The mouse Hox2.3 homeobox-containing gene: regulation in differentiating pluripotent stem cells and expression pattern in embryos

It's a lipid's world: bioactive lipid metabolism and signaling in neural stem cell differentiation

Lipids are often considered membrane components whose function is to embed proteins into cell membranes. In the last two decades, studies on brain lipids have unequivocally demonstrated that many lipids have critical cell signaling functions; they are called "bioactive lipids". Pioneering work in Dr. Robert Ledeen's laboratory has shown that two bioactive brain sphingolipids, sphingomyelin and the ganglioside GM1 are major signaling lipids in the nuclear envelope. In addition to derivatives of the sphingolipid ceramide, the bioactive lipids discussed here belong to the classes of terpenoids and steroids, eicosanoids, and lysophospholipids. These lipids act mainly through two mechanisms: (1) direct interaction between the bioactive lipid and a specific protein binding partner such as a lipid receptor, protein kinase or phosphatase, ion exchanger, or other cell signaling protein; and (2) formation of lipid microdomains or rafts that regulate the activity of a group of raft-associated cell signaling proteins. In recent years, a third mechanism has emerged, which invokes lipid second messengers as a regulator for the energy and redox balance of differentiating neural stem cells (NSCs). Interestingly, developmental niches such as the stem cell niche for adult NSC differentiation may also be metabolic compartments that respond to a distinct combination of bioactive lipids. The biological function of these lipids as regulators of NSC differentiation will be reviewed and their application in stem cell therapy discussed.

Hox gene colinear expression in the avian medulla oblongata is correlated with pseudorhombomeric domains

The medulla oblongata (or caudal hindbrain) is not overtly segmented, since it lacks observable interrhombomeric boundaries. However, quail-chick fate maps showed that it is formed by 5 pseudorhombomeres (r7-r11) which were empirically found to be delimited consistently at planes crossing through adjacent somites (Cambronero and Puelles, 2000). We aimed to reexamine the possible segmentation or rostrocaudal regionalisation of this brain region attending to molecular criteria. To this end, we studied the expression of Hox genes from groups 3 to 7 correlative to the differentiating nuclei of the medulla oblongata. Our results show that these genes are differentially expressed in the mature medulla oblongata, displaying instances of typical antero-posterior (3' to 5') Hox colinearity. The different sensory and motor columns, as well as the reticular formation, appear rostrocaudally regionalised according to spaced steps in their Hox expression pattern. The anterior limits of the respective expression domains largely fit boundaries defined between the experimental pseudorhombomeres. Therefore the medulla oblongata shows a Hox-related rostrocaudal molecular regionalisation comparable to that found among rhombomeres, and numerically consistent with the pseudorhombomere list. This suggests that medullary pseudorhombomeres share some AP patterning mechanisms with the rhombomeres present in the rostral, overtly-segmented hindbrain, irrespective of variant boundary properties.

Role and distribution of retinoic acid during CNS development

Retinoic acid (RA), the biologically active derivative of vitamin A, induces a variety of embryonal carcinoma and neuroblastoma cell lines to differentiate into neurons. The molecular events underlying this process are reviewed with a view to determining whether these data can lead to a better understanding of the normal process of neuronal differentiation during development. Several transcription factors, intracellular signaling molecules, cytoplasmic proteins, and extracellular molecules are shown to be necessary and sufficient for RA-induced differentiation. The evidence that RA is an endogenous component of the developing central nervous system (CNS) is then reviewed, data which include high-pressure liquid chromotography (HPLC) measurements, reporter systems and the distribution of the enzymes that synthesize RA. The latter is particularly relevant to whether RA signals in a paracrine fashion on adjacent tissues or whether it acts in an autocrine manner on cells that synthesize it. It seems that a paracrine system may operate to begin early patterning events within the developing CNS from adjacent somites and later within the CNS itself to induce subsets of neurons. The distribution of retinoid-binding proteins, retinoid receptors, and RA-synthesizing enzymes is described as well as the effects of knockouts of these genes. Finally, the effects of a deficiency and an excess of RA on the developing CNS are described from the point of view of patterning the CNS, where it seems that the hindbrain is the most susceptible part of the CNS to altered levels of RA or RA receptors and also from the point of view of neuronal differentiation where, as in the case of embryonal carcinoma (EC) cells, RA promotes neuronal differentiation. The crucial roles played by certain genes, particularly the Hox genes in RA-induced patterning processes, are also emphasized.

HOXB7 overexpression promotes differentiation of C3H10T1/2 cells to smooth muscle cells

The presence of immature smooth muscle cells and ectopic tissues such as fully-formed bone in atherosclerotic lesions, may result from recapitulation of embryonic mechanisms in the artery wall. We hypothesized that expression of homeobox genes is triggered in atherogenesis and that these regulate proliferation and differentiation of multipotential progenitor cells along one or more specific lineages. We identified expression of the homeobox gene HOXB7 in clones of bovine aortic medial cells previously shown to be multipotent. HOXB7 was subsequently detected in human atherosclerotic plaques by RT-PCR and in situ hybridization. Expression was localized to areas adjacent to calcification and scattered in media and neointima, which may be reflective of a role in either osteoblastic or smooth muscle cell differentiation. To differentiate between these possibilities, we overexpressed HOXB7 in C3H10T1/2 cells, a multipotent cell line able to differentiate into vascular smooth muscle cells (SMC), as well as osteogenic and chondrogenic lineages. Results showed that overexpression of HOXB7 increased proliferation 3.5-fold, and induced an SMC-like cell morphology. In addition, expression of the early SMC markers calponin and SM22alpha increased 4-fold and 3-fold respectively by semi-quantitative RT-PCR. Expression of the intermediate SMC marker smooth muscle myosin heavy chain (SM-MHC) did not change. No increase in osteogenic or chondrogenic differentiation was detected, neither in the C3H10T1/2 cells nor in M2 cells, a bone marrow stromal cell line used to confirm this result. These findings suggest that HOXB7 plays a role in expansion of immature cell populations or dedifferentiation of mature cells.

Id genes are direct targets of bone morphogenetic protein induction in embryonic stem cells

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are morphogenetic signaling molecules essential for embryonic patterning. To obtain molecular insight into the influence of BMPs on morphogenesis, we searched for new genes directly activated by BMP signaling. In vitro cultured mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells were used, cultivated in chemically defined growth medium (CDM). CDM-cultured ES cells responded very selectively to stimulation by various mesoderm inducers (BMP2/4, activin A, and basic fibroblast growth factor). BMP2/4 rapidly induced transcript levels of the homeobox genes Msx-1 and Msx-2 and the proto-oncogene JunB, whereas c-jun transcripts displayed delayed albeit prolonged increase. Using differential display cDNA cloning, six direct BMP target genes were identified. These include Id3, which showed strong mRNA induction, and the moderately induced Cyr61, DEK, and eIF4AII genes, as well as a gene encoding a GC-binding protein. Besides Id3, also the Id1 and Id2 genes were activated by BMP4 in both ES cells and a range of different cell lines. Id genes encode negative regulators of basic helix-loop-helix transcription factors. In vivo we observed local ectopic expression of Id3 and Msx-2 mRNAs in Ft/+ embryos at overlapping regions of ectopic Bmp4 misexpression. We therefore propose that the Msx and Id genes are direct target genes of embryonic BMP4 signaling in vivo.

Heterotopic expression of homeobox genes as a cause of organ specific metastasis

Organ- and tissue-specific metastases have been proposed as an alteration of invasion, translocation through vascular channels, lodgment, and local proliferation. However, experimental metastasis without tumor formation at the primary site can not be explained by these hypotheses. We hypothesize here that tumor cells heterotopically express homeobox genes as a marker of their location, and that they translocate elsewhere according to positional information encoded in these genes.

Proliferation pattern of postembryonic neuroblasts in the brain of Drosophila melanogaster

The spatio-temporal proliferation pattern of postembryonic neuroblasts in the central brain region of the supra-esophageal ganglion of Drosophila melanogaster was studied by labeling DNA replicating cells with 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU). There are five proliferating neuroblasts per hemisphere in larvae just after hatching: one in the ventro-lateral, and the other four in the postero-dorsal region of the brain. Dividing neuroblasts increase during the late first-late second instar larval stages, reaching a plateau of about 85 neuroblasts per hemisphere. Most neuroblasts cease dividing 20-30 hr after puparium formation (APF), while only four in the postero-dorsal region continue making progenies until 85-90 hr APF. The four distinct neuroblasts proliferating in the early larval and late pupal stages are identical; they lie in the cortex above the calyces of the mushroom bodies (corpora pedunculata), proliferating over a period twice as long as that for the other neuroblasts. Their daughter neurons project into the mushroom body neuropile, and hence are likely to be the Kenyon cells. The cell-cycle period of the four neuroblasts (named mushroom body neuroblasts: MBNbs) is rather constant (1.1-1.5 hr) during the mid larval-early pupal stages and is longer before and after that. The total number of the MBNb progenies made throughout the embryonic and postembryonic development was estimated to be 800-1200 per hemisphere.

The expression of murine Hox-2 genes is dependent on the differentiation pathway and displays a collinear sensitivity to retinoic acid in F9 cells and Xenopus embryos

In this paper we describe experiments that detail the response of murine Hox-2 genes to cellular differentiation and retinoic acid in cell culture. Hox-2 genes are transiently activated in differentiating ES cells even in the absence of retinoic acid (RA), indicating that their induction is a normal aspect of differentiation. Furthermore, in the continuous presence of RA F9 teratocarcinoma cells show a differential ability to maintain Hox-2 expression depending upon whether the cells follow a visceral or parietal endoderm pathway. These data suggest a clear dependence of Hox-2 expression on the degree and type of differentiation in different cells. However, RA also has dramatic differentiation independent effects on Hox-2 regulation. In ES cells the levels of Hox expression are greatly enhanced by exposure to RA, and in F9 cells of the visceral or parietal phenotype the continuous presence of RA is required to maintain these high levels. Nuclear run-on experiments illustrate that Hox-2 genes are active in F9 stem cells and that a large portion of the RA induction is mediated by post-transcriptional mechanisms. Therefore RA exerts its effects on Hox-2 expression by upregulating or modulating genes which are already active, rather than by turning-on silent genes. All nine Hox-2 genes are induced in F9 cells by RA and there is a direct correlation (collinearity) between gene order and the relative dose response of each gene to RA. In Xenopus embryos treated with RA, homologues of the Hox-2 genes also displayed a temporal and dose response collinearity with gene organisation. Together these findings suggest that the collinear response to RA is highly conserved in vertebrates and combined with the ability of RA to modify expression during cellular differentiation could be an important feature of the Hox-2 cluster itself used to generate the spatially-restricted patterns of gene expression in embryogenesis.

Involvement of the Chox-4 chicken homeobox genes in determination of anteroposterior axial polarity during limb development

We have isolated and identified four chicken homeobox genes in the upstream region of the Chox-4 complex. The Chox-4g and -4f genes, at the 5' extremity of the complex, were expressed locally in the vicinity of the zone of polarizing activity (ZPA) at early stages of limb development, substantiating the involvement of the genes in anteroposterior axis determination. To confirm their function, we implanted a bead containing retinoic acid, or the ZPA itself, in the anterior margin of the limb bud, leading to formation of mirror-image duplicated digits, and observed the resultant change in gene expression. Expression of the Chox-4g and -4f genes was induced in the new digit-forming region. Those results suggest that positional information assigned by a ZPA morphogen is imprinted on cellular memory by expression of the Chox-4 genes to maintain positional signaling along the anteroposterior axis in the limb field.

The mouse homeobox gene, S8, is expressed during embryogenesis predominantly in mesenchyme

The murine S8 gene, originally identified by Kongsuwan et al. [EMBO J. 7(1988)2131-2138] encodes a homeodomain which resembles those of the paired family. We studied the expression pattern during mid-gestation embryogenesis of S8 by in situ hybridization. Expression was detected locally in craniofacial mesenchyme, in the limb, the heart and the somites and sclerotomes all along the axis, and was absent from the central and peripheral nervous system, splanchnopleure, and endodermal derivatives. This pattern differs considerably from that of most previously described homeobox containing genes. By genetic analysis, the gene was located on chromosome 2, about 20 cM from the HOX-4 cluster.

Characterization of the murine Hox-2.3 promoter: involvement of the transcription factor USF (MLTF)

The murine homeobox-containing gene Hox-2.3 contains a basal promoter in a 210-bp region upstream of the transcription start site. In vitro studies of DNA-protein interactions in this region, and in a 1.3-kb upstream region which is known to play a role in tissue specific expression in vivo, led to the identification of DNA elements interacting with nuclear proteins from embryocarcinoma cells. Among the factors binding to the basal promoter is the upstream stimulating factor (USF), also known as major late transcription factor (MLTF). A single point mutation in its binding site abolishes binding in vitro and leads to 50% reduction of the transcriptional activity as measured in receptor gene experiments, showing that it is an activator of Hox-2.3 expression.

Differential regulation by retinoic acid of the homeobox genes of the four HOX loci in human embryonal carcinoma cells

We studied the expression of 38 human homeobox genes belonging to the four HOX complex loci in embryonal carcinoma (EC) cells induced to differentiate by culturing them in a medium containing retinoic acid (RA). Genes located at the 3' end of each one of the four HOX loci are activated by RA in a sequential order colinear with their 3' to 5' arrangement in the cluster: 3' HOX genes respond early to the drug while upstream genes respond progressively later. Among the genes located at the 5' end of HOX loci RNase protection analysis reveals that one HOX3 gene and four HOX4 genes are weakly expressed in EC stem cells and downregulated upon treatment with 10(-5) M RA. While activation of early responding genes does not require continuous protein synthesis, the observed timing and polarity of gene activation is disrupted in the absence of protein synthesis.

Human HOX genes are differentially activated by retinoic acid in embryonal carcinoma cells according to their position within the four loci

We studied the expression of 33 human homeobox genes belonging to four complex HOX loci in embryonal carcinoma NT2/D1 cells. These cells can be induced to differentiate by culturing them in media containing retinoic acid. Northern blot analysis reveals that no expression of these genes was detectable in NT2/D1 stem cells, whereas 22 HOX genes are well expressed in NT2/D1 cells treated with 10 microM retinoic acid for 14 days. The 11 HOX genes the expression of which remained undetectable in NT2/D1 cells after this treatment are located at the 5' end of their loci: four in HOX1, five in HOX3 and two in HOX4. The boundary between induced and silent genes roughly corresponds to the HOX genes constituting the homology group 5, related to the Abdominal-B homeotic gene of Drosophila. All nine identified HOX2 genes are well expressed in fully induced NT2/D1 cells and none of them maps 5' genes of this homology group. We conclude that HOX genes are differentially activated by retinoic acid in these cells according to their physical location within the four chromosomal loci.

Differential expression of human HOX-2 genes along the anterior-posterior axis in embryonic central nervous system

We have investigated the structure of the human HOX-2 locus, which encompasses a 90-kb region on chromosome 17q21. Five new human HOX-2 homeoboxes, termed HOX-2.5, 2.4, 2.6, 2.7 and 2.8, have been identified, and their nucleotide sequences are reported. They have the same 5'-3' transcriptional orientation and are clustered with three previously described HOX-2 homeoboxes (5'-2.5-2.4-2.3-2.2-2.1-2.6-2.7-2.8-3'). We have also investigated the region-specific expression of HOX-2 genes in human embryonic-fetal life by Northern-blot analysis. All genes are expressed in whole embryos and fetuses at 5-9 weeks from conception. Their major site of expression lies within the central nervous system (CNS), although they are transcribed at a lower level in body structures other than the CNS. Their relatively abundant expression in CNS has been analyzed along the anterior-posterior axis by dissecting the brain, the medulla oblongata and the spinal cord proper. HOX-2.5, 2.4 and 2.3 transcripts are markedly more abundant in spinal cord than in medulla, whereas 2.2, 2.1, 2.6 and 2.7 mRNAs are progressively more abundant in the medulla. Additionally, expression in brain was detected, although at lower level, for HOX-2.1, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8. Thus, the relative position of HOX-2 homeobox genes along the chromosome in the 5'-3' direction appears to correlate with the relative position of their expression domains along the CNS longitudinal axis in the caudal-cephalic direction.

Progressively restricted expression of a homeo box gene within the aboral ectoderm of developing sea urchin embryos

A homeo box-containing gene, Hbox1 is expressed in an unusual and highly conserved spatial pattern in embryos of two different species of sea urchin, Tripneustes gratilla and Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. Hybridization in situ shows that this mRNA accumulates initially throughout the aboral ectoderm; however, between blastula and pluteus stages, the region containing Hbox1 mRNA retracts gradually until only a small area around the vertex is labeled in pluteus larvae. Aboral ectoderm appears cytologically uniform and also accumulates uniform levels of other tissue-specific mRNAs. Therefore, the Hbox1 pattern reveals a previously unsuspected heterogeneity of aboral ectoderm cells and a polarity within this tissue. In S. purpuratus, the Hbox1 gene product probably is not involved in initial specification of cell fate, as this message does not achieve a significant fraction of its peak abundance until almost hatching blastula stage, well after the time aboral ectoderm cells have initiated a tissue-specific program of gene expression. RNA blot and RNase protection analyses revealed low levels of Hbox1 mRNA in all adult tissues examined. However, this message was not detectable in mature eggs, suggesting that the Hbox1 gene does not have a maternal function. In addition to highly conserved spatial and temporal patterns of expression, the homeo box genes of these two urchin species also are conserved highly in sequences outside the homeo domain, despite the divergence of these two species (30-45 my). Two notable features of the protein shared with several vertebrate homeo proteins are a short conserved sequence encoded by an exon upstream of that encoding the homeo domain and a large region of high serine and proline content.

Posttranscriptional control of human homeobox gene expression in induced NTERA-2 embryonal carcinoma cells

We have studied the expression of four human homeobox genes representative of four different clusters (i.e., HOX-1, HOX-2, HOX-3 and HOX-5) in the embryonal carcinoma (EC) cell line NT2/D1. Following treatment with retinoic acid (RA), these cells differentiate into several cell types, including neurons, and steadily accumulate polyadenylated transcripts derived from the genes in a period ranging from 18 hr to 14 days of RA treatment. The sizes of major transcripts in differentiated EC cells coincide with those previously detected by the same probes in human embryos. Nuclear run-on transcriptional analysis showed no difference in the transcription rate of the four homeobox genes in differentiated vs. undifferentiated EC cells. Inhibition of protein synthesis by 5-18 hr of treatment of undifferentiated cells with cycloeximide causes accumulation of some homeobox transcripts at levels comparable to those observed after 18 hr of RA induction, although it does not cause superinduction in fully differentiated cells. These data suggest that the activation of homeobox gene expression in RA-induced EC cells is controlled, at least in part, by posttranscriptional mechanisms.

Characterization of a murine homeo box gene, Hox-2.6, related to the Drosophila Deformed gene

The Hox-2 locus on chromosome 11 represents one of the major clusters of homeo-box-containing genes in the mouse. We have identified two new members (Hox-2.6 and Hox-2.7), which form part of this cluster of seven linked genes, and it appears that the Hox-2 locus is related by duplication and divergence to at least one other mouse homeo box cluster, Hox-1. The Hox-2.6 gene encodes a predicted protein of 250 amino acids, which displays extensive similarity in multiple regions to certain mouse, human, Xenopus, and zebra fish homeo domain proteins. The Drosophila Deformed (Dfd) gene also shares these same regions of similarity, and based on this sequence conservation, we suggest that Hox-2.6 forms part of a vertebrate 'Dfd-like' family. Hox-2.6 is expressed in fetal and adult tissues and is modulated during the differentiation of F9 teratocarcinoma stem cells. In situ hybridization analysis of mouse embryos shows that the Hox-2.6 is expressed in ectodermal derivatives: spinal cord, hindbrain, dorsal root ganglia, and the Xth cranial ganglia. In the central nervous system, expression is observed in the most posterior parts of the spinal cord, with the anterior limit residing in a region of the hindbrain and no expression in the mid- or forebrain. In mesodermal structures, Hox-2.6 is expressed in the kidney, the mesenchyme of the stomach and lung, and the longitudinal muscle layer of the gut. Expression has not been observed in derivatives of embryonic endoderm. The patterns of Hox-2.6 expression in both mesoderm and ectoderm are spatially restricted and may reflect a role for the gene in the response to or establishment of positional cues in the embryo.