scholarly journals Redirecting Cell Fate During in vitro Embryogenesis: Phytoglobins as Molecular Switches

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Elhiti ◽  
Shuanglong Huang ◽  
Mohamed M. Mira ◽  
Robert D. Hill ◽  
Claudio Stasolla
Keyword(s):  
Cell Fate ◽  
Molecular Switches ◽  
In Vitro Embryogenesis

scholarly journals Bone marrow stromal cells from MDS and AML patients show increased adipogenic potential with reduced Delta-like-1 expression

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Theresa Weickert ◽  
Judith S. Hecker ◽  
Michèle C. Buck ◽  
Christina Schreck ◽  
Jennifer Rivière ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bone Marrow ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Stromal Cells ◽  
Adipogenic Differentiation ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Bone Marrow Niche ◽  
Differentiation Potential ◽  
Hematopoietic Stem ◽  
Bm Niche

AbstractMyelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are clonal hematopoietic stem cell disorders with a poor prognosis, especially for elderly patients. Increasing evidence suggests that alterations in the non-hematopoietic microenvironment (bone marrow niche) can contribute to or initiate malignant transformation and promote disease progression. One of the key components of the bone marrow (BM) niche are BM stromal cells (BMSC) that give rise to osteoblasts and adipocytes. It has been shown that the balance between these two cell types plays an important role in the regulation of hematopoiesis. However, data on the number of BMSC and the regulation of their differentiation balance in the context of hematopoietic malignancies is scarce. We established a stringent flow cytometric protocol for the prospective isolation of a CD73+ CD105+ CD271+ BMSC subpopulation from uncultivated cryopreserved BM of MDS and AML patients as well as age-matched healthy donors. BMSC from MDS and AML patients showed a strongly reduced frequency of CFU-F (colony forming unit-fibroblast). Moreover, we found an altered phenotype and reduced replating efficiency upon passaging of BMSC from MDS and AML samples. Expression analysis of genes involved in adipo- and osteogenic differentiation as well as Wnt- and Notch-signalling pathways showed significantly reduced levels of DLK1, an early adipogenic cell fate inhibitor in MDS and AML BMSC. Matching this observation, functional analysis showed significantly increased in vitro adipogenic differentiation potential in BMSC from MDS and AML patients. Overall, our data show BMSC with a reduced CFU-F capacity, and an altered molecular and functional profile from MDS and AML patients in culture, indicating an increased adipogenic lineage potential that is likely to provide a disease-promoting microenvironment.

scholarly journals The Cellular Senescence Stress Response in Post-Mitotic Brain Cells: Cell Survival at the Expense of Tissue Degeneration

Life ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 229
Author(s):  
Eric Sah ◽  
Sudarshan Krishnamurthy ◽  
Mohamed Y. Ahmidouch ◽  
Gregory J. Gillispie ◽  
Carol Milligan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stress Response ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Cellular Senescence ◽  
Cell Biology ◽  
Brain Aging ◽  
Complex Stress ◽  
Brain Cell ◽  
Tissue Degeneration ◽  
Cellular Dna

In 1960, Rita Levi-Montalcini and Barbara Booker made an observation that transformed neuroscience: as neurons mature, they become apoptosis resistant. The following year Leonard Hayflick and Paul Moorhead described a stable replicative arrest of cells in vitro, termed “senescence”. For nearly 60 years, the cell biology fields of neuroscience and senescence ran in parallel, each separately defining phenotypes and uncovering molecular mediators to explain the 1960s observations of their founding mothers and fathers, respectively. During this time neuroscientists have consistently observed the remarkable ability of neurons to survive. Despite residing in environments of chronic inflammation and degeneration, as occurs in numerous neurodegenerative diseases, often times the neurons with highest levels of pathology resist death. Similarly, cellular senescence (hereon referred to simply as “senescence”) now is recognized as a complex stress response that culminates with a change in cell fate. Instead of reacting to cellular/DNA damage by proliferation or apoptosis, senescent cells survive in a stable cell cycle arrest. Senescent cells simultaneously contribute to chronic tissue degeneration by secreting deleterious molecules that negatively impact surrounding cells. These fields have finally collided. Neuroscientists have begun applying concepts of senescence to the brain, including post-mitotic cells. This initially presented conceptual challenges to senescence cell biologists. Nonetheless, efforts to understand senescence in the context of brain aging and neurodegenerative disease and injury emerged and are advancing the field. The present review uses pre-defined criteria to evaluate evidence for post-mitotic brain cell senescence. A closer interaction between neuro and senescent cell biologists has potential to advance both disciplines and explain fundamental questions that have plagued their fields for decades.

scholarly journals SUMOylation Negatively Regulates Angiogenesis by Targeting Endothelial NOTCH Signaling

2017 ◽  
Vol 121 (6) ◽  
pp. 636-649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaolong Zhu ◽  
Sha Ding ◽  
Cong Qiu ◽  
Yanna Shi ◽  
Lin Song ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Notch Signaling ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Developmental Disorders ◽  
Interaction Mechanism ◽  
Growth Factor Receptor ◽  
Vascular Diseases ◽  
Cell Interaction ◽  
Protein Signaling

Rationale: The highly conserved NOTCH (neurogenic locus notch homolog protein) signaling pathway functions as a key cell–cell interaction mechanism controlling cell fate and tissue patterning, whereas its dysregulation is implicated in a variety of developmental disorders and cancers. The pivotal role of endothelial NOTCH in regulation of angiogenesis is widely appreciated; however, little is known about what controls its signal transduction. Our previous study indicated the potential role of post-translational SUMO (small ubiquitin-like modifier) modification (SUMOylation) in vascular disorders. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of SUMOylation in endothelial NOTCH signaling and angiogenesis. Methods and Results: Endothelial SENP1 (sentrin-specific protease 1) deletion, in newly generated endothelial SENP1 (the major protease of the SUMO system)–deficient mice, significantly delayed retinal vascularization by maintaining prolonged NOTCH1 signaling, as confirmed in cultured endothelial cells. An in vitro SUMOylation assay and immunoprecipitation revealed that when SENP1 associated with N1ICD (NOTCH1 intracellular domain), it functions as a deSUMOylase of N1ICD SUMOylation on conserved lysines. Immunoblot and immunoprecipitation analyses and dual-luciferase assays of natural and SUMO-conjugated/nonconjugated NOTCH1 forms demonstrated that SUMO conjugation facilitated NOTCH1 cleavage. This released N1ICD from the membrane and stabilized it for translocation to the nucleus where it functions as a cotranscriptional factor. Functionally, SENP1-mediated NOTCH1 deSUMOylation was required for NOTCH signal activation in response to DLL4 (Delta-like 4) stimulation. This in turn suppressed VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) receptor signaling and angiogenesis, as evidenced by immunoblotted signaling molecules and in vitro angiogenesis assays. Conclusions: These results establish reversible NOTCH1 SUMOylation as a regulatory mechanism in coordinating endothelial angiogenic signaling; SENP1 acts as a critical intrinsic mediator of this process. These findings may apply to NOTCH-regulated biological events in nonvascular tissues and provide a novel therapeutic strategy for vascular diseases and tumors.

scholarly journals New inhibitors of glucosylceramide synthase and their effect on cell fate

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarína Turáková ◽  
Boris Lakatoš ◽  
Andrej Ďuriš ◽  
Daniela Moravčíková ◽  
Dušan Berkeš
Keyword(s):  
Cell Viability ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Calcium Transport ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Process Development ◽  
Pharmaceutical Research ◽  
Pathological Process ◽  
Uridine Diphosphate ◽  
Induction Of Apoptosis

Abstract Glucosylceramide (GlcCer) is an essential glycosylated lipid found in organisms ranging from fungi to mammals. It is composed of a hydrophilic β-linked glucose and a hydrophobic ceramide, with a predominant content of sphingosine in mammals (d18:1). GlcCer is the precursor of a large scale of different glycosphingolipids. This cerebrozide is synthesized from uridine diphosphate-glucose and ceramide by a GlcCer synthase (UDP-glucose:ceramide glucosyltransferase; UGCG, EC 2.4.1.80). GlcCer-based sphingolipids have been identified as important mediators of a variety of cellular functions and their disequilibrium leads to pathological process development and may induce several diseases progression. Therefore, design of UGCG inhibitor represents an important topic for pharmaceutical research. In this paper, we aimed to study effects of newly synthesized derivatives of (±)-threo-1-phenyl-2-palmitoylamino-3-morpholino-1-propanol (PPMP, known UGCG inhibitor) on: i) activity of UGCG in vitro; ii) thymocytes viability; iii) calcium transport through plasma membrane of thymocytes; iv) induction of apoptosis and autophagy in thymocytes. Thymocytes were isolated from thymus of three to seven weeks old mice (ICR strain). The key factors influencing the effect of PPMP analogues were their concentration, chemical structure and incubation time. Derivatives were able to change Ca2+ transport already after 15 min of cultivation, but their effects on cell viability were manifested at least after 12 h of cultivation. Four from fifteen studied compounds affected UGCG activity after four hour lasting cultivation, - but without correlation with data relating to effects on calcium transport and/or cell viability. Most potent UGCG inhibitor was chosen and applied for induction of apoptosis and autophagy in thymocytes. This inhibitor induced typical DNA fragmentation and upregulation of LC3B protein as autophagy marker, after 2 h and 4 h cultivation, respectively.

The Drosophila extramacrochaetae protein antagonizes sequence-specific DNA binding by daughterless/achaete-scute protein complexes

Development ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 113 (1) ◽  
pp. 245-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Van Doren ◽  
H.M. Ellis ◽  
J.W. Posakony
Keyword(s):  
Dna Binding ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Protein Complexes ◽  
Competitive Inhibitor ◽  
Binding Activity ◽  
Regulatory Function ◽  
Biochemical Basis ◽  
Dna Binding Activity

In Drosophila, a group of regulatory proteins of the helix-loop-helix (HLH) class play an essential role in conferring upon cells in the developing adult epidermis the competence to give rise to sensory organs. Proteins encoded by the daughterless (da) gene and three genes of the achaete-scute complex (AS-C) act positively in the determination of the sensory organ precursor cell fate, while the extramacrochaetae (emc) and hairy (h) gene products act as negative regulators. In the region upstream of the achaete gene of the AS-C, we have identified three ‘E box’ consensus sequences that are bound specifically in vitro by hetero-oligomeric complexes consisting of the da protein and an AS-C protein. We have used this DNA-binding activity to investigate the biochemical basis of the negative regulatory function of emc. Under the conditions of our experiments, the emc protein, but not the h protein, is able to antagonize specifically the in vitro DNA-binding activity of da/AS-C and putative da/da protein complexes. We interpret these results as follows: the heterodimerization capacity of the emc protein (conferred by its HLH domain) allows it to act in vivo as a competitive inhibitor of the formation of functional DNA-binding protein complexes by the da and AS-C proteins, thereby reducing the effective level of their transcriptional regulatory activity within the cell.

scholarly journals Truncated mammalian Notch1 activates CBF1/RBPJk-repressed genes by a mechanism resembling that of Epstein-Barr virus EBNA2.

1996 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 952-959 ◽  
Author(s):  
J J Hsieh ◽  
T Henkel ◽  
P Salmon ◽  
E Robey ◽  
M G Peterson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acid ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Transcriptional Repression ◽  
Epstein Barr Virus ◽  
Cell Fate Decisions ◽  
Barr Virus ◽  
Amino Acid Region ◽  
Nuclear Events ◽  
Epstein Barr

The Notch/Lin-12/Glp-1 receptor family participates in cell-cell signaling events that influence cell fate decisions. Although several Notch homologs and receptor ligands have been identified, the nuclear events involved in this pathway remain incompletely understood. A truncated form of Notch, consisting only of the intracellular domain (NotchIC), localizes to the nucleus and functions as an activated receptor. Using both an in vitro binding assay and a cotransfection assay based on the two-hybrid principle, we show that mammalian NotchIC interacts with the transcriptional repressor CBF1, which is the human homolog of Drosophila Suppressor of Hairless. Cotransfection assays using segments of mouse NotchIC and CBF1 demonstrated that the N-terminal 114-amino-acid region of mouse NotchIC contains the CBF1 interactive domain and that the cdc10/ankyrin repeats are not essential for this interaction. This result was confirmed in immunoprecipation assays in which the N-terminal 114-amino-acid segment of NotchIC, but not the ankyrin repeat region, coprecipitated with CBF1. Mouse NotchIC itself is targeted to the transcriptional repression domain (aa179 to 361) of CBF1. Furthermore, transfection assays in which mouse NotchIC was targeted through Gal4-CBF1 or through endogenous cellular CBF1 indicated that NotchIC transactivates gene expression via CBF1 tethering to DNA. Transactivation by NotchIC occurs partially through abolition of CBF1-mediated repession. This same mechanism is used by Epstein-Barr virus EBNA2. Thus, mimicry of Notch signal transduction is involved in Epstein-Barr virus-driven immortalization.

scholarly journals A Graded Multifunctional Hybrid Scaffold with Superparamagnetic Ability for Periodontal Regeneration

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (11) ◽  
pp. 3604 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone Sprio ◽  
Elisabetta Campodoni ◽  
Monica Sandri ◽  
Lorenzo Preti ◽  
Tobias Keppler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Fate ◽  
Alveolar Bone ◽  
Tape Casting ◽  
Periodontal Regeneration ◽  
Dental Tissue ◽  
Hybrid Scaffold ◽  
Dental Tissues ◽  
Biomineralization Process ◽  
Direct Cell

The regeneration of dental tissues is a still an unmet clinical need; in fact, no therapies have been completely successful in regenerating dental tissue complexes such as periodontium, which is also due to the lack of scaffolds that are able to guide and direct cell fate towards the reconstruction of different mineralized and non-mineralized dental tissues. In this respect, the present work develops a novel multifunctional hybrid scaffold recapitulating the different features of alveolar bone, periodontal ligament, and cementum by integrating the biomineralization process, and tape casting and electrospinning techniques. The scaffold is endowed with a superparamagnetic ability, thanks to the use of a biocompatible, bioactive superparamagnetic apatite phase, as a mineral component that is able to promote osteogenesis and to be activated by remote magnetic signals. The periodontal scaffold was obtained by engineering three different layers, recapitulating the relevant compositional and microstructural features of the target tissues, into a monolithic multifunctional graded device. Physico-chemical, morphological, and ultrastructural analyses, in association with preliminary in vitro investigations carried out with mesenchymal stem cells, confirm that the final scaffold exhibits a good mimicry of the periodontal tissue complex, with excellent cytocompatibility and cell viability, making it very promising for regenerative applications in dentistry.

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