1
|
Mariani JN, Mansky B, Madsen PM, Salinas D, Kesmen D, Huynh NPT, Kuypers NJ, Kesel ER, Bates J, Payne C, Chandler-Militello D, Benraiss A, Goldman SA. Repression of developmental transcription factor networks triggers aging-associated gene expression in human glial progenitor cells. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3873. [PMID: 38719882 PMCID: PMC11079006 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48118-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2023] [Accepted: 04/18/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Human glial progenitor cells (hGPCs) exhibit diminished expansion competence with age, as well as after recurrent demyelination. Using RNA-sequencing to compare the gene expression of fetal and adult hGPCs, we identify age-related changes in transcription consistent with the repression of genes enabling mitotic expansion, concurrent with the onset of aging-associated transcriptional programs. Adult hGPCs develop a repressive transcription factor network centered on MYC, and regulated by ZNF274, MAX, IKZF3, and E2F6. Individual over-expression of these factors in iPSC-derived hGPCs lead to a loss of proliferative gene expression and an induction of mitotic senescence, replicating the transcriptional changes incurred during glial aging. miRNA profiling identifies the appearance of an adult-selective miRNA signature, imposing further constraints on the expansion competence of aged GPCs. hGPC aging is thus associated with acquisition of a MYC-repressive environment, suggesting that suppression of these repressors of glial expansion may permit the rejuvenation of aged hGPCs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- John N Mariani
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA.
| | - Benjamin Mansky
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Pernille M Madsen
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Copenhagen Faculty of Health, Copenhagen, 2200, Denmark
| | - Dennis Salinas
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Deniz Kesmen
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Nguyen P T Huynh
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Copenhagen Faculty of Health, Copenhagen, 2200, Denmark
| | - Nicholas J Kuypers
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Erin R Kesel
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Janna Bates
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Casey Payne
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Devin Chandler-Militello
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Abdellatif Benraiss
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Steven A Goldman
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA.
- Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Copenhagen Faculty of Health, Copenhagen, 2200, Denmark.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Rajendiran V, Devaraju N, Haddad M, Ravi NS, Panigrahi L, Paul J, Gopalakrishnan C, Wyman S, Ariudainambi K, Mahalingam G, Periyasami Y, Prasad K, George A, Sukumaran D, Gopinathan S, Pai AA, Nakamura Y, Balasubramanian P, Ramalingam R, Thangavel S, Velayudhan SR, Corn JE, Mackay JP, Marepally S, Srivastava A, Crossley M, Mohankumar KM. Base editing of key residues in the BCL11A-XL-specific zinc finger domains derepresses fetal globin expression. Mol Ther 2024; 32:663-677. [PMID: 38273654 PMCID: PMC10928131 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2024.01.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2023] [Revised: 11/03/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024] Open
Abstract
BCL11A-XL directly binds and represses the fetal globin (HBG1/2) gene promoters, using 3 zinc-finger domains (ZnF4, ZnF5, and ZnF6), and is a potential target for β-hemoglobinopathy treatments. Disrupting BCL11A-XL results in derepression of fetal globin and high HbF, but also affects hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) engraftment and erythroid maturation. Intriguingly, neurodevelopmental patients with ZnF domain mutations have elevated HbF with normal hematological parameters. Inspired by this natural phenomenon, we used both CRISPR-Cas9 and base editing at specific ZnF domains and assessed the impacts on HbF production and hematopoietic differentiation. Generating indels in the various ZnF domains by CRISPR-Cas9 prevented the binding of BCL11A-XL to its site in the HBG1/2 promoters and elevated the HbF levels but affected normal hematopoiesis. Far fewer side effects were observed with base editing- for instance, erythroid maturation in vitro was near normal. However, we observed a modest reduction in HSPC engraftment and a complete loss of B cell development in vivo, presumably because current base editing is not capable of precisely recapitulating the mutations found in patients with BCL11A-XL-associated neurodevelopment disorders. Overall, our results reveal that disrupting different ZnF domains has different effects. Disrupting ZnF4 elevated HbF levels significantly while leaving many other erythroid target genes unaffected, and interestingly, disrupting ZnF6 also elevated HbF levels, which was unexpected because this region does not directly interact with the HBG1/2 promoters. This first structure/function analysis of ZnF4-6 provides important insights into the domains of BCL11A-XL that are required to repress fetal globin expression and provide framework for exploring the introduction of natural mutations that may enable the derepression of single gene while leaving other functions unaffected.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vignesh Rajendiran
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala 695 011, India
| | - Nivedhitha Devaraju
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka 576104, India
| | - Mahdi Haddad
- School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Nithin Sam Ravi
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala 695 011, India
| | - Lokesh Panigrahi
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka 576104, India
| | - Joshua Paul
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka 576104, India
| | - Chandrasekar Gopalakrishnan
- Department of Integrative Biology, School of Bioscience and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT, Deemed to be University), Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632014, India
| | - Stacia Wyman
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA
| | | | - Gokulnath Mahalingam
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India
| | - Yogapriya Periyasami
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India
| | - Kirti Prasad
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka 576104, India
| | - Anila George
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala 695 011, India
| | - Dhiyaneshwaran Sukumaran
- Department of Integrative Biology, School of Bioscience and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT, Deemed to be University), Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632014, India
| | - Sandhiya Gopinathan
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India
| | - Aswin Anand Pai
- Department of Haematology, Christian Medical College & Hospital, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632 004, India
| | - Yukio Nakamura
- Cell Engineering Division, RIKEN BioResource Center, 3-1-1 Koyadai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan
| | | | - Rajasekaran Ramalingam
- Department of Integrative Biology, School of Bioscience and Technology, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT, Deemed to be University), Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632014, India
| | - Saravanabhavan Thangavel
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India
| | - Shaji R Velayudhan
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Department of Haematology, Christian Medical College & Hospital, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632 004, India
| | - Jacon E Corn
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA; Institute of Molecular Health Sciences, Department of Biology, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Joel P Mackay
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Srujan Marepally
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India
| | - Alok Srivastava
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India; Department of Haematology, Christian Medical College & Hospital, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632 004, India
| | - Merlin Crossley
- School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Kumarasamypet M Mohankumar
- Centre for Stem Cell Research (a Unit of inStem, Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, Bagayam, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632002, India.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Mazzarini M, Cherone J, Nguyen T, Martelli F, Varricchio L, Funnell APW, Papayannopoulou T, Migliaccio AR. The glucocorticoid receptor elicited proliferative response in human erythropoiesis is BCL11A-dependent. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.02.05.577972. [PMID: 38370646 PMCID: PMC10871295 DOI: 10.1101/2024.02.05.577972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
Prior evidence indicates that the erythroid cellular response to glucocorticoids (GC) has developmental specificity, namely, that developmentally more advanced cells that are undergoing or have undergone fetal to adult globin switching are more responsive to GC-induced expansion. To investigate the molecular underpinnings of this, we focused on the major developmental globin regulator BCL11A. We compared: a) levels of expression and nuclear content of BCL11A in adult erythroid cells upon GC stimulation; b) response to GC of CD34+ cells from patients with BCL11A microdeletions and reduced BCL11A expression, and; c) response to GC of two cellular models (HUDEP-2 and adult CD34+ cells) before and after reduction of BCL11A expression by shRNA. We observed that: a) GC-expanded erythroid cells from a large cohort of blood donors displayed amplified expression and nuclear accumulation of BCL11A; b) CD34+ cells from BCL11A microdeletion patients generated fewer erythroid cells when cultured with GC compared to their parents, while the erythroid expansion of the patients was similar to that of their parents in cultures without GC, and; c) adult CD34+ cells and HUDEP-2 cells with shRNA-depleted expression of BCL11A exhibit reduced expansion in response to GC. In addition, RNA-seq profiling of shRNA-BCL11A CD34+ cells cultured with and without GC was similar (very few differentially expressed genes), while GC-specific responses (differential expression of GILZ and of numerous additional genes) were observed only in controls cells with unperturbed BCL11A expression. These data indicate that BCL11A is an important participant of certain aspects of the stress pathway sustained by GC.
Collapse
|
4
|
Zheng G, Orkin SH. Transcriptional Repressor BCL11A in Erythroid Cells. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2024; 1459:199-215. [PMID: 39017845 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-62731-6_9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/18/2024]
Abstract
BCL11A, a zinc finger repressor, is a stage-specific transcription factor that controls the switch from fetal (HbF, α2γ2) to adult (HbA, α2β2) hemoglobin in erythroid cells. While BCL11A was known as a factor critical for B-lymphoid cell development, its relationship to erythroid cells and HbF arose through genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Subsequent work validated its role as a silencer of γ-globin gene expression in cultured cells and mice. Erythroid-specific loss of BCL11A rescues the phenotype of engineered sickle cell disease (SCD) mice, thereby suggesting that downregulation of BCL11A expression might be beneficial in patients with SCD and β-thalassemia. Common genetic variation in GWAS resides in an erythroid-specific enhancer within the BCL11A gene that is required for its own expression. CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing of the enhancer revealed a GATA-binding site that confers a large portion of its regulatory function. Disruption of the GATA site leads to robust HbF reactivation. Advancement of a guide RNA targeting the GATA-binding site in clinical trials has recently led to approval of first-in-man use of ex vivo CRISPR editing of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) as therapy of SCD and β-thalassemia. Future challenges include expanding access and infrastructure for delivery of genetic therapy to eligible patients, reducing potential toxicity and costs, exploring prospects for in vivo targeting of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), and developing small molecule drugs that impair function of BCL11A protein as an alternative option.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ge Zheng
- Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School and HHMI, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Stuart H Orkin
- Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Boston, MA, USA.
- Harvard Medical School and HHMI, Boston, MA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Yamaguchi M, Huynh MA, Chiyonobu T, Yoshida H. Knockdown of Chronophage in the nervous system mimics features of neurodevelopmental disorders caused by BCL11A/B variants. Exp Cell Res 2023; 433:113827. [PMID: 37926342 DOI: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2023.113827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2023] [Revised: 10/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/19/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023]
Abstract
Neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) are a group of disorders that include intellectual disability. Although several genes have been implicated in NDD, the molecular mechanisms underlying its pathogenesis remain unclear. Therefore, it is important to develop novel models to analyze the functions of NDD-causing genes in vivo. Recently, rare pathogenic variants of the B-cell lymphoma/leukemia11A/B (BCL11A/B) gene have been identified in several patients with NDD. Drosophila carries the Chronophage (Cph) gene, which has been predicted to be a homolog of BCL11A/B based on the conservation of the amino acid sequence. In the present study, we investigated whether nervous system-specific knockdown of Cph mimics NDD phenotypes in Drosophila. Nervous system-specific knockdown of Cph induced learning and locomotor defects in larvae and epilepsy-like behaviors in adults. The number of synaptic branches was also elevated in the larval neuromuscular junction without a corresponding increase in the number of boutons. Furthermore, the expression levels of putative target genes that are Drosophila homologs of the mammalian BCL11 target genes were decreased in Cph knockdown flies. These results suggest that Cph knockdown flies are a promising model for investigating the pathology of NDD-induced BCL11A/B dysfunction.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mizuki Yamaguchi
- Department of Applied Biology, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Matsugasaki, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8585, Japan.
| | - Man Anh Huynh
- Department of Applied Biology, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Matsugasaki, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8585, Japan
| | - Tomohiro Chiyonobu
- Department of Molecular Diagnostics and Therapeutics, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, 465 Kajii-cho, Kawaramachi-hirokoji, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto, 602-8566, Japan
| | - Hideki Yoshida
- Department of Applied Biology, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Matsugasaki, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8585, Japan; Advanced Insect Research Promotion Center, Kyoto Institute of Technology, Matsugasaki, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8585, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Zeng S, Lei S, Qu C, Wang Y, Teng S, Huang P. CRISPR/Cas-based gene editing in therapeutic strategies for beta-thalassemia. Hum Genet 2023; 142:1677-1703. [PMID: 37878144 DOI: 10.1007/s00439-023-02610-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023]
Abstract
Beta-thalassemia (β-thalassemia) is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by point mutations, insertions, and deletions in the HBB gene cluster, resulting in the underproduction of β-globin chains. The most severe type may demonstrate complications including massive hepatosplenomegaly, bone deformities, and severe growth retardation in children. Treatments for β-thalassemia include blood transfusion, splenectomy, and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). However, long-term blood transfusions require regular iron removal therapy. For allogeneic HSCT, human lymphocyte antigen (HLA)-matched donors are rarely available, and acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) may occur after the transplantation. Thus, these conventional treatments are facing significant challenges. In recent years, with the advent and advancement of CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)/Cas9 (CRISPR-associated protein 9) gene editing technology, precise genome editing has achieved encouraging successes in basic and clinical studies for treating various genetic disorders, including β-thalassemia. Target gene-edited autogeneic HSCT helps patients avoid graft rejection and GVHD, making it a promising curative therapy for transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia (TDT). In this review, we introduce the development and mechanisms of CRISPR/Cas9. Recent advances on feasible strategies of CRISPR/Cas9 targeting three globin genes (HBB, HBG, and HBA) and targeting cell selections for β-thalassemia therapy are highlighted. Current CRISPR-based clinical trials in the treatment of β-thalassemia are summarized, which are focused on γ-globin reactivation and fetal hemoglobin reproduction in hematopoietic stem cells. Lastly, the applications of other promising CRISPR-based technologies, such as base editing and prime editing, in treating β-thalassemia and the limitations of the CRISPR/Cas system in therapeutic applications are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shujun Zeng
- The Key Laboratory of Pathobiology, Ministry of Education, Norman Bethune College of Medicine, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, People's Republic of China
| | - Shuangyin Lei
- The Second Norman Bethune Clinical College of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, People's Republic of China
| | - Chao Qu
- The First Norman Bethune Clinical College of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, People's Republic of China
| | - Yue Wang
- The Second Norman Bethune Clinical College of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, People's Republic of China
| | - Shuzhi Teng
- The Key Laboratory of Pathobiology, Ministry of Education, Norman Bethune College of Medicine, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, People's Republic of China.
| | - Ping Huang
- The Key Laboratory of Pathobiology, Ministry of Education, Norman Bethune College of Medicine, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, People's Republic of China.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Zhang Y, Wu T, He Z, Lai W, Shen X, Lv J, Wang Y, Wu L. Regulation of pDC fate determination by histone deacetylase 3. eLife 2023; 12:e80477. [PMID: 38011375 PMCID: PMC10732571 DOI: 10.7554/elife.80477] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 11/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Dendritic cells (DCs), the key antigen-presenting cells, are primary regulators of immune responses. Transcriptional regulation of DC development had been one of the major research interests in DC biology; however, the epigenetic regulatory mechanisms during DC development remains unclear. Here, we report that Histone deacetylase 3 (Hdac3), an important epigenetic regulator, is highly expressed in pDCs, and its deficiency profoundly impaired the development of pDCs. Significant disturbance of homeostasis of hematopoietic progenitors was also observed in HDAC3-deficient mice, manifested by altered cell numbers of these progenitors and defective differentiation potentials for pDCs. Using the in vitro Flt3L supplemented DC culture system, we further demonstrated that HDAC3 was required for the differentiation of pDCs from progenitors at all developmental stages. Mechanistically, HDAC3 deficiency resulted in enhanced expression of cDC1-associated genes, owing to markedly elevated H3K27 acetylation (H3K27ac) at these gene sites in BM pDCs. In contrast, the expression of pDC-associated genes was significantly downregulated, leading to defective pDC differentiation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yijun Zhang
- Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Immunological Research on Chronic DiseasesBeijingChina
| | - Tao Wu
- Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Immunological Research on Chronic DiseasesBeijingChina
| | - Zhimin He
- Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Immunological Research on Chronic DiseasesBeijingChina
| | - Wenlong Lai
- Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Immunological Research on Chronic DiseasesBeijingChina
| | - Xiangyi Shen
- Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Immunological Research on Chronic DiseasesBeijingChina
| | - Jiaoyan Lv
- Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Immunological Research on Chronic DiseasesBeijingChina
| | - Yuanhao Wang
- Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Immunological Research on Chronic DiseasesBeijingChina
| | - Li Wu
- Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Immunological Research on Chronic DiseasesBeijingChina
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Klocke C, Moran A, Adey A, McWeeney S, Wu G. Identification of Cellular Interactions in the Tumor Immune Microenvironment Underlying CD8 T Cell Exhaustion. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.11.09.566384. [PMID: 38014233 PMCID: PMC10680664 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.09.566384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
While immune checkpoint inhibitors show success in treating a subset of patients with certain late-stage cancers, these treatments fail in many other patients as a result of mechanisms that have yet to be fully characterized. The process of CD8 T cell exhaustion, by which T cells become dysfunctional in response to prolonged antigen exposure, has been implicated in immunotherapy resistance. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) produces an abundance of data to analyze this process; however, due to the complexity of the process, contributions of other cell types to a process within a single cell type cannot be simply inferred. We constructed an analysis framework to first rank human skin tumor samples by degree of exhaustion in tumor-infiltrating CD8 T cells and then identify immune cell type-specific gene-regulatory network patterns significantly associated with T cell exhaustion. Using this framework, we further analyzed scRNA-seq data from human tumor and chronic viral infection samples to compare the T cell exhaustion process between these two contexts. In doing so, we identified transcription factor activity in the macrophages of both tissue types associated with this process. Our framework can be applied beyond the tumor immune microenvironment to any system involving cell-cell communication, facilitating insights into key biological processes that underpin the effective treatment of cancer and other complicated diseases.
Collapse
|
9
|
Movahedi Motlagh F, Soleimanpour‐Lichaei HR, Shamsara M, Etemadzadeh A, Modarressi MH. CRISPR/Cas9 Ablated BCL11A Unveils the Genes with Possible Role of Globin Switching. Adv Pharm Bull 2023; 13:799-805. [PMID: 38022811 PMCID: PMC10676543 DOI: 10.34172/apb.2023.074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2022] [Revised: 01/27/2023] [Accepted: 02/19/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Purpose Fetal hemoglobin (HbF) upregulation is a mitigating factor in β-hemoglobinopathies therapy like β-thalassemia and sickle cell diseases. Finding molecular mechanisms and the key regulators responsible for globin switching could be helpful to develop effective ways to HbF upregulation. In our prior in silico report, we identified a few factors that are likely to be responsible for globin switching. The goal of this study is to experimentally validate the factors. Methods We established K562 cell line with BCL11A knock down leading to increase in HBG1/2 using CRISPR/Cas9 system. Then, using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), we determined the expression level of the factors which were previously identified in our prior in silico study. Results our analysis showed that BCL11A was substantially knocked down, resulting in the upregulation of HBG1/2 in the BCL11A-ablated K562 cells using CRISPR/Cas9 system. Additionally, the experimental data acquired in this study validated our prior bioinformatics findings about three potentially responsible genes for globin switching, namely HIST1H2Bl, TRIM58, and Al133243.2. Conclusion BCL11A is a promising candidate for the treatment of β-hemoglobinopathies, with high HbF reactivation. In addition, HIST1H2BL, TRIM58 and Al133243.2 are likely to be involved in the mechanism of hemoglobin switching. To further validate the selected genes, more experimental in vivo and in vitro studies are required.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Hamid Reza Soleimanpour‐Lichaei
- Department of Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Tehran, IR Iran
| | - Mehdi Shamsara
- Animal Biotechnology Group, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Tehran, Iran
| | - Azadeh Etemadzadeh
- Department of Medical Genetics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
Tan K, Xu J, Chen C, Vincent T, Pölönen P, Hu J, Yoshimura S, Yu W, Sussman J, Chen CH, Li E, Diorio C, Shraim R, Newman H, Uppuluri L, Li A, Chen G, Bandyopadhyay S, Wu D, Ding YY, Xu J, Lim T, Hsu M, Thadi A, Ahn KJ, Wu CY, Peng J, Sun Y, Wang A, Mehta R, Frank D, Meyer L, Loh M, Raetz E, Chen Z, Wood B, Devidas M, Dunsmore K, Winter S, Chang TC, Wu G, Pounds S, Zhang N, Carroll W, Hunger S, Bernt K, Yang J, Mullighan C, Teachey D. Identification and targeting of treatment resistant progenitor populations in T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. RESEARCH SQUARE 2023:rs.3.rs-3487715. [PMID: 37961674 PMCID: PMC10635362 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3487715/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Refractoriness to initial chemotherapy and relapse after remission are the main obstacles to cure in T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (T-ALL). Biomarker guided risk stratification and targeted therapy have the potential to improve outcomes in high-risk T-ALL; however, cellular and genetic factors contributing to treatment resistance remain unknown. Previous bulk genomic studies in T-ALL have implicated tumor heterogeneity as an unexplored mechanism for treatment failure. To link tumor subpopulations with clinical outcome, we created an atlas of healthy pediatric hematopoiesis and applied single-cell multiomic (CITE-seq/snATAC-seq) analysis to a cohort of 40 cases of T-ALL treated on the Children's Oncology Group AALL0434 clinical trial. The cohort was carefully selected to capture the immunophenotypic diversity of T-ALL, with early T-cell precursor (ETP) and Near/Non-ETP subtypes represented, as well as enriched with both relapsed and treatment refractory cases. Integrated analyses of T-ALL blasts and normal T-cell precursors identified a bone-marrow progenitor-like (BMP-like) leukemia sub-population associated with treatment failure and poor overall survival. The single-cell-derived molecular signature of BMP-like blasts predicted poor outcome across multiple subtypes of T-ALL within two independent patient cohorts using bulk RNA-sequencing data from over 1300 patients. We defined the mutational landscape of BMP-like T-ALL, finding that NOTCH1 mutations additively drive T-ALL blasts away from the BMP-like state. We transcriptionally matched BMP-like blasts to early thymic seeding progenitors that have low NR3C1 expression and high stem cell gene expression, corresponding to a corticosteroid and conventional cytotoxic resistant phenotype we observed in ex vivo drug screening. To identify novel targets for BMP-like blasts, we performed in silico and in vitro drug screening against the BMP-like signature and prioritized BMP-like overexpressed cell-surface (CD44, ITGA4, LGALS1) and intracellular proteins (BCL-2, MCL-1, BTK, NF-κB) as candidates for precision targeted therapy. We established patient derived xenograft models of BMP-high and BMP-low leukemias, which revealed vulnerability of BMP-like blasts to apoptosis-inducing agents, TEC-kinase inhibitors, and proteasome inhibitors. Our study establishes the first multi-omic signatures for rapid risk-stratification and targeted treatment of high-risk T-ALL.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kai Tan
- Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Wenbao Yu
- Division of Oncology and Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| | | | - Chia-Hui Chen
- Division of Oncology and Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| | - Elizabeth Li
- Divsion of Oncology and Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| | | | | | | | | | - Alexander Li
- Division of Oncology and Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| | | | | | - David Wu
- Graduate Group in Genomics and Computational Biology, Perelman School of Medicine
| | | | - Jessica Xu
- Division of Oncology and Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| | - Tristan Lim
- Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
| | - Miles Hsu
- Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
| | - Anusha Thadi
- Division of Oncology and Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| | - Kyung Jin Ahn
- Division of Oncology and Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| | - Chi-Yun Wu
- Graduate Group in Genomics and Computational Biology, Perelman School of Medicine
| | | | | | - Alice Wang
- Graduate Group in Genomics and Computational Biology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
| | - Rushabh Mehta
- Graduate Group in Cell & Molecular Biolgy, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
| | | | - Lauren Meyer
- The Ben Town Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Seattle Children's Hospital
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Kimberly Dunsmore
- Division of Oncology, University of Virginia Children's Hospital, Charlottesville
| | | | | | - Gang Wu
- St Jude Children's Research Hospital
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Jun Yang
- St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
| | | | - David Teachey
- University of Pennsylvania, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Khan DMIO, Karmaus PWF, Bach A, Crawford RB, Kaminski NE. An in vitro model of human hematopoiesis identifies a regulatory role for the aryl hydrocarbon receptor. Blood Adv 2023; 7:6253-6265. [PMID: 37477592 PMCID: PMC10589788 DOI: 10.1182/bloodadvances.2023010169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Revised: 06/22/2023] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023] Open
Abstract
In vitro models to study simultaneous development of different human immune cells and hematopoietic lineages are lacking. We identified and characterized, using single-cell methods, an in vitro stromal cell-free culture system of human hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) differentiation that allows concurrent development of multiple immune cell lineages. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor influencing many biological processes in diverse cell types. Using this in vitro model, we found that AHR activation by the highly specific AHR ligand, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, drives differentiation of human umbilical cord blood-derived CD34+ HSPCs toward monocytes and granulocytes with a significant decrease in lymphoid and megakaryocyte lineage specification that may lead to reduced immune competence. To our knowledge, we also discovered for the first time, using single-cell modalities, that AHR activation decreased the expression of BCL11A and IRF8 in progenitor cells, which are critical genes involved in hematopoietic lineage specification processes at both transcriptomic and protein levels. Our in vitro model of hematopoiesis, coupled with single-cell tools, therefore allows for a better understanding of the role played by AHR in modulating hematopoietic differentiation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- D M Isha Olive Khan
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
- Institute for Integrative Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
| | - Peer W. F. Karmaus
- Institute for Integrative Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Durham, NC
| | - Anthony Bach
- Institute for Integrative Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
| | - Robert B. Crawford
- Institute for Integrative Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
| | - Norbert E. Kaminski
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
- Institute for Integrative Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Shen F, Dassama LMK. Opportunities and challenges of protein-based targeted protein degradation. Chem Sci 2023; 14:8433-8447. [PMID: 37592990 PMCID: PMC10430753 DOI: 10.1039/d3sc02361c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 07/02/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
In the 20 years since the first report of a proteolysis targeting chimeric (PROTAC) molecule, targeted protein degradation (TPD) technologies have attempted to revolutionize the fields of chemical biology and biomedicine by providing exciting research opportunities and potential therapeutics. However, they primarily focus on the use of small molecules to recruit the ubiquitin proteasome system to mediate target protein degradation. This then limits protein targets to cytosolic domains with accessible and suitable small molecule binding pockets. In recent years, biologics such as proteins and nucleic acids have instead been used as binders for targeting proteins, thereby expanding the scope of TPD platforms to include secreted proteins, transmembrane proteins, and soluble but highly disordered intracellular proteins. This perspective summarizes the recent TPD platforms that utilize nanobodies, antibodies, and other proteins as binding moieties to deplete challenging targets, either through the ubiquitin proteasome system or the lysosomal degradation pathway. Importantly, the perspective also highlights opportunities and remaining challenges of current protein-based TPD technologies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fangfang Shen
- Department of Chemistry, Sarafan ChEM-H Institute, Stanford University USA
| | - Laura M K Dassama
- Department of Chemistry, Sarafan ChEM-H Institute, Stanford University USA
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Stanford School of Medicine USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Zaunz S, De Smedt J, Lauwereins L, Cleuren L, Laffeber C, Bajaj M, Lebbink JHG, Marteijn JA, De Keersmaecker K, Verfaillie C. APEX1 Nuclease and Redox Functions are Both Essential for Adult Mouse Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cells. Stem Cell Rev Rep 2023:10.1007/s12015-023-10550-0. [PMID: 37266894 PMCID: PMC10390635 DOI: 10.1007/s12015-023-10550-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/27/2023] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Self-renewal and differentiation of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) are carefully controlled by extrinsic and intrinsic factors, to ensure the lifelong process of hematopoiesis. Apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APEX1) is a multifunctional protein implicated in DNA repair and transcriptional regulation. Although previous studies have emphasized the necessity of studying APEX1 in a lineage-specific context and its role in progenitor differentiation, no studies have assessed the role of APEX1, nor its two enzymatic domains, in supporting adult HSPC function. In this study, we demonstrated that complete loss of APEX1 from murine bone marrow HSPCs (induced by CRISPR/Cas9) caused severe hematopoietic failure following transplantation, as well as a HSPC expansion defect in culture conditions maintaining in vivo HSC functionality. Using specific inhibitors against either the nuclease or redox domains of APEX1 in combination with single cell transcriptomics (CITE-seq), we found that both APEX1 nuclease and redox domains are regulating mouse HSPCs, but through distinct underlying transcriptional changes. Inhibition of the APEX1 nuclease function resulted in loss of HSPCs accompanied by early activation of differentiation programs and enhanced lineage commitment. By contrast, inhibition of the APEX1 redox function significantly downregulated interferon-stimulated genes and regulons in expanding HSPCs and their progeny, resulting in dysfunctional megakaryocyte-biased HSPCs, as well as loss of monocytes and lymphoid progenitor cells. In conclusion, we demonstrate that APEX1 is a key regulator for adult regenerative hematopoiesis, and that the APEX1 nuclease and redox domains differently impact proliferating HSPCs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Samantha Zaunz
- Stem Cell Institute, Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, O&N IV Herestraat 49, 3000, Louvain, Belgium.
| | - Jonathan De Smedt
- Stem Cell Institute, Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, O&N IV Herestraat 49, 3000, Louvain, Belgium
- GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals SA, 1300, Wavre, Belgium
| | - Lukas Lauwereins
- Stem Cell Institute, Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, O&N IV Herestraat 49, 3000, Louvain, Belgium
| | - Lana Cleuren
- Stem Cell Institute, Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, O&N IV Herestraat 49, 3000, Louvain, Belgium
| | - Charlie Laffeber
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Oncode Institute, Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands
| | - Manmohan Bajaj
- Stem Cell Institute, Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, O&N IV Herestraat 49, 3000, Louvain, Belgium
| | - Joyce H G Lebbink
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Oncode Institute, Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Department of Radiotherapy, Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jurgen A Marteijn
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Oncode Institute, Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands
| | - Kim De Keersmaecker
- Laboratory for Disease Mechanisms in Cancer, Department of Oncology, KU Leuven, Louvain, Belgium
| | - Catherine Verfaillie
- Stem Cell Institute, Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, O&N IV Herestraat 49, 3000, Louvain, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Paschoudi K, Yannaki E, Psatha N. Precision Editing as a Therapeutic Approach for β-Hemoglobinopathies. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24119527. [PMID: 37298481 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24119527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Revised: 05/19/2023] [Accepted: 05/26/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Beta-hemoglobinopathies are the most common genetic disorders worldwide, caused by a wide spectrum of mutations in the β-globin locus, and associated with morbidity and early mortality in case of patient non-adherence to supportive treatment. Allogeneic transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells (allo-HSCT) used to be the only curative option, although the indispensable need for an HLA-matched donor markedly restricted its universal application. The evolution of gene therapy approaches made possible the ex vivo delivery of a therapeutic β- or γ- globin gene into patient-derived hematopoietic stem cells followed by the transplantation of corrected cells into myeloablated patients, having led to high rates of transfusion independence (thalassemia) or complete resolution of painful crises (sickle cell disease-SCD). Hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HPFH), a syndrome characterized by increased γ-globin levels, when co-inherited with β-thalassemia or SCD, converts hemoglobinopathies to a benign condition with mild clinical phenotype. The rapid development of precise genome editing tools (ZFN, TALENs, CRISPR/Cas9) over the last decade has allowed the targeted introduction of mutations, resulting in disease-modifying outcomes. In this context, genome editing tools have successfully been used for the introduction of HPFH-like mutations both in HBG1/HBG2 promoters or/and in the erythroid enhancer of BCL11A to increase HbF expression as an alternative curative approach for β-hemoglobinopathies. The current investigation of new HbF modulators, such as ZBTB7A, KLF-1, SOX6, and ZNF410, further expands the range of possible genome editing targets. Importantly, genome editing approaches have recently reached clinical translation in trials investigating HbF reactivation in both SCD and thalassemic patients. Showing promising outcomes, these approaches are yet to be confirmed in long-term follow-up studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kiriaki Paschoudi
- Department of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
- Gene and Cell Therapy Center, Hematology Clinic, George Papanikolaou Hospital, Exokhi, 57010 Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Evangelia Yannaki
- Gene and Cell Therapy Center, Hematology Clinic, George Papanikolaou Hospital, Exokhi, 57010 Thessaloniki, Greece
- Department of Hematology, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Nikoletta Psatha
- Department of Genetics, Development and Molecular Biology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Everette KA, Newby GA, Levine RM, Mayberry K, Jang Y, Mayuranathan T, Nimmagadda N, Dempsey E, Li Y, Bhoopalan SV, Liu X, Davis JR, Nelson AT, Chen PJ, Sousa AA, Cheng Y, Tisdale JF, Weiss MJ, Yen JS, Liu DR. Ex vivo prime editing of patient haematopoietic stem cells rescues sickle-cell disease phenotypes after engraftment in mice. Nat Biomed Eng 2023; 7:616-628. [PMID: 37069266 PMCID: PMC10195679 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-023-01026-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/19/2023]
Abstract
Sickle-cell disease (SCD) is caused by an A·T-to-T·A transversion mutation in the β-globin gene (HBB). Here we show that prime editing can correct the SCD allele (HBBS) to wild type (HBBA) at frequencies of 15%-41% in haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) from patients with SCD. Seventeen weeks after transplantation into immunodeficient mice, prime-edited SCD HSPCs maintained HBBA levels and displayed engraftment frequencies, haematopoietic differentiation and lineage maturation similar to those of unedited HSPCs from healthy donors. An average of 42% of human erythroblasts and reticulocytes isolated 17 weeks after transplantation of prime-edited HSPCs from four SCD patient donors expressed HBBA, exceeding the levels predicted for therapeutic benefit. HSPC-derived erythrocytes carried less sickle haemoglobin, contained HBBA-derived adult haemoglobin at 28%-43% of normal levels and resisted hypoxia-induced sickling. Minimal off-target editing was detected at over 100 sites nominated experimentally via unbiased genome-wide analysis. Our findings support the feasibility of a one-time prime editing SCD treatment that corrects HBBS to HBBA, does not require any viral or non-viral DNA template and minimizes undesired consequences of DNA double-strand breaks.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kelcee A Everette
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Gregory A Newby
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Rachel M Levine
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Kalin Mayberry
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Yoonjeong Jang
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | | | - Nikitha Nimmagadda
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Erin Dempsey
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Yichao Li
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | | | - Xiong Liu
- Molecular and Clinical Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Jessie R Davis
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Andrew T Nelson
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Peter J Chen
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Alexander A Sousa
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Yong Cheng
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - John F Tisdale
- Molecular and Clinical Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Mitchell J Weiss
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Jonathan S Yen
- Department of Hematology, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA.
| | - David R Liu
- Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Kobayashi M, Wei H, Yamanashi T, Azevedo Portilho N, Cornelius S, Valiente N, Nishida C, Cheng H, Latorre A, Zheng WJ, Kang J, Seita J, Shih DJ, Wu JQ, Yoshimoto M. HSC-independent definitive hematopoiesis persists into adult life. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112239. [PMID: 36906851 PMCID: PMC10122268 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 03/13/2023] Open
Abstract
It is widely believed that hematopoiesis after birth is established by hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) in the bone marrow and that HSC-independent hematopoiesis is limited only to primitive erythro-myeloid cells and tissue-resident innate immune cells arising in the embryo. Here, surprisingly, we find that significant percentages of lymphocytes are not derived from HSCs, even in 1-year-old mice. Instead, multiple waves of hematopoiesis occur from embryonic day 7.5 (E7.5) to E11.5 endothelial cells, which simultaneously produce HSCs and lymphoid progenitors that constitute many layers of adaptive T and B lymphocytes in adult mice. Additionally, HSC lineage tracing reveals that the contribution of fetal liver HSCs to peritoneal B-1a cells is minimal and that the majority of B-1a cells are HSC independent. Our discovery of extensive HSC-independent lymphocytes in adult mice attests to the complex blood developmental dynamics spanning the embryo-to-adult transition and challenges the paradigm of HSCs exclusively underpinning the postnatal immune system.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michihiro Kobayashi
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Haichao Wei
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA; The Vivian L. Smith Department of Neurosurgery, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Takashi Yamanashi
- Advanced Data Science Project, RIKEN Information R&D and Strategy Headquarters, Tokyo 103-0027, Japan; Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, RIKEN, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Nathalia Azevedo Portilho
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Samuel Cornelius
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Noemi Valiente
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Chika Nishida
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Haizi Cheng
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Augusto Latorre
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - W Jim Zheng
- School of Biomedical Informatics, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Joonsoo Kang
- Department of Pathology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA 01655, USA
| | - Jun Seita
- Advanced Data Science Project, RIKEN Information R&D and Strategy Headquarters, Tokyo 103-0027, Japan; Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, RIKEN, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - David J Shih
- School of Biomedical Informatics, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA; School of Biomedical Sciences, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Jia Qian Wu
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA; The Vivian L. Smith Department of Neurosurgery, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA; MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Momoko Yoshimoto
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Andrades A, Peinado P, Alvarez-Perez JC, Sanjuan-Hidalgo J, García DJ, Arenas AM, Matia-González AM, Medina PP. SWI/SNF complexes in hematological malignancies: biological implications and therapeutic opportunities. Mol Cancer 2023; 22:39. [PMID: 36810086 PMCID: PMC9942420 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-023-01736-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2022] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Hematological malignancies are a highly heterogeneous group of diseases with varied molecular and phenotypical characteristics. SWI/SNF (SWItch/Sucrose Non-Fermentable) chromatin remodeling complexes play significant roles in the regulation of gene expression, being essential for processes such as cell maintenance and differentiation in hematopoietic stem cells. Furthermore, alterations in SWI/SNF complex subunits, especially in ARID1A/1B/2, SMARCA2/4, and BCL7A, are highly recurrent across a wide variety of lymphoid and myeloid malignancies. Most genetic alterations cause a loss of function of the subunit, suggesting a tumor suppressor role. However, SWI/SNF subunits can also be required for tumor maintenance or even play an oncogenic role in certain disease contexts. The recurrent alterations of SWI/SNF subunits highlight not only the biological relevance of SWI/SNF complexes in hematological malignancies but also their clinical potential. In particular, increasing evidence has shown that mutations in SWI/SNF complex subunits confer resistance to several antineoplastic agents routinely used for the treatment of hematological malignancies. Furthermore, mutations in SWI/SNF subunits often create synthetic lethality relationships with other SWI/SNF or non-SWI/SNF proteins that could be exploited therapeutically. In conclusion, SWI/SNF complexes are recurrently altered in hematological malignancies and some SWI/SNF subunits may be essential for tumor maintenance. These alterations, as well as their synthetic lethal relationships with SWI/SNF and non-SWI/SNF proteins, may be pharmacologically exploited for the treatment of diverse hematological cancers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alvaro Andrades
- grid.4489.10000000121678994Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I. Faculty of Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.470860.d0000 0004 4677 7069GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research: Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, PTS Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.507088.2Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain
| | - Paola Peinado
- grid.4489.10000000121678994Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I. Faculty of Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.470860.d0000 0004 4677 7069GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research: Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, PTS Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.507088.2Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain ,grid.451388.30000 0004 1795 1830Present Address: The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
| | - Juan Carlos Alvarez-Perez
- grid.4489.10000000121678994Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I. Faculty of Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.470860.d0000 0004 4677 7069GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research: Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, PTS Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.507088.2Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain
| | - Juan Sanjuan-Hidalgo
- grid.4489.10000000121678994Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I. Faculty of Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.470860.d0000 0004 4677 7069GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research: Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, PTS Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Daniel J. García
- grid.470860.d0000 0004 4677 7069GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research: Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, PTS Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.4489.10000000121678994Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology III and Immunology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Alberto M. Arenas
- grid.4489.10000000121678994Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I. Faculty of Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.470860.d0000 0004 4677 7069GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research: Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, PTS Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.507088.2Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain
| | - Ana M. Matia-González
- grid.4489.10000000121678994Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I. Faculty of Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.470860.d0000 0004 4677 7069GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research: Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, PTS Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.507088.2Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain
| | - Pedro P. Medina
- grid.4489.10000000121678994Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology I. Faculty of Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.470860.d0000 0004 4677 7069GENYO, Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research: Pfizer/University of Granada/Andalusian Regional Government, PTS Granada, Granada, Spain ,grid.507088.2Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Tosic N, Ugrin M, Marjanovic I, Kostic T, Vukovic V, Tomic K, Otasevic V, Antic D, Mihaljevic B, Pavlovic S, Karan-Djurasevic T. Expression of BCL11A in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. Int J Lab Hematol 2023; 45:64-71. [PMID: 36120992 DOI: 10.1111/ijlh.13969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION The B-cell lymphoma/leukaemia 11A (BCL11A) gene encodes a Krüppel-like transcription factor involved in lymphocyte development during normal haematopoiesis. Aberrant expression of BCL11A has been observed in several haematological malignancies, including chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL). However, its functions in the regulatory networks of malignant B lymphocytes are poorly understood, as are the relations to clinical course and outcome of B-cell malignancies, particularly CLL. METHODS The expression of BCL11A was analysed in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of 87 newly-diagnosed CLL patients by quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), and association with clinical and molecular variables was assessed. RESULTS BCL11A was significantly overexpressed in CLL samples compared to control samples (p < 0.001). BCL11A expression level exhibited no association with age, sex, leukocyte, lymphocyte and platelet counts, haemoglobin level, serum β2-microglobulin, CD38 status and cytogenetic abnormalities. On the other hand, high BCL11A expression was associated with low serum lactate dehydrogenase (p = 0.031), Binet A stage (p = 0.047) and mutated IGHV (p = 0.028). In addition, a positive correlation with BCL2/BAX mRNA ratio was observed (r = 0.36; p < 0.001). Regarding the association with the time to first treatment (TTFT), a trend towards longer median TTFT in BCL11A high- versus BCL11A low-expressing cases was detected (21 vs. 6 months; p = 0.164). CONCLUSION The results of this study show that BCL11A is upregulated in CLL patients, and that high BCL11A expression at diagnosis may be associated with better prognosis. These data are consistent with the role of BCL11A expression in CLL biology, and imply its potential prognostic relevance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Natasa Tosic
- Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Milena Ugrin
- Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Irena Marjanovic
- Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Tatjana Kostic
- Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Vojin Vukovic
- Clinic for Hematology, Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Kristina Tomic
- Clinic for Hematology, Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
| | | | - Darko Antic
- Clinic for Hematology, Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia.,School of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Biljana Mihaljevic
- Clinic for Hematology, Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia.,School of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Sonja Pavlovic
- Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Teodora Karan-Djurasevic
- Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Mahmoud Ahmed NH, Lai MI. The Novel Role of the B-Cell Lymphoma/Leukemia 11A (BCL11A) Gene in β-Thalassaemia Treatment. Cardiovasc Hematol Disord Drug Targets 2023; 22:226-236. [PMID: 36734897 DOI: 10.2174/1871529x23666230123140926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 12/21/2022] [Accepted: 12/30/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
β-thalassaemia is a genetic disorder resulting in a reduction or absence of β-globin gene expression. Due to the high prevalence of β-thalassaemia and the lack of available treatment other than blood transfusion and haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation, the disease represents a considerable burden to clinical and economic systems. Foetal haemoglobin has an appreciated ameliorating effect in β-haemoglobinopathy, as the γ-globin chain substitutes the β-globin chain reduction by pairing with the excess α-globin chain in β-thalassaemia and reduces sickling in sickle cell disease (SCD). BCL11A is a critical regulator and repressor of foetal haemoglobin. Downregulation of BCL11A in adult erythroblasts and cell lines expressing adult haemoglobin led to a significant increase in foetal haemoglobin levels. Disruption of BCL11A erythroid enhancer resulted in disruption of the BCL11A gene solely in the erythroid lineages and increased γ-globin expression in adult erythroid cells. Autologous haematopoietic stem cell gene therapy represents an attractive treatment option to overcome the immune complications and donor availability associated with allogeneic transplantation. Using genome editing technologies, the disruption of BCL11A to induce γ- globin expression in HSCs has emerged as an alternative approach to treat β-thalassaemia. Targeting the +58 BCL11A erythroid enhancer or BCL11A binding motif at the γ-gene promoter with CRISPR-Cas9 or base editors has successfully disrupted the gene and the binding motif with a subsequent increment in HbF levels. This review outlines the critical role of BCL11A in γ-globin gene silencing and discusses the different genome editing approaches to downregulate BCL11A as a means for ameliorating β-thalassaemia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nahil Hassan Mahmoud Ahmed
- Haematology Unit, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Mei I Lai
- Haematology Unit, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.,Genetics and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Abstract
The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) renaissance was catalysed by the discovery that RNA-guided prokaryotic CRISPR-associated (Cas) proteins can create targeted double-strand breaks in mammalian genomes. This finding led to the development of CRISPR systems that harness natural DNA repair mechanisms to repair deficient genes more easily and precisely than ever before. CRISPR has been used to knock out harmful mutant genes and to fix errors in coding sequences to rescue disease phenotypes in preclinical studies and in several clinical trials. However, most genetic disorders result from combinations of mutations, deletions and duplications in the coding and non-coding regions of the genome and therefore require sophisticated genome engineering strategies beyond simple gene knockout. To overcome this limitation, the toolbox of natural and engineered CRISPR-Cas systems has been dramatically expanded to include diverse tools that function in human cells for precise genome editing and epigenome engineering. The application of CRISPR technology to edit the non-coding genome, modulate gene regulation, make precise genetic changes and target infectious diseases has the potential to lead to curative therapies for many previously untreatable diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michael Chavez
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Xinyi Chen
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Paul B Finn
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Lei S Qi
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Shen F, Zheng G, Setegne M, Tenglin K, Izadi M, Xie H, Zhai L, Orkin SH, Dassama LMK. A Cell-Permeant Nanobody-Based Degrader That Induces Fetal Hemoglobin. ACS CENTRAL SCIENCE 2022; 8:1695-1703. [PMID: 36589886 PMCID: PMC9801508 DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.2c00998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Proximity-based strategies to degrade proteins have enormous therapeutic potential in medicine, but the technologies are limited to proteins for which small molecule ligands exist. The identification of such ligands for therapeutically relevant but "undruggable" proteins remains challenging. Herein, we employed yeast surface display of synthetic nanobodies to identify a protein ligand selective for BCL11A, a critical repressor of fetal globin gene transcription. Fusion of the nanobody to a cell-permeant miniature protein and an E3 adaptor creates a degrader that depletes cellular BCL11A in differentiated primary erythroid precursor cells, thereby inducing the expression of fetal hemoglobin, a modifier of clinical severity of sickle cell disease and β-thalassemia. Our strategy provides a means of fetal hemoglobin induction through reversible, temporal modulation of BCL11A. Additionally, it establishes a new paradigm for the targeted degradation of previously intractable proteins.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fangfang Shen
- Department
of Chemistry and Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford
University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| | - Ge Zheng
- Dana
Farber Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center
and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
- Department
of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Mekedlawit Setegne
- Department
of Chemistry and Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford
University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| | - Karin Tenglin
- Dana
Farber Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center
and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
- Department
of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Manizheh Izadi
- Dana
Farber Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center
and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
| | - Henry Xie
- Dana
Farber Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center
and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
- Department
of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Liting Zhai
- Department
of Chemistry and Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford
University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| | - Stuart H. Orkin
- Dana
Farber Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center
and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
- Department
of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Laura M. K. Dassama
- Department
of Chemistry and Sarafan ChEM-H, Stanford
University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Liu C, Omilusik K, Toma C, Kurd NS, Chang JT, Goldrath AW, Wang W. Systems-level identification of key transcription factors in immune cell specification. PLoS Comput Biol 2022; 18:e1010116. [PMID: 36156073 PMCID: PMC9536753 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Revised: 10/06/2022] [Accepted: 08/10/2022] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Transcription factors (TFs) are crucial for regulating cell differentiation during the development of the immune system. However, the key TFs for orchestrating the specification of distinct immune cells are not fully understood. Here, we integrated the transcriptomic and epigenomic measurements in 73 mouse and 61 human primary cell types, respectively, that span the immune cell differentiation pathways. We constructed the cell-type-specific transcriptional regulatory network and assessed the global importance of TFs based on the Taiji framework, which is a method we have previously developed that can infer the global impact of TFs using integrated transcriptomic and epigenetic data. Integrative analysis across cell types revealed putative driver TFs in cell lineage-specific differentiation in both mouse and human systems. We have also identified TF combinations that play important roles in specific developmental stages. Furthermore, we validated the functions of predicted novel TFs in murine CD8+ T cell differentiation and showed the importance of Elf1 and Prdm9 in the effector versus memory T cell fate specification and Kdm2b and Tet3 in promoting differentiation of CD8+ tissue resident memory (Trm) cells, validating the approach. Thus, we have developed a bioinformatic approach that provides a global picture of the regulatory mechanisms that govern cellular differentiation in the immune system and aids the discovery of novel mechanisms in cell fate decisions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cong Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Kyla Omilusik
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Clara Toma
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Nadia S. Kurd
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - John T. Chang
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Ananda W. Goldrath
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Wei Wang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Bagchi A, Devaraju N, Chambayil K, Rajendiran V, Venkatesan V, Sayed N, Pai AA, Nath A, David E, Nakamura Y, Balasubramanian P, Srivastava A, Thangavel S, Mohankumar KM, Velayudhan SR. Erythroid lineage-specific lentiviral RNAi vectors suitable for molecular functional studies and therapeutic applications. Sci Rep 2022; 12:14033. [PMID: 35982069 PMCID: PMC9388678 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-13783-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Numerous genes exert multifaceted roles in hematopoiesis. Therefore, we generated novel lineage-specific RNA interference (RNAi) lentiviral vectors, H23B-Ery-Lin-shRNA and H234B-Ery-Lin-shRNA, to probe the functions of these genes in erythroid cells without affecting other hematopoietic lineages. The lineage specificity of these vectors was confirmed by transducing multiple hematopoietic cells to express a fluorescent protein. Unlike the previously reported erythroid lineage RNAi vector, our vectors were designed for cloning the short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) for any gene, and they also provide superior knockdown of the target gene expression with a single shRNA integration per cell. High-level lineage-specific downregulation of BCL11A and ZBTB7A, two well-characterized transcriptional repressors of HBG in adult erythroid cells, was achieved with substantial induction of fetal hemoglobin with a single-copy lentiviral vector integration. Transduction of primary healthy donor CD34+ cells with these vectors resulted in >80% reduction in the target protein levels and up to 40% elevation in the γ-chain levels in the differentiated erythroid cells. Xenotransplantation of the human CD34+ cells transduced with H23B-Ery-Lin-shBCL11A LV in immunocompromised mice showed ~ 60% reduction in BCL11A protein expression with ~ 40% elevation of γ-chain levels in the erythroid cells derived from the transduced CD34+ cells. Overall, the novel erythroid lineage-specific lentiviral RNAi vectors described in this study provide a high-level knockdown of target gene expression in the erythroid cells, making them suitable for their use in gene therapy for hemoglobinopathies. Additionally, the design of these vectors also makes them ideal for high-throughput RNAi screening for studying normal and pathological erythropoiesis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Abhirup Bagchi
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
- Department of Biotechnology, Thiruvalluvar University, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632115, India
| | - Nivedhitha Devaraju
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
- Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, 576119, India
| | - Karthik Chambayil
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
- Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695011, India
| | - Vignesh Rajendiran
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
- Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695011, India
| | - Vigneshwaran Venkatesan
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
- Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, 576119, India
| | - Nilofer Sayed
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
| | - Aswin Anand Pai
- Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695011, India
- Department of Haematology, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632004, India
| | - Aneesha Nath
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
- Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695011, India
| | - Ernest David
- Department of Biotechnology, Thiruvalluvar University, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632115, India
| | - Yukio Nakamura
- Cell Engineering Division, RIKEN BioResource Research Center, Ibaraki, 3050074, Japan
| | - Poonkuzhali Balasubramanian
- Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695011, India
- Department of Haematology, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632004, India
| | - Alok Srivastava
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
- Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695011, India
- Department of Haematology, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632004, India
| | - Saravanabhavan Thangavel
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India
- Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, 576119, India
| | - Kumarasamypet M Mohankumar
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India.
- Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, 576119, India.
| | - Shaji R Velayudhan
- Center for Stem Cell Research (A Unit of inStem, Bengaluru, India), Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632002, India.
- Department of Biotechnology, Thiruvalluvar University, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632115, India.
- Department of Haematology, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 632004, India.
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Rahimmanesh I, Boshtam M, Kouhpayeh S, Khanahmad H, Dabiri A, Ahangarzadeh S, Esmaeili Y, Bidram E, Vaseghi G, Haghjooy Javanmard S, Shariati L, Zarrabi A, Varma RS. Gene Editing-Based Technologies for Beta-hemoglobinopathies Treatment. BIOLOGY 2022; 11:biology11060862. [PMID: 35741383 PMCID: PMC9219845 DOI: 10.3390/biology11060862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2022] [Revised: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Beta (β)-thalassemia is a group of human inherited abnormalities caused by various molecular defects, which involves a decrease or cessation in the balanced synthesis of the β-globin chains in hemoglobin structure. Traditional treatment for β-thalassemia major is allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) from a completely matched donor. The limited number of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-matched donors, long-term use of immunosuppressive regimen and higher risk of immunological complications have limited the application of this therapeutic approach. Furthermore, despite improvements in transfusion practices and chelation treatment, many lingering challenges have encouraged researchers to develop newer therapeutic strategies such as nanomedicine and gene editing. One of the most powerful arms of genetic manipulation is gene editing tools, including transcription activator-like effector nucleases, zinc-finger nucleases, and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat-Cas-associated nucleases. These tools have concentrated on γ- or β-globin addition, regulating the transcription factors involved in expression of endogenous γ-globin such as KLF1, silencing of γ-globin inhibitors including BCL11A, SOX6, and LRF/ZBTB7A, and gene repair strategies. In this review article, we present a systematic overview of the appliances of gene editing tools for β-thalassemia treatment and paving the way for patients' therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ilnaz Rahimmanesh
- Applied Physiology Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
| | - Maryam Boshtam
- Isfahan Cardiovascular Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 81583-88994, Iran
| | - Shirin Kouhpayeh
- Erythron Genetics and Pathobiology Laboratory, Department of Immunology, Isfahan 76351-81647, Iran
| | - Hossein Khanahmad
- Department of Genetics and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
| | - Arezou Dabiri
- Applied Physiology Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
| | - Shahrzad Ahangarzadeh
- Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
| | - Yasaman Esmaeili
- Biosensor Research Center, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
| | - Elham Bidram
- Biosensor Research Center, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
- Department of Biomaterials, Nanotechnology and Tissue Engineering, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
| | - Golnaz Vaseghi
- Isfahan Cardiovascular Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 81583-88994, Iran
| | - Shaghayegh Haghjooy Javanmard
- Applied Physiology Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
| | - Laleh Shariati
- Department of Biomaterials, Nanotechnology and Tissue Engineering, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
- Cancer Prevention Research, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 73461-81746, Iran
| | - Ali Zarrabi
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Istinye University, Sariyer, Istanbul 34396, Turkey
| | - Rajender S Varma
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacky University, Šlechtitelů 27, 783 71 Olomouc, Czech Republic
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Somuncular E, Hauenstein J, Khalkar P, Johansson AS, Dumral Ö, Frengen NS, Gustafsson C, Mocci G, Su TY, Brouwer H, Trautmann CL, Vanlandewijck M, Orkin SH, Månsson R, Luc S. CD49b identifies functionally and epigenetically distinct subsets of lineage-biased hematopoietic stem cells. Stem Cell Reports 2022; 17:1546-1560. [PMID: 35714596 PMCID: PMC9287668 DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2022.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2022] [Revised: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Hematopoiesis is maintained by functionally diverse lineage-biased hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). The functional significance of HSC heterogeneity and the regulatory mechanisms underlying lineage bias are not well understood. However, absolute purification of HSC subtypes with a pre-determined behavior remains challenging, highlighting the importance of continued efforts toward prospective isolation of homogeneous HSC subsets. In this study, we demonstrate that CD49b subdivides the most primitive HSC compartment into functionally distinct subtypes: CD49b− HSCs are highly enriched for myeloid-biased and the most durable cells, while CD49b+ HSCs are enriched for multipotent cells with lymphoid bias and reduced self-renewal ability. We further demonstrate considerable transcriptional similarities between CD49b− and CD49b+ HSCs but distinct differences in chromatin accessibility. Our studies highlight the diversity of HSC functional behaviors and provide insights into the molecular regulation of HSC heterogeneity through transcriptional and epigenetic mechanisms. CD49b− HSCs are highly enriched for durable and long-term myeloid-biased HSCs CD49b+ HSCs are enriched for less durable cells with lymphoid bias CD49b− and CD49b+ HSCs are transcriptionally similar but epigenetically distinct
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ece Somuncular
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Julia Hauenstein
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Prajakta Khalkar
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Anne-Sofie Johansson
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Özge Dumral
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Nicolai S Frengen
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Charlotte Gustafsson
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Giuseppe Mocci
- Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Single Cell Core Facility of Flemingsberg Campus, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Tsu-Yi Su
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Hugo Brouwer
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Christine L Trautmann
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Michael Vanlandewijck
- Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Single Cell Core Facility of Flemingsberg Campus, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Rudbeck Laboratory, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Stuart H Orkin
- Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Harvard Medical School, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Robert Månsson
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Sidinh Luc
- Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Ma SP, Gao XX, Zhou GQ, Zhang HK, Yang JM, Wang WJ, Song XM, Chen HY, Lu DR. Reactivation of γ-globin expression using a minicircle DNA system to treat β-thalassemia. Gene 2022; 820:146289. [PMID: 35143940 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2022.146289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2021] [Revised: 01/28/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Reactivation of fetal hemoglobin by editing the B-cell lymphoma/leukemia 11A (BCL11A) erythroid enhancer is an effective gene therapy for β-thalassemia. Using the CRISPR/Cas9 system, fetal γ-globin expression can be robustly reactivated to mitigate the clinical course of β-thalassemia. In our study, we found that the transfection efficiencies of CD34+ hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) were significantly and negatively correlated with the length of plasmids and greatly affected by the linearization of plasmids. Furthermore, the transgene expression of minicircles (MC) without plasmid backbone sequences was better both in vitro and in vivo compared with conventional plasmids. Thus, MC DNA was used to deliver the cassette of Staphylococcus aureus Cas9 (SaCas9) into HSPCs, and a single-guide RNA targeting the erythroid enhancer region of BCL11A was selected. After electroporation with MC DNA, an evident efficiency of gene editing and reactivation of γ-globin expression in erythroblasts derived from unsorted HSPCs was acquired. No significant off-target effects were found by deep sequencing. Furthermore, fragments derived from lentiviral vectors, but not MC DNA, were highly enriched in promoter, exon, intron, distal-intergenic, and cancer-associated genes, indicating that MC DNA provided a relatively safe and efficient vector for delivering transgenes. The developed MC DNA vector provided a potential approach for the delivery of SaCas9 cassette and the reactivation of γ-globin expression for ameliorating syndromes of β-thalassemia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shuang-Ping Ma
- Institutes of Health Central Plains, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang 453003, China
| | - Xu-Xia Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and MOE Engineering Research Center of Gene Technology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Guo-Qiang Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and MOE Engineering Research Center of Gene Technology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Hao-Kun Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and MOE Engineering Research Center of Gene Technology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jing-Min Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and MOE Engineering Research Center of Gene Technology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wen-Juan Wang
- Department of Hematology, the first affiliated hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Xian-Min Song
- Department of Hematology, Shanghai General Hospital (affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University), Shanghai, China.
| | - Hong-Yan Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and MOE Engineering Research Center of Gene Technology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Da-Ru Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and MOE Engineering Research Center of Gene Technology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Fischer F, Grigolon G, Benner C, Ristow M. Evolutionarily conserved transcription factors as regulators of longevity and targets for geroprotection. Physiol Rev 2022; 102:1449-1494. [PMID: 35343830 DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00017.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Aging is the single largest risk factor for many debilitating conditions, including heart diseases, stroke, cancer, diabetes, and neurodegenerative disorders. While far from understood in its full complexity, it is scientifically well-established that aging is influenced by genetic and environmental factors, and can be modulated by various interventions. One of aging's early hallmarks are aberrations in transcriptional networks, controlling for example metabolic homeostasis or the response to stress. Evidence in different model organisms abounds that a number of evolutionarily conserved transcription factors, which control such networks, can affect lifespan and healthspan across species. These transcription factors thus potentially represent conserved regulators of longevity and are emerging as important targets in the challenging quest to develop treatments to mitigate age-related diseases, and possibly even to slow aging itself. This review provides an overview of evolutionarily conserved transcription factors that impact longevity or age-related diseases in at least one multicellular model organism (nematodes, flies, or mice), and/or are tentatively linked to human aging. Discussed is the general evidence for transcriptional regulation of aging and disease, followed by a more detailed look at selected transcription factor families, the common metabolic pathways involved, and the targeting of transcription factors as a strategy for geroprotective interventions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fabian Fischer
- Energy Metabolism Laboratory, Institute of Translational Medicine, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Schwerzenbach, Switzerland
| | - Giovanna Grigolon
- Energy Metabolism Laboratory, Institute of Translational Medicine, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Schwerzenbach, Switzerland
| | - Christoph Benner
- Energy Metabolism Laboratory, Institute of Translational Medicine, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Schwerzenbach, Switzerland
| | - Michael Ristow
- Energy Metabolism Laboratory, Institute of Translational Medicine, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Schwerzenbach, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Bioengineered Efficacy Models of Skin Disease: Advances in the Last 10 Years. Pharmaceutics 2022; 14:pharmaceutics14020319. [PMID: 35214050 PMCID: PMC8877988 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14020319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2021] [Revised: 12/24/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Models of skin diseases, such as psoriasis and scleroderma, must accurately recapitulate the complex microenvironment of human skin to provide an efficacious platform for investigation of skin diseases. Skin disease research has been shifting from less complex and less relevant 2D (two-dimensional) models to significantly more relevant 3D (three-dimensional) models. Three-dimensional modeling systems are better able to recapitulate the complex cell–cell and cell–matrix interactions that occur in vivo within skin. Three-dimensional human skin equivalents (HSEs) have emerged as an advantageous tool for the study of skin disease in vitro. These 3D HSEs can be highly complex, containing both epidermal and dermal compartments with integrated adnexal structures. The addition of adnexal structures to 3D HSEs has allowed researchers to gain more insight into the complex pathology of various hereditary and acquired skin diseases. One method of constructing 3D HSEs, 3D bioprinting, has emerged as a versatile and useful tool for generating highly complex HSEs. The development of commercially available 3D bioprinters has allowed researchers to create highly reproducible 3D HSEs with precise integration of multiple adnexal structures. While the field of bioengineered models for study of skin disease has made tremendous progress in the last decade, there are still significant efforts necessary to create truly biomimetic skin disease models. In future studies utilizing 3D HSEs, emphasis must be placed on integrating all adnexal structures relevant to the skin disease under investigation. Thorough investigation of the intricate pathology of skin diseases and the development of effective treatments requires use of highly efficacious models of skin diseases.
Collapse
|
29
|
Papasavva PL, Patsali P, Loucari CC, Kurita R, Nakamura Y, Kleanthous M, Lederer CW. CRISPR Editing Enables Consequential Tag-Activated MicroRNA-Mediated Endogene Deactivation. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:1082. [PMID: 35163006 PMCID: PMC8834719 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23031082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2021] [Revised: 01/09/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Molecular therapies and functional studies greatly benefit from spatial and temporal precision of genetic intervention. We therefore conceived and explored tag-activated microRNA (miRNA)-mediated endogene deactivation (TAMED) as a research tool and potential lineage-specific therapy. For proof of principle, we aimed to deactivate γ-globin repressor BCL11A in erythroid cells by tagging the 3' untranslated region (UTR) of BCL11A with miRNA recognition sites (MRSs) for the abundant erythromiR miR-451a. To this end, we employed nucleofection of CRISPR/Cas9 ribonucleoprotein (RNP) particles alongside double- or single-stranded oligodeoxynucleotides for, respectively, non-homologous-end-joining (NHEJ)- or homology-directed-repair (HDR)-mediated MRS insertion. NHEJ-based tagging was imprecise and inefficient (≤6%) and uniformly produced knock-in- and indel-containing MRS tags, whereas HDR-based tagging was more efficient (≤18%), but toxic for longer donors encoding concatenated and thus potentially more efficient MRS tags. Isolation of clones for robust HEK293T cells tagged with a homozygous quadruple MRS resulted in 25% spontaneous reduction in BCL11A and up to 36% reduction after transfection with an miR-451a mimic. Isolation of clones for human umbilical cord blood-derived erythroid progenitor-2 (HUDEP-2) cells tagged with single or double MRS allowed detection of albeit weak γ-globin induction. Our study demonstrates suitability of TAMED for physiologically relevant modulation of gene expression and its unsuitability for therapeutic application in its current form.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Panayiota L. Papasavva
- Department of Molecular Genetics Thalassemia, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus; (P.L.P.); (P.P.); (C.C.L.); (M.K.)
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus
| | - Petros Patsali
- Department of Molecular Genetics Thalassemia, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus; (P.L.P.); (P.P.); (C.C.L.); (M.K.)
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus
| | - Constantinos C. Loucari
- Department of Molecular Genetics Thalassemia, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus; (P.L.P.); (P.P.); (C.C.L.); (M.K.)
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus
| | - Ryo Kurita
- Research and Development Department, Central Blood Institute, Blood Service Headquarters, Japanese Red Cross Society, Koto-ku, Tokyo 135-8521, Japan;
| | - Yukio Nakamura
- Cell Engineering Division, RIKEN BioResource Research Center, Tsukuba 305-0074, Japan;
| | - Marina Kleanthous
- Department of Molecular Genetics Thalassemia, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus; (P.L.P.); (P.P.); (C.C.L.); (M.K.)
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus
| | - Carsten W. Lederer
- Department of Molecular Genetics Thalassemia, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus; (P.L.P.); (P.P.); (C.C.L.); (M.K.)
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, Nicosia 2371, Cyprus
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Choi SR, Hwang CY, Lee J, Cho KH. Network Analysis Identifies Regulators of Basal-Like Breast Cancer Reprogramming and Endocrine Therapy Vulnerability. Cancer Res 2021; 82:320-333. [PMID: 34845001 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-21-0621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Basal-like breast cancer is the most aggressive breast cancer subtype with the worst prognosis. Despite its high recurrence rate, chemotherapy is the only treatment for basal-like breast cancer, which lacks expression of hormone receptors. In contrast, luminal A tumors express ERα and can undergo endocrine therapy for treatment. Previous studies have tried to develop effective treatments for basal-like patients using various therapeutics but failed due to the complex and dynamic nature of the disease. In this study, we performed a transcriptomic analysis of patients with breast cancer to construct a simplified but essential molecular regulatory network model. Network control analysis identified potential targets and elucidated the underlying mechanisms of reprogramming basal-like cancer cells into luminal A cells. Inhibition of BCL11A and HDAC1/2 effectively drove basal-like cells to transition to luminal A cells and increased ERα expression, leading to increased tamoxifen sensitivity. High expression of BCL11A and HDAC1/2 correlated with poor prognosis in patients with breast cancer. These findings identify mechanisms regulating breast cancer phenotypes and suggest the potential to reprogram basal-like breast cancer cells to enhance their targetability. SIGNIFICANCE: A network model enables investigation of mechanisms regulating the basal-to-luminal transition in breast cancer, identifying BCL11A and HDAC1/2 as optimal targets that can induce basal-like breast cancer reprogramming and endocrine therapy sensitivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sea R Choi
- Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Chae Young Hwang
- Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Jonghoon Lee
- Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Kwang-Hyun Cho
- Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea.
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Genome editing in large animal models. Mol Ther 2021; 29:3140-3152. [PMID: 34601132 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2021.09.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2021] [Revised: 09/26/2021] [Accepted: 09/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Although genome editing technologies have the potential to revolutionize the way we treat human diseases, barriers to successful clinical implementation remain. Increasingly, preclinical large animal models are being used to overcome these barriers. In particular, the immunogenicity and long-term safety of novel gene editing therapeutics must be evaluated rigorously. However, short-lived small animal models, such as mice and rats, cannot address secondary pathologies that may arise years after a gene editing treatment. Likewise, immunodeficient mouse models by definition lack the ability to quantify the host immune response to a novel transgene or gene-edited locus. Large animal models, including dogs, pigs, and non-human primates (NHPs), bear greater resemblance to human anatomy, immunology, and lifespan and can be studied over longer timescales with clinical dosing regimens that are more relevant to humans. These models allow for larger scale and repeated blood and tissue sampling, enabling greater depth of study and focus on rare cellular subsets. Here, we review current progress in the development and evaluation of novel genome editing therapies in large animal models, focusing on applications in human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) infection, cancer, and genetic diseases including hemoglobinopathies, Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), hypercholesterolemia, and inherited retinal diseases.
Collapse
|
32
|
Mussolino C, Strouboulis J. Recent Approaches for Manipulating Globin Gene Expression in Treating Hemoglobinopathies. Front Genome Ed 2021; 3:618111. [PMID: 34713248 PMCID: PMC8525358 DOI: 10.3389/fgeed.2021.618111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Tissue oxygenation throughout life depends on the activity of hemoglobin (Hb) one of the hemeproteins that binds oxygen in the lungs and secures its delivery throughout the body. Hb is composed of four monomers encoded by eight different genes the expression of which is tightly regulated during development, resulting in the formation of distinct hemoglobin tetramers in each developmental stage. Mutations that alter hemoglobin structure or its regulated expression result in a large group of diseases typically referred to as hemoglobinopathies that are amongst the most common genetic defects worldwide. Unprecedented efforts in the last decades have partially unraveled the complex mechanisms that control globin gene expression throughout development. In addition, genome wide association studies have revealed protective genetic traits capable of ameliorating the clinical manifestations of severe hemoglobinopathies. This knowledge has fueled the exploration of innovative therapeutic approaches aimed at modifying the genome or the epigenome of the affected cells to either restore hemoglobin function or to mimic the effect of protective traits. Here we describe the key steps that control the switch in gene expression that concerns the different globin genes during development and highlight the latest efforts in altering globin regulation for therapeutic purposes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudio Mussolino
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine and Gene Therapy, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - John Strouboulis
- Laboratory of Molecular Erythropoiesis, Comprehensive Cancer Centre, School of Cancer and Pharmaceutical Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Barbarani G, Łabedz A, Ronchi AE. β-Hemoglobinopathies: The Test Bench for Genome Editing-Based Therapeutic Strategies. Front Genome Ed 2021; 2:571239. [PMID: 34713219 PMCID: PMC8525389 DOI: 10.3389/fgeed.2020.571239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2020] [Accepted: 10/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Hemoglobin is a tetrameric protein composed of two α and two β chains, each containing a heme group that reversibly binds oxygen. The composition of hemoglobin changes during development in order to fulfill the need of the growing organism, stably maintaining a balanced production of α-like and β-like chains in a 1:1 ratio. Adult hemoglobin (HbA) is composed of two α and two β subunits (α2β2 tetramer), whereas fetal hemoglobin (HbF) is composed of two γ and two α subunits (α2γ2 tetramer). Qualitative or quantitative defects in β-globin production cause two of the most common monogenic-inherited disorders: β-thalassemia and sickle cell disease. The high frequency of these diseases and the relative accessibility of hematopoietic stem cells make them an ideal candidate for therapeutic interventions based on genome editing. These strategies move in two directions: the correction of the disease-causing mutation and the reactivation of the expression of HbF in adult cells, in the attempt to recreate the effect of hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HPFH) natural mutations, which mitigate the severity of β-hemoglobinopathies. Both lines of research rely on the knowledge gained so far on the regulatory mechanisms controlling the differential expression of globin genes during development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gloria Barbarani
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Bioscienze, Università di Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Agata Łabedz
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Bioscienze, Università di Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | | |
Collapse
|
34
|
Demirci S, Leonard A, Tisdale JF. Genome editing strategies for fetal hemoglobin induction in beta-hemoglobinopathies. Hum Mol Genet 2021; 29:R100-R106. [PMID: 32406490 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddaa088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2020] [Revised: 04/28/2020] [Accepted: 05/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Genome editing to correct a defective β-globin gene or induce fetal globin (HbF) for patients with beta-hemoglobinopathies has the potential to be a curative strategy available to all. HbF reactivation has long been an area of intense interest given the HbF inhibition of sickle hemoglobin (HbS) polymerization. Patients with HbS who also have high HbF tend to have less severe or even minimal clinical manifestations. Approaches to genetically engineer high HbF include de novo generation of naturally occurring hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HPFH) mutations, editing of transcriptional HbF repressors or their binding sites and/or regulating epigenetic intermediates controlling HbF expression. Recent preclinical and early clinical trial data show encouraging results; however, long-term follow-up is lacking, and the safety and efficacy concerns of genome editing remain.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Selami Demirci
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart Lung and Blood Institutes, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Alexis Leonard
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart Lung and Blood Institutes, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - John F Tisdale
- Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics Branch, National Heart Lung and Blood Institutes, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Sun J, Wang J, Zheng D, Hu X. Advances in therapeutic application of CRISPR-Cas9. Brief Funct Genomics 2021; 19:164-174. [PMID: 31769791 DOI: 10.1093/bfgp/elz031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2019] [Revised: 09/04/2019] [Accepted: 10/03/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-associated protein 9 (Cas9) is one of the most versatile and efficient gene editing technologies, which is derived from adaptive immune strategies for bacteria and archaea. With the remarkable development of programmable nuclease-based genome engineering these years, CRISPR-Cas9 system has developed quickly in recent 5 years and has been widely applied in countless areas, including genome editing, gene function investigation and gene therapy both in vitro and in vivo. In this paper, we briefly introduce the mechanisms of CRISPR-Cas9 tool in genome editing. More importantly, we review the recent therapeutic application of CRISPR-Cas9 in various diseases, including hematologic diseases, infectious diseases and malignant tumor. Finally, we discuss the current challenges and consider thoughtfully what advances are required in order to further develop the therapeutic application of CRISPR-Cas9 in the future.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jinyu Sun
- Sparkfire Scientific Research Group, Nanjing Medical University, China
| | - Jianchu Wang
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Youjiang Medical University for Nationalities, No. 18 Zhongshan Road, Baise 533000, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China
| | - Donghui Zheng
- Department of Nephrology, Huai'an Second People's Hospital and The Affiliated Huai'an Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Huai'an, China
| | - Xiaorong Hu
- Department of Cardiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, P.R. China
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
|
37
|
Pires Lourenco S, Jarocha D, Ghiaccio V, Guerra A, Abdulmalik O, La P, Zezulin A, Smith-Whitley K, Kwiatkowski JL, Guzikowski V, Nakamura Y, Raabe T, Breda L, Rivella S. Inclusion of a shRNA targeting BCL11A into a β-globin expressing vector allows concurrent synthesis of curative adult and fetal hemoglobin. Haematologica 2021; 106:2740-2745. [PMID: 34047176 PMCID: PMC8485672 DOI: 10.3324/haematol.2020.276634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Not available.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Pires Lourenco
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia; Graduate Program in Basic and Applied Biology (GABBA), Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar, University of Porto, Porto
| | - Danuta Jarocha
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia.
| | - Valentina Ghiaccio
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| | - Amaliris Guerra
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| | - Osheiza Abdulmalik
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| | - Ping La
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| | - Alexandra Zezulin
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Kim Smith-Whitley
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| | - Janet L Kwiatkowski
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| | - Virginia Guzikowski
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| | - Yukio Nakamura
- Cell Engineering Division, RIKEN BioResource Research Center, Tsukuba
| | - Tobias Raabe
- Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Laura Breda
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| | - Stefano Rivella
- Department of Pediatrics, Hematology, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
| |
Collapse
|
38
|
Wessels MW, Cnossen MH, van Dijk TB, Gillemans N, Schmidt KLJ, van Lom K, Vinjamur DS, Coyne S, Kurita R, Nakamura Y, de Man SA, Pfundt R, Azmani Z, Brouwer RWW, Bauer DE, van den Hout MCGN, van IJcken WFJ, Philipsen S. Molecular analysis of the erythroid phenotype of a patient with BCL11A haploinsufficiency. Blood Adv 2021; 5:2339-2349. [PMID: 33938942 PMCID: PMC8114548 DOI: 10.1182/bloodadvances.2020003753] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2020] [Accepted: 03/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The BCL11A gene encodes a transcriptional repressor with essential functions in multiple tissues during human development. Haploinsufficiency for BCL11A causes Dias-Logan syndrome (OMIM 617101), an intellectual developmental disorder with hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HPFH). Due to the severe phenotype, disease-causing variants in BCL11A occur de novo. We describe a patient with a de novo heterozygous variant, c.1453G>T, in the BCL11A gene, resulting in truncation of the BCL11A-XL protein (p.Glu485X). The truncated protein lacks the 3 C-terminal DNA-binding zinc fingers and the nuclear localization signal, rendering it inactive. The patient displayed high fetal hemoglobin (HbF) levels (12.1-18.7% of total hemoglobin), in contrast to the parents who had HbF levels of 0.3%. We used cultures of patient-derived erythroid progenitors to determine changes in gene expression and chromatin accessibility. In addition, we investigated DNA methylation of the promoters of the γ-globin genes HBG1 and HBG2. HUDEP1 and HUDEP2 cells were used as models for fetal and adult human erythropoiesis, respectively. Similar to HUDEP1 cells, the patient's cells displayed Assay for Transposase-Accessible Chromatin (ATAC) peaks at the HBG1/2 promoters and significant expression of HBG1/2 genes. In contrast, HBG1/2 promoter methylation and genome-wide gene expression profiling were consistent with normal adult erythropoiesis. We conclude that HPFH is the major erythroid phenotype of constitutive BCL11A haploinsufficiency. Given the essential functions of BCL11A in other hematopoietic lineages and the neuronal system, erythroid-specific targeting of the BCL11A gene has been proposed for reactivation of γ-globin expression in β-hemoglobinopathy patients. Our data strongly support this approach.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Marjon H Cnossen
- Department of Pediatric Hematology
- Academic Center for Hemoglobinopathies and Rare Anemias
| | - Thamar B van Dijk
- Academic Center for Hemoglobinopathies and Rare Anemias
- Department of Cell Biology, and
| | - Nynke Gillemans
- Academic Center for Hemoglobinopathies and Rare Anemias
- Department of Cell Biology, and
| | - K L Juliëtte Schmidt
- Academic Center for Hemoglobinopathies and Rare Anemias
- Department of Cell Biology, and
| | - Kirsten van Lom
- Academic Center for Hemoglobinopathies and Rare Anemias
- Department of Hematology, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Divya S Vinjamur
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatric Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA
- Broad Institute, Boston, MA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
| | - Steven Coyne
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatric Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA
- Broad Institute, Boston, MA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
| | - Ryo Kurita
- Department of Research and Development, Central Blood Institute, Blood Service Headquarters, Japanese Red Cross Society, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yukio Nakamura
- Cell Engineering Division, RIKEN, BioResource Center, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Stella A de Man
- Department of Pediatrics, Amphia Hospital, Breda, The Netherlands
| | - Rolph Pfundt
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; and
| | - Zakia Azmani
- Department of Cell Biology, and
- Center for Biomics, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Rutger W W Brouwer
- Department of Cell Biology, and
- Center for Biomics, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Daniel E Bauer
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatric Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA
- Broad Institute, Boston, MA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
| | | | - Wilfred F J van IJcken
- Department of Cell Biology, and
- Center for Biomics, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Sjaak Philipsen
- Academic Center for Hemoglobinopathies and Rare Anemias
- Department of Cell Biology, and
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Single-cell RNA-seq reveals developmental plasticity with coexisting oncogenic states and immune evasion programs in ETP-ALL. Blood 2021; 137:2463-2480. [PMID: 33227818 DOI: 10.1182/blood.2019004547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2019] [Accepted: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Lineage plasticity and stemness have been invoked as causes of therapy resistance in cancer, because these flexible states allow cancer cells to dedifferentiate and alter their dependencies. We investigated such resistance mechanisms in relapsed/refractory early T-cell progenitor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ETP-ALL) carrying activating NOTCH1 mutations via full-length single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) of malignant and microenvironmental cells. We identified 2 highly distinct stem-like states that critically differed with regard to cell cycle and oncogenic signaling. Fast-cycling stem-like leukemia cells demonstrated Notch activation and were effectively eliminated in patients by Notch inhibition, whereas slow-cycling stem-like cells were Notch independent and rather relied on PI3K signaling, likely explaining the poor efficacy of Notch inhibition in this disease. Remarkably, we found that both stem-like states could differentiate into a more mature leukemia state with prominent immunomodulatory functions, including high expression of the LGALS9 checkpoint molecule. These cells promoted an immunosuppressive leukemia ecosystem with clonal accumulation of dysfunctional CD8+ T cells that expressed HAVCR2, the cognate receptor for LGALS9. Our study identified complex interactions between signaling programs, cellular plasticity, and immune programs that characterize ETP-ALL, illustrating the multidimensionality of tumor heterogeneity. In this scenario, combination therapies targeting diverse oncogenic states and the immune ecosystem seem most promising to successfully eliminate tumor cells that escape treatment through coexisting transcriptional programs.
Collapse
|
40
|
ZNF410 represses fetal globin by singular control of CHD4. Nat Genet 2021; 53:719-728. [PMID: 33859416 PMCID: PMC8180380 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-021-00843-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2020] [Accepted: 03/10/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Known fetal hemoglobin (HbF) silencers have potential on-target liabilities for rational β-hemoglobinopathy therapeutic inhibition. Here, through transcription factor (TF) CRISPR screening, we identify zinc-finger protein (ZNF) 410 as an HbF repressor. ZNF410 does not bind directly to the genes encoding γ-globins, but rather its chromatin occupancy is concentrated solely at CHD4, encoding the NuRD nucleosome remodeler, which is itself required for HbF repression. CHD4 has two ZNF410-bound regulatory elements with 27 combined ZNF410 binding motifs constituting unparalleled genomic clusters. These elements completely account for the effects of ZNF410 on fetal globin repression. Knockout of ZNF410 or its mouse homolog Zfp410 reduces CHD4 levels by 60%, enough to substantially de-repress HbF while eluding cellular or organismal toxicity. These studies suggest a potential target for HbF induction for β-hemoglobin disorders with a wide therapeutic index. More broadly, ZNF410 represents a special class of gene regulator, a conserved TF with singular devotion to regulation of a chromatin subcomplex.
Collapse
|
41
|
Smarca5-mediated epigenetic programming facilitates fetal HSPC development in vertebrates. Blood 2021; 137:190-202. [PMID: 32756943 DOI: 10.1182/blood.2020005219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2020] [Accepted: 07/15/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Nascent hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) acquire definitive hematopoietic characteristics only when they develop into fetal HSPCs; however, the mechanisms underlying fetal HSPC development are poorly understood. Here, we profiled the chromatin accessibility and transcriptional features of zebrafish nascent and fetal HSPCs using ATAC-seq and RNA-seq and revealed dynamic changes during HSPC transition. Functional assays demonstrated that chromatin remodeler-mediated epigenetic programming facilitates fetal HSPC development in vertebrates. Systematical screening of chromatin remodeler-related genes identified that smarca5 is responsible for the maintenance of chromatin accessibility at promoters of hematopoiesis-related genes in fetal HSPCs. Mechanistically, Smarca5 interacts with nucleolin to promote chromatin remodeling, thereby facilitating genomic binding of transcription factors to regulate expression of hematopoietic regulators such as bcl11ab. Our results unravel a new role of epigenetic regulation and reveal that Smarca5-mediated epigenetic programming is responsible for fetal HSPC development, which will provide new insights into the generation of functional HSPCs both in vivo and in vitro.
Collapse
|
42
|
Chromothripsis as an on-target consequence of CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing. Nat Genet 2021; 53:895-905. [PMID: 33846636 PMCID: PMC8192433 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-021-00838-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 266] [Impact Index Per Article: 88.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2020] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Genome editing has therapeutic potential for treating genetic diseases and cancer. However, the currently most practicable approaches rely on the generation of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), which can give rise to a poorly characterized spectrum of chromosome structural abnormalities. Here, using model cells and single-cell whole-genome sequencing, as well as by editing at a clinically relevant locus in clinically relevant cells, we show that CRISPR-Cas9 editing generates structural defects of the nucleus, micronuclei and chromosome bridges, which initiate a mutational process called chromothripsis. Chromothripsis is extensive chromosome rearrangement restricted to one or a few chromosomes that can cause human congenital disease and cancer. These results demonstrate that chromothripsis is a previously unappreciated on-target consequence of CRISPR-Cas9-generated DSBs. As genome editing is implemented in the clinic, the potential for extensive chromosomal rearrangements should be considered and monitored.
Collapse
|
43
|
Barbarani G, Labedz A, Stucchi S, Abbiati A, Ronchi AE. Physiological and Aberrant γ-Globin Transcription During Development. Front Cell Dev Biol 2021; 9:640060. [PMID: 33869190 PMCID: PMC8047207 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2021.640060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2020] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The expression of the fetal Gγ- and Aγ-globin genes in normal development is confined to the fetal period, where two γ-globin chains assemble with two α-globin chains to form α2γ2 tetramers (HbF). HbF sustains oxygen delivery to tissues until birth, when β-globin replaces γ-globin, leading to the formation of α2β2 tetramers (HbA). However, in different benign and pathological conditions, HbF is expressed in adult cells, as it happens in the hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin, in anemias and in some leukemias. The molecular basis of γ-globin differential expression in the fetus and of its inappropriate activation in adult cells is largely unknown, although in recent years, a few transcription factors involved in this process have been identified. The recent discovery that fetal cells can persist to adulthood and contribute to disease raises the possibility that postnatal γ-globin expression could, in some cases, represent the signature of the fetal cellular origin.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gloria Barbarani
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Bioscienze, Università di Milano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy
| | - Agata Labedz
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Bioscienze, Università di Milano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy
| | - Sarah Stucchi
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Bioscienze, Università di Milano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy
| | - Alessia Abbiati
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Bioscienze, Università di Milano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy
| | - Antonella E Ronchi
- Dipartimento di Biotecnologie e Bioscienze, Università di Milano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Implications of hematopoietic stem cells heterogeneity for gene therapies. Gene Ther 2021; 28:528-541. [PMID: 33589780 PMCID: PMC8455331 DOI: 10.1038/s41434-021-00229-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2020] [Revised: 12/30/2020] [Accepted: 01/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is the therapeutic concept to cure the blood/immune system of patients suffering from malignancies, immunodeficiencies, red blood cell disorders, and inherited bone marrow failure syndromes. Yet, allogeneic HSCT bear considerable risks for the patient such as non-engraftment, or graft-versus host disease. Transplanting gene modified autologous HSCs is a promising approach not only for inherited blood/immune cell diseases, but also for the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. However, there is emerging evidence for substantial heterogeneity of HSCs in situ as well as ex vivo that is also observed after HSCT. Thus, HSC gene modification concepts are suggested to consider that different blood disorders affect specific hematopoietic cell types. We will discuss the relevance of HSC heterogeneity for the development and manufacture of gene therapies and in exemplary diseases with a specific emphasis on the key target HSC types myeloid-biased, lymphoid-biased, and balanced HSCs.
Collapse
|
45
|
Abstract
Studies of the major hemoglobin disorders, β-thalassemia and sickle cell disease (SCD), have laid a foundation for molecular medicine. While enormous progress has been made in understanding gene structure and regulation, translating molecular insights to therapy for the many individuals affected with these disorders has been challenging. Advances in three activities have recently converged to bring novel genetic and potentially curative treatments to clinical trials. First, improved lentiviral vectors for gene transfer into hematopoietic stem cells have revived somatic gene therapy for blood disorders. Second, elucidation of regulatory factors and mechanisms that control the normal developmental switch from fetal to adult hemoglobin has provided a route to reactivation of the fetal form for therapy. Third, revolutionary methods of gene engineering permit molecular insights to be leveraged for patients. Here I review how the promise of molecular medicine to bring transformative treatments to the clinical arena is finally being realized.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Stuart H Orkin
- Dana Farber/Boston Children's Cancer & Blood Disorders Center, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115
| |
Collapse
|
46
|
Zittersteijn HA, Harteveld CL, Klaver-Flores S, Lankester AC, Hoeben RC, Staal FJT, Gonçalves MAFV. A Small Key for a Heavy Door: Genetic Therapies for the Treatment of Hemoglobinopathies. Front Genome Ed 2021; 2:617780. [PMID: 34713239 PMCID: PMC8525365 DOI: 10.3389/fgeed.2020.617780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2020] [Accepted: 12/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Throughout the past decades, the search for a treatment for severe hemoglobinopathies has gained increased interest within the scientific community. The discovery that ɤ-globin expression from intact HBG alleles complements defective HBB alleles underlying β-thalassemia and sickle cell disease, has provided a promising opening for research directed at relieving ɤ-globin repression mechanisms and, thereby, improve clinical outcomes for patients. Various gene editing strategies aim to reverse the fetal-to-adult hemoglobin switch to up-regulate ɤ-globin expression through disabling either HBG repressor genes or repressor binding sites in the HBG promoter regions. In addition to these HBB mutation-independent strategies involving fetal hemoglobin (HbF) synthesis de-repression, the expanding genome editing toolkit is providing increased accuracy to HBB mutation-specific strategies encompassing adult hemoglobin (HbA) restoration for a personalized treatment of hemoglobinopathies. Moreover, besides genome editing, more conventional gene addition strategies continue under investigation to restore HbA expression. Together, this research makes hemoglobinopathies a fertile ground for testing various innovative genetic therapies with high translational potential. Indeed, the progressive understanding of the molecular clockwork underlying the hemoglobin switch together with the ongoing optimization of genome editing tools heightens the prospect for the development of effective and safe treatments for hemoglobinopathies. In this context, clinical genetics plays an equally crucial role by shedding light on the complexity of the disease and the role of ameliorating genetic modifiers. Here, we cover the most recent insights on the molecular mechanisms underlying hemoglobin biology and hemoglobinopathies while providing an overview of state-of-the-art gene editing platforms. Additionally, current genetic therapies under development, are equally discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hidde A. Zittersteijn
- Department of Cell and Chemical Biology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Cornelis L. Harteveld
- Department of Human and Clinical Genetics, The Hemoglobinopathies Laboratory, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands
| | | | - Arjan C. Lankester
- Department of Pediatrics, Stem Cell Transplantation Program, Willem-Alexander Children's Hospital, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Rob C. Hoeben
- Department of Cell and Chemical Biology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Frank J. T. Staal
- Department of Immunology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands
| | | |
Collapse
|
47
|
Abstract
Genome editing using CRISPR-Cas9 has produced a functional cure for a small number of patients with sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia. Rather than repairing the causative mutation, this striking outcome was attained by the knockout of a lineage-specific regulatory element for a gene, BCL11A, that controls fetal hemoglobin levels: a first example of clinical success in targeting a locus initially identified in a genome-wide association study, and formal proof of the "in the age of CRISPR, the entire genome is a druggable target" notion. This remarkable development, along with advancement to the clinic of several additional editing-based approaches to the hemoglobinopathies, highlights a sense of urgency in accelerating scientific, regulatory, and public health innovation that will allow broad and equitable access to editing-based cures.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fyodor D Urnov
- Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, USA
| |
Collapse
|
48
|
Frati G, Miccio A. Genome Editing for β-Hemoglobinopathies: Advances and Challenges. J Clin Med 2021; 10:482. [PMID: 33525591 PMCID: PMC7865242 DOI: 10.3390/jcm10030482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Revised: 01/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
β-hemoglobinopathies are the most common genetic disorders worldwide and are caused by mutations affecting the production or the structure of adult hemoglobin. Patients affected by these diseases suffer from anemia, impaired oxygen delivery to tissues, and multi-organ damage. In the absence of a compatible donor for allogeneic bone marrow transplantation, the lifelong therapeutic options are symptomatic care, red blood cell transfusions and pharmacological treatments. The last decades of research established lentiviral-mediated gene therapy as an efficacious therapeutic strategy. However, this approach is highly expensive and associated with a variable outcome depending on the effectiveness of the viral vector and the quality of the cell product. In the last years, genome editing emerged as a valuable tool for the development of curative strategies for β-hemoglobinopathies. Moreover, due to the wide range of its applications, genome editing has been extensively used to study regulatory mechanisms underlying globin gene regulation allowing the identification of novel genetic and pharmacological targets. In this work, we review the current advances and challenges of genome editing approaches to β-hemoglobinopathies. Special focus has been directed towards strategies aimed at correcting the defective β-globin gene or at inducing fetal hemoglobin (HbF), which are in an advanced state of clinical development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Giacomo Frati
- Laboratory of Chromatin and Gene Regulation during Development, Imagine Institute, Université de Paris, INSERM UMR 1163, F-75015 Paris, France
| | - Annarita Miccio
- Laboratory of Chromatin and Gene Regulation during Development, Imagine Institute, Université de Paris, INSERM UMR 1163, F-75015 Paris, France
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
Wang Z, Wang P, Li Y, Peng H, Zhu Y, Mohandas N, Liu J. Interplay between cofactors and transcription factors in hematopoiesis and hematological malignancies. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2021; 6:24. [PMID: 33468999 PMCID: PMC7815747 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-00422-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2020] [Revised: 10/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/26/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Hematopoiesis requires finely tuned regulation of gene expression at each stage of development. The regulation of gene transcription involves not only individual transcription factors (TFs) but also transcription complexes (TCs) composed of transcription factor(s) and multisubunit cofactors. In their normal compositions, TCs orchestrate lineage-specific patterns of gene expression and ensure the production of the correct proportions of individual cell lineages during hematopoiesis. The integration of posttranslational and conformational modifications in the chromatin landscape, nucleosomes, histones and interacting components via the cofactor–TF interplay is critical to optimal TF activity. Mutations or translocations of cofactor genes are expected to alter cofactor–TF interactions, which may be causative for the pathogenesis of various hematologic disorders. Blocking TF oncogenic activity in hematologic disorders through targeting cofactors in aberrant complexes has been an exciting therapeutic strategy. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge regarding the models and functions of cofactor–TF interplay in physiological hematopoiesis and highlight their implications in the etiology of hematological malignancies. This review presents a deep insight into the physiological and pathological implications of transcription machinery in the blood system.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zi Wang
- Department of Hematology, Institute of Molecular Hematology, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, 410011, ChangSha, Hunan, China. .,Molecular Biology Research Center and Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Basic and Applied Hematology, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, 410078, Changsha, Hunan, China.
| | - Pan Wang
- Molecular Biology Research Center and Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Basic and Applied Hematology, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, 410078, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Yanan Li
- Molecular Biology Research Center and Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Basic and Applied Hematology, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, 410078, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Hongling Peng
- Department of Hematology, Institute of Molecular Hematology, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, 410011, ChangSha, Hunan, China
| | - Yu Zhu
- Molecular Biology Research Center and Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Basic and Applied Hematology, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, 410078, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Narla Mohandas
- Red Cell Physiology Laboratory, New York Blood Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jing Liu
- Molecular Biology Research Center and Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Basic and Applied Hematology, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, 410078, Changsha, Hunan, China.
| |
Collapse
|
50
|
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW In this work we briefly summarize the key features and currently available conventional therapies for the two main β-hemoglobinopathies, sickle cell disease (SCD) and β-thalassemia, and review the rapidly evolving field of novel and emerging genetic therapies to cure the disease. RECENT FINDINGS Gene therapy using viral vectors or designer nuclease-based gene editing is a relatively new field of medicine that uses the patient's own genetically modified cells to treat his or her own disease. Multiple different approaches are currently in development, and some have entered phase I clinical studies, including innovative therapies aiming at induction of fetal hemoglobin. SUMMARY Early short-term therapeutic benefit has been reported for some of the ongoing clinical trials, but confirmation of long-term safety and efficacy remains to be shown. Future therapies aiming at the targeted correction of specific disease-causing DNA mutations are emerging and will likely enter clinical testing in the near future.
Collapse
|