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Itson-Zoske B, Gani U, Mikesell A, Qiu C, Fan F, Stucky C, Hogan Q, Shin SM, Yu H. Selective RNAi-silencing of Schwann cell Piezo1 alleviates mechanical hypersensitization following peripheral nerve injury. RESEARCH SQUARE 2023:rs.3.rs-3405016. [PMID: 37886453 PMCID: PMC10602140 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3405016/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
We previously reported functional Piezo1 expression in Schwann cells of the peripheral nervous system. This study is designed to further investigate the role of Schwann cell Piezo1 in peripheral nociception. We first developed an adeno-associated viral (AAV) vector that has primary Schwann cell tropism after delivery into the sciatic nerve. This was achieved by packing AAV-GFP transcribed by a hybrid CMV enhancer/chicken β-actin (CBA) promoter using a capsid AAVolig001 to generate AAVolig001-CBA-GFP. Five weeks after intrasciatic injection of AAVolig001-CBA-GFP in naïve rats, GFP expression was detected selectively in the Schwann cells of the sciatic nerve. A short hairpin RNA against rat Piezo1 (PZ1shRNA) was designed that showed efficient physical and functional knockdown of Piezo1 in NG108 neuronal cells. A dual promoter and bidirectional AAV encoding a U6-driven PZ1shRNA and CBA-transcribed GFP was packed with capsid olig001 (AAVolig001-PZ1shRNA), and AAV was injected into unilateral sciatic nerve immediately after induction of common peroneal nerve injury (CPNI). Results showed that the development of mechanical hypersensitivity in the CPNI rats injected with AAVolig001-PZ1shRNA was mitigated, compared to rats subjected with AAVolig001-scramble. Selective in vivo Schwann cell transduction and functional block of Piezo1 channel activity of primary cultured Schwann cells was confirmed. Together, our data demonstrate that 1) AAVolig001 has unique and selective primary tropism to Schwann cells via intrasciatic delivery and 2) Schwann cell Piezo1 contributes to mechanical hypersensitivity following nerve injury.
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Summers JA, Jones KL. Single Cell Transcriptomics Identifies Distinct Choroid Cell Populations Involved in Visually Guided Eye Growth. FRONTIERS IN OPHTHALMOLOGY 2023; 3:1245891. [PMID: 38390290 PMCID: PMC10883300 DOI: 10.3389/fopht.2023.1245891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
Postnatal ocular growth is regulated by a vision-dependent mechanism, termed emmetropization, which acts to minimize refractive error through coordinated growth of the ocular tissues. Many studies suggest that the ocular choroid participates in the emmetropization process via the production of scleral growth regulators that control ocular elongation and refractive development. To elucidate the role of the choroid in emmetropization, we used single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to characterize the cell populations in the chick choroid and compare gene expression changes in these cell populations during conditions in which the eye is undergoing emmetropization. UMAP clustering analysis identified 24 distinct cell clusters in all chick choroids. 7 clusters were identified as fibroblast subpopulations; 5 clusters represented different populations of endothelial cells; 4 clusters were CD45+ macrophages, T cells and B cells; 3 clusters were Schwann cell subpopulations; and 2 clusters were identified as melanocytes. Additionally, single populations of RBCs, plasma cells and neuronal cells were identified. Significant changes in gene expression between control and treated choroids were identified in 17 cell clusters, representing 95% of total choroidal cells. The majority of significant gene expression changes were relatively small (< 2 fold). The highest changes in gene expression were identified in a rare cell population (0.11% - 0.49% of total choroidal cells). This cell population expressed high levels of neuron-specific genes as well as several opsin genes suggestive of a rare neuronal cell population that is potentially light sensitive. Our results, for the first time, provide a comprehensive profile of the major choroidal cell types and their gene expression changes during the process of emmetropization as well as insights into the canonical pathways and upstream regulators that coordinate postnatal ocular growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jody A Summers
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, 73104, United States
| | - Kenneth L Jones
- Bioinformatic Solutions LLC, Sheridan, Wyoming, 82801, United States
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Boahen A, Hu D, Adams MJ, Nicholls PK, Greene WK, Ma B. Bidirectional crosstalk between the peripheral nervous system and lymphoid tissues/organs. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1254054. [PMID: 37767094 PMCID: PMC10520967 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1254054] [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: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 08/25/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The central nervous system (CNS) influences the immune system generally by regulating the systemic concentration of humoral substances (e.g., cortisol and epinephrine), whereas the peripheral nervous system (PNS) communicates specifically with the immune system according to local interactions/connections. An imbalance between the components of the PNS might contribute to pathogenesis and the further development of certain diseases. In this review, we have explored the "thread" (hardwiring) of the connections between the immune system (e.g., primary/secondary/tertiary lymphoid tissues/organs) and PNS (e.g., sensory, sympathetic, parasympathetic, and enteric nervous systems (ENS)) in health and disease in vitro and in vivo. Neuroimmune cell units provide an anatomical and physiological basis for bidirectional crosstalk between the PNS and the immune system in peripheral tissues, including lymphoid tissues and organs. These neuroimmune interactions/modulation studies might greatly contribute to a better understanding of the mechanisms through which the PNS possibly affects cellular and humoral-mediated immune responses or vice versa in health and diseases. Physical, chemical, pharmacological, and other manipulations of these neuroimmune interactions should bring about the development of practical therapeutic applications for certain neurological, neuroimmunological, infectious, inflammatory, and immunological disorders/diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela Boahen
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Seri-Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Dailun Hu
- Department of Pathogenic Biology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China
| | - Murray J. Adams
- School of Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia
| | - Philip K. Nicholls
- School of Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia
| | - Wayne K. Greene
- School of Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia
| | - Bin Ma
- School of Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia
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Kikel-Coury NL, Brandt JP, Correia IA, O’Dea MR, DeSantis DF, Sterling F, Vaughan K, Ozcebe G, Zorlutuna P, Smith CJ. Identification of astroglia-like cardiac nexus glia that are critical regulators of cardiac development and function. PLoS Biol 2021; 19:e3001444. [PMID: 34793438 PMCID: PMC8601506 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Glial cells are essential for functionality of the nervous system. Growing evidence underscores the importance of astrocytes; however, analogous astroglia in peripheral organs are poorly understood. Using confocal time-lapse imaging, fate mapping, and mutant genesis in a zebrafish model, we identify a neural crest-derived glial cell, termed nexus glia, which utilizes Meteorin signaling via Jak/Stat3 to drive differentiation and regulate heart rate and rhythm. Nexus glia are labeled with gfap, glast, and glutamine synthetase, markers that typically denote astroglia cells. Further, analysis of single-cell sequencing datasets of human and murine hearts across ages reveals astrocyte-like cells, which we confirm through a multispecies approach. We show that cardiac nexus glia at the outflow tract are critical regulators of both the sympathetic and parasympathetic system. These data establish the crucial role of glia on cardiac homeostasis and provide a description of nexus glia in the PNS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nina L. Kikel-Coury
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
- Center for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Jacob P. Brandt
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
- Center for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Isabel A. Correia
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Michael R. O’Dea
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Dana F. DeSantis
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
- Center for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Felicity Sterling
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Kevin Vaughan
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Gulberk Ozcebe
- Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Pinar Zorlutuna
- Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Cody J. Smith
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
- Center for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America
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Pellicciari C. Twenty years of histochemistry in the third millennium, browsing the scientific literature. Eur J Histochem 2020; 64. [PMID: 33478199 PMCID: PMC7789425 DOI: 10.4081/ejh.2020.3213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2020] [Accepted: 12/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the last twenty years, about 240,000 articles where histochemical techniques were used have been published in indexed journals, and their yearly number has progressively increased. The histochemical approach was selected by researchers with very different scientific interests, as the journals in which these articles were published fall within 140 subject categories. The relative proportion of articles in some of these journal categories did change over the years, and browsing the table of contents of the European Journal of Histochemistry, as an example of a strictly histochemical journal, it appeared that in recent years histochemical techniques were preferentially used to mechanistically investigate natural or experimentally induced dynamic processes, with reduced attention to purely descriptive works. It may be foreseen that, in the future, histochemistry will be increasingly focused on studying the molecular pathways responsible for cell differentiation, the maintenance or loss of the differentiated state, and tissue regeneration.
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Pellicciari C, Biggiogera M, Malatesta M. A journal of histochemistry as a forum for non-histochemical scientific societies. Eur J Histochem 2019; 63. [PMID: 31868322 PMCID: PMC6945069 DOI: 10.4081/ejh.2019.3106] [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: 12/22/2019] [Accepted: 12/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Histochemical techniques are widely applied in biomedical research and, during the last twenty years, they were among the methods used in more than 590,000 scientific articles in indexed journals. However, a very small percentage of these papers were published in strictly histochemical journals. A possible strategy to widen the audience of the histochemical journals making them attractive to non-histochemist authors might be to publish and make open-access available the proceedings of the meetings and conferences of valued scientific societies whose fellows use microscopy and histochemistry in their experimental activity. In the last years' experience of the European Journal of Histochemistry, this approach was effective to increase the number of published articles on stem cells and development, connective tissue and nerve cell biology.
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Hu D, Nicholls PK, Claus M, Wu Y, Shi Z, Greene WK, Ma B. Immunofluorescence characterization of innervation and nerve-immune cell interactions in mouse lymph nodes. Eur J Histochem 2019; 63. [PMID: 31631646 PMCID: PMC6802453 DOI: 10.4081/ejh.2019.3059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Accepted: 09/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The peripheral nervous system communicates specifically with the immune system via local interactions. These interactions include the “hardwiring” of sympathetic/ parasympathetic (efferent) and sensory nerves (afferent) to primary (e.g., thymus and bone marrow) and secondary (e.g., lymph node, spleen, and gut-associated lymphoid tissue) lymphoid tissue/organs. To gain a better understanding of this bidirectional interaction/crosstalk between the two systems, we have investigated the distribution of nerve fibres and PNS-immune cell associations in situ in the mouse lymph node by using immunofluorescent staining and confocal microscopy/ three-dimensional reconstruction. Our results demonstrate: i) the presence of extensive nerve fibres in all compartments (including B cell follicles) in the mouse lymph node; ii) close contacts/ associations of nerve fibres with blood vessels (including high endothelial venules) and lymphatic vessels/sinuses; iii) close contacts/associations of nerve fibres with various subsets of dendritic cells (e.g., B220+CD11c+, CD4+CD11c+, CD8a+ CD11c+, and Mac1+CD11c+), Mac1+ macrophages, and B/T lymphocytes. Our novel findings concerning the innervation and nerve-immune cell interactions inside the mouse lymph node should greatly facilitate our understanding of the effects that the peripheral nervous system has on cellular- and humoral-mediated immune responses or vice versa in health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dailun Hu
- Clinical College, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang.
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Al-Shalan HAM, Hu D, Nicholls PK, Greene WK, Ma B. Innervation and nerve-immune cell contacts in mouse Peyer's patches. Histol Histopathol 2019; 35:371-383. [PMID: 31486062 DOI: 10.14670/hh-18-158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Neural regulation of the function of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) relies on a delicate balance of the two divisions of its nervous system, namely, the intrinsic and extrinsic divisions. The intrinsic innervation is provided by the enteric nervous system (ENS), whereas the extrinsic innervation includes sympathetic/parasympathetic nerve fibers and extrinsic sensory nerve fibers. In the present study, we used immunofluorescent staining of neurofilament-heavy (NF-H) to reveal the distribution of nerve fibers and their associations with immune cells inside mouse Peyer's patches (PP), an essential part of gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT). Our results demonstrate (1) the presence of an extensive meshwork of NF-H-immunoreactive presumptive nerve fibers in all PP compartments including the lymphoid nodules, interfollicular region, follicle-associated epithelium, and subepithelial dome; (2) close associations/contacts of nerve fibers with blood vessels including high endothelial venules, indicating neural control of blood flow and immune cell dynamics inside the PP; (3) close contacts between nerve fibers/endings and B/T cells and various subsets of dendritic cells ( e.g., B220⁻, B220⁺, CD4⁻, CD4⁺, CD8⁻, and CD8⁺). Our novel findings concerning PP innervation and nerve-immune-cell contacts in situ should facilitate our understanding of bi-directional communications between the PNS and GALT. Since the innervation of the gut, including PP, might be important in the pathogenesis and progression of some neurological, infectious, and autoimmune diseases, e.g., prion diseases and inflammatory bowel disease, better knowledge of PNS-immune system interactions in the GALT (including PP) should benefit the development of potential treatments for these diseases via neuroimmune manipulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huda A M Al-Shalan
- Discipline of Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia.,Department of Microbiology/Virology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Baghdad University, Baghdad, Iraq
| | - Dailun Hu
- Clinical College, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China
| | - Philip K Nicholls
- Discipline of Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia
| | - Wayne K Greene
- Discipline of Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia
| | - Bin Ma
- Discipline of Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia.
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Pellicciari C. Histochemistry as a versatile research toolkit in biological research, not only an applied discipline in pathology. Eur J Histochem 2018; 62. [PMID: 30572698 PMCID: PMC6317132 DOI: 10.4081/ejh.2018.3006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2018] [Accepted: 12/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The impressive progress of histochemistry over the last 50 years has led to setting up specific and sensitive techniques to describe dynamic events, through the detection of specific molecules in the very place where they exist in live cells. The scientific field where histochemistry has most largely been applied is histopathology, with the aim to identify disease-specific molecular markers or to elucidate the etiopathological mechanisms. Numerous authors did however apply histochemistry to a variety of other research fields; their interests range from the microanatomy of animal and plant organisms to the cellular mechanisms of life. This is especially apparent browsing the contents of the histochemical journals where the articles on subjects other than pathology are the majority; these journals still keep a pivotal role in the field of cell and tissue biology, while being a forum for a diverse range of biologists whose scientific interests expand the research horizon of histochemistry to ever novel subjects. Thus, histochemistry can always receive inspiring stimuli toward a continuous methodological refinement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlo Pellicciari
- University of Pavia, Department of Biology and Biotechnology "Lazzaro Spallanzani".
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