1
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Mukhatayev Z, Adilbayeva A, Kunz J. CTHRC1: An Emerging Hallmark of Pathogenic Fibroblasts in Lung Fibrosis. Cells 2024; 13:946. [PMID: 38891078 PMCID: PMC11171484 DOI: 10.3390/cells13110946] [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: 02/29/2024] [Revised: 05/13/2024] [Accepted: 05/16/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Pulmonary fibrosis is a chronic, progressive, irreversible lung disease characterized by fibrotic scarring in the lung parenchyma. This condition involves the excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) due to the aberrant activation of myofibroblasts in the alveolar environment. Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) signaling is a crucial driver of fibrogenesis because it promotes excessive ECM deposition, thereby leading to scar formation and lung damage. A primary target of TGF-β signaling in fibrosis is Collagen Triple Helix Repeat Containing 1 (CTHRC1), a secreted glycoprotein that plays a pivotal role in ECM deposition and wound repair. TGF-β transcriptionally regulates CTHRC1 in response to tissue injury and controls the wound healing response through functional activity. CTHRC1 may also play an essential role in re-establishing and maintaining tissue homeostasis after wound closure by modulating both the TGF-β and canonical Wnt signaling pathways. This dual function suggests that CTHRC1 regulates tissue remodeling and homeostasis. However, deregulated CTHRC1 expression in pathogenic fibroblasts has recently emerged as a hallmark of fibrosis in multiple organs and tissues. This review highlights recent studies suggesting that CTHRC1 can serve as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for fibrosis in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, systemic sclerosis, and post-COVID-19 lung fibrosis. Notably, CTHRC1 expression is responsive to antifibrotic drugs that target the TGF-β pathway, such as pirfenidone and bexotegrast, indicating its potential as a biomarker of treatment success. These findings suggest that CTHRC1 may present new opportunities for diagnosing and treating patients with lung fibrosis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jeannette Kunz
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Nazarbayev University, 5/1 Kerey and Zhanibek Khans St., 020000 Astana, Kazakhstan; (Z.M.); (A.A.)
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2
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Chatterjee S, Leach-Mehrwald M, Huang CK, Xiao K, Fuchs M, Otto M, Lu D, Dang V, Winkler T, Dunbar CE, Thum T, Bär C. Telomerase is essential for cardiac differentiation and sustained metabolism of human cardiomyocytes. Cell Mol Life Sci 2024; 81:196. [PMID: 38658440 PMCID: PMC11043037 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-024-05239-7] [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: 10/24/2023] [Revised: 03/29/2024] [Accepted: 04/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Telomeres as the protective ends of linear chromosomes, are synthesized by the enzyme telomerase (TERT). Critically short telomeres essentially contribute to aging-related diseases and are associated with a broad spectrum of disorders known as telomeropathies. In cardiomyocytes, telomere length is strongly correlated with cardiomyopathies but it remains ambiguous whether short telomeres are the cause or the result of the disease. In this study, we employed an inducible CRISPRi human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) line to silence TERT expression enabling the generation of hiPSCs and hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes with long and short telomeres. Reduced telomerase activity and shorter telomere lengths of hiPSCs induced global transcriptomic changes associated with cardiac developmental pathways. Consequently, the differentiation potential towards cardiomyocytes was strongly impaired and single cell RNA sequencing revealed a shift towards a more smooth muscle cell like identity in the cells with the shortest telomeres. Poor cardiomyocyte function and increased sensitivity to stress directly correlated with the extent of telomere shortening. Collectively our data demonstrates a TERT dependent cardiomyogenic differentiation defect, highlighting the CRISPRi TERT hiPSCs model as a powerful platform to study the mechanisms and consequences of short telomeres in the heart and also in the context of telomeropathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shambhabi Chatterjee
- Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapeutic Strategies (IMTTS), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
- Center of Translational Regenerative Medicine, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
- Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine, Hannover, Germany
| | - Megan Leach-Mehrwald
- Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapeutic Strategies (IMTTS), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Cheng-Kai Huang
- Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapeutic Strategies (IMTTS), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Ke Xiao
- Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapeutic Strategies (IMTTS), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
- Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine, Hannover, Germany
| | - Maximilian Fuchs
- Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine, Hannover, Germany
| | - Mandy Otto
- Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine, Hannover, Germany
| | - Dongchao Lu
- Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapeutic Strategies (IMTTS), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
- Center of Translational Regenerative Medicine, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Vinh Dang
- Translational Stem Cell Biology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Thomas Winkler
- Translational Stem Cell Biology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Cynthia E Dunbar
- Translational Stem Cell Biology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Thomas Thum
- Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapeutic Strategies (IMTTS), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
- Center of Translational Regenerative Medicine, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Christian Bär
- Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapeutic Strategies (IMTTS), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
- Center of Translational Regenerative Medicine, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
- Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine, Hannover, Germany.
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3
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Mayr CH, Sengupta A, Asgharpour S, Ansari M, Pestoni JC, Ogar P, Angelidis I, Liontos A, Rodriguez-Castillo JA, Lang NJ, Strunz M, Porras-Gonzalez D, Gerckens M, De Sadeleer LJ, Oehrle B, Viteri-Alvarez V, Fernandez IE, Tallquist M, Irmler M, Beckers J, Eickelberg O, Stoleriu GM, Behr J, Kneidinger N, Wuyts WA, Wasnick RM, Yildirim AÖ, Ahlbrecht K, Morty RE, Samakovlis C, Theis FJ, Burgstaller G, Schiller HB. Sfrp1 inhibits lung fibroblast invasion during transition to injury-induced myofibroblasts. Eur Respir J 2024; 63:2301326. [PMID: 38212077 PMCID: PMC10850614 DOI: 10.1183/13993003.01326-2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 11/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Fibroblast-to-myofibroblast conversion is a major driver of tissue remodelling in organ fibrosis. Distinct lineages of fibroblasts support homeostatic tissue niche functions, yet their specific activation states and phenotypic trajectories during injury and repair have remained unclear. METHODS We combined spatial transcriptomics, multiplexed immunostainings, longitudinal single-cell RNA-sequencing and genetic lineage tracing to study fibroblast fates during mouse lung regeneration. Our findings were validated in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis patient tissues in situ as well as in cell differentiation and invasion assays using patient lung fibroblasts. Cell differentiation and invasion assays established a function of SFRP1 in regulating human lung fibroblast invasion in response to transforming growth factor (TGF)β1. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS We discovered a transitional fibroblast state characterised by high Sfrp1 expression, derived from both Tcf21-Cre lineage positive and negative cells. Sfrp1 + cells appeared early after injury in peribronchiolar, adventitial and alveolar locations and preceded the emergence of myofibroblasts. We identified lineage-specific paracrine signals and inferred converging transcriptional trajectories towards Sfrp1 + transitional fibroblasts and Cthrc1 + myofibroblasts. TGFβ1 downregulated SFRP1 in noninvasive transitional cells and induced their switch to an invasive CTHRC1+ myofibroblast identity. Finally, using loss-of-function studies we showed that SFRP1 modulates TGFβ1-induced fibroblast invasion and RHOA pathway activity. CONCLUSIONS Our study reveals the convergence of spatially and transcriptionally distinct fibroblast lineages into transcriptionally uniform myofibroblasts and identifies SFRP1 as a modulator of TGFβ1-driven fibroblast phenotypes in fibrogenesis. These findings are relevant in the context of therapeutic interventions that aim at limiting or reversing fibroblast foci formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christoph H Mayr
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
- C.H. Mayr and A. Sengupta contributed equally to this work
| | - Arunima Sengupta
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
- C.H. Mayr and A. Sengupta contributed equally to this work
| | - Sara Asgharpour
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Meshal Ansari
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Jeanine C Pestoni
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Paulina Ogar
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Ilias Angelidis
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Andreas Liontos
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
- SciLifeLab, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Niklas J Lang
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Maximilian Strunz
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Diana Porras-Gonzalez
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Michael Gerckens
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
- Department of Internal Medicine V, Ludwig-Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), CPC-M bioArchive, Munich, Germany
| | - Laurens J De Sadeleer
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
- Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases and Thoracic Surgery (BREATHE), Department CHROMETA, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Bettina Oehrle
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Valeria Viteri-Alvarez
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Isis E Fernandez
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Michelle Tallquist
- Center for Cardiovascular Research, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA
| | - Martin Irmler
- Institute of Experimental Genetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Johannes Beckers
- Institute of Experimental Genetics, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD e.V.), Neuherberg, Germany
- Chair of Experimental Genetics, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany
| | - Oliver Eickelberg
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Gabriel Mircea Stoleriu
- Department of Internal Medicine V, Ludwig-Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), CPC-M bioArchive, Munich, Germany
| | - Jürgen Behr
- Department of Internal Medicine V, Ludwig-Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), CPC-M bioArchive, Munich, Germany
| | - Nikolaus Kneidinger
- Department of Internal Medicine V, Ludwig-Maximilians University (LMU) Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), CPC-M bioArchive, Munich, Germany
| | - Wim A Wuyts
- Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases and Thoracic Surgery (BREATHE), Department CHROMETA, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Roxana Maria Wasnick
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Ali Önder Yildirim
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
- Institute of Experimental Pneumology, LMU University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Munich, Germany
| | - Katrin Ahlbrecht
- Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Bad Nauheim, Germany
| | - Rory E Morty
- Department of Translational Pulmonology, University Hospital Heidelberg, and Translational Lung Research Center (TLRC), Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Christos Samakovlis
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
- SciLifeLab, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Fabian J Theis
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Mathematics, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Gerald Burgstaller
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
- G. Burgstaller and H.B. Schiller contributed equally to this article as lead authors and supervised the work
| | - Herbert B Schiller
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center (CPC)/Institute of Lung Health and Immunity (LHI), Helmholtz Munich, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
- Institute of Experimental Pneumology, LMU University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Munich, Germany
- G. Burgstaller and H.B. Schiller contributed equally to this article as lead authors and supervised the work
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4
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Zou J, Anai S, Ota S, Ishitani S, Oginuma M, Ishitani T. Determining zebrafish dorsal organizer size by a negative feedback loop between canonical/non-canonical Wnts and Tlr4/NFκB. Nat Commun 2023; 14:7194. [PMID: 37938219 PMCID: PMC10632484 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42963-3] [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: 01/25/2023] [Accepted: 10/26/2023] [Indexed: 11/09/2023] Open
Abstract
In vertebrate embryos, the canonical Wnt ligand primes the formation of dorsal organizers that govern dorsal-ventral patterns by secreting BMP antagonists. In contrast, in Drosophila embryos, Toll-like receptor (Tlr)-mediated NFκB activation initiates dorsal-ventral patterning, wherein Wnt-mediated negative feedback regulation of Tlr/NFκB generates a BMP antagonist-secreting signalling centre to control the dorsal-ventral pattern. Although both Wnt and BMP antagonist are conserved among species, the involvement of Tlr/NFκB and feedback regulation in vertebrate organizer formation remains unclear. By imaging and genetic modification, we reveal that a negative feedback loop between canonical and non-canonical Wnts and Tlr4/NFκB determines the size of zebrafish organizer, and that Tlr/NFκB and Wnts switch initial cue and feedback mediator roles between Drosophila and zebrafish. Here, we show that canonical Wnt signalling stimulates the expression of the non-canonical Wnt5b ligand, activating the Tlr4 receptor to stimulate NFκB-mediated transcription of the Wnt antagonist frzb, restricting Wnt-dependent dorsal organizer formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juqi Zou
- Department of Homeostatic Regulation, Division of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Satoshi Anai
- Yuuai Medical Center, Tomigusuku, Okinawa, 901-0224, Japan
| | - Satoshi Ota
- Genome Science Division, Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo, Komaba 4-6-1, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, 153-8904, Japan
| | - Shizuka Ishitani
- Department of Homeostatic Regulation, Division of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Masayuki Oginuma
- Department of Homeostatic Regulation, Division of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Tohru Ishitani
- Department of Homeostatic Regulation, Division of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.
- Center for Infectious Disease Education and Research (CiDER), Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.
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5
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Zhang C, Tannous E, Thomas A, Jung N, Ma E, Zheng JJ. Dexamethasone Modulates the Dynamics of Wnt Signaling in Human Trabecular Meshwork Cells. Vision (Basel) 2023; 7:43. [PMID: 37368816 DOI: 10.3390/vision7020043] [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: 04/10/2023] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/21/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Trabecular meshwork (TM) tissue is highly specialized, and its structural integrity is crucial for maintaining homeostatic intraocular pressure (IOP). The administration of glucocorticoids, such as dexamethasone (DEX), can perturb the TM structure and significantly increase IOP in susceptible individuals, resulting in ocular diseases such as steroid-induced glaucoma, a form of open-angle glaucoma. Although the exact mechanism involved in steroid-induced glaucoma remains elusive, increasing evidence suggests that DEX may act through various signaling cascades in TM cells. Despite uncertainty surrounding the specific process by which steroid-induced glaucoma occurs, there is growing evidence to indicate that DEX can impact multiple signaling pathways within TM cells. In this study, we examined the impact of DEX treatment on the Wnt signaling pathway in TM cells, given that Wnt signaling has been reported to play a crucial role in regulating extracellular matrix (ECM) levels in the TM. To further elucidate the role of Wnt signaling in the glaucomatous phenotype, we examined mRNA expression patterns between Wnt signaling markers AXIN2 and sFRP1 and DEX-mediated induction of myocilin (MYOC) mRNA and protein levels over 10 days in DEX-treated primary TM cells. We observed a sequential pattern of peak expression between AXIN2, sFRP1, and MYOC. Based on the study, we propose that sFRP1 upregulation could be a result of a negative feedback mechanism generated by stressed TM cells to suppress abnormal Wnt signaling activities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chi Zhang
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The Molecular Biology Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Elizabeth Tannous
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The Molecular Biology Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Alseena Thomas
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The Molecular Biology Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Natalia Jung
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The Molecular Biology Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Edmond Ma
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The Molecular Biology Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Jie J Zheng
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine, The Molecular Biology Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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6
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Yamamoto T, Kambayashi Y, Otsuka Y, Afouda B, Giuraniuc C, Michiue T, Hoppler S. Positive feedback regulation of frizzled-7 expression robustly shapes a steep Wnt gradient in Xenopus heart development, together with sFRP1 and heparan sulfate. eLife 2022; 11:73818. [PMID: 35942683 PMCID: PMC9363125 DOI: 10.7554/elife.73818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2021] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Secreted molecules called morphogens govern tissue patterning in a concentration-dependent manner. However, it is still unclear how reproducible patterning can be achieved with diffusing molecules, especially when that patterning concerns differentiation of thin tissues. Wnt is a morphogen that organizes cardiac development. Wnt6 patterns cardiogenic mesoderm to induce differentiation of a thin tissue, the pericardium, in Xenopus. In this study, we revealed that a Wnt receptor, frizzled-7, is expressed in a Wnt-dependent manner. With a combination of experiments and mathematical modeling, this receptor-feedback appears essential to shape a steep gradient of Wnt signaling. In addition, computer simulation revealed that this feedback imparts robustness against variations of Wnt ligand production and allows the system to reach a steady state quickly. We also found that a Wnt antagonist sFRP1, which is expressed on the opposite side of the Wnt source, accumulates on N-acetyl-rich heparan sulfate (HS). N-acetyl-rich HS concentration is high between the sources of Wnt and sFRP1, achieving local inhibition of Wnt signaling via restriction of sFRP1 spreading. These integrated regulatory systems restrict the Wnt signaling range and ensure reproducible patterning of the thin pericardium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takayoshi Yamamoto
- Department of Life Sciences, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo
| | - Yuta Kambayashi
- Department of Life Sciences, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo
| | - Yuta Otsuka
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo
| | - Boni Afouda
- Institute of Medical Sciences, The University of Aberdeen
| | | | - Tatsuo Michiue
- Department of Life Sciences, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo
| | - Stefan Hoppler
- Institute of Medical Sciences, The University of Aberdeen
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7
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Jeffrey DA, Pires Da Silva J, Garcia AM, Jiang X, Karimpour-Fard A, Toni LS, Lanzicher T, Peña B, Miyano CA, Nunley K, Korst A, Sbaizero O, Taylor MR, Miyamoto SD, Stauffer BL, Sucharov CC. Serum circulating proteins from pediatric dilated cardiomyopathy patients cause pathologic remodeling and cardiomyocyte stiffness. JCI Insight 2021; 6:e148637. [PMID: 34383712 PMCID: PMC8525651 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.148637] [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: 02/11/2021] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is the most common form of cardiomyopathy and main indication for heart transplantation in children. Therapies specific to pediatric DCM remain limited due to lack of a disease model. Our previous study showed that treatment of neonatal rat ventricular myocytes (NRVMs) with serum from nonfailing or DCM pediatric patients activates the fetal gene program (FGP). Here we show that serum treatment with proteinase K prevents activation of the FGP, whereas RNase treatment exacerbates it, suggesting that circulating proteins, but not circulating miRNAs, promote these pathological changes. Evaluation of the protein secretome showed that midkine (MDK) is upregulated in DCM serum, and NRVM treatment with MDK activates the FGP. Changes in gene expression in serum-treated NRVMs, evaluated by next-generation RNA-Seq, indicated extracellular matrix remodeling and focal adhesion pathways were upregulated in pediatric DCM serum and in DCM serum–treated NRVMs, suggesting alterations in cellular stiffness. Cellular stiffness was evaluated by Atomic Force Microscopy, which showed an increase in stiffness in DCM serum–treated NRVMs. Of the proteins increased in DCM sera, secreted frizzled-related protein 1 (sFRP1) was a potential candidate for the increase in cellular stiffness, and sFRP1 treatment of NRVMs recapitulated the increase in cellular stiffness observed in response to DCM serum treatment. Our results show that serum circulating proteins promoted pathological changes in gene expression and cellular stiffness, and circulating miRNAs were protective against pathological changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle A Jeffrey
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Julie Pires Da Silva
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Anastacia M Garcia
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Xuan Jiang
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Anis Karimpour-Fard
- Computational Bioscience Program, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Lee S Toni
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Thomas Lanzicher
- Department of Engineering and Architecture, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Brisa Peña
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Carissa A Miyano
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Karin Nunley
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Armin Korst
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Orfeo Sbaizero
- Department of Engineering and Architecture, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Matthew Rg Taylor
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Shelley D Miyamoto
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Brian L Stauffer
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
| | - Carmen C Sucharov
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States of America
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8
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Hsueh YC, Hodgkinson CP, Gomez JA. The role of Sfrp and DKK proteins in cardiomyocyte development. Physiol Rep 2021; 9:e14678. [PMID: 33587322 PMCID: PMC7883806 DOI: 10.14814/phy2.14678] [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: 10/09/2020] [Revised: 11/11/2020] [Accepted: 11/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In this review, we summarize the role of Wnt proteins in cardiomyogenesis. More specifically, we focus on how the development of cardiomyocytes from precursor cells involves a complex interplay between Wnt canonical β-catenin signaling pathways and Wnt noncanonical signaling pathways involving PCP and JNK. We also describe recent literature which suggests that endogenous Wnt inhibitors such as the Sfrp and DKK proteins play important roles in regulating the cardiomyocyte differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying-Chang Hsueh
- Mandel Center for Heart and Vascular Research, and the Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Conrad P Hodgkinson
- Mandel Center for Heart and Vascular Research, and the Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Jose A Gomez
- Department of Medicine, Clinical Pharmacology Division, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
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9
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Guan H, Zhang J, Luan J, Xu H, Huang Z, Yu Q, Gou X, Xu L. Secreted Frizzled Related Proteins in Cardiovascular and Metabolic Diseases. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2021; 12:712217. [PMID: 34489867 PMCID: PMC8417734 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2021.712217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 07/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Abnormal gene expression and secreted protein levels are accompanied by extensive pathological changes. Secreted frizzled related protein (SFRP) family members are antagonistic inhibitors of the Wnt signaling pathway, and they were recently found to be involved in the pathogenesis of a variety of metabolic diseases, which has led to extensive interest in SFRPs. Previous reports highlighted the importance of SFRPs in lipid metabolism, obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular diseases. In this review, we provide a detailed introduction of SFRPs, including their structural characteristics, receptors, inhibitors, signaling pathways and metabolic disease impacts. In addition to summarizing the pathologies and potential molecular mechanisms associated with SFRPs, this review further suggests the potential future use of SFRPs as disease biomarkers therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hua Guan
- State Key Laboratory of Military Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases & Shaanxi Engineering Research Center for Dental Materials and Advanced Manufacture, Department of Anethesiology, School of Stomatology, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi’an, China
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Ischemic Cardiovascular Disease, Institute of Basic and Translational Medicine, Xi’an Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Jin Zhang
- Department of Preventive Medicine, School of Stomatology, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Jing Luan
- State Key Laboratory of Military Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases & Shaanxi Engineering Research Center for Dental Materials and Advanced Manufacture, Department of Anethesiology, School of Stomatology, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi’an, China
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Brain Disorders & Institute of Basic and Translational Medicine, Xi’an Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Hao Xu
- Institution of Basic Medical Science, Xi’an Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Zhenghao Huang
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Ischemic Cardiovascular Disease, Institute of Basic and Translational Medicine, Xi’an Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Qi Yu
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Ischemic Cardiovascular Disease, Institute of Basic and Translational Medicine, Xi’an Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Xingchun Gou
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Brain Disorders & Institute of Basic and Translational Medicine, Xi’an Medical University, Xi’an, China
- *Correspondence: Lixian Xu, ; Xingchun Gou,
| | - Lixian Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Military Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases & Shaanxi Engineering Research Center for Dental Materials and Advanced Manufacture, Department of Anethesiology, School of Stomatology, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi’an, China
- *Correspondence: Lixian Xu, ; Xingchun Gou,
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10
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Huang A, Huang Y. Role of Sfrps in cardiovascular disease. Ther Adv Chronic Dis 2020; 11:2040622320901990. [PMID: 32064070 PMCID: PMC6987486 DOI: 10.1177/2040622320901990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2019] [Accepted: 12/16/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Secreted frizzled-related proteins (Sfrps) are a family of secreted proteins that
bind extracellularly to Wnt ligands and frizzled receptors. This binding
modulates the Wnt signaling cascade, and Sfrps interact with their corresponding
receptors. Sfrps are thought to play an important role in the pathological
mechanism of cardiac disease such as myocardial infarction, cardiac remodeling,
and heart failure. However, the overall role of Sfrps in cardiac disease is
unknown. Some members of the Sfrps family modulate cellular apoptosis,
angiogenesis, differentiation, the inflammatory process, and cardiac remodeling.
In this review, we summarize the evidence of Sfrps association with cardiac
disease. We also discuss how multiple mechanisms may underlie Sfrps being
involved in such diverse pathologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anqing Huang
- Department of Cardiology, Shunde Hospital, Southern Medical University, Foshan, China
| | - Yuli Huang
- Department of Cardiology, Shunde Hospital, Southern Medical University, Jiazhi Road, Lunjiao Town, Shunde District, Foshan, Guangdong 528300, China The George Institute for Global Health, NSW 2042, Australia
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11
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Liang W, Han P, Kim EH, Mak J, Zhang R, Torrente AG, Goldhaber JI, Marbán E, Cho HC. Canonical Wnt signaling promotes pacemaker cell specification of cardiac mesodermal cells derived from mouse and human embryonic stem cells. Stem Cells 2019; 38:352-368. [PMID: 31648393 DOI: 10.1002/stem.3106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2019] [Accepted: 08/30/2019] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Cardiac differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) can give rise to de novo chamber cardiomyocytes and nodal pacemaker cells. Compared with our understanding of direct differentiation toward atrial and ventricular myocytes, the mechanisms for nodal pacemaker cell commitment are not well understood. Taking a cue from the prominence of canonical Wnt signaling during cardiac pacemaker tissue development in chick embryos, we asked if modulations of Wnt signaling influence cardiac progenitors to bifurcate to either chamber cardiomyocytes or pacemaker cells. Omitting an exogenous Wnt inhibitor, which is routinely added to maximize cardiac myocyte yield during differentiation of mouse and human ESCs, led to increased yield of spontaneously beating cardiomyocytes with action potential properties similar to those of native sinoatrial node pacemaker cells. The pacemaker phenotype was accompanied by enhanced expression of genes and gene products that mark nodal pacemaker cells such as Hcn4, Tbx18, Tbx3, and Shox2. Addition of exogenous Wnt3a ligand, which activates canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling, increased the yield of pacemaker-like myocytes while reducing cTNT-positive pan-cardiac differentiation. Conversely, addition of inhibitors of Wnt/β-catenin signaling led to increased chamber myocyte lineage development at the expense of pacemaker cell specification. The positive impact of canonical Wnt signaling on nodal pacemaker cell differentiation was evidenced in direct differentiation of two human ESC lines and human induced pluripotent stem cells. Our data identify the Wnt/β-catenin pathway as a critical determinant of cardiac myocyte subtype commitment during ESC differentiation: endogenous Wnt signaling favors the pacemaker lineage, whereas its suppression promotes the chamber cardiomyocyte lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenbin Liang
- University of Ottawa Heart Institute and Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Pengcheng Han
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Elizabeth H Kim
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Jordan Mak
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Rui Zhang
- Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, Los Angeles, California
| | | | | | | | - Hee Cheol Cho
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
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12
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Guo Y, Dorn T, Kühl SJ, Linnemann A, Rothe M, Pfister AS, Vainio S, Laugwitz KL, Moretti A, Kühl M. The Wnt inhibitor Dkk1 is required for maintaining the normal cardiac differentiation program in Xenopus laevis. Dev Biol 2019; 449:1-13. [PMID: 30797757 PMCID: PMC6496975 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2019.02.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2018] [Revised: 01/15/2019] [Accepted: 02/16/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Wnt proteins can activate different intracellular signaling pathways. These pathways need to be tightly regulated for proper cardiogenesis. The canonical Wnt/β-catenin inhibitor Dkk1 has been shown to be sufficient to trigger cardiogenesis in gain-of-function experiments performed in multiple model systems. Loss-of-function studies however did not reveal any fundamental function for Dkk1 during cardiogenesis. Using Xenopus laevis as a model we here show for the first time that Dkk1 is required for proper differentiation of cardiomyocytes, whereas specification of cardiomyocytes remains unaffected in absence of Dkk1. This effect is at least in part mediated through regulation of non-canonical Wnt signaling via Wnt11. In line with these observations we also found that Isl1, a critical regulator for specification of the common cardiac progenitor cell (CPC) population, acts upstream of Dkk1. Dkk1 is required for cardiac development in Xenopus laevis. The Wnt inhibitor Dkk1 acts downstream of Isl1 during cardiac development in vivo. Loss of Dkk1 has no impact on cardiac specification in Xenopus. Normal cardiac differentiation is impaired upon Dkk1 inhibition in Xenopus. Dkk1 regulates canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling during Xenopus cardiogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanchun Guo
- Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany; International Graduate School in Molecular Medicine Ulm, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Tatjana Dorn
- Klinik und Poliklinik für Innere Medizin I, Klinikum Rechts der Isar der Technischen Universität München, Ismaninger Strasse 22, 81675 Munich, Germany
| | - Susanne J Kühl
- Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Alexander Linnemann
- Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Melanie Rothe
- Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany; International Graduate School in Molecular Medicine Ulm, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Astrid S Pfister
- Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Seppo Vainio
- Faculty of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Biocenter Oulu, InfoTech Oulu, Oulu University and Biobank Borealis of Northern Finland, Oulu University Hospital, Aapistie 5, FIN-90014, University of Oulu, Finland
| | - Karl-Ludwig Laugwitz
- Klinik und Poliklinik für Innere Medizin I, Klinikum Rechts der Isar der Technischen Universität München, Ismaninger Strasse 22, 81675 Munich, Germany; DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research) - Partner Site Munich Heart Alliance, Munich, Germany
| | - Alessandra Moretti
- Klinik und Poliklinik für Innere Medizin I, Klinikum Rechts der Isar der Technischen Universität München, Ismaninger Strasse 22, 81675 Munich, Germany; DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research) - Partner Site Munich Heart Alliance, Munich, Germany.
| | - Michael Kühl
- Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany.
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13
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Quantitative Secretomics Reveals Extrinsic Signals Involved in Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Cardiomyogenesis. Proteomics 2018; 18:e1800102. [DOI: 10.1002/pmic.201800102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2018] [Revised: 05/17/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
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14
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Sánchez-Iranzo H, Galardi-Castilla M, Sanz-Morejón A, González-Rosa JM, Costa R, Ernst A, Sainz de Aja J, Langa X, Mercader N. Transient fibrosis resolves via fibroblast inactivation in the regenerating zebrafish heart. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:4188-4193. [PMID: 29610343 PMCID: PMC5910827 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1716713115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
In the zebrafish (Danio rerio), regeneration and fibrosis after cardiac injury are not mutually exclusive responses. Upon cardiac cryoinjury, collagen and other extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins accumulate at the injury site. However, in contrast to the situation in mammals, fibrosis is transient in zebrafish and its regression is concomitant with regrowth of the myocardial wall. Little is known about the cells producing this fibrotic tissue or how it resolves. Using novel genetic tools to mark periostin b- and collagen 1alpha2 (col1a2)-expressing cells in combination with transcriptome analysis, we explored the sources of activated fibroblasts and traced their fate. We describe that during fibrosis regression, fibroblasts are not fully eliminated but become inactivated. Unexpectedly, limiting the fibrotic response by genetic ablation of col1a2-expressing cells impaired cardiomyocyte proliferation. We conclude that ECM-producing cells are key players in the regenerative process and suggest that antifibrotic therapies might be less efficient than strategies targeting fibroblast inactivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Héctor Sánchez-Iranzo
- Development of the Epicardium and Its Role During Regeneration Group, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | - María Galardi-Castilla
- Development of the Epicardium and Its Role During Regeneration Group, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | - Andrés Sanz-Morejón
- Development of the Epicardium and Its Role During Regeneration Group, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
- Institute of Anatomy, University of Bern, 3000 Bern 9, Switzerland
| | - Juan Manuel González-Rosa
- Development of the Epicardium and Its Role During Regeneration Group, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | - Ricardo Costa
- Development of the Epicardium and Its Role During Regeneration Group, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
- Centre for Research in Agricultural Genomics (CRAG) Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científica (CSIC)-Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentaries (IRTA)-Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB)-Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Campus UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alexander Ernst
- Institute of Anatomy, University of Bern, 3000 Bern 9, Switzerland
| | - Julio Sainz de Aja
- Functional Genomics Group, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | - Xavier Langa
- Institute of Anatomy, University of Bern, 3000 Bern 9, Switzerland
| | - Nadia Mercader
- Development of the Epicardium and Its Role During Regeneration Group, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain;
- Institute of Anatomy, University of Bern, 3000 Bern 9, Switzerland
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15
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Abstract
Wnt signalling regulates cardiogenesis during specification of heart tissue and the morphogenetic movements necessary to form the linear heart. Wnt11-mediated non-canonical signalling promotes early cardiac development whilst Wnt11-R, which is expressed later, also signals through the non-canonical pathway to promote heart development. It is unclear which Frizzled proteins mediate these interactions. Frizzled-7 (fzd7) is expressed during gastrulation in the mesodermal cells fated to become heart, and then in the primary heart field. This expression is complementary to the expression of wnt11 and wnt11-R. We further show co-localisation of fzd7 with other early- and late-heart-specific markers using double in situ hybridisation. We have used loss of function analysis to determine the role of fzd7 during heart development. Morpholino antisense oligonucleotide-mediated knockdown of Fzd7 results in effects on heart development, similar to that caused by Wnt11 loss of function. Surprisingly, overexpression of dominant-negative Fzd7 cysteine rich domain (Fzd7 CRD) results in a cardia bifida phenotype, similar to the loss of wnt11-R phenotype. Overexpression of Fzd7 and activation of non-canonical wnt signalling can rescue the effect of Fzd7 CRD. We propose that Fzd7 has an important role during Xenopus heart development. Summary: Wnt signalling has been shown to be important in heart development. Here, we demonstrate that the wnt receptor fzd7 is required in mediating these Wnt signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Abu-Elmagd
- Center of Excellence in Genomic Medicine Research, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80216 Jeddah 21589, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.,School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Joanna Mulvaney
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Grant N Wheeler
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK
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16
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Therapeutic effect of a novel Wnt pathway inhibitor on cardiac regeneration after myocardial infarction. Clin Sci (Lond) 2017; 131:2919-2932. [PMID: 29162747 DOI: 10.1042/cs20171256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2017] [Revised: 11/10/2017] [Accepted: 11/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
After myocardial infarction (MI), the heart is difficult to repair because of great loss of cardiomyoctyes and lack of cardiac regeneration. Novel drug candidates that aim at reducing pathological remodeling and stimulating cardiac regeneration are highly desirable. In the present study, we identified if and how a novel porcupine inhibitor CGX1321 influenced MI and cardiac regeneration. Permanent ligation of left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery was performed in mice to induce MI injury. Cardiac function was measured by echocardiography, infarct size was examined by TTC staining. Fibrosis was evaluated with Masson's trichrome staining and vimentin staining. As a result, CGX1321 administration blocked the secretion of Wnt proteins, and inhibited both canonical and non-canonical Wnt signaling pathways. CGX1321 improved cardiac function, reduced myocardial infarct size, and fibrosis of post-MI hearts. CGX1321 significantly increased newly formed cardiomyocytes in infarct border zone of post-MI hearts, evidenced by the increased EdU+ cardiomyocytes. Meanwhile, CGX1321 increased Ki67+ and phosphohistone H3 (PH3+) cardiomyocytes in culture, indicating enhanced cardiomyocyte proliferation. The mRNA microarray showed that CGX1321 up-regulated cell cycle regulating genes such as Ccnb1 and Ccne1 CGX1321 did not alter YAP protein phosphorylation and nuclear translocation in cardiomyocytes. In conclusion, porcupine inhibitor CGX1321 reduces MI injury by limiting fibrosis and promoting regeneration. It promotes cardiomyocyte proliferation by stimulating cell cycle regulating genes with a Hippo/YAP-independent pathway.
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17
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Hartung N, Benary U, Wolf J, Kofahl B. Paracrine and autocrine regulation of gene expression by Wnt-inhibitor Dickkopf in wild-type and mutant hepatocytes. BMC SYSTEMS BIOLOGY 2017; 11:98. [PMID: 29029622 PMCID: PMC5640931 DOI: 10.1186/s12918-017-0470-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2017] [Accepted: 10/02/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Background Cells are able to communicate and coordinate their function within tissues via secreted factors. Aberrant secretion by cancer cells can modulate this intercellular communication, in particular in highly organised tissues such as the liver. Hepatocytes, the major cell type of the liver, secrete Dickkopf (Dkk), which inhibits Wnt/ β-catenin signalling in an autocrine and paracrine manner. Consequently, Dkk modulates the expression of Wnt/ β-catenin target genes. We present a mathematical model that describes the autocrine and paracrine regulation of hepatic gene expression by Dkk under wild-type conditions as well as in the presence of mutant cells. Results Our spatial model describes the competition of Dkk and Wnt at receptor level, intra-cellular Wnt/ β-catenin signalling, and the regulation of target gene expression for 21 individual hepatocytes. Autocrine and paracrine regulation is mediated through a feedback mechanism via Dkk and Dkk diffusion along the porto-central axis. Along this axis an APC concentration gradient is modelled as experimentally detected in liver. Simulations of mutant cells demonstrate that already a single mutant cell increases overall Dkk concentration. The influence of the mutant cell on gene expression of surrounding wild-type hepatocytes is limited in magnitude and restricted to hepatocytes in close proximity. To explore the underlying molecular mechanisms, we perform a comprehensive analysis of the model parameters such as diffusion coefficient, mutation strength and feedback strength. Conclusions Our simulations show that Dkk concentration is elevated in the presence of a mutant cell. However, the impact of these elevated Dkk levels on wild-type hepatocytes is confined in space and magnitude. The combination of inter- and intracellular processes, such as Dkk feedback, diffusion and Wnt/ β-catenin signal transduction, allow wild-type hepatocytes to largely maintain their gene expression. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12918-017-0470-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niklas Hartung
- University of Potsdam, Institute of Mathematics, Karl-Liebknecht-Str. 24, Potsdam, 14476, Germany
| | - Uwe Benary
- Mathematical Modelling of Cellular Processes, Max Delbrueck Center for Molecular Medicine, Robert-Roessle-Str. 10, Berlin, 13125, Germany
| | - Jana Wolf
- Mathematical Modelling of Cellular Processes, Max Delbrueck Center for Molecular Medicine, Robert-Roessle-Str. 10, Berlin, 13125, Germany
| | - Bente Kofahl
- Mathematical Modelling of Cellular Processes, Max Delbrueck Center for Molecular Medicine, Robert-Roessle-Str. 10, Berlin, 13125, Germany. .,Current address: Institute of Physics, University of Freiburg, Hermann-Herder-Str. 3, Freiburg i. Br., 79104, Germany.
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18
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Qiu L, Chen J, Lin J, Wo D, Chu J, Peng J. Baicalin alleviates H2O2-induced injury of H9c2 cardiomyocytes through suppression of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Mol Med Rep 2017; 16:9251-9255. [DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2017.7748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2017] [Accepted: 09/06/2017] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
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Chai H, Yan Z, Huang K, Jiang Y, Zhang L. MicroRNA expression, target genes, and signaling pathways in infants with a ventricular septal defect. Mol Cell Biochem 2017; 439:171-187. [PMID: 28822034 DOI: 10.1007/s11010-017-3146-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2017] [Accepted: 08/02/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
This study aimed to systematically investigate the relationship between miRNA expression and the occurrence of ventricular septal defect (VSD), and characterize the miRNA target genes and pathways that can lead to VSD. The miRNAs that were differentially expressed in blood samples from VSD and normal infants were screened and validated by implementing miRNA microarrays and qRT-PCR. The target genes regulated by differentially expressed miRNAs were predicted using three target gene databases. The functions and signaling pathways of the target genes were enriched using the GO database and KEGG database, respectively. The transcription and protein expression of specific target genes in critical pathways were compared in the VSD and normal control groups using qRT-PCR and western blotting, respectively. Compared with the normal control group, the VSD group had 22 differentially expressed miRNAs; 19 were downregulated and three were upregulated. The 10,677 predicted target genes participated in many biological functions related to cardiac development and morphogenesis. Four target genes (mGLUR, Gq, PLC, and PKC) were involved in the PKC pathway and four (ECM, FAK, PI3 K, and PDK1) were involved in the PI3 K-Akt pathway. The transcription and protein expression of these eight target genes were significantly upregulated in the VSD group. The 22 miRNAs that were dysregulated in the VSD group were mainly downregulated, which may result in the dysregulation of several key genes and biological functions related to cardiac development. These effects could also be exerted via the upregulation of eight specific target genes, the subsequent over-activation of the PKC and PI3 K-Akt pathways, and the eventual abnormal cardiac development and VSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Chai
- College of Life Science, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, 310053, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Zhaoyuan Yan
- College of Life Science, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, 310053, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Ke Huang
- Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, 310058, Zhejiang Province, China
| | | | - Lin Zhang
- College of Life Science, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, 310053, Zhejiang Province, China.
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20
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Bhuvanalakshmi G, Arfuso F, Kumar AP, Dharmarajan A, Warrier S. Epigenetic reprogramming converts human Wharton's jelly mesenchymal stem cells into functional cardiomyocytes by differential regulation of Wnt mediators. Stem Cell Res Ther 2017; 8:185. [PMID: 28807014 PMCID: PMC5557557 DOI: 10.1186/s13287-017-0638-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2017] [Revised: 07/14/2017] [Accepted: 07/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Lineage commitment of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to cardiac differentiation is controlled by transcription factors that are regulated by epigenetic events, mainly histone deacetylation and promoter DNA methylation. Here, we studied the differentiation of human Wharton’s jelly MSCs (WJMSCs) into the cardiomyocyte lineage via epigenetic manipulations. Methods We introduced these changes using inhibitors of DNA methyl transferase and histone deacetylase, DC301, DC302, and DC303, in various combinations. We characterized for cardiogenic differentiation by assessing the expression of cardiac-specific markers by immunolocalization, quantitative RT-PCR, and flow cytometry. Cardiac functional studies were performed by FURA2AM staining and Greiss assay. The role of Wnt signaling during cardiac differentiation was analyzed by quantitative RT-PCR. In-vivo studies were performed in a doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxic mouse model by injecting cardiac progenitor cells. Promoter methylation status of the cardiac transcription factor Nkx2.5 and the Wnt antagonist, secreted frizzled-related protein 4 (sFRP4), after cardiac differentiation was studied by bisulfite sequencing. Results By induction with DC301 and DC302, WJMSCs differentiated into cardiomyocyte-like structures with an upregulation of Wnt antagonists, sFRP3 and sFRP4, and Dickkopf (Dkk)1 and Dkk3. The cardiac function enhancer, vinculin, and DDX20, a DEAD-box RNA helicase, were also upregulated in differentiated cardiomyocytes. Additionally, bisulfite sequencing revealed, for the first time in cardiogenesis, that sFRP4 is activated by promoter CpG island demethylation. In vivo, these MSC-derived cardiac progenitors could not only successfully engraft to the site of cardiac injury in mice with doxorubicin-induced cardiac injury, but also form functional cardiomyocytes and restore cardiac function. Conclusion The present study unveils a link between Wnt inhibition and epigenetic modification to initiate cardiac differentiation, which could enhance the efficacy of stem cell therapy for ischemic heart disorders. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13287-017-0638-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Bhuvanalakshmi
- Division of Cancer Stem Cells and Cardiovascular Regeneration, Manipal Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Manipal University, Bangalore, 560 065, India
| | - Frank Arfuso
- Stem Cell and Cancer Biology Laboratory, School of Biomedical Sciences, Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, WA, 6845, Australia.,School of Anatomy, Physiology and Human Biology, Faculty of Science, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA, 6009, Australia
| | - Alan Prem Kumar
- Division of Cancer Stem Cells and Cardiovascular Regeneration, Manipal Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Manipal University, Bangalore, 560 065, India.,Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117599, Singapore.,Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117597, Singapore.,School of Biomedical Sciences, Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, WA, 6102, Australia.,National University Cancer Institute, Singapore, 119074, Singapore.,Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, 76203-5017, USA
| | - Arun Dharmarajan
- Stem Cell and Cancer Biology Laboratory, School of Biomedical Sciences, Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, WA, 6845, Australia
| | - Sudha Warrier
- Division of Cancer Stem Cells and Cardiovascular Regeneration, Manipal Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Manipal University, Bangalore, 560 065, India. .,School of Biomedical Sciences, Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, WA, 6102, Australia. .,Curtin Medical School, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, WA, 6875, Australia.
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21
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Ahadome SD, Zhang C, Tannous E, Shen J, Zheng JJ. Small-molecule inhibition of Wnt signaling abrogates dexamethasone-induced phenotype of primary human trabecular meshwork cells. Exp Cell Res 2017; 357:116-123. [PMID: 28526237 DOI: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2017.05.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2016] [Revised: 05/03/2017] [Accepted: 05/08/2017] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Trabecular meshwork (TM) cells are the governing regulators of the TM structure. When the functionality of these cells is impaired, the structure of the TM is perturbed which often results in increased ocular hypertension. High intraocular pressure is the most significant risk factor for steroid-induced glaucoma. Dexamethasone (Dex)-induced phenotype of TM cells is widely utilized as a model system to gain insight into mechanisms underlying damaged TM in glaucoma. In this study, to assess the possible role of abnormal Wnt signaling in steroid-induced glaucoma, we analyzed the effects of small-molecule Wnt signaling modulators on Dex-induced expression extracellular matrix proteins of primary human TM cells. While Dex-treated TM cells exhibited increased collagen and fibronectin expression, we found that Wnt signaling inhibitor 3235-0367 suppressed these Dex-induced effects. We therefore propose that Wnt signaling plays an important role in Dex-mediated impairment of TM cell functions. Moreover, the use of small-molecule Wnt signaling inhibitors to treat TM cells may provide an opportunity of restoring TM tissue in steroid-induced glaucoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah D Ahadome
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine and Molecular Biology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Chi Zhang
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine and Molecular Biology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Elizabeth Tannous
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine and Molecular Biology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - James Shen
- ScienCell Research Laboratories, Carlsbad, CA 92011, USA
| | - Jie J Zheng
- Stein Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine and Molecular Biology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
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22
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P53/Rb inhibition induces metastatic adrenocortical carcinomas in a preclinical transgenic model. Oncogene 2017; 36:4445-4456. [PMID: 28368424 DOI: 10.1038/onc.2017.54] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2016] [Revised: 12/20/2016] [Accepted: 02/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is a rare cancer with poor prognosis. Pan-genomic analyses identified p53/Rb and WNT/β-catenin signaling pathways as main contributors to the disease. However, isolated β-catenin constitutive activation failed to induce malignant progression in mouse adrenocortical tumors. Therefore, there still was a need for a relevant animal model to study ACC pathogenesis and to test new therapeutic approaches. Here, we have developed a transgenic mice model with adrenocortical specific expression of SV40 large T-antigen (AdTAg mice), to test the oncogenic potential of p53/Rb inhibition in the adrenal gland. All AdTAg mice develop large adrenal carcinomas that eventually metastasize to the liver and lungs, resulting in decreased overall survival. Consistent with ACC in patients, adrenal tumors in AdTAg mice autonomously produce large amounts of glucocorticoids and spontaneously activate WNT/β-catenin signaling pathway during malignant progression. We show that this activation is associated with downregulation of secreted frizzled related proteins (Sfrp) and Znrf3 that act as inhibitors of the WNT signaling. We also show that mTORC1 pathway activation is an early event during neoplasia expansion and further demonstrate that mTORC1 pathway is activated in ACC patients. Preclinical inhibition of mTORC1 activity induces a marked reduction in tumor size, associated with induction of apoptosis and inhibition of proliferation that results in normalization of corticosterone plasma levels in AdTAg mice. Altogether, these data establish AdTAg mice as the first preclinical model for metastatic ACC.
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23
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Stevens ML, Chaturvedi P, Rankin SA, Macdonald M, Jagannathan S, Yukawa M, Barski A, Zorn AM. Genomic integration of Wnt/β-catenin and BMP/Smad1 signaling coordinates foregut and hindgut transcriptional programs. Development 2017; 144:1283-1295. [PMID: 28219948 DOI: 10.1242/dev.145789] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2016] [Accepted: 02/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Digestive system development is orchestrated by combinatorial signaling interactions between endoderm and mesoderm, but how these signals are interpreted in the genome is poorly understood. Here we identified the transcriptomes of Xenopus foregut and hindgut progenitors, which are conserved with mammals. Using RNA-seq and ChIP-seq we show that BMP/Smad1 regulates dorsal-ventral gene expression in both the endoderm and mesoderm, whereas Wnt/β-catenin acts as a genome-wide toggle between foregut and hindgut programs. Unexpectedly, β-catenin and Smad1 binding were associated with both transcriptional activation and repression, with Wnt-repressed genes often lacking canonical Tcf DNA binding motifs, suggesting a novel mode of direct repression. Combinatorial Wnt and BMP signaling was mediated by Smad1 and β-catenin co-occupying hundreds of cis-regulatory DNA elements, and by a crosstalk whereby Wnt negatively regulates BMP ligand expression in the foregut. These results extend our understanding of gastrointestinal organogenesis and of how Wnt and BMP might coordinate genomic responses in other contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana L Stevens
- Division of Developmental Biology, Perinatal Institute, Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation and Department of Pediatrics College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Praneet Chaturvedi
- Division of Developmental Biology, Perinatal Institute, Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation and Department of Pediatrics College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Scott A Rankin
- Division of Developmental Biology, Perinatal Institute, Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation and Department of Pediatrics College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Melissa Macdonald
- Division of Developmental Biology, Perinatal Institute, Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation and Department of Pediatrics College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Sajjeev Jagannathan
- Division of Allergy & Immunology and Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation and Department of Pediatrics College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Masashi Yukawa
- Division of Allergy & Immunology and Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation and Department of Pediatrics College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Artem Barski
- Division of Allergy & Immunology and Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation and Department of Pediatrics College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Aaron M Zorn
- Division of Developmental Biology, Perinatal Institute, Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation and Department of Pediatrics College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
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24
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Cross-talk of SFRP4, integrin α1β1, and Notch1 inhibits cardiac differentiation of P19CL6 cells. Cell Signal 2016; 28:1806-15. [PMID: 27542621 DOI: 10.1016/j.cellsig.2016.08.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2016] [Revised: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 08/15/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Signaling pathways play an important role in cardiogenesis. Secreted frizzled-related protein 4 (SFRP4), a member of the Wnt family, contributes to adipogenesis and tumorigenesis. However, how SFRP4 participates in cardiogenesis and the detailed molecular mechanisms involved have not been elucidated. The aim of this work was to determine cross-talk between SFRP4, integrin α1β1, and Notch1 during cardiac differentiation of P19CL6 cells. Using a well-established in vitro P19CL6 cell cardiomyocyte differentiation system, we found that SFRP4 inhibited P19CL6 cell cardiac differentiation via SFRP4 overexpression or knockdown. In addition, the SFRP4 overexpression augmented Notch1 and HES1 production. Further investigation demonstrated that SFRP4 bound to integrin α1β1 to activate the focal adhesion kinase (FAK) pathway and that phosphorylated FAK Y397 (p-FAK Y397) aided Notch intracellular domain 1 (NICD1) nuclear translocation to form a p-FAK Y397-NICD1 complex that activated the Hes1 promoter. Taken together, the cross-talk between SFRP4, integrin α1β1, and Notch1 suppresses the cardiac differentiation of P19CL6 cells.
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25
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Brinkmann EM, Mattes B, Kumar R, Hagemann AIH, Gradl D, Scholpp S, Steinbeisser H, Kaufmann LT, Özbek S. Secreted Frizzled-related Protein 2 (sFRP2) Redirects Non-canonical Wnt Signaling from Fz7 to Ror2 during Vertebrate Gastrulation. J Biol Chem 2016; 291:13730-42. [PMID: 27129770 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m116.733766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2016] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Convergent extension movements during vertebrate gastrulation require a balanced activity of non-canonical Wnt signaling pathways, but the factors regulating this interplay on the molecular level are poorly characterized. Here we show that sFRP2, a member of the secreted frizzled-related protein (sFRP) family, is required for morphogenesis and papc expression during Xenopus gastrulation. We further provide evidence that sFRP2 redirects non-canonical Wnt signaling from Frizzled 7 (Fz7) to the receptor tyrosine kinase-like orphan receptor 2 (Ror2). During this process, sFRP2 promotes Ror2 signal transduction by stabilizing Wnt5a-Ror2 complexes at the membrane, whereas it inhibits Fz7 signaling, probably by blocking Fz7 receptor endocytosis. The cysteine-rich domain of sFRP2 is sufficient for Ror2 activation, and related sFRPs can substitute for this function. Notably, direct interaction of the two receptors via their cysteine-rich domains also promotes Ror2-mediated papc expression but inhibits Fz7 signaling. We propose that sFRPs can act as a molecular switch, channeling the signal input for different non-canonical Wnt pathways during vertebrate gastrulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva-Maria Brinkmann
- From the Institute of Human Genetics, Department of Developmental Genetics, University Hospital Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Benjamin Mattes
- the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Toxicology and Genetics, 76344 Karlsruhe, Germany
| | - Rahul Kumar
- From the Institute of Human Genetics, Department of Developmental Genetics, University Hospital Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Anja I H Hagemann
- the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Toxicology and Genetics, 76344 Karlsruhe, Germany
| | - Dietmar Gradl
- the Zoological Institute, Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany, and
| | - Steffen Scholpp
- the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Toxicology and Genetics, 76344 Karlsruhe, Germany
| | - Herbert Steinbeisser
- From the Institute of Human Genetics, Department of Developmental Genetics, University Hospital Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Lilian T Kaufmann
- From the Institute of Human Genetics, Department of Developmental Genetics, University Hospital Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany,
| | - Suat Özbek
- the Centre of Organismal Studies, Department of Molecular Evolution and Genomics, University of Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
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26
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Guo R, Liu G, Du M, Shi Y, Jiang P, Liu X, Liu L, Liu J, Xu Y. Early ketamine exposure results in cardiac enlargement and heart dysfunction in Xenopus embryos. BMC Anesthesiol 2016; 16:23. [PMID: 27091482 PMCID: PMC4836076 DOI: 10.1186/s12871-016-0188-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2015] [Accepted: 02/25/2016] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ketamine is a commonly used clinical anesthetic and a popular recreational drug. However, with the exception of studies about the nervous system, studies about the effect of early ketamine exposure on embryos are rare. Xenopus laevis is a commonly used vertebrate model for assessing teratogenicity. Therefore, we treated Xenopus embryos with ketamine to evaluate its teratogenicity on embryos. METHODS Xenopus embryos were treated with ketamine from stages 8 to 21. Embryonic and cardiac morphology were analyzed using living embryo imaging and whole-mount RNA in situ hybridization (WMISH). Heart function was measured by heart rate and ventricular shortening fraction (VSF). The mRNA expression levels of several heart development-related genes were determined by reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). The protein expression levels of XMLC2, phospho-histone H3 (pH3) and histone H3 were determined by western blot. RESULTS Ketamine caused concentration-dependent increases in mortality and shortening of body length. At a dose of 0.5 mg/ml, ketamine exposure resulted in cardiac enlargement as the primary manifestation of several malformations: gut defects, a curved axis and shortened body length. Cardiac cells underwent increased proliferation. Moreover, the heart rate and ventricular shortening fraction were decreased, findings indicative of heart dysfunction. XMLC2 expression levels were down-regulated at stages 28, 32/33, 35/36 and 46. CONCLUSIONS Ketamine exposure during early development has teratogenic effects on Xenopus embryos. The heart enlargement and decreased VSF may result from the down-regulation of XMLC2 mRNA and protein levels. These findings provide new insight into the potential fetal defects induced by ketamine exposure during early pregnancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ran Guo
- Department of Anesthesiology, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Pediatrics in Chongqing, Chongqing International Science and Technology Cooperation Center for Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Translational Medical Research in Cognitive Development and Learning and Memory Disorders, Chongqing, 400014, PR China
| | - Guangjian Liu
- Department of Anesthesiology, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Pediatrics in Chongqing, Chongqing International Science and Technology Cooperation Center for Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Translational Medical Research in Cognitive Development and Learning and Memory Disorders, Chongqing, 400014, PR China
| | - Min Du
- Department of Anesthesiology, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, No.136, Zhongshan Er Lu, Yuzhong District, Chongqing City, 400014, PR China
| | - Yu Shi
- Department of Clinical laboratory, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400014, PR China
| | - Pu Jiang
- Department of Forensic Medicine, College of Basic Medicine, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400016, PR China
| | - Xiaoli Liu
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Lan Liu
- Department of Anesthesiology, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Key Laboratory of Pediatrics in Chongqing, Chongqing International Science and Technology Cooperation Center for Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Translational Medical Research in Cognitive Development and Learning and Memory Disorders, Chongqing, 400014, PR China
| | - Jianxia Liu
- Department of Anesthesiology, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, No.136, Zhongshan Er Lu, Yuzhong District, Chongqing City, 400014, PR China
| | - Ying Xu
- Department of Anesthesiology, Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, No.136, Zhongshan Er Lu, Yuzhong District, Chongqing City, 400014, PR China.
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27
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Ge C, Wu S, Wang W, Liu Z, Zhang J, Wang Z, Li R, Zhang Z, Li Z, Dong S, Wang Y, Xue Y, Yang J, Tan Q, Wang Z, Song X. miR-942 promotes cancer stem cell-like traits in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma through activation of Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway. Oncotarget 2016; 6:10964-77. [PMID: 25844602 PMCID: PMC4484432 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.3696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2014] [Accepted: 03/02/2015] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway is known to play a vital role in the maintenance of cancer stem cells (CSCs), which are reported to be the origine of malignant cancers, and result in poor prognosis of multiple kinds of cancer. Therefore, it is of great importance to illuminate the mechanism by which the Wnt/β-catenin pathway regulates the cancer stem cell-like traits in cancers. Here, we report that miR-942 is significantly upregulated in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), and miR-942 levels are associated with poor prognosis in ESCC patients. Overexpression of miR-942 promotes, whereas inhibition of miR-942 decreases, the tumor sphere formation, the CD90+ subpopulation cells and the expression of pluripotency associated markers. Moreover, in vivo assay shows that miR-942 overexpressing cells form larger tumors and display higher tumourigenesis. Furthermore, we demonstrate that miR-942 upregulates the Wnt/β-catenin signaling activity via directly targeting sFRP4, GSK3β and TLE1, which are multiple level negative regulators of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling cascade. In addition, our results indicate that c-myc directly binds to the miR-942 promoter and promotes its expression. Taken together, our findings establish an oncogenic role of miR-942 in ESCC and indicate that miR-942 might be an effective therapeutic target for ESCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunlei Ge
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Shikai Wu
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Hospital of Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Weiwei Wang
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhimin Liu
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Jianhua Zhang
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhenyu Wang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering Research Center, Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Ruilei Li
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhiwei Zhang
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhen Li
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Suwei Dong
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Ying Wang
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Yuanbo Xue
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Jinyan Yang
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Qinghua Tan
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
| | - Ziping Wang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Institute and Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS), Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Xin Song
- Department of Cancer Biotherapy Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Tumor Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, Yunnan, People's Republic of China
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28
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Ruiz-Villalba A, Hoppler S, van den Hoff MJB. Wnt signaling in the heart fields: Variations on a common theme. Dev Dyn 2016; 245:294-306. [PMID: 26638115 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.24372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2015] [Revised: 11/17/2015] [Accepted: 11/18/2015] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Wnt signaling plays an essential role in development and differentiation. Heart development is initiated with the induction of precardiac mesoderm requiring the tightly and spatially controlled regulation of canonical and noncanonical Wnt signaling pathways. The role of Wnt signaling in subsequent development of the heart fields is to a large extent unclear. We will discuss the role of Wnt signaling in the development of the arterial and venous pole of the heart, highlighting the dual roles of Wnt signaling with respect to its time- and dosage-dependent effects and the balance between the canonical and noncanonical signaling. Canonical signaling appears to be involved in retaining the cardiac precursors in a proliferative and precursor state, whereas noncanonical signaling promotes their differentiation. Thereafter, both canonical and noncanonical signaling regulate specific steps in differentiation of the cardiac compartments. Because heart development is a contiguous, rather than a sequential, process, analyses tend only to show a single timeframe of development. The repetitive alternating and reciprocal effect of canonical and noncanonical signaling is lost when studied in homogenates. Without the simultaneous in vivo visualization of the different Wnt signaling pathways, the mechanism of Wnt signaling in heart development remains elusive.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrián Ruiz-Villalba
- Academic Medical Center, Department of Anatomy, Embryology and Physiology, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Stefan Hoppler
- Cardiovascular Biology and Medicine Research Programme, Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Maurice J B van den Hoff
- Academic Medical Center, Department of Anatomy, Embryology and Physiology, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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29
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Schmeckpeper J, Verma A, Yin L, Beigi F, Zhang L, Payne A, Zhang Z, Pratt RE, Dzau VJ, Mirotsou M. Inhibition of Wnt6 by Sfrp2 regulates adult cardiac progenitor cell differentiation by differential modulation of Wnt pathways. J Mol Cell Cardiol 2015; 85:215-25. [PMID: 26071893 PMCID: PMC4838816 DOI: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2015.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2015] [Revised: 05/10/2015] [Accepted: 06/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Wnt signaling has recently emerged as an important regulator of cardiac progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation, but the exact mechanisms by which Wnt signaling modulates these effects are not known. Understanding these mechanisms is essential for advancing our knowledge of cardiac progenitor cell biology and applying this knowledge to enhance cardiac therapy. Here, we explored the effects of Sfrp2, a canonical Wnt inhibitor, in adult cardiac progenitor cell (CPC) differentiation and investigated the molecular mechanisms involved. Our data show that Sfrp2 treatment can promote differentiation of CPCs after ischemia-reperfusion injury. Treatment of CPCs with Sfrp2 inhibited CPC proliferation and primed them for cardiac differentiation. Sfrp2 binding to Wnt6 and inhibition of Wnt6 canonical pathway was essential for the inhibition of CPC proliferation. This inhibition of Wnt6 canonical signaling by Sfrp2 was important for activation of the non-canonical Wnt/Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) pathway through JNK, which in turn induced expression of cardiac transcription factors and CPC differentiation. Taken together, these results demonstrate a novel role of Sfrp2 and Wnt6 in regulating the dynamic process of CPC proliferation and differentiation, as well as providing new insights into the mechanisms of Wnt signaling in cardiac differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey Schmeckpeper
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Amanda Verma
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Lucy Yin
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Farideh Beigi
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Lunan Zhang
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Alan Payne
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Zhiping Zhang
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Richard E Pratt
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA; Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Victor J Dzau
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA; Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
| | - Maria Mirotsou
- Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center & Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA; Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
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30
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Perumal V, Krishnan K, Gratton E, Dharmarajan AM, Fox SA. Number and brightness analysis of sFRP4 domains in live cells demonstrates vesicle association signal of the NLD domain and dynamic intracellular responses to Wnt3a. Int J Biochem Cell Biol 2015; 64:91-6. [PMID: 25805505 DOI: 10.1016/j.biocel.2015.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2014] [Revised: 03/10/2015] [Accepted: 03/13/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The Wnts are secreted, lipidated glycoproteins that play a role in cellular processes of differentiation, proliferation, migration, survival, polarity and stem cell self-renewal. The majority of Wnts biological effects are through binding to specific frizzled (Fzd) receptor complexes leading to activation of downstream pathways. Secreted frizzled-related proteins (sFRPs) were first identified as antagonists of Wnt signalling by binding directly to Wnts. They comprise two domains, a Fzd-like cysteine rich domain (CRD) and a netrin-like domain (NLD). Subsequently sFRPs have been shown to also interact with Fzd receptors and more diverse functions have been identified, including potentiation of Wnt signalling. Many aspects of the biology of this family remain to be elucidated. We used the number and brightness (N&B) method, a technique based on fluorescence fluctuation analysis, to characterise the intracellular aggregation and trafficking of sFRP4 domains. We expressed sFRP4 and its' domains as EGFP fusions and then characterised the effect of endogenous Wnt3a by fluorescence confocal imaging. We observed vesicular trafficking of sFRP4 and that the NLD domain has a vesicular association signal. We found that sFRP4 and the CRD formed oligomeric aggregates in the perinuclear region while the NLD was distributed evenly throughout the cell with a larger proportion of aggregates. Most significantly we observed intracellular redistribution of sFRP4 in response to Wnt3a suggesting that Wnt3a can modulate intracellular localisation and secretion of sFRP4. Our results reveal a number of novel findings regarding sFRP4 which are likely to have relevance to this wider family.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vanathi Perumal
- Molecular Pharmacology Laboratory, School of Pharmacy, CHIRI Biosciences Research Precinct, Curtin University, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Kannan Krishnan
- Centre for Environmental Risk Assessment and Remediation, University of South Australia, South Australia, Australia
| | - Enrico Gratton
- Laboratory for Fluorescence Dynamics, Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Irvine, USA
| | - Arun M Dharmarajan
- School of Biomedical Sciences, CHIRI Biosciences Research Precinct, Curtin University, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Simon A Fox
- Molecular Pharmacology Laboratory, School of Pharmacy, CHIRI Biosciences Research Precinct, Curtin University, Western Australia, Australia.
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