The endometrial perivascular microenvironment is rich in mesenchymal stem-like cells that express type 1 integral membrane protein Sushi domain containing 2 (SUSD2) but the role of these cells in the decidual transformation of this tissue in pregnancy is unknown. We used an antibody directed against SUSD2 (W5C5) to isolate perivascular (W5C5+) and non-perivascular (W5C5-) fibroblasts from mid-luteal biopsies. We show that SUSD2 expression, and hence the ratio of W5C5+ to W5C5- cells, changes in culture depending on cell-cell contact and activation of the Notch signaling pathway. RNA sequencing revealed that cultures derived from W5C5+ progenitor cells remain phenotypically distinct by the enrichment of novel and established endometrial perivascular signature genes. In an undifferentiated state, W5C5+-derived cells produced lower levels of various chemokines and inflammatory modulators when compared to their W5C5- counterparts. This divergence in secretomes became more pronounced upon decidualization, which transformed perivascular W5C5+ cells into the dominant source of a range of trophic and immunomodulatory cytokines, including leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF). Our findings indicate that the decidual response is spatially organized with differentiating perivascular cells establishing distinct cytokine and chemokine gradients that could direct trophoblast towards maternal vessels and govern local immune responses in pregnancy. Overall design: Analysis of paired human endometrial stromal cultures, originating from either W5C5+ or W5C5- cells, from four biological replicates - a total of 8 samples - by Illumina RNAseq.
Decidualization induces a secretome switch in perivascular niche cells of the human endometrium.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesHere we compare the effects of stimulation on cord blood derived CD4+ CD25+ (Treg) and CD4+ CD25- (Thelper) cells, isolated by MACS protocols & expanded in vitro using dynabeads. Expansion was carried out at a ratio of 3 beads/cell in the presence of 1000units/ml of recombinant human IL2 for 8 days, followed by 3 days of culture without beads.
Genome-wide identification of human FOXP3 target genes in natural regulatory T cells.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesGene expression profiles were compared between regulatory T cells (Treg) and Effector CD4+ T cells in healthy B6 mice and sick mice with scurfy mutation.
Foxp3-deficient regulatory T cells do not revert into conventional effector CD4+ T cells but constitute a unique cell subset.
Sex, Specimen part
View SamplesCD8+ NKT cells are naturally occurring but rare T cells that express both T cell and natural killer (NK) cell markers. These cells may play key roles in establishing tolerance to self antigens; however, the mechanism of action and the molecular profiles of these cells are poorly characterized due to their extremely low frequencies. We developed a highly efficient in vitro conversion/expansion protocol for such cells and extensively characterized their functional and molecular phenotypes using a variety of genomic and immunological techniques.
The IL-10 and IFN-gamma pathways are essential to the potent immunosuppressive activity of cultured CD8+ NKT-like cells.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesAortic valve calcification is the most common form of valvular heart disease, but the mechanisms of calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD) are unknown. NOTCH1 mutations are associated with aortic valve malformations and adult-onset calcification in families with inherited disease. The Notch signaling pathway is critical for multiple cell differentiation processes, but its role in the development of CAVD is not well understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular changes that occur with inhibition of Notch signaling in the aortic valve. Notch signaling pathway members are expressed in adult aortic valve cusps, and examination of diseased human aortic valves revealed decreased expression of NOTCH1 in areas of calcium deposition. To identify downstream mediators of Notch1, we examined gene expression changes that occur with chemical inhibition of Notch signaling in rat aortic valve interstitial cells (AVICs).
Inhibitory role of Notch1 in calcific aortic valve disease.
Specimen part
View SamplesHormones effect various plant developmental processes by altering gene expression. The expression of several genes is regulated by plant hormones and many of these genes are regulated commonly and specifically by various hormones.
Microarray analysis reveals overlapping and specific transcriptional responses to different plant hormones in rice.
Specimen part
View SamplesThe Rac nucleotide Exchange Factor (Rac-GEF) P-Rex1 is highly expressed in breast cancer, specifically in the luminal subtype, and is an essential mediator of actin cytoskeleton reorganization and cell migratory responses induced by ErbB and other tyrosine-kinase receptors. Heregulin, a growth factor highly expressed in mammary tumors, causes the activation of P-Rex1 and Rac1 in breast cancer cells via ErbB3, leading to a motile response. Since there is limited information about P-Rex1 downstream effectors, we carried out a microarray analysis to identify genes regulated by P-Rex1 in the context of HRG stimulation. In T-47D breast cancer cells, HRG treatment caused major changes in gene expression, including genes associated with motility, adhesion, invasiveness and metastasis. Silencing P-Rex1 expression from T-47D cells using RNAi altered the induction and repression of a subset of HRG-regulated genes, among them genes associated with extracellular matrix organization, migration, and chemotaxis. HRG induction of MMP10, a gene encoding for metalloproteinase-10, was found to be highly sensitive both to P-Rex1 depletion as well as inhibition of Rac1 function by the GTPase Activating Protein (GAP) 2-chimaerin, suggesting the dependence of the P-Rex1/Rac1 pathway for the induction of genes critical for breast cancer invasiveness. Notably, there is a significant association in the expression of P-Rex1 and MMP10 in human luminal breast cancer, and their co-expression is indicative of poor prognosis.
Characterization of a P-Rex1 gene signature in breast cancer cells.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesPKCe, an oncogenic member of the PKC family, is aberrantly overexpressed in epithelial cancers. To date, little is known about functional interactions of PKCe with other genetic alterations and the effectors of this kinase that contribute to its tumorigenic and metastatic phenotype. Here we demonstrate that PKCe cooperates with the loss of the tumor suppressor Pten for the development of prostate cancer in a mouse model. Mechanistic analysis revealed that PKCe overexpression and Pten loss individually and synergically cause a remarkable up-regulation in the production of the chemokine CXCL13. Notably, targeted disruption of CXCL13 or its receptor CXCR5 in prostate cancer cells impaired their migratory and tumorigenic properties. In addition to providing evidence for an autonomous vicious cycle driven by PKCe, our studies identified a compelling rationale for targeting the CXCL13:CXCR5 axis for prostate cancer treatment.
Protein Kinase C Epsilon Cooperates with PTEN Loss for Prostate Tumorigenesis through the CXCL13-CXCR5 Pathway.
Cell line
View SamplesPurpose: the goal of this study is to investigate the consequences of USP3 deletion on gene expression in mouse LSK hematopoietic progenitors and in splenic B cells Methods: mRNA profiles of 8 weeks-old wild-type (WT) and ubiquitin specific protease 3 knockout (Usp3-/-) mice were generated by deep sequencing, in duplicate, using Illumina Hiseq2000. The sequence reads that passed quality filters were mapped with TopHat and the gene expressions were calculated using HTSeq-count. qRT–PCR validation was performed using SYBR Green assays Results: We assigned about 8-16 million reads per sample uniquely to a gene of the mouse reference genome (mm9). We identified 23,429 genes in the LSKs, naive B cells and activate B cells of WT and USP3-/- mice using TopHat in combination with HTSeq-count. Comparison of the RNAseq data from LSK with naive or activated B cells show that both the wt and the Usp3-/- LSKs largely exibited a gene expression profile that is specific for wt LSK and distinct from B cells (as supported by statistical significant difference between the transciptional profile of LSK versus naive or activated B cells, p value<0.0001 by Student t test). Comparison of normalized gene expression data for Wt LSKs versus naive B cells of one representative experiment shows Pearson coefficient of r=0.874, and R2=0.763. Distinct LSK-specific expressed genes (such as the MlI receptor and the Kit receptor) and B cells specific genes (such as the MS4A1/CD20 and Spi-B transcription factors) are identified. Expression of a set of 19 genes was assessed by RT-qPCR in three independent LSK mRNA per each genotype. qRT-PCR and the RNA-seq normalized expression data for these genes had a good linear relationship, validating the RNAseq analysis. Comparison of normalized gene expression data for Usp3-/- versus Wt LSK show Pearson coefficient r=0.986; R2=0.9738), naive B cells (Pearson coefficient r=0.987, R2=0.974) and LPS activated B cells (Pearson coefficient r=0.991, R2=0.983). RT-qPCR of a subset of hematopoietic stem cell genes, including Mlp2, ENg, Tek and Fdzl3, show no significant difference beteewn wt and Usp3-/- LSK cells. Less than 100 genes showed differential expression (up or down regulated) between the Wt and Usp3-/- LSK, with a fold change =1.5 and p value <0.05. Conclusions: Our results represent the first detailed analyis of the consequences of USP3 deletion on gene expression in hematopoietic populations such as LSKs progenitors and B cells by genome wide expression profiling in wt and Usp3-/- mice. RNAseq of two freshly isolated biological replicas of sorted LSKs from 8 weeks old Usp3-/- animals showed a very limited number of genes either slighly up or down regulated (<100 out of about 25.000) in Usp3-/- LSKs, none of which are reported to be directly involved in hematopoietic stem cell maintenance or to be linked to premature differentiation. We confirmed that Usp3-/- and wt LSKs express hematopoietic stem cell-specific genes to a similar extent. We conclude that young adult hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (LSKs) perpetuated a stable gene expression program regardless of the homozygous deletion of USP3. Overall design: mRNA profiles of 8 weeks-old wild type (WT) and Usp3-/- mice were generated by deep sequencing, in duplicate, using Illumina Hiseq2000. For each experiment wt n=4, Usp3-/- n=4 mice were analized. FACS sorted cells from from individual animals were pooled and subjected to deep sequencing. Cells were: LSK (Lin- Sca1+ cKit+) from bone marrow, sorted naive B cells from spleens (CD19+) and activated B cells harvested and FACS sorted after 4 days stimulation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in culture.
Quantitative analysis by next generation sequencing of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (LSK) and of splenic B cells transcriptomes from wild-type and Usp3-knockout mice.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesTo comprehensively delineate the ontogeny of an organ system, we generated 112,217 single- cell transcriptomes representing all endoderm populations within the mouse embryo until midgestation. We employed graph-based approaches to model differentiating cells for spatio- temporal characterization of developmental trajectories. Our analysis reveals the detailed architecture of the emergence of the first (primitive or extra-embryonic) endodermal population and pluripotent epiblast. We uncover an unappreciated relationship between descendants of these lineages, before the onset of gastrulation, suggesting that mixing of extra-embryonic and embryonic endoderm cells occurs more than once during mammalian development. We map the trajectories of endoderm cells as they acquire embryonic versus extra-embryonic fates, and their spatial convergence within the gut endoderm; revealing them to be globally similar but retaining aspects of their lineage history. We observe the regionalized localization of cells along the forming gut tube, reflecting their extra-embryonic or embryonic origin, and their coordinate patterning into organ-specific territories along the anterior-posterior axis. Overall design: Total RNA was extracted from bulk tissue and dissociated cells of 13ss (~E8.75) gut tubes, from bulk tissue from anterior, anterior-midgut, midgut-posterior and posterior sections of 13ss gut tubes, as well as from extra-embryonic visceral endoderm and embryonic visceral endoderm of E7.5 embryos (see also table in section: Bulk RNA processing). The Trizol method (Invitrogen) was used for RNA extraction.
The emergent landscape of the mouse gut endoderm at single-cell resolution.
Specimen part, Subject
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