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Shankar V, van Blitterswijk C, Vrij E, Giselbrecht S. Automated, High-Throughput Phenotypic Screening and Analysis Platform to Study Pre- and Post-Implantation Morphogenesis in Stem Cell-Derived Embryo-Like Structures. ADVANCED SCIENCE (WEINHEIM, BADEN-WURTTEMBERG, GERMANY) 2024; 11:e2304987. [PMID: 37991133 PMCID: PMC10811479 DOI: 10.1002/advs.202304987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2023] [Revised: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/23/2023]
Abstract
Combining high-throughput generation and high-content imaging of embryo models will enable large-scale screening assays in the fields of (embryo) toxicity, drug development, embryogenesis, and reproductive medicine. This study shows the continuous culture and in situ (i.e., in microwell) imaging-based readout of a 3D stem cell-based model of peri-implantation epiblast (Epi)/extraembryonic endoderm (XEn) development with an expanded pro-amniotic cavity (PAC) (E3.5 E5.5), namely XEn/EPiCs. Automated image analysis and supervised machine learning permit the identification of embryonic morphogenesis, tissue compartmentalization, cell differentiation, and consecutive classification. Screens with signaling pathway modulators at different time windows provide spatiotemporal information on their phenotypic effect on developmental processes leading to the formation of XEn/EPiCs. Exposure of the biological model in the microwell platform to pathway modulators at two time windows, namely 0-72 h and 48-120 h, show that Wnt and Fgf/MAPK pathway modulators affect Epi differentiation and its polarization, while modulation of BMP and Tgfβ/Nodal pathway affects XEn specification and epithelialization. Further, their collective role is identified in the timing of the formation and expansion of PAC. The newly developed, scalable culture and analysis platform, thereby, provides a unique opportunity to quantitatively and systematically study effects of pathway modulators on early embryonic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vinidhra Shankar
- MERLN Institute for Technology‐Inspired Regenerative MedicineDepartment for Instructive Biomaterials Engineering (IBE)Maastricht UniversityMaastricht6229ETThe Netherlands
| | - Clemens van Blitterswijk
- MERLN Institute for Technology‐Inspired Regenerative MedicineDepartment for Instructive Biomaterials Engineering (IBE)Maastricht UniversityMaastricht6229ETThe Netherlands
| | - Erik Vrij
- MERLN Institute for Technology‐Inspired Regenerative MedicineDepartment for Instructive Biomaterials Engineering (IBE)Maastricht UniversityMaastricht6229ETThe Netherlands
| | - Stefan Giselbrecht
- MERLN Institute for Technology‐Inspired Regenerative MedicineDepartment for Instructive Biomaterials Engineering (IBE)Maastricht UniversityMaastricht6229ETThe Netherlands
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Iltis AS, Koster G, Reeves E, Matthews KRW. Ethical, legal, regulatory, and policy issues concerning embryoids: a systematic review of the literature. Stem Cell Res Ther 2023; 14:209. [PMID: 37605210 PMCID: PMC10441753 DOI: 10.1186/s13287-023-03448-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent advances in methods to culture pluripotent stem cells to model human development have resulted in entities that increasingly have recapitulated advanced stages of early embryo development. These entities, referred to by numerous terms such as embryoids, are becoming more sophisticated and could resemble human embryos ever more closely as research progresses. This paper reports a systematic review of the ethical, legal, regulatory, and policy questions and concerns found in the literature concerning human embryoid research published from 2016 to 2022. We identified 56 papers that use 53 distinct names or terms to refer to embryoids and four broad categories of ethical, legal, regulatory, or policy considerations in the literature: research justifications/benefits, ethical significance or moral status, permissible use, and regulatory and oversight challenges. Analyzing the full range of issues is a critical step toward fostering more robust ethical, legal, and social implications research in this emerging area and toward developing appropriate oversight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana S Iltis
- Center for Bioethics, Health and Society and Department of Philosophy, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, 27106, USA
| | - Grace Koster
- Center for Bioethics, Health and Society and Department of Philosophy, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, 27106, USA
| | - Emily Reeves
- Center for Bioethics, Health and Society and Department of Philosophy, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, 27106, USA
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Kuang X, Guan G, Tang C, Zhang L. MorphoSim: an efficient and scalable phase-field framework for accurately simulating multicellular morphologies. NPJ Syst Biol Appl 2023; 9:6. [PMID: 36806172 PMCID: PMC9938209 DOI: 10.1038/s41540-023-00265-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 02/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The phase field model can accurately simulate the evolution of microstructures with complex morphologies, and it has been widely used for cell modeling in the last two decades. However, compared to other cellular models such as the coarse-grained model and the vertex model, its high computational cost caused by three-dimensional spatial discretization hampered its application and scalability, especially for multicellular organisms. Recently, we built a phase field model coupled with in vivo imaging data to accurately reconstruct the embryonic morphogenesis of Caenorhabditis elegans from 1- to 8-cell stages. In this work, we propose an improved phase field model by using the stabilized numerical scheme and modified volume constriction. Then we present a scalable phase-field framework, MorphoSim, which is 100 times more efficient than the previous one and can simulate over 100 mechanically interacting cells. Finally, we demonstrate how MorphoSim can be successfully applied to reproduce the assembly, self-repairing, and dissociation of a synthetic artificial multicellular system - the synNotch system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiangyu Kuang
- grid.11135.370000 0001 2256 9319Center for Quantitative Biology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871 China
| | - Guoye Guan
- grid.11135.370000 0001 2256 9319Center for Quantitative Biology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871 China
| | - Chao Tang
- Center for Quantitative Biology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China. .,Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China. .,School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.
| | - Lei Zhang
- Center for Quantitative Biology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China. .,Beijing International Center for Mathematical Research, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China. .,Center for Machine Learning Research, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.
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Bhargava A, Sandoval Castellanos AM, Shah S, Ning K. An insight into the iPSCs-derived two-dimensional culture and three-dimensional organoid models for neurodegenerative disorders. Interface Focus 2022; 12:20220040. [PMID: 35992771 PMCID: PMC9372641 DOI: 10.1098/rsfs.2022.0040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The use of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) is a promising approach when used as models to study neurodegenerative disorders (NDDs) in vitro. iPSCs have been used in in vitro two-dimensional cultures; however, these two-dimensional cultures do not mimic the physiological three-dimensional cellular environment. The use of iPSCs-derived three-dimensional organoids has risen as a powerful alternative to using animal models to study NDDs. These iPSCs-derived three-dimensional organoids can resemble the complexity of the tissue of interest, making it an approachable, cost-effective technique, to study NDDs in an ethical manner. Furthermore, the use of iPSCs-derived organoids will be an important tool to develop new therapeutics and pharmaceutics to treat NDDs. Herein, we will highlight how iPSCs-derived two-dimensional cultures and three-dimensional organoids have been used to study NDDs, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of both techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anushka Bhargava
- Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2HQ, UK
| | - Ana M. Sandoval Castellanos
- Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2HQ, UK
| | - Sonali Shah
- Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2HQ, UK
| | - Ke Ning
- Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2HQ, UK
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Autofluorescent Biomolecules in Diptera: From Structure to Metabolism and Behavior. Molecules 2022; 27:molecules27144458. [PMID: 35889334 PMCID: PMC9318335 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27144458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2022] [Revised: 07/08/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Light-based phenomena in insects have long attracted researchers’ attention. Surface color distribution patterns are commonly used for taxonomical purposes, while optically-active structures from Coleoptera cuticle or Lepidoptera wings have inspired technological applications, such as biosensors and energy accumulation devices. In Diptera, besides optically-based phenomena, biomolecules able to fluoresce can act as markers of bio-metabolic, structural and behavioral features. Resilin or chitinous compounds, with their respective blue or green-to-red autofluorescence (AF), are commonly related to biomechanical and structural properties, helpful to clarify the mechanisms underlying substrate adhesion of ectoparasites’ leg appendages, or the antennal abilities in tuning sound detection. Metarhodopsin, a red fluorescing photoproduct of rhodopsin, allows to investigate visual mechanisms, whereas NAD(P)H and flavins, commonly relatable to energy metabolism, favor the investigation of sperm vitality. Lipofuscins are AF biomarkers of aging, as well as pteridines, which, similarly to kynurenines, are also exploited in metabolic investigations. Beside the knowledge available in Drosophila melanogaster, a widely used model to study also human disorder and disease mechanisms, here we review optically-based studies in other dipteran species, including mosquitoes and fruit flies, discussing future perspectives for targeted studies with various practical applications, including pest and vector control.
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Cruz Walma DA, Chen Z, Bullock AN, Yamada KM. Ubiquitin ligases: guardians of mammalian development. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 2022; 23:350-367. [DOI: 10.1038/s41580-021-00448-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
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Main actors behind the endometrial receptivity and successful implantation. Tissue Cell 2021; 73:101656. [PMID: 34634636 DOI: 10.1016/j.tice.2021.101656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Revised: 09/21/2021] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Embryo implantation occurs during a short period of time, the implantation window, in the mid-secretory phase of the menstrual cycle. The cross-talk between the endometrium and the embryo, at the stage of blastocyst, is a necessary condition for successful implantation. Till now, no single molecule or receptor has been identified to play an essential role on embryo implantation but a huge number of mediators, including cytokines, lipids, adhesion molecules, growth factors, and others, are reported to support the establishment of pregnancy. Therefore, the aim of this review is not only to describe the different actors involved in the implantation process, but also to try to characterize the relationships between these factors as well as their time-regulated activation. Moreover, the availability of in vitro culture systems to study the interactions between embryo and endometrium as well as the paracrine communication regulated by exosomal vesicles will be investigated, as an innovative approach for a more precise characterization of the interactions between the different molecules involved in this process. The in-depth knowledge of all these complex mechanisms will allow to address the reasons of implantation failure and infertility, thus providing new avenues for promoting the successful establishment of a pregnancy.
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Ofir R. hiPSC-Derived Cells as Models for Drug Discovery. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22168626. [PMID: 34445332 PMCID: PMC8395303 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22168626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Rivka Ofir
- BGU-iPSC Core Facility, The Regenerative Medicine & Stem Cell (RMSC) Research Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er Sheva 84105, Israel
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