DMSO treatments affected cell viability. Furthermore, there were no significant differences in cell cycle and apoptosis between the PFOS treatment and control groups. However, we found that the mRNA and protein levels of pluripotency markers (Sox2, Nanog in mESCs were significantly decreased following exposure to PFOS for 24 h, while there were no significant changes in the mRNA and protein levels of Oct4. Accordingly, the expression levels of miR-145 and miR-490-3p, which can regulate Sox2 and Nanog expressions were significantly increased. Chrm2, the host gene of miR-490-3p, was positively associated with miR-490-3p expression after PFOS exposure. Dual luciferase reporter assay suggests that miR-490-3p directly targets Nanog. These results suggest that PFOS can disturb the expression of pluripotency factors in mESCs, while miR-145 and miR-490-3p play key roles in modulating this effect.

Endonucleases : new tools to edit the mouse genome

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Wijshake, Tobias; Baker, Darren J.; van de Sluis, Bart

2014-01-01

Mouse transgenesis has been instrumental in determining the function of genes in the pathophysiology of human diseases and modification of genes by homologous recombination in mouse embryonic stem cells remains a widely used technology. However, this approach harbors a number of disadvantages, as it

Odorant responsiveness of embryonic mouse olfactory sensory neurons expressing the odorant receptors S1 or MOR23.

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Lam, Rebecca S; Mombaerts, Peter

2013-07-01

The mammalian olfactory system has developed some functionality by the time of birth. There is behavioral and limited electrophysiological evidence for prenatal olfaction in various mammalian species. However, there have been no reports, in any mammalian species, of recordings from prenatal olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) that express a given odorant receptor (OR) gene. Here we have performed patch-clamp recordings from mouse OSNs that express the OR gene S1 or MOR23, using the odorous ligands 2-phenylethyl alcohol or lyral, respectively. We found that, out of a combined total of 20 OSNs from embryos of these two strains at embryonic day (E)16.5 or later, all responded to a cognate odorous ligand. By contrast, none of six OSNs responded to the ligand at E14.5 or E15.5. The kinetics of the odorant-evoked electrophysiological responses of prenatal OSNs are similar to those of postnatal OSNs. The S1 and MOR23 glomeruli in the olfactory bulb are formed postnatally, but the axon terminals of OSNs expressing these OR genes may be synaptically active in the olfactory bulb at embryonic stages. The upper limit of the acquisition of odorant responsiveness for S1 and MOR23 OSNs at E16.5 is consistent with the developmental expression patterns of components of the olfactory signaling pathway. © 2013 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Gene expression analysis of mouse embryonic stem cells following levitation in an ultrasound standing wave trap.

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Bazou, Despina; Kearney, Roisin; Mansergh, Fiona; Bourdon, Celine; Farrar, Jane; Wride, Michael

2011-02-01

In the present paper, gene expression analysis of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells levitated in a novel ultrasound standing wave trap (USWT) (Bazou et al. 2005a) at variable acoustic pressures (0.08-0.85 MPa) and times (5-60 min) was performed. Our results showed that levitation of ES cells at the highest employed acoustic pressure for 60 min does not modify gene expression and cells maintain their pluripotency. Embryoid bodies (EBs) also expressed the early and late neural differentiation markers, which were also unaffected by the acoustic field. Our results suggest that the ultrasound trap microenvironment is minimally invasive as the biologic consequences of ES cell replication and EB differentiation proceed without significantly affecting gene expression. The technique holds great promise in safe cell manipulation techniques for a variety of applications including tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Copyright © 2011 World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparing the mechanical influence of vinculin, focal adhesion kinase and p53 in mouse embryonic fibroblasts

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Klemm, Anna H.; Diez, Gerold; Alonso, Jose-Luis; Goldmann, Wolfgang H.

2009-01-01

Cytoskeletal reorganization is an ongoing process when cells adhere, move or invade extracellular substrates. The cellular force generation and transmission are determined by the intactness of the actomyosin-(focal adhesion complex)-integrin connection. We investigated the intracellular course of action in mouse embryonic fibroblasts deficient in the focal adhesion proteins vinculin and focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and the nuclear matrix protein p53 using magnetic tweezer and nanoparticle tracking techniques. Results show that the lack of these proteins decrease cellular stiffness and affect cell rheological behavior. The decrease in cellular binding strength was higher in FAK- to vinculin-deficient cells, whilst p53-deficient cells showed no effect compared to wildtype cells. The intracellular cytoskeletal activity was lowest in wildtype cells, but increased in the following order when cells lacked FAK+p53 > p53 > vinculin. In summary, cell mechanical processes are differently affected by the focal adhesion proteins vinculin and FAK than by the nuclear matrix protein, p53.

Striking a balance: regulation of transposable elements by Zfp281 and Mll2 in mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Dai, Qian; Shen, Yang; Wang, Yan; Wang, Xin; Francisco, Joel Celio; Luo, Zhuojuan; Lin, Chengqi

2017-12-01

Transposable elements (TEs) compose about 40% of the murine genome. Retrotransposition of active TEs such as LINE-1 (L1) tremendously impacts genetic diversification and genome stability. Therefore, transcription and transposition activities of retrotransposons are tightly controlled. Here, we show that the Krüppel-like zinc finger protein Zfp281 directly binds and suppresses a subset of retrotransposons, including the active young L1 repeat elements, in mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. In addition, we find that Zfp281-regulated L1s are highly enriched for 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) and H3K4me3. The COMPASS-like H3K4 methyltransferase Mll2 is the major H3K4me3 methylase at the Zfp281-regulated L1s and required for their proper expression. Our studies also reveal that Zfp281 functions partially through recruiting the L1 regulators DNA hydroxymethylase Tet1 and Sin3A, and restricting Mll2 at these active L1s, leading to their balanced expression. In summary, our data indicate an instrumental role of Zfp281 in suppressing the young active L1s in mouse ES cells. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Sp5 induces the expression of Nanog to maintain mouse embryonic stem cell self-renewal.

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Tang, Ling; Wang, Manman; Liu, Dahai; Gong, Mengting; Ying, Qi-Long; Ye, Shoudong

2017-01-01

Activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) by leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) maintains mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) self-renewal. Our previous study showed that trans-acting transcription factor 5 (Sp5), an LIF/STAT3 downstream target, supports mESC self-renewal. However, the mechanism by which Sp5 exerts these effects remains elusive. Here, we found that Nanog is a direct target of Sp5 and mediates the self-renewal-promoting effect of Sp5 in mESCs. Overexpression of Sp5 induced Nanog expression, while knockdown or knockout of Sp5 decreased the Nanog level. Moreover, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays showed that Sp5 directly bound to the Nanog promoter. Functional studies revealed that knockdown of Nanog eliminated the mESC self-renewal-promoting ability of Sp5. Finally, we demonstrated that the self-renewal-promoting function of Sp5 was largely dependent on its zinc finger domains. Taken together, our study provides unrecognized functions of Sp5 in mESCs and will expand our current understanding of the regulation of mESC pluripotency.

Stepwise development of hematopoietic stem cells from embryonic stem cells.

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Kenji Matsumoto

Full Text Available The cellular ontogeny of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs remains poorly understood because their isolation from and their identification in early developing small embryos are difficult. We attempted to dissect early developmental stages of HSCs using an in vitro mouse embryonic stem cell (ESC differentiation system combined with inducible HOXB4 expression. Here we report the identification of pre-HSCs and an embryonic type of HSCs (embryonic HSCs as intermediate cells between ESCs and HSCs. Both pre-HSCs and embryonic HSCs were isolated by their c-Kit(+CD41(+CD45(- phenotype. Pre-HSCs did not engraft in irradiated adult mice. After co-culture with OP9 stromal cells and conditional expression of HOXB4, pre-HSCs gave rise to embryonic HSCs capable of engraftment and long-term reconstitution in irradiated adult mice. Blast colony assays revealed that most hemangioblast activity was detected apart from the pre-HSC population, implying the early divergence of pre-HSCs from hemangioblasts. Gene expression profiling suggests that a particular set of transcripts closely associated with adult HSCs is involved in the transition of pre-HSC to embryonic HSCs. We propose an HSC developmental model in which pre-HSCs and embryonic HSCs sequentially give rise to adult types of HSCs in a stepwise manner.

Protein arginine methyltransferase 7-mediated microRNA-221 repression maintains Oct4, Nanog, and Sox2 levels in mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Chen, Tsai-Yu; Lee, Sung-Hun; Dhar, Shilpa S; Lee, Min Gyu

2018-03-16

The stemness maintenance of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) requires pluripotency transcription factors, including Oct4, Nanog, and Sox2. We have previously reported that protein arginine methyltransferase 7 (PRMT7), an epigenetic modifier, is an essential pluripotency factor that maintains the stemness of mouse ESCs, at least in part, by down-regulating the expression of the anti-stemness microRNA (miRNA) miR-24-2. To gain greater insight into the molecular basis underlying PRMT7-mediated maintenance of mouse ESC stemness, we searched for new PRMT7-down-regulated anti-stemness miRNAs. Here, we show that miR-221 gene-encoded miR-221-3p and miR-221-5p are anti-stemness miRNAs whose expression levels in mouse ESCs are directly repressed by PRMT7. Notably, both miR-221-3p and miR-221-5p targeted the 3' untranslated regions of mRNA transcripts of the major pluripotency factors Oct4, Nanog, and Sox2 to antagonize mouse ESC stemness. Moreover, miR-221-5p silenced also the expression of its own transcriptional repressor PRMT7. Transfection of miR-221-3p and miR-221-5p mimics induced spontaneous differentiation of mouse ESCs. CRISPR-mediated deletion of the miR-221 gene, as well as specific antisense inhibitors of miR-221-3p and miR-221-5p, inhibited the spontaneous differentiation of PRMT7-depleted mouse ESCs. Taken together, these findings reveal that the PRMT7-mediated repression of miR-221-3p and miR-221-5p expression plays a critical role in maintaining mouse ESC stemness. Our results also establish miR-221-3p and miR-221-5p as anti-stemness miRNAs that target Oct4 , Nanog , and Sox2 mRNAs in mouse ESCs. © 2018 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Comparison of toxicity of smoke from traditional and harm-reduction cigarettes using mouse embryonic stem cells as a novel model for preimplantation development.

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Lin, S; Tran, V; Talbot, P

2009-02-01

Embryonic stem cells (ESC), which originate from the inner cell mass of blastocysts, are valuable models for testing the effects of toxicants on preimplantation development. In this study, mouse ESC (mESC) were used to compare the toxicity of mainstream (MS) and sidestream (SS) cigarette smoke on cell attachment, survival and proliferation. In addition, smoke from a traditional commercial cigarette was compared with smoke from three harm-reduction brands. MS and SS smoke solutions were made using an analytical smoking machine and tested at three doses using D3 mESC plated on 0.2% gelatin. At 6 and 24 h, images were taken and the number of attached cells was evaluated. Both MS and SS smoke from traditional and harm-reduction cigarettes inhibited cell attachment, survival and proliferation dose dependently. For all brands, SS smoke was more potent than MS smoke. However, removal of the cigarette filter increased the toxicity of MS smoke to that of SS smoke. Both MS and SS smoke from harm-reduction cigarettes were as inhibitory, or more inhibitory, than their counterparts from the traditional brand. When preimplantation mouse embryos were cultured for 1 h in MS or SS smoke solutions from a harm-reduction brand, blastomeres became apoptotic, in agreement with the data obtained using mESC. mESC provide a valuable model for toxicological studies on the preimplantation stage of development and were used to show that MS and SS smoke from traditional and harm-reduction cigarettes are detrimental to embryonic cells prior to implantation.

Layer- and column-specific knockout of NMDA receptors in pyramidal neurons of the mouse barrel cortex.

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Rachel Aronoff

2007-11-01

Full Text Available Viral vectors injected into the mouse brain offer the possibility for localized genetic modifications in a highly controlled manner. Lentivector injection into mouse neocortex transduces cells within a diameter of approximately 200µm, which closely matches the lateral scale of a column in barrel cortex. The depth and volume of the injection determines which cortical layer is transduced. Furthermore, transduced gene expression from the lentivector can be limited to predominantly pyramidal neurons by using a 1.3kb fragment of the αCaMKII promoter. This technique therefore allows genetic manipulation of a specific cell type in defined columns and layers of the neocortex. By expressing Cre recombinase from such a lentivector in gene-targeted mice carrying a floxed gene, highly specific genetic lesions can be induced. Here, we demonstrate the utility of this approach by specifically knocking out NMDA receptors (NMDARs in pyramidal neurons in the somatosensory barrel cortex of gene-targeted mice carrying floxed NMDAR 1 genes. Neurons transduced with lentivector encoding GFP and Cre recombinase exhibit not only reductions in NMDAR 1 mRNA levels, but reduced NMDAR-dependent currents and pairing-induced synaptic potentiation. This technique for knockout of NMDARs in a cell type, column- and layer-specific manner in the mouse somatosensory cortex may help further our understanding of the functional roles of NMDARs in vivo during sensory perception and learning.

Vitamin K2 biosynthetic enzyme, UBIAD1 is essential for embryonic development of mice.

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Nakagawa, Kimie; Sawada, Natsumi; Hirota, Yoshihisa; Uchino, Yuri; Suhara, Yoshitomo; Hasegawa, Tomoka; Amizuka, Norio; Okamoto, Tadashi; Tsugawa, Naoko; Kamao, Maya; Funahashi, Nobuaki; Okano, Toshio

2014-01-01

UbiA prenyltransferase domain containing 1 (UBIAD1) is a novel vitamin K2 biosynthetic enzyme screened and identified from the human genome database. UBIAD1 has recently been shown to catalyse the biosynthesis of Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) in zebrafish and human cells. To investigate the function of UBIAD1 in vivo, we attempted to generate mice lacking Ubiad1, a homolog of human UBIAD1, by gene targeting. Ubiad1-deficient (Ubiad1(-/-)) mouse embryos failed to survive beyond embryonic day 7.5, exhibiting small-sized body and gastrulation arrest. Ubiad1(-/-) embryonic stem (ES) cells failed to synthesize vitamin K2 but were able to synthesize CoQ9, similar to wild-type ES cells. Ubiad1(+/-) mice developed normally, exhibiting normal growth and fertility. Vitamin K2 tissue levels and synthesis activity were approximately half of those in the wild-type, whereas CoQ9 tissue levels and synthesis activity were similar to those in the wild-type. Similarly, UBIAD1 expression and vitamin K2 synthesis activity of mouse embryonic fibroblasts prepared from Ubiad1(+/-) E15.5 embryos were approximately half of those in the wild-type, whereas CoQ9 levels and synthesis activity were similar to those in the wild-type. Ubiad1(-/-) mouse embryos failed to be rescued, but their embryonic lifespans were extended to term by oral administration of MK-4 or CoQ10 to pregnant Ubiad1(+/-) mice. These results suggest that UBIAD1 is responsible for vitamin K2 synthesis but may not be responsible for CoQ9 synthesis in mice. We propose that UBIAD1 plays a pivotal role in embryonic development by synthesizing vitamin K2, but may have additional functions beyond the biosynthesis of vitamin K2.

Bio-engineering inslulin-secreting cells from embryonic stem cells: a review of progress.

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Roche, E; Sepulcre, M P; Enseñat-Waser, R; Maestre, I; Reig, J A; Soria, B

2003-07-01

According to the Edmonton protocol, human islet transplantation can result in insulin independency for periods longer than 3 years. However, this therapy for type 1 diabetes is limited by the scarcity of cadaveric donors. Owing to the ability of embryonic stem cells to expand in vitro and differentiate into a variety of cell types, research has focused on ways to manipulate these cells to overcome this problem. It has been demonstrated that mouse embryonic stem cells can differentiate into insulin-containing cells, restoring normoglycaemia in diabetic mice. To this end, mouse embryonic stem cells were transfected with a DNA construct that provides resistance to neomycin under the control of the regulatory regions of the human insulin gene. However, this protocol has a very low efficiency, needing improvements for this technology to be transferred to human stem cells. Optimum protocols will be instrumental in the production of an unlimited source of cells that synthesise, store and release insulin in a physiological manner. The review focuses on the alternative source of tissue offered by embryonic stem cells for regenerative medicine in diabetes and some key points that should be considered in order for a definitive protocol for in vitro differentiation to be established.

Defining the molecular pathologies in cloaca malformation: similarities between mouse and human

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Laura A. Runck

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Anorectal malformations are congenital anomalies that form a spectrum of disorders, from the most benign type with excellent functional prognosis, to very complex, such as cloaca malformation in females in which the rectum, vagina and urethra fail to develop separately and instead drain via a single common channel into the perineum. The severity of this phenotype suggests that the defect occurs in the early stages of embryonic development of the organs derived from the cloaca. Owing to the inability to directly investigate human embryonic cloaca development, current research has relied on the use of mouse models of anorectal malformations. However, even studies of mouse embryos lack analysis of the earliest stages of cloaca patterning and morphogenesis. Here we compared human and mouse cloaca development and retrospectively identified that early mis-patterning of the embryonic cloaca might underlie the most severe forms of anorectal malformation in humans. In mouse, we identified that defective sonic hedgehog (Shh signaling results in early dorsal-ventral epithelial abnormalities prior to the reported defects in septation. This is manifested by the absence of Sox2 and aberrant expression of keratins in the embryonic cloaca of Shh knockout mice. Shh knockout embryos additionally develop a hypervascular stroma, which is defective in BMP signaling. These epithelial and stromal defects persist later, creating an indeterminate epithelium with molecular alterations in the common channel. We then used these animals to perform a broad comparison with patients with mild-to-severe forms of anorectal malformations including cloaca malformation. We found striking parallels with the Shh mouse model, including nearly identical defective molecular identity of the epithelium and surrounding stroma. Our work strongly suggests that early embryonic cloacal epithelial differentiation defects might be the underlying cause of severe forms of anorectal malformations

Defined culture medium for stem cell differentiation: applicability of serum-free conditions in the mouse embryonic stem cell test.

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Riebeling, Christian; Schlechter, Katharina; Buesen, Roland; Spielmann, Horst; Luch, Andreas; Seiler, Andrea

2011-06-01

The embryonic stem cell test (EST) is a validated method to assess the developmental toxicity potency of chemicals. It was developed to reduce animal use and allow faster testing for hazard assessment. The cells used in this method are maintained and differentiated in media containing foetal calf serum. This animal product is of considerable variation in quality, and individual batches require extensive testing for their applicability in the EST. Moreover, its production involves a large number of foetuses and possible animal suffering. We demonstrate the serum-free medium and feeder cell-free maintenance of the mouse embryonic stem cell line D3 and investigate the use of specific growth factors for induction of cardiac differentiation. Using a combination of bone morphogenetic protein-2, bone morphogenetic protein-4, activin A and ascorbic acid, embryoid bodies efficiently differentiated into contracting myocardium. Additionally, examining levels of intracellular marker proteins by flow cytometry not only confirmed differentiation into cardiomyocytes, but demonstrated significant differentiation into neuronal cells in the same time frame. Thus, this approach might allow for simultaneous detection of developmental effects on both early mesodermal and neuroectodermal differentiation. The serum-free conditions for maintenance and differentiation of D3 cells described here enhance the transferability and standardisation and hence the performance of the EST. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamic 3D culture promotes spontaneous embryonic stem cell differentiation in vitro.

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Gerlach, Jörg C; Hout, Mariah; Edsbagge, Josefina; Björquist, Petter; Lübberstedt, Marc; Miki, Toshio; Stachelscheid, Harald; Schmelzer, Eva; Schatten, Gerald; Zeilinger, Katrin

2010-02-01

Spontaneous in vitro differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESC) is promoted by a dynamic, three-dimensional (3D), tissue-density perfusion technique with continuous medium perfusion and exchange in a novel four-compartment, interwoven capillary bioreactor. We compared ectodermal, endodermal, and mesodermal immunoreactive tissue structures formed by mESC at culture day 10 with mouse fetal tissue development at gestational day E9.5. The results show that the bioreactor cultures more closely resemble mouse fetal tissue development at gestational day E9.5 than control mESC cultured in Petri dishes.

An efficient method for generation of bi-allelic null mutant mouse embryonic stem cells and its application for investigating epigenetic modifiers.

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Fisher, Cynthia L; Marks, Hendrik; Cho, Lily Ting-Yin; Andrews, Robert; Wormald, Sam; Carroll, Thomas; Iyer, Vivek; Tate, Peri; Rosen, Barry; Stunnenberg, Hendrik G; Fisher, Amanda G; Skarnes, William C

2017-12-01

Mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells are a popular model system to study biological processes, though uncovering recessive phenotypes requires inactivating both alleles. Building upon resources from the International Knockout Mouse Consortium (IKMC), we developed a targeting vector for second allele inactivation in conditional-ready IKMC 'knockout-first' ES cell lines. We applied our technology to several epigenetic regulators, recovering bi-allelic targeted clones with a high efficiency of 60% and used Flp recombinase to restore expression in two null cell lines to demonstrate how our system confirms causality through mutant phenotype reversion. We designed our strategy to select against re-targeting the 'knockout-first' allele and identify essential genes in ES cells, including the histone methyltransferase Setdb1. For confirmation, we exploited the flexibility of our system, enabling tamoxifen inducible conditional gene ablation while controlling for genetic background and tamoxifen effects. Setdb1 ablated ES cells exhibit severe growth inhibition, which is not rescued by exogenous Nanog expression or culturing in naive pluripotency '2i' media, suggesting that the self-renewal defect is mediated through pluripotency network independent pathways. Our strategy to generate null mutant mouse ES cells is applicable to thousands of genes and repurposes existing IKMC Intermediate Vectors. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Pleiotropy of Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3 Inhibition by CHIR99021 Promotes Self-Renewal of Embryonic Stem Cells from Refractory Mouse Strains

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Ye, Shoudong; Tan, Li; Yang, Rongqing; Fang, Bo; Qu, Su; Schulze, Eric N.; Song, Houyan; Ying, Qilong; Li, Ping

2012-01-01

Background Inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) improves the efficiency of embryonic stem (ES) cell derivation from various strains of mice and rats, as well as dramatically promotes ES cell self-renewal potential. β-catenin has been reported to be involved in the maintenance of self-renewal of ES cells through TCF dependent and independent pathway. But the intrinsic difference between ES cell lines from different species and strains has not been characterized. Here, we dissect the mechanism of GSK-3 inhibition by CHIR99021 in mouse ES cells from refractory mouse strains. Methodology/Principal Findings We found that CHIR99021, a GSK-3 specific inhibitor, promotes self-renewal of ES cells from recalcitrant C57BL/6 (B6) and BALB/c mouse strains through stabilization of β-catenin and c-Myc protein levels. Stabilized β-catenin promoted ES self-renewal through two mechanisms. First, β-catenin translocated into the nucleus to maintain stem cell pluripotency in a lymphoid-enhancing factor/T-cell factor–independent manner. Second, β-catenin binds plasma membrane-localized E-cadherin, which ensures a compact, spherical morphology, a hallmark of ES cells. Further, elevated c-Myc protein levels did not contribute significantly to CH-mediated ES cell self-renewal. Instead, the role of c-Myc is dependent on its transformation activity and can be replaced by N-Myc but not L-Myc. β-catenin and c-Myc have similar effects on ES cells derived from both B6 and BALB/c mice. Conclusions/Significance Our data demonstrated that GSK-3 inhibition by CH promotes self-renewal of mouse ES cells with non-permissive genetic backgrounds by regulation of multiple signaling pathways. These findings would be useful to improve the availability of normally non-permissive mouse strains as research tools. PMID:22540008

ZFP57 maintains the parent-of-origin-specific expression of the imprinted genes and differentially affects non-imprinted targets in mouse embryonic stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Riso, Vincenzo; Cammisa, Marco; Kukreja, Harpreet

2016-01-01

ZFP57 is necessary for maintaining repressive epigenetic modifications at Imprinting control regions (ICRs). In mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs), ZFP57 binds ICRs (ICRBS) and many other loci (non-ICRBS). To address the role of ZFP57 on all its target sites, we performed high-throughput and multi......-locus analyses of inbred and hybrid mouse ESC lines carrying different gene knockouts. By using an allele-specific RNA-seq approach, we demonstrate that ZFP57 loss results in derepression of the imprinted allele of multiple genes in the imprinted clusters. We also find marked epigenetic differences between ICRBS...... the imprinted expression over long distances. At non-ICRBS, ZFP57 inactivation results in acquisition of epigenetic features that are characteristic of poised enhancers, suggesting that another function of ZFP57 in early embryogenesis is to repress cis-acting regulatory elements whose activity is not yet...

Femtosecond laser assisted photo-transfection and differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells

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Thobakgale, Lebogang; Manoto, Sello; Ombinda Lemboumba, Satuurnin; Maaza, Malik; Mthunzi-Kufa, Patience

2018-02-01

In tissue engineering research, stem cells have been used as starting material in the synthesis of mammalian cells for the treatment of various cell based diseases. This is done by manipulating the DNA content of the cells to induce a specific effect such as increased proliferation or developing a new cell type through the process of differentiation. Such controlled gene expression of stem cells is achieved by the method of transfection, where exogenous plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid (pDNA) is inserted into a stem cell using chemical, viral or physical methods. In this research, we used femtosecond (fs) laser pulses from a home-build microscope system to perforate the cellular membrane and allow entry of selected pDNA to alter the behaviour of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). In one set of experiments, we induce fluorescence on mESCs using green fluorescence protein plasmid (pGFP) while in other tests; differentiation of mESCs into endoderm cells is performed using Sox-17 plasmid DNA (pSox-17). Primitive endoderm formation was thereafter confirmed using polymerase chain reactions (PCR) and the Sox-17 primer. Cell viability studies using adenosine triphosphate were also conducted. From the data, it was concluded that the photo-transfection method is biocompatible since it was able to induce fluorescence in mESCs. Secondly, it was confirmed that Sox-17 was photo-transfected successfully using 6 μW laser power, 128 fs pulses and 1kHz pulse repetition rate.

Biocompatibility effects of biologically synthesized graphene in primary mouse embryonic fibroblast cells

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Gurunathan, Sangiliyandi; Han, Jae Woong; Eppakayala, Vasuki; Dayem, Ahmed Abdal; Kwon, Deug-Nam; Kim, Jin-Hoi

2013-09-01

Due to unique properties and unlimited possible applications, graphene has attracted abundant interest in the areas of nanobiotechnology. Recently, much work has focused on the synthesis and properties of graphene. Here we show that a successful reduction of graphene oxide (GO) using spinach leaf extract (SLE) as a simultaneous reducing and stabilizing agent. The as-prepared SLE-reduced graphene oxide (S-rGO) was characterized by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Dynamic light scattering technique was used to determine the average size of GO and S-rGO. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy images provide clear surface morphological evidence for the formation of graphene. The resulting S-rGO has a mostly single-layer structure, is stable, and has significant water solubility. In addition, the biocompatibility of graphene was investigated using cell viability, leakage of lactate dehydrogenase and alkaline phosphatase activity in primary mouse embryonic fibroblast (PMEFs) cells. The results suggest that the biologically synthesized graphene has significant biocompatibility with PMEF cells, even at a higher concentration of 100 μg/mL. This method uses a `green', natural reductant and is free of additional stabilizing reagents; therefore, it is an environmentally friendly, simple, and cost-effective method for the fabrication of soluble graphene. This study could open up a promising view for substitution of hydrazine by a safe, biocompatible, and powerful reduction for the efficient deoxygenation of GO, especially in large-scale production and potential biomedical applications.

A Nestin-cre transgenic mouse is insufficient for recombination in early embryonic neural progenitors

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Huixuan Liang

2012-09-01

Nestin-cre transgenic mice have been widely used to direct recombination to neural stem cells (NSCs and intermediate neural progenitor cells (NPCs. Here we report that a readily utilized, and the only commercially available, Nestin-cre line is insufficient for directing recombination in early embryonic NSCs and NPCs. Analysis of recombination efficiency in multiple cre-dependent reporters and a genetic mosaic line revealed consistent temporal and spatial patterns of recombination in NSCs and NPCs. For comparison we utilized a knock-in Emx1cre line and found robust recombination in NSCs and NPCs in ventricular and subventricular zones of the cerebral cortices as early as embryonic day 12.5. In addition we found that the rate of Nestin-cre driven recombination only reaches sufficiently high levels in NSCs and NPCs during late embryonic and early postnatal periods. These findings are important when commercially available cre lines are considered for directing recombination to embryonic NSCs and NPCs.

Cytokine signalling in embryonic stem cells

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Kristensen, David Møbjerg; Kalisz, Mark; Nielsen, Jens Høiriis

2006-01-01

Cytokines play a central role in maintaining self-renewal in mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells through a member of the interleukin-6 type cytokine family termed leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF). LIF activates the JAK-STAT3 pathway through the class I cytokine receptor gp130, which forms a trimeric...... pathways seem to converge on c-myc as a common target to promote self-renewal. Whereas LIF does not seem to stimulate self-renewal in human embryonic stem cells it cannot be excluded that other cytokines are involved. The pleiotropic actions of the increasing number of cytokines and receptors signalling...... via JAKs, STATs and SOCS exhibit considerable redundancy, compensation and plasticity in stem cells in accordance with the view that stem cells are governed by quantitative variations in strength and duration of signalling events known from other cell types rather than qualitatively different stem...

4D atlas of the mouse embryo for precise morphological staging.

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Wong, Michael D; van Eede, Matthijs C; Spring, Shoshana; Jevtic, Stefan; Boughner, Julia C; Lerch, Jason P; Henkelman, R Mark

2015-10-15

After more than a century of research, the mouse remains the gold-standard model system, for it recapitulates human development and disease and is quickly and highly tractable to genetic manipulations. Fundamental to the power and success of using a mouse model is the ability to stage embryonic mouse development accurately. Past staging systems were limited by the technologies of the day, such that only surface features, visible with a light microscope, could be recognized and used to define stages. With the advent of high-throughput 3D imaging tools that capture embryo morphology in microscopic detail, we now present the first 4D atlas staging system for mouse embryonic development using optical projection tomography and image registration methods. By tracking 3D trajectories of every anatomical point in the mouse embryo from E11.5 to E14.0, we established the first 4D atlas compiled from ex vivo 3D mouse embryo reference images. The resulting 4D atlas comprises 51 interpolated 3D images in this gestational range, resulting in a temporal resolution of 72 min. From this 4D atlas, any mouse embryo image can be subsequently compared and staged at the global, voxel and/or structural level. Assigning an embryonic stage to each point in anatomy allows for unprecedented quantitative analysis of developmental asynchrony among different anatomical structures in the same mouse embryo. This comprehensive developmental data set offers developmental biologists a new, powerful staging system that can identify and compare differences in developmental timing in wild-type embryos and shows promise for localizing deviations in mutant development. © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Expression and loss of alleles in cultured mouse embryonic fibroblasts and stem cells carrying allelic fluorescent protein genes

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Stringer Saundra L

2006-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Loss of heterozygosity (LOH contributes to many cancers, but the rate at which these events occur in normal cells of the body is not clear. LOH would be detectable in diverse cell types in the body if this event were to confer an obvious cellular phenotype. Mice that carry two different fluorescent protein genes as alleles of a locus would seem to be a useful tool for addressing this issue because LOH would change a cell's phenotype from dichromatic to monochromatic. In addition, LOH caused by mitotic crossing over might be discernable in tissues because this event produces a pair of neighboring monochromatic cells that are different colors. Results As a step in assessing the utility of this approach, we derived primary embryonic fibroblast populations and embryonic stem cell lines from mice that carried two different fluorescent protein genes as alleles at the chromosome 6 locus, ROSA26. Fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS showed that the vast majority of cells in each line expressed the two marker proteins at similar levels, and that populations exhibited expression noise similar to that seen in bacteria and yeast. Cells with a monochromatic phenotype were present at frequencies on the order of 10-4 and appeared to be produced at a rate of approximately 10-5 variant cells per mitosis. 45 of 45 stably monochromatic ES cell clones exhibited loss of the expected allele at the ROSA26 locus. More than half of these clones retained heterozygosity at a locus between ROSA26 and the centromere. Other clones exhibited LOH near the centromere, but were disomic for chromosome 6. Conclusion Allelic fluorescent markers allowed LOH at the ROSA26 locus to be detected by FACS. LOH at this locus was usually not accompanied by LOH near the centromere, suggesting that mitotic recombination was the major cause of ROSA26 LOH. Dichromatic mouse embryonic cells provide a novel system for studying genetic/karyotypic stability and factors

Sodium fluoride induces apoptosis in mouse embryonic stem cells through ROS-dependent and caspase- and JNK-mediated pathways

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nguyen Ngoc, Tam Dan; Son, Young-Ok; Lim, Shin-Saeng; Shi, Xianglin; Kim, Jong-Ghee; Heo, Jung Sun; Choe, Youngji; Jeon, Young-Mi; Lee, Jeong-Chae

2012-01-01

Sodium fluoride (NaF) is used as a source of fluoride ions in diverse applications. Fluoride salt is an effective prophylactic for dental caries and is an essential element required for bone health. However, fluoride is known to cause cytotoxicity in a concentration-dependent manner. Further, no information is available on the effects of NaF on mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). We investigated the mode of cell death induced by NaF and the mechanisms involved. NaF treatment greater than 1 mM reduced viability and DNA synthesis in mESCs and induced cell cycle arrest in the G 2 /M phase. The addition of NaF induced cell death mainly by apoptosis rather than necrosis. Catalase (CAT) treatment significantly inhibited the NaF-mediated cell death and also suppressed the NaF-mediated increase in phospho-c-Jun N-terminal kinase (p-JNK) levels. Pre-treatment with SP600125 or z-VAD-fmk significantly attenuated the NaF-mediated reduction in cell viability. In contrast, intracellular free calcium chelator, but not of sodium or calcium ion channel blockers, facilitated NaF-induced toxicity in the cells. A JNK specific inhibitor (SP600125) prevented the NaF-induced increase in growth arrest and the DNA damage-inducible protein 45α. Further, NaF-mediated loss of mitochondrial membrane potential was apparently inhibited by pifithrin-α or CAT inhibitor. These findings suggest that NaF affects viability of mESCs in a concentration-dependent manner, where more than 1 mM NaF causes apoptosis through hydroxyl radical-dependent and caspase- and JNK-mediated pathways. -- Highlights: ► The mode of NaF-induced cell death and the mechanisms involved were examined. ► NaF induced mainly apoptotic death of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). ► NaF induced mitochondrial-mediated and caspase-dependent apoptosis. ► JNK- and p53-mediated pathways are involved in NaF-mediated apoptosis in the cells. ► ROS are the up-stream effector in NaF-mediated activation of JNK and p53 in mESCs.

Sodium fluoride induces apoptosis in mouse embryonic stem cells through ROS-dependent and caspase- and JNK-mediated pathways

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Nguyen Ngoc, Tam Dan [Institute of Oral Biosciences and School of Dentistry (BK21 Program), Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of); Son, Young-Ok [Graduate Center for Toxicology, School of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536-0305 (United States); Lim, Shin-Saeng [Institute of Oral Biosciences and School of Dentistry (BK21 Program), Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of); Department of Bioactive Material Sciences and Research Center of Bioactive Materials, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of); Shi, Xianglin [Graduate Center for Toxicology, School of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536-0305 (United States); Kim, Jong-Ghee [Institute of Oral Biosciences and School of Dentistry (BK21 Program), Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of); Heo, Jung Sun [Department of Maxillofacial Biomedical Engineering and Institute of Oral Biology, School of Dentistry, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 130-701 (Korea, Republic of); Choe, Youngji [Institute of Oral Biosciences and School of Dentistry (BK21 Program), Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of); Jeon, Young-Mi, E-mail: young@jbnu.ac.kr [Institute of Oral Biosciences and School of Dentistry (BK21 Program), Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Jeong-Chae, E-mail: leejc88@jbnu.ac.kr [Institute of Oral Biosciences and School of Dentistry (BK21 Program), Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of); Graduate Center for Toxicology, School of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536-0305 (United States); Department of Bioactive Material Sciences and Research Center of Bioactive Materials, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of)

2012-03-15

Sodium fluoride (NaF) is used as a source of fluoride ions in diverse applications. Fluoride salt is an effective prophylactic for dental caries and is an essential element required for bone health. However, fluoride is known to cause cytotoxicity in a concentration-dependent manner. Further, no information is available on the effects of NaF on mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). We investigated the mode of cell death induced by NaF and the mechanisms involved. NaF treatment greater than 1 mM reduced viability and DNA synthesis in mESCs and induced cell cycle arrest in the G{sub 2}/M phase. The addition of NaF induced cell death mainly by apoptosis rather than necrosis. Catalase (CAT) treatment significantly inhibited the NaF-mediated cell death and also suppressed the NaF-mediated increase in phospho-c-Jun N-terminal kinase (p-JNK) levels. Pre-treatment with SP600125 or z-VAD-fmk significantly attenuated the NaF-mediated reduction in cell viability. In contrast, intracellular free calcium chelator, but not of sodium or calcium ion channel blockers, facilitated NaF-induced toxicity in the cells. A JNK specific inhibitor (SP600125) prevented the NaF-induced increase in growth arrest and the DNA damage-inducible protein 45α. Further, NaF-mediated loss of mitochondrial membrane potential was apparently inhibited by pifithrin-α or CAT inhibitor. These findings suggest that NaF affects viability of mESCs in a concentration-dependent manner, where more than 1 mM NaF causes apoptosis through hydroxyl radical-dependent and caspase- and JNK-mediated pathways. -- Highlights: ► The mode of NaF-induced cell death and the mechanisms involved were examined. ► NaF induced mainly apoptotic death of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). ► NaF induced mitochondrial-mediated and caspase-dependent apoptosis. ► JNK- and p53-mediated pathways are involved in NaF-mediated apoptosis in the cells. ► ROS are the up-stream effector in NaF-mediated activation of JNK and p53 in mESCs.

Wnt inhibition promotes vascular specification of embryonic cardiac progenitors.

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Reichman, David E; Park, Laura; Man, Limor; Redmond, David; Chao, Kenny; Harvey, Richard P; Taketo, Makoto M; Rosenwaks, Zev; James, Daylon

2018-01-08

Several studies have demonstrated a multiphasic role for Wnt signaling during embryonic cardiogenesis and developed protocols that enrich for cardiac derivatives during in vitro differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). However, few studies have investigated the role of Wnt signaling in the specification of cardiac progenitor cells (CPCs) toward downstream fates. Using transgenic mice and hPSCs, we tracked endothelial cells (ECs) that originated from CPCs expressing NKX2.5. Analysis of EC-fated CPCs at discrete phenotypic milestones during hPSC differentiation identified reduced Wnt activity as a hallmark of EC specification, and the enforced activation or inhibition of Wnt reduced or increased, respectively, the degree of vascular commitment within the CPC population during both hPSC differentiation and mouse embryogenesis. Wnt5a, which has been shown to exert an inhibitory influence on Wnt signaling during cardiac development, was dynamically expressed during vascular commitment of hPSC-derived CPCs, and ectopic Wnt5a promoted vascular specification of hPSC-derived and mouse embryonic CPCs. © 2018. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

The Role of Controlled Surface Topography and Chemistry on Mouse Embryonic Stem Cell Attachment, Growth and Self-Renewal.

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Macgregor, Melanie; Williams, Rachel; Downes, Joni; Bachhuka, Akash; Vasilev, Krasimir

2017-09-14

The success of stem cell therapies relies heavily on our ability to control their fate in vitro during expansion to ensure an appropriate supply. The biophysical properties of the cell culture environment have been recognised as a potent stimuli influencing cellular behaviour. In this work we used advanced plasma-based techniques to generate model culture substrates with controlled nanotopographical features of 16 nm, 38 nm and 68 nm in magnitude, and three differently tailored surface chemical functionalities. The effect of these two surface properties on the adhesion, spreading, and self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) were assessed. The results demonstrated that physical and chemical cues influenced the behaviour of these stem cells in in vitro culture in different ways. The size of the nanotopographical features impacted on the cell adhesion, spreading and proliferation, while the chemistry influenced the cell self-renewal and differentiation.

RISC-mediated control of selected chromatin regulators stabilizes ground state pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Pandolfini, Luca; Luzi, Ettore; Bressan, Dario; Ucciferri, Nadia; Bertacchi, Michele; Brandi, Rossella; Rocchiccioli, Silvia; D'Onofrio, Mara; Cremisi, Federico

2016-05-06

Embryonic stem cells are intrinsically unstable and differentiate spontaneously if they are not shielded from external stimuli. Although the nature of such instability is still controversial, growing evidence suggests that protein translation control may play a crucial role. We performed an integrated analysis of RNA and proteins at the transition between naïve embryonic stem cells and cells primed to differentiate. During this transition, mRNAs coding for chromatin regulators are specifically released from translational inhibition mediated by RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC). This suggests that, prior to differentiation, the propensity of embryonic stem cells to change their epigenetic status is hampered by RNA interference. The expression of these chromatin regulators is reinstated following acute inactivation of RISC and it correlates with loss of stemness markers and activation of early cell differentiation markers in treated embryonic stem cells. We propose that RISC-mediated inhibition of specific sets of chromatin regulators is a primary mechanism for preserving embryonic stem cell pluripotency while inhibiting the onset of embryonic developmental programs.

Essential role of chromatin remodeling protein Bptf in early mouse embryos and embryonic stem cells.

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Joseph Landry

2008-10-01

Full Text Available We have characterized the biological functions of the chromatin remodeling protein Bptf (Bromodomain PHD-finger Transcription Factor, the largest subunit of NURF (Nucleosome Remodeling Factor in a mammal. Bptf mutants manifest growth defects at the post-implantation stage and are reabsorbed by E8.5. Histological analyses of lineage markers show that Bptf(-/- embryos implant but fail to establish a functional distal visceral endoderm. Microarray analysis at early stages of differentiation has identified Bptf-dependent gene targets including homeobox transcriptions factors and genes essential for the development of ectoderm, mesoderm, and both definitive and visceral endoderm. Differentiation of Bptf(-/- embryonic stem cell lines into embryoid bodies revealed its requirement for development of mesoderm, endoderm, and ectoderm tissue lineages, and uncovered many genes whose activation or repression are Bptf-dependent. We also provide functional and physical links between the Bptf-containing NURF complex and the Smad transcription factors. These results suggest that Bptf may co-regulate some gene targets of this pathway, which is essential for establishment of the visceral endoderm. We conclude that Bptf likely regulates genes and signaling pathways essential for the development of key tissues of the early mouse embryo.

Effects of Treatment with Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4 and Co-culture on Expression of Piwil2 Gene in Mouse Differentiated Embryonic Stem Cells

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Mehdi Forouzandeh-Moghadam

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Specific growth factors and feeder layers seem to have important roles in in vitroembryonic stem cells (ESCs differentiation. In this study,the effects of bone morphogenetic protein4 (BMP4 and mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs co-culture system on germ cell differentiationfrom mouse ESCs were studied.Materials and Methods: Cell suspension was prepared from one-day-old embryoid body (EBand cultured for four days in DMEM medium containing 20% fetal bovine serum (FBS in thefollowing groups: simple culture (SC, simple culture with BMP4 (SCB, co-culture (CO-C andco-culture with BMP4 (CO-CB. Expression of piwi-like homolog 2 (Piwil2, the germ cell-specificgene, was evaluated in the different study groups by using quantitative real time polymerase chainreaction (RT-PCR. Testis was used as a positive control.Results: The maximum and minimum Piwil2 expression was observed in SC and SCB groups,respectively. A significant difference was observed in Piwil2 expression between SCB and otherstudy groups (p<0.05.Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that neither the addition of BMP4 in culture mediumnor the use of MEFs as a feeder layer have a positive effect on late germ cell induction from mouseESCs.

Interactions between the otitis media gene, Fbxo11, and p53 in the mouse embryonic lung.

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Tateossian, Hilda; Morse, Susan; Simon, Michelle M; Dean, Charlotte H; Brown, Steve D M

2015-12-01

Otitis media with effusion (OME) is the most common cause of hearing loss in children, and tympanostomy (ear tube insertion) to alleviate the condition remains the commonest surgical intervention in children in the developed world. Chronic and recurrent forms of otitis media (OM) are known to have a very substantial genetic component; however, until recently, little was known of the underlying genes involved. The Jeff mouse mutant carries a mutation in the Fbxo11 gene, a member of the F-box family, and develops deafness due to a chronic proliferative OM. We previously reported that Fbxo11 is involved in the regulation of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) signalling by regulating the levels of phospho-Smad2 in the epithelial cells of palatal shelves, eyelids and airways of the lungs. It has been proposed that FBXO11 regulates the cell's response to TGF-β through the ubiquitination of CDT2. Additional substrates for FBXO11 have been identified, including p53. Here, we have studied both the genetic and biochemical interactions between FBXO11 and p53 in order to better understand the function of FBXO11 in epithelial development and its potential role in OM. In mice, we show that p53 (also known as Tp53) homozygous mutants and double heterozygous mutants (Jf/+ p53/+) exhibit similar epithelial developmental defects to Fbxo11 homozygotes. FBXO11 and p53 interact in the embryonic lung, and mutation in Fbxo11 prevents the interaction with p53. Both p53 and double mutants show raised levels of pSMAD2, recapitulating that seen in Fbxo11 homozygotes. Overall, our results support the conclusion that FBXO11 regulates the TGF-β pathway in the embryonic lung via cross-talk with p53. © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Mouse survival motor neuron alleles that mimic SMN2 splicing and are inducible rescue embryonic lethality early in development but not late.

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Suzan M Hammond

Full Text Available Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA is caused by low survival motor neuron (SMN levels and patients represent a clinical spectrum due primarily to varying copies of the survival motor neuron-2 (SMN2 gene. Patient and animals studies show that disease severity is abrogated as SMN levels increase. Since therapies currently being pursued target the induction of SMN, it will be important to understand the dosage, timing and cellular requirements of SMN for disease etiology and potential therapeutic intervention. This requires new mouse models that can induce SMN temporally and/or spatially. Here we describe the generation of two hypomorphic Smn alleles, Smn(C-T-Neo and Smn(2B-Neo. These alleles mimic SMN2 exon 7 splicing, titre Smn levels and are inducible. They were specifically designed so that up to three independent lines of mice could be generated, herein we describe two. In a homozygous state each allele results in embryonic lethality. Analysis of these mutants indicates that greater than 5% of Smn protein is required for normal development. The severe hypomorphic nature of these alleles is caused by inclusion of a loxP-flanked neomycin gene selection cassette in Smn intron 7, which can be removed with Cre recombinase. In vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrate these as inducible Smn alleles. When combined with an inducible Cre mouse, embryonic lethality caused by low Smn levels can be rescued early in gestation but not late. This provides direct genetic evidence that a therapeutic window for SMN inductive therapies may exist. Importantly, these lines fill a void for inducible Smn alleles. They also provide a base from which to generate a large repertoire of SMA models of varying disease severities when combined with other Smn alleles or SMN2-containing mice.

Lead induces similar gene expression changes in brains of gestationally exposed adult mice and in neurons differentiated from mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Francisco Javier Sánchez-Martín

Full Text Available Exposure to environmental toxicants during embryonic life causes changes in the expression of developmental genes that may last for a lifetime and adversely affect the exposed individual. Developmental exposure to lead (Pb, an ubiquitous environmental contaminant, causes deficits in cognitive functions and IQ, behavioral effects, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD. Long-term effects observed after early life exposure to Pb include reduction of gray matter, alteration of myelin structure, and increment of criminal behavior in adults. Despite growing research interest, the molecular mechanisms responsible for the effects of lead in the central nervous system are still largely unknown. To study the molecular changes due to Pb exposure during neurodevelopment, we exposed mice to Pb in utero and examined the expression of neural markers, neurotrophins, transcription factors and glutamate-related genes in hippocampus, cortex, and thalamus at postnatal day 60. We found that hippocampus was the area where gene expression changes due to Pb exposure were more pronounced. To recapitulate gestational Pb exposure in vitro, we differentiated mouse embryonic stem cells (ESC into neurons and treated ESC-derived neurons with Pb for the length of the differentiation process. These neurons expressed the characteristic neuronal markers Tubb3, Syp, Gap43, Hud, Ngn1, Vglut1 (a marker of glutamatergic neurons, and all the glutamate receptor subunits, but not the glial marker Gafp. Importantly, several of the changes observed in Pb-exposed mouse brains in vivo were also observed in Pb-treated ESC-derived neurons, including those affecting expression of Ngn1, Bdnf exon IV, Grin1, Grin2D, Grik5, Gria4, and Grm6. We conclude that our ESC-derived model of toxicant exposure during neural differentiation promises to be a useful model to analyze mechanisms of neurotoxicity induced by Pb and other environmental agents.

Comparison of frailty of primary neurons, embryonic, and aging mouse cortical layers.

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Fugistier, Patrick; Vallet, Philippe G; Leuba, Geneviève; Piotton, Françoise; Marin, Pascale; Bouras, Constantin; Savioz, Armand

2014-02-01

Superficial layers I to III of the human cerebral cortex are more vulnerable toward Aβ peptides than deep layers V to VI in aging. Three models of layers were used to investigate this pattern of frailty. First, primary neurons from E14 and E17 embryonic murine cortices, corresponding respectively to future deep and superficial layers, were treated either with Aβ(1-42), okadaic acid, or kainic acid. Second, whole E14 and E17 embryonic cortices, and third, in vitro separated deep and superficial layers of young and old C57BL/6J mice, were treated identically. We observed that E14 and E17 neurons in culture were prone to death after the Aβ and particularly the kainic acid treatment. This was also the case for the superficial layers of the aged cortex, but not for the embryonic, the young cortex, and the deep layers of the aged cortex. Thus, the aged superficial layers appeared to be preferentially vulnerable against Aβ and kainic acid. This pattern of vulnerability corresponds to enhanced accumulation of senile plaques in the superficial cortical layers with aging and Alzheimer's disease. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Mesenchymal and embryonic characteristics of stem cells obtained from mouse dental pulp.

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Guimarães, Elisalva Teixeira; Cruz, Gabriela Silva; de Jesus, Alan Araújo; Lacerda de Carvalho, Acácia Fernandes; Rogatto, Silvia Regina; Pereira, Lygia da Veiga; Ribeiro-dos-Santos, Ricardo; Soares, Milena Botelho Pereira

2011-11-01

Several studies have demonstrated that human dental pulp is a source of mesenchymal stem cells. To better understand the biological properties of these cells we isolated and characterized stem cells from the dental pulp of EGFP transgenic mice. The pulp tissue was gently separated from the roots of teeth extracted from C57BL/6 mice, and cultured under appropriate conditions. Flow cytometry, RT-PCR, light microscopy (staining for alkaline phosphatase) and immunofluorescence were used to investigate the expression of stem cell markers. The presence of chromosomal abnormalities was evaluated by G banding. The mouse dental pulp stem cells (mDPSC) were highly proliferative, plastic-adherent, and exhibited a polymorphic morphology predominantly with stellate or fusiform shapes. The presence of cell clusters was observed in cultures of mDPSC. Some cells were positive for alkaline phosphatase. The karyotype was normal until the 5th passage. The Pou5f1/Oct-4 and ZFP42/Rex-1, but not Nanog transcripts were detected in mDPSC. Flow cytometry and fluorescence analyses revealed the presence of a heterogeneous population positive for embryonic and mesenchymal cell markers. Adipogenic, chondrogenic and osteogenic differentiation was achieved after two weeks of cell culture under chemically defined in vitro conditions. In addition, some elongated cells spontaneously acquired a contraction capacity. Our results reinforce that the dental pulp is an important source of adult stem cells and encourage studies on therapeutic potential of mDPSC in experimental disease models. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impaired embryonic haematopoiesis yet normal arterial development in the absence of the Notch ligand Jagged1

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Robert-Moreno, Àlex; Robert-Moreno, Àlex; Guiu, Jordi

2008-01-01

Specific deletion of Notch1 and RBPjκ in the mouse results in abrogation of definitive haematopoiesis concomitant with the loss of arterial identity at embryonic stage. As prior arterial determination is likely to be required for the generation of embryonic haematopoiesis, it is difficult...... to establish the specific haematopoietic role of Notch in these mutants. By analysing different Notch-ligand-null embryos, we now show that Jagged1 is not required for the establishment of the arterial fate but it is required for the correct execution of the definitive haematopoietic programme, including...... activation of Notch1 is responsible for regulating GATA2 expression in the AGM, which in turn is essential for definitive haematopoiesis in the mouse....

Functional analysis of limb transcriptional enhancers in the mouse.

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Nolte, Mark J; Wang, Ying; Deng, Jian Min; Swinton, Paul G; Wei, Caimiao; Guindani, Michele; Schwartz, Robert J; Behringer, Richard R

2014-01-01

Transcriptional enhancers are genomic sequences bound by transcription factors that act together with basal transcriptional machinery to regulate gene transcription. Several high-throughput methods have generated large datasets of tissue-specific enhancer sequences with putative roles in developmental processes. However, few enhancers have been deleted from the genome to determine their roles in development. To understand the roles of two enhancers active in the mouse embryonic limb bud we deleted them from the genome. Although the genes regulated by these enhancers are unknown, they were selected because they were identified in a screen for putative limb bud-specific enhancers associated with p300, an acetyltransferase that participates in protein complexes that promote active transcription, and because the orthologous human enhancers (H1442 and H280) drive distinct lacZ expression patterns in limb buds of embryonic day (E) 11.5 transgenic mice. We show that the orthologous mouse sequences, M1442 and M280, regulate dynamic expression in the developing limb. Although significant transcriptional differences in enhancer-proximal genes in embryonic limb buds accompany the deletion of M1442 and M280 no gross limb malformations during embryonic development were observed, demonstrating that M1442 and M280 are not required for mouse limb development. However, M280 is required for the development and/or maintenance of body size; M280 mice are significantly smaller than controls. M280 also harbors an "ultraconserved" sequence that is identical between human, rat, and mouse. This is the first report of a phenotype resulting from the deletion of an ultraconserved element. These studies highlight the importance of determining enhancer regulatory function by experiments that manipulate them in situ and suggest that some of an enhancer's regulatory capacities may be developmentally tolerated rather than developmentally required. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Non-Serotonergic Neurotoxicity by MDMA (Ecstasy in Neurons Derived from Mouse P19 Embryonal Carcinoma Cells.

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Dina Popova

Full Text Available 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA; ecstasy is a commonly abused recreational drug that causes neurotoxic effects in both humans and animals. The mechanism behind MDMA-induced neurotoxicity is suggested to be species-dependent and needs to be further investigated on the cellular level. In this study, the effects of MDMA in neuronally differentiated P19 mouse embryonal carcinoma cells have been examined. MDMA produces a concentration-, time- and temperature-dependent toxicity in differentiated P19 neurons, as measured by intracellular MTT reduction and extracellular LDH activity assays. The P19-derived neurons express both the serotonin reuptake transporter (SERT, that is functionally active, and the serotonin metabolizing enzyme monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A. The involvement of these proteins in the MDMA-induced toxicity was investigated by a pharmacological approach. The MAO inhibitors clorgyline and deprenyl, and the SERT inhibitor fluoxetine, per se or in combination, were not able to mimic the toxic effects of MDMA in the P19-derived neurons or block the MDMA-induced cell toxicity. Oxidative stress has been implicated in MDMA-induced neurotoxicity, but pre-treatment with the antioxidants α-tocopherol or N-acetylcysteine did not reveal any protective effects in the P19 neurons. Involvement of mitochondria in the MDMA-induced cytotoxicity was also examined, but MDMA did not alter the mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm in the P19 neurons. We conclude that MDMA produce a concentration-, time- and temperature-dependent neurotoxicity and our results suggest that the mechanism behind MDMA-induced toxicity in mouse-derived neurons do not involve the serotonergic system, oxidative stress or mitochondrial dysfunction.

Non-Serotonergic Neurotoxicity by MDMA (Ecstasy) in Neurons Derived from Mouse P19 Embryonal Carcinoma Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Popova, Dina; Forsblad, Andréas; Hashemian, Sanaz; Jacobsson, Stig O P

2016-01-01

3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA; ecstasy) is a commonly abused recreational drug that causes neurotoxic effects in both humans and animals. The mechanism behind MDMA-induced neurotoxicity is suggested to be species-dependent and needs to be further investigated on the cellular level. In this study, the effects of MDMA in neuronally differentiated P19 mouse embryonal carcinoma cells have been examined. MDMA produces a concentration-, time- and temperature-dependent toxicity in differentiated P19 neurons, as measured by intracellular MTT reduction and extracellular LDH activity assays. The P19-derived neurons express both the serotonin reuptake transporter (SERT), that is functionally active, and the serotonin metabolizing enzyme monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A). The involvement of these proteins in the MDMA-induced toxicity was investigated by a pharmacological approach. The MAO inhibitors clorgyline and deprenyl, and the SERT inhibitor fluoxetine, per se or in combination, were not able to mimic the toxic effects of MDMA in the P19-derived neurons or block the MDMA-induced cell toxicity. Oxidative stress has been implicated in MDMA-induced neurotoxicity, but pre-treatment with the antioxidants α-tocopherol or N-acetylcysteine did not reveal any protective effects in the P19 neurons. Involvement of mitochondria in the MDMA-induced cytotoxicity was also examined, but MDMA did not alter the mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) in the P19 neurons. We conclude that MDMA produce a concentration-, time- and temperature-dependent neurotoxicity and our results suggest that the mechanism behind MDMA-induced toxicity in mouse-derived neurons do not involve the serotonergic system, oxidative stress or mitochondrial dysfunction.

Selective elimination of intracortically projecting neurons of the rat neocortex by prenatal x-irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jensen, K.F.

1981-01-01

The development of new racing methods has suggested that there are species differences in the extent of the contribution of the different layers of the neocortex to the callosal projection. The present investigation has utilized prenatal x-irradiation to selectively eliminate the late forming neurons of the supragranular layers of the rat neocortex. The reduction in the neuronal population of the supragranular layers closely parallels the reduction in the corpus callosum. These results indicate that the primary source of neurons of the callosal projection, are the late forming neurons of the supragranular layers. Thus, the current results suggest that low dose prenatal x-irradiation may be used to evaluate important developmental events in the formation of neocortical circuitry

Subtypes of GABAergic neurons project axons in the neocortex

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Shigeyoshi Higo

2009-11-01

Full Text Available γ-aminobutyric acid (GABAergic neurons in the neocortex have been regarded as interneurons and speculated to modulate the activity of neurons locally. Recently, however, several experiments revealed that neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS-positive GABAergic neurons project cortico-cortically with long axons. In this study, we illustrate Golgi-like images of the nNOS-positive GABAergic neurons using a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate diaphorase (NADPH-d reaction and follow the emanating axon branches in cat brain sections. These axon branches projected cortico-cortically with other non-labeled arcuate fibers, contra-laterally via the corpus callosum and anterior commissure. The labeled fibers were not limited to the neocortex but found also in the fimbria of the hippocampus. In order to have additional information on these GABAergic neuron projections, we investigated green fluorescent protein (GFP-labeled GABAergic neurons in GAD67-Cre knock-in / GFP Cre-reporter mice. GFP-labeled axons emanate densely, especially in the fimbria, a small number in the anterior commissure, and very sparsely in the corpus callosum. These two different approaches confirm that not only nNOS-positive GABAergic neurons but also other subtypes of GABAergic neurons project long axons in the cerebral cortex and are in a position to be involved in information processing.

In vivo sensitivity of the embryonic and adult neural stem cell compartments to low-dose radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barazzuol, Lara; Jeggo, Penny A.

2016-01-01

The embryonic brain is radiation-sensitive, with cognitive deficits being observed after exposure to low radiation doses. Exposure of neonates to radiation can cause intracranial carcinogenesis. To gain insight into the basis underlying these outcomes, we examined the response of the embryonic, neonatal and adult brain to low-dose radiation, focusing on the neural stem cell compartments. This review summarizes our recent findings. At E13.5–14.5 the embryonic neocortex encompasses rapidly proliferating stem and progenitor cells. Exploiting mice with a hypomorphic mutation in DNA ligase IV (Lig4 Y288C ), we found a high level of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) at E14.5, which we attribute to the rapid proliferation. We observed endogenous apoptosis in Lig4 Y288C embryos and in WT embryos following exposure to low radiation doses. An examination of DSB levels and apoptosis in adult neural stem cell compartments, the subventricular zone (SVZ) and the subgranular zone (SGZ) revealed low DSB levels in Lig4 Y288C mice, comparable with the levels in differentiated neuronal tissues. We conclude that the adult SVZ does not incur high levels of DNA breakage, but sensitively activates apoptosis; apoptosis was less sensitively activated in the SGZ, and differentiated neuronal tissues did not activate apoptosis. P5/P15 mice showed intermediate DSB levels, suggesting that DSBs generated in the embryo can be transmitted to neonates and undergo slow repair. Interestingly, this analysis revealed a stage of high endogenous apoptosis in the neonatal SVZ. Collectively, these studies reveal that the adult neural stem cell compartment, like the embryonic counterpart, can sensitively activate apoptosis

Genetic enrichment of cardiomyocytes derived from mouse ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Jane

2011-06-22

Jun 22, 2011 ... Pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESC) have the ability to differentiate into a ... We describe a simple method to generate relatively pure cardiomyocytes from mouse ... In this study, we described the generation of transgenic.

Comparing Epileptiform Behavior of Mesoscale Detailed Models and Population Models of Neocortex

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Visser, S.; Meijer, Hil Gaétan Ellart; Lee, Hyong C.; van Drongelen, Wim; van Putten, Michel Johannes Antonius Maria; van Gils, Stephanus A.

2010-01-01

Two models of the neocortex are developed to study normal and pathologic neuronal activity. One model contains a detailed description of a neocortical microcolumn represented by 656 neurons, including superficial and deep pyramidal cells, four types of inhibitory neurons, and realistic synaptic

Explicit logic circuits predict local properties of the neocortex's physiology and anatomy.

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Lane Yoder

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Two previous articles proposed an explicit model of how the brain processes information by its organization of synaptic connections. The family of logic circuits was shown to generate neural correlates of complex psychophysical phenomena in different sensory systems. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here it is shown that the most cost-effective architectures for these networks produce correlates of electrophysiological brain phenomena and predict major aspects of the anatomical structure and physiological organization of the neocortex. The logic circuits are markedly efficient in several respects and provide the foundation for all of the brain's combinational processing of information. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: At the local level, these networks account for much of the physical structure of the neocortex as well its organization of synaptic connections. Electronic implementations of the logic circuits may be more efficient than current electronic logic arrays in generating both Boolean and fuzzy logic.

Comprehensive Identification of Krüppel-Like Factor Family Members Contributing to the Self-Renewal of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells and Cellular Reprogramming.

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Hyojung Jeon

Full Text Available Pluripotency is maintained in mouse embryonic stem (ES cells and is induced from somatic cells by the activation of appropriate transcriptional regulatory networks. Krüppel-like factor gene family members, such as Klf2, Klf4 and Klf5, have important roles in maintaining the undifferentiated state of mouse ES cells as well as in cellular reprogramming, yet it is not known whether other Klf family members exert self-renewal and reprogramming functions when overexpressed. In this study, we examined whether overexpression of any representative Klf family member, such as Klf1-Klf10, would be sufficient for the self-renewal of mouse ES cells. We found that only Klf2, Klf4, and Klf5 produced leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF-independent self-renewal, although most KLF proteins, if not all, have the ability to occupy the regulatory regions of Nanog, a critical Klf target gene. We also examined whether overexpression of any of Klf1-Klf10 would be sufficient to convert epiblast stem cells into a naïve pluripotent state and found that Klf5 had such reprogramming ability, in addition to Klf2 and Klf4. We also delineated the functional domains of the Klf2 protein for LIF-independent self-renewal and reprogramming. Interestingly, we found that both the N-terminal transcriptional activation and C-terminal zinc finger domains were indispensable for this activity. Taken together, our comprehensive analysis provides new insight into the contribution of Klf family members to mouse ES self-renewal and cellular reprogramming.

Comprehensive Identification of Krüppel-Like Factor Family Members Contributing to the Self-Renewal of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells and Cellular Reprogramming.

Science.gov (United States)

Jeon, Hyojung; Waku, Tsuyoshi; Azami, Takuya; Khoa, Le Tran Phuc; Yanagisawa, Jun; Takahashi, Satoru; Ema, Masatsugu

2016-01-01

Pluripotency is maintained in mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells and is induced from somatic cells by the activation of appropriate transcriptional regulatory networks. Krüppel-like factor gene family members, such as Klf2, Klf4 and Klf5, have important roles in maintaining the undifferentiated state of mouse ES cells as well as in cellular reprogramming, yet it is not known whether other Klf family members exert self-renewal and reprogramming functions when overexpressed. In this study, we examined whether overexpression of any representative Klf family member, such as Klf1-Klf10, would be sufficient for the self-renewal of mouse ES cells. We found that only Klf2, Klf4, and Klf5 produced leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF)-independent self-renewal, although most KLF proteins, if not all, have the ability to occupy the regulatory regions of Nanog, a critical Klf target gene. We also examined whether overexpression of any of Klf1-Klf10 would be sufficient to convert epiblast stem cells into a naïve pluripotent state and found that Klf5 had such reprogramming ability, in addition to Klf2 and Klf4. We also delineated the functional domains of the Klf2 protein for LIF-independent self-renewal and reprogramming. Interestingly, we found that both the N-terminal transcriptional activation and C-terminal zinc finger domains were indispensable for this activity. Taken together, our comprehensive analysis provides new insight into the contribution of Klf family members to mouse ES self-renewal and cellular reprogramming.

Total regional and global number of synapses in the human brain neocortex

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tang, Y.; Nyengaard, J.R.; Groot, D.M.G. de; Jorgen, H.; Gundersen, G.

2001-01-01

An estimator of the total number of synapses in neocortex of human autopsy brains based on unbiased stereological principles is described. Each randomly chosen cerebral hemisphere was stratified into the four major neocortical regions. Uniform sampling with a varying sampling fraction in each region

Development of an in vitro culture method for stepwise differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells into mature osteoclasts.

Science.gov (United States)

Nishikawa, Keizo; Iwamoto, Yoriko; Ishii, Masaru

2014-05-01

The development of methods for differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSCs) into functional cells have helped to analyze the mechanism regulating cellular processes and to explore cell-based assays for drug discovery. Although several reports have demonstrated methods for differentiation of mouse ESCs into osteoclast-like cells, it remains unclear whether these methods are applicable for differentiation of iPSCs to osteoclasts. In this study, we developed a simple method for stepwise differentiation of mouse ESCs and iPSCs into bone-resorbing osteoclasts based upon a monoculture approach consisting of three steps. First, based on conventional hanging-drop methods, embryoid bodies (EBs) were produced from mouse ESCs or iPSCs. Second, EBs were cultured in medium supplemented with macrophage colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF), and differentiated to osteoclast precursors, which expressed CD11b. Finally, ESC- or iPSC-derived osteoclast precursors stimulated with receptor activator of nuclear factor-B ligand (RANKL) and M-CSF formed large multinucleated osteoclast-like cells that expressed tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase and were capable of bone resorption. Molecular analysis showed that the expression of osteoclast marker genes such as Nfatc1, Ctsk, and Acp5 are increased in a RANKL-dependent manner. Thus, our procedure is simple and easy and would be helpful for stem cell-based bone research.

Cytotoxic Effect of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles on Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells by MTT Assay

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Homa Mohseni Kouchesfehani

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Despite the wide range of applications, there is a serious lack of information on the impact of the nanoparticles on human health and the environment. The present study was done to determine the range of dangerous concentrations of iron oxide nanoparticle and their effects on mouse embryonic stem cells. Methods: Iron oxide nanoparticles with less than 20 nanometers diameter were encapsulated by a PEG-phospholipid. The suspension of iron oxide nanoparticles was prepared using the culture media and cell viability was determined by MTT assay. Results: MTT assay was used to examine the cytotoxicity of iron oxide nanoparticle s. Royan B1 cells were treated with medium containing different concentrations (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60µg/ml of the iron oxide nanoparticle. Cell viability was determined at 12 and 24 hours after treatment which showed significant decreases when concentration and time period increased. Conclusion: The main mechanism of nanoparticles action is still unknown, but in vivo and in vitro studies in different environments suggest that they are capable of producing reactive oxygen species (ROS. Therefore, they may have an effect on the concentration of intracellular calcium, activation of transcription factors, and changes in cytokine. The results of this study show that the higher concentration and duration of treatment of cells with iron oxide nanoparticles increase the rate of cell death.

Highly efficient CRISPR/HDR-mediated knock-in for mouse embryonic stem cells and zygotes.

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Wang, Bangmei; Li, Kunyu; Wang, Amy; Reiser, Michelle; Saunders, Thom; Lockey, Richard F; Wang, Jia-Wang

2015-10-01

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR) gene editing technique, based on the non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) repair pathway, has been used to generate gene knock-outs with variable sizes of small insertion/deletions with high efficiency. More precise genome editing, either the insertion or deletion of a desired fragment, can be done by combining the homology-directed-repair (HDR) pathway with CRISPR cleavage. However, HDR-mediated gene knock-in experiments are typically inefficient, and there have been no reports of successful gene knock-in with DNA fragments larger than 4 kb. Here, we describe the targeted insertion of large DNA fragments (7.4 and 5.8 kb) into the genomes of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells and zygotes, respectively, using the CRISPR/HDR technique without NHEJ inhibitors. Our data show that CRISPR/HDR without NHEJ inhibitors can result in highly efficient gene knock-in, equivalent to CRISPR/HDR with NHEJ inhibitors. Although NHEJ is the dominant repair pathway associated with CRISPR-mediated double-strand breaks (DSBs), and biallelic gene knock-ins are common, NHEJ and biallelic gene knock-ins were not detected. Our results demonstrate that efficient targeted insertion of large DNA fragments without NHEJ inhibitors is possible, a result that should stimulate interest in understanding the mechanisms of high efficiency CRISPR targeting in general.

The function analysis of full-length cDNA sequence from IRM-2 mouse cDNA library

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Qin; Liu Xiaoqiu; Xu Chang; Du Liqing; Sun Zhijuan; Wang Yan; Liu Qiang; Song Li; Li Jin; Fan Feiyue

2013-01-01

Objective: To identify the function of full-length cDNA sequence from IRM-2 mouse cDNA library. Methods: Full-length cDNA products were amplified by PCR from IRM-2 mouse cDNA library according to twenty-one pieces of expressed sequence tag. The expression of full-length cDNAs were detected after mouse embryonic fibroblasts were exposed to 6.5 Gy γ-ray radiation. And the effect on the growth of radiosensitivity cells AT5B1VA transfected with full-length cDNAs was investigated. Results: The expression of No.4, 5 and 2 full-length cDNAs from IRM-2 mouse were higher than that of parental ICR and 615 mouse after mouse embryonic fibroblasts irradiated with γ-ray radiation. And the survival rate of AT5B1VA cells transfected with No.4, 5 and 2 full-length cDNAs was high. Conclusion: No.4, 5 and 2 full-length cDNAs of IRM-2 mouse are of high radioresistance. (authors)

RYBP and Cbx7 Define Specific Biological Functions of Polycomb Complexes in Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

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Lluis Morey

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The Polycomb repressive complex 1 (PRC1 is required for decisions of stem cell fate. In mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs, two major variations of PRC1 complex, defined by the mutually exclusive presence of Cbx7 or RYBP, have been identified. Here, we show that although the genomic localization of the Cbx7- and RYBP-containing PRC1 complexes overlaps in certain genes, it can also be mutually exclusive. At the molecular level, Cbx7 is necessary for recruitment of Ring1B to chromatin, whereas RYBP enhances the PRC1 enzymatic activity. Genes occupied by RYBP show lower levels of Ring1B and H2AK119ub and are consequently more highly transcribed than those bound by Cbx7. At the functional level, we show that genes occupied by RYBP are primarily involved in the regulation of metabolism and cell-cycle progression, whereas those bound by Cbx7 predominantly control early-lineage commitment of ESCs. Altogether, our results indicate that different PRC1 subtypes establish a complex pattern of gene regulation that regulates common and nonoverlapping aspects of ESC pluripotency and differentiation.

Evaluation of 309 environmental chemicals using a mouse embryonic stem cell adherent cell differentiation and cytotoxicity assay.

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Kelly J Chandler

Full Text Available The vast landscape of environmental chemicals has motivated the need for alternative methods to traditional whole-animal bioassays in toxicity testing. Embryonic stem (ES cells provide an in vitro model of embryonic development and an alternative method for assessing developmental toxicity. Here, we evaluated 309 environmental chemicals, mostly food-use pesticides, from the ToxCast™ chemical library using a mouse ES cell platform. ES cells were cultured in the absence of pluripotency factors to promote spontaneous differentiation and in the presence of DMSO-solubilized chemicals at different concentrations to test the effects of exposure on differentiation and cytotoxicity. Cardiomyocyte differentiation (α,β myosin heavy chain; MYH6/MYH7 and cytotoxicity (DRAQ5™/Sapphire700™ were measured by In-Cell Western™ analysis. Half-maximal activity concentration (AC₅₀ values for differentiation and cytotoxicity endpoints were determined, with 18% of the chemical library showing significant activity on either endpoint. Mining these effects against the ToxCast Phase I assays (∼500 revealed significant associations for a subset of chemicals (26 that perturbed transcription-based activities and impaired ES cell differentiation. Increased transcriptional activity of several critical developmental genes including BMPR2, PAX6 and OCT1 were strongly associated with decreased ES cell differentiation. Multiple genes involved in reactive oxygen species signaling pathways (NRF2, ABCG2, GSTA2, HIF1A were strongly associated with decreased ES cell differentiation as well. A multivariate model built from these data revealed alterations in ABCG2 transporter was a strong predictor of impaired ES cell differentiation. Taken together, these results provide an initial characterization of metabolic and regulatory pathways by which some environmental chemicals may act to disrupt ES cell growth and differentiation.

Culture conditions have an impact on the maturation of traceable, transplantable mouse embryonic stem cell-derived otic progenitor cells.

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Abboud, Nesrine; Fontbonne, Arnaud; Watabe, Isabelle; Tonetto, Alain; Brezun, Jean Michel; Feron, François; Zine, Azel

2017-09-01

The generation of replacement inner ear hair cells (HCs) remains a challenge and stem cell therapy holds the potential for developing therapeutic solutions to hearing and balance disorders. Recent developments have made significant strides in producing mouse otic progenitors using cell culture techniques to initiate HC differentiation. However, no consensus has been reached as to efficiency and therefore current methods remain unsatisfactory. In order to address these issues, we compare the generation of otic and HC progenitors from embryonic stem (ES) cells in two cell culture systems: suspension vs. adherent conditions. In the present study, an ES cell line derived from an Atoh1-green fluorescent protein (GFP) transgenic mouse was used to track the generation of otic progenitors, initial HCs and to compare these two differentiation systems. We used a two-step short-term differentiation method involving an induction period of 5 days during which ES cells were cultured in the presence of Wnt/transforming growth factor TGF-β inhibitors and insulin-like growth factor IGF-1 to suppress mesoderm and reinforce presumptive ectoderm and otic lineages. The generated embryoid bodies were then differentiated in medium containing basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) for an additional 5 days using either suspension or adherent culture methods. Upon completion of differentiation, quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis and immunostaining monitored the expression of otic/HC progenitor lineage markers. The results indicate that cells differentiated in suspension cultures produced cells expressing otic progenitor/HC markers at a higher efficiency compared with the production of these cell types within adherent cultures. Furthermore, we demonstrated that a fraction of these cells can incorporate into ototoxin-injured mouse postnatal cochlea explants and express MYO7A after transplantation. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons

Rat embryonic palatal shelves respond to TCDD in organ culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abbott, B.D.; Birnbaum, L.S.

1990-01-01

TCDD (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin), a highly toxic environmental contaminant, is teratogenic in mice, inducing cleft palate (CP) and hydronephrosis at doses which are not overtly maternally or embryo toxic. Palatal shelves of embryonic mice respond to TCDD, both in vivo and in organ culture, with altered differentiation of medial epithelial cells. By contrast, in the rat TCDD produces substantial maternal, embryonic, and fetal toxicity, including fetal lethality, with few malformations. In this study the possible effects of maternal toxicity on induction of cleft palate were eliminated by exposure of embryonic rat palatal shelves in organ culture. The shelves were examined for specific TCDD-induced alterations in differentiation of the medial cells. On Gestation Day (GD) 14 or 15 palatal shelves from embryonic F344 rats were placed in organ culture for 2 to 3 days (IMEM:F12 medium, 5% FBS, 0.1% DMSO) containing 0, 1 x 10(-8), 1 x 10(-9), 1 x 10(-10), or 5 x 10(-11) M TCDD. The medial epithelial peridermal cells degenerated on shelves exposed to control media or 5 x 10(-11) M TCDD. Exposure to 10(-10), 10(-9), and 10(-8) M TCDD inhibited this degeneration in 20, 36, and 60% of the shelves, respectively, and was statistically significant at the two highest doses. A normally occurring decrease in [3H]TdR incorporation was inhibited in some GD 15 shelves cultured with 10(-10) and 10(-9) M TCDD. The medial cells of TCDD-exposed shelves continued to express high levels of immunohistochemically detected EGF receptors. The altered differentiation of rat medial epithelium is similar to that reported for TCDD-exposed mouse medial cells in vivo and in vitro. However, in order to obtain these responses, the cultured rat shelves require much higher concentrations of TCDD than the mouse shelves

Linking topography to tonotopy in the mouse auditory thalamocortical circuit

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hackett, Troy A; Rinaldi Barkat, Tania; O'Brien, Barbara M J

2011-01-01

The mouse sensory neocortex is reported to lack several hallmark features of topographic organization such as ocular dominance and orientation columns in primary visual cortex or fine-scale tonotopy in primary auditory cortex (AI). Here, we re-examined the question of auditory functional topography...... the tonotopic axis in the slice produced an orderly shift of voltage-sensitive dye (VSD) signals along the AI tonotopic axis, demonstrating topography in the mouse thalamocortical circuit that is preserved in the slice. However, compared with BF maps of neuronal spiking activity, the topographic order...... of subthreshold VSD maps was reduced in layer IV and even further degraded in layer II/III. Therefore, the precision of AI topography varies according to the source and layer of the mapping signal. Our findings further bridge the gap between in vivo and in vitro approaches for the detailed cellular study...

Cytotoxicity and activation of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway in mouse embryonic stem cells treated with four GSK3 inhibitors.

Science.gov (United States)

Naujok, Ortwin; Lentes, Jana; Diekmann, Ulf; Davenport, Claudia; Lenzen, Sigurd

2014-04-29

Small membrane-permeable molecules are now widely used during maintenance and differentiation of embryonic stem cells of different species. In particular the glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) is an interesting target, since its chemical inhibition activates the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway. In the present comparative study four GSK3 inhibitors were characterized. Cytotoxicity and potential to activate the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway were tested using the commonly used GSK3 inhibitors BIO, SB-216763, CHIR-99021, and CHIR-98014. Wnt/beta-catenin-dependent target genes were measured by quantitative PCR to confirm the Wnt-reporter assay and finally EC50-values were calculated. CHIR-99021 and SB-216763 had the lowest toxicities in mouse embryonic stem cells and CHIR-98014 and BIO the highest toxicities. Only CHIR-99021 and CHIR-98014 lead to a strong induction of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway, whereas BIO and SB-216763 showed a minor or no increase in activation of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway over the natural ligand Wnt3a. The data from the Wnt-reporter assay were confirmed by gene expression analysis of the TCF/LEF regulated gene T. Out of the four tested GSK3 inhibitors, only CHIR-99021 and CHIR-98014 proved to be potent pharmacological activators of the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway. But only in the case of CHIR-99021 high potency was combined with very low toxicity.

Cell-type-specific predictive network yields novel insights into mouse embryonic stem cell self-renewal and cell fate.

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Karen G Dowell

Full Text Available Self-renewal, the ability of a stem cell to divide repeatedly while maintaining an undifferentiated state, is a defining characteristic of all stem cells. Here, we clarify the molecular foundations of mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC self-renewal by applying a proven Bayesian network machine learning approach to integrate high-throughput data for protein function discovery. By focusing on a single stem-cell system, at a specific developmental stage, within the context of well-defined biological processes known to be active in that cell type, we produce a consensus predictive network that reflects biological reality more closely than those made by prior efforts using more generalized, context-independent methods. In addition, we show how machine learning efforts may be misled if the tissue specific role of mammalian proteins is not defined in the training set and circumscribed in the evidential data. For this study, we assembled an extensive compendium of mESC data: ∼2.2 million data points, collected from 60 different studies, under 992 conditions. We then integrated these data into a consensus mESC functional relationship network focused on biological processes associated with embryonic stem cell self-renewal and cell fate determination. Computational evaluations, literature validation, and analyses of predicted functional linkages show that our results are highly accurate and biologically relevant. Our mESC network predicts many novel players involved in self-renewal and serves as the foundation for future pluripotent stem cell studies. This network can be used by stem cell researchers (at http://StemSight.org to explore hypotheses about gene function in the context of self-renewal and to prioritize genes of interest for experimental validation.

Mouse cloning and somatic cell reprogramming using electrofused blastomeres.

Science.gov (United States)

Riaz, Amjad; Zhao, Xiaoyang; Dai, Xiangpeng; Li, Wei; Liu, Lei; Wan, Haifeng; Yu, Yang; Wang, Liu; Zhou, Qi

2011-05-01

Mouse cloning from fertilized eggs can assist development of approaches for the production of "genetically tailored" human embryonic stem (ES) cell lines that are not constrained by the limitations of oocyte availability. However, to date only zygotes have been successfully used as recipients of nuclei from terminally differentiated somatic cell donors leading to ES cell lines. In fertility clinics, embryos of advanced embryonic stages are usually stored for future use, but their ability to support the derivation of ES cell lines via somatic nuclear transfer has not yet been proved. Here, we report that two-cell stage electrofused mouse embryos, arrested in mitosis, can support developmental reprogramming of nuclei from donor cells ranging from blastomeres to somatic cells. Live, full-term cloned pups from embryonic donors, as well as pluripotent ES cell lines from embryonic or somatic donors, were successfully generated from these reconstructed embryos. Advanced stage pre-implantation embryos were unable to develop normally to term after electrofusion and transfer of a somatic cell nucleus, indicating that discarded pre-implantation human embryos could be an important resource for research that minimizes the ethical concerns for human therapeutic cloning. Our approach provides an attractive and practical alternative to therapeutic cloning using donated oocytes for the generation of patient-specific human ES cell lines.

Overexpression of Cardiac-Specific Kinase TNNI3K Promotes Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells Differentiation into Cardiomyocytes.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yin; Wang, Shi-Qiang; Wang, Li-Peng; Yao, Yu-Hong; Ma, Chun-Yan; Ding, Jin-Feng; Ye, Jue; Meng, Xian-Min; Li, Jian-Jun; Xu, Rui-Xia

2017-01-01

Backgroud/Aims: The biological function of cardiac troponin I-interacting kinase (TNNI3K), a cardiac-specific functional kinase, is largely unknown. We investigated the effect of human TNNI3K (hTNNI3K) on the differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) into cardiomyocytes. First, the time-space expression of endogenous Tnni3k was detected by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and western blotting at 16 different time-points over a period of 28 days. Further, action potentials and calcium current with/without 5 µM nifedipine were measured by patch clamp for mESC-derived cardiomyocytes. HTNNI3K and mouse-derived siRNA were transfected into mESC using lentivirus vector to induce hTNNI3K overexpression and knock-down, respectively. The number of troponin-T (cTnT) positive cells was greater in the group with TNNI3K overexpression as compared to that in control group, while less such cells were detected in the mTnni3k knock-down group as evaluated on flow cytometry (FCM) and ImageXpress Micro system. After upregulation of connexin43, cardiac troponin-I (Ctni), Ctni, Gata4 were detected in mESCs with TNNI3K overexpression; however, overexpression of α-Actinin and Mlc2v was not detected. Interestingly, Ctnt, connexin40 and connexin45, the markers of ventricular, atrial, and pacemaker cells, respectively, were detected in by real-time PCR in TNNI3K overexpression group. our study indicated that TNNI3K overexpression promoted mESC differentiating into beating cardiomyocytes and induced up-regulating expression of cTnT by PKCε signal pathway, which suggested a modulation of TNNI3K activity as a potential therapeutic approach for ischemic cardiac disease. © 2017 The Author(s) Published by S. Karger AG, Basel.

Importance of the pluripotency factor LIN28 in the mammalian nucleolus during early embryonic development.

Science.gov (United States)

Vogt, Edgar J; Meglicki, Maciej; Hartung, Kristina Ilka; Borsuk, Ewa; Behr, Rüdiger

2012-12-01

The maternal nucleolus is required for proper activation of the embryonic genome (EGA) and early embryonic development. Nucleologenesis is characterized by the transformation of a nucleolar precursor body (NPB) to a mature nucleolus during preimplantation development. However, the function of NPBs and the involved molecular factors are unknown. We uncover a novel role for the pluripotency factor LIN28, the biological significance of which was previously demonstrated in the reprogramming of human somatic cells to induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Here, we show that LIN28 accumulates at the NPB and the mature nucleolus in mouse preimplantation embryos and embryonic stem cells (ESCs), where it colocalizes with the nucleolar marker B23 (nucleophosmin 1). LIN28 has nucleolar localization in non-human primate (NHP) preimplantation embryos, but is cytoplasmic in NHP ESCs. Lin28 transcripts show a striking decline before mouse EGA, whereas LIN28 protein localizes to NPBs at the time of EGA. Following knockdown with a Lin28 morpholino, the majority of embryos arrest between the 2- and 4-cell stages and never develop to morula or blastocyst. Lin28 morpholino-injected embryos arrested at the 2-cell stage were not enriched with nucleophosmin at presumptive NPB sites, indicating that functional NPBs were not assembled. Based on these results, we propose that LIN28 is an essential factor of nucleologenesis during early embryonic development.

Long-range GABAergic connections distributed throughout the neocortex and their possible function

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Nobuaki eTamamaki

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Features and functions of long range GABAergic projection neurons in the developing cerebral cortex have been reported previously, although until now their significance in the adult cerebral cortex has remained uncertain. The septo-hippocampal circuit is one exception – in this system, long range mature GABAergic projection neurons have been well analyzed and their contribution to the generation of theta-oscillatory behavior in the hippocampus has been documented. To have a clue to the function of the GABAergic projection neurons in the neocortex, we view the long range GABAergic projections those participating in the cortico-cortical, cortico-fugal, and afferent projections in the cerebral cortex. Then, we consider the possibility that the GABAergic projection neurons are involved in the generation, modification, and/or synchronization of oscillations in mature neocortical neuron activity. When markers that identify the GABAergic projection neurons are examined in anatomical and developmental studies, it is clear that neuronal NO synthetase (nNOS-immunoreactivity can readily identify GABAergic projection fibers (i.e. those longer than 1.5 mm. To elucidate the role of the GABAergic projection neurons in the neocortex, it will be necessary to clarify the network constructed by nNOS-positive GABAergic projection neurons and their postsynaptic targets. Thus, our long-range goals will be to label and manipulate (including deleting the GABAergic projection neurons using genetic tools driven by a nNOS promoter. We recognize that this may be a complex endeavor, as most excitatory neurons in the murine neocortex express nNOS transiently. Nevertheless, additional studies characterizing long range GABAergic projection neurons will have great value to the overall understanding of mature cortical function.

Targeted Ablation and Reorganization of the Principal Preplate Neurons and Their Neuroblasts Identified by Golli Promoter Transgene Expression in the Neocortex of Mice

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Yuan-Yun Xie

2009-10-01

Full Text Available The present study delineates the cellular responses of dorsal pallium to targeted genetic ablation of the principal preplate neurons of the neocortex. Ganciclovir treatment during prenatal development (E11-E13; where E is embryonic day of mice selectively killed cells with shared S-phase vulnerability and targeted expression of a GPT [golli promoter transgene, linked to HSV-TK (herpes simplex virus-thymidine kinase, τ-eGFP (τ-enhanced green fluorescent protein and lacZ (lacZ galactosidase reporters] localized in preplate neurons. Morphogenetic fates of attacked neurons and neuroblasts, and their successors, were assessed by multiple labelling in time-series comparisons between ablated (HSV-TK+/0 and control (HSV-TK0/0 littermates. During ablation generation, neocortical growth was suppressed, and compensatory reorganization of non-GPT ventricular zone progenitors of dorsal pallium produced replacements for killed GPT neuroblasts. Replacement and surviving GPT neuroblasts then produced replacements for killed GPT neurons. Near-normal restoration of their complement delayed the settlement of GPT neurons into the reconstituted preplate, which curtailed the outgrowth of pioneer corticofugal axons. Based on this evidence, we conclude that specific cell killing in ablated mice can eliminate a major fraction of GPT neurons, with insignificant bystander killing. Also, replacement GPT neurons in ablated mice originate exclusively by proliferation from intermediate progenitor GPT neuroblasts, whose complement is maintained by non-GPT progenitors for inductive regulation of the total complement of GPT neurons. Finally, GPT neurons in both normal and ablated mice meet all morphogenetic criteria, including the ‘outside-in’ vertical gradient of settlement, presently used to identify principal preplate neurons. In ablated mice, delayed organization of these neurons desynchronizes and isolates developing neocortex from the rest of the brain, and

Spatiotemporal Expression of p63 in Mouse Epidermal Commitment

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Qian Zhao

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The embryonic surface ectoderm is a simple flat epithelium consisting of cells that express the cytokeratins K8/K18. Before stratification, K5/K14 expression substitutes K8/K18 expression, marking the event called epidermal commitment. Previous studies show that the transcription factor p63 plays an essential role in epidermal commitment. However, detailed expression information of p63 during early epidermal development in mice is still unclear. We systematically studied the expression pattern of p63 in mouse epidermal commitment, together with K8 and K5. We show that p63 expression could be detected as early as E8.5 in mouse embryos preceding epidermal commitment. p63 expression first appears near the newly formed somites and the posterior part of the embryo, further expanding to the whole embryonic surface with particular enrichment in the first branchial arches and the limb buds. ΔNp63 is the major class of isoforms expressed in this period. Relative expression intensity of p63 depends on the embryonic position. In summary, there is a sequential and regular expression pattern of K8, p63 and K5 in mouse epidermal commitment. Our study not only contributes to understanding the early events during epidermal development but also provides a basal tool to study the function of p63 in mammals.

In vitro labelling of mouse embryonic stem cells with SPIO nanoparticles

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Krejčí, Jana; Pacherník, J.; Hampl, Aleš; Dvořák, Petr

2008-01-01

Roč. 27, č. 3 (2008), s. 164-173 ISSN 0231-5882 Grant - others:GA ČR(CZ) GA301/08/0717 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50040507; CEZ:AV0Z50040702 Keywords : embryonic stem cells * differentiation * magnetic labelling Subject RIV: BO - Biophysics Impact factor: 0.697, year: 2008

In vivo sensitivity of the embryonic and adult neural stem cell compartments to low-dose radiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Barazzuol, Lara; Jeggo, Penny A

2016-08-01

The embryonic brain is radiation-sensitive, with cognitive deficits being observed after exposure to low radiation doses. Exposure of neonates to radiation can cause intracranial carcinogenesis. To gain insight into the basis underlying these outcomes, we examined the response of the embryonic, neonatal and adult brain to low-dose radiation, focusing on the neural stem cell compartments. This review summarizes our recent findings. At E13.5-14.5 the embryonic neocortex encompasses rapidly proliferating stem and progenitor cells. Exploiting mice with a hypomorphic mutation in DNA ligase IV (Lig4(Y288C) ), we found a high level of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) at E14.5, which we attribute to the rapid proliferation. We observed endogenous apoptosis in Lig4(Y288C) embryos and in WT embryos following exposure to low radiation doses. An examination of DSB levels and apoptosis in adult neural stem cell compartments, the subventricular zone (SVZ) and the subgranular zone (SGZ) revealed low DSB levels in Lig4(Y288C) mice, comparable with the levels in differentiated neuronal tissues. We conclude that the adult SVZ does not incur high levels of DNA breakage, but sensitively activates apoptosis; apoptosis was less sensitively activated in the SGZ, and differentiated neuronal tissues did not activate apoptosis. P5/P15 mice showed intermediate DSB levels, suggesting that DSBs generated in the embryo can be transmitted to neonates and undergo slow repair. Interestingly, this analysis revealed a stage of high endogenous apoptosis in the neonatal SVZ. Collectively, these studies reveal that the adult neural stem cell compartment, like the embryonic counterpart, can sensitively activate apoptosis. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Japan Radiation Research Society and Japanese Society for Radiation Oncology.

Embryonic stem cells require Wnt proteins to prevent differentiation to epiblast stem cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

D. ten Berge (Derk); D. Kurek (Dorota); T. Blauwkamp (Tim); W. Koole (Wouter); A. Maas (Alex); E. Eroglu (Elif); R.K. Siu (Ronald); R. Nusse (Roel)

2011-01-01

textabstractPluripotent stem cells exist in naive and primed states, epitomized by mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and the developmentally more advanced epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs; ref.). In the naive state of ESCs, the genome has an unusual open conformation and possesses a minimum of repressive

Neural cell adhesion molecule, NCAM, regulates thalamocortical axon pathfinding and the organization of the cortical somatosensory representation in mouse

Science.gov (United States)

Enriquez-Barreto, Lilian; Palazzetti, Cecilia; Brennaman, Leann H.; Maness, Patricia F.; Fairén, Alfonso

2012-01-01

To study the potential role of neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) in the development of thalamocortical (TC) axon topography, wild type, and NCAM null mutant mice were analyzed for NCAM expression, projection, and targeting of TC afferents within the somatosensory area of the neocortex. Here we report that NCAM and its α-2,8-linked polysialic acid (PSA) are expressed in developing TC axons during projection to the neocortex. Pathfinding of TC axons in wild type and null mutant mice was mapped using anterograde DiI labeling. At embryonic day E16.5, null mutant mice displayed misguided TC axons in the dorsal telencephalon, but not in the ventral telencephalon, an intermediate target that initially sorts TC axons toward correct neocortical areas. During the early postnatal period, rostrolateral TC axons within the internal capsule along the ventral telencephalon adopted distorted trajectories in the ventral telencephalon and failed to reach the neocortex in NCAM null mutant animals. NCAM null mutants showed abnormal segregation of layer IV barrels in a restricted portion of the somatosensory cortex. As shown by Nissl and cytochrome oxidase staining, barrels of the anterolateral barrel subfield (ALBSF) and the most distal barrels of the posteromedial barrel subfield (PMBSF) did not segregate properly in null mutant mice. These results indicate a novel role for NCAM in axonal pathfinding and topographic sorting of TC axons, which may be important for the function of specific territories of sensory representation in the somatosensory cortex. PMID:22723769

Function of JARID2 in bovines during early embryonic development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yao Fu

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Histone lysine modifications are important epigenetic modifications in early embryonic development. JARID2, which is a member of the jumonji demethylase protein family, is a regulator of early embryonic development and can regulate mouse development and embryonic stem cell (ESC differentiation by modifying histone lysines. JARID2 can affect early embryonic development by regulating the methylation level of H3K27me3, which is closely related to normal early embryonic development. To investigate the expression pattern of JARID2 and the effect of JARID2-induced H3K27 methylation in bovine oocytes and early embryonic stages, JARID2 mRNA expression and localization were detected in bovine oocytes and early embryos via qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence in the present study. The results showed that JARID2 is highly expressed in the germinal vesicle (GV, MII, 2-cell, 4-cell, 8-cell, 16-cell and blastocyst stages, but the relative expression level of JARID2 in bovine GV oocytes is significantly lower than that at other oocyte/embryonic stages (p < 0.05, and JARID2 is expressed primarily in the nucleus. We next detected the mRNA expression levels of embryonic development-related genes (OCT4, SOX2 and c-myc after JARID2 knockdown through JARID2-2830-siRNA microinjection to investigate the molecularpathwayunderlying the regulation of H3K27me3 by JARID2 during early embryonic development. The results showed that the relative expression levels of these genes in 2-cell embryos weresignificantly higher than those in the blastocyst stage, and expression levels were significantly increased after JARID2 knockdown. In summary, the present study identified the expression pattern of JARID2 in bovine oocytes and at each early embryonic stage, and the results suggest that JARID2 plays a key role in early embryonic development by regulating the expression of OCT4, SOX2 and c-myc via modification of H3K27me3 expression. This work provides new data for improvements in the

Dynamics of lineage commitment revealed by single-cell transcriptomics of differentiating embryonic stem cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Semrau, Stefan; Goldmann, Johanna E; Soumillon, Magali; Mikkelsen, Tarjei S; Jaenisch, Rudolf; van Oudenaarden, Alexander

2017-01-01

Gene expression heterogeneity in the pluripotent state of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) has been increasingly well-characterized. In contrast, exit from pluripotency and lineage commitment have not been studied systematically at the single-cell level. Here we measure the gene expression

Hydrocortisone-induced embryotoxicity and embryonic drug disposition in H-2 congenic mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roberts, L.S.G.

1986-01-01

Congenic mouse strains C57BL/10Sn (B10) and B10.A/SgSn(B10A), genetically different only at the H-2 complex, were compared for sensitivity to glucocorticoid-induced embryotoxicity and embryonic drug disposition. B10A mice dosed intramuscularly with 0, 100, 150 and 200 mg hydrocortisone/kg body weight on gestational day twelve, and B10 mice injected with 0, 200, 400, 600, and 800 mg/kg, were evaluated at dissection on gestational day eighteen for signs of toxicity. In both strains, probit analysis of cleft palate production demonstrated a linear dose response. The ED50 for cleft palate production demonstrates a linear dose response. The ED50 for cleft palate production in B10A mice was 143.6 mg/kg and 512.0 mg/kg for the B10 strain. Embryonic exposure was evaluated by administration of 3 H-hydrocortisone (5 uCi/mouse) to pregnant mice on day twelve of gestation, at the ED50 for cleft palate production in B10A strain. The purposes of the experiment were to quantify the difference in susceptibility to steroid-induced cleft palate, determine if a milder manifestation of embryotoxicity, fetal growth retardation, occurred at sub-clefting dosages, and determine if the difference in sensitivity to hydrocortisone-induced embryotoxicity was the result of an underlying difference in embryonic exposure to the teratogen

UV light induces premature senescence in Akt1-null mouse embryonic fibroblasts by increasing intracellular levels of ROS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jee, Hye Jin; Kim, Hyun-Ju; Kim, Ae Jeong; Bae, Yoe-Sik; Bae, Sun Sik; Yun, Jeanho

2009-01-01

Akt/PKB plays a pivotal role in cell survival and proliferation. Previously, we reported that UV-irradiation induces extensive cell death in Akt2 -/- mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) while Akt1 -/- MEFs show cell cycle arrest. Here, we find that Akt1 -/- MEFs exhibit phenotypic changes characteristics of senescence upon UV-irradiation. An enlarged and flattened morphology, a reduced cell proliferation and an increased senescence-associated β-galactosidase (SA β-gal) staining indicate that Akt1 -/- MEFs undergo premature senescence after UV-irradiation. Restoring Akt1 expression in Akt1 -/- MEFs suppressed SA β-gal activity, indicating that UV-induced senescence is due to the absence of Akt1 function. Notably, levels of ROS were rapidly increased upon UV-irradiation and the ROS scavenger NAC inhibits UV-induced senescence of Akt1 -/- MEFs, suggesting that UV light induces premature senescence in Akt1 -/- MEFs by modulating intracellular levels of ROS. In conjunction with our previous work, this indicates that different isoforms of Akt have distinct function in response to UV-irradiation.

Yap1 is dispensable for self-renewal but required for proper differentiation of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, HaeWon; Lee, Bum-Kyu; Uprety, Nadima; Shen, Wenwen; Lee, Jiwoon; Kim, Jonghwan

2016-04-01

Yap1 is a transcriptional co-activator of the Hippo pathway. The importance of Yap1 in early cell fate decision during embryogenesis has been well established, though its role in embryonic stem (ES) cells remains elusive. Here, we report that Yap1 plays crucial roles in normal differentiation rather than self-renewal of ES cells. Yap1-depleted ES cells maintain undifferentiated state with a typical colony morphology as well as robust alkaline phosphatase activity. These cells also retain comparable levels of the core pluripotent factors, such as Pou5f1 and Sox2, to the levels in wild-type ES cells without significant alteration of lineage-specific marker genes. Conversely, overexpression of Yap1 in ES cells promotes nuclear translocation of Yap1, resulting in disruption of self-renewal and triggering differentiation by up-regulating lineage-specific genes. Moreover, Yap1-deficient ES cells show impaired induction of lineage markers during differentiation. Collectively, our data demonstrate that Yap1 is a required factor for proper differentiation of mouse ES cells, while remaining dispensable for self-renewal. © 2016 The Authors.

Affect of Bioglass {sup trademark} repeat dosage on mineralisation of embryonic bone 'in vitro'

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maroothynaden, J. [Imperial Coll. of Medicine, London (United Kingdom). Microgravity Tissue Engineering Lab.; Hench, L.L. [Imperial Coll. of Science, Technology and Medicine, London (United Kingdom). Dept. of Materials

2001-07-01

Utilising 45S5 Bioglass {sup trademark} extracts, as described previously, 16-day gestation embryonic mouse long-bones were cultured for 4-days while exposed to the same Bioglass{sup circledR} soluble extract solution for two different exposure times. In the first culture, all embryonic femurs were exposed to fresh 45S5 Bioglass {sup trademark} extract every 98 hours. In the second, the long-bones were exposed to fresh 45S5 Bioglass {sup trademark} extract solution every 48 hours. A simultaneous control culture was performed. All embryonic long-bone cultures mineralised after 4-days culture. Increasing the frequency of 45S5 Bioglass {sup trademark} exposure, from one exposure every 96 hrs to fresh exposures every 48 hrs, significantly increased the length and mineral content of the embryonic long-bones. (orig.)

15-Deoxy-Δ12,14-Prostaglandin J2 regulates leukemia inhibitory factor signaling through JAK-STAT pathway in mouse embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rajasingh, Johnson; Bright, John J.

2006-01-01

Embryonic stem (ES) cells are genetically normal, pluripotent cells, capable of self-renewal and differentiation into all cell lineages. While leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) maintains pluripotency in mouse ES cells, retinoic acid and other nuclear hormones induce neuro-glial differentiation in mouse and human ES cells in culture. Peroxisome-proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are ligand-dependent nuclear receptor transcription factors that regulate cell growth and differentiation in many cell types. However, the role of PPARs in the regulation of ES cell growth and differentiation is not known. In this study, we show that LIF induces proliferation and self-renewal of mouse D3-ES cells in culture. However, treatment with 15-Deoxy-Δ 12,14 -Prostaglandin J 2 (15d-PGJ2), a natural ligand for PPARγ, or all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) results in a dose-dependent decrease in proliferation and self-renewal in D3-ES cells. Immunoprecipitation and Western blot analyses showed that LIF induces tyrosine phosphorylation of JAK1, TYK2 and STAT3 in 30 min and treatment with 15d-PGJ2 or ATRA results in a dose-dependent decrease in LIF-induced phosphorylation of JAK1 and STAT3 in D3-ES cells. However, treatment of D3-ES cells with Ciglitazone or 15d-PGJ2 for 48 h in culture resulted in a dose-dependent increase in PPARγ protein expression. These results suggest that PPARγ agonists regulate LIF signaling through JAK-STAT pathway leading to growth and self-renewal of ES cells

Polycomb enables primitive endoderm lineage priming in embryonic stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Illingworth, Robert S; Hölzenspies, Jurriaan J; Roske, Fabian V

2016-01-01

Mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs), like the blastocyst from which they are derived, contain precursors of the epiblast (Epi) and primitive endoderm (PrEn) lineages. While transient in vivo, these precursor populations readily interconvert in vitro. We show that altered transcription is the driver...... polycomb with dynamic changes in transcription and stalled lineage commitment, allowing cells to explore alternative choices prior to a definitive decision....

Layered double hydroxide nanoparticles promote self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells through the PI3K signaling pathway

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Youjun; Zhu, Rongrong; Zhou, Yang; Zhang, Jun; Wang, Wenrui; Sun, Xiaoyu; Wu, Xianzheng; Cheng, Liming; Zhang, Jing; Wang, Shilong

2015-06-01

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) hold great potential for regenerative medicine due to their two unique characteristics: self-renewal and pluripotency. Several groups of nanoparticles have shown promising applications in directing the stem cell fate. Herein, we investigated the cellular effects of layered double hydroxide nanoparticles (LDH NPs) on mouse ESCs (mESCs) and the associated molecular mechanisms. Mg-Al-LDH NPs with an average diameter of ~100 nm were prepared by hydrothermal methods. To determine the influences of LDH NPs on mESCs, cellular cytotoxicity, self-renewal, differentiation potential, and the possible signaling pathways were explored. Evaluation of cell viability, lactate dehydrogenase release, ROS generation and apoptosis demonstrated the low cytotoxicity of LDH NPs. The alkaline phosphatase activity and the expression of pluripotency genes in mESCs were examined, which indicated that exposure to LDH NPs could support self-renewal and inhibit spontaneous differentiation of mESCs under feeder-free culture conditions. The self-renewal promotion was further proved to be independent of the leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF). Furthermore, cells treated with LDH NPs maintained the potential to differentiate into all three germ layers both in vitro and in vivo through formation of embryoid bodies and teratomas. In addition, we observed that LDH NPs initiated the activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway, while treatment with the PI3K inhibitor LY294002 could block the effects of LDH NPs on mESCs. The results confirmed that the promotion of self-renewal by LDH NPs was associated with activation of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Altogether, our studies identified a new role of LDH NPs in maintaining self-renewal of mouse ES cells which could potentially be applied in stem cell research.Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) hold great potential for regenerative medicine due to their two unique characteristics: self-renewal and pluripotency. Several groups of nanoparticles

Rudhira/BCAS3 is essential for mouse development and cardiovascular patterning.

Science.gov (United States)

Shetty, Ronak; Joshi, Divyesh; Jain, Mamta; Vasudevan, Madavan; Paul, Jasper Chrysolite; Bhat, Ganesh; Banerjee, Poulomi; Abe, Takaya; Kiyonari, Hiroshi; VijayRaghavan, K; Inamdar, Maneesha S

2018-04-04

Rudhira/Breast Carcinoma Amplified Sequence 3 (BCAS3) is a cytoskeletal protein that promotes directional cell migration and angiogenesis in vitro and is implicated in human carcinomas and coronary artery disease. To study the role of Rudhira during development in vivo, we generated the first knockout mouse for rudhira and show that Rudhira is essential for mouse development. Rudhira null embryos die at embryonic day (E) 9.5 accompanied by severe vascular patterning defects in embryonic and extra-embryonic tissues. To identify the molecular processes downstream of rudhira, we analyzed the transcriptome of intact knockout yolk sacs. Genome-wide transcriptome analysis showed that Rudhira functions in angiogenesis and its related processes such as cell adhesion, extracellular matrix organization, peptidase activity and TGFβ signaling. Since Rudhira is also expressed in endothelial cells (ECs), we further generated Tie2Cre-mediated endothelial knockout (CKO) of rudhira. CKO embryos survive to E11.5 and similar to the global knockout, display gross vascular patterning defects, showing that endothelial Rudhira is vital for development. Further, Rudhira knockdown ECs in culture fail to sprout in a spheroid-sprouting assay, strongly supporting its role in vascular patterning. Our study identifies an essential role for Rudhira in blood vessel remodeling and provides a mouse model for cardiovascular development.

Survival of partially differentiated mouse embryonic stem cells in the scala media of the guinea pig cochlea.

Science.gov (United States)

Hildebrand, Michael S; Dahl, Hans-Henrik M; Hardman, Jennifer; Coleman, Bryony; Shepherd, Robert K; de Silva, Michelle G

2005-12-01

The low regenerative capacity of the hair cells of the mammalian inner ear is a major obstacle for functional recovery following sensorineural hearing loss. A potential treatment is to replace damaged tissue by transplantation of stem cells. To test this approach, undifferentiated and partially differentiated mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells were delivered into the scala media of the deafened guinea pig cochlea. Transplanted cells survived in the scala media for a postoperative period of at least nine weeks, evidenced by histochemical and direct fluorescent detection of enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP). Transplanted cells were discovered near the spiral ligament and stria vascularis in the endolymph fluid of the scala media. In some cases, cells were observed close to the damaged organ of Corti structure. There was no evidence of significant immunological rejection of the implanted ES cells despite the absence of immunosuppression. Our surgical approach allowed efficient delivery of ES cells to the scala media while preserving the delicate structures of the cochlea. This is the first report of the survival of partially differentiated ES cells in the scala media of the mammalian cochlea, and it provides support for the potential of cell-based therapies for sensorineural hearing impairment.

Anterograde Tracing Method using DiI to Label Vagal Innervation of the Embryonic and Early Postnatal Mouse Gastrointestinal Tract

Science.gov (United States)

Murphy, Michelle C.; Fox, Edward A.

2007-01-01

The mouse is an extremely valuable model for studying vagal development in relation to strain differences, genetic variation, gene manipulations, or pharmacological manipulations. Therefore, a method using 1, 1′-dioctadecyl-3,3,3′,3′-tetramethylindocarbocyanine perchlorate (DiI) was developed for labeling vagal innervation of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract in embryonic and postnatal mice. DiI labeling was adapted and optimized for this purpose by varying several facets of the method. For example, insertion and crushing of DiI crystals into the nerve led to faster DiI diffusion along vagal axons and diffusion over longer distances as compared with piercing the nerve with a micropipette tip coated with dried DiI oil. Moreover, inclusion of EDTA in the fixative reduced leakage of DiI out of nerve fibers that occurred with long incubations. Also, mounting labeled tissue in PBS was superior to glycerol with n-propyl gallate, which resulted in reduced clarity of DiI labeling that may have been due to DiI leaking out of fibers. Optical sectioning of flattened wholemounts permitted examination of individual tissue layers of the GI tract wall. This procedure aided identification of nerve ending types because in most instances each type innervates a different tissue layer. Between embryonic day 12.5 and postnatal day 8, growth of axons into the GI tract, formation and patterning of fiber bundles in the myenteric plexus and early formation of putative afferent and efferent nerve terminals were observed. Thus, the DiI tracing method developed here has opened up a window for investigation during an important phase of vagal development. PMID:17418900

Conditional mutation of Smc5 in mouse embryonic stem cells perturbs condensin localization and mitotic progression.

Science.gov (United States)

Pryzhkova, Marina V; Jordan, Philip W

2016-04-15

Correct duplication of stem cell genetic material and its appropriate segregation into daughter cells are requisites for tissue, organ and organism homeostasis. Disruption of stem cell genomic integrity can lead to developmental abnormalities and cancer. Roles of the Smc5/6 structural maintenance of chromosomes complex in pluripotent stem cell genome maintenance have not been investigated, despite its important roles in DNA synthesis, DNA repair and chromosome segregation as evaluated in other model systems. Using mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) with a conditional knockout allele of Smc5, we showed that Smc5 protein depletion resulted in destabilization of the Smc5/6 complex, accumulation of cells in G2 phase of the cell cycle and apoptosis. Detailed assessment of mitotic mESCs revealed abnormal condensin distribution and perturbed chromosome segregation, accompanied by irregular spindle morphology, lagging chromosomes and DNA bridges. Mutation of Smc5 resulted in retention of Aurora B kinase and enrichment of condensin on chromosome arms. Furthermore, we observed reduced levels of Polo-like kinase 1 at kinetochores during mitosis. Our study reveals crucial requirements of the Smc5/6 complex during cell cycle progression and for stem cell genome maintenance. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

SC1 Promotes MiR124-3p Expression to Maintain the Self-Renewal of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells by Inhibiting the MEK/ERK Pathway.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Qing; Liu, Hongliang; Ai, Zhiying; Wu, Yongyan; Liu, Yingxiang; Shi, Zhaopeng; Ren, Xuexue; Guo, Zekun

2017-01-01

Self-renewal is one of the most important features of embryonic stem (ES) cells. SC1 is a small molecule modulator that effectively maintains the self-renewal of mouse ES cells in the absence of leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF), serum and feeder cells. However, the mechanism by which SC1 maintains the undifferentiated state of mouse ES cells remains unclear. In this study, microarray and small RNA deep-sequencing experiments were performed on mouse ES cells treated with or without SC1 to identify the key genes and microRNAs that contributed to self-renewal. SC1 regulates the expressions of pluripotency and differentiation factors, and antagonizes the retinoic acid (RA)-induced differentiation in the presence or absence of LIF. SC1 inhibits the MEK/ERK pathway through Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis and pathway reporting experiments. Small RNA deep-sequencing revealed that SC1 significantly modulates the expression of multiple microRNAs with crucial functions in ES cells. The expression of miR124-3p is upregulated in SC1-treated ES cells, which significantly inhibits the MEK/ERK pathway by targeting Grb2, Sos2 and Egr1. SC1 enhances the self-renewal capacity of mouse ES cells by modulating the expression of key regulatory genes and pluripotency-associated microRNAs. SC1 significantly upregulates miR124-3p expression to further inhibit the MEK/ ERK pathway by targeting Grb2, Sos2 and Egr1. © 2017 The Author(s). Published by S. Karger AG, Basel.

Roles of taurine-mediated tonic GABAA receptor activation in the radial migration of neurons in the fetal mouse cerebral cortex

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomonori eFurukawa

2014-03-01

Full Text Available γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA depolarizes embryonic cerebrocortical neurons and continuous activation of the GABAA receptor (GABAAR contributes to their tonic depolarization. Although multiple reports have demonstrated a role of GABAAR activation in neocortical development, including in migration, most of these studies have used pharmacological blockers. Herein, we performed in utero electroporation in GABA synthesis-lacking homozygous GAD67-GFP knock-in mice (GAD67GFP/GFP to label neurons born in the ventricular zone. Three days after electroporation, there were no differences in the distribution of labeled cells between the genotypes. The dose-response properties of cells labeled to detect GABA were equivalent among genotypes. However, continuous blockade of GABAAR with the GABAAR antagonist SR95531 accelerated radial migration. This effect of GABAAR blockade in GAD67GFP/GFP mice suggested a role for alternative endogenous GABAAR agonists. Thus, we tested the role of taurine, which is derived from maternal blood but is abundant in the fetal brain. The taurine-evoked currents in labeled cells were mediated by GABAAR. Taurine uptake was blocked by a taurine transporter inhibitor, 2-(guanidinoethanesulfonic acid (GES, and taurine release was blocked by a volume-sensitive anion channel blocker, 4-(2-butyl-6,7-dichlor-2-cyclopentylindan-1-on-5-yl oxobutyric acid (DCPIB, as examined through high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC. GES increased the extracellular taurine concentration and induced an inward shift of the holding current, which was reversed by SR95531. In a taurine-deficient mouse model, the GABAAR-mediated tonic currents were greatly reduced, and radial migration was accelerated. As the tonic currents were equivalent among the genotypes of GAD67-GFP knock-in mice, taurine, rather than GABA, might play a major role as an endogenous agonist of embryonic tonic GABAAR conductance, regulating the radial migration of neurons in the

In vivo photoacoustic imaging of mouse embryos

Science.gov (United States)

Laufer, Jan; Norris, Francesca; Cleary, Jon; Zhang, Edward; Treeby, Bradley; Cox, Ben; Johnson, Peter; Scambler, Pete; Lythgoe, Mark; Beard, Paul

2012-06-01

The ability to noninvasively image embryonic vascular anatomy in mouse models is an important requirement for characterizing the development of the normal cardiovascular system and malformations in the heart and vascular supply. Photoacoustic imaging, which can provide high resolution non invasive images of the vasculature based upon optical absorption by endogenous hemoglobin, is well suited to this application. In this study, photoacoustic images of mouse embryos were obtained ex vivo and in vivo. The images show intricate details of the embryonic vascular system to depths of up to 10 mm, which allowed whole embryos to be imaged in situ. To achieve this, an all-optical photoacoustic scanner and a novel time reversal image reconstruction algorithm, which provide deep tissue imaging capability while maintaining high spatial resolution and contrast were employed. This technology may find application as an imaging tool for preclinical embryo studies in developmental biology as well as more generally in preclinical and clinical medicine for studying pathologies characterized by changes in the vasculature.

Connective tissue growth factor/CCN2-null mouse embryonic fibroblasts retain intact transforming growth factor-β responsiveness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mori, Yasuji; Hinchcliff, Monique; Wu, Minghua; Warner-Blankenship, Matthew; Lyons, Karen M.; Varga, John

2008-01-01

Background: The matricellular protein connective tissue growth factor (CCN2) has been implicated in pathological fibrosis, but its physiologic role remains elusive. In vitro, transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) induces CCN2 expression in mesenchymal cells. Because CCN2 can enhance profibrotic responses elicited by TGF-β, it has been proposed that CCN2 functions as an essential downstream signaling mediator for TGF-β. To explore this notion, we characterized TGF-β-induced activation of fibroblasts from CCN2-null (CCN2 -/- ) mouse embryos. Methods: The regulation of CCN2 expression was examined in vivo in a model of fibrosis induced by bleomycin. Cellular TGF-β signal transduction and regulation of collagen gene expression were examined in CCN2 -/- MEFs by immunohistochemistry, Northern, Western and RT-PCR analysis, immunocytochemistry and transient transfection assays. Results: Bleomycin-induced skin fibrosis in the mouse was associated with substantial CCN2 up-regulation in lesional fibroblasts. Whereas in vitro proliferation rate of CCN2 -/- MEFs was markedly reduced compared to wild type MEFs, TGF-β-induced activation of the Smad pathways, including Smad2 phosphorylation, Smad2/3 and Smad4 nuclear accumulation and Smad-dependent transcriptional responses, were unaffected by loss of CCN2. The stimulation of COL1A2 and fibronectin mRNA expression and promoter activity, and of corresponding protein levels, showed comparable time and dose-response in wild type and CCN2 -/- MEFs, whereas stimulation of alpha smooth muscle actin and myofibroblast transdifferentiation showed subtle impairment in MEFs lacking CCN2. Conclusion: Whereas endogenous CCN2 plays a role in regulation of proliferation and TGF-β-induced myofibroblast transdifferentiation, it appears to be dispensable for Smad-dependent stimulation of collagen and extracellular matrix synthesis in murine embryonic fibroblasts

E-cadherin acts as a regulator of transcripts associated with a wide range of cellular processes in mouse embryonic stem cells.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesca Soncin

Full Text Available We have recently shown that expression of the cell adhesion molecule E-cadherin is required for LIF-dependent pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem (ES cells.In this study, we have assessed global transcript expression in E-cadherin null (Ecad-/- ES cells cultured in either the presence or absence of LIF and compared these to the parental cell line wtD3.We show that LIF has little effect on the transcript profile of Ecad-/- ES cells, with statistically significant transcript alterations observed only for Sp8 and Stat3. Comparison of Ecad-/- and wtD3 ES cells cultured in LIF demonstrated significant alterations in the transcript profile, with effects not only confined to cell adhesion and motility but also affecting, for example, primary metabolic processes, catabolism and genes associated with apoptosis. Ecad-/- ES cells share similar, although not identical, gene expression profiles to epiblast-derived pluripotent stem cells, suggesting that E-cadherin expression may inhibit inner cell mass to epiblast transition. We further show that Ecad-/- ES cells maintain a functional β-catenin pool that is able to induce β-catenin/TCF-mediated transactivation but, contrary to previous findings, do not display endogenous β-catenin/TCF-mediated transactivation. We conclude that loss of E-cadherin in mouse ES cells leads to significant transcript alterations independently of β-catenin/TCF transactivation.

Immunocytochemical indications for neuronal co-localization of GABA and aspartate in cultured neocortex explants

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Jong, B. M.; Ruijter, J. M.; Buijs, R. M.

1989-01-01

The application of postembedding immunocytochemistry on serial semithin plastic sections, revealed the presence of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-positive and aspartate-positive neurons in cultured neocortex explants. GABA-positive neurons were found in all layers of the cultured cortex, whereas

Optimal Population of Embryonic Stem Cells in "Hanging Drop" Culture for in-vitro Differentiation to Cardiac Myocytes

OpenAIRE

MIWA, Keiko; LEE, Jong-Kook; HIDAKA, Kyoko; SHI, Rong-qian; MORISAKI, Takayuki; KODAMA, Itsuo

2002-01-01

Pluripotent embryonic stem (ES) cells differentiate to cardiac myocytes in vitro by many other previous reports demonstrated "hanging-drop" method. In this study, the number of ES cells in each hanging-drop plays an important role in the cultivation of cardiac myocytes. We examined the optimal hanging-drop size to obtain embryonic stem cell-derived cardiac cells (ESCMs) in vitro using specific labeled mouse ES cells (hCGP7) which were stably transfected with the enhanced green fluorescent pro...

Generation of Knock-in Mouse by Genome Editing.

Science.gov (United States)

Fujii, Wataru

2017-01-01

Knock-in mice are useful for evaluating endogenous gene expressions and functions in vivo. Instead of the conventional gene-targeting method using embryonic stem cells, an exogenous DNA sequence can be inserted into the target locus in the zygote using genome editing technology. In this chapter, I describe the generation of epitope-tagged mice using engineered endonuclease and single-stranded oligodeoxynucleotide through the mouse zygote as an example of how to generate a knock-in mouse by genome editing.

Marked change in microRNA expression during neuronal differentiation of human teratocarcinoma NTera2D1 and mouse embryonal carcinoma P19 cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hohjoh, Hirohiko; Fukushima, Tatsunobu

2007-01-01

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs, with a length of 19-23 nucleotides, which appear to be involved in the regulation of gene expression by inhibiting the translation of messenger RNAs carrying partially or nearly complementary sequences to the miRNAs in their 3' untranslated regions. Expression analysis of miRNAs is necessary to understand their complex role in the regulation of gene expression during the development, differentiation and proliferation of cells. Here we report on the expression profile analysis of miRNAs in human teratocarcinoma NTere2D1, mouse embryonic carcinoma P19, mouse neuroblastoma Neuro2a and rat pheochromocytoma PC12D cells, which can be induced into differentiated cells with long neuritic processes, i.e., after cell differentiation, such that the resultant cells look similar to neuronal cells. The data presented here indicate marked changes in the expression of miRNAs, as well as genes related to neuronal development, occurred in the differentiation of NTera2D1 and P19 cells. Significant changes in miRNA expression were not observed in Neuro2a and PC12D cells, although they showed apparent morphologic change between undifferentiated and differentiated cells. Of the miRNAs investigated, the expression of miRNAs belonging to the miR-302 cluster, which is known to be specifically expressed in embryonic stem cells, and of miR-124a specific to the brain, appeared to be markedly changed. The miR-302 cluster was potently expressed in undifferentiated NTera2D1 and P19 cells, but hardly in differentiated cells, such that miR-124a showed an opposite expression pattern to the miR-302 cluster. Based on these observations, it is suggested that the miR-302 cluster and miR-124a may be useful molecular indicators in the assessment of degree of undifferentiation and/or differentiation in the course of neuronal differentiation

A procedure for culturing rat neocortex explants in a serum-free nutrient medium

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Romijn, H. J.; de Jong, B. M.; Ruijter, J. M.

1988-01-01

A procedure is described for long-term culturing of rat neocortex explants in a serum-free growth medium. Slices spanning the entire cortical depth from pial to ventricular side are prepared from 6-day-old rat pups. After preincubation in Hanks' balanced salt solution with extra glucose, the

Phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate modulation in SHIP2-deficient mouse embryonic fibroblasts.

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Blero, Daniel; Zhang, Jing; Pesesse, Xavier; Payrastre, Bernard; Dumont, Jacques E; Schurmans, Stéphane; Erneux, Christophe

2005-05-01

SHIP2, the ubiquitous SH2 domain containing inositol 5-phosphatase, includes a series of protein interacting domains and has the ability to dephosphorylate phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate [PtdIns(3,4,5)P(3)]in vitro. The present study, which was undertaken to evaluate the impact of SHIP2 on PtdIns(3,4,5)P(3) levels, was performed in a mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) model using SHIP2 deficient (-/-) MEF cells derived from knockout mice. PtdIns(3,4,5)P(3) was upregulated in serum stimulated -/- MEF cells as compared to +/+ MEF cells. Although the absence of SHIP2 had no effect on basal PtdIns(3,4,5)P(3) levels, we show here that this lipid was significantly upregulated in SHIP2 -/- cells but only after short-term (i.e. 5-10 min) incubation with serum. The difference in PtdIns(3,4,5)P(3) levels in heterozygous fibroblast cells was intermediate between the +/+ and the -/- cells. In our model, insulin-like growth factor-1 stimulation did not show this upregulation. Serum stimulated phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase) activity appeared to be comparable between +/+ and -/- cells. Moreover, protein kinase B, but not mitogen activated protein kinase activity, was also potentiated in SHIP2 deficient cells stimulated by serum. The upregulation of protein kinase B activity in serum stimulated cells was totally reversed in the presence of the PI 3-kinase inhibitor LY-294002, in both +/+ and -/- cells. Altogether, these data establish a link between SHIP2 and the acute control of PtdIns(3,4,5)P(3) levels in intact cells.

Serum folate and the severity of atrophy of the neocortex in Alzheimer disease: findings from the Nun study.

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Snowdon, D A; Tully, C L; Smith, C D; Riley, K P; Markesbery, W R

2000-04-01

Previous studies suggested that low concentrations of folate in the blood are related to poor cognitive function, dementia, and Alzheimer disease-related neurodegeneration of the brain. Our aim was to determine whether serum folate is inversely associated with the severity of atrophy of the neocortex. Nutrients, lipoproteins, and nutritional markers were measured in the blood of 30 participants in the Nun Study from one convent who later died when they were 78-101 y old (mean: 91 y). At autopsy, several neuropathologic indicators of Alzheimer disease were determined, including the degree of atrophy of 3 lobes of the neocortex (frontal, temporal, and parietal) and the number of neocortical Alzheimer disease lesions (ie, senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles) as assessed by a neuropathologist. The correlation between serum folate and the severity of atrophy of the neocortex was -0.40 (P = 0.03). Among a subset of 15 participants with significant numbers of Alzheimer disease lesions in the neocortex, the correlation between folate and atrophy was -0.80 (P = 0.0006). Atrophy may be specific to low folate because none of the 18 other nutrients, lipoproteins, or nutritional markers measured in the blood had significant negative correlations with atrophy. Among elderly Catholic sisters who lived in one convent, ate from the same kitchen, and were highly comparable for a wide range of environmental and lifestyle factors, low serum folate was strongly associated with atrophy of the cerebral cortex. Definitive evidence for this relation and its temporal sequence awaits the findings of other studies.

Direction of Amygdala-Neocortex Interaction During Dynamic Facial Expression Processing.

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Sato, Wataru; Kochiyama, Takanori; Uono, Shota; Yoshikawa, Sakiko; Toichi, Motomi

2017-03-01

Dynamic facial expressions of emotion strongly elicit multifaceted emotional, perceptual, cognitive, and motor responses. Neuroimaging studies revealed that some subcortical (e.g., amygdala) and neocortical (e.g., superior temporal sulcus and inferior frontal gyrus) brain regions and their functional interaction were involved in processing dynamic facial expressions. However, the direction of the functional interaction between the amygdala and the neocortex remains unknown. To investigate this issue, we re-analyzed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data from 2 studies and magnetoencephalography (MEG) data from 1 study. First, a psychophysiological interaction analysis of the fMRI data confirmed the functional interaction between the amygdala and neocortical regions. Then, dynamic causal modeling analysis was used to compare models with forward, backward, or bidirectional effective connectivity between the amygdala and neocortical networks in the fMRI and MEG data. The results consistently supported the model of effective connectivity from the amygdala to the neocortex. Further increasing time-window analysis of the MEG demonstrated that this model was valid after 200 ms from the stimulus onset. These data suggest that emotional processing in the amygdala rapidly modulates some neocortical processing, such as perception, recognition, and motor mimicry, when observing dynamic facial expressions of emotion. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Neural Progenitors in the Developing Neocortex of the Northern Tree Shrew (Tupaia belangeri Show a Closer Relationship to Gyrencephalic Primates Than to Lissencephalic Rodents

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Sebastian Römer

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The neocortex is the most complex part of the mammalian brain and as such it has undergone tremendous expansion during evolution, especially in primates. The majority of neocortical neurons originate from distinct neural stem and progenitor cells (NPCs located in the ventricular and subventricular zone (SVZ. Previous studies revealed that the SVZ thickness as well as the abundance and distribution of NPCs, especially that of basal radial glia (bRG, differ markedly between the lissencephalic rodent and gyrencephalic primate neocortex. The northern tree shrew (Tupaia belangeri is a rat-sized mammal with a high brain to body mass ratio, which stands phylogenetically mid-way between rodents and primates. Our study provides – for the first time – detailed data on the presence, abundance and distribution of bRG and other distinct NPCs in the developing neocortex of the northern tree shrew (Tupaia belangeri. We show that the developing tree shrew neocortex is characterized by an expanded SVZ, a high abundance of Pax6+ NPCs in the SVZ, and a relatively high percentage of bRG at peak of upper-layer neurogenesis. We further demonstrate that key features of tree shrew neocortex development, e.g., the presence, abundance and distribution of distinct NPCs, are closer related to those of gyrencephalic primates than to those of ferret and lissencephalic rodents. Together, our study provides novel insight into the evolution of bRG and other distinct NPCs in the neocortex development of Euarchontoglires and introduces the tree shrew as a potential novel model organism in the area of human brain development and developmental disorders.

Mouse visual neocortex supports multiple stereotyped patterns of microcircuit activity.

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Sadovsky, Alexander J; MacLean, Jason N

2014-06-04

Spiking correlations between neocortical neurons provide insight into the underlying synaptic connectivity that defines cortical microcircuitry. Here, using two-photon calcium fluorescence imaging, we observed the simultaneous dynamics of hundreds of neurons in slices of mouse primary visual cortex (V1). Consistent with a balance of excitation and inhibition, V1 dynamics were characterized by a linear scaling between firing rate and circuit size. Using lagged firing correlations between neurons, we generated functional wiring diagrams to evaluate the topological features of V1 microcircuitry. We found that circuit connectivity exhibited both cyclic graph motifs, indicating recurrent wiring, and acyclic graph motifs, indicating feedforward wiring. After overlaying the functional wiring diagrams onto the imaged field of view, we found properties consistent with Rentian scaling: wiring diagrams were topologically efficient because they minimized wiring with a modular architecture. Within single imaged fields of view, V1 contained multiple discrete circuits that were overlapping and highly interdigitated but were still distinct from one another. The majority of neurons that were shared between circuits displayed peri-event spiking activity whose timing was specific to the active circuit, whereas spike times for a smaller percentage of neurons were invariant to circuit identity. These data provide evidence that V1 microcircuitry exhibits balanced dynamics, is efficiently arranged in anatomical space, and is capable of supporting a diversity of multineuron spike firing patterns from overlapping sets of neurons. Copyright © 2014 the authors 0270-6474/14/347769-09$15.00/0.

Generation of Corneal Keratocytes from Human Embryonic Stem Cells.

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Hertsenberg, Andrew J; Funderburgh, James L

2016-01-01

Human Embryonic Stem Cells (hESC) offer an important resource as a limitless supply of any differentiated cell type of the human body. Keratocytes, cells from the corneal stroma, may have the potential for restoration of vision in cell therapy and biomedical engineering applications, but these specialized cells are not readily expanded in vitro. Here we describe a two-part method to produce keratocytes from the H1 hESC cell line. The hESC cells, maintained and expanded in feeder-free culture medium are first differentiated to neural crest cells using the stromal-derived inducing activity (SDIA) of the PA6 mouse embryonic fibroblast cell line. The resulting neural crest cells are selected by their expression of cell-surface CD271 and subsequently cultured as 3D pellets in a defined differentiation medium to induce a keratocyte phenotype.

PTBP1 is required for embryonic development before gastrulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Suckale, Jakob; Wendling, Olivia; Masjkur, Jimmy; Jäger, Melanie; Münster, Carla; Anastassiadis, Konstantinos; Stewart, A Francis; Solimena, Michele

2011-02-17

Polypyrimidine-tract binding protein 1 (PTBP1) is an important cellular regulator of messenger RNAs influencing the alternative splicing profile of a cell as well as its mRNA stability, location and translation. In addition, it is diverted by some viruses to facilitate their replication. Here, we used a novel PTBP1 knockout mouse to analyse the tissue expression pattern of PTBP1 as well as the effect of its complete removal during development. We found evidence of strong PTBP1 expression in embryonic stem cells and throughout embryonic development, especially in the developing brain and spinal cord, the olfactory and auditory systems, the heart, the liver, the kidney, the brown fat and cartilage primordia. This widespread distribution points towards a role of PTBP1 during embryonic development. Homozygous offspring, identified by PCR and immunofluorescence, were able to implant but were arrested or retarded in growth. At day 7.5 of embryonic development (E7.5) the null mutants were about 5x smaller than the control littermates and the gap in body size widened with time. At mid-gestation, all homozygous embryos were resorbed/degraded. No homozygous mice were genotyped at E12 and the age of weaning. Embryos lacking PTBP1 did not display differentiation into the 3 germ layers and cavitation of the epiblast, which are hallmarks of gastrulation. In addition, homozygous mutants displayed malformed ectoplacental cones and yolk sacs, both early supportive structure of the embryo proper. We conclude that PTBP1 is not required for the earliest isovolumetric divisions and differentiation steps of the zygote up to the formation of the blastocyst. However, further post-implantation development requires PTBP1 and stalls in homozygous null animals with a phenotype of dramatically reduced size and aberration in embryonic and extra-embryonic structures.

Embryonic Stem Cell Proteins and MicroRNAs in the Etiology of Germ Cell Cancer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

R. Eini (Ronak)

2013-01-01

textabstractIn the early 1980s, a population of unique cells was isolated from the inner cell mass (ICM) of the mouse pre-implantation embryo named embryonic stem (ES) cells. These cells were generated by removing the ICM from pre-implantation blastocysts. The resulting cells were found to be

Do embryonic polar bodies commit suicide?

Science.gov (United States)

Fabian, Dušan; Čikoš, Štefan; Rehák, Pavol; Koppel, Juraj

2014-02-01

The extrusion and elimination of unnecessary gametic/embryonic material is one of the key events that determines the success of further development in all living organisms. Oocytes produce the first polar body to fulfill the maturation process just before ovulation, and release the second polar body immediately after fertilization. The aim of this study was to compile a physiological overview of elimination of polar bodies during early preimplantation development in mice. Our results show that three-quarters of the first polar bodies were lost even at the zygotic stage; the 4-cell stage embryos contained only one (second) polar body, and the elimination of second polar bodies proceeded continuously during later development. Both first and second polar bodies showed several typical features of apoptosis: phosphatidylserine redistribution (observed for the first time in the first polar body), specific DNA degradation, condensed nuclear morphology, and inability to exclude cationic dye from the nucleus during the terminal stage of the apoptotic process. Caspase-3 activity was recorded only in the second polar body. From the morphological point of view, mouse polar bodies acted very similarly to damaged embryonic cells which have lost contact with their neighboring blastomeres. In conclusion, polar bodies possess all the molecular equipment necessary for triggering and executing an active suicide process. Furthermore, similarly as in dying embryonic cells, stressing external conditions (culture in vitro) might accelerate and increase the incidence of apoptotic elimination of the polar bodies in embryos.

DIFFERENTIATION OF EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS: LESSONS FROM EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

EMOKE PALL

2008-05-01

Full Text Available Embryonic stem (ES cells, the undifferentiated cells of early embryos are established as permanent lines and are characterised by their self-renewal capacity and the ability to retain their developmental capacity in vivo and in vitro. The pluripotent properties of ES cells are the basis of gene targeting technologies used to create mutant mouse strains with inactivated genes by homologous recombination. There are several methods to induce the formation of EBs. One of them the formation by aggregating ES cells in hanging drops, using gravity as an aggregation force. This method presents the advantage of obtaining well-calibrated EBs almost identical in size. We used at our experiment the mouse ES cell line KA1/11/C3/C8 with a normal karyotype, at 14th passages. Immunohistochemical examination was aimed to identify tissue-restricted proteins for the two differentiated lineages: titin as a cell-specific antigen for cardiac and skeletal muscle, betaIII-tubulin for the neuronal differentiation, cytokeratin Endo-A (TROMA for the presence of mesenchymal progenitor cells, Oct-4 for the presence of the undifferentiated ES cells. The beating cardiac muscle clumps showed more synchronous rhythm than those seen in EBs obtained from suspension culture method, where the beating cardiac muscle clumps appeared later, had a lower frequency and were uneven. The synaptic networks of neuronal cells were best developed in EBs from suspension, compared to those observed in EBs from hanging-drop method.

Amelioration of improper differentiation of somatostatin-positive interneurons by triiodothyronine in a growth-retarded hypothyroid mouse strain.

Science.gov (United States)

Uchida, Katsuya; Taguchi, Yusuke; Sato, Chika; Miyazaki, Hidetaka; Kobayashi, Kenichi; Kobayashi, Tetsuya; Itoi, Keiichi

2014-01-24

Thyroid hormone (TH) plays an important role in brain development, and TH deficiency during pregnancy or early postnatal periods leads to neurological disorders such as cretinism. Hypothyroidism reduces the number of parvalbumin (PV)-positive interneurons in the neocortex and hippocampus. Here we used a mouse strain (growth-retarded; grt) that shows growth retardation and hypothyroidism to examine whether somatostatin (Sst)-positive interneurons that are generated from the same pool of neural progenitor cells as PV-positive cells are also altered by TH deficiency. The number of PV-positive interneurons was significantly decreased in the neocortex and hippocampus of grt mice as compared with normal control mice. In contrast to the decrease in the number of PV neurons, the number of Sst-positive interneurons in grt mice was increased in the stratum oriens of the hippocampus and the hilus of the dentate gyrus, although their number was unchanged in the neocortex. These changes were reversed by triiodothyronine administration from postnatal day (PD) 0 to 20. TH supplementation that was initiated after PD21 did not, however, affect the number of PV- or Sst-positive cells. These results suggest that during the first three postnatal weeks, TH may be critical for the generation of subpopulations of interneurons. Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Single cell lineage analysis of mouse embryonic stem cells at the exit from pluripotency

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jamie Trott

2013-08-01

Understanding how interactions between extracellular signalling pathways and transcription factor networks influence cellular decision making will be crucial for understanding mammalian embryogenesis and for generating specialised cell types in vitro. To this end, pluripotent mouse Embryonic Stem (mES cells have proven to be a useful model system. However, understanding how transcription factors and signalling pathways affect decisions made by individual cells is confounded by the fact that measurements are generally made on groups of cells, whilst individual mES cells differentiate at different rates and towards different lineages, even in conditions that favour a particular lineage. Here we have used single-cell measurements of transcription factor expression and Wnt/β-catenin signalling activity to investigate their effects on lineage commitment decisions made by individual cells. We find that pluripotent mES cells exhibit differing degrees of heterogeneity in their expression of important regulators from pluripotency, depending on the signalling environment to which they are exposed. As mES cells differentiate, downregulation of Nanog and Oct4 primes cells for neural commitment, whilst loss of Sox2 expression primes cells for primitive streak commitment. Furthermore, we find that Wnt signalling acts through Nanog to direct cells towards a primitive streak fate, but that transcriptionally active β-catenin is associated with both neural and primitive streak commitment. These observations confirm and extend previous suggestions that pluripotency genes influence lineage commitment and demonstrate how their dynamic expression affects the direction of lineage commitment, whilst illustrating two ways in which the Wnt signalling pathway acts on this network during cell fate assignment.

Analysis of mammalian gene function through broad-based phenotypic screens across a consortium of mouse clinics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

de Angelis, Martin Hrabě; Nicholson, George; Selloum, Mohammed

2015-01-01

The function of the majority of genes in the mouse and human genomes remains unknown. The mouse embryonic stem cell knockout resource provides a basis for the characterization of relationships between genes and phenotypes. The EUMODIC consortium developed and validated robust methodologies...

[Regulation of in vitro and in vivo differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells, embryonic germ cells, and teratocarcinoma cells by TGFb family signaling factors].

Science.gov (United States)

Gordeeva, O F; Nikonova, T M; Lifantseva, N V

2009-01-01

The activity of specific signaling and transcription factors determines the cell fate in normal development and in tumor transformation. The transcriptional profiles of gene-components of different branches of TGFbeta family signaling pathways were studied in experimental models of initial stages of three-dimensional in vitro differentiation of embryonic stem cells, embryonic germ cells and teratocarcinoma cells and in teratomas and teratocarcinomas developed after their transplantation into immunodeficient Nude mice. Gene profile analysis of studied cell systems have revealed that expression patterns of ActivinA, Nodal, Lefty1, Lefty2, TGF TGFbeta1, BMP4, and GDF were identical in pluripotent stem cells whereas the mRNAs of all examined genes with the exception of Inhibin betaA/ActivinA were detected in the teratocarcinoma cells. These results indicate that differential activity of signaling pathways of the TGFbeta family factors regulates pluripotent state maintenance and pluripotent stem cell differentiation into the progenitors of three germ layers and extraembryonic structures and that normal expression pattern of TGFbeta family factors is rearranged in embryonic teratocarcinoma cells during tumor growth in vitro and in vivo.

DNA polymerases beta and lambda mediate overlapping and independent roles in base excision repair in mouse embryonic fibroblasts.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elena K Braithwaite

2010-08-01

Full Text Available Base excision repair (BER is a DNA repair pathway designed to correct small base lesions in genomic DNA. While DNA polymerase beta (pol beta is known to be the main polymerase in the BER pathway, various studies have implicated other DNA polymerases in back-up roles. One such polymerase, DNA polymerase lambda (pol lambda, was shown to be important in BER of oxidative DNA damage. To further explore roles of the X-family DNA polymerases lambda and beta in BER, we prepared a mouse embryonic fibroblast cell line with deletions in the genes for both pol beta and pol lambda. Neutral red viability assays demonstrated that pol lambda and pol beta double null cells were hypersensitive to alkylating and oxidizing DNA damaging agents. In vitro BER assays revealed a modest contribution of pol lambda to single-nucleotide BER of base lesions. Additionally, using co-immunoprecipitation experiments with purified enzymes and whole cell extracts, we found that both pol lambda and pol beta interact with the upstream DNA glycosylases for repair of alkylated and oxidized DNA bases. Such interactions could be important in coordinating roles of these polymerases during BER.

Light microscopic autoradiographic localization of mu and delta opioid binding sites in the mouse central nervous system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moskowitz, A.S.; Goodman, R.R.

1984-01-01

Much work has been done on opioid systems in the rat CNS. Although the mouse is widely used in pharmacological studies of opioid action, little has been done to characterize opioid systems in this species. In the present study the distribution of mu and delta opioid binding sites in the mouse CNS was examined using a quantitative in vitro autoradiography procedure. Tritiated dihydromorphine was used to visualize mu sites and [3H-d-Ala2-d-Leu5]enkephalin with a low concentration of morphine was used to visualize delta sites. Mu and delta site localizations in the mouse are very similar to those previously described in the rat (Goodman, R.R., S.H. Snyder, M.J. Kuhar, and W.S. Young, 3d (1980) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 77:6239-6243), with certain exceptions and additions. Mu and delta sites were observed in sensory processing areas, limbic system, extrapyramidal motor system, and cranial parasympathetic system. Differential distributions of mu and delta sites were noted in many areas. Mu sites were prominent in laminae I, IV, and VI of the neocortex, in patches in the striatum, and in the ventral pallidum, nucleus accumbens, medial and midline thalamic nuclei, medial habenular nucleus, interpeduncular nucleus, and laminae I and II of the spinal cord. In contrast, delta sites were prominent in all laminae of the neocortex, olfactory tubercle, diffusely throughout the striatum, and in the basal, lateral, and cortical nuclei of the amygdala. The determination of the differential distributions of opioid binding sites should prove useful in suggesting anatomical substrates for the actions of opiates and opioids

Thyroid hormone regulates the expression of the sonic hedgehog signaling pathway in the embryonic and adult Mammalian brain.

Science.gov (United States)

Desouza, Lynette A; Sathanoori, Malini; Kapoor, Richa; Rajadhyaksha, Neha; Gonzalez, Luis E; Kottmann, Andreas H; Tole, Shubha; Vaidya, Vidita A

2011-05-01

Thyroid hormone is important for development and plasticity in the immature and adult mammalian brain. Several thyroid hormone-responsive genes are regulated during specific developmental time windows, with relatively few influenced across the lifespan. We provide novel evidence that thyroid hormone regulates expression of the key developmental morphogen sonic hedgehog (Shh), and its coreceptors patched (Ptc) and smoothened (Smo), in the early embryonic and adult forebrain. Maternal hypo- and hyperthyroidism bidirectionally influenced Shh mRNA in embryonic forebrain signaling centers at stages before fetal thyroid hormone synthesis. Further, Smo and Ptc expression were significantly decreased in the forebrain of embryos derived from hypothyroid dams. Adult-onset thyroid hormone perturbations also regulated expression of the Shh pathway bidirectionally, with a significant induction of Shh, Ptc, and Smo after hyperthyroidism and a decline in Smo expression in the hypothyroid brain. Short-term T₃ administration resulted in a significant induction of cortical Shh mRNA expression and also enhanced reporter gene expression in Shh(+/LacZ) mice. Further, acute T₃ treatment of cortical neuronal cultures resulted in a rapid and significant increase in Shh mRNA, suggesting direct effects. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays performed on adult neocortex indicated enhanced histone acetylation at the Shh promoter after acute T₃ administration, providing further support that Shh is a thyroid hormone-responsive gene. Our results indicate that maternal and adult-onset perturbations of euthyroid status cause robust and region-specific changes in the Shh pathway in the embryonic and adult forebrain, implicating Shh as a possible mechanistic link for specific neurodevelopmental effects of thyroid hormone.

Endogenous production of fibronectin is required for self-renewal of cultured mouse embryonic stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Hunt, Geoffrey C; Singh, Purva; Schwarzbauer, Jean E

2012-09-10

Pluripotent cells are attached to the extracellular matrix (ECM) as they make cell fate decisions within the stem cell niche. Here we show that the ubiquitous ECM protein fibronectin is required for self-renewal decisions by cultured mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells. Undifferentiated mES cells produce fibronectin and assemble a fibrillar matrix. Increasing the level of substrate fibronectin increased cell spreading and integrin receptor signaling through focal adhesion kinase, while concomitantly inducing the loss of Nanog and Oct4 self-renewal markers. Conversely, reducing fibronectin production by mES cells growing on a feeder-free gelatin substrate caused loss of cell adhesion, decreased integrin signaling, and decreased expression of self-renewal markers. These effects were reversed by providing the cells with exogenous fibronectin, thereby restoring adhesion to the gelatin substrate. Interestingly, mES cells do not adhere directly to the gelatin substrate, but rather adhere indirectly through gelatin-bound fibronectin, which facilitates self-renewal via its effects on cell adhesion. These results provide new insights into the mechanism of regulation of self-renewal by growth on a gelatin-coated surface. The effects of increasing or decreasing fibronectin levels show that self-renewal depends on an intermediate level of cell-fibronectin interactions. By providing cell adhesive signals that can act with other self-renewal factors to maintain mES cell pluripotency, fibronectin is therefore a necessary component of the self-renewal signaling pathway in culture. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Reverse engineering a mouse embryonic stem cell-specific transcriptional network reveals a new modulator of neuronal differentiation.

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De Cegli, Rossella; Iacobacci, Simona; Flore, Gemma; Gambardella, Gennaro; Mao, Lei; Cutillo, Luisa; Lauria, Mario; Klose, Joachim; Illingworth, Elizabeth; Banfi, Sandro; di Bernardo, Diego

2013-01-01

Gene expression profiles can be used to infer previously unknown transcriptional regulatory interaction among thousands of genes, via systems biology 'reverse engineering' approaches. We 'reverse engineered' an embryonic stem (ES)-specific transcriptional network from 171 gene expression profiles, measured in ES cells, to identify master regulators of gene expression ('hubs'). We discovered that E130012A19Rik (E13), highly expressed in mouse ES cells as compared with differentiated cells, was a central 'hub' of the network. We demonstrated that E13 is a protein-coding gene implicated in regulating the commitment towards the different neuronal subtypes and glia cells. The overexpression and knock-down of E13 in ES cell lines, undergoing differentiation into neurons and glia cells, caused a strong up-regulation of the glutamatergic neurons marker Vglut2 and a strong down-regulation of the GABAergic neurons marker GAD65 and of the radial glia marker Blbp. We confirmed E13 expression in the cerebral cortex of adult mice and during development. By immuno-based affinity purification, we characterized protein partners of E13, involved in the Polycomb complex. Our results suggest a role of E13 in regulating the division between glutamatergic projection neurons and GABAergic interneurons and glia cells possibly by epigenetic-mediated transcriptional regulation.

Targeted disruption of the mouse Lipoma Preferred Partner gene

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vervenne, Hilke B.V.K.; Crombez, Koen R.M.O.; Delvaux, Els L.; Janssens, Veerle; Ven, Wim J.M. van de; Petit, Marleen M.R.

2009-01-01

LPP (Lipoma Preferred Partner) is a zyxin-related cell adhesion protein that is involved in the regulation of cell migration. We generated mice with a targeted disruption of the Lpp gene and analysed the importance of Lpp for embryonic development and adult functions. Aberrant Mendelian inheritance in heterozygous crosses suggested partial embryonic lethality of Lpp -/- females. Fertility of Lpp -/- males was proven to be normal, however, females from Lpp -/- x Lpp -/- crosses produced a strongly reduced number of offspring, probably due to a combination of female embryonic lethality and aberrant pregnancies. Apart from these developmental and reproductive abnormalities, Lpp -/- mice that were born reached adulthood without displaying any additional macroscopic defects. On the other hand, Lpp -/- mouse embryonic fibroblasts exhibited reduced migration capacity, reduced viability, and reduced expression of some Lpp interaction partners. Finally, we discovered a short nuclear form of Lpp, expressed mainly in testis via an alternative promoter.

A Novel Atypical PKC-Iota Inhibitor, Echinochrome A, Enhances Cardiomyocyte Differentiation from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Hyoung Kyu; Cho, Sung Woo; Heo, Hye Jin; Jeong, Seung Hun; Kim, Min; Ko, Kyung Soo; Rhee, Byoung Doo; Mishchenko, Natalia P; Vasileva, Elena A; Fedoreyev, Sergey A; Stonik, Valentin A; Han, Jin

2018-06-02

Echinochrome A (EchA) is a marine bioproduct extracted from sea urchins having antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and chelating effects, and is the active component of the clinical drug histochrome. We investigated the potential use of Ech A for inducing cardiomyocyte differentiation from mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). We also assessed the effects of Ech A on mitochondrial mass, inner membrane potential (Δψm), reactive oxygen species generation, and levels of Ca 2+ . To identify the direct target of Ech A, we performed in vitro kinase activity and surface plasmon resonance binding assays. Ech A dose-dependently enhanced cardiomyocyte differentiation with higher beating rates. Ech A (50 μM) increased the mitochondrial mass and membrane potential but did not alter the mitochondrial superoxide and Ca 2+ levels. The in vitro kinase activity of the atypical protein kinase C-iota (PKCι) was significantly decreased by 50 μM of Ech A with an IC 50 for PKCι activity of 107 μM. Computational protein-ligand docking simulation results suggested the direct binding of Ech A to PKCι, and surface plasmon resonance confirmed the direct binding with a low K D of 6.3 nM. Therefore, Ech A is a potential drug for enhancing cardiomyocyte differentiation from mESCs through direct binding to PKCι and inhibition of its activity.

A hypothesis for the evolution of the upper layers of the neocortex through co-option of the olfactory cortex developmental program.

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Federico eLuzzati

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The neocortex is unique to mammals and its evolutionary origin is still highly debated. The neocortex is generated by the dorsal pallium ventricular zone, a germinative domain that in reptiles give rise to the dorsal cortex. Whether this latter allocortical structure contains homologues of all neocortical cell types it is unclear. Recently we described a population of DCX+/Tbr1+ cells that is specifically associated with the layer II of higher order areas of both the neocortex and of the more evolutionary conserved piriform cortex. In a reptile similar cells are present in the layer II of the olfactory cortex and the DVR but not in the dorsal cortex. These data are consistent with the proposal that the reptilian dorsal cortex is homologous only to the deep layers of the neocortex while the upper layers are a mammalian innovation. Based on our observations we extended these ideas by hypothesizing that this innovation was obtained by co-opting a lateral and/or ventral pallium developmental program. Interestingly, an analysis in the Allen brain atlas revealed a striking similarity in gene expression between neocortical layers II/III and piriform cortex. We thus propose a model in which the early neocortical column originated by the superposition of the lateral olfactory and dorsal cortex. This idea is consistent with previous hypotheses that the peri-allocortex (i.e insular and perirhinal cortex may represent the more ancient neocortical part. Our model may have also interesting implications in the study of sensory processing in both neocortex and piriform cortex. The great advances in deciphering the molecular logic of the amniote pallium developmental programs will hopefully enable to directly test our hypotheses in the next future.

Visualization of cholinoceptive neurons in the rat neocortex : colocalization of muscarinic and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zee, E.A. van der; Streefland, C.; Strosberg, A.D.; Schröder, H.; Luiten, P.G.M.

The present investigation analyzes the cellular distribution of muscarinic and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in rat neocortex, by use of monoclonal antibodies raised against purified receptor proteins. The degree of colocalization of both types of receptors was determined by way of

Immuno-detection of cleaved SNAP-25 from differentiated mouse embryonic stem cells provides a sensitive assay for determination of botulinum A toxin and antitoxin potency.

Science.gov (United States)

Yadirgi, G; Stickings, P; Rajagopal, S; Liu, Y; Sesardic, D

2017-12-01

Botulinum toxin type A is a causative agent of human botulism. Due to high toxicity and ease of production it is classified by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention as a category A bioterrorism agent. The same serotype, BoNT/A, is also the most widely used in pharmaceutical preparations for treatment of a diverse range of neuromuscular disorders. Traditionally, animals are used to confirm the presence and activity of toxin and to establish neutralizing capabilities of countermeasures in toxin neutralization tests. Cell based assays for BoNT/A have been reported as the most viable alternative to animal models, since they are capable of reflecting all key steps (binding, translocation, internalization and cleavage of intracellular substrate) involved in toxin activity. In this paper we report preliminary development of a simple immunochemical method for specifically detecting BoNT/A cleaved intracellular substrate, SNAP-25, in cell lysates of neurons derived from mouse embryonic stem cells. The assay offers sensitivity of better than 0.1LD50/ml (3fM) which is not matched by other functional assays, including the mouse bioassay, and provides serotype specificity for quantitative detection of BoNT/A and anti-BoNT/A antitoxin. Subject to formal validation, the method described here could potentially be used as a substitute for the mouse bioassay to measure potency and consistency of therapeutic products. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

InGaP - CREATE portal | LSDB Archive [Life Science Database Archive metadata

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available : Fixed mouse brain sections were fluorescent-labeled and observed by confocal laser scanning microscope usi...ted GFP-fusion KIAA/mKIAA in HEK293 cells were observed by fluorescent microscope...ope (neocortex 1) Observation by Confocal laser scanning microscope (neocortex 1) C...onfocal laser scanning microscope (neocortex 2) Observation by Confocal laser scanning microscope (neocortex... 2) Confocal laser scanning microscope (hippocampus) Observation by Confocal laser scanning microscope

Expression of biomarker genes of differentiation in D3 mouse embryonic stem cells after exposure to different embryotoxicant and non-embryotoxicant model chemicals

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Andrea C. Romero

2015-12-01

Full Text Available There is a necessity to develop in vitro methods for testing embryotoxicity (Romero et al., 2015 [1]. We studied the progress of D3 mouse embryonic stem cells differentiation exposed to model embryotoxicants and non-embryotoxicants chemicals through the expression of biomarker genes. We studied a set of 16 different genes biomarkers of general cellular processes (Cdk1, Myc, Jun, Mixl, Cer and Wnt3, ectoderm formation (Nrcam, Nes, Shh and Pnpla6, mesoderm formation (Mesp1, Vegfa, Myo1e and Hdac7 and endoderm formation (Flk1 and Afp. We offer dose response in order to derive the concentration causing either 50% or 200% of expression of the biomarker gene. These records revealed to be a valuable end-point to predict in vitro the embryotoxicity of chemicals (Romero et al., 2015 [1].

Meta-analysis of differentiating mouse embryonic stem cell gene expression kinetics reveals early change of a small gene set.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Clive H Glover

2006-11-01

Full Text Available Stem cell differentiation involves critical changes in gene expression. Identification of these should provide endpoints useful for optimizing stem cell propagation as well as potential clues about mechanisms governing stem cell maintenance. Here we describe the results of a new meta-analysis methodology applied to multiple gene expression datasets from three mouse embryonic stem cell (ESC lines obtained at specific time points during the course of their differentiation into various lineages. We developed methods to identify genes with expression changes that correlated with the altered frequency of functionally defined, undifferentiated ESC in culture. In each dataset, we computed a novel statistical confidence measure for every gene which captured the certainty that a particular gene exhibited an expression pattern of interest within that dataset. This permitted a joint analysis of the datasets, despite the different experimental designs. Using a ranking scheme that favored genes exhibiting patterns of interest, we focused on the top 88 genes whose expression was consistently changed when ESC were induced to differentiate. Seven of these (103728_at, 8430410A17Rik, Klf2, Nr0b1, Sox2, Tcl1, and Zfp42 showed a rapid decrease in expression concurrent with a decrease in frequency of undifferentiated cells and remained predictive when evaluated in additional maintenance and differentiating protocols. Through a novel meta-analysis, this study identifies a small set of genes whose expression is useful for identifying changes in stem cell frequencies in cultures of mouse ESC. The methods and findings have broader applicability to understanding the regulation of self-renewal of other stem cell types.

De novo CNV formation in mouse embryonic stem cells occurs in the absence of Xrcc4-dependent nonhomologous end joining.

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Martin F Arlt

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Spontaneous copy number variant (CNV mutations are an important factor in genomic structural variation, genomic disorders, and cancer. A major class of CNVs, termed nonrecurrent CNVs, is thought to arise by nonhomologous DNA repair mechanisms due to the presence of short microhomologies, blunt ends, or short insertions at junctions of normal and de novo pathogenic CNVs, features recapitulated in experimental systems in which CNVs are induced by exogenous replication stress. To test whether the canonical nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ pathway of double-strand break (DSB repair is involved in the formation of this class of CNVs, chromosome integrity was monitored in NHEJ-deficient Xrcc4(-/- mouse embryonic stem (ES cells following treatment with low doses of aphidicolin, a DNA replicative polymerase inhibitor. Mouse ES cells exhibited replication stress-induced CNV formation in the same manner as human fibroblasts, including the existence of syntenic hotspot regions, such as in the Auts2 and Wwox loci. The frequency and location of spontaneous and aphidicolin-induced CNV formation were not altered by loss of Xrcc4, as would be expected if canonical NHEJ were the predominant pathway of CNV formation. Moreover, de novo CNV junctions displayed a typical pattern of microhomology and blunt end use that did not change in the absence of Xrcc4. A number of complex CNVs were detected in both wild-type and Xrcc4(-/- cells, including an example of a catastrophic, chromothripsis event. These results establish that nonrecurrent CNVs can be, and frequently are, formed by mechanisms other than Xrcc4-dependent NHEJ.

MiRNA-mediated regulation of cell signaling and homeostasis in the early mouse embryo.

Science.gov (United States)

Pernaute, Barbara; Spruce, Thomas; Rodriguez, Tristan A; Manzanares, Miguel

2011-02-15

At the time of implantation the mouse embryo is composed of three tissues the epiblast, trophectoderm and primitive endoderm. As development progresses the epiblast goes on to form the foetus whilst the trophectoderm and primitive endoderm give rise to extra-embryonic structures with important roles in embryo patterning and nutrition. Dramatic changes in gene expression occur during early embryo development and these require regulation at different levels. miRNAs are small non coding RNAs that have emerged over the last decade as important post-transcriptional repressors of gene expression. The roles played by miRNAs during early mammalian development are only starting to be elucidated. In order to gain insight into the function of miRNAs in the different lineages of the early mouse embryo we have analysed in depth the phenotype of embryos and extra-embryonic stem cells mutant for the miRNA maturation protein Dicer. This study revealed that miRNAs are involved in regulating cell signaling and homeostasis in the early embryo. Specifically, we identified a role for miRNAs in regulating the Erk signaling pathway in the extra-embryonic endoderm, cell cycle progression in extra-embryonic tissues and apoptosis in the epiblast.

Absence of Rybp Compromises Neural Differentiation of Embryonic Stem Cells

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Gergo Kovacs

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Rybp (Ring1 and Yy1 Binding Protein is a transcriptional regulator and member of the noncanonical polycomb repressive complex 1 with essential role in early embryonic development. We have previously described that alteration of Rybp dosage in mouse models induced striking neural tube defects (NTDs, exencephaly, and disorganized neurocortex. In this study we further investigated the role of Rybp in neural differentiation by utilising wild type (rybp+/+ and rybp null mutant (rybp-/- embryonic stem cells (ESCs and tried to uncover underlying molecular events that are responsible for the observed phenotypic changes. We found that rybp null mutant ESCs formed less matured neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes from existing progenitors than wild type cells. Furthermore, lack of rybp coincided with altered gene expression of key neural markers including Pax6 and Plagl1 pinpointing a possible transcriptional circuit among these genes.

Biomechanical forces promote embryonic haematopoiesis

Science.gov (United States)

Adamo, Luigi; Naveiras, Olaia; Wenzel, Pamela L.; McKinney-Freeman, Shannon; Mack, Peter J.; Gracia-Sancho, Jorge; Suchy-Dicey, Astrid; Yoshimoto, Momoko; Lensch, M. William; Yoder, Mervin C.; García-Cardeña, Guillermo; Daley, George Q.

2009-01-01

Biomechanical forces are emerging as critical regulators of embryogenesis, particularly in the developing cardiovascular system1,2. After initiation of the heartbeat in vertebrates, cells lining the ventral aspect of the dorsal aorta, the placental vessels, and the umbilical and vitelline arteries initiate expression of the transcription factor Runx1 (refs 3–5), a master regulator of haematopoiesis, and give rise to haematopoietic cells4. It remains unknown whether the biomechanical forces imposed on the vascular wall at this developmental stage act as a determinant of haematopoietic potential6. Here, using mouse embryonic stem cells differentiated in vitro, we show that fluid shear stress increases the expression of Runx1 in CD41+c-Kit+ haematopoietic progenitor cells7,concomitantly augmenting their haematopoietic colony-forming potential. Moreover, we find that shear stress increases haematopoietic colony-forming potential and expression of haematopoietic markers in the paraaortic splanchnopleura/aorta–gonads–mesonephros of mouse embryos and that abrogation of nitric oxide, a mediator of shear-stress-induced signalling8, compromises haematopoietic potential in vitro and in vivo. Collectively, these data reveal a critical role for biomechanical forces in haematopoietic development. PMID:19440194

The fate of Nissl-stained dark neurons following traumatic brain injury in rats: difference between neocortex and hippocampus regarding survival rate.

Science.gov (United States)

Ooigawa, Hidetoshi; Nawashiro, Hiroshi; Fukui, Shinji; Otani, Naoki; Osumi, Atsushi; Toyooka, Terushige; Shima, Katsuji

2006-10-01

We studied the fate of Nissl-stained dark neurons (N-DNs) following traumatic brain injury (TBI). N-DNs were investigated in the cerebral neocortex and the hippocampus using a rat lateral fluid percussion injury model. Nissl stain, acid fuchsin stain and immunohistochemistry with phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (pERK) antibody were used in order to assess posttraumatic neurons. In the neocortex, the number of dead neurons at 24 h postinjury was significantly less than that of the observed N-DNs in the earlier phase. Only a few N-DNs increased their pERK immunoreactivity. On the other hand, in the hippocampus the number of dead neurons was approximately the same number as that of the N-DNs, and most N-DNs showed an increased pERK immunoreactivity. These data suggest that not all N-DNs inevitably die especially in the neocortex after TBI. The fate of N-DNs is thus considered to differ depending on brain subfields.

An empirical analysis of the precision of estimating the numbers of neurons and glia in human neocortex using a fractionator-design with sub-sampling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lyck, L.; Santamaria, I.D.; Pakkenberg, B.

2009-01-01

Improving histomorphometric analysis of the human neocortex by combining stereological cell counting with immunchistochemical visualisation of specific neuronal and glial cell populations is a methodological challenge. To enable standardized immunohistochemical staining, the amount of brain tissue...... to be stained and analysed by cell counting was efficiently reduced using a fractionator protocol involving several steps of sub-sampling. Since no mathematical or statistical tools exist to predict the variance originating from repeated sampling in complex structures like the human neocortex, the variance....... The results showed that it was possible, but not straight forward, to combine immunohistochemistry and the optical fractionator for estimation of specific subpopulations of brain cells in human neocortex. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved Udgivelsesdato: 2009/9/15...

Highly variable penetrance of abnormal phenotypes in embryonic lethal knockout mice

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Robert; Geyer, Stefan H.; Reissig, Lukas; Rose, Julia; Szumska, Dorota; Hardman, Emily; Prin, Fabrice; McGuire, Christina; Ramirez-Solis, Ramiro; White, Jacqui; Galli, Antonella; Tudor, Catherine; Tuck, Elizabeth; Mazzeo, Cecilia Icoresi; Smith, James C.; Robertson, Elizabeth; Adams, David J.; Mohun, Timothy; Weninger, Wolfgang J.

2017-01-01

Background: Identifying genes that are essential for mouse embryonic development and survival through term is a powerful and unbiased way to discover possible genetic determinants of human developmental disorders. Characterising the changes in mouse embryos that result from ablation of lethal genes is a necessary first step towards uncovering their role in normal embryonic development and establishing any correlates amongst human congenital abnormalities. Methods: Here we present results gathered to date in the Deciphering the Mechanisms of Developmental Disorders (DMDD) programme, cataloguing the morphological defects identified from comprehensive imaging of 220 homozygous mutant and 114 wild type embryos from 42 lethal and subviable lines, analysed at E14.5. Results: Virtually all mutant embryos show multiple abnormal phenotypes and amongst the 42 lines these affect most organ systems. Within each mutant line, the phenotypes of individual embryos form distinct but overlapping sets. Subcutaneous edema, malformations of the heart or great vessels, abnormalities in forebrain morphology and the musculature of the eyes are all prevalent phenotypes, as is loss or abnormal size of the hypoglossal nerve. Conclusions: Overall, the most striking finding is that no matter how profound the malformation, each phenotype shows highly variable penetrance within a mutant line. These findings have challenging implications for efforts to identify human disease correlates. PMID:27996060

Myc Decoy Oligodeoxynucleotide Inhibits Growth and Modulates Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells as a Model of Cancer Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Johari, Behrooz; Ebrahimi-Rad, Mina; Maghsood, Faezeh; Lotfinia, Majid; Saltanatpouri, Zohreh; Teimoori-Toolabi, Ladan; Sharifzadeh, Zahra; Karimipoor, Morteza; Kadivar, Mehdi

2017-01-01

Myc (c-Myc) alone activates the embryonic stem cell-like transcriptional module in both normal and transformed cells. Its dysregulation might lead to increased cancer stem cells (CSCs) population in some tumor cells. In order to investigate the potential of Myc decoy oligodeoxynucleotides for differentiation therapy, mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) were used in this study as a model of CSCs. To our best of knowledge this is the first report outlining the application of Myc decoy in transcription factor decoy "TFD" strategy for inducing differentiation in mESCs. A 20-mer double-stranded Myc transcription factor decoy and scrambled oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) were designed, analyzed by electrophoretic mobility shift (EMSA) assay and transfected into the mESCs under 2 inhibitors (2i) condition. Further investigations were carried out using fluorescence and confocal microscopy, cell proliferation and apoptosis analysis, alkaline phosphatase and embryoid body formation assay, real-time PCR and western blotting. EMSA data showed that Myc decoy ODNs bound specifically to c-Myc protein. They were found to be localized in both cytoplasm and nucleus of mESCs. Our results revealed the potential capability of Myc decoy ODNs to decrease cell viability by (16.1±2%), to increase the number of cells arrested in G0/G1 phases and apoptosis by (14.2±3.1%) and (12.1±3.2%), respectively regarding the controls. Myc decoy could also modulate differentiation in mESCs despite the presence of 2i/LIF in our medium the presence of 2i/LIF in our medium. The optimized Myc decoy ODNs approach might be considered as a promising alternative strategy for differentiation therapy investigations. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Cytomegalovirus induces abnormal chondrogenesis and osteogenesis during embryonic mandibular development

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Bringas Pablo

2008-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Human clinical studies and mouse models clearly demonstrate that cytomegalovirus (CMV disrupts normal organ and tissue development. Although CMV is one of the most common causes of major birth defects in humans, little is presently known about the mechanism(s underlying CMV-induced congenital malformations. Our prior studies have demonstrated that CMV infection of first branchial arch derivatives (salivary glands and teeth induced severely abnormal phenotypes and that CMV has a particular tropism for neural crest-derived mesenchyme (NCM. Since early embryos are barely susceptible to CMV infection, and the extant evidence suggests that the differentiation program needs to be well underway for embryonic tissues to be susceptible to viral infection and viral-induced pathology, the aim of this study was to determine if first branchial arch NCM cells are susceptible to mCMV infection prior to differentiation of NCM derivatives. Results E11 mouse mandibular processes (MANs were infected with mouse CMV (mCMV for up to 16 days in vitro. mCMV infection of undifferentiated embryonic mouse MANs induced micrognathia consequent to decreased Meckel's cartilage chondrogenesis and mandibular osteogenesis. Specifically, mCMV infection resulted in aberrant stromal cellularity, a smaller, misshapen Meckel's cartilage, and mandibular bone and condylar dysmorphogenesis. Analysis of viral distribution indicates that mCMV primarily infects NCM cells and derivatives. Initial localization studies indicate that mCMV infection changed the cell-specific expression of FN, NF-κB2, RelA, RelB, and Shh and Smad7 proteins. Conclusion Our results indicate that mCMV dysregulation of key signaling pathways in primarily NCM cells and their derivatives severely disrupts mandibular morphogenesis and skeletogenesis. The pathogenesis appears to be centered around the canonical and noncanonical NF-κB pathways, and there is unusual juxtaposition of abnormal stromal

Early gene regulation of osteogenesis in embryonic stem cells

KAUST Repository

Kirkham, Glen R.

2012-01-01

The early gene regulatory networks (GRNs) that mediate stem cell differentiation are complex, and the underlying regulatory associations can be difficult to map accurately. In this study, the expression profiles of the genes Dlx5, Msx2 and Runx2 in mouse embryonic stem cells were monitored over a 48 hour period after exposure to the growth factors BMP2 and TGFβ1. Candidate GRNs of early osteogenesis were constructed based on published experimental findings and simulation results of Boolean and ordinary differential equation models were compared with our experimental data in order to test the validity of these models. Three gene regulatory networks were found to be consistent with the data, one of these networks exhibited sustained oscillation, a behaviour which is consistent with the general view of embryonic stem cell plasticity. The work cycle presented in this paper illustrates how mathematical modelling can be used to elucidate from gene expression profiles GRNs that are consistent with experimental data. © 2012 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

JMJD1C Ensures Mouse Embryonic Stem Cell Self-Renewal and Somatic Cell Reprogramming through Controlling MicroRNA Expression.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Feng; Liao, Bing; Hu, Jing; Li, Shuang; Zhao, Haixin; Sun, Ming; Gu, Junjie; Jin, Ying

2017-09-12

The roles of histone demethylases (HDMs) for the establishment and maintenance of pluripotency are incompletely characterized. Here, we show that JmjC-domain-containing protein 1c (JMJD1C), an H3K9 demethylase, is required for mouse embryonic stem cell (ESC) self-renewal. Depletion of Jmjd1c leads to the activation of ERK/MAPK signaling and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) to induce differentiation of ESCs. Inhibition of ERK/MAPK signaling rescues the differentiation phenotype caused by Jmjd1c depletion. Mechanistically, JMJD1C, with the help of pluripotency factor KLF4, maintains ESC identity at least in part by regulating the expression of the miR-200 family and miR-290/295 cluster to suppress the ERK/MAPK signaling and EMT. Additionally, we uncover that JMJD1C ensures efficient generation and maintenance of induced pluripotent stem cells, at least partially through controlling the expression of microRNAs. Collectively, we propose an integrated model of epigenetic and transcriptional control mediated by the H3K9 demethylase for ESC self-renewal and somatic cell reprogramming. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genomic targets of Brachyury (T in differentiating mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Amanda L Evans

Full Text Available The T-box transcription factor Brachyury (T is essential for formation of the posterior mesoderm and the notochord in vertebrate embryos. Work in the frog and the zebrafish has identified some direct genomic targets of Brachyury, but little is known about Brachyury targets in the mouse.Here we use chromatin immunoprecipitation and mouse promoter microarrays to identify targets of Brachyury in embryoid bodies formed from differentiating mouse ES cells. The targets we identify are enriched for sequence-specific DNA binding proteins and include components of signal transduction pathways that direct cell fate in the primitive streak and tailbud of the early embryo. Expression of some of these targets, such as Axin2, Fgf8 and Wnt3a, is down regulated in Brachyury mutant embryos and we demonstrate that they are also Brachyury targets in the human. Surprisingly, we do not observe enrichment of the canonical T-domain DNA binding sequence 5'-TCACACCT-3' in the vicinity of most Brachyury target genes. Rather, we have identified an (AC(n repeat sequence, which is conserved in the rat but not in human, zebrafish or Xenopus. We do not understand the significance of this sequence, but speculate that it enhances transcription factor binding in the regulatory regions of Brachyury target genes in rodents.Our work identifies the genomic targets of a key regulator of mesoderm formation in the early mouse embryo, thereby providing insights into the Brachyury-driven genetic regulatory network and allowing us to compare the function of Brachyury in different species.

Highly efficient methods to obtain homogeneous dorsal neural progenitor cells from human and mouse embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Meixiang; Ngo, Justine; Pirozzi, Filomena; Sun, Ying-Pu; Wynshaw-Boris, Anthony

2018-03-15

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been widely used to generate cellular models harboring specific disease-related genotypes. Of particular importance are ESC and iPSC applications capable of producing dorsal telencephalic neural progenitor cells (NPCs) that are representative of the cerebral cortex and overcome the challenges of maintaining a homogeneous population of cortical progenitors over several passages in vitro. While previous studies were able to derive NPCs from pluripotent cell types, the fraction of dorsal NPCs in this population is small and decreases over several passages. Here, we present three protocols that are highly efficient in differentiating mouse and human ESCs, as well as human iPSCs, into a homogeneous and stable population of dorsal NPCs. These protocols will be useful for modeling cerebral cortical neurological and neurodegenerative disorders in both mouse and human as well as for high-throughput drug screening for therapeutic development. We optimized three different strategies for generating dorsal telencephalic NPCs from mouse and human pluripotent cell types through single or double inhibition of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) and/or SMAD pathways. Mouse and human pluripotent cells were aggregated to form embryoid bodies in suspension and were treated with dorsomorphin alone (BMP inhibition) or combined with SB431542 (double BMP/SMAD inhibition) during neural induction. Neural rosettes were then selected from plated embryoid bodies to purify the population of dorsal NPCs. We tested the expression of key dorsal NPC markers as well as nonectodermal markers to confirm the efficiency of our three methods in comparison to published and commercial protocols. Single and double inhibition of BMP and/or SMAD during neural induction led to the efficient differentiation of dorsal NPCs, based on the high percentage of PAX6-positive cells and the NPC gene expression profile. There were no statistically

Insulin: its binding to specific receptors and its stimulation of DNA synthesis and 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide phosphohydrolase in embryonic mouse brain cell cultures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shanker, G.; Pieringer, R.A.

1986-01-01

Previously, the authors demonstrated that ornithine decarboxylase was stimulated by insulin in cultures of embryonic mouse brain cells. In the present work, they have investigated the presence and specificity of insulin receptors in these cultures. A time study showed that maximum binding of 125 [I] labelled insulin was around 75 min. Other studies measured the influence of concentration and age on insulin binding. A displacement study using increasing concentrations of cold insulin, glucagon or growth hormone demonstrated that the specificity of the receptors for insulin was rather high. It was also found that insulin displayed a clear dose-dependent stimulation of thymidine incorporation into the brain cells. Insulin also stimulated the glial enzyme 2':3'-cyclic nucleotide phosphohydrolase (CNP-ase). The results suggest a dual role for insulin; it regulates both cell proliferation as well as differentiation

The CMV early enhancer/chicken beta actin (CAG) promoter can be used to drive transgene expression during the differentiation of murine embryonic stem cells into vascular progenitors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Alexopoulou, Annika N; Couchman, John R; Whiteford, James

2008-01-01

BACKGROUND: Mouse embryonic stem cells cultured in vitro have the ability to differentiate into cells of the three germ layers as well as germ cells. The differentiation mimics early developmental events, including vasculogenesis and early angiogenesis and several differentiation systems are being...... used to identify factors that are important during the formation of the vascular system. Embryonic stem cells are difficult to transfect, while downregulation of promoter activity upon selection of stable transfectants has been reported, rendering the study of proteins by overexpression difficult....... RESULTS: CCE mouse embryonic stem cells were differentiated on collagen type IV for 4-5 days, Flk1+ mesodermal cells were sorted and replated either on collagen type IV in the presence of VEGFA to give rise to endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells or in collagen type I gels for the formation...

Highly efficient differentiation of embryonic stem cells into adipocytes by ascorbic acid

OpenAIRE

Ixchelt Cuaranta-Monroy; Zoltan Simandi; Zsuzsanna Kolostyak; Quang-Minh Doan-Xuan; Szilard Poliska; Attila Horvath; Gergely Nagy; Zsolt Bacso; Laszlo Nagy

2014-01-01

Adipocyte differentiation and function have become the major research targets due to the increasing interest in obesity and related metabolic conditions. Although, late stages of adipogenesis have been extensively studied, the early phases remain poorly understood. Here we present that supplementing ascorbic acid (AsA) to the adipogenic differentiation cocktail enables the robust and efficient differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) to mature adipocytes. Such ESC-derived adipocy...

Cdk2 Inhibition Prolongs G1 Phase Progression in Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Koledová, Z.; Rašková-Kafková, L.; Calábková, L.; Kryštof, Vladimír; Doležel, P.; Divoký, V.

2010-01-01

Roč. 19, č. 2 (2010), s. 181-193 ISSN 1547-3287 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA301/08/1649 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50380511 Keywords : embryonic stem cells * cell cycle * G1 phase Subject RIV: EB - Genetics ; Molecular Biology Impact factor: 4.791, year: 2010

Role of Abcg2 During Mouse Embroyonic Stem Cell Diffferentiation

Science.gov (United States)

Role of Abcg2 During Mouse Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation. Abcg2 is a multidrug resistance ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter whose activity may be considered a hallmark of stem cell plasticity. The role of Abcg2 during early embryogenesis, however, is unclear. Studies...

Neural differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells as a tool to assess developmental neurotoxicity in vitro.

Science.gov (United States)

Visan, Anke; Hayess, Katrin; Sittner, Dana; Pohl, Elena E; Riebeling, Christian; Slawik, Birgitta; Gulich, Konrad; Oelgeschläger, Michael; Luch, Andreas; Seiler, Andrea E M

2012-10-01

Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) represent an attractive cellular system for in vitro studies in developmental biology as well as toxicology because of their potential to differentiate into all fetal cell lineages. The present study aims to establish an in vitro system for developmental neurotoxicity testing employing mESCs. We developed a robust and reproducible protocol for fast and efficient differentiation of the mESC line D3 into neural cells, optimized with regard to chemical testing. Morphological examination and immunocytochemical staining confirmed the presence of different neural cell types, including neural progenitors, neurons, astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and radial glial cells. Neurons derived from D3 cells expressed the synaptic proteins PSD95 and synaptophysin, and the neurotransmitters serotonin and γ-aminobutyric acid. Calcium ion imaging revealed the presence of functionally active glutamate and dopamine receptors. In addition, flow cytometry analysis of the neuron-specific marker protein MAP2 on day 12 after induction of differentiation demonstrated a concentration dependent effect of the neurodevelopmental toxicants methylmercury chloride, chlorpyrifos, and lead acetate on neuronal differentiation. The current study shows that D3 mESCs differentiate efficiently into neural cells involving a neurosphere-like state and that this system is suitable to detect adverse effects of neurodevelopmental toxicants. Therefore, we propose that the protocol for differentiation of mESCs into neural cells described here could constitute one component of an in vitro testing strategy for developmental neurotoxicity. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Mobile phone signal exposure triggers a hormesis-like effect in Atm+/+ and Atm-/- mouse embryonic fibroblasts.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Chuan; Wei, Xiaoxia; Fei, Yue; Su, Liling; Zhao, Xinyuan; Chen, Guangdi; Xu, Zhengping

2016-11-18

Radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) have been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as possible carcinogens to humans; however, this conclusion is based on limited epidemiological findings and lacks solid support from experimental studies. In particular, there are no consistent data regarding the genotoxicity of RF-EMFs. Ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) is recognised as a chief guardian of genomic stability. To address the debate on whether RF-EMFs are genotoxic, we compared the effects of 1,800 MHz RF-EMF exposure on genomic DNA in mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) with proficient (Atm +/+ ) or deficient (Atm -/- ) ATM. In Atm +/+ MEFs, RF-EMF exposure for 1 h at an average special absorption rate of 4.0 W/kg induced significant DNA single-strand breaks (SSBs) and activated the SSB repair mechanism. This effect reduced the DNA damage to less than that of the background level after 36 hours of exposure. In the Atm -/- MEFs, the same RF-EMF exposure for 12 h induced both SSBs and double-strand breaks and activated the two repair processes, which also reduced the DNA damage to less than the control level after prolonged exposure. The observed phenomenon is similar to the hormesis of a toxic substance at a low dose. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to report a hormesis-like effect of an RF-EMF.

Mutagenicity of ultraviolet A radiation in the lacI transgene in Big Blue mouse embryonic fibroblasts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Sang-in; Pfeifer, Gerd P.; Besaratinia, Ahmad

2007-01-01

Sunlight ultraviolet A (UVA) irradiation has been implicated in the etiology of human skin cancer. A genotoxic mode of action for UVA radiation has been suggested that involves photosensitization reactions giving rise to promutagenic DNA lesions. We investigated the mutagenicity of UVA in the lacI transgene in Big Blue mouse embryonic fibroblasts. UVA irradiation of these cells at a physiologically relevant dose of 18 J/cm 2 caused a 2.8-fold increase in the lacI mutant frequency relative to control, i.e., 12.12 ± 1.84 versus 4.39 ± 1.99 x 10 -5 (mean ± S.D.). DNA sequencing analysis showed that of 100 UVA-induced mutant plaques and 54 spontaneously arisen control plaques, 97 and 51, respectively, contained a minimum of one mutation along the lacI transgene. The vast majority of both induced- and spontaneous mutations were single base substitutions, although less frequently, there were also single and multiple base deletions and insertions, and tandem base substitutions. Detailed mutation spectrometry analysis revealed that G:C → T:A transversions, the signature mutations of oxidative DNA damage, were significantly induced by UVA irradiation (P -5 ; P < 0.00001). These findings are in complete agreement with those previously observed in the cII transgene of the same model system, and reaffirm the notion that intracellular photosensitization reactions causing promutagenic oxidative DNA damage are involved in UVA genotoxicity

Embryonic catalase protects against ethanol embryopathies in acatalasemic mice and transgenic human catalase-expressing mice in embryo culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miller-Pinsler, Lutfiya; Wells, Peter G.

2015-01-01

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been implicated in the mechanism of ethanol (EtOH) teratogenicity, but the protective role of the embryonic antioxidative enzyme catalase is unclear, as embryonic activity is only about 5% of maternal levels. We addressed this question in a whole embryo culture model. C57BL/6 mouse embryos expressing human catalase (hCat) or their wild-type (C57BL/6 WT) controls, and C3Ga.Cg-Cat b /J catalase-deficient, acatalasemic (aCat) mouse embryos or their wild-type C3HeB/FeJ (C3H WT) controls, were explanted on gestational day (GD) 9 (plug = GD 1), exposed for 24 h to 2 or 4 mg/mL EtOH or vehicle, and evaluated for functional and morphological changes. hCat and C57BL/6 WT vehicle-exposed embryos developed normally, while EtOH was embryopathic in C57BL/6 WT embryos, evidenced by decreases in anterior neuropore closure, somites developed, turning and head length, whereas hCat embryos were protected (p < 0.001). Maternal pretreatment of C57BL/6 WT dams with 50 kU/kg PEG-catalase (PEG-cat) 8 h prior to embryo culture, which increases embryonic catalase activity, blocked all EtOH embryopathies (p < 0.001). Vehicle-exposed aCat mouse embryos had lower yolk sac diameters compared to WT controls, suggesting that endogenous ROS are embryopathic. EtOH was more embryopathic in aCat embryos than WT controls, evidenced by reduced head length and somite development (p < 0.01), and trends for reduced anterior neuropore closure, turning and crown–rump length. Maternal pretreatment of aCat dams with PEG-Cat blocked all EtOH embryopathies (p < 0.05). These data suggest that embryonic catalase is a determinant of risk for EtOH embryopathies. - Highlights: • Ethanol (EtOH) exposure causes structural embryopathies in embryo culture. • Genetically enhanced catalase (hCat) protects against EtOH embryopathies. • Genetically deficient catalase (aCat) exacerbates EtOH embryopathies. • Embryonic catalase is developmentally important. • EtOH developmental

Embryonic catalase protects against ethanol embryopathies in acatalasemic mice and transgenic human catalase-expressing mice in embryo culture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miller-Pinsler, Lutfiya [Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario (Canada); Wells, Peter G., E-mail: pg.wells@utoronto.ca [Division of Biomolecular Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario (Canada); Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario (Canada)

2015-09-15

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been implicated in the mechanism of ethanol (EtOH) teratogenicity, but the protective role of the embryonic antioxidative enzyme catalase is unclear, as embryonic activity is only about 5% of maternal levels. We addressed this question in a whole embryo culture model. C57BL/6 mouse embryos expressing human catalase (hCat) or their wild-type (C57BL/6 WT) controls, and C3Ga.Cg-Cat{sup b}/J catalase-deficient, acatalasemic (aCat) mouse embryos or their wild-type C3HeB/FeJ (C3H WT) controls, were explanted on gestational day (GD) 9 (plug = GD 1), exposed for 24 h to 2 or 4 mg/mL EtOH or vehicle, and evaluated for functional and morphological changes. hCat and C57BL/6 WT vehicle-exposed embryos developed normally, while EtOH was embryopathic in C57BL/6 WT embryos, evidenced by decreases in anterior neuropore closure, somites developed, turning and head length, whereas hCat embryos were protected (p < 0.001). Maternal pretreatment of C57BL/6 WT dams with 50 kU/kg PEG-catalase (PEG-cat) 8 h prior to embryo culture, which increases embryonic catalase activity, blocked all EtOH embryopathies (p < 0.001). Vehicle-exposed aCat mouse embryos had lower yolk sac diameters compared to WT controls, suggesting that endogenous ROS are embryopathic. EtOH was more embryopathic in aCat embryos than WT controls, evidenced by reduced head length and somite development (p < 0.01), and trends for reduced anterior neuropore closure, turning and crown–rump length. Maternal pretreatment of aCat dams with PEG-Cat blocked all EtOH embryopathies (p < 0.05). These data suggest that embryonic catalase is a determinant of risk for EtOH embryopathies. - Highlights: • Ethanol (EtOH) exposure causes structural embryopathies in embryo culture. • Genetically enhanced catalase (hCat) protects against EtOH embryopathies. • Genetically deficient catalase (aCat) exacerbates EtOH embryopathies. • Embryonic catalase is developmentally important. • Et

Generation of Aggregates of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells that Show Symmetry Breaking, Polarization and Emergent Collective Behaviour In Vitro.

Science.gov (United States)

Baillie-Johnson, Peter; van den Brink, Susanne Carina; Balayo, Tina; Turner, David Andrew; Martinez Arias, Alfonso

2015-11-24

We have developed a protocol improving current Embryoid Body (EB) culture which allows the study of self-organization, symmetry breaking, axial elongation and cell fate specification using aggregates of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) in suspension culture. Small numbers of mESCs are aggregated in basal medium for 48 hr in non-tissue-culture-treated, U-bottomed 96-well plates, after which they are competent to respond to experimental signals. Following treatment, these aggregates begin to show signs of polarized gene expression and gradually alter their morphology from a spherical mass of cells to an elongated, well organized structure in the absence of external asymmetry cues. These structures are not only able to display markers of the three germ layers, but actively display gastrulation-like movements, evidenced by a directional dislodgement of individual cells from the aggregate, which crucially occurs at one region of the elongated structure. This protocol provides a detailed method for the reproducible formation of these aggregates, their stimulation with signals such as Wnt/β-Catenin activation and BMP inhibition and their analysis by single time-point or time-lapse fluorescent microscopy. In addition, we describe modifications to current whole-mount mouse embryo staining procedures for immunocytochemical analysis of specific markers within fixed aggregates. The changes in morphology, gene expression and length of the aggregates can be quantitatively measured, providing information on how signals can alter axial fates. It is envisaged that this system can be applied both to the study of early developmental events such as axial development and organization, and more broadly, the processes of self-organization and cellular decision-making. It may also provide a suitable niche for the generation of cell types present in the embryo that are unobtainable from conventional adherent culture such as spinal cord and motor neurones.

Anticancer activity of biologically synthesized silver and gold nanoparticles on mouse myoblast cancer cells and their toxicity against embryonic zebrafish

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ramachandran, Rajan; Krishnaraj, Chandran; Sivakumar, Allur Subramaniyan; Prasannakumar, Palaniappan; Abhay Kumar, V.K.; Shim, Kwan Seob; Song, Chul-Gyu; Yun, Soon-Il

2017-01-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the anticancer activity of bioinspired silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) against mouse myoblast cancer cells (C 2 C 12 ). Both AgNPs and AuNPs were biologically synthesized using Spinacia oleracea Linn., aqueous leaves extract. UV–Vis. spectrophotometer, high resolution-transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies supported the successful synthesis of AgNPs and AuNPs. Both these NPs have shown cytotoxicity against C 2 C 12 cells even at very low concentration (5 μg/mL). Acridine orange/Ethidium bromide (AO/EB) dual staining confirmed the apoptotic morphological features. The levels of caspase enzymes (caspase-3 and caspase-7) were significantly up-regulated in NPs treated myoblast cells than the plant extract. Furthermore, in zebrafish embryo toxicity study, AgNPs showed 100% mortality at 3 μg/mL concentration while AuNPs exhibited the same at much higher concentration (300 mg/mL). Taken together, these results provide a preliminary guidance for the development of biomaterials based drugs to fight against the fatal diseases for example cancer. - Highlights: • Anticancer activity was done for the first time against mouse myoblast cells. • AgNPs showed 100% growth inhibition against C 2 C 12 cells at 20 μg/mL concentration. • AO/EB dual staining and caspase assays confirmed the apoptotic features. • Nanoparticles treated embryos showed yolk sac edema and tail malformation. • AgNPs were found to be more toxic to embryonic zebrafishes than the AuNPs.

Anticancer activity of biologically synthesized silver and gold nanoparticles on mouse myoblast cancer cells and their toxicity against embryonic zebrafish

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ramachandran, Rajan [Centre for Advanced Studies in Botany, School of Life Sciences, University of Madras, Guindy Campus, Chennai 600 025, Tamil Nadu (India); Krishnaraj, Chandran [Department of Food Science & Technology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of); M/s. Eureka Forbes Ltd, R & D Centre, Kudlu, Bangalore (India); Sivakumar, Allur Subramaniyan [Department of Animal Biotechnology, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896 (Korea, Republic of); Prasannakumar, Palaniappan [Advanced Biomedical Imaging Center, Department of Electronic Engineering, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896 (Korea, Republic of); Abhay Kumar, V.K. [M/s. Eureka Forbes Ltd, R & D Centre, Kudlu, Bangalore (India); Shim, Kwan Seob [Department of Animal Biotechnology, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896 (Korea, Republic of); Song, Chul-Gyu [Advanced Biomedical Imaging Center, Department of Electronic Engineering, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896 (Korea, Republic of); Yun, Soon-Il, E-mail: siyun@jbnu.ac.kr [Department of Food Science & Technology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 561-756 (Korea, Republic of)

2017-04-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the anticancer activity of bioinspired silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) against mouse myoblast cancer cells (C{sub 2}C{sub 12}). Both AgNPs and AuNPs were biologically synthesized using Spinacia oleracea Linn., aqueous leaves extract. UV–Vis. spectrophotometer, high resolution-transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies supported the successful synthesis of AgNPs and AuNPs. Both these NPs have shown cytotoxicity against C{sub 2}C{sub 12} cells even at very low concentration (5 μg/mL). Acridine orange/Ethidium bromide (AO/EB) dual staining confirmed the apoptotic morphological features. The levels of caspase enzymes (caspase-3 and caspase-7) were significantly up-regulated in NPs treated myoblast cells than the plant extract. Furthermore, in zebrafish embryo toxicity study, AgNPs showed 100% mortality at 3 μg/mL concentration while AuNPs exhibited the same at much higher concentration (300 mg/mL). Taken together, these results provide a preliminary guidance for the development of biomaterials based drugs to fight against the fatal diseases for example cancer. - Highlights: • Anticancer activity was done for the first time against mouse myoblast cells. • AgNPs showed 100% growth inhibition against C{sub 2}C{sub 12} cells at 20 μg/mL concentration. • AO/EB dual staining and caspase assays confirmed the apoptotic features. • Nanoparticles treated embryos showed yolk sac edema and tail malformation. • AgNPs were found to be more toxic to embryonic zebrafishes than the AuNPs.

A Rapid Embryonic Stem Cell-Based Mouse Model for B-cell Lymphomas Driven by Epstein-Barr Virus Protein LMP1.

Science.gov (United States)

Ba, Zhaoqing; Meng, Fei-Long; Gostissa, Monica; Huang, Pei-Yi; Ke, Qiang; Wang, Zhe; Dao, Mai N; Fujiwara, Yuko; Rajewsky, Klaus; Zhang, Baochun; Alt, Frederick W

2015-06-01

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1) contributes to oncogenic human B-cell transformation. Mouse B cells conditionally expressing LMP1 are not predisposed to B-cell malignancies, as LMP1-expressing B cells are eliminated by T cells. However, mice with conditional B-cell LMP1 expression and genetic elimination of α/β and γ/δ T cells ("CLT" mice) die early in association with B-cell lymphoproliferation and lymphomagenesis. Generation of CLT mice involves in-breeding multiple independently segregating alleles. Thus, although introduction of additional activating or knockout mutations into the CLT model is desirable for further B-cell expansion and immunosurveillance studies, doing such experiments by germline breeding is time-consuming, expensive, and sometimes unfeasible. To generate a more tractable model, we generated clonal CLT embryonic stem (ES) cells from CLT embryos and injected them into RAG2-deficient blastocysts to generate chimeric mice, which, like germline CLT mice, harbor splenic CLT B cells and lack T cells. CLT chimeric mice generated by this RAG2-deficient blastocyst complementation ("RDBC") approach die rapidly in association with B-cell lymphoproliferation and lymphoma. Because CLT lymphomas routinely express the activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) antibody diversifier, we tested potential AID roles by eliminating the AID gene in CLT ES cells and testing them via RDBC. We found that CLT and AID-deficient CLT ES chimeras had indistinguishable phenotypes, showing that AID is not essential for LMP1-induced lymphomagenesis. Beyond expanding accessibility and utility of CLT mice as a cancer immunotherapy model, our studies provide a new approach for facilitating generation of genetically complex mouse cancer models. ©2015 American Association for Cancer Research.

Impaired embryonic development in mice overexpressing the RNA-binding protein TIAR.

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Yacine Kharraz

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: TIA-1-related (TIAR protein is a shuttling RNA-binding protein involved in several steps of RNA metabolism. While in the nucleus TIAR participates to alternative splicing events, in the cytoplasm TIAR acts as a translational repressor on specific transcripts such as those containing AU-Rich Elements (AREs. Due to its ability to assemble abortive pre-initiation complexes coalescing into cytoplasmic granules called stress granules, TIAR is also involved in the general translational arrest observed in cells exposed to environmental stress. However, the in vivo role of this protein has not been studied so far mainly due to severe embryonic lethality upon tiar invalidation. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To examine potential TIAR tissue-specificity in various cellular contexts, either embryonic or adult, we constructed a TIAR transgenic allele (loxPGFPloxPTIAR allowing the conditional expression of TIAR protein upon Cre recombinase activity. Here, we report the role of TIAR during mouse embryogenesis. We observed that early TIAR overexpression led to low transgene transmission associated with embryonic lethality starting at early post-implantation stages. Interestingly, while pre-implantation steps evolved correctly in utero, in vitro cultured embryos were very sensitive to culture medium. Control and transgenic embryos developed equally well in the G2 medium, whereas culture in M16 medium led to the phosphorylation of eIF2alpha that accumulated in cytoplasmic granules precluding transgenic blastocyst hatching. Our results thus reveal a differential TIAR-mediated embryonic response following artificial or natural growth environment. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: This study reports the importance of the tightly balanced expression of the RNA-binding protein TIAR for normal embryonic development, thereby emphasizing the role of post-transcriptional regulations in early embryonic programming.

Precision mapping of coexisting modifications in histone H3 tails from embryonic stem cells by ETD-MS/MS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jung, Hye Ryung; Sidoli, Simone; Haldbo, Simon

2013-01-01

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) of histones play a major role in regulating chromatin dynamics and influence processes such as transcription and DNA replication. Here, we report 114 distinct combinations of coexisting PTMs of histone H3 obtained from mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. Histo...

Pluripotency Factors in Embryonic Stem Cells Regulate Differentiation into Germ Layers

OpenAIRE

Thomson, Matt; Liu, Siyuan John; Zou, Ling-Nan; Smith, Zack; Meissner, Alexander; Ramanathan, Sharad

2011-01-01

Cell fate decisions are fundamental for development, but we do not know how transcriptional networks reorganize during the transition from a pluripotent to a differentiated cell state. Here, we asked how mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) leave the pluripotent state and choose between germ layer fates. By analyzing the dynamics of the transcriptional circuit that maintains pluripotency, we found that Oct4 and Sox2, proteins that maintain ESC identity, also orchestrate germ layer fate selection...

Mouse embryonic stem cells efficiently lipofected with nuclear localization peptide result in a high yield of chimeric mice and retain germline transmission potency.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Haiching; Liu, Qin; Diamond, Scott L; Pierce, Eric A

2004-06-01

Embryonic stem (ES) cells are an important tool in developmental biology, genomics, and transgenic methods, as well as in potential clinical applications such as gene therapy or tissue engineering. Electroporation is the standard transfection method for mouse ES (mES) cells because lipofection is quite inefficient. It is also unclear if mES cells treated with cationic lipids maintain pluripotency. We have developed a simple lipofection method for high efficiency transfection and stable transgene expression by employing the nonclassical nuclear localization signal M9 derived from the heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1. In contrast to using 20 microg DNA for 10 x 10(6) cells via electroporation which resulted in 10-20 positive cells/mm2, M9-assisted lipofection of 2 x 10(5) cells with 2 microg DNA resulted in > 150 positive cells/mm2. Electroporation produced only 0.16% EGFP positive cells with fluorescence intensity (FI) > 1000 by FACS assay, while M9-lipofection produced 36-fold more highly EGFP positive cells (5.75%) with FI > 1000. Using 2.5 x 10(6) ES cells and 6 microg linearized DNA followed by selection with G418, electroporation yielded 17 EGFP expressing colonies, while M9-assisted lipofection yielded 72 EGFP expressing colonies. The mES cells that stably expressed EGFP following M9-assisted lipofection yielded > 66% chimeric mice (8 of 12) and contributed efficiently to the germline. In an example of gene targeting, a knock-in mouse was produced from an ES clone screened from 200 G418-resistant colonies generated via M9-assisted lipofection. To our knowledge, this is the first report of generation of transgenic or knock-in mice obtained from lipofected mES cells and this method may facilitate large scale genomic studies of ES developmental biology or large scale generation of mouse models of human disease. Copyright 2003 Elsevier Inc.

Knockdown of p53 suppresses Nanog expression in embryonic stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abdelalim, Essam Mohamed, E-mail: emohamed@qf.org.qa [Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Qatar Foundation, Doha 5825 (Qatar); Molecular Neuroscience Research Center, Shiga University of Medical Science, Setatsukinowa-cho, Otsu, Shiga 520-2192 (Japan); Department of Cytology and Histology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia (Egypt); Tooyama, Ikuo [Molecular Neuroscience Research Center, Shiga University of Medical Science, Setatsukinowa-cho, Otsu, Shiga 520-2192 (Japan)

2014-01-10

Highlights: •We investigate the role of p53 in ESCs in the absence of DNA damage. •p53 knockdown suppresses ESC proliferation. •p53 knockdown downregulates Nanog expression. •p53 is essential for mouse ESC self-renewal. -- Abstract: Mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) express high levels of cytoplasmic p53. Exposure of mouse ESCs to DNA damage leads to activation of p53, inducing Nanog suppression. In contrast to earlier studies, we recently reported that chemical inhibition of p53 suppresses ESC proliferation. Here, we confirm that p53 signaling is involved in the maintenance of mouse ESC self-renewal. RNA interference-mediated knockdown of p53 induced downregulation of p21 and defects in ESC proliferation. Furthermore, p53 knockdown resulted in a significant downregulation in Nanog expression at 24 and 48 h post-transfection. p53 knockdown also caused a reduction in Oct4 expression at 48 h post-transfection. Conversely, exposure of ESCs to DNA damage caused a higher reduction of Nanog expression in control siRNA-treated cells than in p53 siRNA-treated cells. These data show that in the absence of DNA damage, p53 is required for the maintenance of mouse ESC self-renewal by regulating Nanog expression.

GABAERGIC ALTERATIONS IN NEOCORTEX OF PATIENTS WITH PHARMACORESISTANT TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSY CAN EXPLAIN THE COMORBIDITY OF ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION: THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF CLINICAL FACTORS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luisa Lilia Rocha

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE is a chronic neurodegenerative disease with a high prevalence of psychiatric disorders. Temporal neocortex contributes to either seizure propagation or generation in TLE, a situation that has been associated with alterations of the γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA system. On the other hand, an impaired neurotransmission mediated by GABA in temporal neocortex has also been involved with the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders. In spite of these situations, the role of the necortical GABA system in the comorbidity of TLE and mood disorders has not been investigated. The present study was designed to identify alterations in the GABA system such as: binding to GABAA and GABAB receptors and benzodiazepine site, the tissue content of GABA and the expression of the mRNA encoding the α1-6, β1-3 and γ GABAA subunits, in the temporal neocortex of surgically treated patients with TLE with and without anxiety and/or depression. Neocortex of patients with TLE and comorbid anxiety and/or depression showed increased expression of the mRNA encoding the γ2-subunit, reduced GABAB-induced G protein activation in spite of elevated GABAB binding, and lower tissue content of GABA when compared to autopsy controls. Some of these changes significantly correlated with seizure frequency and duration of epilepsy. The results obtained suggest a dysfunction of the GABAergic neurotransmission in temporal neocortex of patients with TLE and comorbid anxiety and/or depression that could be also influenced by clinical factors such as seizure frequency and duration of illness.

Basement membrane components secreted by mouse yolk sac carcinoma cell lines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Damjanov, A; Wewer, U M; Tuma, B

1990-01-01

Three new cell lines (NE, ME, LRD) were cloned from mouse-embryo-derived teratocarcinomas and characterized on the basis of developmental, ultrastructural, and cytochemical criteria as nullipotent embryonal carcinoma (EC), pure parietal yolk sac (PYS) carcinoma and mixed parieto-visceral yolk sac...

Tankyrase 1 and tankyrase 2 are essential but redundant for mouse embryonic development.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Y Jeffrey Chiang

2008-07-01

Full Text Available Tankyrases are proteins with poly(ADP-ribose polymerase activity. Human tankyrases post-translationally modify multiple proteins involved in processes including maintenance of telomere length, sister telomere association, and trafficking of glut4-containing vesicles. To date, however, little is known about in vivo functions for tankyrases. We recently reported that body size was significantly reduced in mice deficient for tankyrase 2, but that these mice otherwise appeared developmentally normal. In the present study, we report generation of tankyrase 1-deficient and tankyrase 1 and 2 double-deficient mice, and use of these mutant strains to systematically assess candidate functions of tankyrase 1 and tankyrase 2 in vivo. No defects were observed in development, telomere length maintenance, or cell cycle regulation in tankyrase 1 or tankyrase 2 knockout mice. In contrast to viability and normal development of mice singly deficient in either tankyrase, deficiency in both tankyrase 1 and tankyrase 2 results in embryonic lethality by day 10, indicating that there is substantial redundancy between tankyrase 1 and tankyrase 2, but that tankyrase function is essential for embryonic development.

Detecting cardiac contractile activity in the early mouse embryo using multiple modalities

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Chiann-mun eChen

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The heart is one of the first organs to develop during mammalian embryogenesis. In the mouse, it starts to form shortly after gastrulation, and is derived primarily from embryonic mesoderm. The embryonic heart is unique in having to perform a mechanical contractile function while undergoing complex morphogenetic remodelling. Approaches to imaging the morphogenesis and contractile activity of the developing heart are important in understanding not only how this remodelling is controlled but also the origin of congenital heart defects. Here, we describe approaches for visualising contractile activity in the developing mouse embryo, using brightfield time lapse microscopy and confocal microscopy of calcium transients. We describe an algorithm for enhancing this image data and quantifying contractile activity from it. Finally we describe how atomic force microscopy can be used to record contractile activity prior to it being microscopically visible.

The effects of silver nanoparticles on mouse embryonic stem cell self-renewal and proliferation

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Pavan Rajanahalli

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs are gaining rapid popularity in many commonly used medical and commercial products for their unique anti-bacterial properties. The molecular mechanisms of effects of AgNPs on stem cell self-renewal and proliferation have not yet been well understood. The aim of the work is to use mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs as a cellular model to evaluate the toxicity of AgNPs. mESC is a very special cell type which has self-renewal and differentiation properties. The objective of this project is to determine the effects of AgNPs with different surface chemical compositions on the self-renewal and cell cycle of mESCs. Two different surface chemical compositions of AgNPs, polysaccharide-coated and hydrocarbon-coated, were used to test their toxic effects on self-renewal and proliferation of mESCs. The results indicated that both polysaccharide-coated and hydrocarbon-coated AgNPs changed the cell morphology of mESCs. Cell cycle analysis indicated that AgNPs induced mESCs cell cycle arrest at G1 and S phases through inhibition of the hyperphosphorylation of Retinoblastoma (Rb protein. Furthermore, AgNPs exposure reduced Oct4A isoform expression which is responsible for the pluripotency of mESCs, and induced the expression of several isoforms OCT4B-265, OCT4B-190, OCT4B-164 which were suggested involved in stem cell stresses responses. In addition, the evidence of reactive oxygen species (ROS production with two different surface chemical compositions of AgNPs supported our hypothesis that the toxic effect AgNPs exposure is due to overproduction of ROS which altered the gene expression and protein modifications. Polysaccharide coating reduced ROS production, and thus reduced the AgNPs toxicity.

Hematopoietic stem cell-derived exosomes promote hematopoietic differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells in vitro via inhibiting the miR126/Notch1 pathway.

Science.gov (United States)

Liao, Feng-Ling; Tan, Lin; Liu, Hua; Wang, Jin-Ju; Ma, Xiao-Tang; Zhao, Bin; Chen, Yanfang; Bihl, Ji; Yang, Yi; Chen, Ri-Ling

2018-04-01

Cell-derived exosomes (EXs) can modulate target cell differentiation via microRNAs (miRs) that they carried. Previous studies have shown that miR126 is highly expressed in hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and plays a role in hematopoiesis via modulating the Notch pathway that participates in progenitors' cell fate decisions. In this study we investigated whether HSC-derived EXs (HSC-EXs) could affect the differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) into HSCs. We prepared HSC-EXs con , HSC-EXs sc and HSC-EXs miR126 from control HSCs and the HSCs transfected with scramble control or miR126 mimics, respectively. HSC-EXs were isolated by ultracentrifugation and analyzed using nanoparticle tracking analysis. We incubated the collected EXs with mouse ESCs over a 10-d differentiation induction period, during which HSC-EXs and a Notch pathway activator (Jagged1, 100 ng/mL) were added to the cultures every 3 d. After the 10-d differentiation period, the expression levels of miR126, SSEA1, CD117, Sca1, Notch1 and Hes1 in ESCs were assessed. The generated HSCs were validated by flow cytometry using antibodies against HSC markers (CD117, CD34 and Sca1). Our results revealed that: (1) transfection with miR126 mimics significantly increased miR126 levels in HSC-EXs miR126 . (2) HSC-EX co-culture promoted mouse ESCs differentiation into HSCs with the most prominent effect found in the HSC-EXs miR126 co-culture. (3) HSC differentiation was verified by reduced SSEA1 expression and increased CD117 and Sca1 expression. (4) All the effects caused by HSC-EXs were accompanied by significant reduction of Notch1 and Hes1 expression, thus inhibition of the Notch1/Hes1 pathway, whereas activation of Notch by Jagged1 abolished the effects of HSC-EXs miR126 . In conclusion, HSC-EXs promote hematopoietic differentiation of mouse ESCs in vitro by inhibiting the miR126/Notch1 pathway.

Embryonic catalase protects against ethanol embryopathies in acatalasemic mice and transgenic human catalase-expressing mice in embryo culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller-Pinsler, Lutfiya; Wells, Peter G

2015-09-15

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been implicated in the mechanism of ethanol (EtOH) teratogenicity, but the protective role of the embryonic antioxidative enzyme catalase is unclear, as embryonic activity is only about 5% of maternal levels. We addressed this question in a whole embryo culture model. C57BL/6 mouse embryos expressing human catalase (hCat) or their wild-type (C57BL/6 WT) controls, and C3Ga.Cg-Cat(b)/J catalase-deficient, acatalasemic (aCat) mouse embryos or their wild-type C3HeB/FeJ (C3H WT) controls, were explanted on gestational day (GD) 9 (plug=GD 1), exposed for 24h to 2 or 4mg/mL EtOH or vehicle, and evaluated for functional and morphological changes. hCat and C57BL/6 WT vehicle-exposed embryos developed normally, while EtOH was embryopathic in C57BL/6 WT embryos, evidenced by decreases in anterior neuropore closure, somites developed, turning and head length, whereas hCat embryos were protected (pcatalase (PEG-cat) 8h prior to embryo culture, which increases embryonic catalase activity, blocked all EtOH embryopathies (pcatalase is a determinant of risk for EtOH embryopathies. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cytomegalovirus-induced embryopathology: mouse submandibular salivary gland epithelial-mesenchymal ontogeny as a model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huang Jing

2006-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Human studies suggest, and mouse models clearly demonstrate, that cytomegalovirus (CMV is dysmorphic to early organ and tissue development. CMV has a particular tropism for embryonic salivary gland and other head mesenchyme. CMV has evolved to co-opt cell signaling networks so to optimize replication and survival, to the detriment of infected tissues. It has been postulated that mesenchymal infection is the critical step in disrupting organogenesis. If so, organogenesis dependent on epithelial-mesenchymal interactions would be particularly vulnerable. In this study, we chose to model the vulnerability by investigating the cell and molecular pathogenesis of CMV infected mouse embryonic submandibular salivary glands (SMGs. Results We infected E15 SMG explants with mouse CMV (mCMV. Active infection for up to 12 days in vitro results in a remarkable cell and molecular pathology characterized by atypical ductal epithelial hyperplasia, apparent epitheliomesenchymal transformation, oncocytic-like stromal metaplasia, β-catenin nuclear localization, and upregulation of Nfkb2, Relb, Il6, Stat3, and Cox2. Rescue with an antiviral nucleoside analogue indicates that mCMV replication is necessary to initiate and maintain SMG dysmorphogenesis. Conclusion mCMV infection of embryonic mouse explants results in dysplasia, metaplasia, and, possibly, anaplasia. The molecular pathogenesis appears to center around the activation of canonical and, perhaps more importantly, noncanonical NFκB. Further, COX-2 and IL-6 are important downstream effectors of embryopathology. At the cellular level, there appears to be a consequential interplay between the transformed SMG cells and the surrounding extracellular matrix, resulting in the nuclear translocation of β-catenin. From these studies, a tentative framework has emerged within which additional studies may be planned and performed.

Effects of the EVCAM chemical validation library on differentiation using marker gene expression in lmouse embryonic stem cells

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The adherent cell differentiation and cytotoxicity (ACDC) assay was used to profile the effects of the ECVAM EST validation chemical library (19 compounds) on J1 mouse embryonic stem cells (mESC). PCR-based TaqMan Low Density Arrays (TLDA) provided a high-content assessment of al...

New gene targets for glucagon-like peptide-1 during embryonic development and in undifferentiated pluripotent cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanz, Carmen; Blázquez, Enrique

2011-09-01

In humans, glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1) functions during adult life as an incretin hormone with anorexigenic and antidiabetogenic properties. Also, the therapeutic potential of GLP-1 in preventing the adipocyte hyperplasia associated with obesity and in bolstering the maintenance of human mesenchymal stem cell (hMSC) stores by promoting the proliferation and cytoprotection of hMSC seems to be relevant. Since these observations suggest a role for GLP-1 during developmental processes, the aim of the present work was to characterize GLP-1 in early development as well as its gene targets in mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells. Mouse embryos E6, E8, and E10.5 and pluripotent mES were used for the inmunodetection of GLP-1 and GLP-1 receptor. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to determine the expression levels of GLP-1R in several tissues from E12.5 mouse embryos. Additionally, GLP-1 gene targets were studied in mES by multiple gene expression analyses. GLP-1 and its receptors were identified in mES and during embryonic development. In pluripotent mES, GLP-1 modified the expression of endodermal, ectodermal, and mesodermal gene markers as well as sonic hedgehog, noggin, members of the fibroblast and hepatic growth factor families, and others involved in pancreatic development. Additionally, GLP-1 promoted the expression of the antiapoptotic gene bcl2 and at the same time reduced proapoptotic caspase genes. Our results indicate that apart from the effects and therapeutic benefits of GLP-1 in adulthood, it may have additional gene targets in mES cells during embryonic life. Furthermore, the pathophysiological implications of GLP-1 imbalance in adulthood may have a counterpart during development.

Taurine activates GABAergic networks in the neocortex of immature mice

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Bogdan Aurel Sava

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Although it has been suggested that taurine is the main endogenous neurotransmitter acting on glycine receptors, the implications of glycine receptor-mediated taurine actions on immature neocortical networks have not been addressed yet. To investigate the influence of taurine on the excitability of neuronal networks in the immature neocortex, we performed whole-cell patch-clamp recordings from visually identified pyramidal neurons and interneurons in coronal slices from C57Bl/6 and GAD67-GFP transgenic mice (postnatal days 2-4. In 46 % of the pyramidal neurons bath-application of taurine at concentrations ≥ 300 mM significantly enhanced the frequency of postsynaptic currents (PSCs by 744.3 ± 93.8 % (n = 120 cells. This taurine-induced increase of PSC frequency was abolished by 0.2 mM tetrodotoxine, 1 mM strychnine or 3 mM gabazine, but was unaffected by the glutamatergic antagonists 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (CNQX and (± R(--3-(2-carboxypiperazine-4-yl-propyl-1-phosphonic acid (CPP, suggesting that taurine specifically activates GABAergic network activity projecting to pyramidal neurons. Cell-attached recordings revealed that taurine enhanced the frequency of action potentials in pyramidal neurons, indicating an excitatory action of the GABAergic PSCs. In order to identify the presynaptic targets of taurine we demonstrate that bath application of taurine induced in GAD67-GFP labeled interneurons an inward current that is mainly mediated by glycine receptors and can generate action potentials in these cells. We conclude from these results that taurine can enhance network excitability in the immature neocortex by selectively activating GABAergic interneurons via interactions with glycine receptors.

Brain perfusion SPECT in the mouse: normal pattern according to gender and age.

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Apostolova, Ivayla; Wunder, Andreas; Dirnagl, Ulrich; Michel, Roger; Stemmer, Nina; Lukas, Mathias; Derlin, Thorsten; Gregor-Mamoudou, Betina; Goldschmidt, Jürgen; Brenner, Winfried; Buchert, Ralph

2012-12-01

Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) is a useful surrogate marker of neuronal activity and a parameter of primary interest in the diagnosis of many diseases. The increasing use of mouse models spawns the demand for in vivo measurement of rCBF in the mouse. Small animal SPECT provides excellent spatial resolution at adequate sensitivity and is therefore a promising tool for imaging the mouse brain. This study evaluates the feasibility of mouse brain perfusion SPECT and assesses the regional pattern of normal Tc-99m-HMPAO uptake and the impact of age and gender. Whole-brain kinetics was compared between Tc-99m-HMPAO and Tc-99m-ECD using rapid dynamic planar scans in 10 mice. Assessment of the regional uptake pattern was restricted to the more suitable tracer, HMPAO. Two HMPAO SPECTs were performed in 18 juvenile mice aged 7.5 ± 1.5weeks, and in the same animals at young adulthood, 19.1 ± 4.0 weeks (nanoSPECT/CTplus, general purpose mouse apertures: 1.2kcps/MBq, 0.7mm FWHM). The 3-D MRI Digital Atlas Database of an adult C57BL/6J mouse brain was used for region-of-interest (ROI) analysis. SPECT images were stereotactically normalized using SPM8 and a custom made, left-right symmetric HMPAO template in atlas space. For testing lateral asymmetry, each SPECT was left-right flipped prior to stereotactical normalization. Flipped and unflipped SPECTs were compared by paired testing. Peak brain uptake was similar for ECD and HMPAO: 1.8 ± 0.2 and 2.1 ± 0.6 %ID (p=0.357). Washout after the peak was much faster for ECD than for HMPAO: 24 ± 7min vs. 4.6 ± 1.7h (p=0.001). The general linear model for repeated measures with gender as an intersubject factor revealed an increase in relative HMPAO uptake with age in the neocortex (p=0.018) and the hippocampus (p=0.012). A decrease was detected in the midbrain (p=0.025). Lateral asymmetry, with HMPAO uptake larger in the left hemisphere, was detected primarily in the neocortex, both at juvenile age (asymmetry index AI=2.7 ± 1

All-trans retinoic acid promotes neural lineage entry by pluripotent embryonic stem cells via multiple pathways

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Fang Bo

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background All-trans retinoic acid (RA is one of the most important morphogens with pleiotropic actions. Its embryonic distribution correlates with neural differentiation in the developing central nervous system. To explore the precise effects of RA on neural differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs, we detected expression of RA nuclear receptors and RA-metabolizing enzymes in mouse ESCs and investigated the roles of RA in adherent monolayer culture. Results Upon addition of RA, cell differentiation was directed rapidly and exclusively into the neural lineage. Conversely, pharmacological interference with RA signaling suppressed this neural differentiation. Inhibition of fibroblast growth factor (FGF signaling did not suppress significantly neural differentiation in RA-treated cultures. Pharmacological interference with extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK pathway or activation of Wnt pathway effectively blocked the RA-promoted neural specification. ERK phosphorylation was enhanced in RA-treated cultures at the early stage of differentiation. Conclusion RA can promote neural lineage entry by ESCs in adherent monolayer culture systems. This effect depends on RA signaling and its crosstalk with the ERK and Wnt pathways.

Transient inhibition of cell proliferation does not compromise self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Wang, Ruoxing; Guo, Yan-Lin

2012-10-01

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have unlimited capacity for self-renewal and can differentiate into various cell types when induced. They also have an unusual cell cycle control mechanism driven by constitutively active cyclin dependent kinases (Cdks). In mouse ESCs (mESCs). It is proposed that the rapid cell proliferation could be a necessary part of mechanisms that maintain mESC self-renewal and pluripotency, but this hypothesis is not in line with the finding in human ESCs (hESCs) that the length of the cell cycle is similar to differentiated cells. Therefore, whether rapid cell proliferation is essential for the maintenance of mESC state remains unclear. We provide insight into this uncertainty through chemical intervention of mESC cell cycle. We report here that inhibition of Cdks with olomoucine II can dramatically slow down cell proliferation of mESCs with concurrent down-regulation of cyclin A, B and E, and the activation of the Rb pathway. However, mESCs display can recover upon the removal of olomoucine II and are able to resume normal cell proliferation without losing self-renewal and pluripotency, as demonstrated by the expression of ESC markers, colony formation, embryoid body formation, and induced differentiation. We provide a mechanistic explanation for these observations by demonstrating that Oct4 and Nanog, two major transcription factors that play critical roles in the maintenance of ESC properties, are up-regulated via de novo protein synthesis when the cells are exposed to olomoucine II. Together, our data suggest that short-term inhibition of cell proliferation does not compromise the basic properties of mESCs. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Recombinant vitronectin is a functionally defined substrate that supports human embryonic stem cell self-renewal via alphavbeta5 integrin.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Braam, S.R.; Zeinstra, L.M.; Litjens, S.H.M.; Ward-van Oostwaard, D.; van den Brink, S.; van Laake, L.W.; Lebrin, F.; Kats, P.; Hochstenbach, R.; Passier, R.; Sonnenberg, A.; Mummery, C.L.

2008-01-01

Defined growth conditions are essential for many applications of human embryonic stem cells (hESC). Most defined media are presently used in combination with Matrigel, a partially defined extracellular matrix (ECM) extract from mouse sarcoma. Here, we defined ECM requirements of hESC by analyzing

Generation of skeletal muscle from transplanted embryonic stem cells in dystrophic mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhagavati, Satyakam; Xu Weimin

2005-01-01

Embryonic stem (ES) cells have great therapeutic potential because of their capacity to proliferate extensively and to form any fully differentiated cell of the body, including skeletal muscle cells. Successful generation of skeletal muscle in vivo, however, requires selective induction of the skeletal muscle lineage in cultures of ES cells and following transplantation, integration of appropriately differentiated skeletal muscle cells with recipient muscle. Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a severe progressive muscle wasting disease due to a mutation in the dystrophin gene and the mdx mouse, an animal model for DMD, are characterized by the absence of the muscle membrane associated protein, dystrophin. Here, we show that co-culturing mouse ES cells with a preparation from mouse muscle enriched for myogenic stem and precursor cells, followed by injection into mdx mice, results occasionally in the formation of normal, vascularized skeletal muscle derived from the transplanted ES cells. Study of this phenomenon should provide valuable insights into skeletal muscle development in vivo from transplanted ES cells

Disruption of the Sec24d gene results in early embryonic lethality in the mouse.

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Andrea C Baines

Full Text Available Transport of newly synthesized proteins from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER to the Golgi is mediated by the coat protein complex COPII. The inner coat of COPII is assembled from heterodimers of SEC23 and SEC24. Though mice with mutations in one of the four Sec24 paralogs, Sec24b, exhibit a neural tube closure defect, deficiency in humans or mice has not yet been described for any of the other Sec24 paralogs. We now report characterization of mice with targeted disruption of Sec24d. Early embryonic lethality is observed in mice completely deficient in SEC24D, while a hypomorphic Sec24d allele permits survival to mid-embryogenesis. Mice haploinsufficient for Sec24d exhibit no phenotypic abnormality. A BAC transgene containing Sec24d rescues the embryonic lethality observed in Sec24d-null mice. These results demonstrate an absolute requirement for SEC24D expression in early mammalian development that is not compensated by the other three Sec24 paralogs. The early embryonic lethality resulting from loss of SEC24D in mice contrasts with the previously reported mild skeletal phenotype of SEC24D deficiency in zebrafish and restricted neural tube phenotype of SEC24B deficiency in mice. Taken together, these observations suggest that the multiple Sec24 paralogs have developed distinct functions over the course of vertebrate evolution.

Nucleolar re-activation is delayed in mouse embryos cloned from two different cell lines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svarcova, Olga; Dinnyes, A.; Polgar, Z.

2009-01-01

displayed early NPBs transformation. In conclusion, despite normal onset of EGA in cloned embryos, activation of functional nucleoli was one cell cycle delayed in NT embryos. NT-MEF embryos displayed normal targeting but delayed activation of nucleolar proteins. Contrary, in NT-HM1 embryos, both......Aim of this study was to evaluate and compare embryonic genome activation (EGA) in mouse embryos of different origin using nucleolus as a marker. Early and late 2-cell and late 4-cell stage embryos, prepared by in vitro fertilization (IVF), parthenogenetic activation (PG), and nuclear transfer...... ofmouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) and mouse HM1 emryonic stem cells (HM1), were processed for autoradiography following 3H-uridine incubation (transcriptional activity), transmission electron microscopy (ultrastructure) and immunofluorescence (nucleolar proteins; upstream binding factor, UBF...

Microglial and macrophage reactions mark progressive changes and define the penumbra in the rat neocortex and striatum after transient middle cerebral artery occlusion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lehrmann, E; Christensen, Thomas; Zimmer, J

1997-01-01

Transient middle cerebral artery occlusion in rats leads to infarction of the lateral part of the striatum and adjacent neocortex, with selective neuronal necrosis in the bordering penumbral zones. Administration of glutamate, cytokine, and leukocyte antagonists have rescued mainly neocortical....../macrophages in the adjacent penumbra. Within the neocortex, a later onset of degeneration along the insular-parietal axis was marked by neuronal expression of heat shock protein and a progressive microglial activation with induction of the full repertoire of microglial activation markers, including a widespread microglial...

Histological evidence for drug diffusion across the cerebral meninges into the underlying neocortex in rats.

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Ludvig, Nandor; Sheffield, Lynette G; Tang, Hai M; Baptiste, Shirn L; Devinsky, Orrin; Kuzniecky, Ruben I

2008-01-10

Transmeningeal pharmacotherapy has been proposed to treat neurological disorders with localized pathology, such as intractable focal epilepsy. As a step toward understanding the diffusion and intracortical spread of transmeningeally delivered drugs, the present study used histological methods to determine the extent to which a marker compound, N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), can diffuse into the neocortex through the meninges. Rats were implanted with bilateral parietal cortical epidural cups filled with 50 mM NMDA on the right side and artificial cerebrospinal fluid (ACSF) in the contralateral side. After 24 h, the histological effects of these treatments were evaluated using cresyl violet (Nissl) staining. The epidural NMDA exposure caused neuronal loss that in most animals extended from the pial surface through layer V. The area indicated by this neuronal loss was localized to the neocortical region underlying the epidural cup. These results suggest that NMDA-like, water soluble, small molecules can diffuse through the subdural/subarachnoid space into the underlying neocortex and spread in a limited fashion, close to the meningeal penetration site.

α2 Integrin, extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer, and matrix metalloproteinase-3 act sequentially to induce differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells into odontoblast-like cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ozeki, Nobuaki; Kawai, Rie; Hase, Naoko; Hiyama, Taiki; Yamaguchi, Hideyuki; Kondo, Ayami; Nakata, Kazuhiko; Mogi, Makio

2015-01-01

We previously reported that interleukin 1β acts via matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-3 to regulate cell proliferation and suppress apoptosis in α2 integrin-positive odontoblast-like cells differentiated from mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. Here we characterize the signal cascade underpinning odontoblastic differentiation in mouse ES cells. The expression of α2 integrin, extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (Emmprin), and MMP-3 mRNA and protein were all potently increased during odontoblastic differentiation. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) disruption of the expression of these effectors potently suppressed the expression of the odontoblastic biomarkers dentin sialophosphoprotein, dentin matrix protein-1 and alkaline phosphatase, and blocked odontoblast calcification. Our siRNA, western blot and blocking antibody analyses revealed a unique sequential cascade involving α2 integrin, Emmprin and MMP-3 that drives ES cell differentiation into odontoblasts. This cascade requires the interaction between α2 integrin and Emmprin and is potentiated by exogenous MMP-3. Finally, although odontoblast-like cells potently express α2, α6, αV, β1, and β3, integrins, we confirmed that β1 integrin acts as the trigger for ES cell differentiation, apparently in complex with α2 integrin. These results demonstrate a unique and unanticipated role for an α2 integrin-, Emmprin-, and MMP-3-mediated signaling cascade in driving mouse ES cell differentiation into odontoblast-like cells. - Highlights: • Odontoblast differentiation requires activation of α2 integrin, Emmprin and MMP-3. • α2 integrin, Emmprin and MMP-3 form a sequential signaling cascade. • β1 integrin acts a specific trigger for odontoblast differentiation. • The role of these effectors is highly novel and unanticipated

α2 Integrin, extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer, and matrix metalloproteinase-3 act sequentially to induce differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells into odontoblast-like cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ozeki, Nobuaki; Kawai, Rie; Hase, Naoko; Hiyama, Taiki; Yamaguchi, Hideyuki [Department of Endodontics, School of Dentistry, Aichi Gakuin University, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8651 (Japan); Kondo, Ayami [Department of Medicinal Biochemistry, School of Pharmacy, Aichi Gakuin University, Nagoya 464-8650 (Japan); Nakata, Kazuhiko [Department of Endodontics, School of Dentistry, Aichi Gakuin University, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8651 (Japan); Mogi, Makio, E-mail: makio@dpc.agu.ac.jp [Department of Medicinal Biochemistry, School of Pharmacy, Aichi Gakuin University, Nagoya 464-8650 (Japan)

2015-02-01

We previously reported that interleukin 1β acts via matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-3 to regulate cell proliferation and suppress apoptosis in α2 integrin-positive odontoblast-like cells differentiated from mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. Here we characterize the signal cascade underpinning odontoblastic differentiation in mouse ES cells. The expression of α2 integrin, extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (Emmprin), and MMP-3 mRNA and protein were all potently increased during odontoblastic differentiation. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) disruption of the expression of these effectors potently suppressed the expression of the odontoblastic biomarkers dentin sialophosphoprotein, dentin matrix protein-1 and alkaline phosphatase, and blocked odontoblast calcification. Our siRNA, western blot and blocking antibody analyses revealed a unique sequential cascade involving α2 integrin, Emmprin and MMP-3 that drives ES cell differentiation into odontoblasts. This cascade requires the interaction between α2 integrin and Emmprin and is potentiated by exogenous MMP-3. Finally, although odontoblast-like cells potently express α2, α6, αV, β1, and β3, integrins, we confirmed that β1 integrin acts as the trigger for ES cell differentiation, apparently in complex with α2 integrin. These results demonstrate a unique and unanticipated role for an α2 integrin-, Emmprin-, and MMP-3-mediated signaling cascade in driving mouse ES cell differentiation into odontoblast-like cells. - Highlights: • Odontoblast differentiation requires activation of α2 integrin, Emmprin and MMP-3. • α2 integrin, Emmprin and MMP-3 form a sequential signaling cascade. • β1 integrin acts a specific trigger for odontoblast differentiation. • The role of these effectors is highly novel and unanticipated.

/sup 125/I-labelled tetanus toxin as a neuronal marker in tissue cultures derived from embryonic CNS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dimpfel, W; Neale, J H; Habermann, E [Giessen Univ. (F.R. Germany). Pharmakologisches Inst.; National Inst. of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, Md. (USA). Behavioural Biology Branch)

1975-01-01

Primary cultures derived from embryonic mouse brain and spinal cord were exposed to /sup 125/I-labelled tetanus toxin and subjected to autoradioraphy. Cells with neuronal, but not glial, morphology selectively accumulated the toxin. The distribution of the grains over these cells and their processes was not uniform, discrete processes showing heavier labelling.

Characterization and comparison of osteoblasts derived from mouse embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Ming-San; Kannan, Vishnu; de Vries, Anneriek E; Czepiel, Marcin; Wesseling, Evelyn M; Balasubramaniyan, Veerakumar; Kuijer, Roel; Vissink, Arjan; Copray, Sjef C V M; Raghoebar, Gerry M

2017-01-01

New developments in stem cell biology offer alternatives for the reconstruction of critical-sized bone defects. One of these developments is the use of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. These stem cells are similar to embryonic stem (ES) cells, but can be generated from adult somatic cells and therefore do not raise ethical concerns. Proper characterization of iPS-derived osteoblasts is important for future development of safe clinical applications of these cells. For this reason, we differentiated mouse ES and iPS cells toward osteoblasts using osteogenic medium and compared their functionality. Immunocytochemical analysis showed significant expression of bone markers (osteocalcin and collagen type I) in osteoblasts differentiated from ES and iPS cells on days 7 and 30. An in vitro mineralization assay confirmed the functionality of osteogenically differentiated ES and iPS cells. Gene expression arrays focusing on osteogenic differentiation were performed in order to compare the gene expression pattern in both differentiated and undifferentiated ES cells and iPS cells. We observed a significant upregulation of osteogenesis-related genes such as Runx2, osteopontin, collagen type I, Tnfsf11, Csf1, and alkaline phosphatase upon osteogenic differentiation of the ES and iPS cells. We further validated the expression of key osteogenic genes Runx2, osteopontin, osteocalcin, collagen type I, and osterix in both differentiated and undifferentiated ES and iPS cells by means of quantified real-time polymerase chain reaction. We conclude that ES and iPS cells are similar in their osteogenic differentiation capacities, as well as in their gene expression patterns.

Thy-1 attenuates TNF-alpha-activated gene expression in mouse embryonic fibroblasts via Src family kinase.

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Bin Shan

Full Text Available Heterogeneous surface expression of Thy-1 in fibroblasts modulates inflammation and may thereby modulate injury and repair. As a paradigm, patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a disease with pathologic features of chronic inflammation, demonstrate an absence of Thy-1 immunoreactivity within areas of fibrotic activity (fibroblast foci in contrast to the predominant Thy-1 expressing fibroblasts in the normal lung. Likewise, Thy-1 deficient mice display more severe lung fibrosis in response to an inflammatory injury than wildtype littermates. We investigated the role of Thy-1 in the response of fibroblasts to the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF-alpha. Our study demonstrates distinct profiles of TNF-alpha-activated gene expression in Thy-1 positive (Thy-1+ and negative (Thy-1- subsets of mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF. TNF-alpha induced a robust activation of MMP-9, ICAM-1, and the IL-8 promoter driven reporter in Thy-1- MEFs, in contrast to only a modest increase in Thy-1+ counterparts. Consistently, ectopic expression of Thy-1 in Thy-1- MEFs significantly attenuated TNF-alpha-activated gene expression. Mechanistically, TNF-alpha activated Src family kinase (SFK only in Thy-1- MEFs. Blockade of SFK activation abrogated TNF-alpha-activated gene expression in Thy-1- MEFs, whereas restoration of SFK activation rescued the TNF-alpha response in Thy-1+ MEFs. Our findings suggest that Thy-1 down-regulates TNF-alpha-activated gene expression via interfering with SFK- and NF-kappaB-mediated transactivation. The current study provides a novel mechanistic insight to the distinct roles of fibroblast Thy-1 subsets in inflammation.

Nuclear Receptor TLX Regulates Cell Cycle Progression in Neural Stem Cells of the Developing Brain

OpenAIRE

Li, Wenwu; Sun, Guoqiang; Yang, Su; Qu, Qiuhao; Nakashima, Kinichi; Shi, Yanhong

2007-01-01

TLX is an orphan nuclear receptor that is expressed exclusively in vertebrate forebrains. Although TLX is known to be expressed in embryonic brains, the mechanism by which it influences neural development remains largely unknown. We show here that TLX is expressed specifically in periventricular neural stem cells in embryonic brains. Significant thinning of neocortex was observed in embryonic d 14.5 TLX-null brains with reduced nestin labeling and decreased cell proliferation in the germinal ...

Injurious Effects of Curcumin on Maturation of Mouse Oocytes, Fertilization and Fetal Development via Apoptosis

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Wen-Hsiung Chan

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Curcumin, a common dietary pigment and spice, is a hydrophobic polyphenol derived from the rhizome of the herb Curcuma longa. Previously, we reported a cytotoxic effect of curcumin on mouse embryonic stem cells and blastocysts and its association with defects in subsequent development. In the present study, we further investigated the effects of curcumin on oocyte maturation and subsequent pre- and post-implantation development, both in vitro and in vivo. Notably, curcumin induced a significant reduction in the rate of oocyte maturation, fertilization, and in vitro embryonic development. Treatment of oocytes with curcumin during in vitro maturation (IVM led to increased resorption of postimplantation embryos and decreased fetal weight. Experiments with an in vivo mouse model disclosed that consumption of drinking water containing 40 μM curcumin led to decreased oocyte maturation and in vitro fertilization as well as early embryonic developmental injury. Finally, pretreatment with a caspase-3-specific inhibitor effectively prevented curcumin-triggered injury effects, suggesting that embryo impairment by curcumin occurs mainly via a caspase-dependent apoptotic process.

Efficient and simple production of insulin-producing cells from embryonal carcinoma stem cells using mouse neonate pancreas extract, as a natural inducer.

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Marzieh Ebrahimie

Full Text Available An attractive approach to replace the destroyed insulin-producing cells (IPCs is the generation of functional β cells from stem cells. Embryonal carcinoma (EC stem cells are pluripotent cells which can differentiate into all cell types. The present study was carried out to establish a simple nonselective inductive culture system for generation of IPCs from P19 EC cells by 1-2 weeks old mouse pancreas extract (MPE. Since, mouse pancreatic islets undergo further remodeling and maturation for 2-3 weeks after birth, we hypothesized that the mouse neonatal MPE contains essential factors to induce in vitro differentiation of pancreatic lineages. Pluripotency of P19 cells were first confirmed by expression analysis of stem cell markers, Oct3/4, Sox-2 and Nanog. In order to induce differentiation, the cells were cultured in a medium supplemented by different concentrations of MPE (50, 100, 200 and 300 µg/ml. The results showed that P19 cells could differentiate into IPCs and form dithizone-positive cell clusters. The generated P19-derived IPCs were immunoreactive to proinsulin, insulin and insulin receptor beta. The expression of pancreatic β cell genes including, PDX-1, INS1 and INS2 were also confirmed. The peak response at the 100 µg/ml MPE used for investigation of EP300 and CREB1 gene expression. When stimulated with glucose, these cells synthesized and secreted insulin. Network analysis of the key transcription factors (PDX-1, EP300, CREB1 during the generation of IPCs resulted in introduction of novel regulatory candidates such as MIR17, and VEZF1 transcription factors, as well as MORN1, DKFZp761P0212, and WAC proteins. Altogether, we demonstrated the possibility of generating IPCs from undifferentiated EC cells, with the characteristics of pancreatic β cells. The derivation of pancreatic cells from EC cells which are ES cell siblings would provide a valuable experimental tool in study of pancreatic development and function as well as rapid

Expression of HSG is essential for mouse blastocyst formation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang Guangjian; Pan Lei; Huang Xiuying; Han Mei; Wen Jinkun; Sun Fangzhen

2005-01-01

It has been shown recently that hyperplasia suppressor gene (HSG) is a powerful regulator for cell proliferation and has a critical role in mitochondrial fusion in many cells. However, little is known about its expression, localization, and function during oocyte maturation and early embryogenesis. In this study, with indirect immunofluorescent staining and Western blotting, we found that HSG was expressed in mouse oocytes and preimplantation embryos which primarily exhibited a submembrane distribution pattern in the cytoplasm. Moreover, HSG mainly associated with β-tubulin during oocyte maturation and early embryonic development. When mouse zygotes were injected with HSG antisense plasmid and cultured in vitro, their capacity to form blastocysts was severely impaired. Our results indicate that HSG plays an essential role in mouse preimplantation development

Cannabinoids as modulators of cancer cell viability, neuronal differentiation, and embryonal development

OpenAIRE

Gustafsson, Sofia

2012-01-01

Cannabinoids (CBs) are compounds that activate the CB1 and CB2 receptors. CB receptors mediate many different physiological functions, and cannabinoids have been reported to decrease tumor cell viability, proliferation, migration, as well as to modulate metastasis. In this thesis, the effects of cannabinoids on human colorectal carcinoma Caco-2 cells (Paper I) and mouse P19 embryonal carcinoma (EC) cells (Paper III) were studied.  In both cell lines, the compounds examined produced a concentr...

The Evolution of Lineage-Specific Regulatory Activities in the Human Embryonic Limb

OpenAIRE

Cotney, Justin; Leng, Jing; Yin, Jun; Reilly, Steven K.; DeMare, Laura E.; Emera, Deena; Ayoub, Albert E.; Rakic, Pasko; Noonan, James P.

2013-01-01

The evolution of human anatomical features likely involved changes in gene regulation during development. However, the nature and extent of human-specific developmental regulatory functions remain unknown. We obtained a genome-wide view of cis-regulatory evolution in human embryonic tissues by comparing the histone modification H3K27ac, which provides a quantitative readout of promoter and enhancer activity, during human, rhesus, and mouse limb development. Based on increased H3K27ac, we find...

Quantitative Proteomic Analysis of Mouse Embryonic Fibroblasts and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Using 16O /18O labeling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huang, Xin; Tian, Changhai; Liu, Miao; Wang, Yongxiang; Tolmachev, Aleksey V.; Sharma, Seema; Yu, Fang; Fu, Kai; Zheng, Jialin; Ding, Shi-Jian

2012-04-06

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) hold great promise for regenerative medicine as well as for investigations into the pathogenesis and treatment of various diseases. Understanding of key intracellular signaling pathways and protein targets that control development of iPSC from somatic cells is essential for designing new approaches to improve reprogramming efficiency. Here we report the development and application of an integrated quantitative proteomics platform for investigating differences in protein expressions between mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) and MEF-derived iPSC. This platform consists of 16O/18O labeling, multidimensional peptide separation coupled with tandem mass spectrometry, and data analysis with UNiquant software. Using this platform a total of 2,481 proteins were identified and quantified from the 16O/18O-labeled MEF-iPSC proteome mixtures with a false discovery rate of 0.01. Among them, 218 proteins were significantly upregulated, while 247 proteins were significantly downregulated in iPSC compared to MEF. Many nuclear proteins, including Hdac1, Dnmt1, Pcna, Ccnd1, Smarcc1, and subunits in DNA replication and RNA polymerase II complex were found to be enhanced in iPSC. Protein network analysis revealed that Pcna functions as a hub orchestrating complicated mechanisms including DNA replication, epigenetic inheritance (Dnmt1) and chromatin remodeling (Smarcc1) to reprogram MEF and maintain stemness of iPSC.

Phospholipase C-related catalytically inactive protein participates in the autophagic elimination of Staphylococcus aureus infecting mouse embryonic fibroblasts.

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Kae Harada-Hada

Full Text Available Autophagy is an intrinsic host defense system that recognizes and eliminates invading bacterial pathogens. We have identified microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3, a hallmark of autophagy, as a binding partner of phospholipase C-related catalytically inactive protein (PRIP that was originally identified as an inositol trisphosphate-binding protein. Here, we investigated the involvement of PRIP in the autophagic elimination of Staphylococcus aureus in infected mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs. We observed significantly more LC3-positive autophagosome-like vacuoles enclosing an increased number of S. aureus cells in PRIP-deficient MEFs than control MEFs, 3 h and 4.5 h post infection, suggesting that S. aureus proliferates in LC3-positive autophagosome-like vacuoles in PRIP-deficient MEFs. We performed autophagic flux analysis using an mRFP-GFP-tagged LC3 plasmid and found that autophagosome maturation is significantly inhibited in PRIP-deficient MEFs. Furthermore, acidification of autophagosomes was significantly inhibited in PRIP-deficient MEFs compared to the wild-type MEFs, as determined by LysoTracker staining and time-lapse image analysis performed using mRFP-GFP-tagged LC3. Taken together, our data show that PRIP is required for the fusion of S. aureus-containing autophagosome-like vacuoles with lysosomes, indicating that PRIP is a novel modulator in the regulation of the innate immune system in non-professional phagocytic host cells.

Mouse cell culture - Methods and protocols

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CarloAlberto Redi

2010-12-01

Full Text Available The mouse is, out of any doubt, the experimental animal par excellence for many many colleagues within the scientific community, notably for those working in mammalian biology (in a broad sense, from basic genetic to modeling human diseases, starting at least from 1664 Robert Hooke experiments on air’s propertyn. Not surprising then that mouse cell cultures is a well established field of research itself and that there are several handbooks devoted to this discipline. Here, Andrew Ward and David Tosh provide a necessary update of the protocols currently needed. In fact, nearly half of the book is devoted to stem cells culture protocols, mainly embryonic, from a list of several organs (kidney, lung, oesophagus and intestine, pancreas and liver to mention some........

Dibucaine mitigates spreading depolarization in human neocortical slices and prevents acute dendritic injury in the ischemic rodent neocortex.

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W Christopher Risher

Full Text Available Spreading depolarizations that occur in patients with malignant stroke, subarachnoid/intracranial hemorrhage, and traumatic brain injury are known to facilitate neuronal damage in metabolically compromised brain tissue. The dramatic failure of brain ion homeostasis caused by propagating spreading depolarizations results in neuronal and astroglial swelling. In essence, swelling is the initial response and a sign of the acute neuronal injury that follows if energy deprivation is maintained. Choosing spreading depolarizations as a target for therapeutic intervention, we have used human brain slices and in vivo real-time two-photon laser scanning microscopy in the mouse neocortex to study potentially useful therapeutics against spreading depolarization-induced injury.We have shown that anoxic or terminal depolarization, a spreading depolarization wave ignited in the ischemic core where neurons cannot repolarize, can be evoked in human slices from pediatric brains during simulated ischemia induced by oxygen/glucose deprivation or by exposure to ouabain. Changes in light transmittance (LT tracked terminal depolarization in time and space. Though spreading depolarizations are notoriously difficult to block, terminal depolarization onset was delayed by dibucaine, a local amide anesthetic and sodium channel blocker. Remarkably, the occurrence of ouabain-induced terminal depolarization was delayed at a concentration of 1 µM that preserves synaptic function. Moreover, in vivo two-photon imaging in the penumbra revealed that, though spreading depolarizations did still occur, spreading depolarization-induced dendritic injury was inhibited by dibucaine administered intravenously at 2.5 mg/kg in a mouse stroke model.Dibucaine mitigated the effects of spreading depolarization at a concentration that could be well-tolerated therapeutically. Hence, dibucaine is a promising candidate to protect the brain from ischemic injury with an approach that does not rely on

Subretinally transplanted embryonic stem cells rescue photoreceptor cells from degeneration in the RCS rats.

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Schraermeyer, U; Thumann, G; Luther, T; Kociok, N; Armhold, S; Kruttwig, K; Andressen, C; Addicks, K; Bartz-Schmidt, K U

2001-01-01

The Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rat is an animal model for retinal degeneration such as the age-related macular degeneration. The RCS rat undergoes a progressive retinal degeneration during the early postnatal period. A potential treatment to prevent this retinal degeneration is the transplantation into the subretinal space of cells that would replace functions of the degenerating retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells or may form neurotrophic factors. In this study we have investigated the potential of subretinally transplanted embryonic stem cells to prevent the genetically determined photoreceptor cell degeneration in the RCS rat. Embryonic stem cells from the inner cell mass of the mouse blastocyst were allowed to differentiate to neural precursor cells in vitro and were then transplanted into the subretinal space of 20-day-old RCS rats. Transplanted and sham-operated rats were sacrificed 2 months following cell transplantation. The eyes were enucleated and photoreceptor degeneration was quantified by analyzing and determining the thickness of the outer nuclear layer by light and electron microscopy. In the eyes transplanted with embryonic cells up to 8 rows of photoreceptor cell nuclei were observed, whereas in nontreated control eyes the outer nuclear layer had degenerated completely. Transplantation of embryonic stem cells appears to delay photoreceptor cell degeneration in RCS rats.

beta1 integrin maintains integrity of the embryonic neocortical stem cell niche.

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Karine Loulier

2009-08-01

Full Text Available During embryogenesis, the neural stem cells (NSC of the developing cerebral cortex are located in the ventricular zone (VZ lining the cerebral ventricles. They exhibit apical and basal processes that contact the ventricular surface and the pial basement membrane, respectively. This unique architecture is important for VZ physical integrity and fate determination of NSC daughter cells. In addition, the shorter apical process is critical for interkinetic nuclear migration (INM, which enables VZ cell mitoses at the ventricular surface. Despite their importance, the mechanisms required for NSC adhesion to the ventricle are poorly understood. We have shown previously that one class of candidate adhesion molecules, laminins, are present in the ventricular region and that their integrin receptors are expressed by NSC. However, prior studies only demonstrate a role for their interaction in the attachment of the basal process to the overlying pial basement membrane. Here we use antibody-blocking and genetic experiments to reveal an additional and novel requirement for laminin/integrin interactions in apical process adhesion and NSC regulation. Transient abrogation of integrin binding and signalling using blocking antibodies to specifically target the ventricular region in utero results in abnormal INM and alterations in the orientation of NSC divisions. We found that these defects were also observed in laminin alpha2 deficient mice. More detailed analyses using a multidisciplinary approach to analyse stem cell behaviour by expression of fluorescent transgenes and multiphoton time-lapse imaging revealed that the transient embryonic disruption of laminin/integrin signalling at the VZ surface resulted in apical process detachment from the ventricular surface, dystrophic radial glia fibers, and substantial layering defects in the postnatal neocortex. Collectively, these data reveal novel roles for the laminin/integrin interaction in anchoring embryonic NSCs

Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) Have a Superior Neuroprotective Capacity Over Fetal MSCs in the Hypoxic-Ischemic Mouse Brain.

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Hawkins, Kate E; Corcelli, Michelangelo; Dowding, Kate; Ranzoni, Anna M; Vlahova, Filipa; Hau, Kwan-Leong; Hunjan, Avina; Peebles, Donald; Gressens, Pierre; Hagberg, Henrik; de Coppi, Paolo; Hristova, Mariya; Guillot, Pascale V

2018-05-01

Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have huge potential for regenerative medicine. In particular, the use of pluripotent stem cell-derived mesenchymal stem cells (PSC-MSCs) overcomes the hurdle of replicative senescence associated with the in vitro expansion of primary cells and has increased therapeutic benefits in comparison to the use of various adult sources of MSCs in a wide range of animal disease models. On the other hand, fetal MSCs exhibit faster growth kinetics and possess longer telomeres and a wider differentiation potential than adult MSCs. Here, for the first time, we compare the therapeutic potential of PSC-MSCs (ES-MSCs from embryonic stem cells) to fetal MSCs (AF-MSCs from the amniotic fluid), demonstrating that ES-MSCs have a superior neuroprotective potential over AF-MSCs in the mouse brain following hypoxia-ischemia. Further, we demonstrate that nuclear factor (NF)-κB-stimulated interleukin (IL)-13 production contributes to an increased in vitro anti-inflammatory potential of ES-MSC-conditioned medium (CM) over AF-MSC-CM, thus suggesting a potential mechanism for this observation. Moreover, we show that induced pluripotent stem cell-derived MSCs (iMSCs) exhibit many similarities to ES-MSCs, including enhanced NF-κB signaling and IL-13 production in comparison to AF-MSCs. Future studies should assess whether iMSCs also exhibit similar neuroprotective potential to ES-MSCs, thus presenting a potential strategy to overcome the ethical issues associated with the use of embryonic stem cells and providing a potential source of cells for autologous use against neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy in humans. Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2018;7:439-449. © 2018 The Authors Stem Cells Translational Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of AlphaMed Press.

GATM, the human ortholog of the mouse imprinted Gatm gene, escapes genomic imprinting in placenta

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Toshinobu Miyamoto

2005-03-01

Full Text Available The GATM gene encodes L-arginine:glycine amidinotransferase, which catalyzes the conversion of L-arginine into guanidinoacetate, the rate-limiting step in the synthesis of creatine. Since, deficiencies in creatine synthesis and transport lead to certain forms of mental retardation in human, the human GATM gene appears to be involved in brain development. Recently it has been demonstrated that the mouse Gatm is expressed during development and is imprinted with maternal expression in the placenta and yolk sac, but not in embryonic tissues. We investigated the imprinting status of the human GATM by analyzing its expression in four human placentas. GATM was biallelically expressed, thus suggesting that this gene escapes genomic imprinting in placentas, differently from what has been reported in mouse extra-embryonic tissues.

Maintaining the pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem cells on gold nanoparticle layers with nanoscale but not microscale surface roughness

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Lyu, Zhonglin; Wang, Hongwei; Wang, Yanyun; Ding, Kaiguo; Liu, Huan; Yuan, Lin; Shi, Xiujuan; Wang, Mengmeng; Wang, Yanwei; Chen, Hong

2014-05-01

Efficient control of the self-renewal and pluripotency maintenance of embryonic stem cell (ESC) is a prerequisite for translating stem cell technologies to clinical applications. Surface topography is one of the most important factors that regulates cell behaviors. In the present study, micro/nano topographical structures composed of a gold nanoparticle layer (GNPL) with nano-, sub-micro-, and microscale surface roughnesses were used to study the roles of these structures in regulating the behaviors of mouse ESCs (mESCs) under feeder-free conditions. The distinctive results from Oct-4 immunofluorescence staining and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) demonstrate that nanoscale and low sub-microscale surface roughnesses (Rq less than 392 nm) are conducive to the long-term maintenance of mESC pluripotency, while high sub-microscale and microscale surface roughnesses (Rq greater than 573 nm) result in a significant loss of mESC pluripotency and a faster undirectional differentiation, particularly in long-term culture. Moreover, the likely signalling cascades engaged in the topological sensing of mESCs were investigated and their role in affecting the maintenance of the long-term cell pluripotency was discussed by analyzing the expression of proteins related to E-cadherin mediated cell-cell adhesions and integrin-mediated focal adhesions (FAs). Additionally, the conclusions from MTT, cell morphology staining and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity assays show that the surface roughness can provide a potent regulatory signal for various mESC behaviors, including cell attachment, proliferation and osteoinduction.Efficient control of the self-renewal and pluripotency maintenance of embryonic stem cell (ESC) is a prerequisite for translating stem cell technologies to clinical applications. Surface topography is one of the most important factors that regulates cell behaviors. In the present study, micro/nano topographical structures composed of a gold

Mouse oocytes nucleoli rescue embryonic development of porcine enucleolated oocytes

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Morovic, M.; Strejček, F.; Nakagawa, S.; Deshmukh, R.S.; Murin, M.; Benc, M.; Fulka, Helena; Kyogoku, H.; Pendovski, L.; Fulka, J.; Laurinčik, Jozef

2017-01-01

Roč. 25, č. 6 (2017), s. 675-685 ISSN 0967-1994 R&D Projects: GA MŠk EF15_003/0000460 Institutional support: RVO:68378050 ; RVO:67985904 Keywords : Embryo * Interspecies nucleolar transfer * Mouse * Nucleolus * Olcytes * Pig Subject RIV: EB - Genetics ; Molecular Biology OBOR OECD: Reproductive biology (medical aspects to be 3); Developmental biology (UZFG-Y) Impact factor: 1.053, year: 2016

Regulatory RNA Key Player in p53-Mediated Apoptosis in Embryonic Stem Cells | Center for Cancer Research

Science.gov (United States)

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) must maintain the integrity of their genomes or risk passing potentially deleterious mutations on to numerous tissues. Thus, ESCs have a unique genome surveillance system and easily undergo apoptosis or differentiation when DNA damage is detected. The protein p53 is known to promote differentiation in mouse ESCs (mESCs), but its role in DNA

Chromosomal instability in mouse embryonic fibroblasts null for the transcriptional co-repressor Ski

OpenAIRE

Marcelain, Katherine; Armisen, Ricardo; Aguirre, Adam; Ueki, Nobuhide; Toro, Jessica; Colmenares, Clemencia; Hayman, Michael J

2012-01-01

Ski is a transcriptional regulator that has been considered an oncoprotein, given its ability to induce oncogenic transformation in avian model systems. However, studies in mouse and in some human tumor cells have also indicated a tumor suppressor activity for this protein. We found that Ski−/− mouse embryo fibroblasts exhibit high levels of genome instability, namely aneuploidy, consistent with a tumor suppressor function for Ski. Time-lapse microscopy revealed lagging chromosomes and chroma...

Nat1 promotes translation of specific proteins that induce differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells.

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Sugiyama, Hayami; Takahashi, Kazutoshi; Yamamoto, Takuya; Iwasaki, Mio; Narita, Megumi; Nakamura, Masahiro; Rand, Tim A; Nakagawa, Masato; Watanabe, Akira; Yamanaka, Shinya

2017-01-10

Novel APOBEC1 target 1 (Nat1) (also known as "p97," "Dap5," and "Eif4g2") is a ubiquitously expressed cytoplasmic protein that is homologous to the C-terminal two thirds of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4G (Eif4g1). We previously showed that Nat1-null mouse embryonic stem cells (mES cells) are resistant to differentiation. In the current study, we found that NAT1 and eIF4G1 share many binding proteins, such as the eukaryotic translation initiation factors eIF3 and eIF4A and ribosomal proteins. However, NAT1 did not bind to eIF4E or poly(A)-binding proteins, which are critical for cap-dependent translation initiation. In contrast, compared with eIF4G1, NAT1 preferentially interacted with eIF2, fragile X mental retardation proteins (FMR), and related proteins and especially with members of the proline-rich and coiled-coil-containing protein 2 (PRRC2) family. We also found that Nat1-null mES cells possess a transcriptional profile similar, although not identical, to the ground state, which is established in wild-type mES cells when treated with inhibitors of the ERK and glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) signaling pathways. In Nat1-null mES cells, the ERK pathway is suppressed even without inhibitors. Ribosome profiling revealed that translation of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase 3 (Map3k3) and son of sevenless homolog 1 (Sos1) is suppressed in the absence of Nat1 Forced expression of Map3k3 induced differentiation of Nat1-null mES cells. These data collectively show that Nat1 is involved in the translation of proteins that are required for cell differentiation.

Reprogramming of somatic cells induced by fusion of embryonic stem cells using hemagglutinating virus of Japan envelope (HVJ-E)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yue, Xiao-shan; Fujishiro, Masako; Toyoda, Masashi; Akaike, Toshihiro; Ito, Yoshihiro

2010-01-01

In this research, hemagglutinating virus of Japan envelope (HVJ-E) was used to reprogram somatic cells by fusion with mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. Neomycin-resistant mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) were used as somatic cells. Nanog-overexpressing puromycin-resistant EB3 cells were used as mouse ES cells. These two cells were fused by exposing to HVJ-E and the generated fusion cells were selected by puromycin and G418 to get the stable fusion cell line. The fusion cells form colonies in feeder-free culture system. Microsatellite analysis of the fusion cells showed that they possessed genes from both ES cells and fibroblasts. The fusion cells were tetraploid, had alkali phosphatase activity, and expressed stem cell marker genes such as Pou5f1, Nanog, and Sox2, but not the fibroblast cell marker genes such as Col1a1 and Col1a2. The pluripotency of fusion cells was confirmed by their expression of marker genes for all the three germ layers after differentiation induction, and by their ability to form teratoma which contained all the three primary layers. Our results show that HVJ-E can be used as a fusion reagent for reprogramming of somatic cells.

Reprogramming of somatic cells induced by fusion of embryonic stem cells using hemagglutinating virus of Japan envelope (HVJ-E)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yue, Xiao-shan [Nano Medical Engineering Laboratory, RIKEN Advanced Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako-shi, Saitama 351-0198 (Japan); Department of Biomolecular Engineering, Graduate School of Bioscience and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Nagatsuta-cho, Midori-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 226-8501 (Japan); Fujishiro, Masako [Nano Medical Engineering Laboratory, RIKEN Advanced Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako-shi, Saitama 351-0198 (Japan); Toyoda, Masashi [Department of Reproductive Biology, National Institute for Child Health and Development, 2-10-1, Okura, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 157-8535 (Japan); Akaike, Toshihiro [Department of Biomolecular Engineering, Graduate School of Bioscience and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Nagatsuta-cho, Midori-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 226-8501 (Japan); Ito, Yoshihiro, E-mail: y-ito@riken.jp [Nano Medical Engineering Laboratory, RIKEN Advanced Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako-shi, Saitama 351-0198 (Japan); Department of Biomolecular Engineering, Graduate School of Bioscience and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Nagatsuta-cho, Midori-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 226-8501 (Japan)

2010-04-16

In this research, hemagglutinating virus of Japan envelope (HVJ-E) was used to reprogram somatic cells by fusion with mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. Neomycin-resistant mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) were used as somatic cells. Nanog-overexpressing puromycin-resistant EB3 cells were used as mouse ES cells. These two cells were fused by exposing to HVJ-E and the generated fusion cells were selected by puromycin and G418 to get the stable fusion cell line. The fusion cells form colonies in feeder-free culture system. Microsatellite analysis of the fusion cells showed that they possessed genes from both ES cells and fibroblasts. The fusion cells were tetraploid, had alkali phosphatase activity, and expressed stem cell marker genes such as Pou5f1, Nanog, and Sox2, but not the fibroblast cell marker genes such as Col1a1 and Col1a2. The pluripotency of fusion cells was confirmed by their expression of marker genes for all the three germ layers after differentiation induction, and by their ability to form teratoma which contained all the three primary layers. Our results show that HVJ-E can be used as a fusion reagent for reprogramming of somatic cells.

Structural bases of intracortical processes underlying the synchronization of epileptic potentials in the sensorimotor areas of the neocortex in rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Pasikova, N V; Marchenko, V G; Kositsyn, N S

2001-01-01

Studies in long-term isolated areas of the rat neocortex were performed to investigate the dynamics of the numbers and areas of nerve cell bodies in layer V and to compare these data with the degree of synchronization of epileptic discharges evoked by application of penicillin. Decreases in the number of pyramidal neurons with body areas of 200-350 microm2 in isolated strips after maintenance for 30 and 90 days led to decreases in the degree of synchronization of epileptiform potentials. Large pyramidal neurons are known to have long horizontal axon collaterals, spreading into layers V and VI of the neocortex. It is suggested that the neural networks formed by large pyramidal neurons by means of their long horizontal collaterals mediate the process of intracortical synchronization.

The perfect host: a mouse host embryo facilitating more efficient germ line transmission of genetically modified embryonic stem cells.

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Robert A Taft

Full Text Available There is a continual need to improve efficiency in creating precise genetic modifications in mice using embryonic stem cells (ESCs. We describe a novel approach resulting in 100% germline transmission from competent injected ESCs. We developed an F1 mouse host embryo (Perfect Host, PH that selectively ablates its own germ cells via tissue-specific induction of diphtheria toxin. This approach allows competent microinjected ESCs to fully dominate the germline, eliminating competition for this critical niche in the developing and adult animal. This is in contrast to conventional methods, where competition from host germ cells results in offspring derived from host cells and ESCs, necessitating extensive breeding of chimeras and genotyping to identify germline. The germline transmission process is also complicated by variability in the actual number of ESCs that colonize the germline niche and the proportion that are germline competent. To validate the PH approach we used ESC lines derived from 129 F1, BALB/cByJ, and BTBR backgrounds as well as an iPS line. Resulting chimeric males produced 194 offspring, all paternally derived from the introduced stem cells, with no offspring being derived from the host genome. We further tested this approach using eleven genetically modified C57BL/6N ESC lines (International Knockout Mouse Consortium. ESC germline transmission was observed in 9/11 (82% lines using PH blastocysts, compared to 6/11 (55% when conventional host blastocysts were used. Furthermore, less than 35% (83/240 of mice born in the first litters from conventional chimeras were confirmed to be of ESC-origin. By comparison, 100% (137/137 of the first litter offspring of PH chimeras were confirmed as ESC-derived. Together, these data demonstrate that the PH approach increases the probability of germline transmission and speeds the generation of ESC derived animals from chimeras. Collectively, this approach reduces the time and costs inherent in the

Cell number, tissue thickness and protein content as measures for development and variability in cultured neocortex explants

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Jong, B. M.; Ruijter, J. M.

1989-01-01

The development of neuronal number, explant thickness and amount of protein was studied in several series of rat neocortex explants, cultured up to 21 days in vitro (DIV). In contrast to the dimensions of the explant, which rapidly stabilized, the amount of protein showed a prolonged increase with

Loss of ATM kinase activity leads to embryonic lethality in mice

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Daniel, J.A.; Pellegrini, M.; Filsuf, D.

2012-01-01

whether the functions of ATM are mediated solely by its kinase activity, we generated two mouse models containing single, catalytically inactivating point mutations in Atm. In this paper, we show that, in contrast to Atm-null mice, both D2899A and Q2740P mutations cause early embryonic lethality in mice......, without displaying dominant-negative interfering activity. Using conditional deletion, we find that the D2899A mutation in adult mice behaves largely similar to Atm-null cells but shows greater deficiency in homologous recombination (HR) as measured by hypersensitivity to poly (adenosine diphosphate...

Lack of centrioles and primary cilia in STIL(-/-) mouse embryos.

Science.gov (United States)

David, Ahuvit; Liu, Fengying; Tibelius, Alexandra; Vulprecht, Julia; Wald, Diana; Rothermel, Ulrike; Ohana, Reut; Seitel, Alexander; Metzger, Jasmin; Ashery-Padan, Ruth; Meinzer, Hans-Peter; Gröne, Hermann-Josef; Izraeli, Shai; Krämer, Alwin

2014-01-01

Although most animal cells contain centrosomes, consisting of a pair of centrioles, their precise contribution to cell division and embryonic development is unclear. Genetic ablation of STIL, an essential component of the centriole replication machinery in mammalian cells, causes embryonic lethality in mice around mid gestation associated with defective Hedgehog signaling. Here, we describe, by focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy, that STIL(-/-) mouse embryos do not contain centrioles or primary cilia, suggesting that these organelles are not essential for mammalian development until mid gestation. We further show that the lack of primary cilia explains the absence of Hedgehog signaling in STIL(-/-) cells. Exogenous re-expression of STIL or STIL microcephaly mutants compatible with human survival, induced non-templated, de novo generation of centrioles in STIL(-/-) cells. Thus, while the abscence of centrioles is compatible with mammalian gastrulation, lack of centrioles and primary cilia impairs Hedgehog signaling and further embryonic development.

Maternal topoisomerase II alpha, not topoisomerase II beta, enables embryonic development of zebrafish top2a-/- mutants

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Sapetto-Rebow, Beata

2011-11-23

Abstract Background Genetic alterations in human topoisomerase II alpha (TOP2A) are linked to cancer susceptibility. TOP2A decatenates chromosomes and thus is necessary for multiple aspects of cell division including DNA replication, chromosome condensation and segregation. Topoisomerase II alpha is also required for embryonic development in mammals, as mouse Top2a knockouts result in embryonic lethality as early as the 4-8 cell stage. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the extended developmental capability of zebrafish top2a mutants arises from maternal expression of top2a or compensation from its top2b paralogue. Results Here, we describe bloody minded (blm), a novel mutant of zebrafish top2a. In contrast to mouse Top2a nulls, zebrafish top2a mutants survive to larval stages (4-5 day post fertilization). Developmental analyses demonstrate abundant expression of maternal top2a but not top2b. Inhibition or poisoning of maternal topoisomerase II delays embryonic development by extending the cell cycle M-phase. Zygotic top2a and top2b are co-expressed in the zebrafish CNS, but endogenous or ectopic top2b RNA appear unable to prevent the blm phenotype. Conclusions We conclude that maternal top2a enables zebrafish development before the mid-zygotic transition (MZT) and that zebrafish top2a and top2b are not functionally redundant during development after activation of the zygotic genome.

Maternal topoisomerase II alpha, not topoisomerase II beta, enables embryonic development of zebrafish top2a-/- mutants

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Sapetto-Rebow Beata

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Genetic alterations in human topoisomerase II alpha (TOP2A are linked to cancer susceptibility. TOP2A decatenates chromosomes and thus is necessary for multiple aspects of cell division including DNA replication, chromosome condensation and segregation. Topoisomerase II alpha is also required for embryonic development in mammals, as mouse Top2a knockouts result in embryonic lethality as early as the 4-8 cell stage. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the extended developmental capability of zebrafish top2a mutants arises from maternal expression of top2a or compensation from its top2b paralogue. Results Here, we describe bloody minded (blm, a novel mutant of zebrafish top2a. In contrast to mouse Top2a nulls, zebrafish top2a mutants survive to larval stages (4-5 day post fertilization. Developmental analyses demonstrate abundant expression of maternal top2a but not top2b. Inhibition or poisoning of maternal topoisomerase II delays embryonic development by extending the cell cycle M-phase. Zygotic top2a and top2b are co-expressed in the zebrafish CNS, but endogenous or ectopic top2b RNA appear unable to prevent the blm phenotype. Conclusions We conclude that maternal top2a enables zebrafish development before the mid-zygotic transition (MZT and that zebrafish top2a and top2b are not functionally redundant during development after activation of the zygotic genome.

Columnar interactions determine horizontal propagation of recurrent network activity in neocortex

Science.gov (United States)

Wester, Jason C.; Contreras, Diego

2012-01-01

The cortex is organized in vertical and horizontal circuits that determine the spatiotemporal properties of distributed cortical activity. Despite detailed knowledge of synaptic interactions among individual cells in the neocortex, little is known about the rules governing interactions among local populations. Here we used self-sustained recurrent activity generated in cortex, also known as up-states, in rat thalamocortical slices in vitro to understand interactions among laminar and horizontal circuits. By means of intracellular recordings and fast optical imaging with voltage sensitive dyes, we show that single thalamic inputs activate the cortical column in a preferential L4→L2/3→L5 sequence, followed by horizontal propagation with a leading front in supra and infragranular layers. To understand the laminar and columnar interactions, we used focal injections of TTX to block activity in small local populations, while preserving functional connectivity in the rest of the network. We show that L2/3 alone, without underlying L5, does not generate self-sustained activity and is inefficient propagating activity horizontally. In contrast, L5 sustains activity in the absence of L2/3 and is necessary and sufficient to propagate activity horizontally. However, loss of L2/3 delays horizontal propagation via L5. Finally, L5 amplifies activity in L2/3. Our results show for the first time that columnar interactions between supra and infragranular layers are required for the normal propagation of activity in the neocortex. Our data suggest that supra and infragranular circuits with their specific and complex set of inputs and outputs, work in tandem to determine the patterns of cortical activation observed in vivo. PMID:22514308

Hydrogen-rich medium protects mouse embryonic fibroblasts from oxidative stress by activating LKB1-AMPK-FoxO1 signal pathway.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jihyun; Yang, Goowon; Kim, Young-Joo; Tran, Quynh Hoa; Choe, Wonchae; Kang, Insug; Kim, Sung Soo; Ha, Joohun

2017-09-23

Persistent oxidative stress is recognized as a major cause of many pathological conditions as well as ageing. However, most clinical trials of dietary antioxidants have failed to produce successful outcomes in treating oxidative stress-induced diseases. Molecular hydrogen (H 2 ) has recently received considerable attention as a therapeutic agent owing to its novel antioxidant properties, a selective scavenger of hydroxyl and peroxynitrite radicals. Beyond this, numerous reports support that H 2 can modulate the activity of various cellular signal pathways. However, its effect on AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signal pathway, a central regulator of energy hemostasis, has remained almost elusive. Here, we report that hydrogen-rich medium activated LKB1-AMPK signal pathway without ATP depletion, which in turn induced FoxO1-dependent transcription of manganese superoxide dismutase and catalase in mouse embryonic fibroblasts. Moreover, hydrogen-rich media effectively reduced the level of reactive oxygen species in cells treated with hydrogen peroxide and protected these cells from apoptosis in an AMPK-dependent manner. These results suggest that the LKB1-AMPK-FoxO1 signaling pathway is a critical mediator of the antioxidant properties of H 2 , further supporting the idea that H 2 acts as a signaling molecule to serve various physiological functions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of Teratoma Formation between Embryonic Stem Cells and Parthenogenetic Embryonic Stem Cells by Molecular Imaging

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Hongyan Tao

2018-01-01

Full Text Available With their properties of self-renewal and differentiation, embryonic stem (ES cells hold great promises for regenerative therapy. However, teratoma formation and ethical concerns of ES cells may restrict their potential clinical applications. Currently, parthenogenetic embryonic stem (pES cells have attracted the interest of researchers for its self-renewing and pluripotent differentiation while eliciting less ethic concerns. In this study, we established a model with ES and pES cells both stably transfected with a double-fusion reporter gene containing renilla luciferase (Rluc and red fluorescent protein (RFP to analyze the mechanisms of teratoma formation. Transgenic Vegfr2-luc mouse, which expresses firefly luciferase (Fluc under the promoter of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (Vegfr2-luc, was used to trace the growth of new blood vessel recruited by transplanted cells. Bioluminescence imaging (BLI of Rluc/Fluc provides an effective tool in estimating the growth and angiogenesis of teratoma in vivo. We found that the tumorigenesis and angiogenesis capacity of ES cells were higher than those of pES cells, in which VEGF/VEGFR2 signal pathway plays an important role. In conclusion, pES cells have the decreased potential of teratoma formation but meanwhile have similar differentiating capacity compared with ES cells. These data demonstrate that pES cells provide an alternative source for ES cells with the risk reduction of teratoma formation and without ethical controversy.

Oct3/4 directly regulates expression of E2F3a in mouse embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kanai, Dai; Ueda, Atsushi; Akagi, Tadayuki; Yokota, Takashi; Koide, Hiroshi

2015-01-01

Embryonic stem (ES) cells, derived from the inner cell mass of blastocysts, have a characteristic cell cycle with truncated G1 and G2 phases. Recent findings that suppression of Oct3/4 expression results in a reduced proliferation rate of ES cells suggest the involvement of Oct3/4 in the regulation of ES cell growth, although the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. In the present study, we identified E2F3a as a direct target gene of Oct3/4 in ES cells. Oct3/4 directly bound to the promoter region of the E2F3a gene and positively regulated expression of E2F3a in mouse ES cells. Suppression of E2F3a activity by E2F6 overexpression led to the reduced proliferation in ES cells, which was relieved by co-expression of E2F3a. Furthermore, cell growth retardation caused by loss of Oct3/4 was rescued by E2F3a expression. These results suggest that Oct3/4 upregulates E2F3a expression to promote ES cell growth. - Highlights: • Oct3/4 positively regulates E2F3a expression in ES cells. • Oct3/4 binds to the promoter region of the E2F3a gene. • Overexpression of E2F6, an inhibitor of E2F3a, reduces ES cell growth. • E2F3a recovers growth retardation of ES cells caused by Oct3/4 reduction

Oct3/4 directly regulates expression of E2F3a in mouse embryonic stem cells

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Kanai, Dai; Ueda, Atsushi; Akagi, Tadayuki; Yokota, Takashi; Koide, Hiroshi, E-mail: hkoide@med.kanazawa-u.ac.jp

2015-04-10

Embryonic stem (ES) cells, derived from the inner cell mass of blastocysts, have a characteristic cell cycle with truncated G1 and G2 phases. Recent findings that suppression of Oct3/4 expression results in a reduced proliferation rate of ES cells suggest the involvement of Oct3/4 in the regulation of ES cell growth, although the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. In the present study, we identified E2F3a as a direct target gene of Oct3/4 in ES cells. Oct3/4 directly bound to the promoter region of the E2F3a gene and positively regulated expression of E2F3a in mouse ES cells. Suppression of E2F3a activity by E2F6 overexpression led to the reduced proliferation in ES cells, which was relieved by co-expression of E2F3a. Furthermore, cell growth retardation caused by loss of Oct3/4 was rescued by E2F3a expression. These results suggest that Oct3/4 upregulates E2F3a expression to promote ES cell growth. - Highlights: • Oct3/4 positively regulates E2F3a expression in ES cells. • Oct3/4 binds to the promoter region of the E2F3a gene. • Overexpression of E2F6, an inhibitor of E2F3a, reduces ES cell growth. • E2F3a recovers growth retardation of ES cells caused by Oct3/4 reduction.

Evaluation of a Mouse Embryonic Stem Cell Adherent Cell Differentiation and Cytotoxicity (ACDC) assay (SOT)

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The Embryonic Stem Cell Test (EST) has been used to evaluate the effects of xenobiotics using three endpoints, stem cell differentiation, stem cell viability and 3T3-cell viability. Our research goal is to establish amodel system that would evaluate chemical effects using a singl...

Huntingtin Protein is Essential for Mitochondrial Metabolism, Bioenergetics and Structure in Murine Embryonic Stem Cells

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Ismailoglu, Ismail; Chen, Qiuying; Popowski, Melissa; Yang, Lili; Gross, Steven S.; Brivanlou, Ali H.

2014-01-01

Mutations in the Huntington locus (htt) have devastating consequences. Gain-of-poly-Q repeats in Htt protein causes Huntington's disease (HD), while htt-/- mutants display early embryonic lethality. Despite its importance, the function of Htt remains elusive. To address this, we compared more than 3,700 compounds in three syngeneic mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) lines: htt-/-, extended poly-Q (Htt-Q140/7), and wildtype mESCs (Htt-Q7/7) using untargeted metabolite profiling. While Htt-Q140/7 cells, did not show major differences in cellular bioenergetics, we find extensive metabolic aberrations in htt-/- mESCs, including: (i) complete failure of ATP production despite preservation of the mitochondrial membrane potential; (ii) near-maximal glycolysis, with little or no glycolytic reserve; (iii) marked ketogenesis; (iv) depletion of intracellular NTPs; (v) accelerated purine biosynthesis and salvage; and (vi) loss of mitochondrial structural integrity. Together, our findings reveal that Htt is necessary for mitochondrial structure and function from the earliest stages of embryogenesis, providing a molecular explanation for htt-/- early embryonic lethality. PMID:24780625

Embryonic demise caused by targeted disruption of a cysteine protease Dub-2.

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Baek, Kwang-Hyun; Lee, Heyjin; Yang, Sunmee; Lim, Soo-Bin; Lee, Wonwoo; Lee, Jeoung Eun; Lim, Jung-Jin; Jun, Kisun; Lee, Dong-Ryul; Chung, Young

2012-01-01

A plethora of biological metabolisms are regulated by the mechanisms of ubiquitination, wherein this process is balanced with the action of deubiquitination system. Dub-2 is an IL-2-inducible, immediate-early gene that encodes a deubiquitinating enzyme with growth regulatory activity. DUB-2 presumably removes ubiquitin from ubiquitin-conjugated target proteins regulating ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis, but its specific target proteins are unknown yet. To elucidate the functional role of Dub-2, we generated genetically modified mice by introducing neo cassette into the second exon of Dub-2 and then homologous recombination was done to completely abrogate the activity of DUB-2 proteins. We generated Dub-2+/- heterozygous mice showing a normal phenotype and are fertile, whereas new born mouse of Dub-2-/- homozygous alleles could not survive. In addition, Dub-2-/- embryo could not be seen between E6.5 and E12.5 stages. Furthermore, the number of embryos showing normal embryonic development for further stages is decreased in heterozygotes. Even embryonic stem cells from inner cell mass of Dub-2-/- embryos could not be established. Our study suggests that the targeted disruption of Dub-2 may cause embryonic lethality during early gestation, possibly due to the failure of cell proliferation during hatching process.

Embryonic demise caused by targeted disruption of a cysteine protease Dub-2.

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Kwang-Hyun Baek

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: A plethora of biological metabolisms are regulated by the mechanisms of ubiquitination, wherein this process is balanced with the action of deubiquitination system. Dub-2 is an IL-2-inducible, immediate-early gene that encodes a deubiquitinating enzyme with growth regulatory activity. DUB-2 presumably removes ubiquitin from ubiquitin-conjugated target proteins regulating ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis, but its specific target proteins are unknown yet. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To elucidate the functional role of Dub-2, we generated genetically modified mice by introducing neo cassette into the second exon of Dub-2 and then homologous recombination was done to completely abrogate the activity of DUB-2 proteins. We generated Dub-2+/- heterozygous mice showing a normal phenotype and are fertile, whereas new born mouse of Dub-2-/- homozygous alleles could not survive. In addition, Dub-2-/- embryo could not be seen between E6.5 and E12.5 stages. Furthermore, the number of embryos showing normal embryonic development for further stages is decreased in heterozygotes. Even embryonic stem cells from inner cell mass of Dub-2-/- embryos could not be established. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the targeted disruption of Dub-2 may cause embryonic lethality during early gestation, possibly due to the failure of cell proliferation during hatching process.

Systems biology approach identifies the kinase Csnk1a1 as a regulator of the DNA damage response in embryonic stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Carreras Puigvert, Jordi; von Stechow, Louise; Siddappa, Ramakrishnaiah

2013-01-01

screen targeting all kinases, phosphatases, and transcription factors with global transcriptomics and phosphoproteomics to map the DDR in mouse embryonic stem cells treated with the DNA cross-linker cisplatin. Networks derived from canonical pathways shared in all three data sets were implicated in DNA...

Effect of organically bound tritium (OBT) on pre-implantation mouse embryos in vitro

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamada, Takeshi; Ohyama, Harumi

1989-01-01

Effect of organically bound tritium (OBT), such as tritiated thymidine and tritium-labeled amino acids, on mouse preimplantation embryos was examined in vitro. Mouse zygotes fertilized in vitro (BC3F 1 eggs x ICR sperm) were cultured in the media containing OBT in various concentrations up to the blastocyst stage. The LD 50 in terms of tritium concentrations in the culture medium were determined by measuring tritium concentrations in the medium to inhibit 50 % of embryos to form blastocyst in vitro. Tritium activities in the embryos were measured at various times during culture of embryos at LD 50 concentration in order to estimate absorbed radiation dose in embryonic cells. The LD 50 values obtained indicate that OBT could inhibit the embryonic development 1000 times more effectively that tritiated water (HTO). However, differences in LD 50 values in terms of absorbed radiation dose between OBT and HTO is not so essential, and might be explained by localized spatial distribution of OBT within the cell. (author)

Genetics Home Reference: SATB2-associated syndrome

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... reproductive cells (eggs or sperm) or in early embryonic development. Affected individuals have no history of the ... V. Satb2 is a postmitotic determinant for upper-layer neuron specification in the neocortex. Neuron. 2008 Feb ...

[Establishment of sprouting embryoid body model mimicking early embryonic vasculogenesis in human embryo].

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Hua; Feng, You-Ji; Xie, Yi; Han, Jin-Lan; Wang, Zack; Chen, Tong

2008-10-14

To establish a sprouting embryoid body model mimicking early embryonic vasculogenesis in human embryo. Human embryonic stem were (hESCs) were cultured on the mouse embryo fibroblasts and then were induced to differentiate to form three-dimensional EB. The hEBs were cultured in media containing various angiogenesis-related factors: vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), fibroblast growth factor (FGF), endostatin, angiostatin, and platelet factor (PF)-4 of different concentrations for 3 days to observe the sprouting of the hEBs. 3, 3, 3', 3'-tetramethylindo-carbocyanine perchlorate labeled acetylated low density lipoprotein (Dil-AcLDL) was added onto the hEBs foe 4 h Immunofluorescence assay was used to observe if Dil-AcLDL was absorbed and if CD31 was expressed so as to determine the existence of embryonic endothelial cells in the sprouting structures. The ideal culturing condition was analyzed. The differentiated EBs formed sprouting structures in the collagen I matrix containing VEGF and FGF. The sprouts among individual EBs were able to link to each other and form vascular network-like structures. In the presence of VEGF and FGF, the sprouts branching from the EBs assimilated Dil-AcLDL, expressed CD31 and formed a 3-dimensional cylindrical organization. The concentrations of growth factors ideally stimulating sprouting growth were 100 ng/ml of VEGF and 50 ng/ml of FGF. The networks among the EBs were abolished by the angiostatin, endostatin, and PF4. The sprouting from hEBs accumulates embryonic endothelial cells and the sprouting network-like structures are indeed endothelial in nature. Inducing of sprouting EBs is an ideal model that mimics early embryonic vasculogenesis in humans.

Promotion of hair follicle development and trichogenesis by Wnt-10b in cultured embryonic skin and in reconstituted skin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ouji, Yukiteru; Yoshikawa, Masahide; Shiroi, Akira; Ishizaka, Shigeaki

2006-01-01

We previously showed that Wnt-10b promoted the differentiation of primary skin epithelial cells (MPSEC) toward hair shaft and inner root sheath of the hair follicle (IRS) cells in vitro. In the present study, we found that Wnt-10b promotes the development of hair follicles using a culture of mouse embryonic skin tissue and trichogenesis using a reconstitution experiment with nude mice. Hair follicle development was observed in skin taken from mouse embryos on embryonic day 10.5 following a 2-day culture with recombinant Wnt-10b (rWnt-10b), however, not without rWnt-10b. Brown hair growth was observed at the site of reconstituted skin in Balb/c nude mice where dermal fibroblasts and keratinocytes, derived from C3H/HeN new born mice, were transplanted with Wnt-10b-producing COS cells (Wnt-COS). Without the co-transplantation of Wnt-COS, no hair growth was observed. Our results suggest an important role of Wnt-10b in the initiation of hair follicle development and following trichogenesis

Homozygous mutation of focal adhesion kinase in embryonic stem cell derived neurons: normal electrophysiological and morphological properties in vitro

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Komiyama NH

2006-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Genetically manipulated embryonic stem (ES cell derived neurons (ESNs provide a powerful system with which to study the consequences of gene manipulation in mature, synaptically connected neurons in vitro. Here we report a study of focal adhesion kinase (FAK, which has been implicated in synapse formation and regulation of ion channels, using the ESN system to circumvent the embryonic lethality of homozygous FAK mutant mice. Results Mouse ES cells carrying homozygous null mutations (FAK-/- were generated and differentiated in vitro into neurons. FAK-/- ESNs extended axons and dendrites and formed morphologically and electrophysiologically intact synapses. A detailed study of NMDA receptor gated currents and voltage sensitive calcium currents revealed no difference in their magnitude, or modulation by tyrosine kinases. Conclusion FAK does not have an obligatory role in neuronal differentiation, synapse formation or the expression of NMDA receptor or voltage-gated calcium currents under the conditions used in this study. The use of genetically modified ESNs has great potential for rapidly and effectively examining the consequences of neuronal gene manipulation and is complementary to mouse studies.

Lack of metformin effect on mouse embryo AMPK activity: implications for metformin treatment during pregnancy.

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Lee, Hyung-Yul; Wei, Dan; Loeken, Mary R

2014-01-01

Adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is stimulated in embryos during diabetic pregnancy by maternal hyperglycaemia-induced embryo oxidative stress. Stimulation of AMPK disrupts embryo gene expression and causes neural tube defects. Metformin, which may be taken during early pregnancy, has been reported to stimulate AMPK activity. Thus, the benefits of improved glycaemic control could be offset by stimulated embryo AMPK activity. Here, we investigated whether metformin can stimulate AMPK activity in mouse embryos and can adversely affect embryo gene expression and neural tube defects. Pregnant nondiabetic mice were administered metformin beginning on the first day of pregnancy. Activation of maternal and embryo AMPK [phospho-AMPK α (Thr172) relative to total AMPK], expression of Pax3, a gene required for neural tube closure, and neural tube defects were studied. Mouse embryonic stem cells were used as a cell culture model of embryonic neuroepithelium to study metformin effects on AMPK and Pax3 expression. Metformin had no effect on AMPK in embryos or maternal skeletal muscle but increased activated AMPK in maternal liver. Metformin did not inhibit Pax3 expression or increase neural tube defects. However, metformin increased activated AMPK and inhibited Pax3 expression by mouse embryonic stem cells. Mate1/Slc47a1 and Oct3/Slc22a, which encode metformin transporters, were expressed at barely detectable levels by embryos. Although metformin can have effects associated with diabetic embryopathy in vitro, the lack of effects on mouse embryos in vivo may be due to lack of metformin transporters and indicates that the benefits of metformin on glycaemic control are not counteracted by stimulation of embryo AMPK activity and consequent embryopathy. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Identification of 2 novel genes developmentally regulated in the mouse aorta-gonad-mesonephros region

NARCIS (Netherlands)

C. Orelio; E.A. Dzierzak (Elaine)

2003-01-01

textabstractThe first adult-repopulating hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) emerge in the mouse aorta-gonad-mesonephros (AGM) region at embryonic day 10.5 prior to their appearance in the yolk sac and fetal liver. Although several genes are implicated in the regulation of HSCs, there

HUPO BPP pilot study: a proteomics analysis of the mouse brain of different developmental stages.

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Wang, Jing; Gu, Yong; Wang, Lihong; Hang, Xingyi; Gao, Yan; Wang, Hangyan; Zhang, Chenggang

2007-11-01

This study is a part of the HUPO Brain Proteome Project (BPP) pilot study, which aims at obtaining a reliable database of mouse brain proteome, at the comparison of techniques, laboratories, and approaches as well as at preparing subsequent proteome studies of neurologic diseases. The C57/Bl6 mouse brains of three developmental stages at embryonic day 16 (E16), postnatal day 7 (P7), and 8 wk (P56) (n = 5 in each group) were provided by the HUPO BPP executive committee. The whole brain proteins of each animal were individually prepared using 2-DE coupled with PDQuest software analysis. The protein spots representing developmentally related or stably expressed proteins were then prepared with in-gel digestion followed with MALDI-TOF/TOF MS/MS and analyzed using the MASCOT search engines to search the Swiss-Prot or NCBInr database. The 2-DE gel maps of the mouse brains of all of the developmental stages were obtained and submitted to the Data Collection Centre (DCC). The proteins alpha-enolase, stathmin, actin, C14orf166 homolog, 28,000 kDa heat- and acid-stable phosphoprotein, 3-mercaptopyruvate sulfurtransferase and 40 S ribosomal protein S3a were successfully identified. A further Western blotting analysis demonstrated that enolase is a protein up-regulated in the mouse brain from embryonic stage to adult stage. These data are helpful for understanding the proteome changes in the development of the mouse brain.

CHANGES IN THE GLUTATHIONE SYSTEM IN P19 EMBRYONAL CARCINOMA CELLS UNDER HYPOXIC CONDITIONS

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D. S. Orlov

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. According to modern perceptions, tumor growth, along with oxidative stress formation, is accompanied by hypoxia. Nowadays studying the regulation of cellular molecular system functioning by conformational changes in proteins appears to be a topical issue. Research goal was to evaluate the state of the glutathione system and the level of protein glutathionylation in P19 embryonal carcinoma (EC cells under hypoxic conditions.Material and methods. P19 EC cells (mouse embryonal carcinoma cultured under normoxic and hypox-ic conditions served the research material.The concentration of total, oxidized, reduced and protein-bound glutathione, the reduced to oxidized thiol ratio as well as glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase activity were determined by spectropho-tometry.Results. Glutathione imbalance was accompanied by a decrease in P19 EC cell redox status under hypox-ic conditions against the backdrop of a rise in protein-bound glutathione.Conclusions. As a result of the conducted study oxidative stress formation was identified when modeling hypoxia in P19 embryonal carcinoma cells. The rise in the concentration of protein-bound glutathione may indicate the role of protein glutathionylation in regulation of P19 cell metabolism and functions un-der hypoxia. 

Expression of the metastasis-associated mts1 gene during mouse development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Klingelhöfer, Jörg; Ambartsumian, N S; Lukanidin, E M

1997-01-01

motility. In order to understand the function of this gene, we studied the expression of the mts1 mRNA and protein in vivo during mouse development. Both mRNA and protein were present in high concentrations from 12.5 to 18.5 days post coitum (dpc) in a variety of developing embryonic tissue of mesodermal....... In developing bone, Mts1 was expressed in invasive mesenchymal cells and in osteoclasts. The results presented here suggest that Mtsl plays an important role in mouse development during differentiation and function of macrophages and might be involved in different processes associated with mesenchymal...

Alzheimer's-type neuropathology in the precuneus is not increased relative to other areas of neocortex across a range of cognitive impairment.

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Nelson, Peter T; Abner, Erin L; Scheff, Stephen W; Schmitt, Frederick A; Kryscio, Richard J; Jicha, Gregory A; Smith, Charles D; Patel, Ela; Markesbery, William R

2009-02-06

We studied Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology in the precuneus and surrounding brain areas. Anatomically, the precuneus corresponds to the medial portion of human cerebral cortical Brodmann Area 7. This study utilized patients from the University of Kentucky Alzheimer's Disease Center autopsy cohort. Data from 47 brains were used comprising patients of differing antemortem cognitive impairment severities, each with longitudinal clinical data and extensive neuropathological data. We assessed whether the precuneus and surrounding areas are differentially vulnerable to AD-type pathological lesions (diffuse amyloid plaques, neuritic amyloid plaques, and neurofibrillary tangles). Eleven areas of brain were evaluated for each case: amygdala, hippocampal CA1, subiculum, entorhinal cortex, frontal cortex, superior and middle temporal gyri, inferior parietal lobule, occipital cortex, posterior cingulate gyrus, Brodmann Area 31, and the precuneus proper. Like other areas of neocortex, the precuneus demonstrated increased diffuse and neuritic amyloid plaques early in the evolution in AD, and increased neurofibrillary tangles late in AD. Correcting for the antemortem cognitive status of the patients, there was no evidence of an increase in the density of AD-type pathology in the precuneus or neighboring areas relative to other areas of cerebral neocortex. Our results are not consistent with the idea that the precuneus is involved in a special way with plaques or tangles relative to other areas of neocortex.

BAC-Dkk3-EGFP Transgenic Mouse: An In Vivo Analytical Tool for Dkk3 Expression

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Yuki Muranishi

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Dickkopf (DKK family proteins are secreted modulators of the Wnt signaling pathway and are capable of regulating the development of many organs and tissues. We previously identified Dkk3 to be a molecule predominantly expressed in the mouse embryonic retina. However, which cell expresses Dkk3 in the developing and mature mouse retina remains to be elucidated. To examine the precise expression of the Dkk3 protein, we generated BAC-Dkk3-EGFP transgenic mice that express EGFP integrated into the Dkk3 gene in a BAC plasmid. Expression analysis using the BAC-Dkk3-EGFP transgenic mice revealed that Dkk3 is expressed in retinal progenitor cells (RPCs at embryonic stages and in Müller glial cells in the adult retina. Since Müller glial cells may play a potential role in retinal regeneration, BAC-Dkk3-EGFP mice could be useful for retinal regeneration studies.

New Insights on the Morphology of Adult Mouse Penis1

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Rodriguez, Esequiel; Weiss, Dana A.; Yang, Jennifer H.; Menshenina, Julia; Ferretti, Max; Cunha, Tristan J.; Barcellos, Dale; Chan, Lok Yun; Risbridger, Gail; Cunha, Gerald R.; Baskin, Laurence S.

2011-01-01

ABSTRACT The adult mouse penis represents the end point of masculine sex differentiation of the embryonic genital tubercle and contains bone, cartilage, the urethra, erectile bodies, several types of epithelium, and many individual cell types arrayed into specific anatomical structures. Using contemporary high-resolution imaging techniques, we sought to provide new insights to the current description of adult mouse penile morphology to enable understanding of penile abnormalities, including hypospadias. Examination of serial transverse and longitudinal sections, scanning electron microscopy, and three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction provided a new appreciation of the individual structures in the adult mouse penis and their 3D interrelationships. In so doing, we discovered novel paired erectile bodies, the male urogenital mating protuberance (MUMP), and more accurately described the urethral meatus. These morphological observations were quantified by morphometric analysis and now provide accurate morphological end points of sex differentiation of mouse penis that will be the foundation of future studies to identify normal and abnormal penile development. PMID:21918128

Effect of culture medium volume and embryo density on early mouse embryonic development: tracking the development of the individual embryo.

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Shan-Jun; Xu, Chang-Long; Wang, Jeffrey; Sun, Ying-Pu; Chian, Ri-Cheng

2012-07-01

To determine the optimal volume or density of embryos for the well-of-the-well (WOW) system in order to track the development of individual embryos and to determine whether the WOW system can reverse the negative impact of culturing embryos singly. (1) Mouse embryos (groups of nine at the 2-cell stage) were cultured in 6.25 μl, 12.50 μl, 25.00 μl and 50.00 μl of droplets of culture medium under paraffin oil; (2) Groups of three, six, nine and twelve embryos at the 2-cell stage were cultured in 50 μl of droplet of culture medium under paraffin oil; (3) Groups of nine embryos at the 2-cell stage were cultured in 50 μl of droplet under paraffin oil with or without nine micro-wells made on the bottom of the Petri dish into each of which were placed one of the nine embryos (WOW system). Also single 2-cell stage embryos was cultured individually in 5.5 μl of droplet of culture medium under paraffin oil with or without a single micro-well made on the bottom of the Petri dish (WOW system for single culture). At the end of culture, the percentages of blastocyst development, hatching and hatched blastocysts were compared in each group. The blastocysts were fixed for differential staining. The blastocyst development was significantly higher (P WOW system. The blastocyst development was not improved when single embryo cultured individually in a micro-well was compared to single embryo cultured individually without micro-well. The total cell numbers of blastocysts were significantly higher in group embryo culture than single embryo culture regardless of whether the WOW system was used. In addition, the total cell numbers of blastocysts were significantly higher (P WOW system than without. Group embryo culture is superior to single embryo culture for blastocyst development. The WOW system with 50 μl of droplet of culture medium can be used to track the individual development of embryo cultured in groups while preserving good embryonic development. The reduced

Simultaneous suppression of TGF-β and ERK signaling contributes to the highly efficient and reproducible generation of mouse embryonic stem cells from previously considered refractory and non-permissive strains.

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Hassani, Seyedeh-Nafiseh; Totonchi, Mehdi; Farrokhi, Ali; Taei, Adeleh; Larijani, Mehran Rezaei; Gourabi, Hamid; Baharvand, Hossein

2012-06-01

Mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are pluripotent stem cell lines derived from pre-implantation embryos. The efficiency of mESC generation is affected by genetic variation in mice; that is, some mouse strains are refractory or non-permissive to ESC establishment. Developing an efficient method to derive mESCs from strains of various genetic backgrounds should be valuable for establishment of ESCs in various mammalian species. In the present study, we identified dual inhibition of TGF-β and ERK1/2, by SB431542 and PD0325901, respectively led to the highly efficient and reproducible generation of mESC lines from NMRI, C57BL/6, BALB/c, DBA/2, and FVB/N strains, which previously considered refractory or non-permissive for ESC establishment. These mESCs expressed pluripotency markers and retained the capacity to differentiate into derivatives of all three germ layers. The evaluated lines exhibited high rates of chimerism when reintroduced into blastocysts. To our knowledge, this is the first report of efficient (100%) mESC lines generation from different genetic backgrounds. The application of these two inhibitors will not only solve the problems of mESC derivation but also clarifies new signaling pathways in pluripotent mESCs.

Localization of trefoil factor family peptide 3 (TFF3) in epithelial tissues originating from the three germ layers of developing mouse embryo.

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Bijelić, Nikola; Belovari, Tatjana; Tolušić Levak, Maja; Baus Lončar, Mirela

2017-08-20

Trefoil factor family (TFF) peptides are involved in the maintenance of epithelial integrity and epithelial restitution. Mature epithelial tissues originate from different embryonic germ layers. The objective of this research was to explore the presence and localization of TFF3 peptide in mouse embryonic epithelia and to examine if the occurrence of TFF3 peptide is germ layer-dependent. Mouse embryos (14-18 days old) were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde and embedded in paraffin. Immunohistochemistry was performed with affinity purified rabbit anti-TFF3 antibody, goat anti-rabbit biotinylated secondary antibody and streptavidin-horseradish peroxidase, followed by 3,3'-diaminobenzidine. TFF3 peptide was present in the gastric and intestinal mucosa, respiratory mucosa in the upper and lower airways, pancreas, kidney tubules, epidermis, and oral cavity. The presence and localization of TFF3 peptide was associated with the embryonic stage and tissue differentiation. TFF3 peptide distribution specific to the germ layers was not observed. The role of TFF3 peptide in cell migration and differentiation, immune response, and apoptosis might be associated with specific embryonic epithelial cells. TFF3 peptide may also be considered as a marker for mucosal maturation.

Localization of trefoil factor family peptide 3 (TFF3 in epithelial tissues originating from the three germ layers of developing mouse embryo

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Nikola Bijelić

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Trefoil factor family (TFF peptides are involved in the maintenance of epithelial integrity and epithelial restitution. Mature epithelial tissues originate from different embryonic germ layers. The objective of this research was to explore the presence and localization of TFF3 peptide in mouse embryonic epithelia and to examine if the occurrence of TFF3 peptide is germ layer-dependent. Mouse embryos (14-18 days old were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde and embedded in paraffin. Immunohistochemistry was performed with affinity purified rabbit anti-TFF3 antibody, goat anti-rabbit biotinylated secondary antibody and streptavidin-horseradish peroxidase, followed by 3,3'-diaminobenzidine. TFF3 peptide was present in the gastric and intestinal mucosa, respiratory mucosa in the upper and lower airways, pancreas, kidney tubules, epidermis, and oral cavity. The presence and localization of TFF3 peptide was associated with the embryonic stage and tissue differentiation. TFF3 peptide distribution specific to the germ layers was not observed. The role of TFF3 peptide in cell migration and differentiation, immune response, and apoptosis might be associated with specific embryonic epithelial cells. TFF3 peptide may also be considered as a marker for mucosal maturation.

EXPOSURE TO A P13KINASE INHIBITOR PRODUCED DYSMORPHOGENESIS IN NEURULATION-STAGED MOUSE EMBRYOS IN CULTURE

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The haloacetic acids (HAA) are a family of chemicals that are drinking water disinfection byproducts. We previously reported that bromo- and chloro-acetic acids alter embryonic development when mouse conceptuses are directly exposed to these xenobiotics in whole embryo culture. C...

Rp58 and p27kip1 coordinate cell cycle exit and neuronal migration within the embryonic mouse cerebral cortex.

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Clément, Olivier; Hemming, Isabel Anne; Gladwyn-Ng, Ivan Enghian; Qu, Zhengdong; Li, Shan Shan; Piper, Michael; Heng, Julian Ik-Tsen

2017-05-15

During the development of the mammalian cerebral cortex, newborn postmitotic projection neurons are born from local neural stem cells and must undergo radial migration so as to position themselves appropriately to form functional neural circuits. The zinc finger transcriptional repressor Rp58 (also known as Znf238 or Zbtb18) is critical for coordinating corticogenesis, but its underlying molecular mechanism remains to be better characterised. Here, we demonstrate that the co-expression of Rp58 and the cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor (CDKI) p27 kip1 is important for E14.5-born cortical neurons to coordinate cell cycle exit and initiate their radial migration. Notably, we find that the impaired radial positioning of Rp58-deficient cortical neurons within the embryonic (E17.5) mouse cortex, as well as their multipolar to bipolar transition from the intermediate zone to the cortical plate can be restored by forced expression of p27 kip1 in concert with suppression of Rnd2, a downstream target gene of Rp58. Furthermore, the restorative effects of p27 kip1 and Rnd2 abrogation are reminiscent of suppressing RhoA signalling in Rp58-deficient cells. Our findings demonstrate functional interplay between a transcriptional regulator and a CDKI to mediate neuroprogenitor cell cycle exit, as well as to promote radial migration through a molecular mechanism consistent with suppression of RhoA signalling.

Inhibition of proliferation and differentiation and promotion of apoptosis by cyclin L2 in mouse embryonic carcinoma P19 cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhuo, Lili; Gong, Jie; Yang, Rong; Sheng, Yanhui; Zhou, Lei; Kong, Xiangqing; Cao, Kejiang

2009-01-01

Cyclin L2 (CCNL2) is a novel member of the cyclin gene family. In a previous study, we demonstrated that CCNL2 expression was upregulated in ventricular septum tissues from patients with ventricular septal defect compared to healthy controls. In the present study, we established a stable CCNL2-overexpressing P19 cell line that can differentiate to myocardial cells when treated with 1% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). Our data showed that stable CCNL2-overexpressing P19 cells were less differentiated after treatment with 1% DMSO and that expression of myocardial cell differentiation-related genes (such as cardiac actin, GATA4, Mef2C, Nkx2.5, and BNP) were reduced compared to vector-only transfected P19. Moreover, P19 cells overexpressing the CCNL2 gene had a reduced growth rate and a remarkably decreased S phase. We also found that these cells underwent apoptosis, as detected by two different apoptosis assays. The anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 protein was also downregulated in these cells. In addition, real-time PCR analysis revealed that expression of Wnt and β-catenin was suppressed and GSK3β was induced in the CCNL2-overexpressing P19 cells. These data suggest that overexpression of CCNL2 inhibited proliferation and differentiation of mouse embryonic carcinoma P19 cells and induced them to undergo apoptosis, possibly through the Wnt signal transduction pathway.

Oxygen-controlled automated neural differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Mondragon-Teran, Paul; Tostoes, Rui; Mason, Chris; Lye, Gary J; Veraitch, Farlan S

2013-03-01

Automation and oxygen tension control are two tools that provide significant improvements to the reproducibility and efficiency of stem cell production processes. the aim of this study was to establish a novel automation platform capable of controlling oxygen tension during both the cell-culture and liquid-handling steps of neural differentiation processes. We built a bespoke automation platform, which enclosed a liquid-handling platform in a sterile, oxygen-controlled environment. An airtight connection was used to transfer cell culture plates to and from an automated oxygen-controlled incubator. Our results demonstrate that our system yielded comparable cell numbers, viabilities, metabolism profiles and differentiation efficiencies when compared with traditional manual processes. Interestingly, eliminating exposure to ambient conditions during the liquid-handling stage resulted in significant improvements in the yield of MAP2-positive neural cells, indicating that this level of control can improve differentiation processes. This article describes, for the first time, an automation platform capable of maintaining oxygen tension control during both the cell-culture and liquid-handling stages of a 2D embryonic stem cell differentiation process.

Ultrastructural characteristics of three undifferentiated mouse embryonic stem cell lines and their differentiated three-dimensional derivatives: a comparative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Alharbi, Suzan; Elsafadi, Mona; Mobarak, Mohammed; Alrwili, Ali; Vishnubalaji, Radhakrishnan; Manikandan, Muthurangan; Al-Qudsi, Fatma; Karim, Saleh; Al-Nabaheen, May; Aldahmash, Abdullah; Mahmood, Amer

2014-04-01

The fine structures of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) grown as colonies and differentiated in three-dimensional (3D) culture as embryoid bodies (EBs) were analyzed by transmission electron microscopy. Undifferentiated mESCs expressed markers that proved their pluripotency. Differentiated EBs expressed different differentiation marker proteins from the three germ layers. The ultrastructure of mESCs revealed the presence of microvilli on the cell surfaces, large and deep infolded nuclei, low cytoplasm-to-nuclear ratios, frequent lipid droplets, nonprominent Golgi apparatus, and smooth endoplasmic reticulum. In addition, we found prominent juvenile mitochondria and free ribosomes-rich cytoplasm in mESCs. Ultrastructure of the differentiated mESCs as EBs showed different cell arrangements, which indicate the different stages of EB development and differentiation. The morphologies of BALB/c and 129 W9.5 EBs were very similar at day 4, whereas C57BL/6 EBs were distinct from the others at day 4. This finding suggested that differentiation of EBs from different cell lines occurs in the same pattern but not at the same rate. Conversely, the ultrastructure results of BALB/c and 129 W9.5 ESCs revealed differentiating features, such as the dilated profile of a rough endoplasmic reticulum. In addition, we found low expression levels of undifferentiated markers on the outer cells of BALB/c and 129 W9.5 mESC colonies, which suggests a faster differentiation potential.

Lack of centrioles and primary cilia in STIL−/− mouse embryos

Science.gov (United States)

David, Ahuvit; Liu, Fengying; Tibelius, Alexandra; Vulprecht, Julia; Wald, Diana; Rothermel, Ulrike; Ohana, Reut; Seitel, Alexander; Metzger, Jasmin; Ashery-Padan, Ruth; Meinzer, Hans-Peter; Gröne, Hermann-Josef; Izraeli, Shai; Krämer, Alwin

2014-01-01

Although most animal cells contain centrosomes, consisting of a pair of centrioles, their precise contribution to cell division and embryonic development is unclear. Genetic ablation of STIL, an essential component of the centriole replication machinery in mammalian cells, causes embryonic lethality in mice around mid gestation associated with defective Hedgehog signaling. Here, we describe, by focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy, that STIL−/− mouse embryos do not contain centrioles or primary cilia, suggesting that these organelles are not essential for mammalian development until mid gestation. We further show that the lack of primary cilia explains the absence of Hedgehog signaling in STIL−/− cells. Exogenous re-expression of STIL or STIL microcephaly mutants compatible with human survival, induced non-templated, de novo generation of centrioles in STIL−/− cells. Thus, while the abscence of centrioles is compatible with mammalian gastrulation, lack of centrioles and primary cilia impairs Hedgehog signaling and further embryonic development. PMID:25486474

Generation of Two Noradrenergic-Specific Dopamine-Beta-Hydroxylase-FLPo Knock-In Mice Using CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Targeting in Embryonic Stem Cells.

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Jenny J Sun

Full Text Available CRISPR/Cas9 mediated DNA double strand cutting is emerging as a powerful approach to increase rates of homologous recombination of large targeting vectors, but the optimization of parameters, equipment and expertise required remain barriers to successful mouse generation by single-step zygote injection. Here, we sought to apply CRISPR/Cas9 methods to traditional embryonic stem (ES cell targeting followed by blastocyst injection to overcome the common issues of difficult vector construction and low targeting efficiency. To facilitate the study of noradrenergic function, which is implicated in myriad behavioral and physiological processes, we generated two different mouse lines that express FLPo recombinase under control of the noradrenergic-specific Dopamine-Beta-Hydroxylase (DBH gene. We found that by co-electroporating a circular vector expressing Cas9 and a locus-specific sgRNA, we could target FLPo to the DBH locus in ES cells with shortened 1 kb homology arms. Two different sites in the DBH gene were targeted; the translational start codon with 6-8% targeting efficiency, and the translational stop codon with 75% targeting efficiency. Using this approach, we established two mouse lines with DBH-specific expression of FLPo in brainstem catecholaminergic populations that are publically available on MMRRC (MMRRC_041575-UCD and MMRRC_041577-UCD. Altogether, this study supports simplified, high-efficiency Cas9/CRISPR-mediated targeting in embryonic stem cells for production of knock-in mouse lines in a wider variety of contexts than zygote injection alone.

Transient inhibition of cell proliferation does not compromise self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Ruoxing [Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive 5018, Hattiesburg, MS 39406 (United States); Guo, Yan-Lin, E-mail: yanlin.guo@usm.edu [Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive 5018, Hattiesburg, MS 39406 (United States)

2012-10-01

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have unlimited capacity for self-renewal and can differentiate into various cell types when induced. They also have an unusual cell cycle control mechanism driven by constitutively active cyclin dependent kinases (Cdks). In mouse ESCs (mESCs). It is proposed that the rapid cell proliferation could be a necessary part of mechanisms that maintain mESC self-renewal and pluripotency, but this hypothesis is not in line with the finding in human ESCs (hESCs) that the length of the cell cycle is similar to differentiated cells. Therefore, whether rapid cell proliferation is essential for the maintenance of mESC state remains unclear. We provide insight into this uncertainty through chemical intervention of mESC cell cycle. We report here that inhibition of Cdks with olomoucine II can dramatically slow down cell proliferation of mESCs with concurrent down-regulation of cyclin A, B and E, and the activation of the Rb pathway. However, mESCs display can recover upon the removal of olomoucine II and are able to resume normal cell proliferation without losing self-renewal and pluripotency, as demonstrated by the expression of ESC markers, colony formation, embryoid body formation, and induced differentiation. We provide a mechanistic explanation for these observations by demonstrating that Oct4 and Nanog, two major transcription factors that play critical roles in the maintenance of ESC properties, are up-regulated via de novo protein synthesis when the cells are exposed to olomoucine II. Together, our data suggest that short-term inhibition of cell proliferation does not compromise the basic properties of mESCs. -- Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Inhibition of Cdks slows down mESCs proliferation. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer mESCs display remarkable recovery capacity from short-term cell cycle interruption. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Short-term cell cycle interruption does not compromise mESC self-renewal. Black

Transient inhibition of cell proliferation does not compromise self-renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Ruoxing; Guo, Yan-Lin

2012-01-01

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have unlimited capacity for self-renewal and can differentiate into various cell types when induced. They also have an unusual cell cycle control mechanism driven by constitutively active cyclin dependent kinases (Cdks). In mouse ESCs (mESCs). It is proposed that the rapid cell proliferation could be a necessary part of mechanisms that maintain mESC self-renewal and pluripotency, but this hypothesis is not in line with the finding in human ESCs (hESCs) that the length of the cell cycle is similar to differentiated cells. Therefore, whether rapid cell proliferation is essential for the maintenance of mESC state remains unclear. We provide insight into this uncertainty through chemical intervention of mESC cell cycle. We report here that inhibition of Cdks with olomoucine II can dramatically slow down cell proliferation of mESCs with concurrent down-regulation of cyclin A, B and E, and the activation of the Rb pathway. However, mESCs display can recover upon the removal of olomoucine II and are able to resume normal cell proliferation without losing self-renewal and pluripotency, as demonstrated by the expression of ESC markers, colony formation, embryoid body formation, and induced differentiation. We provide a mechanistic explanation for these observations by demonstrating that Oct4 and Nanog, two major transcription factors that play critical roles in the maintenance of ESC properties, are up-regulated via de novo protein synthesis when the cells are exposed to olomoucine II. Together, our data suggest that short-term inhibition of cell proliferation does not compromise the basic properties of mESCs. -- Highlights: ► Inhibition of Cdks slows down mESCs proliferation. ► mESCs display remarkable recovery capacity from short-term cell cycle interruption. ► Short-term cell cycle interruption does not compromise mESC self-renewal. ► Oct4 and Nanog are up-regulated via de novo synthesis by cell cycle interruption.

Tetraploid Embryonic Stem Cells Maintain Pluripotency and Differentiation Potency into Three Germ Layers.

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Hiroyuki Imai

Full Text Available Polyploid amphibians and fishes occur naturally in nature, while polyploid mammals do not. For example, tetraploid mouse embryos normally develop into blastocysts, but exhibit abnormalities and die soon after implantation. Thus, polyploidization is thought to be harmful during early mammalian development. However, the mechanisms through which polyploidization disrupts development are still poorly understood. In this study, we aimed to elucidate how genome duplication affects early mammalian development. To this end, we established tetraploid embryonic stem cells (TESCs produced from the inner cell masses of tetraploid blastocysts using electrofusion of two-cell embryos in mice and studied the developmental potential of TESCs. We demonstrated that TESCs possessed essential pluripotency and differentiation potency to form teratomas, which differentiated into the three germ layers, including diploid embryonic stem cells. TESCs also contributed to the inner cell masses in aggregated chimeric blastocysts, despite the observation that tetraploid embryos fail in normal development soon after implantation in mice. In TESCs, stability after several passages, colony morphology, and alkaline phosphatase activity were similar to those of diploid ESCs. TESCs also exhibited sufficient expression and localization of pluripotent markers and retained the normal epigenetic status of relevant reprogramming factors. TESCs proliferated at a slower rate than ESCs, indicating that the difference in genomic dosage was responsible for the different growth rates. Thus, our findings suggested that mouse ESCs maintained intrinsic pluripotency and differentiation potential despite tetraploidization, providing insights into our understanding of developmental elimination in polyploid mammals.

Tetraploid Embryonic Stem Cells Maintain Pluripotency and Differentiation Potency into Three Germ Layers.

Science.gov (United States)

Imai, Hiroyuki; Kano, Kiyoshi; Fujii, Wataru; Takasawa, Ken; Wakitani, Shoichi; Hiyama, Masato; Nishino, Koichiro; Kusakabe, Ken Takeshi; Kiso, Yasuo

2015-01-01

Polyploid amphibians and fishes occur naturally in nature, while polyploid mammals do not. For example, tetraploid mouse embryos normally develop into blastocysts, but exhibit abnormalities and die soon after implantation. Thus, polyploidization is thought to be harmful during early mammalian development. However, the mechanisms through which polyploidization disrupts development are still poorly understood. In this study, we aimed to elucidate how genome duplication affects early mammalian development. To this end, we established tetraploid embryonic stem cells (TESCs) produced from the inner cell masses of tetraploid blastocysts using electrofusion of two-cell embryos in mice and studied the developmental potential of TESCs. We demonstrated that TESCs possessed essential pluripotency and differentiation potency to form teratomas, which differentiated into the three germ layers, including diploid embryonic stem cells. TESCs also contributed to the inner cell masses in aggregated chimeric blastocysts, despite the observation that tetraploid embryos fail in normal development soon after implantation in mice. In TESCs, stability after several passages, colony morphology, and alkaline phosphatase activity were similar to those of diploid ESCs. TESCs also exhibited sufficient expression and localization of pluripotent markers and retained the normal epigenetic status of relevant reprogramming factors. TESCs proliferated at a slower rate than ESCs, indicating that the difference in genomic dosage was responsible for the different growth rates. Thus, our findings suggested that mouse ESCs maintained intrinsic pluripotency and differentiation potential despite tetraploidization, providing insights into our understanding of developmental elimination in polyploid mammals.

Chemotherapy-Induced Depletion of OCT4-Positive Cancer Stem Cells in a Mouse Model of Malignant Testicular Cancer

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Timothy M. Pierpont

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Summary: Testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs are among the most responsive solid cancers to conventional chemotherapy. To elucidate the underlying mechanisms, we developed a mouse TGCT model featuring germ cell-specific Kras activation and Pten inactivation. The resulting mice developed malignant, metastatic TGCTs composed of teratoma and embryonal carcinoma, the latter of which exhibited stem cell characteristics, including expression of the pluripotency factor OCT4. Consistent with epidemiological data linking human testicular cancer risk to in utero exposures, embryonic germ cells were susceptible to malignant transformation, whereas adult germ cells underwent apoptosis in response to the same oncogenic events. Treatment of tumor-bearing mice with genotoxic chemotherapy not only prolonged survival and reduced tumor size but also selectively eliminated the OCT4-positive cancer stem cells. We conclude that the chemosensitivity of TGCTs derives from the sensitivity of their cancer stem cells to DNA-damaging chemotherapy. : Using a mouse testicular germ cell tumor model, Pierpont et al. establish that male germ cells are susceptible to malignant transformation during a restricted window of embryonic development. The cancer stem cells of the resulting testicular cancers demonstrate genotoxin hypersensitivity, rendering these malignancies highly responsive to conventional chemotherapy. Keywords: testicular germ cell tumor, TGCT, cancer stem cells, CSCs, chemotherapy, embryonal carcinoma, EC, DNA damage response, DDR

A genome-wide RNAi screen reveals MAP kinase phosphatases as key ERK pathway regulators during embryonic stem cell differentiation.

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Shen-Hsi Yang

Full Text Available Embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells represent potentially important therapeutic agents in regenerative medicine. Complex interlinked transcriptional and signaling networks control the fate of these cells towards maintenance of pluripotency or differentiation. In this study we have focused on how mouse embryonic stem cells begin to differentiate and lose pluripotency and, in particular, the role that the ERK MAP kinase and GSK3 signaling pathways play in this process. Through a genome-wide siRNA screen we have identified more than 400 genes involved in loss of pluripotency and promoting the onset of differentiation. These genes were functionally associated with the ERK and/or GSK3 pathways, providing an important resource for studying the roles of these pathways in controlling escape from the pluripotent ground state. More detailed analysis identified MAP kinase phosphatases as a focal point of regulation and demonstrated an important role for these enzymes in controlling ERK activation kinetics and subsequently determining early embryonic stem cell fate decisions.

Fetal frontal cortex transplant (14C) 2-deoxyglucose uptake and histology: survival in cavities of host rat brain motor cortex

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharp, F.R.; Gonzalez, M.F.

1984-01-01

Fetal frontal neocortex from 18-day-old rat embryonic brain was transplanted into cavities in 30-day-old host motor cortex. Sixty days after transplantation, 5 of 15 transplanted rats had surviving fetal transplants. The fetal cortex transplants were physically attached to the host brain, completely filled the original cavity, and had numerous surviving cells including pyramidal neurons. Cell lamination within the fetal transplant was abnormal. The ( 14 C) 2-deoxyglucose uptake of all five of the fetal neocortex transplants was less than adjacent cortex and contralateral host motor-sensory cortex, but more than adjacent corpus callosum white matter. The results indicate that fetal frontal neocortex can be transplanted into damaged rat motor cortex. The metabolic rate of the transplants suggests they could be partially functional

Locust bean gum as an alternative polymeric coating for embryonic stem cell culture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Perestrelo, Ana Rubina [Regenerative Medicine Program, Departamento de Ciências Biomédicas e Medicina, Universidade do Algarve (Portugal); IBB - Institute for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Centre for Molecular and Structural Biomedicine (CBME), Universidade do Algarve (Portugal); PhD Program in Biomedical Sciences, Universidade do Algarve (Portugal); Grenha, Ana [IBB - Institute for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Centre for Molecular and Structural Biomedicine (CBME), Universidade do Algarve (Portugal); Rosa da Costa, Ana M. [Centro de Investigação em Química do Algarve (CIQA) and Departamento de Química e Farmácia, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade do Algarve (Portugal); Belo, José António, E-mail: jose.belo@fcm.unl.pt [Regenerative Medicine Program, Departamento de Ciências Biomédicas e Medicina, Universidade do Algarve (Portugal); IBB - Institute for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Centre for Molecular and Structural Biomedicine (CBME), Universidade do Algarve (Portugal); Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Campo Mártires da Pátria 130, 1169-056 Lisboa (Portugal)

2014-07-01

Pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have self-renewal capacity and the potential to differentiate into any cellular type depending on specific cues (pluripotency) and, therefore, have become a vibrant research area in the biomedical field. ESCs are usually cultured in gelatin or on top of a monolayer of feeder cells such as mitotically inactivated mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFsi). The latter is the gold standard support to maintain the ESCs in the pluripotent state. Examples of versatile, non-animal derived and inexpensive materials that are able to support pluripotent ESCs are limited. Therefore, our aim was to find a biomaterial able to support ESC growth in a pluripotent state avoiding laborious and time consuming parallel culture of MEFsi and as simple to handle as gelatin. Many of the new biomaterials used to develop stem cell microenvironments are using natural polymers adsorbed or covalently attached to the surface to improve the biocompatibility of synthetic polymers. Locust beam gum (LBG) is a natural, edible polymer, which has a wide range of potential applications in different fields, such as food and pharmaceutical industry, due to its biocompatibility, adhesiveness and thickening properties. The present work brings a natural system based on the use of LBG as a coating for ESC culture. Undifferentiated mouse ESCs were cultured on commercially available LBG to evaluate its potential in maintaining pluripotent ESCs. In terms of morphology, ESC colonies in LBG presented the regular dome shape with bright borders, similar to the colonies obtained in co-cultures with MEFsi and characteristic of pluripotent ESC colonies. In short-term cultures, ESC proliferation in LBG coating was similar to ESC cultured in gelatin and the cells maintained their viability. The activity of alkaline phosphatase and Nanog, Sox2 and Oct4 expression of mouse ESCs cultured in LBG were comparable or in some cases higher than in ESCs cultured in gelatin. An in vitro

Locust bean gum as an alternative polymeric coating for embryonic stem cell culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perestrelo, Ana Rubina; Grenha, Ana; Rosa da Costa, Ana M.; Belo, José António

2014-01-01

Pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have self-renewal capacity and the potential to differentiate into any cellular type depending on specific cues (pluripotency) and, therefore, have become a vibrant research area in the biomedical field. ESCs are usually cultured in gelatin or on top of a monolayer of feeder cells such as mitotically inactivated mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFsi). The latter is the gold standard support to maintain the ESCs in the pluripotent state. Examples of versatile, non-animal derived and inexpensive materials that are able to support pluripotent ESCs are limited. Therefore, our aim was to find a biomaterial able to support ESC growth in a pluripotent state avoiding laborious and time consuming parallel culture of MEFsi and as simple to handle as gelatin. Many of the new biomaterials used to develop stem cell microenvironments are using natural polymers adsorbed or covalently attached to the surface to improve the biocompatibility of synthetic polymers. Locust beam gum (LBG) is a natural, edible polymer, which has a wide range of potential applications in different fields, such as food and pharmaceutical industry, due to its biocompatibility, adhesiveness and thickening properties. The present work brings a natural system based on the use of LBG as a coating for ESC culture. Undifferentiated mouse ESCs were cultured on commercially available LBG to evaluate its potential in maintaining pluripotent ESCs. In terms of morphology, ESC colonies in LBG presented the regular dome shape with bright borders, similar to the colonies obtained in co-cultures with MEFsi and characteristic of pluripotent ESC colonies. In short-term cultures, ESC proliferation in LBG coating was similar to ESC cultured in gelatin and the cells maintained their viability. The activity of alkaline phosphatase and Nanog, Sox2 and Oct4 expression of mouse ESCs cultured in LBG were comparable or in some cases higher than in ESCs cultured in gelatin. An in vitro

The Synaptic Proteome during Development and Plasticity of the Mouse Visual Cortex

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dahlhaus, M.; Li, K.W.; van der Schors, R.C.; Saiepour, M.H.; van Nierop, P.; Heimel, J.A.; Hermans, J.M.; Loos, M.; Smit, A.B.; Levelt, C.N.

2011-01-01

During brain development, the neocortex shows periods of enhanced plasticity, which enables the acquisition of knowledge and skills that we use and build on in adult life. Key to persistent modifications of neuronal connectivity and plasticity of the neocortex are molecular changes occurring at the

Generation of Otic Sensory Neurons from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells in 3D Culture

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Michael Perny

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The peripheral hearing process taking place in the cochlea mainly depends on two distinct sensory cell types: the mechanosensitive hair cells and the spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs. The first respond to the mechanical stimulation exerted by sound pressure waves on their hair bundles by releasing neurotransmitters and thereby activating the latter. Loss of these sensorineural cells is associated with permanent hearing loss. Stem cell-based approaches aiming at cell replacement or in vitro drug testing to identify potential ototoxic, otoprotective, or regenerative compounds have lately gained attention as putative therapeutic strategies for hearing loss. Nevertheless, they rely on efficient and reliable protocols for the in vitro generation of cochlear sensory cells for their implementation. To this end, we have developed a differentiation protocol based on organoid culture systems, which mimics the most important steps of in vivo otic development, robustly guiding mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs toward otic sensory neurons (OSNs. The stepwise differentiation of mESCs toward ectoderm was initiated using a quick aggregation method in presence of Matrigel in serum-free conditions. Non-neural ectoderm was induced via activation of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP signaling and concomitant inhibition of transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ signaling to prevent mesendoderm induction. Preplacodal and otic placode ectoderm was further induced by inhibition of BMP signaling and addition of fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2. Delamination and differentiation of SGNs was initiated by plating of the organoids on a 2D Matrigel-coated substrate. Supplementation with brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3 was used for further maturation until 15 days of in vitro differentiation. A large population of neurons with a clear bipolar morphology and functional excitability was derived from these cultures. Immunostaining and gene expression

Differentiation of cartilaginous anlage in entire embryonic mouse limbs cultured in a rotating bioreactor.

Science.gov (United States)

Duke, P.; Oakley, C.; Montufar-Solis, D.

The embryonic mammalian limb is sensitive both in vivo and in vitro to changes in gravitational force. Hypergravity of centrifugation and microgravity of space decreased size of elements due to precocious or delayed chondrogenesis respectively. In recapitulating spaceflight experiments, premetatarsals were cultured in suspension in a low stress, low sheer rotating bioreactor, and found to be shorter than those cultured in standard culture dishes, and cartilage development was delayed. This study only measured length of the metatarsals, and did not account for possible changes in width and/or in form of the skeletal elements. Shorter cartilage elements in limbbuds cultured in the bioreactor may be due to the ability of the system to reproduce a more in vivo 3D shape than traditional organ cultures. Tissues subjected to traditional organ cultures become flattened by their own weight, attachment to the filter, and restrictions imposed by nutrient diffusion. The purpose of the current experiment was to determine if entire limb buds could be successfully cultured in the bioreactor, and to compare the effects on 3D shape with that of culturing in a culture dish system. Fore and hind limbs from E11-E13 ICR mouse embryos were placed either in the bioreactor, in Trowell culture, or fixed as controls. Limbbuds were cultured for six days, fixed, and processed either as whole mounts or embedded for histology. Qualitative analysis revealed that the Trowell culture specimens were flattened, while bioreactor culture specimens had a more in vivo-like 3D limb shape. Sections of limbbuds from both types of cultures had excellent cartilage differentiation, with apparently more cell maturation, and hypertrophy in the specimens cultured in the bioreactor. Morphometric quantitation of the cartilaginous elements for comparisons of the two culture systems was complicated due to some limb buds fusing together during culture. This problem was especially noticeable in the younger limbs, and

Disruption of the blood-brain interface in neonatal rat neocortex induces a transient expression of metallothionein in reactive astrocytes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Penkowa, M; Moos, T

1995-01-01

rats were subjected to a localized freeze lesion of the neocortex of the right temporal cortex. This lesion results in a disrupted blood-brain interface, leading to extravasation of plasma proteins. From 16 h, reactive astrocytosis, defined as an increase in the number and size of cells expressing GFAP...

Gelatin–PMVE/MA composite scaffold promotes expansion of embryonic stem cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chhabra, Hemlata; Gupta, Priyanka; Verma, Paul J.; Jadhav, Sameer; Bellare, Jayesh R.

2014-01-01

We introduce a new composite scaffold of gelatin and polymethyl vinyl ether-alt-maleic anhydride (PMVE/MA) for expansion of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) in an in vitro environment. To optimize the scaffold, we prepared a gelatin scaffold (G) and three composite scaffolds namely GP-1, GP-2, and GP-3 with varying PMVE/MA concentrations (0.2–1%) and characterized them by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), swelling study, compression testing and FTIR. SEM micrographs revealed interconnected porous structure in all the scaffolds. The permissible hemolysis ratio and activation of platelets by scaffolds confirmed the hemocompatibility of scaffolds. Initial biocompatibility assessment of scaffolds was conducted using hepatocarcinoma (Hep G2) cells and adhesion, proliferation and infiltration of Hep G2 cells in depth of scaffolds were observed, proving the scaffold's biocompatibility. Further Oct4B2 mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs), which harbor a green fluorescence protein transgene under regulatory control of the Oct4 promotor, were examined for expansion on scaffolds with MTT assay. The GP-2 scaffold demonstrated the best cell proliferation and was further explored for ESC adherence and infiltration in depth (SEM and confocal), and pluripotent state of mESCs was assessed with the expression of Oct4-GFP and stage-specific embryonic antigen-1 (SSEA-1). This study reports the first demonstration of biocompatibility of gelatin–PMVE/MA composite scaffold and presents this scaffold as a promising candidate for embryonic stem cell based tissue engineering. - Highlights: • Composite scaffolds of gelatin and PMVE/MA were prepared by freeze-drying method. • SEM micrographs showed porous structure in all scaffolds of varying pore dimension. • GP-2 composite exhibited better cellular response in comparison to other scaffolds. • mESCs proliferated and expressed Oct-4 and SSEA-1, when cultured on GP-2 scaffold

Gelatin–PMVE/MA composite scaffold promotes expansion of embryonic stem cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chhabra, Hemlata [Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Powai, Mumbai (India); Gupta, Priyanka [Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Powai, Mumbai (India); IITB-Monash Research Academy, Mumbai (India); Department of Chemical Engineering, Monash University, Melbourne (Australia); Verma, Paul J. [Turretfield Research Centre, South Australian Research and Development Institute, Rosedale, South Australia (Australia); Jadhav, Sameer; Bellare, Jayesh R. [Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Powai, Mumbai (India)

2014-04-01

We introduce a new composite scaffold of gelatin and polymethyl vinyl ether-alt-maleic anhydride (PMVE/MA) for expansion of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) in an in vitro environment. To optimize the scaffold, we prepared a gelatin scaffold (G) and three composite scaffolds namely GP-1, GP-2, and GP-3 with varying PMVE/MA concentrations (0.2–1%) and characterized them by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), swelling study, compression testing and FTIR. SEM micrographs revealed interconnected porous structure in all the scaffolds. The permissible hemolysis ratio and activation of platelets by scaffolds confirmed the hemocompatibility of scaffolds. Initial biocompatibility assessment of scaffolds was conducted using hepatocarcinoma (Hep G2) cells and adhesion, proliferation and infiltration of Hep G2 cells in depth of scaffolds were observed, proving the scaffold's biocompatibility. Further Oct4B2 mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs), which harbor a green fluorescence protein transgene under regulatory control of the Oct4 promotor, were examined for expansion on scaffolds with MTT assay. The GP-2 scaffold demonstrated the best cell proliferation and was further explored for ESC adherence and infiltration in depth (SEM and confocal), and pluripotent state of mESCs was assessed with the expression of Oct4-GFP and stage-specific embryonic antigen-1 (SSEA-1). This study reports the first demonstration of biocompatibility of gelatin–PMVE/MA composite scaffold and presents this scaffold as a promising candidate for embryonic stem cell based tissue engineering. - Highlights: • Composite scaffolds of gelatin and PMVE/MA were prepared by freeze-drying method. • SEM micrographs showed porous structure in all scaffolds of varying pore dimension. • GP-2 composite exhibited better cellular response in comparison to other scaffolds. • mESCs proliferated and expressed Oct-4 and SSEA-1, when cultured on GP-2 scaffold.

Characterization and comparison of osteoblasts derived from mouse embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ma, Ming San; Kannan, Vishnu; de Vries, Anneriek E; Czepiel, Marcin; Wesseling, Evelyn; Balasubramaniyan, Veerakumar; Kuijer, Roelof; Vissink, Arjan; Copray, Sjef; Raghoebar, Gerry

New developments in stem cell biology offer alternatives for the reconstruction of critical-sized bone defects. One of these developments is the use of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. These stem cells are similar to embryonic stem (ES) cells, but can be generated from adult somatic cells and

Mouse embryonic stem cells undergo charontosis, a novel programmed cell death pathway dependent upon cathepsins, p53, and EndoG, in response to etoposide treatment.

Science.gov (United States)

Tichy, Elisia D; Stephan, Zachary A; Osterburg, Andrew; Noel, Greg; Stambrook, Peter J

2013-05-01

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are hypersensitive to many DNA damaging agents and can rapidly undergo cell death or cell differentiation following exposure. Treatment of mouse ESCs (mESCs) with etoposide (ETO), a topoisomerase II poison, followed by a recovery period resulted in massive cell death with characteristics of a programmed cell death pathway (PCD). While cell death was both caspase- and necroptosis-independent, it was partially dependent on the activity of lysosomal proteases. A role for autophagy in the cell death process was eliminated, suggesting that ETO induces a novel PCD pathway in mESCs. Inhibition of p53 either as a transcription factor by pifithrin α or in its mitochondrial role by pifithrin μ significantly reduced ESC death levels. Finally, EndoG was newly identified as a protease participating in the DNA fragmentation observed during ETO-induced PCD. We coined the term charontosis after Charon, the ferryman of the dead in Greek mythology, to refer to the PCD signaling events induced by ETO in mESCs. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Late onset neurodegeneration in the Cln3-/- mouse model of juvenile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis is preceded by low level glial activation.

Science.gov (United States)

Pontikis, Charlie C; Cella, Claire V; Parihar, Nisha; Lim, Ming J; Chakrabarti, Shubhodeep; Mitchison, Hannah M; Mobley, William C; Rezaie, Payam; Pearce, David A; Cooper, Jonathan D

2004-10-15

Mouse models of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL) exhibit many features of the human disorder, with widespread regional atrophy and significant loss of GABAergic interneurons in the hippocampus and neocortex. Reactive gliosis is a characteristic of all forms of NCL, but it is unclear whether glial activation precedes or is triggered by neuronal loss. To explore this issue we undertook detailed morphological characterization of the Cln3 null mutant (Cln3(-/-)) mouse model of juvenile NCL (JNCL) that revealed a delayed onset neurodegenerative phenotype with no significant regional atrophy, but with widespread loss of hippocampal interneurons that was first evident at 14 months of age. Quantitative image analysis demonstrated upregulation of markers of astrocytic and microglial activation in presymptomatic Cln3(-/-) mice at 5 months of age, many months before significant neuronal loss occurs. These data provide evidence for subtle glial responses early in JNCL pathogenesis.

Mesenchymal and embryonic characteristics of stem cells obtained from mouse dental pulp

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Guimarães, Elisalva Teixeira; Cruz, Gabriela Silva; de Jesus, Alan Araújo

2011-01-01

abnormalities was evaluated by G banding. RESULTS: The mouse dental pulp stem cells (mDPSC) were highly proliferative, plastic-adherent, and exhibited a polymorphic morphology predominantly with stellate or fusiform shapes. The presence of cell clusters was observed in cultures of mDPSC. Some cells were...

Analysis of stability and bifurcations of fixed points and periodic solutions of a lumped model of neocortex with two delays

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Visser, Sid; Meijer, Hil G.E.; van Putten, Michel J.A.M.; van Gils, Stephan A.

2012-01-01

A lumped model of neural activity in neocortex is studied to identify regions of multi-stability of both steady states and periodic solutions. Presence of both steady states and periodic solutions is considered to correspond with epileptogenesis. The model, which consists of two delay differential

Viscoelastic and dynamic properties of embryonic stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ritter, Christine

Stem cells are often referred to as the ‘holy grail’ of regenerative medicine, because they possessthe ability to develop into any cell type. The use of stem cells within medicine is currently limited bythe effectivity of differentiation and cell reprogramming protocols, making it therefore...... imperative tounderstand stem cells’ differentiation mechanisms better. Studies have shown that mechanical cuescan have an influence on stem cell fate decision. However, in order to understand the reaction of stemcells to mechanical input, one should first investigate and understand the mechanical properties...... ofthe cells themselves. In this thesis, the viscoelastic properties of mouse embryonic stem cells primedeither toward the epiblast (Epi) or the primitive endoderm (PrE) lineage were investigated.Optical tweezers were used to measure the fluctuations of endogenous lipid granules and therebydraw...

Genomic and proteomic analyses of Prdm5 reveal interactions with insulator binding proteins in embryonic stem cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Galli, Giorgio Giacomo; Carrara, Matteo; Francavilla, Chiara

2013-01-01

PRDM proteins belong to the SET- domain protein family involved in the regulation of gene expression. Although few PRDM members possess histone methyltransferase activity, the molecular mechanisms by which the other members exert transcriptional regulation remain to be delineated. In this study, we...... find that Prdm5 is highly expressed in mouse embryonic stem cells (mES) and exploit this cellular system to characterize molecular functions of Prdm5. By combining proteomics and next generation sequencing technologies we identify Prdm5 interaction partners and genomic occupancy. We demonstrate that......, despite Prdm5 is dispensable for mES cell maintenance, it directly targets genomic regions involved in early embryonic development and affects the expression of a subset of developmental regulators during cell differentiation. Importantly, Prdm5 interacts with Ctcf, Cohesin and TFIIIC and co...

Somatic DNA recombination yielding circular DNA and deletion of a genomic region in embryonic brain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maeda, Toyoki; Chijiiwa, Yoshiharu; Tsuji, Hideo; Sakoda, Saburo; Tani, Kenzaburo; Suzuki, Tomokazu

2004-01-01

In this study, a mouse genomic region is identified that undergoes DNA rearrangement and yields circular DNA in brain during embryogenesis. External region-directed inverse polymerase chain reaction on circular DNA extracted from late embryonic brain tissue repeatedly detected DNA of this region containing recombination joints. Wide-range genomic PCR and digestion-circularization PCR analysis showed this region underwent recombination accompanied with deletion of intervening sequences, including the circularized regions. This region was mapped by fluorescence in situ hybridization to C1 on mouse chromosome 16, where no gene and no physiological DNA rearrangement had been identified. DNA sequence in the region has segmental homology to an orthologous region on human chromosome 3q.13. These observations demonstrated somatic DNA recombination yielding genomic deletions in brain during embryogenesis

Tlx3 exerts context-dependent transcriptional regulation and promotes neuronal differentiation from embryonic stem cells

OpenAIRE

Kondo, Takako; Sheets, Patrick L.; Zopf, David A.; Aloor, Heather L.; Cummins, Theodore R.; Chan, Rebecca J.; Hashino, Eri

2008-01-01

The T cell leukemia 3 (Tlx3) gene has been implicated in specification of glutamatergic sensory neurons in the spinal cord. In cranial sensory ganglia, Tlx3 is highly expressed in differentiating neurons during early embryogenesis. To study a role of Tlx3 during neural differentiation, mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells were transfected with a Tlx3 expression vector. ES cells stably expressing Tlx3 were grown in the presence or absence of a neural induction medium. In undifferentiated ES cells, ...

The differentiation of embryonic stem cells seeded on electrospun nanofibers into neural lineages.

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Jingwei; Willerth, Stephanie M; Li, Xiaoran; Macewan, Matthew R; Rader, Allison; Sakiyama-Elbert, Shelly E; Xia, Younan

2009-01-01

Due to advances in stem cell biology, embryonic stem (ES) cells can be induced to differentiate into a particular mature cell lineage when cultured as embryoid bodies. Although transplantation of ES cells-derived neural progenitor cells has been demonstrated with some success for either spinal cord injury repair in small animal model, control of ES cell differentiation into complex, viable, higher ordered tissues is still challenging. Mouse ES cells have been induced to become neural progenitors by adding retinoic acid to embryoid body cultures for 4 days. In this study, we examine the use of electrospun biodegradable polymers as scaffolds not only for enhancing the differentiation of mouse ES cells into neural lineages but also for promoting and guiding the neurite outgrowth. A combination of electrospun fiber scaffolds and ES cells-derived neural progenitor cells could lead to the development of a better strategy for nerve injury repair.

The polycomb group protein Suz12 is required for embryonic stem cell differentiation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pasini, Diego; Bracken, Adrian P; Hansen, Jacob Bo Højberg

2007-01-01

results in early lethality of mouse embryos. Here, we demonstrate that Suz12(-/-) mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells can be established and expanded in tissue culture. The Suz12(-/-) ES cells are characterized by global loss of H3K27 trimethylation (H3K27me3) and higher expression levels of differentiation......-specific genes. Moreover, Suz12(-/-) ES cells are impaired in proper differentiation, resulting in a lack of repression of ES cell markers as well as activation of differentiation-specific genes. Finally, we demonstrate that the PcGs are actively recruited to several genes during ES cell differentiation, which...... despite an increase in H3K27me3 levels is not always sufficient to prevent transcriptional activation. In summary, we demonstrate that Suz12 is required for the establishment of specific expression programs required for ES cell differentiation. Furthermore, we provide evidence that PcGs have different...

Generation of Functional Thyroid Tissue Using 3D-Based Culture of Embryonic Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Antonica, Francesco; Kasprzyk, Dominika Figini; Schiavo, Andrea Alex; Romitti, Mírian; Costagliola, Sabine

2017-01-01

During the last decade three-dimensional (3D) cultures of pluripotent stem cells have been intensively used to understand morphogenesis and molecular signaling important for the embryonic development of many tissues. In addition, pluripotent stem cells have been shown to be a valid tool for the in vitro modeling of several congenital or chronic human diseases, opening new possibilities to study their physiopathology without using animal models. Even more interestingly, 3D culture has proved to be a powerful and versatile tool to successfully generate functional tissues ex vivo. Using similar approaches, we here describe a protocol for the generation of functional thyroid tissue using mouse embryonic stem cells and give all the details and references for its characterization and analysis both in vitro and in vivo. This model is a valid approach to study the expression and the function of genes involved in the correct morphogenesis of thyroid gland, to elucidate the mechanisms of production and secretion of thyroid hormones and to test anti-thyroid drugs.

Explanation for excessive DNA single-strand breaks and endogenous repair foci in pluripotent mouse embryonic stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Banáth, J P; Bañuelos, C A; Klokov, D; MacPhail, S M; Lansdorp, P M; Olive, P L

2009-05-01

Pluripotent mouse embryonic stem cells (mES cells) exhibit approximately 100 large gammaH2AX repair foci in the absence of measurable numbers of DNA double-strand breaks. Many of these cells also show excessive numbers of DNA single-strand breaks (>10,000 per cell) when analyzed using the alkaline comet assay. To understand the reasons for these unexpected observations, various methods for detecting DNA strand breaks were applied to wild-type mES cells and to mES cells lacking H2AX, ATM, or DNA-PKcs. H2AX phosphorylation and expression of other repair complexes were measured using flow and image analysis of antibody-stained cells. Results indicate that high numbers of endogenous gammaH2AX foci and single-strand breaks in pluripotent mES cells do not require ATM or DNA-PK kinase activity and appear to be associated with global chromatin decondensation rather than pre-existing DNA damage. This will limit applications of gammaH2AX foci analysis in mES cells to relatively high levels of initial or residual DNA damage. Excessive numbers of single-strand breaks in the alkaline comet assay can be explained by the vulnerability of replicating chromatin in mES cells to osmotic shock. This suggests that caution is needed in interpreting results with the alkaline comet assay when applied to certain cell types or after treatment with agents that make chromatin vulnerable to osmotic changes. Differentiation of mES cells caused a reduction in histone acetylation, gammaH2AX foci intensity, and DNA single-strand breakage, providing a link between chromatin structural organization, excessive gammaH2AX foci, and sensitivity of replicating mES cell chromatin to osmotic shock.

Ultrasound Backscatter Microscopy Image-Guided Intraventricular Gene Delivery at Murine Embryonic Age 9.5 and 10.5 Produces Distinct Transgene Expression Patterns at the Adult Stage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jiwon Jang

2013-11-01

Full Text Available In utero injection of a retroviral vector into the embryonic telencephalon aided by ultrasound backscatter microscopy permits introduction of a gene of interest at an early stage of development. In this study, we compared the tissue distribution of gene expression in adult mice injected with retroviral vectors at different embryonic ages in utero. Following ultrasound image-guided gene delivery (UIGD into the embryonic telencephalon, adult mice were subjected to whole-body luciferase imaging and immunohistochemical analysis at 6 weeks and 1 year postinjection. Luciferase activity was observed in a wide range of tissues in animals injected at embryonic age 9.5 (E9.5, whereas animals injected at E10.5 showed brain-localized reporter gene expression. These results suggest that mouse embryonic brain creates a closed and impermeable structure around E10. Therefore, by injecting a transgene before or after E10, transgene expression can be manipulated to be local or systemic. Our results also provide information that widens the applicability of UIGD beyond neuroscience studies.

Derivation of Traceable and Transplantable Photoreceptors from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sarah Decembrini

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Retinal degenerative diseases resulting in the loss of photoreceptors are one of the major causes of blindness. Photoreceptor replacement therapy is a promising treatment because the transplantation of retina-derived photoreceptors can be applied now to different murine retinopathies to restore visual function. To have an unlimited source of photoreceptors, we derived a transgenic embryonic stem cell (ESC line in which the Crx-GFP transgene is expressed in photoreceptors and assessed the capacity of a 3D culture protocol to produce integration-competent photoreceptors. This culture system allows the production of a large number of photoreceptors recapitulating the in vivo development. After transplantation, integrated cells showed the typical morphology of mature rods bearing external segments and ribbon synapses. We conclude that a 3D protocol coupled with ESCs provides a safe and renewable source of photoreceptors displaying a development and transplantation competence comparable to photoreceptors from age-matched retinas.

A novel method of mouse ex utero transplantation of hepatic progenitor cells into the fetal liver

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shikanai, Mima; Asahina, Kinji; Iseki, Sachiko; Teramoto, Kenichi; Nishida, Tomohiro; Shimizu-Saito, Keiko; Ota, Masato; Eto, Kazuhiro; Teraoka, Hirobumi

2009-01-01

Avoiding the limitations of the adult liver niche, transplantation of hepatic stem/progenitor cells into fetal liver is desirable to analyze immature cells in a hepatic developmental environment. Here, we established a new monitor tool for cell fate of hepatic progenitor cells transplanted into the mouse fetal liver by using ex utero surgery. When embryonic day (ED) 14.5 hepatoblasts were injected into the ED14.5 fetal liver, the transplanted cells expressed albumin abundantly or α-fetoprotein weakly, and contained glycogen in the neonatal liver, indicating that transplanted hepatoblasts can proliferate and differentiate in concord with surrounding recipient parenchymal cells. The transplanted cells became mature in the liver of 6-week-old mice. Furthermore, this method was applicable to transplantation of hepatoblast-like cells derived from mouse embryonic stem cells. These data indicate that this unique technique will provide a new in vivo experimental system for studying cell fate of hepatic stem/progenitor cells and liver organogenesis.

Therapeutic cloning in the mouse

Science.gov (United States)

Mombaerts, Peter

2003-01-01

Nuclear transfer technology can be applied to produce autologous differentiated cells for therapeutic purposes, a concept termed therapeutic cloning. Countless articles have been published on the ethics and politics of human therapeutic cloning, reflecting the high expectations from this new opportunity for rejuvenation of the aging or diseased body. Yet the research literature on therapeutic cloning, strictly speaking, is comprised of only four articles, all in the mouse. The efficiency of derivation of embryonic stem cell lines via nuclear transfer is remarkably consistent among these reports. However, the efficiency is so low that, in its present form, the concept is unlikely to become widespread in clinical practice. PMID:12949262

Deriving multipotent stem cells from mouse spermatogonial stem cells: a new tool for developmental and clinical research

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Rooij, Dirk G.; Mizrak, S. Canan

2008-01-01

In recent years, embryonic stem (ES) cell-like cells have been obtained from cultured mouse spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). These advances have shown that SSCs can transition from being the stem cell-producing cells of spermatogenesis to being multipotent cells that can differentiate into

Tracing notochord-derived cells using a Noto-cre mouse: implications for intervertebral disc development.

Science.gov (United States)

McCann, Matthew R; Tamplin, Owen J; Rossant, Janet; Séguin, Cheryle A

2012-01-01

Back pain related to intervertebral disc degeneration is the most common musculoskeletal problem, with a lifetime prevalence of 82%. The lack of effective treatment for this widespread problem is directly related to our limited understanding of disc development, maintenance and degeneration. The aim of this study was to determine the developmental origins of nucleus pulposus cells within the intervertebral disc using a novel notochord-specific Cre mouse. To trace the fate of notochordal cells within the intervertebral disc, we derived a notochord-specific Cre mouse line by targeting the homeobox gene Noto. Expression of this gene is restricted to the node and the posterior notochord during gastrulation [embryonic day 7.5 (E7.5)-E12.5]. The Noto-cre mice were crossed with a conditional lacZ reporter for visualization of notochord fate in whole-mount embryos. We performed lineage-tracing experiments to examine the contribution of the notochord to spinal development from E12.5 through to skeletally mature mice (9 months). Fate mapping studies demonstrated that, following elongation and formation of the primitive axial skeleton, the notochord gives rise to the nucleus pulposus in fully formed intervertebral discs. Cellular localization of β-galactosidase (encoded by lacZ) and cytokeratin-8 demonstrated that both notochordal cells and chondrocyte-like nucleus pulposus cells are derived from the embryonic notochord. These studies establish conclusively that notochordal cells act as embryonic precursors to all cells found within the nucleus pulposus of the mature intervertebral disc. This suggests that notochordal cells might serve as tissue-specific progenitor cells within the disc and establishes the Noto-cre mouse as a unique tool to interrogate the contribution of notochordal cells to both intervertebral disc development and disc degeneration.

Fate of D3 mouse embryonic stem cells exposed to X-rays or carbon ions.

Science.gov (United States)

Luft, S; Pignalosa, D; Nasonova, E; Arrizabalaga, O; Helm, A; Durante, M; Ritter, S

2014-01-15

The risk of radiation exposure during embryonic development is still a major problem in radiotoxicology. In this study we investigated the response of the murine embryonic stem cell (mESC) line D3 to two radiation qualities: sparsely ionizing X-rays and densely ionizing carbon ions. We analyzed clonogenic cell survival, proliferation, induction of chromosome aberrations as well as the capability of cells to differentiate to beating cardiomyocytes up to 3 days after exposure. Our results show that, for all endpoints investigated, carbon ions are more effective than X-rays at the same radiation dose. Additionally, in long term studies (≥8 days post-irradiation) chromosomal damage and the pluripotency state were investigated. These studies reveal that pluripotency markers are present in the progeny of cells surviving the exposure to both radiation types. However, only in the progeny of X-ray exposed cells the aberration frequency was comparable to that of the control population, while the progeny of carbon ion irradiated cells harbored significantly more aberrations than the control, generally translocations. We conclude that cells surviving the radiation exposure maintain pluripotency but may carry stable chromosomal rearrangements after densely ionizing radiation. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Inhibition of Cell Division and DNA Replication Impair Mouse-Naïve Pluripotency Exit.

Science.gov (United States)

Waisman, Ariel; Vazquez Echegaray, Camila; Solari, Claudia; Cosentino, María Soledad; Martyn, Iain; Deglincerti, Alessia; Ozair, Mohammad Zeeshan; Ruzo, Albert; Barañao, Lino; Miriuka, Santiago; Brivanlou, Ali; Guberman, Alejandra

2017-09-01

The cell cycle has gained attention as a key determinant for cell fate decisions, but the contribution of DNA replication and mitosis in stem cell differentiation has not been extensively studied. To understand if these processes act as "windows of opportunity" for changes in cell identity, we established synchronized cultures of mouse embryonic stem cells as they exit the ground state of pluripotency. We show that initial transcriptional changes in this transition do not require passage through mitosis and that conversion to primed pluripotency is linked to lineage priming in the G1 phase. Importantly, we demonstrate that impairment of DNA replication severely blocks transcriptional switch to primed pluripotency, even in the absence of p53 activity induced by the DNA damage response. Our data suggest an important role for DNA replication during mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation, which could shed light on why pluripotent cells are only receptive to differentiation signals during G1, that is, before the S phase. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dehydrodiconiferyl Alcohol Isolated from Cucurbita moschata Shows Anti-adipogenic and Anti-lipogenic Effects in 3T3-L1 Cells and Primary Mouse Embryonic Fibroblasts*

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Junghun; Kim, Donghyun; Choi, Jonghyun; Choi, Hyounjeong; Ryu, Jae-Ha; Jeong, Jinhyun; Park, Eun-Jin; Kim, Seon-Hee; Kim, Sunyoung

2012-01-01

A water-soluble extract from the stems of Cucurbita moschata, code named PG105, was previously found to contain strong anti-obesity activities in a high fat diet-induced obesity mouse model. One of its biological characteristics is that it inhibits 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation. To isolate the biologically active compound(s), conventional solvent fractionation was performed, and the various fractions were tested for anti-adipogenic activity using Oil Red O staining method. A single spot on thin layer chromatography of the chloroform fraction showed a potent anti-adipogenic activity. When purified, the structure of its major component was resolved as dehydrodiconiferyl alcohol (DHCA), a lignan, by NMR and mass spectrometry analysis. In 3T3-L1 cells, synthesized DHCA significantly reduced the expression of several adipocyte marker genes, including peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (Pparg), CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein α (Cebpa), fatty acid-binding protein 4 (Fabp4), sterol response element-binding protein-1c (Srebp1c), and stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase-1 (Scd), and decreased lipid accumulation without affecting cell viability. DHCA also suppressed the mitotic clonal expansion of preadipocytes (an early event of adipogenesis), probably by suppressing the DNA binding activity of C/EBPβ, and lowered the production level of cyclinA and cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (Cdk2), coinciding with the decrease in DNA synthesis and cell division. In addition, DHCA directly inhibited the expression of SREBP-1c and SCD-1. Similar observations were made, using primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts. Taken together, our data indicate that DHCA may contain dual activities, affecting both adipogenesis and lipogenesis. PMID:22262865

Human embryonic stem cell-derived pancreatic endoderm alleviates diabetic pathology and improves reproductive outcome in C57BL/KsJ-Lep(db/+) gestational diabetes mellitus mice.

Science.gov (United States)