Inhibition of Hedgehog signaling alters fibroblast composition in pancreatic cancer
Clinical cancer research : an official journal of the American Association for Cancer Research
Steele, NG;Biffi, G;Kemp, SB;Zhang, Y;Drouillard, D;Syu, LJ;Hao, Y;Oni, TE;Brosnan, E;Elyada, E;Doshi, A;Hansma, C;Espinoza, C;Abbas, A;The, S;Irizarry-Negron, VM;Halbrook, CJ;Franks, N;Hoffman, M;Brown, KL;Carpenter, ES;Nwosu, ZC;Johnson, C;Lima, F;Anderson, MA;Park, Y;Crawford, HC;Lyssiotis, CA;Frankel, TL;Rao, A;Bednar, F;Dlugosz, AA;Preall, J;Tuveson, DA;Allen, B;Pasca di Magliano, M;
PMID: 33495315 | DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-20-3715
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a deadly disease characterized by an extensive fibroinflammatory stroma, which includes abundant cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) populations. PDAC CAFs are heterogeneous, but the nature of this heterogeneity is incompletely understood. The Hedgehog (HH) pathway functions in PDAC in a paracrine manner, with ligands secreted by cancer cells signaling to stromal cells in the microenvironment. Previous reports investigating the role of HH signaling in PDAC have been contradictory, with HH signaling alternately proposed to promote or restrict tumor growth. In light of the newly discovered CAF heterogeneity, we investigated how HH pathway inhibition reprograms the PDAC microenvironment. We used a combination of pharmacologic inhibition, gain- and loss- of-function genetic experiments, CyTOF, and single cell RNA-sequencing to study the roles of HH signaling in PDAC. We find that HH signaling is uniquely activated in fibroblasts and differentially elevated in myofibroblastic CAFs (myCAFs) compared to inflammatory CAFs (iCAFs). SHH overexpression promotes tumor growth, while HH pathway inhibition with the Smoothened antagonist LDE225 impairs tumor growth. Further, HH pathway inhibition reduces myCAF numbers and increases iCAF numbers, which correlates with a decrease in cytotoxic T cells and an expansion in regulatory T cells, consistent with increased immune suppression. HH pathway inhibition alters fibroblast composition and immune infiltration in the pancreatic cancer microenvironment.
Kader, L;Willits, A;Baumbauer, K;Young, E;
| DOI: 10.1016/j.jpain.2022.03.026
Visceral hypersensitivity (VH) is commonly cited as a major driver of chronic abdominal pain in “functional” gastrointestinal disorders (e.g., irritable bowel syndrome) where persistent and/or recurrent abdominal pain is the primary unifying symptom regardless of any alterations in bowel habits. The complexity of VH is in part influenced by genetic factors and individual differences in gut microbiome composition, yet specific mechanisms that generate VH remain incompletely understood. Correspondingly, current treatments to primarily focus on symptom management rather than targeting physiological mechanisms responsible for generating VH. We have begun to examine the role of genetic susceptibility and microbiome response dynamics in VH development using a preclinical model of intracolonic zymosan (ZYM) administration in which there are strain differences to VH susceptibility. Preliminary data reveals differential susceptibility between ZYM-induced VH in two closely related C57BL/6 sub strains, one from Taconic Biosciences (C57BL/6NTac) and the other from Jackson Laboratory (C57BL/6J). We have identified a VH candidate gene that encodes the arginine-vasopressin receptor 1A (AVPR1A) protein. We have further observed dynamic strain differences in the location and composition of the gut microbiome in response to ZYM corresponding to VH susceptibility. Ongoing studies are focused on teasing apart the potential bidirectional relationship(s) between genetic susceptibility and host-microbiome interactions in the etiology of VH. Identifying underlying mechanisms that drive VH would provide novel targets for pharmacological intervention and decrease reliance on opioids, which are prescribed at a significantly higher rate to patients who report abdominal pain with no accompanying structural disease. Grant support from R21 NS104789/NS/NINDS (KMB), R03 NS096454/NS/NINDS (KMB), Rita Allen Foundation Award in Pain (KMB), P20GM103418 (EEY and KMB), and a K-INBRE recruitment startup package.
Journal of dental research
Maldonado, JO;Beach, ME;Wang, Y;Perez, P;Yin, H;Pelayo, E;Fowler, S;Alevizos, I;Grisius, M;Baer, AN;Walitt, B;De Giorgi, V;Alter, HJ;Warner, BM;Chiorini, JA;
PMID: 35045743 | DOI: 10.1177/00220345211049395
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the most common blood-borne chronic infection in the United States. Chronic lymphocytic sialadenitis and sicca syndrome have been reported in chronic HCV infection. Up to 55% of these patients may have xerostomia; the mechanisms of the xerostomia and salivary gland (SG) hypofunction remain controversial. The objectives of this project are to establish if xerostomia associates with SG and HCV infection and to characterize the structural changes in SG and saliva composition. Eighteen HCV-infected patients with xerostomia were evaluated for SG dysfunction; 6 of these patients (patients 1-6) were further evaluated for SG histopathological changes and changes in saliva composition. The techniques used include clinical and laboratory assessment, SG ultrasonography, histological evaluation, sialochemical and proteomics analysis, and RNA in situ hybridization. All the HCV patients had low saliva flow, chronic sialadenitis, and SG fibrosis and lacked Sjögren syndrome (SS) characteristic autoantibodies. Further evaluation of a subgroup of 6 HCV patients (patients 1-6) demonstrated diffuse lymphocytic infiltrates that are predominantly CD8+ T cells with a significant increase in the number of inflammatory cells. Alcian Blue/periodic acid-Schiff staining showed significant changes in the ratio and intensity of the acinar secretory units of the HCV patients' minor SG. The submandibular glands showed significant ultrasonographic abnormalities in the parenchyma relative to the parotid glands. Significant changes were also observed in the concentration of sodium and mucin 5b. Although no significant correlation was observed between the lymphocytic infiltrates and the years of HCV chronic infection, a positive correlation was observed between HCV RNA-positive epithelial cells and the years of HCV infection. Consistent with the low saliva flow and xerostomia, patients showed changes in several markers of SG acinar and ductal function. Changes in the composition of the saliva suggest that HCV infection can cause xerostomia by mechanisms distinct from SS.
Jasani, B;Huss, R;Taylor, C;
| DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-84087-7
Bharat Jasani, BSc, PhD, MBChB, FRCPath. Qualifying with honours in Biochemistry (University of Glasgow,1965-1969), PhD in Experimental Pathology and MBChB (honours distinction in Pathology) (University of Birmingham, 1970-1973), Dr Jasani initiated his clinical and research training in Histopathology, at Wales National School of Medicine in 1977, achieving MRCPath (1989), FRCPath (1997), and a Specialist Consultant’s status in Histopathology (Immunohistochemistry) (1993); and Personal Chair in Oncological Pathology (2003). Following his retirement as the Head of Histopathology and Academic Pathology (2003-2011), he continued as Professor of Pathology, Institute of Cancer & Genetics, Cardiff University & Associate Postgraduate Dean for Academic Medicine in Wales (2011-2015). He was then appointed as the Chair of Biomedical Sciences, Nazarbayev University School of Medicine. Astana, Kazakhstan, with Adjunct Professorship in Pathology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburg, USA (2015-2016). IN 2016 HE TOOK UP HIS CURRENT POSITION AS THE DIRECTOR OF PATHOLOGY, TARGOS MOLECULAR PATHOLOGY GMBH, KASSEL, GERMANY, WHICH WAS ACQUIRED BY DISCOVERY LIFE SCIENCES IN 2021. Over the past 40 years Dr Jasani has devoted himself to advancing cancer pathology based on the use of cancer biomarkers. As the Head of Molecular Diagnostic Unit, University Hospital of Wales (1982-2003), he led the development and establishment of diagnostic immunocytochemistry & molecular pathology services in Cardiff and Wales. He also promoted quality assurance and standardization of cancer biomarker analyses as Breast Cancer Module Leader of UKNEQAS of IHC/ISH, and UK’s lead representative on International Working Group on Standardization of Breast Cancer Biomarking, and the United States Sub-Committee on Quality Assurance for Immunocytochemistry. As Principal Investigator and Co-investigator of several translational research projects on development of predictive biomarkers for colorectal and breast cancer, he has also been invited to act as a Consultant and Key Opinion Leader to several leading biotech and pharmaceutical companies. He is an author of a book, over 50 chapters and reviews and more than 200 peer reviewed research publications.
Yoon, H;Triplet, EM;Simon, WL;Choi, CI;Kleppe, LS;De Vita, E;Miller, AK;Scarisbrick, IA;
PMID: 34626143 | DOI: 10.1002/glia.24100
Kallikrein related peptidase 6 (Klk6) is a secreted serine protease highly expressed in oligodendrocytes and implicated in demyelinating conditions. To gain insights into the significance of Klk6 to oligodendrocyte biology, we investigated the impact of global Klk6 gene knockout on CNS developmental myelination using the spinal cord of male and female mice as a model. Results demonstrate that constitutive loss of Klk6 expression accelerates oligodendrocyte differentiation developmentally, including increases in the expression of myelin proteins such as MBP, PLP and CNPase, in the number of CC-1+ mature oligodendrocytes, and myelin thickness by the end of the first postnatal week. Co-ordinate elevations in the pro-myelinating signaling pathways ERK and AKT, expression of fatty acid 2-hydroxylase, and myelin regulatory transcription factor were also observed in the spinal cord of 7d Klk6 knockouts. LC/MS/MS quantification of spinal cord lipids showed sphingosine and sphingomyelins to be elevated in Klk6 knockouts at the peak of myelination. Oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs)-derived from Klk6 knockouts, or wild type OPCs-treated with a Klk6 inhibitor (DFKZ-251), also showed increased MBP and PLP. Moreover, inhibition of Klk6 in OPC cultures enhanced brain derived neurotrophic factor-driven differentiation. Altogether, these findings suggest that oligodendrocyte-derived Klk6 may operate as an autocrine or paracrine rheostat, or brake, on pro-myelinating signaling serving to regulate myelin homeostasis developmentally and in the adult. These findings document for the first time that inhibition of Klk6 globally, or specifically in oligodendrocyte progenitors, is a strategy to increase early stages of oligodendrocyte differentiation and myelin production in the CNS.
American journal of physiology. Lung cellular and molecular physiology
Dobrinskikh, E;Al-Juboori, SI;Zarate, MA;Zheng, L;De Dios, R;Balasubramaniyan, D;Sherlock, LG;Orlicky, DJ;Wright, CJ;
PMID: 34585971 | DOI: 10.1152/ajplung.00234.2021
Both preclinical and clinical studies have demonstrated that exposures to acetaminophen (APAP) at levels that cause hepatic injury cause pulmonary injury as well. However, whether exposures that do not result in hepatic injury have acute pulmonary implications is unknown. Thus, we sought to determine how APAP exposures at levels that do not result in significant hepatic injury impact the mature lung. Adult male ICR mice (8-12 wk) were exposed to a dose of APAP known to cause hepatotoxicity in adult mice [280 mg/kg, intraperitoneal (ip)], as well as a lower dose previously reported to not cause hepatic injury (140 mg/kg, ip). We confirm that the lower dose exposures did not result in significant hepatic injury. However, like high dose, lower exposure resulted in increased cellular content of the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and induced a proinflammatory pulmonary transcriptome. Both the lower and higher dose exposures resulted in measurable changes in lung morphometrics, with the lower dose exposure causing alveolar wall thinning. Using RNAScope, we were able to detect dose-dependent, APAP-induced pulmonary Cyp2e1 expression. Finally, using FLIM we determined that both APAP exposures resulted in acute pulmonary metabolic changes consistent with mitochondrial overload in lower doses and a shift to glycolysis at a high dose. Our findings demonstrate that APAP exposures that do not cause significant hepatic injury result in acute inflammatory, morphometric, and metabolic changes in the mature lung. These previously unreported findings may help explain the potential relationship between APAP exposures and pulmonary-related morbidity.
SARS-CoV-2, myocardial injury and inflammation: insights from a large clinical and autopsy study
Clinical research in cardiology : official journal of the German Cardiac Society
Dal Ferro, M;Bussani, R;Paldino, A;Nuzzi, V;Collesi, C;Zentilin, L;Schneider, E;Correa, R;Silvestri, F;Zacchigna, S;Giacca, M;Metra, M;Merlo, M;Sinagra, G;
PMID: 34282465 | DOI: 10.1007/s00392-021-01910-2
Despite growing evidence about myocardial injury in hospitalized COronaVIrus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, the mechanism behind this injury is only poorly understood and little is known about its association with SARS-CoV-2-mediated myocarditis. Furthermore, definite evidence of the presence and role of SARS-CoV-2 in cardiomyocytes in the clinical scenario is still lacking.We histologically characterized myocardial tissue of 40 patients deceased with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection during the first wave of the pandemic. Clinical data were also recorded and analyzed. In case of findings supportive of myocardial inflammation, histological analysis was complemented by RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry for SARS-CoV-2 viral antigens and in situ RNA hybridization for the detection of viral genomes.Both chronic and acute myocardial damage was invariably present, correlating with the age and comorbidities of our population. Myocarditis of overt entity was found in one case (2.5%). SARS-CoV-2 genome was not found in the cardiomyocytes of the patient with myocarditis, while it was focally and negligibly present in cardiomyocytes of patients with known viral persistence in the lungs and no signs of myocardial inflammation. The presence of myocardial injury was not associated with myocardial inflammatory infiltrates.In this autopsy cohort of COVID-19 patients, myocarditis is rarely found and not associated with SARS-CoV-2 presence in cardiomyocytes. Chronic and acute forms of myocardial damage are constantly found and correlate with the severity of COVID-19 disease and pre-existing comorbidities.
RNA sequence analysis reveals ITGAL/CD11A as a stromal regulator of murine low-grade glioma growth
De Andrade Costa, A;Chatterjee, J;Cobb, O;Sanapala, S;Guo, X;Dahiya, S;Gutmann, DH;
PMID: 34043012 | DOI: 10.1093/neuonc/noab130
Emerging insights from numerous laboratories have revealed important roles for non-neoplastic cells in the development and progression of brain tumors. One of these non-neoplastic cellular constituents, glioma-associated microglia (GAM), represents a unique population of brain monocytes within the tumor microenvironment that have been reported to both promote and inhibit glioma proliferation. To elucidate the role of GAM in the setting of low-grade glioma (LGG), we leveraged RNA sequencing meta-analysis, genetically engineered mouse strains, and human biospecimens. Publically available disease-associated microglia (DAM) RNA-seq datasets were used, followed by immunohistochemistry and RNAScope validation. CD11a-deficient mouse microglia were used for in vitro functional studies, while LGG growth in mice was assessed using anti-CD11a neutralizing antibody treatment of Nf1 optic glioma mice in vivo. We identified Itgal/CD11a enrichment in GAM relative to other DAM populations, which was confirmed in several independently generated murine models of Neurofibromatosis type 1 (Nf1) optic glioma. Moreover, ITGAL/CD11A expression was similarly increased in human LGG (pilocytic astrocytoma) specimens from several different datasets, specifically in microglia from these tumors. Using CD11a-knockout mice, CD11a expression was shown to be critical for murine microglia CX3CL1 receptor (Cx3cr1) expression and CX3CL1-directed motility, as well as glioma mitogen (Ccl5) production. Consistent with an instructive role for CD11a + microglia in stromal control of LGG growth, antibody-mediated CD11a inhibition reduced mouse Nf1 LGG growth in vivo. Collectively, these findings establish ITGAL/CD11A as a critical microglia regulator of LGG biology relevant to future stroma-targeted brain tumor treatment strategies.
A N-Terminus Domain Determines Amelogenin\'s Stability to Guide the Development of Mouse Enamel Matrix
Journal of bone and mineral research : the official journal of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research
Huang, Y;Bai, Y;Chang, C;Bacino, M;Cheng, IC;Li, L;Habelitz, S;Li, W;Zhang, Y;
PMID: 33957008 | DOI: 10.1002/jbmr.4329
Amelogenins, the principal proteins in the developing enamel microenvironment, self-assemble into supramolecular structures to govern the remodeling of a proteinaceous organic matrix into longitudinally ordered hydroxyapatite nanocrystal arrays. Extensive in vitro studies using purified native or recombinant proteins have revealed the potential of N-terminal amelogenin on protein self-assembly and its ability to guide the mineral deposition. We have previously identified a 14-aa domain (P2) of N-terminal amelogenin that can self-assemble into amyloid-like fibrils in vitro. Here, we investigated how this domain affects the ability of amelogenin self-assembling and stability of enamel matrix protein scaffolding in an in vivo animal model. Mice harboring mutant amelogenin lacking P2 domain had a hypoplastic, hypomineralized, and aprismatic enamel. In vitro, the mutant recombinant amelogenin without P2 had a reduced tendency to self-assemble and was prone to accelerated hydrolysis by MMP20, the prevailing metalloproteinase in early developing enamel matrix. A reduced amount of amelogenins and a lack of elongated fibrous assemblies in the development enamel matrix of mutant mice were evident compared with that in the wild-type mouse enamel matrix. Our study is the first to demonstrate that a subdomain (P2) at the N-terminus of amelogenin controls amelogenin's assembly into a transient protein scaffold that resists rapid proteolysis during enamel development in an animal model. Understanding the building blocks of fibrous scaffold that guides the longitudinal growth of hydroxyapatites in enamel matrix sheds light on protein-mediated enamel bioengineering.
Estrogen regulation of the molecular phenotype and active translatome of AVPV kisspeptin neurons
Stephens, SBZ;Kauffman, AS;
PMID: 33856454 | DOI: 10.1210/endocr/bqab080
In females, ovarian estradiol (E2) exerts both negative and positive feedback regulation on the neural circuits governing reproductive hormone secretion, but the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying this remain poorly understood. In rodents, ERα-expressing kisspeptin neurons in the hypothalamic anteroventral periventricular region (AVPV) are prime candidates to mediate E2 positive feedback induction of preovulatory GnRH and LH surges. E2 stimulates AVPV Kiss1 expression, but the full extent of estrogen effects in these neurons is unknown; whether E2 stimulates or inhibits other genes in AVPV Kiss1 cells has not been determined. Indeed, understanding of the function(s) of AVPV kisspeptin cells is limited, in part, by minimal knowledge of their overall molecular phenotype, as only a few genes are currently known to be co-expressed in AVPV Kiss1 cells. To provide a more detailed profiling of co-expressed genes in AVPV Kiss1 cells, including receptors and other signaling factors, and test how these genes respond to E2, we selectively isolated actively-translated mRNAs from AVPV Kiss1 cells of female mice and performed RNA-Seq. This identified >13,000 mRNAs co-expressed in AVPV Kiss1 cells, including multiple receptor and ligand transcripts positively or negatively regulated by E2. We also performed RNAscope to validate high co-expression of several transcripts identified by RNA-Seq, including Pdyn (prodynorphin), Penk (proenkephalin), Vgf (VGF), and Cartpt (CART), in female AVPV Kiss1 cells. Given the important role of AVPV kisspeptin cells in positive feedback, E2 effects on identified genes may relate to the LH surge mechanism and/or other physiological processes involving these AVPV kisspeptin cells.
A transgenic Alx4-CreER mouse to analyze anterior limb and nephric duct development
Developmental dynamics : an official publication of the American Association of Anatomists
Rockwell, DM;O'Connor, AK;Bentley-Ford, MR;Haycraft, CJ;Croyle, MJ;Brewer, KM;Berbari, NF;Kesterson, RA;Yoder, BK;
PMID: 33728725 | DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.328
Genetic tools to study gene function and the fate of cells in the anterior limb bud are very limited. We describe a transgenic mouse line expressing CreERT2 from the Aristaless-like 4 (Alx4) promoter that induces recombination in the anterior limb. Cre induction at embryonic day 8.5 revealed that Alx4-CreERT2 labeled cells using the mTmG Cre reporter contributed to anterior digits I to III as well as the radius of the forelimb. Cre activity is expanded further along the AP axis in the hindlimb than in the forelimb resulting in some Cre reporter cells contributing to digit IV. Induction at later time points labeled cells that become progressively restricted to more anterior digits and proximal structures. Comparison of Cre expression from the Alx4 promoter transgene with endogenous Alx4 expression reveals Cre expression is slightly expanded posteriorly relative to the endogenous Alx4 expression. Using Alx4-CreERT2 to induce loss of intraflagellar transport 88 (Ift88), a gene required for ciliogenesis, hedgehog signaling, and limb patterning, did not cause overt skeletal malformations. However, the efficiency of deletion, time needed for Ift88 protein turnover, and for cilia to regress may hinder using this approach to analyze cilia in the limb. Alx4-CreERT2 is also active in the mesonephros and nephric duct that contribute to the collecting tubules and ducts of the adult nephron. Embryonic activation of the Alx4-CreERT2 in the Ift88 conditional line results in cyst formation in the collecting tubules/ducts. Overall, the Alx4-CreERT2 line will be a new tool to assess cell fates and analyze gene function in the anterior limb, mesonephros, and nephric duct.
Orexin-A Intensifies Mouse Pupillary Light Response by Modulating Intrinsically Photosensitive Retinal Ganglion Cells
The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience
Zhou, W;Wang, LQ;Shao, YQ;Han, X;Yu, CX;Yuan, F;Wang, X;Weng, SJ;Zhong, YM;Yang, XL;
PMID: 33536197 | DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0217-20.2021
We show for the first time that the neuropeptide orexin modulates pupillary light response (PLR), a non-image forming visual function, in mice of either sex. Intravitreal injection of the orexin receptor (OXR) antagonist TCS1102 and orexin-A reduced and enhanced pupillary constriction in response to light, respectively. Orexin-A activated OX1Rs on M2-type intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) (M2 cells), and caused membrane depolarization of these cells by modulating inward rectifier potassium channels and non-selective cation channels, thus resulting in an increase in intrinsic excitability. The increased intrinsic excitability could account for the orexin-A-evoked increase in spontaneous discharges and light-induced spiking rates of M2 cells, leading to an intensification of pupillary constriction. Orexin-A did not alter the light response of M1 cells, which could be due to no or weak expression of OX1Rs on them, as revealed by RNAscope in situ hybridization. In sum, orexin-A is likely to decrease the pupil size of mice by influencing M2 cells, thereby improving visual performance in awake mice via enhancing the focal depth of the eye's refractive system.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTThis study reveals the role of the neuropeptide orexin in mouse pupillary light response (PLR), a non-image forming visual function. Intravitreal orexin-A administration intensifies light-induced pupillary constriction via increasing the excitability of M2 intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) by activating the orexin receptor subtype OX1R. Modulation of inward rectifier potassium channels and non-selective cation channels were both involved in the ionic mechanisms underlying such intensification. Orexin could improve visual performance in awake mice by reducing the pupil size and thereby enhancing the focal depth of the eye's refractive system.