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Sonstige beteiligte Institutionen
- Department of Biomedical Imaging, National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Research Center, Suita, Japan (2)
- Division of Medical Technology and Science, Department of Medical Physics and Engineering, Course of Health Science, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita Japan (2)
- Institut for Molecular Biology and CMBI, Department of Genomics, Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Leopold-Franzens-University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria (2)
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, The Russell H Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Baltimore, MD, USA (2)
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (1)
In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird ein neues Teilareal von T. micranthum mit zahlreichen Vorkommen an den Nordseedeichen von Schleswig-Holstein zwischen der Elbeästuar und der Insel Nordstrand mit Schwerpunkt auf der Halbinsel Eiderstedt mitgeteilt, das geographisch zwischen dem Vorkommen in den Niederlanden und dem Ostsee-Areal in Dänemark vermittelt. Es handelt sich um die einzigen weitgehend naturnahen Wuchsorte der Art in Deutschland. Die anderen beiden aktuellen deutschen Vorkommen befinden sich auf Friedhöfen in Nordrhein-Westfalen. T. micranthum wächst bevorzugt an den steilen und artenreicheren Innenböschungen der Seedeiche, deren Vegetation durch intensive Schafbeweidung und Trittspuren kurz und lückig gehalten wird. Die Beweidung bewirkt eine signifikante Größenreduktion (Miniaturisierung) verschiedener Pflanzenteile. Widersprüchliche Angaben zu bestimmungskritischen Merkmalen werden durch morphometrische Untersuchungen überprüft. Unter anderem beträgt die Länge der Blütenstiele 0,6–1,1 mm (im Mittel 0,8 mm) und die Blüten mit Kelch sind deutlich unter 3 mm lang (im Mittel 2,4 mm). Die Zahl der Blüten der Infloreszenz beträgt (1)2–6(8). Eine graphische Darstellung soll bei Artbestimmung und Auffinden neuer Wuchsorte behilflich sein.
Rubus pseudoglotta Drenckhahn & W. Jansen ist eine tetraploide Brombeerart aus der Sektion Corylifolii (Serie Subradula), die bisher zum Variabilitäts-Spektrum von R. phylloglotta (Frid.) Å. Gust. gezählt wurde. Charakteristische Merkmale sind die 4 (3–5)-zähligen Blätter mit obovaten Endblättchen mit kurzer (ca. 1 cm) abgesetzter Spitze, kurzhaariger Blattoberseite und fühlbar behaarter grüner Blattunterseite. Die flach bogigen, teils klimmenden Schösslinge sind überwiegend stumpfkantig, grün bis rötlichbraun, schwach behaart und reichlich mit 2–4 (5) mm langen, geraden bis schwach gekrümmten Stacheln und kleineren Stacheln, Stachelhöckern, Stieldrüsen und Borsten besetzt. Die Blütenstiele sind mit 2–8 (pro cm) schlanken, geraden bis leicht gekrümmten Stacheln (1–2 mm lang) und zahlreichen Stieldrüsen (teils bis 0,6 mm lang) besetzt. Die Sippe wächst bevorzugt an Straßen- und Wegrändern und in Hecken. Die bekannt gewordenen Fundstellen erstrecken sich von Rendsburg bis in das Umfeld von Kiel, nordwärts bis zu den dänischen Inseln Alsen und Fünen. Unsere Untersuchungen zeigen weiterhin, dass R. phylloglotta bisher nicht in Schleswig-Holstein/Deutschland nachgewiesen wurde. Ob R. phylloglotta überhaupt außerhalb der Insel Tåsinge in Dänemark vorkommt, bedarf weiterer Nachforschungen.
Background: Recent developments in cellular reprogramming technology enable the production of virtually unlimited numbers of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CM). Although hiPSC-CM share various characteristic hallmarks with endogenous cardiomyocytes, it remains a question as to what extent metabolic characteristics are equivalent to mature mammalian cardiomyocytes. Here we set out to functionally characterize the metabolic status of hiPSC-CM in vitro by employing a radionuclide tracer uptake assay. Material and Methods: Cardiac differentiation of hiPSC was induced using a combination of well-orchestrated extrinsic stimuli such as WNT activation (by CHIR99021) and BMP signalling followed by WNT inhibition and lactate based cardiomyocyte enrichment. For characterization of metabolic substrates, dual tracer uptake studies were performed with \(^{18}\)F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (\(^{18}\)F-FDG) and \(^{125}\)I-β-methyl-iodophenyl-pentadecanoic acid (\(^{125}\)I-BMIPP) as transport markers of glucose and fatty acids, respectively. Results: After cardiac differentiation of hiPSC, in vitro tracer uptake assays confirmed metabolic substrate shift from glucose to fatty acids that was comparable to those observed in native isolated human cardiomyocytes. Immunostaining further confirmed expression of fatty acid transport and binding proteins on hiPSC-CM. Conclusions: During in vitro cardiac maturation, we observed a metabolic shift to fatty acids, which are known as a main energy source of mammalian hearts, suggesting hi-PSC-CM as a potential functional phenotype to investigate alteration of cardiac metabolism in cardiac diseases. Results also highlight the use of available clinical nuclear medicine tracers as functional assays in stem cell research for improved generation of autologous differentiated cells for numerous biomedical applications.
BACKGROUND:
Recent developments in cellular reprogramming technology enable the production of virtually unlimited numbers of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CM). Although hiPSC-CM share various characteristic hallmarks with endogenous cardiomyocytes, it remains a question as to what extent metabolic characteristics are equivalent to mature mammalian cardiomyocytes. Here we set out to functionally characterize the metabolic status of hiPSC-CM in vitro by employing a radionuclide tracer uptake assay.
MATERIAL AND METHODS:
Cardiac differentiation of hiPSC was induced using a combination of well-orchestrated extrinsic stimuli such as WNT activation (by CHIR99021) and BMP signalling followed by WNT inhibition and lactate based cardiomyocyte enrichment. For characterization of metabolic substrates, dual tracer uptake studies were performed with \(^{18}\)F‑2‑fluoro‑2‑deoxy‑d‑glucose (\(^{18}\)F-FDG) and \(^{125}\)I‑β‑methyl‑iodophenyl‑pentadecanoic acid (\(^{125}\)I-BMIPP) as transport markers of glucose and fatty acids, respectively.
RESULTS:
After cardiac differentiation of hiPSCs, in vitro tracer uptake assays confirmed metabolic substrate shift from glucose to fatty acids that was comparable to those observed in native isolated human cardiomyocytes. Immunostaining further confirmed expression of fatty acid transport and binding proteins on hiPSC-CM.
CONCLUSIONS:
During in vitro cardiac maturation, we observed a metabolic shift to fatty acids, which are known as a main energy source of mammalian hearts, suggesting hi-PSC-CM as a potential functional phenotype to investigate alteration of cardiac metabolism in cardiac diseases. Results also highlight the use of available clinical nuclear medicine tracers as functional assays in stem cell research for improved generation of autologous differentiated cells for numerous biomedical applications.
LOX-catalyzed collagen stabilization is a proximal cause for intrinsic resistance to chemotherapy
(2018)
The potential of altering the tumor ECM to improve drug response remains fairly unexplored. To identify targets for modification of the ECM aiming to improve drug response and overcome resistance, we analyzed expression data sets from pre-treatment patient cohorts. Cross-evaluation identified a subset of chemoresistant tumors characterized by increased expression of collagens and collagen-stabilizing enzymes. We demonstrate that strong collagen expression and stabilization sets off a vicious circle of self-propagating hypoxia, malignant signaling, and aberrant angiogenesis that can be broken by an appropriate auxiliary intervention: Interfering with collagen stabilization by inhibition of lysyl oxidases significantly enhanced response to chemotherapy in various tumor models, even in metastatic disease. Inhibition of collagen stabilization by itself can reduce or enhance tumor growth depending on the tumor type. The mechanistical basis for this behavior is the dependence of the individual tumor on nutritional supply on one hand and on high tissue stiffness for FAK signaling on the other.
Aims: Although mortality rate is very high, diagnosis of acute myocarditis remains challenging with conventional tests. We aimed to elucidate the potential role of longitudinal 2-Deoxy-2-\(^{18}\)F-fluoro-D-glucose (\(^{18}\)F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) inflammation monitoring in a rat model of experimental autoimmune myocarditis.
Methods and results: Autoimmune myocarditis was induced in Lewis rats by immunizing with porcine cardiac myosin emulsified in complete Freund’s adjuvant. Time course of disease was assessed by longitudinal \(^{18}\)F-FDG PET imaging. A correlative analysis between in- and ex vivo \(^{18}\)F-FDG signalling and macrophage infiltration using CD68 staining was conducted. Finally, immunohistochemistry analysis of the cell-adhesion markers CD34 and CD44 was performed at different disease stages determined by longitudinal \(^{18}\)F-FDG PET imaging. After immunization, myocarditis rats revealed a temporal increase in 18F-FDG uptake (peaked at week 3), which was followed by a rapid decline thereafter. Localization of CD68 positive cells was well correlated with in vivo \(^{18}\)F-FDG PET signalling (R\(^2\) = 0.92) as well as with ex vivo 18F-FDG autoradiography (R\(^2\) = 0.9, P < 0.001, respectively). CD44 positivity was primarily observed at tissue samples obtained at acute phase (i.e. at peak 18F-FDG uptake), while CD34-positive staining areas were predominantly identified in samples harvested at both sub-acute and chronic phases (i.e. at \(^{18}\)F-FDG decrease).
Conclusion: \(^{18}\)F-FDG PET imaging can provide non-invasive serial monitoring of cardiac inflammation in a rat model of acute myocarditis.
The present study was conducted on the rOCT1, a member of SLC22 family. Structurally, it consists of 12 membrane spanning α-helices with both N- and C-termini intracellular. Studies done so far, through tracer uptake and inhibition, reconstitution of rOCT1 in nanodiscs and proteoliposomes and voltage-clamp fluorometry, have identified the main amino acids in the cleft of rOCT1 that interact in a critical manner with the substrates/inhibitors either directly or indirectly. Homology modeling studies have also supported these observations. In the present study we aimed at measuring the binding of substrates MPP+ and TEA+ to rOCT1 at 0oC in order to establish the amino acids in the cleft region that interact with the substrate when the transporter is frozen in the outward-open conformation. Previously identified crucial amino acids (Asp475, Phe160, Leu447, Arg440, Trp218 and Tyr222) were selected for the study. rOCT1 wild-type and its mutants were stably expressed in HEK293 cells and these cells were used for the binding measurements with the radioactive substrate (MPP+ or TEA+) at 0°C in Mg-Ca-PBS buffer as described in “Materials and Methods” section in detail. rOCT1 wild-type revealed for MPP+-binding a KD which was not significantly different from the corresponding Km value. Also, after addition of 10 nM non-radioactive MPP+, an initial increase of about 20% in bound MPP+ was observed. The results indicate that the Km for transport is dependent on the binding of MPP+ to the outward-open conformation and hints at the possibility of allosteric interaction between the binding sites. Mutations at position Trp218, Phe160 and Asp475 resulted in a change in the KD value. Trp218 mutations also showed an allosteric increase similar to the rOCT1 wild-type. This study suggests that these amino acids are located at a critical position in the outward-open conformation for MPP+ transport. TEA+-binding could not be observed in rOCT1 wild-type, indicating that the binding site is perhaps inaccessible for TEA+ in frozen outward-open state. The mutants D475E, F160A, L447F, R440K and Y222F showed a very low affinity binding with a very high KD value as compared to the corresponding Km values indicating that the transporter might have different affinities for extra-cellular binding alone and for the complete transport process especially if temperature is the limiting factor. Substrate inhibition studies done using both MPP+ and TEA+ have confirmed the existence of overlapping binding sites for these two ligands. This study has confirmed the direct interaction of Trp218, Phe160, Asp475 with MPP+ and Phe160, Asp475, Leu447, Arg440 and Tyr222 with TEA+ in the outward-open conformation.
Generation of early human neuroepithelial progenitors from primary cells for biomedical applications
(2018)
Patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) emerged as a promising cell source for disease modeling and drug screening as well as a virtually unlimited source for restorative therapy. The thesis deals with three major topics to help realizing biomedical applications with neural stem cells.
To enable the generation of transgene-free iPSCs, alternatives to retroviral reprogramming were developed. Hence, the adaptation and evaluation of reprogramming using excisable lentiviral constructs, Sendai virus (SeV) and synthetic mRNA-based methods was assessed in the first part of this thesis. hiPSCs exhibit the pluripotency markers OCT4, SSEA-4, TRA1-60 which were confirmed by immunofluorescence and flow cytometry. Besides, the potential to differentiate in cell types of all three germ layers was detected, confirming pluripotent identity of proliferating colonies resulting from various reprogramming strategies. However, major differences such as high efficiency with SeV in contrast to a relatively low efficiency with mRNA in regard to passage number and the phenotype of starting fibroblasts were observed. Furthermore, a prolonged clone- and passage-dependent residual presence of viral RNA genes was identified in SeV-iPSCs for up to 23 passages using RT-PCR underlining the importance of careful monitoring of clone selection. In contrast, viral-free reprogramming by synthetic mRNA represents a fully non-integrative approach but requires further refinement to be efficiently applicable to all fibroblasts.
The second part of this thesis deals with the establishment of a rapid monolayer approach to differentiate neural progenitor cells from iPSCs. To achieve this, a two-step protocol was developed allowing first the formation of a stable, primitive NPC line within 7 days which was expanded for 2-3 passages. In a second step, a subsequent adaptation to conditions yielding neural rosette-like NPCs followed. Both neural lines were demonstrated to be expandable, cryopreservable and negative for the pluripotency marker OCT4. Furthermore, a neural precursor identity including SOX1, SOX2, PAX6, Nestin was confirmed by immunofluorescence and quantitative RT-PCR. Moreover, the differentiation resulted in TUJ1-positive neurons and GFAP-positive astrocytes. Nonetheless, the outcome of glial differentiation from primitive NSCs remained low, whereas FGF/EGF-NPCs were efficiently differentiated into GFAP-positive astrocytes which were implicated in a cellular model of the blood brain barrier.
The third and major objective of this study was to generate human early neural progenitor cells from fetal brain tissue with a wide neural differentiation capacity. Therefore, a defined medium composition including small molecules and growth factors capable of modulation of crucial signaling pathways orchestrating early human development such as SHH and FGF was assessed. Indeed, specific culture conditions containing TGFβ inhibitor SB431542, SHH agonist Purmorphamine, GSK3β inhibitor CHIR99021 and basic FGF, but no EGF enabled robust formation of early neuroepithelial progenitor (eNEP) colonies displaying a homogeneous morphology and a high proliferation rate. Moreover, primary eNEPs exhibit a relatively high clonogenicity of more than 23 % and can be monoclonally expanded for more than 45 passages carrying a normal karyotype. Characterization by immunofluorescence, flow cytometry and quantitative RT-PCR revealed a distinct NPC profile including SOX1, PAX6, Nestin and SOX2 and Prominin. Furthermore, primary eNEPs show NOTCH and HES5 activation in combination with non-polarized morphology, indicative of an early neuroepithelial identity. Microarray analysis unraveled SOX11, BRN2 and other HES-genes as characteristic upregulated genes. Interestingly, eNEPs were detected to display ventral midbrain/hindbrain regional identity. The validation of yielded cell types upon differentiation indicates a strong neurogenic potential with more than 90 % of TUJ1-positive neurons. Moreover, astrocytes marked by GFAP and putative myelin structures indicating oligodendrocytes were identified. Electrophysiological recordings revealed functionally active neurons and immunofluorescence indicate GABAergic, glutamatergic, dopaminergic and serotonergic subtypes. Additionally, putative physiological synapse formation was observed by the presence of Synapsin and PSD-95 as well as by ultrastructural examination. Notably, rare neurons stained positive for the peripheral neuronal marker Peripherin suggesting the potential of eNEPS to give rise to cells of neural tube and neural crest origin. By the application of specific differentiation protocols an increase of TH-positive neurons or neural crest-derivatives such as putative A- and C-sensory neurons and mesenchymal cells was identified. Taken together, primary eNEPs might help to elucidate mechanisms of early human neurodevelopment and will serve as a novel source for cell replacement and further biomedical applications.
Fibroblasts were isolated from a skin biopsy of a clinically diagnosed 51-year-old female attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) patient carrying a duplication of SLC2A3, a gene encoding neuronal glucose transporter-3 (GLUT3). Patient fibroblasts were infected with Sendai virus, a single-stranded RNA virus, to generate transgene-free human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). SLC2A3-D2-iPSCs showed expression of pluripotency-associated markers, were able to differentiate into cells of the three germ layers in vitro and had a normal female karyotype. This in vitro cellular model can be used to study the role of risk genes in the pathogenesis of ADHD, in a patient-specific manner.
Background:
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease of the central nervous system (CNS) for which several new treatment options were recently introduced. Among them is the monoclonal anti-CD52 antibody alemtuzumab that depletes mainly B cells and T cells in the immune periphery. Considering the ongoing controversy about the involvement of B cells and in particular the formation of B cell aggregates in the brains of progressive MS patients, an in-depth understanding of the effects of anti-CD52 antibody treatment on the B cell compartment in the CNS itself is desirable.
Methods:
We used myelin basic protein (MBP)-proteolipid protein (PLP)-induced experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in C57BL/6 (B6) mice as B cell-dependent model of MS. Mice were treated intraperitoneally either at the peak of EAE or at 60 days after onset with 200 μg murine anti-CD52 vs. IgG2a isotype control antibody for five consecutive days. Disease was subsequently monitored for 10 days. The antigen-specific B cell/antibody response was measured by ELISPOT and ELISA. Effects on CNS infiltration and B cell aggregation were determined by immunohistochemistry. Neurodegeneration was evaluated by Luxol Fast Blue, SMI-32, and Olig2/APC staining as well as by electron microscopy and phosphorylated heavy neurofilament serum ELISA.
Results:
Treatment with anti-CD52 antibody attenuated EAE only when administered at the peak of disease. While there was no effect on the production of MP4-specific IgG, the treatment almost completely depleted CNS infiltrates and B cell aggregates even when given as late as 60 days after onset. On the ultrastructural level, we observed significantly less axonal damage in the spinal cord and cerebellum in chronic EAE after anti-CD52 treatment.
Conclusion:
Anti-CD52 treatment abrogated B cell infiltration and disrupted existing B cell aggregates in the CNS.