scholarly journals Junctional Adhesion Molecule 3 Expression in the Mouse Airway Epithelium Is Linked to Multiciliated Cells

Author(s):  
Clara Maria Mateos-Quiros ◽  
Sergio Garrido-Jimenez ◽  
Guadalupe Álvarez-Hernán ◽  
Selene Diaz-Chamorro ◽  
Juan Francisco Barrera-Lopez ◽  
...  

Tight-junction (TJ) proteins are essential for establishing the barrier function between neighbor epithelial cells, but also for recognition of pathogens or cell migration. Establishing the expression pattern and localization of different TJ proteins will help to understand the development and physiology of the airway. Here we identify that the junctional adhesion molecule 3 (Jam3) expression is restricted to multiciliated cells (MCCs) in the airway epithelium. In vitro, Jam3 expression varies along airway basal stem cell (BSC) differentiation and upon DAPT treatment or IL6 exposure. However, Jam3 is not required for BSC differentiation to specific cell types. In addition, we found that MCC lacking Jam3 display normal cilia morphology and cilia beating frequency with a delay in BB assembly/positioning in MCCs during differentiation. Remarkably, Jam3 in MCC is mostly localized to subapical organelles, which are negative for the apical recycling endosome marker Rab11 and positive for EEA1. Our data show that Jam3 expression is connected to mature MCC in the airway epithelium and suggest a Jam3 role unrelated to its known barrier function.

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 637
Author(s):  
Margit Rosner ◽  
Manuel Reithofer ◽  
Dieter Fink ◽  
Markus Hengstschläger

For obvious reasons, such as, e.g., ethical concerns or sample accessibility, model systems are of highest importance to study the underlying molecular mechanisms of human maladies with the aim to develop innovative and effective therapeutic strategies. Since many years, animal models and highly proliferative transformed cell lines are successfully used for disease modelling, drug discovery, target validation, and preclinical testing. Still, species-specific differences regarding genetics and physiology and the limited suitability of immortalized cell lines to draw conclusions on normal human cells or specific cell types, are undeniable shortcomings. The progress in human pluripotent stem cell research now allows the growth of a virtually limitless supply of normal and DNA-edited human cells, which can be differentiated into various specific cell types. However, cells in the human body never fulfill their functions in mono-lineage isolation and diseases always develop in complex multicellular ecosystems. The recent advances in stem cell-based 3D organoid technologies allow a more accurate in vitro recapitulation of human pathologies. Embryoids are a specific type of such multicellular structures that do not only mimic a single organ or tissue, but the entire human conceptus or at least relevant components of it. Here we briefly describe the currently existing in vitro human embryo models and discuss their putative future relevance for disease modelling and drug discovery.


2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1750) ◽  
pp. 20170230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise Hagbard ◽  
Katherine Cameron ◽  
Paul August ◽  
Christopher Penton ◽  
Malin Parmar ◽  
...  

Over the past few decades, a variety of different reagents for stem cell maintenance and differentiation have been commercialized. These reagents share a common goal in facilitating the manufacture of products suitable for cell therapy while reducing the amount of non-defined components. Lessons from developmental biology have identified signalling molecules that can guide the differentiation process in vitro , but less attention has been paid to the extracellular matrix used. With the introduction of more biologically relevant and defined matrices, that better mimic specific cell niches, researchers now have powerful resources to fine-tune their in vitro differentiation systems, which may allow the manufacture of therapeutically relevant cell types. In this review article, we revisit the basics of the extracellular matrix, and explore the important role of the cell–matrix interaction. We focus on laminin proteins because they help to maintain pluripotency and drive cell fate specification. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Designer human tissue: coming to a lab near you’.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alejandro Luarte ◽  
Luis Federico Bátiz ◽  
Ursula Wyneken ◽  
Carlos Lafourcade

Neurodegenerative disorders are one of the leading causes of death and disability and one of the biggest burdens on health care systems. Novel approaches using various types of stem cells have been proposed to treat common neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, or stroke. Moreover, as the secretome of these cells appears to be of greater benefit compared to the cells themselves, the extracellular components responsible for its therapeutic benefit have been explored. Stem cells, as well as most cells, release extracellular vesicles such as exosomes, which are nanovesicles able to target specific cell types and thus to modify their function by delivering proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids. Exosomes have recently been testedin vivoandin vitroas therapeutic conveyors for the treatment of diseases. As such, they could be engineered to target specific populations of cells within the CNS. Considering the fact that many degenerative brain diseases have an impact on adult neurogenesis, we discuss how the modulation of the adult neurogenic niches may be a therapeutic target of stem cell-derived exosomes. These novel approaches should be examined in cellular and animal models to provide better, more effective, and specific therapeutic tools in the future.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatina Siwczak ◽  
Elise Loffet ◽  
Mathilda Kaminska ◽  
Hristina Koceva ◽  
Maxime M. Mahe ◽  
...  

The gut is a tubular organ responsible for nutrient absorption and harbors our intestinal microbiome. This organ is composed of a multitude of specialized cell types arranged in complex barrier-forming crypts and villi covered by a mucosal layer controlling nutrient passage and protecting from invading pathogens. The development and self-renewal of the intestinal epithelium are guided by niche signals controlling the differentiation of specific cell types along the crypt-villus axis in the epithelium. The emergence of microphysiological systems, or organ-on-chips, has paved the way to study the intestinal epithelium within a dynamic and controlled environment. In this review, we describe the use of organ-on-chip technology to control and guide these differentiation processes in vitro. We further discuss current applications and forthcoming strategies to investigate the mechanical processes of intestinal stem cell differentiation, tissue formation, and the interaction of the intestine with the microbiota in the context of gastrointestinal diseases.


2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 246-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lara Termini ◽  
Enrique Boccardo

In vitro culture of primary or established cell lines is one of the leading techniques in many areas of basic biological research. The use of pure or highly enriched cultures of specific cell types obtained from different tissues and genetics backgrounds has greatly contributed to our current understanding of normal and pathological cellular processes. Cells in culture are easily propagated generating an almost endless source of material for experimentation. Besides, they can be manipulated to achieve gene silencing, gene overexpression and genome editing turning possible the dissection of specific gene functions and signaling pathways. However, monolayer and suspension cultures of cells do not reproduce the cell type diversity, cell-cell contacts, cell-matrix interactions and differentiation pathways typical of the three-dimensional environment of tissues and organs from where they were originated. Therefore, different experimental animal models have been developed and applied to address these and other complex issues in vivo. However, these systems are costly and time consuming. Most importantly the use of animals in scientific research poses moral and ethical concerns facing a steadily increasing opposition from different sectors of the society. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the development of alternative in vitro experimental models that accurately reproduce the events observed in vivo to reduce the use of animals. Organotypic cultures combine the flexibility of traditional culture systems with the possibility of culturing different cell types in a 3D environment that reproduces both the structure and the physiology of the parental organ. Here we present a summarized description of the use of epithelial organotypic for the study of skin physiology, human papillomavirus biology and associated tumorigenesis.


Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 66
Author(s):  
Rashmita Pradhan ◽  
Phuong A. Ngo ◽  
Luz d. C. Martínez-Sánchez ◽  
Markus F. Neurath ◽  
Rocío López-Posadas

Rho proteins operate as key regulators of the cytoskeleton, cell morphology and trafficking. Acting as molecular switches, the function of Rho GTPases is determined by guanosine triphosphate (GTP)/guanosine diphosphate (GDP) exchange and their lipidation via prenylation, allowing their binding to cellular membranes and the interaction with downstream effector proteins in close proximity to the membrane. A plethora of in vitro studies demonstrate the indispensable function of Rho proteins for cytoskeleton dynamics within different cell types. However, only in the last decades we have got access to genetically modified mouse models to decipher the intricate regulation between members of the Rho family within specific cell types in the complex in vivo situation. Translationally, alterations of the expression and/or function of Rho GTPases have been associated with several pathological conditions, such as inflammation and cancer. In the context of the GI tract, the continuous crosstalk between the host and the intestinal microbiota requires a tight regulation of the complex interaction between cellular components within the intestinal tissue. Recent studies demonstrate that Rho GTPases play important roles for the maintenance of tissue homeostasis in the gut. We will summarize the current knowledge on Rho protein function within individual cell types in the intestinal mucosa in vivo, with special focus on intestinal epithelial cells and T cells.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 2407
Author(s):  
Ruicen He ◽  
Arthur Dantas ◽  
Karl Riabowol

Acetylation of histones is a key epigenetic modification involved in transcriptional regulation. The addition of acetyl groups to histone tails generally reduces histone-DNA interactions in the nucleosome leading to increased accessibility for transcription factors and core transcriptional machinery to bind their target sequences. There are approximately 30 histone acetyltransferases and their corresponding complexes, each of which affect the expression of a subset of genes. Because cell identity is determined by gene expression profile, it is unsurprising that the HATs responsible for inducing expression of these genes play a crucial role in determining cell fate. Here, we explore the role of HATs in the maintenance and differentiation of various stem cell types. Several HAT complexes have been characterized to play an important role in activating genes that allow stem cells to self-renew. Knockdown or loss of their activity leads to reduced expression and or differentiation while particular HATs drive differentiation towards specific cell fates. In this study we review functions of the HAT complexes active in pluripotent stem cells, hematopoietic stem cells, muscle satellite cells, mesenchymal stem cells, neural stem cells, and cancer stem cells.


1998 ◽  
Vol 76 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 721-727 ◽  
Author(s):  
M W Bolt ◽  
W J Racz ◽  
J F Brien ◽  
T M Bray ◽  
T E Massey

Treatment of cardiac dysrhythmias with the iodinated benzofuran derivative amiodarone (AM) is limited by pulmonary toxicity. The susceptibilities of different lung cell types of male Golden Syrian hamsters to AM-induced cytotoxicity were investigated in vitro. Bronchoalveolar lavage and protease digestion to release cells, followed by centrifugal elutriation and density gradient centrifugation, resulted in preparations enriched with alveolar macrophages (98%), alveolar type II cells (75-85%), and nonciliated bronchiolar epithelial (Clara) cells (35-50%). Alveolar type II cell and Clara cell preparations demonstrated decreased viability (by 0.5% trypan blue dye exclusion) when incubated with 50 µM AM for 36 h, and all AM-treated cell preparations demonstrated decreased viability when incubated with 100 or 200 µM AM. Based on a viability index ((viability of AM-treated cells ÷ viability of controls) × 100%), the Clara cell fraction was significantly (p < 0.05) more susceptible than all of the other cell types to 50 µM AM. However, AM cytotoxicity was greatest (p < 0.05) in alveolar macrophages following incubation with 100 or 200 µM AM. There was no difference between any of the enriched cell preparations in the amount of drug accumulated following 24 h of incubation with 50 µM AM, whereas alveolar macrophages accumulated the most drug during incubation with 100 µM AM. Thus, the most susceptible cell type was dependent on AM concentration. AM-induced cytotoxicity in specific cell types may initiate processes leading to inflammation and pulmonary fibrosis.Key words: amiodarone, susceptibility, alveolar macrophage, accumulation.


2009 ◽  
Vol 1239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karla Brammer ◽  
Seunghan Oh ◽  
Sungho Jin

AbstractTwo important goals in stem cell research are to control the cell proliferation without differentiation, and also to direct the differentiation into a specific cell lineage when desired. Recent studies indicate that the nanostructures substantially influence the stem cell behavior. It is well known that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stem cells that can differentiate into stromal lineages such as adipocyte, chondrocyte, fibroblast, myocyte, and osteoblast cell types. By examining the cellular behavior of MSCs cultured in vitro on nanostructures, some understanding of the effects that the nanostructures have on the stem cell’s response has been obtained. Here we demonstrate that TiO2 nanotubes produced by anodization on Ti implant surface can regulate human mesenchymal stem cell (hMSC) differentiation towards an osteoblast lineage in the absence of osteogenic inducing factors. Altering the dimensions of nanotubular-shaped titanium oxide surface structures independently allowed either augmented human mesenchymal stem cell (hMSC) adhesion at smaller diameter levels or a specific differentiation of hMSCs into osteoblasts using only the geometric cues. Small (˜30 nm diameter) nanotubes promoted adhesion without noticeable differentiation, while larger (˜70 - 100 nm diameter) nanotubes elicited a dramatic, ˜10 fold stem cell elongation, which induced cytoskeletal stress and selective differentiation into osteoblast-like cells, offering a promising nanotechnology-based route for novel orthopaedics-related hMSC treatments. The fact that a guided and preferential osteogenic differentiation of stem cells can be achieved using substrate nanotopography alone without using potentially toxic, differentiation-inducing chemical agents is significant, which can be useful for future development of novel and enhanced stem cell control and therapeutic implant development.


Author(s):  
Bo-Wen Xu ◽  
Zhi-Qiang Cheng ◽  
Xu-Ting Zhi ◽  
Xiao-Mei Yang ◽  
Zhi-Bo Yan

Abstract Endothelial barrier integrity requires recycling of VE-cadherin to adherens junctions. Both p18 and Rab11a play significant roles in VE-cadherin recycling. However, the underlying mechanism and the role of p18 in activating Rab11a have yet to be elucidated. Performing in vitro and in vivo experiments, we showed that p18 protein bound to VE-cadherin before Rab11a through its VE-cadherin-binding domain (aa 1–39). Transendothelial resistance showed that overexpression of p18 promoted the circulation of VE-cadherin to adherens junctions and the recovery of the endothelial barrier. Silencing of p18 caused endothelial barrier dysfunction and prevented Rab11a-positive recycling endosome accumulation in the perinuclear recycling compartments. Furthermore, p18 knockdown in pulmonary microvessels markedly increased vascular leakage in mice challenged with lipopolysaccharide and cecal ligation puncture. This study showed that p18 regulated the pulmonary endothelial barrier function in vitro and in vivo by regulating the binding of Rab11a to VE-cadherin and the activation of Rab11a.


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