Individual organisms age at different rates, however, it remains unclear how aging alters the properties of individual cells. Here we show that zebrafish pancreatic beta-cells exhibit heterogeneity in both gene expression and proliferation with age. Individual beta-cells show marked variability in transcripts involved in endoplasmic reticulum stress, inhibition of growth factor signaling and inflammation, including NF-kB signaling. Using a reporter line, we show that NF-kB signaling is indeed activated heterogeneously with age. Notably, beta-cells with higher NF-kB activity proliferate less compared to neighbors with lower activity. Furthermore, NF-kB-signalinghigh beta-cells from younger islets upregulate socs2, a gene naturally expressed in beta-cells from older islets. In turn, socs2 can inhibit proliferation cell-autonomously. NF-kB activation correlates with the recruitment of tnfa-expressing immune cells, pointing towards a role for the islet microenvironment in this activity. We propose that aging is heterogeneous across individual beta-cells and identify NF-kB signaling as a marker of heterogeneity. Overall design: We used fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) coupled with next generation RNA-Sequencing to profile beta-cells from 3 month post fertilization and 1 year post fertilization animals. total RNA was extracted from FACS sorted beta-cells using Quick-RNA MicroPrep kit (R1050 Zymo Research). Sequencing was performed on llumina HiSeq2500 in 2x75bp paired-end mode. Reads were splice-aligned to the zebrafish genome, GRCz10, using HISAT2. htseq-count was used to assign reads to exons thus eventually getting counts per gene.
Age-related islet inflammation marks the proliferative decline of pancreatic beta-cells in zebrafish.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesTranscriptome analysis of adult hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) and their progeny has informed our understanding of blood differentiation and leukemogenesis, but a similarly transformative analysis of the embryonic origins of hematopoiesis is lacking. To address this issue, we acquired gene expression profiles of developing HSC purified from over 2500 dissected murine embryos and adult mice, and applied a network biology-based analysis to reconstruct the gene regulatory networks of sequential stages of HSC development. We found that embryonic hematopoietic elements clustered into three distinct transcriptional states characteristic of the definitive yolk sac, HSCs emerging from hemogenic endothelium, and definitive HSCs. We functionally validated several candidate transcriptional regulators of HSC ontogeny by morpholino-mediated knock-down in zebrafish embryos, confirming changes in the expression of HSC markers runx1 and c-myb in the aorta-gonads-mesonephros (AGM), the site of definitive HSC specification. Moreover, we found that HSCs derived from differentiating embryonic stem cells in vitro (ESC-HSC) most closely resemble definitive HSC, yet lack a signature indicative of specification by Notch signaling, which likely accounts for their deficient lymphoid development. Our analysis and accompanying web resource will accelerate the characterization of regulators of HSC ontogeny, facilitate efforts to direct hematopoietic differentiation and cell fate conversion, and serve as a model to study the origins of other adult stem cells.
The transcriptional landscape of hematopoietic stem cell ontogeny.
Specimen part
View SamplesActivation of the STING (Stimulator of Interferon Genes) pathway by microbial or self-DNA, as well as cyclic di nucleotides (CDN), results in the induction of numerous genes that suppress pathogen replication and facilitate adaptive immunity. However, sustained gene transcription is rigidly prevented to avoid lethal STING-dependent pro-inflammatory disease by mechanisms that remain unknown. We demonstrate here that after autophagy-dependent STING delivery of TBK1 (TANK-binding kinase 1) to endosomal/lysosomal compartments and activation of transcription factors IRF3 (interferon regulatory factors 3) and NF-B (nuclear factor kappa beta), that STING is subsequently phosphorylated by serine/threonine UNC-51-like kinase (ULK1/ATG1) and IRF3 function is suppressed. ULK1 activation occurred following disassociation from its repressor adenine monophosphate activated protein kinase (AMPK), and was elicited by CDNS generated by the cGAMP synthase, cGAS. Thus, while CDNs may initially facilitate STING function, they subsequently trigger negative-feedback control of STING activity, thus preventing the persistent transcription of innate immune genes.
Cyclic dinucleotides trigger ULK1 (ATG1) phosphorylation of STING to prevent sustained innate immune signaling.
Age, Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesThe challenge of predicting which patients with breast cancer will develop metastases leads to the overtreatment of patients with benign disease and to the inadequate treatment of the aggressive cancers. Here, we report the development and testing of a microfluidic assay that quantifies the abundance and proliferation of migratory cells in breast-cancer specimens, for the assessment of their metastatic propensity and for the rapid screening of potential antimetastatic therapeutics. On the basis of the key roles of cell motility and proliferation in cancer metastasis, the device accurately predicts the metastatic potential of breast-cancer cell lines and of patient-derived xenografts. Compared to unsorted cancer cells, highly motile cells isolated by the device exhibited similar tumourigenic potential but markedly increased metastatic propensity in vivo. RNA sequencing of the highly motile cells revealed an enrichment of motility-related and survival-related genes. The approach might be developed into a companion assay for the prediction of metastasis in patients and for the selection of effective therapeutic regimens. Overall design: RNA was isolated from samples of 1000Â migratory or unsorted cells in triplicate
A microfluidic assay for the quantification of the metastatic propensity of breast cancer specimens.
Specimen part, Cell line, Subject
View SamplesHeregulin beta-1 (HRG) is an extracellular ligand that activates mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase (PI3K)/Akt signaling pathways through ErbB receptors. MAPK and Akt have been shown to phosphorylate the estrogen receptor (ER) at Ser-118 and Ser-167, respectively, thereby mimicking the effects of estrogenic activity such as estrogen responsive element (ERE)-dependent transcription. In the current study, integrative analysis was performed using two tiling array platforms, comprising histone H3 lysine 9 (H3K9) acetylation and RNA mapping, together with array comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) analysis in an effort to identify HRG-regulated genes in ER-positive MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Through application of various threshold settings, 333 (326 up-regulated and 7 down-regulated) HRG-regulated genes were detected. Prediction of upstream transcription factors (TFs) and pathway analysis indicated that 21% of HRG-induced gene regulation may be controlled by the MAPK cascade, while only 0.6% of the gene expression is controlled by ERE. A comparison with previously reported estrogen (E2)-regulated gene expression data revealed that only 12 common genes were identified between the 333 HRG-regulated (3.6%) and 239 E2-regulated (5.0%) gene groups. However, with respect to enriched upstream TFs, 4 common TFs were identified in the 14 HRG-regulated (28.6%) and 13 E2-regulated (30.8%) gene groups. These results indicated that while E2 and HRG may induce common TFs, the regulatory mechanisms that govern HRG- and E2-induced gene expression differ.
Integrative genome-wide expression analysis bears evidence of estrogen receptor-independent transcription in heregulin-stimulated MCF-7 cells.
Cell line
View SamplesWe performed a microarray experiment to assess SAHA-induced changes in expression of genes of the homologous recombination DNA repair pathway
Suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid (SAHA) enhances olaparib activity by targeting homologous recombination DNA repair in ovarian cancer.
Cell line, Treatment, Time
View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Inflammation-driven carcinogenesis is mediated through STING.
Specimen part
View SamplesChronic stimulation of innate immune pathways by microbial agents or damaged tissue is known to promote inflammation-driven tumorigenesis by unclarified mechanisms1-3. Here we demonstrate that mutagenic 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene (DMBA), etoposide or cisplatin induces nuclear DNA leakage into the cytosol to intrinsically activate STING (Stimulator of Interferon Genes) dependent cytokine production. Inflammatory cytokine levels were subsequently augmented in a STING-dependent extrinsic manner by infiltrating phagocytes purging dying cells. Consequently, STING-/- mice, or wild type mice adoptively transferred with STING-/- bone marrow, were almost completely resistant to DMBA-induced skin carcinogenesis compared to their wild type counterparts. Our data emphasizes, for the first time, a role for STING in the induction of cancer, sheds significant insight into the causes of inflammation-driven carcinogenesis, and may provide therapeutic strategies to help prevent malignant disease
Inflammation-driven carcinogenesis is mediated through STING.
Specimen part
View SamplesChronic stimulation of innate immune pathways by microbial agents or damaged tissue is known to promote inflammation-driven tumorigenesis by unclarified mechanisms1-3. Here we demonstrate that mutagenic 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene (DMBA), etoposide or cisplatin induces nuclear DNA leakage into the cytosol to intrinsically activate STING (Stimulator of Interferon Genes) dependent cytokine production. Inflammatory cytokine levels were subsequently augmented in a STING-dependent extrinsic manner by infiltrating phagocytes purging dying cells. Consequently, STING-/- mice, or wild type mice adoptively transferred with STING-/- bone marrow, were almost completely resistant to DMBA-induced skin carcinogenesis compared to their wild type counterparts. Our data emphasizes, for the first time, a role for STING in the induction of cancer, sheds significant insight into the causes of inflammation-driven carcinogenesis, and may provide therapeutic strategies to help prevent malignant disease
Inflammation-driven carcinogenesis is mediated through STING.
Specimen part
View SamplesWe performed a time-course microarray experiment to define the transcriptional response to carboplatin in vitro, and to correlate this with clinical outcome in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). RNA was isolated from carboplatin and control-treated 36M2 ovarian cancer cells at several time points, followed by oligonucleotide microarray hybridization. Carboplatin induced changes in gene expression were assessed at the single gene as well as at the pathway level. Clinical validation was performed in publicly available microarray datasets using disease free and overall survival endpoints.
Carboplatin-induced gene expression changes in vitro are prognostic of survival in epithelial ovarian cancer.
No sample metadata fields
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