IKZF1 Mutation Mediate Resistance to IMiDs in Human Hematopoietic Stem Cells

Blood ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 126 (23) ◽  
pp. 3003-3003
Author(s):  
Shirong Li ◽  
Jing Fu ◽  
Jing Wu ◽  
Markus Y Mapara ◽  
Suzanne Lentzsch

Abstract Introduction: Previously we have shown that the immune modulatory drugs (IMiDs) downregulate GATA1 and PU.1 resulting in maturational arrest of granulocytes with accumulation of immature myeloid precursors and subsequent neutropenia. Our studies further revealed that similar to MM cells cereblon (CRBN) is critical for the mediation of the effects of IMiDS in hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and associated with decrease of IKZF1-dependent transcription factors such as GATA1 and PU.1, which are critical for development and maturation of neutrophils and erythrocytes as well as thrombocytes. Here we investigated the mechanism how IMIDs induce degradation of IKZF1 and confirmed our studies in vivo by using the humanized NOD/SCID/Gamma-c KO (NSG) mouse model. Methods and Results After we had shown that knockdown of CRBN in HCS mediates resistance to IMIDs (2014 ASH abstract 418) we assessed the impact of IKZF1 inhibition using two different approaches. First, we knocked down IKZF1 expression in CD34+ cells by shRNA lentivirus transduction. As expected, IKZF1 knockdown in CD34+ cells mimicked the effects of IMiDs resulting in increased CD34+ cell proliferation, CD33+ cell expansion (flow cytometry) and shift of lineage commitment from BFU-E to CFU-G (colony assay). Knockdown of IKZF1 was associated with decreased GATA1 and PU.1 expression at both mRNA and protein levels. Next, we generated a mutant IKZF1 by substituting Glutamine Q146 to Histidine, which abrogates IKZF1 ubiquitination induced by CRBN. CD34+ cells were transduced with lentiviral constructs to overexpress IKZF1-WT or IKZF1-Q146H. POM failed to induce IKZF1 degradation in IKZF1-Q146H-OE CD34+ cells, indicating CRBN binding to IKZF1 and subsequent ubiquitination is critical in this process. Functional assays further confirmed that IKZF1-Q146H CD34+ cells were resistant to POM induced CD33+ cell expansion and shift in lineage commitment from BFU-E to CFU-G. Since conventional mouse models are not applicable to test IMIDs in vivo due to the fact that IMIDs do not bind to mouse CRBN (Kronke, Fink et al. 2015), we established a humanized mouse model resembling human hematopoiesis. In this model, NOD/SCID/Gamma-c KO (NSG) mice received human fetal thymus grafts and 105 CD34+ fetal liver cells to generate human hematopoiesis including functional T-cells. After establishing human hematopoiesis mice were injected with POM (0.3 mg/kg) i.v every 2 days for 3 weeks. Analysis of bone marrow revealed that POM treatment significantly induced granulocyte/macrophage progenitor cells (CD34+ CD38+ CD45RA+ cells) at the expense of common lymphoid progenitors (CD34+ CD10+ cells). The shift into myelopoiesis is consistent with our in vitro finding that IMiDs affect lineage commitment. Conclusion: In summary, our results demonstrate that IMiDs affect CD34+ cell fate via CRBN and IKZF1 mediated mechanism. These results will be helpful to elucidate the mechanism of IMiDs on lineage commitment and maturation in HSCs. Also establishment of the humanized xenograft mice model may provide an advanced platform for the analysis of human hematopoiesis and human immune responses to IMiDs as well development of secondary hematologic malignancies in vivo. Disclosures Lentzsch: Axiom: Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; BMS: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Janssen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees.

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (4) ◽  
pp. 1447-1456 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rong Lu ◽  
Agnieszka Czechowicz ◽  
Jun Seita ◽  
Du Jiang ◽  
Irving L. Weissman

While the aggregate differentiation of the hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) population has been extensively studied, little is known about the lineage commitment process of individual HSC clones. Here, we provide lineage commitment maps of HSC clones under homeostasis and after perturbations of the endogenous hematopoietic system. Under homeostasis, all donor-derived HSC clones regenerate blood homogeneously throughout all measured stages and lineages of hematopoiesis. In contrast, after the hematopoietic system has been perturbed by irradiation or by an antagonistic anti-ckit antibody, only a small fraction of donor-derived HSC clones differentiate. Some of these clones dominantly expand and exhibit lineage bias. We identified the cellular origins of clonal dominance and lineage bias and uncovered the lineage commitment pathways that lead HSC clones to different levels of self-renewal and blood production under various transplantation conditions. This study reveals surprising alterations in HSC fate decisions directed by conditioning and identifies the key hematopoiesis stages that may be manipulated to control blood production and balance.


Blood ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 117 (14) ◽  
pp. 3737-3747 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dirk Heckl ◽  
Daniel C. Wicke ◽  
Martijn H. Brugman ◽  
Johann Meyer ◽  
Axel Schambach ◽  
...  

AbstractThpo/Mpl signaling plays an important role in the maintenance of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) in addition to its role in megakaryopoiesis. Patients with inactivating mutations in Mpl develop thrombocytopenia and aplastic anemia because of progressive loss of HSCs. Yet, it is unknown whether this loss of HSCs is an irreversible process. In this study, we used the Mpl knockout (Mpl−/−) mouse model and expressed Mpl from newly developed lentiviral vectors specifically in the physiologic Mpl target populations, namely, HSCs and megakaryocytes. After validating lineage-specific expression in vivo using lentiviral eGFP reporter vectors, we performed bone marrow transplantation of transduced Mpl−/− bone marrow cells into Mpl−/− mice. We show that restoration of Mpl expression from transcriptionally targeted vectors prevents lethal adverse reactions of ectopic Mpl expression, replenishes the HSC pool, restores stem cell properties, and corrects platelet production. In some mice, megakaryocyte counts were atypically high, accompanied by bone neo-formation and marrow fibrosis. Gene-corrected Mpl−/− cells had increased long-term repopulating potential, with a marked increase in lineage−Sca1+cKit+ cells and early progenitor populations in reconstituted mice. Transcriptome analysis of lineage−Sca1+cKit+ cells in Mpl-corrected mice showed functional adjustment of genes involved in HSC self-renewal.


Blood ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 116 (21) ◽  
pp. 1210-1210
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Bolton ◽  
Linda Kamp ◽  
Hardik Modi ◽  
Ravi Bhatia ◽  
Steffen Koschmieder ◽  
...  

Abstract Abstract 1210 Background: BCR-ABL1 transforms hematopoietic stem cells to induce chronic myeloid leukemia in chronic phase (CML-CP). Although CML is stem cell-derived, it is a progenitor cell-driven disease. In CML-CP, leukemia stem cells (LSCs) are characterized by elevated BCR-ABL1 expression in comparison to leukemia progenitor cells (LPCs). Increased expression of BCR-ABL1 kinase is also associated with progression from CML-CP to CML-blast phase. Previously we showed that BCR-ABL1 kinase stimulates reactive oxygen species (ROS)-dependent DNA damage resulting in genomic instability in vitro, which was responsible for acquired imatinib-resistance and accumulation of chromosomal aberrations (Nowicki et al., Blood, 2005; Koptyra et al., Blood, 2006; Koptyra et al., Leukemia, 2008). Result: To examine the effects of BCR-ABL1 expression on genomic instability during in vivo leukemogenesis we employed an inducible transgenic mouse model of CML-CP with targeted expression of p210BCR-ABL1 in hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (Koschmieder et al., Blood, 2005). Mice exhibiting CML-CP-like disease resulting from BCR-ABL1 induction demonstrated splenomegaly, leukocytosis, and Gr1+/CD11b+ myeloid expansion in bone marrow, spleen and peripheral blood, as detected by FACS analysis. BCR-ABL1 mRNA expression was higher in Lin-c-Kit+Sca1+ stem-enriched cells than in Lin-c-Kit+Sca1- progenitor-enriched cells, thus reminiscent of CML-CP (LSCs>LPCs). BCR-ABL1 increased levels of ROS (hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radical) and oxidative DNA lesions (8-oxoG) in LSC-enriched Lin-c-Kit+Sca1+ cells. Preliminary data also suggested that quiescent (CFSEmax) Lin-c-Kit+Sca1+ cells from BCR-ABL1-induced mice exhibited greater ROS (superoxide) production than non-induced counter parts. Moreover, higher levels of ROS were detected in BCR-ABL1-positive Lin-c-Kit+Sca1+ stem-enriched population in comparison to BCR-ABL1-positive Lin-c-Kit+Sca1- progenitor population, suggesting a dosage-dependent effect of BCR-ABL1. To confirm that BCR-ABL1 exerts a dosage-dependent effect on ROS-induced oxidative DNA damage, we showed that the levels of ROS, 8-oxoG and DNA double-strand breaks were proportional to BCR-ABL1 kinase expression in murine 32Dc13 and human CD34+ cells. Conclusion: In summary, this mouse model recapitulates the BCR-ABL1 expression profile attributed to stem and progenitor populations in human CML-CP. It also shows that the BCR-ABL1-positive, stem cell-enriched Lin-c-Kit+Sca1+ population displays elevated levels of ROS and oxidative DNA damage in comparison to normal counterparts, which makes it suitable to study the mechanisms of genomic instability in LSCs. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays will shed more light on the genomic instability of this BCR-ABL1-induced transgenic model of CML-CP. Disclosures: Koschmieder: Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; BMS: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees.


Blood ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 116 (21) ◽  
pp. 514-514 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bin Zhang ◽  
David Irvine ◽  
Yin Wei Ho ◽  
Silvia Buonamici ◽  
Paul Manley ◽  
...  

Abstract Abstract 514 Background: Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI), although effective in inducing remissions and improving survival in CML patients, fail to eliminate leukemia stem cells (LSC), which remain a potential source of relapse on stopping treatment. Additional strategies to enhance elimination of LSC in TKI-treated CML patients are required. The Hedgehog (Hh) pathway, important for developmental hematopoiesis, has been shown to be activated in BCR-ABL-expressing LSC, in association with upregulation of Smoothened (SMO), and contributes to maintenance of BCR-ABL+ LSC. However the role of Hh signaling in chronic phase (CP) CML LSC is not clear. LDE225 (LDE, Novartis Pharma) is a small molecule SMO antagonist which is being clinically evaluated in patients with solid tumors. We have reported that LDE does not significantly affect proliferation and apoptosis of primary CP CML CD34+ cells, or reduce colony growth in CFC assays, but results in significant reduction in CML CFC replating efficiency and secondary colony formation. Treatment with LDE + Nilotinib resulted in significant reduction in colony formation from CD34+ CML cells in LTCIC assays compared to Nilotinib alone or untreated controls. These observations suggest that LDE may preferentially inhibit growth of primitive CML progenitors and progenitor self-renewal. We therefore further investigated the effect of LDE on growth of primitive CML LSC in vivo. Methods and Results: 1) CP CML CD34+ cells were treated with LDE (10nM), Nilotinib (5μ M) or LDE + Nilotinib for 72 hours followed by transplantation into NOD-SCID γ-chain- (NSG) mice. Treatment with LDE + Nilotinib resulted in reduced engraftment of CML CD45+ cells (p=0.06) and CD34+ cells (p=0.02) compared with controls, and significantly reduced engraftment of CML cells with CFC capacity (p=0.005). In contrast LDE or Nilotinib alone did not reduce CML cell engraftment in the bone marrow (BM) compared with untreated controls. LDE, Nilotinib, or LDE + Nilotinib treatment did not significantly inhibit engraftment of normal human CD34+ cells in NSG mice compared to controls. 2) We also used the transgenic Scl-tTa-BCR-ABL mouse model of CP CML to investigate the effect of in vivo treatment with LDE on CML LSC. BM cells from GFP-SCL-tTA/BCR-ABL mice were transplanted into wild type congenic recipients to establish a cohort of mice with CML-like disease. Recipient mice developed CML-like disease 3–4 weeks after transplantation. Transplanted CML cells were identifiable through GFP expression. Mice were treated with LDE225 (80mg/kg/d by gavage), Nilotinib (50 mg/kg/d by gavage), LDE + Nilotinib, or vehicle alone (control) for 3 weeks. Treatment with Nilotinib, LDE, and LDE + Nilotinib resulted in normalization of WBC and neutrophil counts in peripheral blood. LDE + Nilotinib treatment significantly reduced the number of splenic long term hematopoietic stem cells (LT-HSC, Lin-Sca-1+Kit+Flt3-CD150+CD48-, p<0.01) and granulocyte-macrophage progenitors (GMP) compared to controls, but did not significantly alter LT-HSC numbers in the BM. LDE alone reduced splenic LT-HSC but not GMP, whereas Nilotinib alone did not reduce LT-HSC numbers in spleen or BM but significantly reduced splenic GMP numbers. The mechanisms underlying enhanced targeting of LSC in the spleen compared to the BM are not clear but could reflect greater dependence on Hh signaling in the context of the splenic microenvironment and/or relocalization of LDE treated LT-HSC to BM. Experiments in which BM and spleen cells from treated mice were transplanted into secondary recipients to determine functional stem cell capacity of remaining LT-HSC are ongoing. Importantly mice treated with LDE + Nilotinib demonstrated enhanced survival on follow up after discontinuation of treatment compared with control mice or mice treated with LDE or Nilotinib alone. Conclusions: We conclude that LDE225 can target LSC from CP CML patients and in a transgenic BCR-ABL model of CP CML, and that LDE + Nilotinib treatment may represent a promising strategy to enhance elimination of residual LSC in TKI-treated CML patients. Disclosures: Buonamici: Novartis: Employment. Manley:Novartis: Employment. Holyoake:Novartis: Consultancy, Research Funding. Copland:Novartis Pharma: Honoraria, Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Pfizer: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Bhatia:Novartis: Consultancy, Honoraria.


Blood ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 120 (21) ◽  
pp. 27-27
Author(s):  
Rong Lu ◽  
Agnieszka Czechowicz ◽  
Jun Seita ◽  
Irving L. Weissman

Abstract Abstract 27 Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) sustain the blood and immune systems through a complex differentiation process. This process involves several steps of lineage commitment and forms a paradigm for understanding cellular development, differentiation, and malignancy. While this step-wise differentiation has been extensively studied at the population level, little is known about the lineage commitment of individual HSC clones. The importance of understanding HSC differentiation at the clonal level has been raised by several recent studies suggesting that individual HSCs differentially contribute to various blood cell types and that the aggregate HSC differentiation at the population level is an amalgamation of the diverse lineage commitments of individual HSC clones. The distinct differentiation of individual HSCs may also be accentuated by their regulatory microenvironments, HSC niche. HSC niche may not affect all HSCs in an organism equally, and may instead act directly on resident HSC clones through direct contact or by tuning local cytokine concentrations. Knowledge of HSC clonal level lineage commitment will reveal new insights into HSC regulatory mechanisms and will improve our understanding of aging, immune deficiency, and many hematopoietic disorders involving an unbalanced hematopoietic system. Here, we provide a comprehensive map of in vivo HSC clonal development in mice. The clonal map was derived from the simultaneous tracking of hundreds of individual mouse HSCs in vivo using genetic barcodes. These unique barcodes were delivered into HSCs using a lentiviral vector to obtain a one-to-one mapping between barcodes and HSCs. Barcoded HSCs were then transplanted into recipient mice using standard procedures. Genetic barcodes from donor derived HSCs and their progenies were examined twenty-two weeks after transplantation using high-throughput sequencing. We found that the dominant differentiation of HSC clones is always present in pre-conditioned mice. In these recipients, a small fraction of engrafted HSCs become dominantly abundant at the intermediate progenitor stages, but not at the HSC stage. Thus, clonal dominance is a characteristic of HSC differentiation but not of HSC self-renewal. Additionally, the dominant differentiation of HSC clones exhibits distinct expansion patterns through various stages of hematopoiesis. We provide evidence that observed HSC lineage bias arises from dominant differentiation at distinct lineage commitment steps. In particular, myeloid bias arises from dominant differentiation at the first lineage commitment step from HSC to MPP, whereas lymphoid bias arises from dominant differentiation at the last lineage commitment step from CLP to B cells. We also show that dominant differentiation and lineage bias are interrelated and together delineate discrete HSC lineage commitment pathways. These pathways describe how individual HSC clones produce differential blood quantities and cell types. Multiple clonal differentiation pathways can coexist simultaneously in a single organism, and mutually compensate to sustain overall blood production. Thus, the distinct HSC differentiation characteristics uncovered by clonal analysis are not evident at the population level. We have also identified the lineage commitment profiles of HSC clones belonging to each pathway. These profiles elucidate the cellular proliferation and development of HSCs at the clonal level and demonstrate that distinct modes of HSC regulation exist in vivo. In summary, our in vivo clonal mapping reveals discrete clonal level HSC lineage commitment pathways. We have identified the cellular origins of clonal dominance and lineage bias, which may be the key hematopoietic stages where blood production and balance can be manipulated. These discoveries based on clonal level analysis are unexpected and unobtainable from conventional studies at the population level. Together, they open new avenues of research for studying hematopoiesis. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Blood ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 128 (22) ◽  
pp. 931-931
Author(s):  
Ajay Abraham ◽  
Puneet Agarwal ◽  
Hui Li ◽  
Andrew Paterson ◽  
Jianbo He ◽  
...  

Abstract Despite the success of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in treatment of CML, cures remain elusive, as primitive leukemia stem cells (LSC) are retained in patients achieving remission. Previous studies from our group have suggested that Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) inhibition may represent a novel approach for elimination of LSCs in chronic phase CML. SIRT1 was shown to be overexpressed in CML LSCs, and SIRT1 inhibition using shRNA or a small molecule SIRT1 inhibitor selectively eliminated CML LSCs by increasing p53 acetylation and activity (Li et.al; Cancer Cell 2012). These studies were limited by possible off-target effects and limited duration of in vivo exposure. Here we used a genetic mouse model to definitively delineate the role of SIRT1 in CML development. A model for conditional SIRT1 deletion in hematopoietic stem cells was established by crossing homozygous SIRT1 exon-4 floxed (SIRT1fl/fl) mice with Mx1-Cre mice. To study the requirement of SIRT1 for development of CML, Mx1-cre SIRT1fl/fl mice were crossed with SCL-tTA/BCR-ABL mice, representing a tet-regulated inducible transgenic mouse model of CML, to generate SCL-tTA/BCR-ABL Mx1-Cre SIRT1fl/fl mice (BA Mx1-Cre SIRT1fl/fl). BA SIRT1fl/fl mice lacking Mx1-Cre were used as controls. The mice were maintained on doxycycline until CML induction. Cre mediated deletion of SIRT1 was induced by intraperitoneal pIpC injections (250µg/mouse) administered every other day for a total of 7 doses. SIRT1 knockdown was confirmed by PCR for excised exon-4 and by RT-Q-PCR. Bone marrow (BM) cells from either BA Mx1-Cre SIRT1fl/fl or controls (both CD45.2) were transplanted into irradiated (800 cGy) CD45.1 congenic recipients (2X106 cells/mouse). Cre-mediated deletion of SIRT1 was induced by pIpC injection starting at 4 weeks post-transplant, followed by withdrawal of tetracycline to induce BCR-ABL expression. Serial PB counts and phenotypic evaluation of cell types by flow cytometry (Fig 1 A-B) showed SIRT1 knockdown to have a profound effect on CML development. By 8 weeks after BCR-ABL induction, BA SIRT1fl/fl mice (n=10), showed significantly lower neutrophils (p=0.0003) and Gr-1/Mac-1 positive myeloid cells (p=0.0002) compared to control mice. Subsequently, control mice developed progressive neutrophilic leukocytosis and increasing morbidity from leukemia, whereas BA SIRT1fl/fl mice demonstrated significantly lower WBC counts, without evidence of progressive increase or morbidity (Fig 1 A). This cohort of mice continues to be followed for survival. Another cohort of BA Mx1-Cre SIRT1fl/fl mice was sacrificed at 8 weeks post pIpC injection and BCR-ABL induction to evaluate the effect of SIRT1 knockdown on stem and progenitor populations (n=6 each). SIRT1 deleted mice demonstrated significant reduction in spleen size, weight, cellularity, and myeloid infiltration (Fig 2 A-B), and in myeloid cell expansion in the BM compared to controls (p=0.002). Primitive lineage negative, Sca1 positive, c-Kit negative (LSK) cells and granulocyte-macrophage progenitors (GMP) were significantly reduced in BM and spleen of BA SIRT1 deletedmice compared to control mice, whereas megakaryocyte-erythrocyte progenitors (MEP) were increased (Fig 3 A-B). Long term hematopoietic stem cells (LTHSC) in the BM are reduced following CML development. The percentage and number of LTHSC were significantly increased in SIRT1 deletedmice compared to control mice (Fig 3C-D). We also evaluated the effect of SIRT1 deletion on normal hematopoiesis by studying Mx1-Cre SIRT1fl/fl mice lacking BCR-ABL. SIRT1fl/fl mice without Mx1-Cre were studied as controls. Mx1-Cre SIRT1fl/fl and control mice were treated with pIpC to induce SIRT1 deletion. SIRT1deletedmice did not show significant alteration in blood counts, but demonstrated significantly higher LSK and LTHSC numbers in BM compared to control mice. Upon secondary transfer, recipients of BM from SIRT1deleted mice showed a modest increase in donor cell engraftment at 12 weeks compared to controls (90.8% (83.2-92.2%) vs 83.6% (75.8-86.7%); p=0.001). We conclude that genetic deletion of SIRT1 markedly inhibits all aspects of CML development in transgenic BCR-ABL mice, without impairing normal hematopoiesis. These observations demonstrate a critical role for SIRT1 in leukemia development, and support further evaluation of SIRT1 as a therapeutic target in CML. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Blood ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 112 (11) ◽  
pp. 1356-1356
Author(s):  
Christian Brandts ◽  
Miriam Rode ◽  
Beate Lindtner ◽  
Gabriele Koehler ◽  
Steffen Koschmieder ◽  
...  

Abstract Activating mutations in Flt3, N- and K-Ras have been reported in all AML subtypes and represent common molecular defects in de novo AML. We have previously shown that these mutations lead to constitutive AKT phosphorylation and activation. As a consequence, Akt phosphorylation is found in myeloid blasts of the majority of AML patients. We reasoned that constitutively active AKT may contribute to leukemia development, and therefore we assessed the contribution of AKT in oncogenic transformation in vivo. For this purpose, we established an inducible mouse model expressing myristylated AKT1 under the control of the scl-3′ enhancer (MyrAKT1). This system restricts activated AKT1 to endothelium, hematopoietic stem cells and myeloid lineage cells at a low but detectable level. About 40% of induced mice developed a myeloproliferative disorder after latencies of 7 to 22 months. Onset of disease was frequently associated with hemangioma formation, due to endothelial MyrAKT1 expression. The myeloproliferative disorder was associated with splenomegaly with increased extramedullary hematopoiesis, while the peripheral blood contained mature granulocytes. Furthermore, the stem cell and progenitor cell compartment in spleens and bone marrow of these mice was altered compared to control mice. Colony formation assays with MyrAKT1-expressing bone marrow suggested that overactivation of AKT1 enhanced proliferation. The AKT1-induced disease was transplantable by both bone marrow and spleen cells. These findings highlight the oncogenic capacity of constitutively activated AKT1 in vivo and indicate that AKT is an attractive target for therapeutic intervention in AML.


Blood ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 114 (22) ◽  
pp. SCI-8-SCI-8
Author(s):  
Amy E. Geddis

Abstract Abstract SCI-8 Compared to red cells, whose passage from embryonic to adult stages is marked by the expression of distinct forms of hemoglobin, the development of megakaryocytes during embryogenesis is less well understood. However, certain shared characteristics between megakaryocytes, endothelial cells, hematopoietic stem cells and erythrocytes infer developmental relationships between these lineages. Recent data support the model that hematopoietic stem cells derive from the hemangioblast, and that megakaryocytes and erythrocytes develop from a common precursor both in primitive and adult hematopoiesis. Evidence of these common origins can be found in the genetic programs that are activated during hematopoiesis, in that many of the cell surface markers and transcriptions factors that are characteristic of megakaryocytes can also be found in endothelial cells, stem cells and erythrocytes. In this session I will review current views on developmental thrombopoiesis, key megakaryocytic transcription factors and the experimental and clinical phenotypes associated with their disruption, and current controversies in lineage choice during megakaryocyte differentiation. Disclosures Geddis: Amgen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding.


Blood ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 122 (21) ◽  
pp. 512-512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bin Zhang ◽  
Yin Wei Ho ◽  
Tessa L. Holyoake ◽  
Ravi Bhatia

Abstract BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI), although highly effective in inducing remission and improving survival in chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients, fail to eliminate leukemia stem cells (LSC), which remain a potential source of relapse. Most CML patients need continued TKI treatment to prevent disease relapse, and new strategies to eliminate residual leukemia stem cells are required to enhance possibility of achieving treatment-free remission. In previous studies we have shown that increased several cytokines expressed by leukemia cells may provide a selective growth advantage to CML compared with normal long term hematopoietic stem cells (LTHSC) within the CML BM microenvironment. Studies evaluating the effects of individual factors indicated that exposure to Interleukin-1α/β (IL-1α/β) at concentrations similar to those observed in CML BM resulted in significantly increased growth of CML compared with normal LTHSC (Cancer Cell 2012, 21:577). Consistent with previous reports (PNAS 2010, 107:16280), we observed that expression of the IL-1 receptor-associated protein (IL-1RAP), an important IL-1 signaling component, was increased in primitive CML cells, potentially explaining enhanced IL-1 sensitivity. To further evaluate the role of microenvironmental IL-1 in maintenance of CML LTHSC, we used recombinant IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1RA) to block IL-1 receptor signaling. IL-1RA is clinically approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Purified LTHSC (Lin-Sca-1+Kit+Flt3-CD150+CD48- cells) from the SCL-tTA/BCR-ABL inducible mouse model of CML (CD45.1) and from congenic FVBN mice (CD45.2) were mixed in a 1:1 ratio and cultured with CML BM plasma, with and without IL-1RA. Culture with CML BM plasma for 7 days results in significantly increased growth of CML compared to normal LTHSC. The ratio of CML to normal cells was significantly reduced in the presence of IL-1RA (2.5μg/ml) (3.6:1 without IL-1RA, 1.7:1 with IL-1RA, p=0.0002), indicating that inhibition of IL-1 signaling reduced the growth advantage of CML LTHSC cultured in CML BM plasma. We next investigated the effect of IL-1RA on CML hematopoiesis in vivo. BM cells from CML mice (CD45.1) were transplanted into congenic FVBN mice (CD45.2) to generate CML-like disease in recipient mice. Four weeks after transplantation mice were treated with Nilotinib (NIL, 50mg/kg/d, gavage), IL-1RA (150mg/kg/d s.c.), the combination of NIL and IL-1RA, or vehicle (control) for 3 weeks. Treatment with NIL plus IL-1RA resulted in significantly greater reduction in CD45.1+ CML cells in blood, and in CML LTHSC, MPP, CMP and GMP in BM, compared with NIL alone (CML LTHSC/2 femurs: control 738±122, NIL 486±94, IL-1RA 525±49, combination 360±33, P=0.01 combination vs. Nilotinib). Mice treated with NIL plus IL-1RA also showed significantly prolonged survival after completion of treatment compared to mice treated with NIL alone (median survival 6 days for NIL alone versus 45 days for combination, p=0.02). Following transplantation of BM cells from treated mice into 2nd recipients (CD45.2), significantly lower CML cell engraftment in BM and reduced development of leukemia was seen after transplantation of cells from mice treated with the combination compared with NIL or untreated controls (8 out of 8 mice developed leukemia for control, 6 out of 8 for NIL, 5 out of 8 for IL-1RA, 3 out of 8 for the combination). We also studied the effect of treatment with NIL (5μm), IL-1RA (5μg/ml), NIL+IL-1RA, or vehicle for 72 hours on human CML and normal CD34+CD38+ and CD34+CD38- cells cultured with CML BM conditioned medium (CM). The combination of NIL and IL-1RA significantly reduced CML CD34+CD38+ and CD34+CD38- cell growth compared to Nilotinib alone (CD38- cells: NIL 23.7±10.1%, combination 13.1±8.9% of control, p<0.05), cell division (measured by CFSE labeling) (CD38- proliferation index: NIL 3.3±1.0, combination 2.4±0.6, p=0.06) and CFC frequency in methylcellulose progenitor assays (CD38- cells: NIL 67±22 per 1000 cells, combination 39±26, p<0.05); and moderately increased apoptosis of CML CD34+CD38- cells. We conclude that inhibition of microenvironmental IL-1 signaling using IL-1RA significantly increases inhibition of self-renewing murine and human CML stem cells in combination with NIL. Our results support further evaluation of IL-1 inhibition as a strategy to enhance elimination of CML LSC in TKI-treated patients. Disclosures: Holyoake: Novartis: Membership on an entity’s Board of Directors or advisory committees; Bristol Myers Squibb: Membership on an entity’s Board of Directors or advisory committees; Ariad: Membership on an entity’s Board of Directors or advisory committees.


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