@article{SchaefferKuehnSchmittetal.2013,
  author    = {Schaeffer, Evelin L. and K{\"u}hn, Franziska and Schmitt, Angelika and Gattaz, Wagner F. and Gruber, Oliver and Schneider-Axmann, Thomas and Falkai, Peter and Schmitt, Andrea},
  title     = {Increased cell proliferation in the rat anterior cingulate cortex following neonatal hypoxia: relevance to schizophrenia},
  series = {Journal of Neural Transmission},
  volume    = {120},
  journal   = {Journal of Neural Transmission},
  number    = {1},
  doi       = {10.1007/s00702-012-0859-y},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-125890},
  pages     = {187-195},
  year      = {2013},
  abstract  = {As a consequence of obstetric complications, neonatal hypoxia has been discussed as an environmental factor in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. However, the biological consequences of hypoxia are unclear. The neurodevelopmental hypothesis of schizophrenia suggests that the onset of abnormal brain development and neuropathology occurs perinatally, whereas symptoms of the disease appear in early adulthood. In our animal model of chronic neonatal hypoxia, we have detected behavioral alterations resembling those known from schizophrenia. Disturbances in cell proliferation possibly contribute to the pathophysiology of this disease. In the present study, we used postnatal rats to investigate cell proliferation in several brain areas following neonatal hypoxia. Rats were repeatedly exposed to hypoxia (89 \% N2, 11 \% O2) from postnatal day (PD) 4-8. We then evaluated cell proliferation on PD 13 and 39, respectively. These investigations were performed in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), caudate-putamen (CPU), dentate gyrus, and subventricular zone. Rats exposed to hypoxia exhibited increased cell proliferation in the ACC at PD 13, normalizing at PD 39. In other brain regions, no alterations have been detected. Additionally, hypoxia-treated rats showed decreased CPU volume at PD 13. The results of the present study on the one hand support the assumption of chronic hypoxia influencing transient cell proliferation in the ACC, and on the other hand reveal normalization during ageing.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{SchilbachAlkhaledWelkeretal.2015,
  author    = {Schilbach, Karin and Alkhaled, Mohammed and Welker, Christian and Eckert, Franziska and Blank, Gregor and Ziegler, Hendrik and Sterk, Marco and M{\"u}ller, Friederike and Sonntag, Katja and Wieder, Thomas and Braum{\"u}ller, Heidi and Schmitt, Julia and Eyrich, Matthias and Schleicher, Sabine and Seitz, Christian and Erbacher, Annika and Pichler, Bernd J. and M{\"u}ller, Hartmut and Tighe, Robert and Lim, Annick and Gillies, Stephen D. and Strittmatter, Wolfgang and R{\"o}cken, Martin and Handgretinger, Rupert},
  title     = {Cancer-targeted IL-12 controls human rhabdomyosarcoma by senescence induction and myogenic differentiation},
  series = {OncoImmunology},
  volume    = {4},
  journal   = {OncoImmunology},
  number    = {7},
  doi       = {10.1080/2162402X.2015.1014760},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-154579},
  pages     = {e1014760},
  year      = {2015},
  abstract  = {Stimulating the immune system to attack cancer is a promising approach, even for the control of advanced cancers. Several cytokines that promote interferon-γ-dominated immune responses show antitumor activity, with interleukin 12 (IL-12) being of major importance. Here, we used an antibody-IL-12 fusion protein (NHS-IL12) that binds histones of necrotic cells to treat human sarcoma in humanized mice. Following sarcoma engraftment, NHS-IL12 therapy was combined with either engineered IL-7 (FcIL-7) or IL-2 (IL-2MAB602) for continuous cytokine bioavailability. NHS-IL12 strongly induced innate and adaptive antitumor immunity when combined with IL-7 or IL-2. NHS-IL12 therapy significantly improved survival of sarcoma-bearing mice and caused long-term remissions when combined with IL-2. NHS-IL12 induced pronounced cancer cell senescence, as documented by strong expression of senescence-associated p16\(^{INK4a}\) and nuclear translocation of p-HP1γ, and permanent arrest of cancer cell proliferation. In addition, this cancer immunotherapy initiated the induction of myogenic differentiation, further promoting the hypothesis that efficient antitumor immunity includes mechanisms different from cytotoxicity for efficient cancer control in vivo.},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{Schmitt2017,
  author    = {Schmitt, Franziska},
  title     = {Neuronal basis of temporal polyethism and sky-compass based navigation in \(Cataglyphis\) desert ants},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-142049},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg},
  year      = {2017},
  abstract  = {Desert ants of the genus Cataglyphis (Formicinae) are widely distributed in arid areas of the palearctic ecozone. Their habitats range from relatively cluttered environments in the Mediterranean area to almost landmark free deserts. Due to their sophisticated navigational toolkit, mainly based on the sky-compass, they were studied extensively for the last 4 decades and are an exceptional model organism for navigation. Cataglyphis ants exhibit a temporal polyethism: interior workers stay inside the dark nest and serve as repletes for the first ∼2 weeks of their adult life (interior I). They then switch to nursing and nest maintenance (interior II) until they transition to become day-active outdoor foragers after ∼4 weeks. The latter switch in tasks involves a transition phase of ∼2-3 days during which the ants perform learning and orientation walks. Only after this last phase do the ants start to scavenge for food as foragers. In this present thesis I address two main questions using Cataglyphis desert ants as a model organism: 1. What are the underlying mechanisms of temporal polyethism? 2. What is the neuronal basis of sky-compass based navigation in Cataglyphis ants? Neuropeptides are important regulators of insect physiology and behavior and as such are promising candidates regarding the regulation of temporal polyethism in Cataglyphis ants. Neuropeptides are processed from large precursor proteins and undergo substantial post-translational modifications. Therefore, it is crucial to biochemically identify annotated peptides. As hardly any peptide data are available for ants and no relevant genomic data has been recorded for Cataglyphis, I started out to identify the neuropeptidome of adult Camponotus floridanus (Formicinae) workers (manuscript 1). This resulted in the first neuropeptidome described in an ant species - 39 neuropeptides out of 18 peptide families. Employing a targeted approach, I identified allatostatin A (AstA), allatotropin (AT), short neuropeptide F (sNPF) and tachykinin (TK) using mass spectrometry and immunohistology to investigate the distribution of AstA, AT and TK in the brain (manuscript 2). All three peptides are localized in the central complex, a brain center for sensory integration and high-order control of locomotion behavior. In addition, AstA and TK were also found in visual and olfactory input regions and in the mushroom bodies, the centers for learning and memory formation. Comparing the TK immunostaining in the brain of 1, 7 and 14 days old dark kept animals revealed that the distribution in the central complex changes, most prominently in the 14 day old group. In the Drosophila central complex TK modulates locomotor activity levels. I therefore hypothesize that TK is involved in the internal regulation of the interior I-interior II transition which occurs after ∼2 weeks of age. I designed a behavioral setup to test the effect of neuropeptides on the two traits: 'locomotor activity level' and 'phototaxis' (manuscript 3). The test showed that interior I ants are less active than interior II ants, which again are less active than foragers. Furthermore, interior ants are negatively phototactic compared to a higher frequency of positive phototaxis in foragers. Testing the influence of AstA and AT on the ants' behavior revealed a stage-specific effect: while interior I behavior is not obviously influenced, foragers become positively phototactic and more active after AT injection and less active after AstA injection. I further tested the effect of light exposure on the two behavioral traits of interior workers and show that it rises locomotor activity and results in decreased negative phototaxis in interior ants. However, both interior stages are still more negatively phototactic than foragers and only the activity level of interior II ants is raised to the forager level. These results support the hypothesis that neuropeptides and light influence behavior in a stage-specific manner. The second objective of this thesis was to investigate the neuronal basis of skycompass navigation in Cataglyphis (manuscript 4). Anatomical localization of the sky-compass pathway revealed that its general organization is highly similar to other insect species. I further focused on giant synapses in the lateral complex, the last relay station before sky-compass information enters the central complex. A comparison of their numbers between newly eclosed ants and foragers discloses a rise in synapse numbers from indoor worker to forager, suggesting task-related synaptic plasticity in the sky-compass pathway. Subsequently I compared synapse numbers in light preexposed ants and in dark-kept, aged ants. This experiment showed that light as opposed to age is necessary and sufficient to trigger this rise in synapse number. The number of newly formed synapses further depends on the spectral properties of the light to which the ants were exposed to. Taken together, I described neuropeptides in C. floridanus and C. fortis, and provided first evidence that they influence temporal polyethism in Cataglyphis ants. I further showed that the extent to which neuropeptides and light can influence behavior depends on the animals' state, suggesting that the system is only responsive under certain circumstances. These results provided first insight into the neuronal regulation of temporal polyethism in Cataglyphis. Furthermore, I characterized the neuronal substrate for sky-compass navigation for the first time in Cataglyphis. The high level of structural synaptic plasticity in this pathway linked to the interior-forager transition might be particularly relevant for the initial calibration of the ants' compass system.},
  subject      = {Cataglyphis},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{PeindlGoettlichCrouchetal.2022,
  author    = {Peindl, Matthias and G{\"o}ttlich, Claudia and Crouch, Samantha and Hoff, Niklas and L{\"u}ttgens, Tamara and Schmitt, Franziska and Pereira, Jes{\´u}s Guillermo Nieves and May, Celina and Schliermann, Anna and Kronenthaler, Corinna and Cheufou, Danjouma and Reu-Hofer, Simone and Rosenwald, Andreas and Weigl, Elena and Walles, Thorsten and Sch{\"u}ler, Julia and Dandekar, Thomas and Nietzer, Sarah and Dandekar, Gudrun},
  title     = {EMT, stemness, and drug resistance in biological context: a 3D tumor tissue/in silico platform for analysis of combinatorial treatment in NSCLC with aggressive KRAS-biomarker signatures},
  series = {Cancers},
  volume    = {14},
  journal   = {Cancers},
  number    = {9},
  issn      = {2072-6694},
  doi       = {10.3390/cancers14092176},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-270744},
  year      = {2022},
  abstract  = {Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is discussed to be centrally involved in invasion, stemness, and drug resistance. Experimental models to evaluate this process in its biological complexity are limited. To shed light on EMT impact and test drug response more reliably, we use a lung tumor test system based on a decellularized intestinal matrix showing more in vivo-like proliferation levels and enhanced expression of clinical markers and carcinogenesis-related genes. In our models, we found evidence for a correlation of EMT with drug resistance in primary and secondary resistant cells harboring KRAS\(^{G12C}\) or EGFR mutations, which was simulated in silico based on an optimized signaling network topology. Notably, drug resistance did not correlate with EMT status in KRAS-mutated patient-derived xenograft (PDX) cell lines, and drug efficacy was not affected by EMT induction via TGF-β. To investigate further determinants of drug response, we tested several drugs in combination with a KRAS\(^{G12C}\) inhibitor in KRAS\(^{G12C}\) mutant HCC44 models, which, besides EMT, display mutations in P53, LKB1, KEAP1, and high c-MYC expression. We identified an aurora-kinase A (AURKA) inhibitor as the most promising candidate. In our network, AURKA is a centrally linked hub to EMT, proliferation, apoptosis, LKB1, and c-MYC. This exemplifies our systemic analysis approach for clinical translation of biomarker signatures.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{HabensteinSchmittLiessemetal.2021,
  author    = {Habenstein, Jens and Schmitt, Franziska and Liessem, Sander and Ly, Alice and Trede, Dennis and Wegener, Christian and Predel, Reinhard and R{\"o}ssler, Wolfgang and Neupert, Susanne},
  title     = {Transcriptomic, peptidomic, and mass spectrometry imaging analysis of the brain in the ant Cataglyphis nodus},
  series = {Journal of Neurochemistry},
  volume    = {158},
  journal   = {Journal of Neurochemistry},
  number    = {2},
  doi       = {10.1111/jnc.15346},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-239917},
  pages     = {391 -- 412},
  year      = {2021},
  abstract  = {Behavioral flexibility is an important cornerstone for the ecological success of animals. Social Cataglyphis nodus ants with their age-related polyethism characterized by age-related behavioral phenotypes represent a prime example for behavioral flexibility. We propose neuropeptides as powerful candidates for the flexible modulation of age-related behavioral transitions in individual ants. As the neuropeptidome of C. nodus was unknown, we collected a comprehensive peptidomic data set obtained by transcriptome analysis of the ants' central nervous system combined with brain extract analysis by Q-Exactive Orbitrap mass spectrometry (MS) and direct tissue profiling of different regions of the brain by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) MS. In total, we identified 71 peptides with likely bioactive function, encoded on 49 neuropeptide-, neuropeptide-like, and protein hormone prepropeptide genes, including a novel neuropeptide-like gene (fliktin). We next characterized the spatial distribution of a subset of peptides encoded on 16 precursor proteins with high resolution by MALDI MS imaging (MALDI MSI) on 14 µm brain sections. The accuracy of our MSI data were confirmed by matching the immunostaining patterns for tachykinins with MSI ion images from consecutive brain sections. Our data provide a solid framework for future research into spatially resolved qualitative and quantitative peptidomic changes associated with stage-specific behavioral transitions and the functional role of neuropeptides in Cataglyphis ants.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{RauschenbergerSchmittAzeemetal.2019,
  author    = {Rauschenberger, Tabea and Schmitt, Viola and Azeem, Muhammad and Klein-Hessling, Stefan and Murti, Krisna and Gr{\"a}n, Franziska and Goebeler, Matthias and Kerstan, Andreas and Klein, Matthias and Bopp, Tobias and Serfling, Edgar and Muhammad, Khalid},
  title     = {T cells control chemokine secretion by keratinocytes},
  series = {Frontiers in Immunology},
  volume    = {10},
  journal   = {Frontiers in Immunology},
  number    = {1917},
  issn      = {1664-3224},
  doi       = {10.3389/fimmu.2019.01917},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-195695},
  year      = {2019},
  abstract  = {The massive infiltration of lymphocytes into the skin is a hallmark of numerous human skin disorders. By co-culturing murine keratinocytes with splenic T cells we demonstrate here that T cells affect and control the synthesis and secretion of chemokines by keratinocytes. While pre-activated CD8\(^+\)T cells induce the synthesis of CXCL9 and CXCL10 in keratinocytes and keep in check the synthesis of CXCL1, CXCL5, and CCL20, keratinocytes dampen the synthesis of CCL3 and CCL4 in pre-activated CD8\(^+\)T cells. One key molecule is IFN-γ that is synthesized by CD8\(^+\)T cells under the control of NFATc1 and NFATc2. CD8\(^+\)T cells deficient for both NFAT factors are unable to induce CXCL9 and CXCL10 expression. In addition, CD8\(^+\)T cells induced numerous type I IFN-inducible "defense genes" in keratinocytes encoding the PD1 and CD40 ligands, TNF-α and caspase-1. The enhanced expression of type I IFN-inducible genes resembles the gene expression pattern at the dermal/epidermal interface in lichen planus, an inflammatory T lymphocyte-driven skin disease, in which we detected the expression of CXCL10 in keratinocytes in close vicinity to the infiltration front of T cells. These data reflect the multifaceted interplay of lymphocytes with keratinocytes at the molecular level.},
  language  = {en}
}