Metabolic regulation of skeletal cell fate and function in physiology and disease

Abstract 5′-Adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), a key regulator of cellular energy homeostasis, plays a role in cell fate determination. Whether AMPK regulates hippocampal neuronal development remains unclear. Hippocampal neurogenesis is abrogated after DNA damage. Here, we asked whether AMPK regulates adult hippocampal neurogenesis and its inhibition following irradiation. Adult Cre-lox mice deficient in AMPK in brain, and wild-type mice were used in a birth-dating study using bromodeoxyuridine to evaluate hippocampal neurogenesis. There was no evidence of AMPK or phospho-AMPK immunoreactivity in hippocampus. Increase in p-AMPK but not AMPK expression was observed in granule neurons and subgranular neuroprogenitor cells (NPCs) in the dentate gyrus within 24 hours and persisted up to 9 weeks after irradiation. AMPK deficiency in Cre-lox mice did not alter neuroblast and newborn neuron numbers but resulted in decreased newborn and proliferating NPCs. Inhibition of neurogenesis was observed after irradiation regardless of genotypes. In Cre-lox mice, there was further loss of newborn early NPCs and neuroblasts but not newborn neurons after irradiation compared with wild-type mice. These results are consistent with differential negative effect of AMPK on hippocampal neuronal development and its inhibition after irradiation.

Download Full-text

Cadherins in early neural development

Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences ◽

10.1007/s00018-021-03815-9 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Karolina Punovuori ◽

Mattias Malaguti ◽

Sally Lowell

Keyword(s):

Adhesion Molecules ◽

Cell Fate ◽

Neural Development ◽

Ex Vivo ◽

Directed Differentiation ◽

Culture Dish ◽

Cell Identity ◽

Cell Fate Decisions ◽

Neural Tissues ◽

And Function

AbstractDuring early neural development, changes in signalling inform the expression of transcription factors that in turn instruct changes in cell identity. At the same time, switches in adhesion molecule expression result in cellular rearrangements that define the morphology of the emerging neural tube. It is becoming increasingly clear that these two processes influence each other; adhesion molecules do not simply operate downstream of or in parallel with changes in cell identity but rather actively feed into cell fate decisions. Why are differentiation and adhesion so tightly linked? It is now over 60 years since Conrad Waddington noted the remarkable "Constancy of the Wild Type” (Waddington in Nature 183: 1654–1655, 1959) yet we still do not fully understand the mechanisms that make development so reproducible. Conversely, we do not understand why directed differentiation of cells in a dish is sometimes unpredictable and difficult to control. It has long been suggested that cells make decisions as 'local cooperatives' rather than as individuals (Gurdon in Nature 336: 772–774, 1988; Lander in Cell 144: 955–969, 2011). Given that the cadherin family of adhesion molecules can simultaneously influence morphogenesis and signalling, it is tempting to speculate that they may help coordinate cell fate decisions between neighbouring cells in the embryo to ensure fidelity of patterning, and that the uncoupling of these processes in a culture dish might underlie some of the problems with controlling cell fate decisions ex-vivo. Here we review the expression and function of cadherins during early neural development and discuss how and why they might modulate signalling and differentiation as neural tissues are formed.

Download Full-text

Mechanosensation and Mechanotransduction by Lymphatic Endothelial Cells Act as Important Regulators of Lymphatic Development and Function

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms22083955 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 22 (8) ◽

pp. 3955

Author(s):

László Bálint ◽

Zoltán Jakus

Keyword(s):

Endothelial Cells ◽

Endothelial Cell ◽

Cell Fate ◽

Molecular Mechanisms ◽

Critical Role ◽

Mechanical Forces ◽

Lymphatic Endothelial Cells ◽

Lymphatic Development ◽

And Function ◽

The Impact

Our understanding of the function and development of the lymphatic system is expanding rapidly due to the identification of specific molecular markers and the availability of novel genetic approaches. In connection, it has been demonstrated that mechanical forces contribute to the endothelial cell fate commitment and play a critical role in influencing lymphatic endothelial cell shape and alignment by promoting sprouting, development, maturation of the lymphatic network, and coordinating lymphatic valve morphogenesis and the stabilization of lymphatic valves. However, the mechanosignaling and mechanotransduction pathways involved in these processes are poorly understood. Here, we provide an overview of the impact of mechanical forces on lymphatics and summarize the current understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in the mechanosensation and mechanotransduction by lymphatic endothelial cells. We also discuss how these mechanosensitive pathways affect endothelial cell fate and regulate lymphatic development and function. A better understanding of these mechanisms may provide a deeper insight into the pathophysiology of various diseases associated with impaired lymphatic function, such as lymphedema and may eventually lead to the discovery of novel therapeutic targets for these conditions.

Download Full-text

Embryonic Origin and Subclonal Evolution of Tumor-Associated Macrophages Imply Preventive Care for Cancer

Cells ◽

10.3390/cells10040903 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (4) ◽

pp. 903

Author(s):

Xiao-Mei Zhang ◽

De-Gao Chen ◽

Shengwen Calvin Li ◽

Bo Zhu ◽

Zhong-Jun Li

Keyword(s):

Metabolic Regulation ◽

Transcriptional Profiling ◽

Tumor Development ◽

Metabolic Reprogramming ◽

Cancer Therapies ◽

Functional Heterogeneity ◽

Tumor Associated Macrophages ◽

Metabolic Remodeling ◽

And Function ◽

Mapping Models

Macrophages are widely distributed in tissues and function in homeostasis. During cancer development, tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) dominatingly support disease progression and resistance to therapy by promoting tumor proliferation, angiogenesis, metastasis, and immunosuppression, thereby making TAMs a target for tumor immunotherapy. Here, we started with evidence that TAMs are highly plastic and heterogeneous in phenotype and function in response to microenvironmental cues. We pointed out that efforts to tear off the heterogeneous “camouflage” in TAMs conduce to target de facto protumoral TAMs efficiently. In particular, several fate-mapping models suggest that most tissue-resident macrophages (TRMs) are generated from embryonic progenitors, and new paradigms uncover the ontogeny of TAMs. First, TAMs from embryonic modeling of TRMs and circulating monocytes have distinct transcriptional profiling and function, suggesting that the ontogeny of TAMs is responsible for the functional heterogeneity of TAMs, in addition to microenvironmental cues. Second, metabolic remodeling helps determine the mechanism of phenotypic and functional characteristics in TAMs, including metabolic bias from macrophages’ ontogeny in macrophages’ functional plasticity under physiological and pathological conditions. Both models aim at dissecting the ontogeny-related metabolic regulation in the phenotypic and functional heterogeneity in TAMs. We argue that gleaning from the single-cell transcriptomics on subclonal TAMs’ origins may help understand the classification of TAMs’ population in subclonal evolution and their distinct roles in tumor development. We envision that TAM-subclone-specific metabolic reprogramming may round-up with future cancer therapies.

Download Full-text

The Hippo Pathway: A Master Regulatory Network Important in Cancer

Cells ◽

10.3390/cells10061416 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (6) ◽

pp. 1416

Author(s):

Qiuping Liu ◽

Xiaomeng Liu ◽

Guanbin Song

Keyword(s):

Metabolic Regulation ◽

Human Cancer ◽

Hippo Pathway ◽

Tumor Development ◽

Biological Significance ◽

Cancer Development ◽

Hippo Signaling ◽

Complex Regulation ◽

And Function ◽

The Hippo Pathway

The Hippo pathway is pervasively activated and has been well recognized to play critical roles in human cancer. The deregulation of Hippo signaling involved in cancer development, progression, and resistance to cancer treatment have been confirmed in several human cancers. Its biological significance and deregulation in cancer have drawn increasing interest in the past few years. A fundamental understanding of the complexity of the Hippo pathway in cancer is crucial for improving future clinical interventions and therapy for cancers. In this review, we try to clarify the complex regulation and function of the Hippo signaling network in cancer development, including its role in signal transduction, metabolic regulation, and tumor development, as well as tumor therapies targeting the Hippo pathway.

Download Full-text

PIN-FORMED 1 regulates cell fate at the periphery of the shoot apical meristem

Development ◽

10.1242/dev.127.23.5157 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 127 (23) ◽

pp. 5157-5165 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

T. Vernoux ◽

J. Kronenberger ◽

O. Grandjean ◽

P. Laufs ◽

J. Traas

Keyword(s):

Cell Fate ◽

Apical Meristem ◽

Transmembrane Protein ◽

Loss Of Function ◽

Hybrid Identity ◽

Hormone Transport ◽

Early Markers ◽

Ideal Tool ◽

And Function

The process of organ positioning has been addressed, using the pin-formed 1 (pin1) mutant as a tool. PIN1 is a transmembrane protein involved in auxin transport in Arabidopsis. Loss of function severely affects organ initiation, and pin1 mutants are characterised by an inflorescence meristem that does not initiate any flowers, resulting in the formation of a naked inflorescence stem. This phenotype, combined with the proposed role of PIN1 in hormone transport, makes the mutant an ideal tool to study organ formation and phyllotaxis, and here we present a detailed analysis of the molecular modifications at the shoot apex caused by the mutation. We show that meristem structure and function are not severely affected in the mutant. Major alterations, however, are observed at the periphery of the pin1 meristem, where organ initiation should occur. Although two very early markers of organ initiation, LEAFY and AINTEGUMENTA, are expressed at the periphery of the mutant meristem, the cells are not recruited into distinct primordia. Instead a ring-like domain expressing those primordium specific genes is observed around the meristem. This ring-like domain also expresses a boundary marker, CUP-SHAPED COTYLEDON 2, involved in organ separation, showing that the zone at the meristem periphery has a hybrid identity. This implies that PIN1 is not only involved in organ outgrowth, but that it is also necessary for organ separation and positioning. A model is presented in which PIN1 and the local distribution of auxin control phyllotaxis.

Download Full-text

Metabolic regulation of macrophage proliferation and function in atherosclerosis

Current Opinion in Lipidology ◽

10.1097/mol.0000000000000778 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol Publish Ahead of Print ◽

Author(s):

Michael T. Patterson ◽

Jesse W. Williams

Keyword(s):

Metabolic Regulation ◽

And Function

Download Full-text