scholarly journals Genome-wide screens in accelerated human stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells identify Zika virus host factors and drivers of proliferation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael F. Wells ◽  
Max R. Salick ◽  
Federica Piccioni ◽  
Ellen J. Hill ◽  
Jana M. Mitchell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cell ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Host Factors ◽  
Protein Markers ◽  
Genome Wide

SUMMARYNeural progenitor cells (NPCs) are essential to brain development and their dysfunction is linked to several disorders, including autism, Zika Virus Congenital Syndrome, and cancer. Understanding of these conditions has been improved by advancements with stem cell-derived NPC models. However, current differentiation methods require many days or weeks to generate NPCs and show variability in efficacy among cell lines. Here, we describe humanStem cell-derivedNGN2-acceleratedProgenitor cells (SNaPs), which are produced in only 48 hours. SNaPs express canonical forebrain NPC protein markers, are proliferative, multipotent, and like other human NPCs, are susceptible to Zika-mediated death. We further demonstrate SNaPs are valuable for large-scale investigations of genetic and environmental influencers of neurodevelopment by deploying them for genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 screens. Our studies expand knowledge of NPCs by identifying known and novel Zika host factors, as well as new regulators of NPC proliferation validated by re-identification of the autism spectrum genePTEN.

scholarly journals TSC patient-derived isogenic neural progenitor cells reveal altered early neurodevelopmental phenotypes and rapamycin-induced MNK-eIF4E signaling

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pauline Martin ◽  
Vilas Wagh ◽  
Surya A. Reis ◽  
Serkan Erdin ◽  
Roberta L. Beauchamp ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Neurodevelopmental Disorder ◽  
Protein Translation ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Patient Specific ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Multiple Organs

Abstract Background Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with frequent occurrence of epilepsy, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), intellectual disability (ID), and tumors in multiple organs. The aberrant activation of mTORC1 in TSC has led to treatment with mTORC1 inhibitor rapamycin as a lifelong therapy for tumors, but TSC-associated neurocognitive manifestations remain unaffected by rapamycin. Methods Here, we generated patient-specific, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from a TSC patient with a heterozygous, germline, nonsense mutation in exon 15 of TSC1 and established an isogenic set of heterozygous (Het), null and corrected wildtype (Corr-WT) iPSCs using CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene editing. We differentiated these iPSCs into neural progenitor cells (NPCs) and examined neurodevelopmental phenotypes, signaling and changes in gene expression by RNA-seq. Results Differentiated NPCs revealed enlarged cell size in TSC1-Het and Null NPCs, consistent with mTORC1 activation. TSC1-Het and Null NPCs also revealed enhanced proliferation and altered neurite outgrowth in a genotype-dependent manner, which was not reversed by rapamycin. Transcriptome analyses of TSC1-NPCs revealed differentially expressed genes that display a genotype-dependent linear response, i.e., genes upregulated/downregulated in Het were further increased/decreased in Null. In particular, genes linked to ASD, epilepsy, and ID were significantly upregulated or downregulated warranting further investigation. In TSC1-Het and Null NPCs, we also observed basal activation of ERK1/2, which was further activated upon rapamycin treatment. Rapamycin also increased MNK1/2-eIF4E signaling in TSC1-deficient NPCs. Conclusion MEK-ERK and MNK-eIF4E pathways regulate protein translation, and our results suggest that aberrant translation distinct in TSC1/2-deficient NPCs could play a role in neurodevelopmental defects. Our data showing upregulation of these signaling pathways by rapamycin support a strategy to combine a MEK or a MNK inhibitor with rapamycin that may be superior for TSC-associated CNS defects. Importantly, our generation of isogenic sets of NPCs from TSC patients provides a valuable platform for translatome and large-scale drug screening studies. Overall, our studies further support the notion that early developmental events such as NPC proliferation and initial process formation, such as neurite number and length that occur prior to neuronal differentiation, represent primary events in neurogenesis critical to disease pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental disorders such as ASD.

#33: Single-cell RNA sequencing analysis of Zika virus infection in human stem cell-derived neuroprogenitor cells and cerebral organoids

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. S11-S12
Author(s):  
K E Ocwieja ◽  
T K Hughes ◽  
C C M Baker ◽  
A C Stanton ◽  
J M Antonucci ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cell ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Human Stem Cell ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Single Cell Sequencing ◽  
Single Cell Rna Sequencing

Abstract Background The molecular mechanisms underpinning the neurologic and congenital pathologies caused by Zika virus (ZIKV) infection remain poorly understood. It is also unclear why congenital ZIKV disease was not reported prior to the recent epidemics in French Polynesia and the Americas, despite evidence that Zika virus has actively circulated in parts of Africa and Asia since 1947 and 1966, respectively. Methods Due to advances in the stem cell-based technologies, we can now model ZIKV infections of the central nervous system in human stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells and cerebral organoids, which recapitulate complex 3-dimensional neural architecture. We apply Seq-Well — a simple, portable platform for massively parallel single-cell RNA sequencing — to characterize these neural models infected with ZIKV. We detect and quantify host mRNA transcripts and viral RNA with single-cell resolution, thereby defining transcriptional features of both uninfected and infected cells. Results Although flavivirus RNAs lack a poly(A) tail, we present evidence that viral RNAs are specifically primed for reverse transcription at internal runs of adenosines, and that sequencing reads cover the entire non-polyadenylated viral genome. In neural progenitor cells, single cell sequencing reveals that while uninfected bystander cells strongly upregulate interferon pathway genes, these pathways are largely suppressed in cells infected with ZIKV within the same culture dish. Single cell sequencing identifies multiple cell types in our cerebral organoids including neural progenitor cells, intermediate progenitor cells, and neurons of varied maturity. Using this model, we find that neurons, not typically considered targets of ZIKV in the developing brain, contain high copy numbers of ZIKV genomes. It remains uncertain whether neurons are directly infected, or if infected neural progenitor cells differentiate into neurons, carrying virus with them. Notably, the neuronal bystander cell population shows limited interferon gene pathway upregulation compared to neural progenitors. Conclusions Overall, our work provides insight into the pathogenesis of ZIKV associated microcephaly, identifies potential new tropisms of ZIKV in the human brain, and suggests that both virus replication and host response mechanisms underlie the neuropathology of ZIKV infection.

scholarly journals Transcriptional signatures of participant-derived neural progenitor cells and neurons implicate altered Wnt signaling in Phelan McDermid syndrome and autism

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael S. Breen ◽  
Andrew Browne ◽  
Gabriel E. Hoffman ◽  
Sofia Stathopoulos ◽  
Kristen Brennand ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Disability ◽  
Wnt Signaling ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Rna Sequencing ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Genetic Disorder ◽  
Protein Translation ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Genome Wide

ABSTRACTBackgroundPhelan-McDermid syndrome (PMS) is a rare genetic disorder with high risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), intellectual disability and language delay, and is caused by 22q13.3 deletions or mutations in the SHANK3 gene. To date, the molecular and pathway changes resulting from SHANK3 haploinsufficiency in PMS remain poorly understood. Uncovering these mechanisms is critical for understanding pathobiology of PMS and, ultimately, for the development of new therapeutic interventions.MethodsWe developed human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-based models of PMS by reprogramming peripheral blood samples from individuals with PMS (n=7) and their unaffected siblings (n=6). For each participant, up to three hiPSC clones were generated and differentiated into induced neural progenitor cells (iNPCs; n=32) and induced forebrain neurons (iNeurons; n=42). Genome-wide RNA-sequencing was applied to explore transcriptional differences between PMS probands and unaffected siblings.ResultsTranscriptome analyses identified 391 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in iNPCs and 82 DEGs in iNeurons, when comparing cells from PMS probands and unaffected siblings (FDR <5%). Genes under-expressed in PMS were implicated in Wnt signaling, embryonic development and protein translation, while over-expressed genes were enriched for pre- and post-synaptic density genes, regulation of synaptic plasticity, and G-protein-gated potassium channel activity. Gene co-expression network analysis identified two modules in iNeurons that were over-expressed in PMS, implicating postsynaptic signaling and GDP binding, and both modules harbored a significant enrichment of genetic risk loci for developmental delay and intellectual disability. Finally, PMS-associated genes were integrated with other ASD iPSC transcriptome findings and several points of convergence were identified, indicating altered Wnt signaling, extracellular matrix and glutamatergic synapses.LimitationsGiven the rarity of the condition, we could not carry out experimental validation in independent biological samples. In addition, functional and morphological phenotypes caused by loss of SHANK3 were not characterized here.ConclusionsThis is the largest human neural sample analyzed in PMS. Genome-wide RNA-sequencing in hiPSC-derived neural cells from individuals with PMS revealed both shared and distinct transcriptional signatures across iNPCs and iNeurons, including many genes implicated in risk for ASD, as well as specific neurobiological pathways, including the Wnt pathway.

scholarly journals A selective cytotoxic adenovirus vector for concentration of pluripotent stem cells in human pluripotent stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Takamasa Hirai ◽  
Ken Kono ◽  
Rumi Sawada ◽  
Takuya Kuroda ◽  
Satoshi Yasuda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Flow Cytometry ◽  
Stem Cell ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Pluripotent Stem Cells ◽  
Pluripotent Stem Cell ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Sensitive Detection ◽  
Quality And Safety

AbstractHighly sensitive detection of residual undifferentiated pluripotent stem cells is essential for the quality and safety of cell-processed therapeutic products derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). We previously reported the generation of an adenovirus (Ad) vector and adeno-associated virus vectors that possess a suicide gene, inducible Caspase 9 (iCasp9), which makes it possible to sensitively detect undifferentiated hiPSCs in cultures of hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. In this study, we investigated whether these vectors also allow for detection of undifferentiated hiPSCs in preparations of hiPSC-derived neural progenitor cells (hiPSC-NPCs), which have been expected to treat neurological disorders. To detect undifferentiated hiPSCs, the expression of pluripotent stem cell markers was determined by immunostaining and flow cytometry. Using immortalized NPCs as a model, the Ad vector was identified to be the most efficient among the vectors tested in detecting undifferentiated hiPSCs. Moreover, we found that the Ad vector killed most hiPSC-NPCs in an iCasp9-dependent manner, enabling flow cytometry to detect undifferentiated hiPSCs intermingled at a lower concentration (0.002%) than reported previously (0.1%). These data indicate that the Ad vector selectively eliminates hiPSC-NPCs, thus allowing for sensitive detection of hiPSCs. This cytotoxic viral vector could contribute to ensuring the quality and safety of hiPSCs-NPCs for therapeutic use.

scholarly journals Large-scale generation of human iPSC-derived neural stem cells/early neural progenitor cells and their neuronal differentiation

Organogenesis ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 365-377 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonardo D’Aiuto ◽  
Yun Zhi ◽  
Dhanjit Kumar Das ◽  
Madeleine R Wilcox ◽  
Jon W Johnson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Neural Stem Cells ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Neuronal Differentiation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Human Ipsc

scholarly journals Zika virus is transmitted in neural progenitor cells via cell-to-cell spread and infection is inhibited by the autophagy inducer trehalose

2020 ◽  
pp. JVI.02024-20
Author(s):  
Alex E Clark ◽  
Zhe Zhu ◽  
Florian Krach ◽  
Jeremy N Rich ◽  
Gene W. Yeo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Viral Replication ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Neutralizing Antibody ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Free Virus ◽  
Zikv Infection ◽  
Infected Cells

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a mosquito-borne human pathogen that causes congenital Zika syndrome and neurological symptoms in some adults. There are currently no approved treatments or vaccines for ZIKV, and exploration of therapies targeting host processes could avoid viral development of drug resistance. The purpose of our study was to determine if the non-toxic and widely used disaccharide trehalose, which showed antiviral activity against Human Cytomegalovirus (HCMV) in our previous work, could restrict ZIKV infection in clinically relevant neural progenitor cells (NPCs). Trehalose is known to induce autophagy, the degradation and recycling of cellular components. Whether autophagy is proviral or antiviral for ZIKV is controversial and depends on cell type and specific conditions used to activate or inhibit autophagy. We show here that trehalose treatment of NPCs infected with recent ZIKV isolates from Panama and Puerto Rico significantly reduces viral replication and spread. In addition, we demonstrate that ZIKV infection in NPCs spreads primarily cell-to-cell as an expanding infectious center, and NPCs are infected via contact with infected cells far more efficiently than by cell-free virus. Importantly, ZIKV was able to spread in NPCs in the presence of neutralizing antibody.Importance Zika virus causes birth defects and can lead to neurological disease in adults. While infection rates are currently low, ZIKV remains a public health concern with no treatment or vaccine available. Targeting a cellular pathway to inhibit viral replication is a potential treatment strategy that avoids development of antiviral resistance. We demonstrate in this study that the non-toxic autophagy-inducing disaccharide trehalose reduces spread and output of ZIKV in infected neural progenitor cells (NPCs), the major cells infected in the fetus. We show that ZIKV spreads cell-to-cell in NPCs as an infectious center and that NPCs are more permissive to infection by contact with infected cells than by cell-free virus. We find that neutralizing antibody does not prevent the spread of the infection in NPCs. These results are significant in demonstrating anti-ZIKV activity of trehalose and in clarifying the primary means of Zika virus spread in clinically relevant target cells.

scholarly journals Human Cytomegalovirus Infection Dysregulates the Localization and Stability of NICD1 and Jag1 in Neural Progenitor Cells

2015 ◽  
Vol 89 (13) ◽  
pp. 6792-6804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao-Jun Li ◽  
Xi-Juan Liu ◽  
Bo Yang ◽  
Ya-Ru Fu ◽  
Fei Zhao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cell ◽  
Notch Signaling ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Human Cytomegalovirus ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Hcmv Infection ◽  
Fetal Brain ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Notch Signaling Pathway ◽  
Protein Levels

ABSTRACTHuman cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection of the developing fetus frequently results in major neural developmental damage. In previous studies, HCMV was shown to downregulate neural progenitor/stem cell (NPC) markers and induce abnormal differentiation. As Notch signaling plays a vital role in the maintenance of stem cell status and is a switch that governs NPC differentiation, the effect of HCMV infection on the Notch signaling pathway in NPCs was investigated. HCMV downregulated mRNA levels of Notch1 and its ligand, Jag1, and reduced protein levels and altered the intracellular localization of Jag1 and the intracellular effector form of Notch1, NICD1. These effects required HCMV gene expression and appeared to be mediated through enhanced proteasomal degradation. Transient expression of the viral tegument proteins of pp71 and UL26 reduced NICD1 and Jag1 protein levels endogenously and exogenously. Given the critical role of Notch signaling in NPC growth and differentiation, these findings reveal important mechanisms by which HCMV disturbs neural cell developmentin vitro. Similar eventsin vivomay be associated with HCMV-mediated neuropathogenesis during congenital infection in the fetal brain.IMPORTANCECongenital human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection is the leading cause of birth defects that primarily manifest as neurological disabilities. Neural progenitor cells (NPCs), key players in fetal brain development, are the most susceptible cell type for HCMV infection in the fetal brain. Studies have shown that NPCs are fully permissive for HCMV infection, which causes neural cell loss and premature differentiation, thereby perturbing NPC fate. Elucidation of virus-host interactions that govern NPC proliferation and differentiation is critical to understanding neuropathogenesis. The Notch signaling pathway is critical for maintaining stem cell status and functions as a switch for differentiation of NPCs. Our investigation into the impact of HCMV infection on this pathway revealed that HCMV dysregulates Notch signaling by altering expression of the Notch ligand Jag1, Notch1, and its active effector in NPCs. These results suggest a mechanism for the neuropathogenesis induced by HCMV infection that includes altered NPC differentiation and proliferation.

REPROGRAMMING OF PORCINE EPIBLAST-DERIVED NEURAL PROGENITOR CELLS TO PLURIPOTENCY

2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 289
Author(s):  
M. A. Rasmussen ◽  
V. J. Hall ◽  
S. G. Petkov ◽  
O. Ujhelly ◽  
M. Pirity ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cell ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Neural Progenitor Cells ◽  
Autologous Transplantation ◽  
Embryonic Stem ◽  
Neural Progenitor ◽  
Embryoid Bodies ◽  
Advanced Technology ◽  
Feeder Cells ◽  
Pluripotency Genes

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) and neural progenitor cells (NPC) are envisioned to play a vital role in future cell replacement therapy. In this context, porcine iPSC and NPC would be highly useful for pre-clinical safety testing by autologous transplantation in a porcine biomedical model. The objective of this study was to establish iPSC from porcine epiblast-derived NPC by use of a tetracycline-inducible Tet-ON approach. A total of 1.5 × 105 porcine NPC at passage 6 (Rasmussen et al. 2011) were transduced O/N with 0.5 ml active virus containing the following porcine pluripotency genes: pOCT4 (pO); pOCT4 and pKLF4 (pOK); pOCT4 and pC-MYC (pOM); pOCT4, pC-MYC, and pKLF4 (pOMK) or polycistronic pOCT4, pSOX2, pC-MYC, and pKLF4 (pOSMK); all including 0.25 ml transactivator (rtTA). After 3 days, the cells were trypsinized and passaged to MEF feeder cells and cultured in iPSC medium containing DMEM/F12, 20% KSR, 1% NEAA, 10 μM β-Me, 20 ng mL–1 human bFGF and 2 μg mL–1 doxycycline. On Day 8, tightly packed colonies of cells presenting an embryonic stem cell-like morphology were visible in the pOM, pOMK, and pOSMK combinations. In contrast, colonies were not observed with the pO and pOK combination. On Day 14, several iPSC-like colonies were manually picked and sub-cultured on MEF feeder cells in iPSC medium. Two lines from the pOSMK combination were capable of prolonged clonal propagation while maintaining an ESC-like morphology. However, when doxycycline was removed from the culture medium, growth arrest and spontaneous differentiation occurred. The iPSC-like lines expressed OCT4, SOX2, C-MYC, and KLF4, as evaluated by immunocytochemistry, and expression of NANOG, SSEA-1, and SSEA-4 was also confirmed, demonstrating activation of endogenous pluripotency genes. The iPSC-like lines were capable of forming embryoid bodies (EB) without addition of doxycycline and in vitro differentiation of EB in medium containing DMEM and 15% FCS confirmed the presence of meso- (SMA) and endodermal (AFP) derivatives by immunocytochemistry. Furthermore, co-culture experiments with MS5 stromal cells in medium containing DMEM, 15% KSR, and 150 ng mL–1 human Noggin resulted in differentiation into neuroectoderm (NESTIN and SOX2), as well as more mature neurons (TUJI and GFAP). The latter resulted in establishment of new NPC lines. The system can be used to study mechanisms involved in the early transition from pluripotency to multipotency in the pig and the reversal of the process caused by reprogramming. The Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation, the Danish National Advanced Technology Foundation as well as the EU projects, EU FP7 Stem Cell Project “PartnErS” (218205; 204, 523) and EU FP7 Stem Cell Project “PluriSys” (223485).

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document