scholarly journals Self-organized morphogenesis of a human neural tube in vitro by geometric constraints

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eyal Karzbrun ◽  
Aimal Khankhel ◽  
Heitor Megale ◽  
Stella Glasauer ◽  
Yofiel Wyle ◽  
...  

Understanding how human embryos develop their shape is a fundamental question in physics of life with strong medical implications. However, it is not possible to study the dynamics of organ formation in humans. Animals differ from humans in key aspects, and in particular in the development of the nervous system. Conventional organoids are unreproducible and do not recapitulate the intricate anatomy of organs. Here we present a reproducible and scalable approach for studying human organogenesis in a dish, which is compatible with live imaging. We achieve this by precisely controlling cell fate pattern formation in 2D stem cell sheets, while allowing for self-organization of tissue shape in 3D. Upon triggering neural pattern formation, the initially flat stem cell sheet undergoes folding morphogenesis and self-organizes into a millimeter long anatomically true neural tube covered by epidermis. In contrast to animal studies, neural and epidermal human tissues are necessary and sufficient for folding morphogenesis in the absence of mesoderm activity. Furthermore, we model neural tube defects by interfering with signaling that regulates tissue mechanics. Finally, we discover that neural tube shape, including the number and location of hinge points, depends on neural tissue size. This suggests that neural tube morphology along the anterior posterior axis depends on neural plate geometry in addition to molecular gradients. Our approach provides the first path to study human organ morphogenesis in health and disease.

2014 ◽  
Vol 115 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jong-Ho Kim ◽  
Hyung Joon Joo ◽  
Ha-Rim Seo ◽  
Long-Hui Cui ◽  
Mi-Na Kim ◽  
...  

Background: Cell sheet technology has magnified as an important transplantation skill. Mouse adipose derived stem cells (mADSCs) can secrete various growth factors, which promote the repair of damaged cardiomyocyte and protecting cells from death. In addition, autologous cell source to easily obtain from patients are promising candidates for cell therapy in cardiovascular field. Methods: mADSCs were confirmed stem cell properties and secreted cytokines were evaluated in vitro. Eighteen acute myocardial infarction (AMI) rats were divide into 3 group; sham (n=6), suspended mADSCs (n=6), and mADSCs sheet (n=6) groups. In the mADSCs sheet group, 60х106 cells were cultured for 2 days onto temperature-responsive polymers and the sheets were then transplanted over the infarct region. In additional, the sheet was made of carboxyfluorescein diacetate succinimidyl ester (CFDA) -labelled mADSCs to confirmed cell survival. Engraftment and differentiation were blindly assessed after 28 days. Results: The mADSCs expressed Sca-1+ and represented multi-differentiation potential. Interestingly, EGF and IGF levels significantly increased in the mADSCs sheet. Significant improvements in ejection fraction and fraction shortening value were observed in the mADSCs sheet and suspended mADSCs groups compared with the sham group at 14 and 28 days. But, it was not higher significance level in the mADSCs sheet group than in the suspended mADSCs group. Engraftment range and fibrosis area of infarct region were significantly higher in the mADSCs sheet group compared to the other two groups at 4, 14 and 28 days. In significant expressed cytokines (bFGF, IL-1a, IL-1ra, CT-1, EGF, TGFb1, IGF-1, IGF-2 and MCP-1) were observed in the mADSCs sheet group compared with the other 2 groups at 28 days after transplantation. In addition, in the mADSCs sheet was confirmed endothelial differentiation by Von Willebrand factor (vWF) at 4, 14 and 28 days. Conclusions: Transplantation of mADSCs sheet into rat infarcted myocardium increased engraftment and survival of transplanted cells. The mADSCs sheet is very useful for the study of stem cell proliferation and differentiation as well as for cell therapy in cardiovascular field.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fei Xing ◽  
Lang Li ◽  
Changchun Zhou ◽  
Cheng Long ◽  
Lina Wu ◽  
...  

It is well known that stem cells reside within tissue engineering functional microenvironments that physically localize them and direct their stem cell fate. Recent efforts in the development of more complex and engineered scaffold technologies, together with new understanding of stem cell behavior in vitro, have provided a new impetus to study regulation and directing stem cell fate. A variety of tissue engineering technologies have been developed to regulate the fate of stem cells. Traditional methods to change the fate of stem cells are adding growth factors or some signaling pathways. In recent years, many studies have revealed that the geometrical microenvironment played an essential role in regulating the fate of stem cells, and the physical factors of scaffolds including mechanical properties, pore sizes, porosity, surface stiffness, three-dimensional structures, and mechanical stimulation may affect the fate of stem cells. Chemical factors such as cell-adhesive ligands and exogenous growth factors would also regulate the fate of stem cells. Understanding how these physical and chemical cues affect the fate of stem cells is essential for building more complex and controlled scaffolds for directing stem cell fate.


Author(s):  
Murat Guvendiren ◽  
Jason A. Burdick

Stem cells respond to many microenvironmental cues towards their decisions to spread, migrate, and differentiate and these cues can be incorporated into materials for regenerative medicine.1 In the last decade, matrix stiffness alone has been implicated in regulating cellular functions such as migration, proliferation and differentiation. With this in mind, a variety of natural and synthetic polymer systems were used in vitro to mimic the elasticity of native tissues. Despite helping to develop this important field and gather valuable information, these substrates are primarily static and lack the dynamic nature that is observed during many cellular processes such as development, fibrosis and cancer. Thus, it is of great interest to temporally manipulate matrix elasticity in vitro to better understand and develop strategies to control these biological processes. In this work, we utilize a sequential crosslinking approach (initial gelation via addition reaction, secondary crosslinking through light-mediated radical polymerization) to fabricate hydrogel substrates that stiffen (e.g., ∼3 to 30 kPa) either immediately or at later times and in the presence of cells. We demonstrate the utility of this technique by investigating the short-term (several minutes to hours) and long-term (several days to weeks) stem cell response to dynamic stiffening


Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 1873 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Remuzzi ◽  
Barbara Bonandrini ◽  
Matteo Tironi ◽  
Lorena Longaretti ◽  
Marina Figliuzzi ◽  
...  

Stem cell fate and behavior are affected by the bidirectional communication of cells and their local microenvironment (the stem cell niche), which includes biochemical cues, as well as physical and mechanical factors. Stem cells are normally cultured in conventional two-dimensional monolayer, with a mechanical environment very different from the physiological one. Here, we compare culture of rat mesenchymal stem cells on flat culture supports and in the “Nichoid”, an innovative three-dimensional substrate micro-engineered to recapitulate the architecture of the physiological niche in vitro. Two versions of the culture substrates Nichoid (single-layered or “2D Nichoid” and multi-layered or “3D Nichoid”) were fabricated via two-photon laser polymerization in a biocompatible hybrid organic-inorganic photoresist (SZ2080). Mesenchymal stem cells, isolated from rat bone marrow, were seeded on flat substrates and on 2D and 3D Nichoid substrates and maintained in culture up to 2 weeks. During cell culture, we evaluated cell morphology, proliferation, cell motility and the expression of a panel of 89 mesenchymal stem cells’ specific genes, as well as intracellular structures organization. Our results show that mesenchymal stem cells adhered and grew in the 3D Nichoid with a comparable proliferation rate as compared to flat substrates. After seeding on flat substrates, cells displayed large and spread nucleus and cytoplasm, while cells cultured in the 3D Nichoid were spatially organized in three dimensions, with smaller and spherical nuclei. Gene expression analysis revealed the upregulation of genes related to stemness and to mesenchymal stem cells’ features in Nichoid-cultured cells, as compared to flat substrates. The observed changes in cytoskeletal organization of cells cultured on 3D Nichoids were also responsible for a different localization of the mechanotransducer transcription factor YAP, with an increase of the cytoplasmic retention in cells cultured in the 3D Nichoid. This difference could be explained by alterations in the import of transcription factors inside the nucleus due to the observed decrease of mean nuclear pore diameter, by transmission electron microscopy. Our data show that 3D distribution of cell volume has a profound effect on mesenchymal stem cells structure and on their mechanobiological response, and highlight the potential use of the 3D Nichoid substrate to strengthen the potential effects of MSC in vitro and in vivo.


Blood ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 106 (11) ◽  
pp. 800-800
Author(s):  
Sonia Cellot ◽  
Jana Krosl ◽  
Keith Humphries ◽  
Guy Sauvageau

Abstract We previously reported the generation of pluripotent and ultracompetitive HSCs through modulation of Hoxb4 and Pbx1 levels. These Hoxb4hiPbx1lo HSCs display a tremendous regenerative potential, yet they are still fully responsive to in vivo regulatory signals that control stem cell pool size (20 000 HSCmouse) and differentiation pathways. Further work in our laboratory attempted to circumvent these physiological constraints by expanding Hoxb4hiPbx1lo transduced HSCs in vitro, and hence revealing their intrinsic expansion potential. Independent experiments were performed where primary mouse BM cells were co-infected with retroviruses encoding antisense Pbx1 cDNA plus YFP, and Hoxb4 plus GFP (double gene transfer ranged between 20–50%). Hoxb4hiPbx1lo HSCs measured using the CRU assay expanded by 105-fold during a 12 day in vitro culture. Following serial transplantations, these cells displayed an additional 4–5 log expansion in vivo. Total stem cell content per animal remained within normal limits. Southern blot analyses of proviral integrations showed that the expansion was polyclonal, and analyses of individually expanded clones provided a molecular proof of in vitro self-renewal (SR). This unprecedented level of HSC expansion in such a short time course (105-fold in 12 days) implies an absolute HSC doubling time of approximately 17 hours in our culture, raising the possibility that virtually all dividing HSCs undergo self-renewal. This analysis prompted us to dissect the impact of Hoxb4 on cell proliferation versus cell fate (SR?). When analyzed during the period of maximal HSC expansion, the cell cycle distribution of Sca+ or Sca+Lin− cells were comparable between the cultures initiated with neo control versus Hoxb4 BM cells (CTL vs Hoxb4: G0/G1: 66% vs 83%; S: 15% vs 9%; G2/M: 18% vs 7%). Correspondingly, CFSE tracking studies confirmed the identical, or even lower, number of cellular divisions in Sca+ cells isolated from cultures initiated with Hoxb4 versus neo transduced cells. Annexin V studies precluded protection from apoptosis as the major mechanism to increase HSC numbers since similar results (3–10% positive cells) were observed in the Hoxb4 versus neo-transduced cells. In summary, our studies support the emerging concept that distinct molecular pathways regulate cell proliferation and self-renewal, suggesting that Hoxb4 + antisense Pbx1 predominantly triggers self-renewal over HSC proliferation.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nazmul Haque ◽  
Mohammad Tariqur Rahman ◽  
Noor Hayaty Abu Kasim ◽  
Aied Mohammed Alabsi

Cell-based regenerative therapies, based onin vitropropagation of stem cells, offer tremendous hope to many individuals suffering from degenerative diseases that were previously deemed untreatable. Due to the self-renewal capacity, multilineage potential, and immunosuppressive property, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are considered as an attractive source of stem cells for regenerative therapies. However, poor growth kinetics, early senescence, and genetic instability duringin vitroexpansion and poor engraftment after transplantation are considered to be among the major disadvantages of MSC-based regenerative therapies. A number of complex inter- and intracellular interactive signaling systems control growth, multiplication, and differentiation of MSCs in their niche. Common laboratory conditions for stem cell culture involve ambient O2concentration (20%) in contrast to their niche where they usually reside in 2–9% O2. Notably, O2plays an important role in maintaining stem cell fate in terms of proliferation and differentiation, by regulating hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) mediated expression of different genes. This paper aims to describe and compare the role of normoxia (20% O2) and hypoxia (2–9% O2) on the biology of MSCs. Finally it is concluded that a hypoxic environment can greatly improve growth kinetics, genetic stability, and expression of chemokine receptors duringin vitroexpansion and eventually can increase efficiency of MSC-based regenerative therapies.


2013 ◽  
Vol 45 (23) ◽  
pp. 1123-1135 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Brafman

Within the adult organism, stem cells reside in defined anatomical microenvironments called niches. These architecturally diverse microenvironments serve to balance stem cell self-renewal and differentiation. Proper regulation of this balance is instrumental to tissue repair and homeostasis, and any imbalance can potentially lead to diseases such as cancer. Within each of these microenvironments, a myriad of chemical and physical stimuli interact in a complex (synergistic or antagonistic) manner to tightly regulate stem cell fate. The in vitro replication of these in vivo microenvironments will be necessary for the application of stem cells for disease modeling, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine purposes. However, traditional reductionist approaches have only led to the generation of cell culture methods that poorly recapitulate the in vivo microenvironment. To that end, novel engineering and systems biology approaches have allowed for the investigation of the biological and mechanical stimuli that govern stem cell fate. In this review, the application of these technologies for the dissection of stem cell microenvironments will be analyzed. Moreover, the use of these engineering approaches to construct in vitro stem cell microenvironments that precisely control stem cell fate and function will be reviewed. Finally, the emerging trend of using high-throughput, combinatorial methods for the stepwise engineering of stem cell microenvironments will be explored.


2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazuyuki Ohbo ◽  
Shin-ichi Tomizawa

AbstractStem cells are identified classically by an in vivo transplantation assay plus additional characterization, such as marker analysis, linage-tracing and in vitro/ex vivo differentiation assays. Stem cell lines have been derived, in vitro, from adult tissues, the inner cell mass (ICM), epiblast, and male germ stem cells, providing intriguing insight into stem cell biology, plasticity, heterogeneity, metastable state, and the pivotal point at which stem cells irreversibly differentiate to non-stem cells. During the past decade, strategies for manipulating cell fate have revolutionized our understanding about the basic concept of cell differentiation: stem cell lines can be established by introducing transcription factors, as with the case for iPSCs, revealing some of the molecular interplay of key factors during the course of phenotypic changes. In addition to de-differentiation approaches for establishing stem cells, another method has been developed whereby induced expression of certain transcription factors and/or micro RNAs artificially converts differentiated cells from one committed lineage to another; notably, these cells need not transit through a stem/progenitor state. The molecular cues guiding such cell fate conversion and reprogramming remain largely unknown. As differentiation and de-differentiation are directly linked to epigenetic changes, we overview cell fate decisions, and associated gene and epigenetic regulations.


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