Vascular and blood gene expression

3D imaging of transition metals in the zebrafish embryo by X-ray fluorescence microtomography

Synchrotron X-ray fluorescence (SXRF) microtomography has emerged as a powerful technique for the 3D visualization of the elemental distribution in biological samples. The mechanical stability, both of the instrument and the specimen, is paramount when acquiring tomographic projection series. By combining the progressive lowering of temperature method (PLT) with femtosecond laser sectioning, we were able to embed, excise, and preserve a zebrafish embryo at 24 hours post fertilization in an X-ray compatible, transparent resin for tomographic elemental imaging. Based on a data set comprised of 60 projections, acquired with a step size of 2 μm during 100 hours of beam time, we reconstructed the 3D distribution of zinc, iron, and copper using the iterative maximum likelihood expectation maximization (MLEM) reconstruction algorithm. The volumetric elemental maps, which entail over 124 million individual voxels for each transition metal, revealed distinct elemental distributions that could be correlated with characteristic anatomical features at this stage of embryonic development.

Zebrafish as a model for myelopoiesis during embryogenesis

Zebrafish produce nearly identical hematopoeitic cell lineages to those found in mammals and other higher vertebrates. As in mammals, blood cell development proceeds in distinct waves, constituting embryonic (primitive) and adult (definitive) hematopoiesis. The conservation of genes such as scl, pu.1, c/ebpalpha, mpo, l-plastin, and lysozyme C in myelopoiesis and the corresponding expression patterns in zebrafish suggests that shared genetic pathways regulate this complex developmental process. In the zebrafish model system, experimental approaches have been applied, including RNA in situ hybridization, morpholino injections, and the analysis of mutant and transgenic fish lines, leading to improved understanding of the regulation in vivo of key molecular pathways with conserved roles in vertebrate myelopoiesis.

The endothelial-cell-derived secreted factor Egfl7 regulates vascular tube formation

Vascular development is a complex but orderly process that is tightly regulated. A number of secreted factors produced by surrounding cells regulate endothelial cell (EC) differentiation, proliferation, migration and coalescence into cord-like structures. Vascular cords then undergo tubulogenesis to form vessels with a central lumen. But little is known about how tubulogenesis is regulated in vivo. Here we report the identification and characterization of a new EC-derived secreted factor, EGF-like domain 7 (Egfl7). Egfl7 is expressed at high levels in the vasculature associated with tissue proliferation, and is downregulated in most of the mature vessels in normal adult tissues. Loss of Egfl7 function in zebrafish embryos specifically blocks vascular tubulogenesis. We uncover a dynamic process during which gradual separation and proper spatial arrangement of the angioblasts allow subsequent assembly of vascular tubes. This process fails to take place in Egfl7 knockdown embryos, leading to the failure of vascular tube formation. Our study defines a regulator that controls a specific and important step in vasculogenesis.

Disruption of erythropoiesis by dioxin in the zebrafish

2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p- dioxin (TCDD, or dioxin) causes early life stage mortality in a variety of fish species. We have used the zebrafish (Danio rerio) to study the cardiovascular effects of TCDD treatment over the time course of zebrafish development. Early TCDD exposure (6 ng/ml) starting at 4 hr postfertilization (hpf) produced reductions in blood flow and in the number of circulating erythrocytes. These defects were consistently observable by 72 hpf. However, these responses were not observed when TCDD exposure was delayed until 96 hpf or later. These results suggest a model in which TCDD interferes with cardiovascular and erythropoietic developmental processes that are normally completed by 96 hpf. This model is strengthened by the finding that TCDD exposure blocks the step in hematopoiesis in which developing zebrafish switch from the primitive phase to the definitive phase of erythropoiesis. We observed no effect of TCDD on the levels of circulating primitive erythrocytes before 72 hpf and the expression of markers for early hematopoiesis, GATA-1 and GATA-2. However, early TCDD exposure prevented the appearance of definitive phase erythrocytes. TCDD produced a small delay in the migration of blood cells expressing SCL from the intermediate cell mass to the dorsal mesentery and dorsal aorta. Despite the decrease in blood flow produced by TCDD, confocal microscopy of the trunk vasculature by using a Tie2/green fluorescence protein endothelial marker at 48, 60, 72, and 96 hpf of TCDD-exposed (4 hpf) revealed no apparent defects in blood vessel structure.

Zebrafish myelopoiesis and blood cell development

The zebrafish (Danio rerio) animal model offers a unique opportunity to discover novel genes required for the control of normal vertebrate myeloid cell development. It is well suited for both developmental and genetic analyses: eg, genome-wide chemical mutagenesis screens have led to the identification of specific new genes affecting vertebrate erythropoiesis. Mutants defective in one or more hematopoietic functions will be useful as models of human disease and will assist in the elucidation of lineage-specific developmental programs. By using a combination of forward genetic mutagenesis screens and emerging strategies based on transgenic and antisense knockdown approaches, it should be possible to dissect the genetic programs that lead to myeloproliferative/myelodysplastic syndromes and to acute myeloid leukemia.

CaM kinase IV regulates lineage commitment and survival of erythroid progenitors in a non-cell-autonomous manner

Developmental functions of calmodulin-dependent protein kinase IV (CaM KIV) have not been previously investigated. Here, we show that CaM KIV transcripts are widely distributed during embryogenesis and that strict regulation of CaM KIV activity is essential for normal primitive erythropoiesis. Xenopus embryos in which CaM KIV activity is either upregulated or inhibited show that hematopoietic precursors are properly specified, but few mature erythrocytes are generated. Distinct cellular defects underlie this loss of erythrocytes: inhibition of CaM KIV activity causes commitment of hematopoietic precursors to myeloid differentiation at the expense of erythroid differentiation, on the other hand, constitutive activation of CaM KIV induces erythroid precursors to undergo apoptotic cell death. These blood defects are observed even when CaM KIV activity is misregulated only in cells that do not contribute to the erythroid lineage. Thus, proper regulation of CaM KIV activity in nonhematopoietic tissues is essential for the generation of extrinsic signals that enable hematopoietic stem cell commitment to erythroid differentiation and that support the survival of erythroid precursors.

Hhex and scl function in parallel to regulate early endothelial and blood differentiation in zebrafish

During embryogenesis, endothelial and blood precursors are hypothesized to arise from a common progenitor, the hemangioblast. Several genes that affect the differentiation of, or are expressed early in, both the endothelial and blood lineages may in fact function at the level of the hemangioblast. For example, the zebrafish cloche mutation disrupts the differentiation of both endothelial and blood cells. The transcription factor gene scl is expressed in both endothelial and blood lineages from an early stage and can regulate their differentiation. Here we report that in zebrafish the homeobox gene hhex (previously called hex) is also expressed in endothelial and blood lineages from an early stage. We find that hhex expression in these lineages is significantly reduced in cloche mutant embryos, indicating that hhex functions downstream of cloche to regulate endothelial and blood differentiation. Ectopic expression of hhex through injection of a DNA construct leads to the premature and ectopic expression of early endothelial and blood differentiation genes such as fli1, flk1 and gata1, indicating that Hhex can positively regulate endothelial and blood differentiation. However, analysis of a hhex deficiency allele shows that hhex is not essential for early endothelial and blood differentiation, suggesting that another gene, perhaps scl, compensates for the absence of Hhex function. Furthermore, we find that hhex and scl can induce each other's expression, suggesting that these two genes cross-regulate each other during early endothelial and blood differentiation. Together, these data provide the initial framework of a pathway that can be used to further integrate the molecular events regulating hemangioblast differentiation.

Dissecting hematopoiesis and disease using the zebrafish

The study of blood has often defined paradigms that are relevant to the biology of other vertebrate organ systems. As examples, stem cell physiology and the structure of the membrane cytoskeleton were first described in hematopoietic cells. Much of the reason for these successes resides in the ease with which blood cells can be isolated and manipulated in vitro. The cell biology of hematopoiesis can also be illuminated by the study of human disease states such as anemia, immunodeficiency, and leukemia. The sequential development of the blood system in vertebrates is characterized by ventral mesoderm induction, hematopoietic stem cell specification, and subsequent cell lineage differentiation. Some of the key regulatory steps in this process have been uncovered by studies in mouse, chicken, and Xenopus. More recently, the genetics of the zebrafish (Danio rerio) have been employed to define novel points of regulation of the hematopoietic program. In this review, we describe the advantages of the zebrafish system for the study of blood cell development and the initial success of the system in this pursuit. The striking similarity of zebrafish mutant phenotypes and human diseases emphasizes the utility of this model system for elucidating pathophysiologic mechanisms. New screens for lineage-specific mutations are beginning, and the availability of transgenics promises a better understanding of lineage-specific gene expression. The infrastructure of the zebrafish system is growing with an NIH-directed genome initiative, providing a detailed map of the zebrafish genome and an increasing number of candidate genes for the mutations. The zebrafish is poised to contribute greatly to our understanding of normal and disease-related hematopoiesis.