scholarly journals CRISPR/Cas9-based targeting of fluorescent reporters to human iPSCs to isolate atrial and ventricular-specific cardiomyocytes

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Orlando Chirikian ◽  
William R. Goodyer ◽  
Elda Dzilic ◽  
Vahid Serpooshan ◽  
Jan W. Buikema ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Significant Advance ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Coding Region ◽  
Reporter System ◽  
Endogenous Gene ◽  
Myosin Light Chain 2 ◽  
Human Ipscs ◽  
Induced Pluripotent

AbstractGenerating cardiomyocytes (CMs) from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) has represented a significant advance in our ability to model cardiac disease. Current differentiation protocols, however, have limited use due to their production of heterogenous cell populations, primarily consisting of ventricular-like CMs. Here we describe the creation of two chamber-specific reporter hiPSC lines by site-directed genomic integration using CRISPR-Cas9 technology. In the MYL2-tdTomato reporter, the red fluorescent tdTomato was inserted upstream of the 3′ untranslated region of the Myosin Light Chain 2 (MYL2) gene in order faithfully label hiPSC-derived ventricular-like CMs while avoiding disruption of endogenous gene expression. Similarly, in the SLN-CFP reporter, Cyan Fluorescent Protein (CFP) was integrated downstream of the coding region of the atrial-specific gene, Sarcolipin (SLN). Purification of tdTomato+ and CFP+ CMs using flow cytometry coupled with transcriptional and functional characterization validated these genetic tools for their use in the isolation of bona fide ventricular-like and atrial-like CMs, respectively. Finally, we successfully generated a double reporter system allowing for the isolation of both ventricular and atrial CM subtypes within a single hiPSC line. These tools provide a platform for chamber-specific hiPSC-derived CM purification and analysis in the context of atrial- or ventricular-specific disease and therapeutic opportunities.

Porcine OCT4 Reporter System can Monitor Species-Specific Pluripotency During Somatic Cell Reprogramming

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seung-Hun Kim ◽  
Kwang-Hwan Choi ◽  
Mingyun Lee ◽  
Dong-Kyung Lee ◽  
Chang-Kyu Lee
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Pluripotent Stem Cells ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Upstream Region ◽  
Reporter System ◽  
System L ◽  
Reporter Systems ◽  
Induced Pluripotent ◽  
Species Specific ◽  
Fluorescent Protein Reporter

Abstract l Background: The present study examined the activity and function of pig OCT4 enhancer in porcine reprogramming cells. Dual fluorescent protein reporter systems controlled by the upstream regulatory region of OCT4, which is one of the master regulators for pluripotency, are widely used in studies of the mechanism of pluripotency. We analyzed how this reporter system functions in FGF- or LIF-dependent reprogrammed porcine pluripotent stem cells using the previously established porcine-specific reporter system. l Results: Porcine embryonic fibroblasts were coinfected with the pOCT4-∆PE-eGFP (DE-GFP) and pOCT4-∆DE-DsRed2 (PE-RFP) vectors, and GFP and RFP expression was verified during a DOX-dependent reprogramming process. We demonstrated that the porcine OCT4 distal enhancer and proximal enhancer were activated in different expression patterns simultaneously as the changes in the expression of pluripotent marker genes during the establishment of porcine-induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). l Conclusions: Porcine OCT4 upstream region-derived dual fluorescent protein reporter systems serve as live naïve/primed pluripotency indicators for porcine induced pluripotent cell establishment. This work demonstrates the applicability of the porcine OCT4 upstream region-derived dual fluorescence reporter system, which may be applied to investigations of species-specific pluripotency in porcine-origin cells. These reporter systems may be useful tools for studies of porcine-specific pluripotency, early embryo development and embryonic stem cells.

scholarly journals Transfer of Synthetic Human Chromosome into Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells for Biomedical Applications

Cells ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
pp. 261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergey Sinenko ◽  
Elena Skvortsova ◽  
Mikhail Liskovykh ◽  
Sergey Ponomartsev ◽  
Andrey Kuzmin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Biomedical Applications ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Leukemia Virus ◽  
Embryonic Stem ◽  
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell ◽  
Human Artificial Chromosome ◽  
Human Escs ◽  
Human Ipscs ◽  
Induced Pluripotent

AlphoidtetO-type human artificial chromosome (HAC) has been recently synthetized as a novel class of gene delivery vectors for induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-based tissue replacement therapeutic approach. This HAC vector was designed to deliver copies of genes into patients with genetic diseases caused by the loss of a particular gene function. The alphoidtetO-HAC vector has been successfully transferred into murine embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and maintained stably as an independent chromosome during the proliferation and differentiation of these cells. Human ESCs and iPSCs have significant differences in culturing conditions and pluripotency state in comparison with the murine naïve-type ESCs and iPSCs. To date, transferring alphoidtetO-HAC vector into human iPSCs (hiPSCs) remains a challenging task. In this study, we performed the microcell-mediated chromosome transfer (MMCT) of alphoidtetO-HAC expressing the green fluorescent protein into newly generated hiPSCs. We used a recently modified MMCT method that employs an envelope protein of amphotropic murine leukemia virus as a targeting cell fusion agent. Our data provide evidence that a totally artificial vector, alphoidtetO-HAC, can be transferred and maintained in human iPSCs as an independent autonomous chromosome without affecting pluripotent properties of the cells. These data also open new perspectives for implementing alphoidtetO-HAC as a gene therapy tool in future biomedical applications.

An HF-1a/HF-1b/MEF-2 combinatorial element confers cardiac ventricular specificity and established an anterior-posterior gradient of expression

Development ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 122 (6) ◽  
pp. 1799-1809 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.S. Ross ◽  
S. Navankasattusas ◽  
R.P. Harvey ◽  
K.R. Chien
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Light Chain ◽  
Base Pair ◽  
Myosin Light Chain ◽  
Right Atrial ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Heart Tube ◽  
Endogenous Gene ◽  
Myosin Light Chain 2 ◽  
Anterior Posterior

The molecular determinants that direct gene expression to the ventricles of the heart are for the most part unknown. Additionally, little data is available on how the anterior/posterior axis of the heart tube is determined and whether the left and right atrial and ventricular chambers are assigned as part of this process. Utilizing myosin light chain-2 ventricular promoter/beta-galactosidase reporter transgenes, we have determined the minimal cis-acting sequences required for ventricular-specific gene expression. In multiple independent transgenic mouse lines, we found that both a 250 base pair myosin light chain-2 ventricular promoter fragment, as well as a dimerized 28 bp sub-element (HF-1) containing binding sites for HF1a and HF1b/MEF2 factors, directed ventricular-specific reporter expression from as early as the endogenous gene, at day 7.5-8.0 post coitum. While the endogenous gene is expressed uniformly throughout both ventricles, the transgenes were expressed in a right ventricular/conotruncal dominant fashion, suggesting that they contain only a subset of the elements which respond to positional information in the developing heart tube. Expression of the transgene was cell autonomous and its temporospatial characteristics not affected by mouse strain/methylation state of the genome. To determine whether ventricular-specific expression of the transgene was dependent upon regulatory genes required for correct ventricular differentiation, the 250 base pair transgene was bred into both retinoid X receptoralpha and Nkx2-5 null backgrounds. The transgene was expressed in both mutant backgrounds, despite the absence of endogenous myosin light chain-2 ventricular transcript in Nkx2-5 null embryos. Ventricular specification, as judged by transgene expression, appeared to occur normally in both mutants. Thus, the HF-1 element, directs chamber-specific transcription of a transgene reporter independently of retinoid X receptoralpha and Nkx2-5, and defines a minimal combinatorial pathway for ventricular chamber gene expression. The patterned expression of this transgene may provide a model system in which to investigate the cues that dictate anterior-posterior (right ventricle/left ventricle) gradients during mammalian heart development.

Spatial and temporal regulation of a foreign gene by a prestalk-specific promoter in transformed Dictyostelium discoideum

1986 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 811-820
Author(s):  
S Datta ◽  
R H Gomer ◽  
R A Firtel
Keyword(s):  
Cyclic Amp ◽  
Dictyostelium Discoideum ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Foreign Gene ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Cell Type ◽  
Coding Region ◽  
Endogenous Gene ◽  
Temporal Regulation

We analyzed a developmentally regulated prestalk-specific gene from Dictyostelium discoideum encoding a cathepsin-like protease. A hybrid gene was constructed by fusing 2.5 kilobases of 5' flanking sequences and part of the coding region of the gene in-frame to the Escherichia coli beta-glucuronidase gene and was transformed into D. discoideum cells. In cells transformed with this vector, the gene fusion showed the same temporal regulation as the endogenous gene during multicellular development and, like endogenous prestalk genes, was highly inducible by cyclic AMP in in vitro cell cultures. Moreover, immunofluorescence studies showed that the fusion protein had the same spatial distribution within the migrating pseudoplasmodium as the endogenous gene. The results indicate that the regions of the D. discoideum prestalk-specific cathepsin gene contain all the necessary information for proper temporal, spatial, and cyclic AMP regulation of a prestalk cell-type gene in D. discoideum transformants and leads the way for experiments to identify the cell-type-specific regulatory elements.

scholarly journals Spatial and temporal regulation of a foreign gene by a prestalk-specific promoter in transformed Dictyostelium discoideum.

1986 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 811-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Datta ◽  
R H Gomer ◽  
R A Firtel
Keyword(s):  
Cyclic Amp ◽  
Dictyostelium Discoideum ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Foreign Gene ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Cell Type ◽  
Coding Region ◽  
Endogenous Gene ◽  
Temporal Regulation

We analyzed a developmentally regulated prestalk-specific gene from Dictyostelium discoideum encoding a cathepsin-like protease. A hybrid gene was constructed by fusing 2.5 kilobases of 5' flanking sequences and part of the coding region of the gene in-frame to the Escherichia coli beta-glucuronidase gene and was transformed into D. discoideum cells. In cells transformed with this vector, the gene fusion showed the same temporal regulation as the endogenous gene during multicellular development and, like endogenous prestalk genes, was highly inducible by cyclic AMP in in vitro cell cultures. Moreover, immunofluorescence studies showed that the fusion protein had the same spatial distribution within the migrating pseudoplasmodium as the endogenous gene. The results indicate that the regions of the D. discoideum prestalk-specific cathepsin gene contain all the necessary information for proper temporal, spatial, and cyclic AMP regulation of a prestalk cell-type gene in D. discoideum transformants and leads the way for experiments to identify the cell-type-specific regulatory elements.

scholarly journals Characterizing a distal muscle enhancer in the mouse Igf2 locus

2016 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damir Alzhanov ◽  
Peter Rotwein
Keyword(s):  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Transcriptional Control ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Artificial Chromosome ◽  
Control Element ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Reporter System ◽  
Chromosomal Locus ◽  
Igf2 Gene

Insulin-like growth factor-2 (IGF2) is highly expressed in skeletal muscle and was identified as a quantitative trait locus for muscle mass. Yet little is known about mechanisms of its regulation in muscle. Recently, a DNA segment found ∼100 kb from the Igf2 gene was identified as a possible muscle transcriptional control element. Here we have developed an in vivo reporter system to assess this putative enhancer by substituting nuclear (n) EGFP for Igf2 coding exons in a bacterial artificial chromosome containing the mouse Igf2 - H19 chromosomal locus. After stable transfection into a mesenchymal stem cell line, individual clones were converted to myoblasts and underwent progressive muscle-specific gene expression and myotube formation in differentiation medium. Transgenic mRNA and nuclear-targeted enhanced green fluorescent protein were produced coincident with endogenous Igf2 mRNA, but only in lines containing an intact distal conserved DNA element. Our results show that a 294 bp DNA fragment containing two E-boxes is a necessary and sufficient long-range enhancer for induction of Igf2 gene transcription during skeletal muscle differentiation and provides a robust experimental platform for its further functional dissection.

scholarly journals Cch1 and Mid1 Are Functionally Required for Vegetative Growth under Low-Calcium Conditions in the Phytopathogenic Ascomycete Botrytis cinerea

2013 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 712-724 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karin Harren ◽  
Bettina Tudzynski
Keyword(s):  
Calcium Channel ◽  
Botrytis Cinerea ◽  
Vegetative Growth ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Ionophore A23187 ◽  
Reporter System ◽  
Double Knockout ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACTIn the filamentous phytopathogenBotrytis cinerea, the Ca2+/calcineurin signaling cascade has been shown to play an important role in fungal growth, differentiation, and virulence. This study deals with the functional characterization of two components of this pathway, the putative calcium channel proteins Cch1 and Mid1. Thecch1andmid1genes were deleted, and single and double knockout mutants were analyzed during different stages of the fungal life cycle. Our data indicate that Cch1 and Mid1 are functionally required for vegetative growth under conditions of low extracellular calcium, since the growth of both deletion mutants is strongly impaired when they are exposed to the Ca2+-chelating agents EGTA and 1,2-bis(o-aminophenoxy)ethane-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid (BAPTA). The impact of external Ca2+was investigated by supplementing with CaCl2and the ionophore A23187, both of which resulted in elevated growth for all mutants. However, deletion of either gene had no impact on germination, sporulation, hyphal morphology, or virulence. By use of the aequorin reporter system to measure intracellular calcium levels, no differences between the mutant strains and the wild type were obtained. Localization studies revealed a subcellular distribution of the Mid1–green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion protein in network-like filaments, probably the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membranes, indicating that Mid1 is not a plasma membrane-located calcium channel inB. cinerea.

scholarly journals An Efficient Method for the Differentiation of Human iPSC-Derived Endoderm toward Enterocytes and Hepatocytes

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 812
Author(s):  
Shimeng Qiu ◽  
Yaling Li ◽  
Yuki Imakura ◽  
Shinji Mima ◽  
Tadahiro Hashita ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Small Intestine ◽  
Activin A ◽  
Double Positive ◽  
Differentiation Method ◽  
Drug Metabolizing Enzyme ◽  
Human Ipscs ◽  
Novel Method ◽  
Induced Pluripotent ◽  
Metabolizing Enzyme ◽  
Human Ipsc

The endoderm, differentiated from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), can differentiate into the small intestine and liver, which are vital for drug absorption and metabolism. The development of human iPSC-derived enterocytes (HiEnts) and hepatocytes (HiHeps) has been reported. However, pharmacokinetic function-deficiency of these cells remains to be elucidated. Here, we aimed to develop an efficient differentiation method to induce endoderm formation from human iPSCs. Cells treated with activin A for 168 h expressed higher levels of endodermal genes than those treated for 72 h. Using activin A (days 0–7), CHIR99021 and PI−103 (days 0–2), and FGF2 (days 3–7), the hiPSC-derived endoderm (HiEnd) showed 97.97% CD−117 and CD−184 double-positive cells. Moreover, HiEnts derived from the human iPSC line Windy had similar or higher expression of small intestine-specific genes than adult human small intestine. Activities of the drug transporter P-glycoprotein and drug-metabolizing enzyme cytochrome P450 (CYP) 3A4/5 were confirmed. Additionally, Windy-derived HiHeps expressed higher levels of hepatocyte- and pharmacokinetics-related genes and proteins and showed higher CYP3A4/5 activity than those derived through the conventional differentiation method. Thus, using this novel method, the differentiated HiEnts and HiHeps with pharmacokinetic functions could be used for drug development.

scholarly journals Biosensors Used for Epifluorescence and Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopies to Study Dickeya and Pectobacterium Virulence and Biocontrol

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 295
Author(s):  
Yvann Bourigault ◽  
Andrea Chane ◽  
Corinne Barbey ◽  
Sylwia Jafra ◽  
Robert Czajkowski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Infected Plant ◽  
Soft Rot ◽  
Confocal Laser Scanning ◽  
Confocal Laser ◽  
Cell Physiology ◽  
In Planta ◽  
Reporter System ◽  
Cell Wall Lysis

Promoter-probe vectors carrying fluorescent protein-reporter genes are powerful tools used to study microbial ecology, epidemiology, and etiology. In addition, they provide direct visual evidence of molecular interactions related to cell physiology and metabolism. Knowledge and advances carried out thanks to the construction of soft-rot Pectobacteriaceae biosensors, often inoculated in potato Solanum tuberosum, are discussed in this review. Under epifluorescence and confocal laser scanning microscopies, Dickeya and Pectobacterium-tagged strains managed to monitor in situ bacterial viability, microcolony and biofilm formation, and colonization of infected plant organs, as well as disease symptoms, such as cell-wall lysis and their suppression by biocontrol antagonists. The use of dual-colored reporters encoding the first fluorophore expressed from a constitutive promoter as a cell tag, while a second was used as a regulator-based reporter system, was also used to simultaneously visualize bacterial spread and activity. This revealed the chronology of events leading to tuber maceration and quorum-sensing communication, in addition to the disruption of the latter by biocontrol agents. The promising potential of these fluorescent biosensors should make it possible to apprehend other activities, such as subcellular localization of key proteins involved in bacterial virulence in planta, in the near future.

scholarly journals Utilising Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells in Neurodegenerative Disease Research: Focus on Glia

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (9) ◽  
pp. 4334
Author(s):  
Katrina Albert ◽  
Jonna Niskanen ◽  
Sara Kälvälä ◽  
Šárka Lehtonen
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Neurodegenerative Diseases ◽  
Neurodegenerative Disease ◽  
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells ◽  
Glial Cells ◽  
Pluripotent Stem Cells ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Human Ipscs ◽  
Induced Pluripotent

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are a self-renewable pool of cells derived from an organism’s somatic cells. These can then be programmed to other cell types, including neurons. Use of iPSCs in research has been two-fold as they have been used for human disease modelling as well as for the possibility to generate new therapies. Particularly in complex human diseases, such as neurodegenerative diseases, iPSCs can give advantages over traditional animal models in that they more accurately represent the human genome. Additionally, patient-derived cells can be modified using gene editing technology and further transplanted to the brain. Glial cells have recently become important avenues of research in the field of neurodegenerative diseases, for example, in Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. This review focuses on using glial cells (astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendrocytes) derived from human iPSCs in order to give a better understanding of how these cells contribute to neurodegenerative disease pathology. Using glia iPSCs in in vitro cell culture, cerebral organoids, and intracranial transplantation may give us future insight into both more accurate models and disease-modifying therapies.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document