Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) such as embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells are promising materials for cell-based regenerative therapies to heart diseases. However, until realization there are many hurdles such as high efficiency of cardiac differentiation of hPSCs and production of clinical-grade cardiac cells derived from hPSCs. Here, we show that a novel small molecule KY02111 robustly enhances differentiation to functional cardiomyocytes from hPSCs.
A small molecule that promotes cardiac differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells under defined, cytokine- and xeno-free conditions.
Specimen part, Cell line
View SamplesWe report transcriptome of Klf9-OE PGC by RNA-seq Overall design: RNA-seq of Klf9-OE clutured for one day in bFGF containing GS medium by using Illumina HiSeq2500.
Identification of KLF9 and BCL3 as transcription factors that enhance reprogramming of primordial germ cells.
Specimen part, Subject
View SamplesClassic ‘position effect’ experiments repositioned genes to the telomere to demonstrate that the epigenetic landscape can dramatically alter gene expression. Here we show that systematic gene knockout collections provide an exceptional resource for interrogating position effects, not only at the telomere but at every single genetic locus. Because deleted genes are replaced by the same reporter gene, interrogation of this reporter provides a sensitive probe into many different chromatin environments while controlling for genetic context. Using this approach we find that, whereas replacement of yeast genes with the kanMX marker does not perturb the chromatin landscape, differences due to gene position account for more than 35% of marker gene activity. We observe chromatin influences different from those reported previously, including an antagonistic interaction between histone H3 lysine 36 trimethylation (H3K36me3) and the Rap1 transcriptional activation site in kanMX that is mediated through a Set2-Rpd3-dependent pathway. This interaction explains why some yeast genes have been resistant to deletion and allows successful generation of these deletion strains using a modified transformation procedure. These findings demonstrate that chromatin regulation is not governed by a uniform ‘histone code’, but by specific interactions between chromatin and genetic factors. Overall design: Data included are RNA-Seq data for 4 heterzygous diploid yeast strains and diploid wild-type. Therea re three replicates for each heterzygous strain, and six replicates for wild-type.
Decoupling epigenetic and genetic effects through systematic analysis of gene position.
Subject
View SamplesGene expression in wild-type and p38a-knockout dendritic cells (DCs) were compared. Lymph node dendritic cells were isolated from mice, and left unstimulated and stimulated with Pam3CSK4, a toll-like receptor 2 agonist.
Cell type-specific targeting dissociates the therapeutic from the adverse effects of protein kinase inhibition in allergic skin disease.
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View SamplesObjective: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS), characterized by a global increasing incidence driven by relapsing-remitting disease in females. p38 MAP kinase (MAPK) has been described as a key regulator of inflammatory responses in autoimmunity, but its role in the sexual dimorphism in MS or MS models remains unexplored. Methods: Toward this end, we used experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), the principal animal model of MS, combined with pharmacologic and genetic inhibition of p38 MAPK activity and transcriptomic analyses. Results: Pharmacologic inhibition of p38 MAPK selectively ameliorated EAE in female mice. Conditional deletion studies demonstrated that p38 signaling in macrophages/myeloid cells, but not T cells or dendritic cells, recapitulated this sexual dimorphism. Analysis of CNS inflammatory infiltrates showed that female, but not male mice lacking p38 in myeloid cells exhibited reduced immune cell activation compared with controls, while peripheral T cell priming was unaffected in both sexes. Transcriptomic analyses of myeloid cells revealed differences in p38-controlled transcripts comprising female- and male-specific gene modules, with greater p38 dependence of pro-inflammatory gene expression in females. Interpretation: Our findings demonstrate a key role for p38 in myeloid cells in CNS autoimmunity and uncover important molecular mechanisms underlying sex differences in disease pathogenesis. Taken together, our results suggest that the p38 MAPK signaling pathway represents a novel target for much needed disease modifying therapies for MS
Sex-specific control of central nervous system autoimmunity by p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling in myeloid cells.
Sex, Specimen part
View SamplesThe major antioxidant glutathione (GSH) protects cancer cells from oxidative damage leading to ferroptosis, an iron-dependent cell death. Therapy-resistant cancer cells often manifest high expression of the cystine-glutamate antiporter subunit xCT which enhances cystine uptake leading to GSH synthesis and thereby survive oxidative damage and ferroptosis. The use of GSH-depleting agents including xCT inhibitors might thus be expected to enhance the efficacy of cancer therapy. On the other hand, the efficacy of xCT-targeted therapy depends on the cellular metabolism affecting antioxidant system in cancer cells and metabolic reprograming might reduce the efficacy of cancer therapy using xCT inhibitors. Recently, to overcome the resistance to xCT-targeted therapy, we performed a library screening and identified an oral anesthetics dyclonine (DYC) as a sensitizing drug for xCT inhibitor sulfasalazine (SSZ). However, DYC is a local anesthetic and might not suitable for the systemic administration combined with SSZ in a clinical setting. In this study, we identified a vasodilator oxyfedrine (OXY) which is clinically used in systemic administration also acts as a sensitizing drug to GSH-depleting agents in multiple type of cancer cells. OXY and DYC share the motif required for the covalent inhibition of aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDHs), and combined treatment with OXY and SSZ induced the accumulation of cytotoxic aldehyde 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) and induce cell death in SSZ-resistant cancer cells. Furthermore, we found that OXY sensitizes cancer cells to radiation therapy which decreases intracellular GSH content. Our findings establish a rationale for repurposing of OXY as a sensitizing drug for xCT-targeted cancer therapy.
Vasodilator oxyfedrine inhibits aldehyde metabolism and thereby sensitizes cancer cells to xCT-targeted therapy.
Specimen part
View SamplesRett syndrome (RTT) is a devastating neurodevelopmental disorder that occurs once in every 10,000-15,000 live female births. Despite intensive research, no effective cure is yet available. Valproic acid (VPA) has been used widely to treat mood disorder, epilepsy, and a growing number of other disorders. In limited clinical studies, VPA has also been used to control seizure in RTT patients with promising albeit somewhat unclear efficacy. In this study we tested the effect of VPA on the neurological symptoms of RTT and discovered that short-term VPA treatment during the symptomatic period could reduce neurological symptoms in RTT mice. We found that VPA restores the expression of a subset of genes in RTT mouse brains, and these genes clustered in neurological disease and developmental disorder networks. Our data suggest that VPA could be used as a drug to alleviate RTT symptoms.
VPA alleviates neurological deficits and restores gene expression in a mouse model of Rett syndrome.
Specimen part
View SamplesIndoxyl sulfate (IS) is a uremic toxin and ligand of the aryl-hydrocarbon receptor (Ahr), a transcriptional regulator. Elevated serum IS may contribute to the progression of kidney disease. Therefore, we assessed mouse podocyte damage mediated by IS. Ahr was predominantly localized to the podocyte nucleus in vivo and in vitro. In isolated glomeruli, IS-exposure for 2 24 h induced Cyp1a1 expression, the most sensitive biomarker of Ahr activation. Mice exposed to IS for 48 weeks exhibited microalbuminuria, and mild glomerular injury characterized by ischemic changes, partial podocyte foot process effacement, as well as vascular and tubulointerstitial damage. Chronically IS-exposed kidneys exhibited decreased mRNA, decreased protein levels, and altered staining patterns for podocin, synaptopodin, and non-muscle myosin IIA (Myh9). Immortalized podocytes, upon differentiation, exhibited Ahr nuclear translocation beginning 30 min after 1 mM IS-exposure. At 2 h, there was a dose-dependent decrease in podocyte mRNA expression of WT1, Podxl, Snypo, Myh9, Actn4, and Cd2ap. After 24 h of exposure to IS, podocytes were smaller, had fewer actin/Myh9 fibers, and decreased viability. Ahr-RNAi decreased mRNA expression of podocyte-specific proteins and inhibited Cyp1a1 induction by IS-exposure. Combinations of Ahr-RNAi and IS-exposure further decreased Myh9 expression. In immortalized human podocytes, IS treatment caused cell injury, decreased mRNA expression of podocyte-specific proteins, integrins, collagens, cytoskeletal proteins, and bone morphogenetic proteins, and increased cytokine and chemokine expression. Thus, chronic IS-exposure causes glomerular damage by activating Ahr, altering podocyte function, differentiation, and morphology, and inducing a pro-inflammatory phenotype.
Podocyte injury caused by indoxyl sulfate, a uremic toxin and aryl-hydrocarbon receptor ligand.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesRegulation of spatiotemporal gene expression in higher eukaryotic cells is critical for the precise and orderly development of undifferentiated progenitors into committed cell types of the adult. Recently, dynamic epigenomic regulation, including chromatin remodeling and histone modifications by transcriptional coregulator complexes, has been shown to be involved in transcriptional regulation. Precisely how these coregulator complexes exert their cell-type and developing stage-specific activity is largely unknown. In this study, we aimed to isolate the histone demethylase LSD1 complex from neural cells by biochemical purification. In so doing, we identified MyT1 as a novel LSD1 complex component. MyT1 is a neural cell-specific zinc finger factor and it forms a stable multiprotein complex with LSD1 through direct interaction. Target gene analysis using microarray and ChIP assays revealed several genes, including PTEN, that were directly regulated by the LSD1-MyT1 complex. Knockdown of either LSD1 or MyT1 derepressed the expression of endogenous target genes and inhibited cell proliferation of a neuroblastoma cell line, Neuro2a. We propose that formation of tissue-specific combinations of coregulator complexes is a critical mechanism for tissue-specific transcriptional regulation.
Identification of myelin transcription factor 1 (MyT1) as a subunit of the neural cell type-specific lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1) complex.
Cell line, Treatment
View SamplesThe interaction between cancer and stroma plays a key role in tumor progression. Inactivation of p53 is often observed in stromal cells surrounding in cancer, suggesting that p53 in fibroblasts is involved in tumor progression.
TSPAN12 is a critical factor for cancer-fibroblast cell contact-mediated cancer invasion.
Sex, Specimen part, Cell line
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