Ocular immune privilege (IP) limits immune surveillance of intraocular tumors as certain immunogenic tumor cell lines (P815, E.G7-OVA) that are rejected when transplanted in the skin grow progressively when placed in the anterior chamber (a.c.) of the eye. As splenectomy (SPLNX) is known to terminate ocular IP, we characterized immune mechanisms responsible for spontaneous rejection of intraocular tumors in SPLNX mice as a first step toward identifying how to restore tumoricidal activity within the eye. Microarray data showed a 3-fold increase in interferon (IFN)- and a 2.7-fold increase in Fas ligand (FasL). There was a robust increase in transcripts (127 of 408 surveyed) from interferon (IFN)-stimulated genes and a marked decrease (in 40 of 192 surveyed) in the expression of cell-cycle-associated genes. Non-microarray data confirmed that IFN, FasL and CD8+ T cells but not perforin or TNF were required for elimination of intraocular E.G7-OVA tumors that culminated in destruction of the eye (ocular phthsis). IFN and FasL did not target tumor cells directly as the majority of SPLNX IFNR1-/- mice and Fas-defective lpr mice failed to eliminate ocular E.G7-OVA tumors that expressed Fas and IFNR1. Bone marrow chimeras showed that immune cell expression of IFNR1 and Fas was critical and that SPLNX increased the frequency of activated macrophages within ocular tumors in an IFN- and Fas/FasL-dependent manner. Rejection of intraocular tumors was associated with increased ocular mRNA expression of several inflammatory genes including FasL, NOS2, CXCL2 and T-bet. Our data support a model in which IFN- and Fas/FasL-dependent activation of intratumoral macrophage by CD8+ T cells promotes severe intraocular inflammation that indirectly eliminates intraocular tumors by inducing phthisis. The immunosuppressive mechanisms which maintain ocular IP likely interfere with the interaction between CD8+ T cells and macrophage to limit immunosurveillance of intraocular tumors.
Splenectomy promotes indirect elimination of intraocular tumors by CD8+ T cells that is associated with IFNγ- and Fas/FasL-dependent activation of intratumoral macrophages.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesWe use mice containing a gene trap in the first intron of the Rest gene, which effectively eliminates transcription from all coding exons, to prematurely remove REST from neural progenitors. We find catastrophic DNA damage that occurs during S-phase of the cell cycle and concominant with activation of p53 pro-apoptotic sgnalling, with consequences including abnormal chromosome separation, apoptosis, and smaller brains.
The REST remodeling complex protects genomic integrity during embryonic neurogenesis.
Specimen part
View SamplesWe use mice containing a gene trap in the first intron of the Rest gene, which effectively eliminates transcription from all coding exons, to prematurely remove REST from neural progenitors. We find catastrophic DNA damage that occurs during S-phase of the cell cycle, with consequences including abnormal chromosome separation, apoptosis, and smaller brains. Further support for persistent effects is the latent appearance of proneural glioblastomas in adult mice also lacking the tumor suppressor, p53. A Rest deficient mouse line generated previously, using a conventional gene targeting approach, does not exhibit these phenotypes, likely due to a remaining C terminal peptide that still binds chromatin and recruits REST chromatin modifiers.Our results indicate that REST-mediated chromatin remodeling is required for proper S-phase dynamics, prior to its well-established role in relieving repression of neuronal genes at terminal differentiation.
The REST remodeling complex protects genomic integrity during embryonic neurogenesis.
Specimen part
View SamplesNGS was used in order to discover novel downstream targets of the miR-17-92/106b clusters. Overall design: Comperasion of gene expression from miR-17-92/106b KO and control
miR-17-92 and miR-106b-25 clusters regulate beta cell mitotic checkpoint and insulin secretion in mice.
Specimen part, Cell line, Subject
View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Gene-expression signature of vascular invasion in hepatocellular carcinoma.
Sex, Age, Specimen part
View SamplesNeurons in the arcuate nucleus (ARC) sense the fed/fasted state and regulate hunger. ARCAgRP neurons release GABA, NPY and the melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) antagonist, AgRP, and are activated by fasting1-4. When stimulated, they rapidly and potently drive hunger5,6. ARCPOMC neurons, in contrast, release the MC4R agonist, a-MSH, and are viewed as the counterpoint to ARCAgRP neurons. They are regulated in an opposite fashion and their activity leads to decreased hunger2,4,7. Together, ARCAgRP and ARCPOMC neurons constitute the ARC feeding center. Against this, however, is the finding that ARCPOMC neurons, unlike ARCAgRP neurons, fail to affect food intake over the timescale of minutes to hours following opto- or chemogenetic stimulation5,8. This suggests a rapidly acting component of the ARC satiety pathway is missing. Here, we show that excitatory ARC neurons identified by expression of vesicular glutamate transporter 2 (VGLUT2) and the oxytocin receptor, unlike ARCPOMC neurons, rapidly cause satiety when chemo- or optogenetically manipulated. These glutamatergic ARC projections synaptically converge with GABAergic ARCAgRP projections on MC4R-expressing neurons in the paraventricular hypothalamus (PVHMC4R neurons), which are known to mediate satiety9. ARCPOMC neurons also send dense projections to the PVH. Importantly, the a-MSH they release post-synaptically potentiates glutamatergic synaptic activity onto PVHMC4R neurons – including that emanating from ARCVglut2 neurons. This suggests a means by which a-MSH can bring about satiety – via postsynaptic potentiation of this novel ARCVglut2 to PVHMC4R satiety circuit. Thus, while fast (GABA and NPY) and slow (AgRP) ARC hunger signals are delivered together by ARCAgRP neurons10,11, the temporally analogous satiety signals from the ARC, glutamate and a-MSH, are delivered separately by two parallel, interacting projections (from ARCVGLUT2 and ARCPOMC neurons). Discovery of this rapidly acting excitatory ARC ? PVH satiety circuit, and its regulation by a-MSH, provides new insight into regulation of hunger/satiety. Overall design: 23 samples representing single neurons dissociated from the arcuate hypothalamus of two young adult male vGLUT2-IRES-Cre mice
A rapidly acting glutamatergic ARC→PVH satiety circuit postsynaptically regulated by α-MSH.
Specimen part, Cell line, Subject
View SamplesAnalysis of cerebella from Capicua (Cic) mutant mice and wild-type controls at 28 days of age (P28). Spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease caused by expansion of a translated CAG repeat in Ataxin-1 (ATXN1). The transcriptional repressor Cic binds directly to Atxn1 and plays a key role in SCA1 pathogenesis. Two isoforms of Cic, long (Cic-L) and short (Cic-S), are transcribed from alternative promoters. Using embryonic stem cells in which the Cic locus was targeted by an insertion of a genetrap cassette between exon 1 of the Cic-L isoform and exon 1 of the Cic-S isoform, we generated mice that carried this allele and backcrossed these onto a Swiss Webster (CD-1) strain for >6 generations. The resulting Cic-L-/- mice completely lack the Cic-L isoform with ~10% of Cic-S remaining. These data were used to compare with previous microarray data to determine the Cic-depedent pathogenic mechanisms in SCA1.
Exercise and genetic rescue of SCA1 via the transcriptional repressor Capicua.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesThese experiments were designed to test the hypothesis that REST and Polycomb Repressor Complex 2 function cooperatively in undifferentiated ESCs. Our results show that H3K27me3-enriched genes show no de-repression in REST-/- ESCs, while REST target genes show significant de-repression. Overall design: RNA-seq was performed and analyzed using two biological replicates for each genotype, WT (N6) and REST-/- (N8) mouse embryonic stem cells.
Polycomb- and REST-associated histone deacetylases are independent pathways toward a mature neuronal phenotype.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesRNA-seq libraries purified from the visual cortices of neurons expressing Emx-, GAD2-, PV-, SST-, or VIP-Cre using the Ribotag allele. Seq libraries are provided from mice raised in standard housing, or housed in the dark for two weeks (dark-housed), or dark-housed and then exposed to light for 1, 3, or 7.5 hours. These seq libraries represent the genetic response of distinct types of cortical interneurons to altered sensory experience. Overall design: To explore how sensory experience affects gene expression, we examined this process in the visual cortex of adult mice that were housed in standard conditions, in complete darkness (i.e. dark-housed), or dark-housed and then exposed to light for increasing amounts of time. We generated mice that were heterozygous for alleles of either Emx-,Gad2-,Sst-,Vip- or Pv-Cre, and were also heterozygous for the Rpl22-HA (RiboTag) allele, which expresses an HA-tagged ribosomal protein specifically in Cre-expressing neurons. We performed RNA-Seq on RNA isolated from the dark-housed/light-exposed RiboTag-mice; Experiments were done in 3 biological replicates and the visual cortices of 3 mice were pooled per sample at each time-point and for each Cre line.
Sensory experience regulates cortical inhibition by inducing IGF1 in VIP neurons.
Age, Specimen part, Cell line, Subject
View SamplesHundreds of immune cell types work in coordination to maintain tissue homeostasis. Upon infection, dramatic changes occur with the localization, migration and proliferation of the immune cells to first alert the body of the danger, confine it to limit spreading, and finally extinguish the threat and bring the tissue back to homeostasis. Since current technologies can follow the dynamics of only a limited number of cell types, we have yet to grasp the full complexity of global in vivo cell dynamics in normal developmental processes and disease. Here we devise a computational method, digital cell quantification (DCQ), which combines genomewide gene expression data with an immune cell compendium to infer in vivo dynamical changes in the quantities of 213 immune cell subpopulations. DCQ was applied to study global immune cell dynamics in mice lungs at ten time points during a 7-day time course of flu infection. We find dramatic changes in quantities of 70 immune cell types, including various innate, adaptive and progenitor immune cells. We focus on the previously unreported dynamics of four immune dendritic cell subtypes, and suggest a specific role for CD103+CD11b- cDCs in early stages of disease and CD8+ pDC in late stages of flu infection. Overall design: To study pathogenesis of Influenza infection, C57BL/6 mice (5 weeks) were infected intranasally with 4x103 PFU of influenza PR8 virus. We measured using RNA-Seq global gene expression in lung tissue at ten time points during a 7-day time course of infection, two infected individuals in each time point and four un-infected individuals as control. The lung organ was removed and transferred immediately into RNA Latter solution (Invitrogen).
Digital cell quantification identifies global immune cell dynamics during influenza infection.
Age, Specimen part, Cell line, Subject, Time
View Samples