Acute reduction in oxygen tension enhances the induction of neurons from human fibroblasts

Cellular Models: HD Patient-Derived Pluripotent Stem Cells

Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder caused by expanded polyglutamine (polyQ)-encoding repeats in the Huntingtin (HTT) gene. Traditionally, HD cellular models consisted of either patient cells not affected by disease or rodent neurons expressing expanded polyQ repeats in HTT. As these models can be limited in their disease manifestation or proper genetic context, respectively, human HD pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) are currently under investigation as a way to model disease in patient-derived neurons and other neural cell types. This chapter reviews embryonic stem cell (ESC) and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) models of disease, including published differentiation paradigms for neurons and their associated phenotypes, as well as current challenges to the field such as validation of the PSCs and PSC-derived cells. Highlighted are potential future technical advances to HD PSC modeling, including transdifferentiation, complex in vitro multiorgan/system reconstruction, and personalized medicine. Using a human HD patient model of the central nervous system, hopefully one day researchers can tease out the consequences of mutant HTT (mHTT) expression on specific cell types within the brain in order to identify and test novel therapies for disease.

Global DNA methylation remodeling during direct reprogramming of fibroblasts to neurons

Direct reprogramming of fibroblasts to neurons induces widespread cellular and transcriptional reconfiguration. Here, we characterized global epigenomic changes during the direct reprogramming of mouse fibroblasts to neurons using whole-genome base-resolution DNA methylation (mC) sequencing. We found that the pioneer transcription factor Ascl1 alone is sufficient for inducing the uniquely neuronal feature of non-CG methylation (mCH), but co-expression of Brn2 and Mytl1 was required to establish a global mCH pattern reminiscent of mature cortical neurons. Ascl1 alone induced promoter CG methylation (mCG) of fibroblast specific genes, while BAM overexpression additionally targets a competing myogenic program and directs a more faithful conversion to neuronal cells. Ascl1 induces local demethylation at its binding sites. Surprisingly, co-expression with Brn2 and Mytl1 inhibited the ability of Ascl1 to induce demethylation, suggesting a contextual regulation of transcription factor - epigenome interaction. Finally, we found that de novo methylation by DNMT3A is required for efficient neuronal reprogramming.

Transdifferentiation: a new promise for neurodegenerative diseases

Neurodegenerative diseases are characterized by a gradual loss of cognitive and physical functions. Medications for these disorders are limited and treat the symptoms only. There are no disease-modifying therapies available, which have been shown to slow or stop the continuing loss of neurons. Transdifferentiation, whereby somatic cells are reprogrammed into another lineage without going through an intermediate proliferative pluripotent stem cell stage, provides an alternative strategy for regenerative medicine and disease modeling. In particular, the transdifferentiation of somatic cells into specific subset of patient-specific neuronal cells offers alternative autologous cell therapeutic strategies for neurodegenerative disorders and presents a rich source of using diverse somatic cell types for relevant applications in translational, personalized medicine, as well as human mechanistic study, new drug-target identification, and novel drug screening systems. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of the recent development of transdifferentiation research, with particular attention to chemical-induced transdifferentiation and perspectives for modeling and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Effect of leukocyte inhibitory factor on neuron differentiation from human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural precursor cells

Direct derivation of human induced pluripotent stem cells into neural precursor cells and differentiation of these into neurons holds great promise in the cell therapy of neuro-degenerative diseases. However, the availability and survival rate of neurons requires improvement. In the present study, it was found that the addition of 5 ng/ml leukocyte inhibitory factor (LIF) during the process of differentiation significantly improved the expression of neuron-specific class III β-tubulin (TUJ1) and microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2), as detected by immunofluorescence and western blotting. In addition, LIF improved the cell viability, increased the expression of phosphorylated-protein kinase B (AKT), downregulated the expression of proinflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-1α (IL-1α) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and upregulated the expression of anti-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-10 (IL-10) and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β). After adding the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT signaling inhibitor LY294002 or wortmannin to the LIF differentiation group, LIF-induced changes in the protein expression of TUJ1 and MAP2 were reversed, but this effect could not be prevented by rapamycin, a mechanistic target of rapamycin signaling inhibitor. The expression of cytokines associated with inflammation and cell viability was reversed by LY294002 and wortmannin, but not by rapamycin. In conclusion, LIF could improve neuronal differentiation and survival through the activation of PI3K/AKT signaling and the anti-inflammatory effect. The anti-inflammatory effect may be mediated by the activation of PI3K/AKT.

Induced dopaminergic neurons: A new promise for Parkinson's disease

Motor symptoms that define Parkinson’s disease (PD) are caused by the selective loss of nigral dopaminergic (DA) neurons. Cell replacement therapy for PD has been focused on midbrain DA neurons derived from human fetal mesencephalic tissue, human embryonic stem cells (hESC) or human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC). Recent development in the direct conversion of human fibroblasts to induced dopaminergic (iDA) neurons offers new opportunities for transplantation study and disease modeling in PD. The iDA neurons are generated directly from human fibroblasts in a short period of time, bypassing lengthy differentiation process from human pluripotent stem cells and the concern for potentially tumorigenic mitotic cells. They exhibit functional dopaminergic neurotransmission and relieve locomotor symptoms in animal models of Parkinson’s disease. In this review, we will discuss this recent development and its implications to Parkinson’s disease research and therapy.

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Fibroblasts can be directly converted to induced dopaminergic neurons by transcription factors.

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Many different types of cells can be converted to induced neurons in vitro and in vivo.

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Appropriate cell culture conditions enhance the direct conversion to induced neurons.

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The conversion to induced neurons is enhanced by G1 arrest and p53 attenuation.

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iDA neurons is a promising tool for PD research and therapy.

Generating human serotonergic neurons in vitro: Methodological advances

Technologies for deriving human neurons in vitro have transformed our ability to study cellular and molecular components of human neurotransmission. Three groups, including our own, have recently published methods for efficiently generating human serotonergic neurons in vitro. Remarkably, serotonergic neurons derived from each method robustly produce serotonin, express raphe genes, are electrically active, and respond to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in vitro. Two of the methods utilize transdifferentiation technology by overexpressing key serotonergic transcription factors. The third and most recent method involves differentiating induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to serotonergic neurons using developmental patterning cues. In this mini-review, we briefly describe the developmental programs governing serotonergic specification in vivo and how they have been harnessed to achieve serotonergic differentiation in vitro. We discuss the distinct and overlapping features of the recently published methodologies and their value in the context of in vitro disease modeling. Also see the video abstract here.

Direct conversion of human fibroblasts to induced serotonergic neurons

Serotonergic (5HT) neurons exert diverse and widespread functions in the brain. Dysfunction of the serotonergic system gives rise to a variety of mental illnesses including depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, autism and eating disorders. Here we show that human primary fibroblasts were directly converted to induced serotonergic (i5HT) neurons by the expression of Ascl1, Foxa2, Lmx1b and FEV. The transdifferentiation was enhanced by p53 knockdown and appropriate culture conditions including hypoxia. The i5HT neurons expressed markers for mature serotonergic neurons, had Ca(2+)-dependent 5HT release and selective 5HT uptake, exhibited spontaneous action potentials and spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents. Application of serotonin significantly increased the firing rate of spontaneous action potentials, demonstrating the functional utility of i5HT neurons for studying serotonergic neurotransmission. The availability of human i5HT neurons will be very useful for research and drug discovery on many serotonin-related mental disorders.

The potential of alternate sources of cells for neural grafting in Parkinson's and Huntington's disease

Cell-based therapies for Parkinson's and Huntington's disease have provided mixed clinical outcomes and one of the reasons underlying this is the use of primary fetal tissue as the source of grafted cells. An alternate source of cells, such as stem cells, could overcome many of the issues associated with primary fetal tissue and would help bring forward cell replacement therapy as a reliable and effective treatment for these two neurodegenerative disorders. This review will discuss which stem cells are likely to go to clinic in the next generation of cells, based on trials for Parkinson's and Huntington's disease.

Direct neural conversion from human fibroblasts using self-regulating and nonintegrating viral vectors

Recent findings show that human fibroblasts can be directly programmed into functional neurons without passing via a proliferative stem cell intermediate. These findings open up the possibility of generating subtype-specific neurons of human origin for therapeutic use from fetal cell, from patients themselves, or from matched donors. In this study, we present an improved system for direct neural conversion of human fibroblasts. The neural reprogramming genes are regulated by the neuron-specific microRNA, miR-124, such that each cell turns off expression of the reprogramming genes once the cell has reached a stable neuronal fate. The regulated system can be combined with integrase-deficient vectors, providing a nonintegrative and self-regulated conversion system that rids problems associated with the integration of viral transgenes into the host genome. These modifications make the system suitable for clinical use and therefore represent a major step forward in the development of induced neurons for cell therapy.

Mash1 efficiently reprograms rat astrocytes into neurons

To date, it remains poorly understood whether astrocytes can be easily reprogrammed into neurons. Mash1 and Brn2 have been previously shown to cooperate to reprogram fibroblasts into neurons. In this study, we examined astrocytes from 2-month-old Sprague-Dawley rats, and found that Brn2 was expressed, but Mash1 was not detectable. Thus, we hypothesized that Mash1 alone could be used to reprogram astrocytes into neurons. We transfected a recombinant MSCV-MASH1 plasmid into astrocytes for 72 hours, and saw that all cells expressed Mash1. One week later, we observed the changes in morphology of astrocytes, which showed typical neuronal characteristics. Moreover, β-tubulin expression levels were significantly higher in astrocytes expressing Mash1 than in control cells. These results indicate that Mash1 alone can reprogram astrocytes into neurons.

Induced neuronal reprogramming

Cellular differentiation processes during normal embryonic development are guided by extracellular soluble factors such as morphogen gradients and cell contact signals, eventually resulting in induction of specific combinations of lineage-determining transcription factors. The young field of epigenetic reprogramming takes advantage of this knowledge and uses cell fate determination factors to convert one lineage into another such as the conversion of fibroblasts into pluripotent stem cells or neurons. These induced cell fate conversions open up new avenues for studying disease processes, generating cell material for therapeutic intervention such as drug screening and potentially also for cell-based therapies. However, there are still limitations that have to be overcome to fulfill these promises, centering on reprogramming efficiencies, cell identity, and maturation. In this review, we discuss the discovery of induced neuronal reprogramming, ways to improve the conversion process, and finally how to define properly the identity of those converted neuronal cells.

Lineage-reprogramming of pericyte-derived cells of the adult human brain into induced neurons

Direct lineage-reprogramming of non-neuronal cells into induced neurons (iNs) may provide insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying neurogenesis and enable new strategies for in vitro modeling or repairing the diseased brain. Identifying brain-resident non-neuronal cell types amenable to direct conversion into iNs might allow for launching such an approach in situ, i.e. within the damaged brain tissue. Here we describe a protocol developed in the attempt of identifying cells derived from the adult human brain that fulfill this premise. This protocol involves: (1) the culturing of human cells from the cerebral cortex obtained from adult human brain biopsies; (2) the in vitro expansion (approximately requiring 2-4 weeks) and characterization of the culture by immunocytochemistry and flow cytometry; (3) the enrichment by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) using anti-PDGF receptor-β and anti-CD146 antibodies; (4) the retrovirus-mediated transduction with the neurogenic transcription factors sox2 and ascl1; (5) and finally the characterization of the resultant pericyte-derived induced neurons (PdiNs) by immunocytochemistry (14 days to 8 weeks following retroviral transduction). At this stage, iNs can be probed for their electrical properties by patch-clamp recording. This protocol provides a highly reproducible procedure for the in vitro lineage conversion of brain-resident pericytes into functional human iNs.