This SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Chromatin structure and gene expression programs of human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells.
Cell line
View SamplesKnowledge of both the global chromatin structure and the gene expression programs of human embryonic stem (ES) cells and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells should provide a robust means to assess whether the genomes of these cells have similar pluripotent states. Recent studies have suggested that ES and iPS cells represent different pluripotent states with substantially different gene expression profiles. We describe here a comparison of global chromatin structure and gene expression data for a panel of human ES and iPS cells. Genome-wide maps of nucleosomes with histone H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 modifications indicate that there is little difference between ES and iPS cells with respect to these marks. Gene expression profiles confirm that the transcriptional programs of ES and iPS cells show very few consistent differences. Although some variation in chromatin structure and gene expression was observed in these cell lines, these variations did not serve to distinguish ES from iPS cells.
Chromatin structure and gene expression programs of human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells.
Cell line
View SamplesHuman and mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are derived from blastocyst stage embryos but have very different biological properties, and molecular analyses suggest that the pluripotent state of human ESCs isolated so far corresponds to that of mouse derived epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs). Here we rewire the identity of conventional human ESCs into a more immature state that extensively shares defining features with pluripotent mouse ESCs. This was achieved by exogenous induction of Oct4, Klf4 and Klf2 factors combined with LIF and inhibitors of glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (ERK) pathway. Forskolin, a protein kinase A pathway agonist that induces Klf4 and Klf2 expression, can transiently substitute for the requirement for ectopib transgene expression. In contrast to conventional human ESCs, these epigenetically converted cells have growth properties, an X chromosome activation state (XaXa), a gene expression profile, and signaling pathway dependence that are highly similar to that of mouse ESCs. Finally, the same growth conditions allow the derivation of human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells with similar properties as mouse iPS cells. The generation of nave human ESCs will allow the molecular dissection of a previously undefined pluripotent state in humans, and may open up new opportunities for patient-specific, disease-relevant research.
Human embryonic stem cells with biological and epigenetic characteristics similar to those of mouse ESCs.
Specimen part
View SamplesInduced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from somatic cells of patients by viral vector-mediated factor transduction represent a powerful tool for biomedical research and may provide a source for cell replacement therapies. However, the proviruses encoding the reprogramming factors represent a major limitation of the current technology because even low vector expression may alter the differentiation potential of the iPSCs and induce malignant transformation. Here we show that fibroblasts from five patients with idiopathic Parkinsons disease (PD) can be efficiently reprogrammed into hiPSCs and subsequently differentiated into dopaminergic neurons. Moreover, we derived PD specific hiPSCs free of reprogramming factors using Cre-recombinase excisable viruses. Upon factor deletion these cells maintain a pluripotent state and intact karyotype. Importantly, these factor-free hiPSCs show a global gene expression profile, which is more closely related to hESCs than to hiPSCs carrying the transgenes. Our results indicate that residual transgene expression in conventional virus-carrying hiPSCs can affect their molecular characteristics and that factor-free hiPSCs therefore represent a more suitable source of cells for modeling of human disease.
Parkinson's disease patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells free of viral reprogramming factors.
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View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Generation of isogenic pluripotent stem cells differing exclusively at two early onset Parkinson point mutations.
Specimen part
View SamplesPatient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from somatic cells provide a unique tool for the study of human disease in disease relevant cells, as well as a promising source for cell replacement therapies for degenerative diseases. However one of the crucial limitations before realizing the full promise of this disease in a dish approach has been the inability to do controlled experiments under genetically defined conditions. This is particularly relevant for disorders with long latency periods, such as Parkinsons disease (PD), where in vitro phenotypes of patient-derived iPSCs are predicted to be subtle and susceptible to significant epistatic effects of genetic background variations. By combining zinc-finger nuclease (ZFN)-mediated genome editing and iPSC technology we provide a generally applicable solution to this key problem by generating isogenic pairs of disease and control human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and hiPSCs lines that differ exclusively at a susceptibility variant for PD by modifying a single point mutation (A53T) in the -synuclein gene. The robust capability to genetically correct disease causing point mutations in patient-derived hiPSCs represents not only a significant progress for basic biomedical research but also a major advancement towards hiPSC-based cell replacement therapies using autologous cells.
Generation of isogenic pluripotent stem cells differing exclusively at two early onset Parkinson point mutations.
Specimen part
View SamplesThe activity of enhancers and promoters fine-tunes the transcriptional program of mammalian cells through the recruitment and interplay between cell type-specific and ubiquitous transcription factors. Despite their key role in modulating transcription, the identification of enhancers is challenged by their limited sequence conservation and highly variable distance from target genes. Although enhancers are characterised by the strong enrichment of mono-methylation at lysine 4 of histone H3, mirrored by low tri-methylation at the same residue, a comprehensive list of enhancers-associated histone post-translational modifications (PTMs) is still lacking. We undertook a proteomics investigation, based on chromatin immunoprecipitation combined with mass spectrometry (MS), to identify histone marks specifically associated to cis-regulatory elements in macrophages, focusing on enhancers. We also profiled their plasticity during the transcriptional activation induced by an inflammatory stimulus. The proteomic analysis suggested novel PTM associations, which were validated by analysis of ChIP- and RNA-seq data, whose intersection revealed the existence of novel sub-populations of enhancers marked by specific signatures: the dual mark H3K4me1/K36me2 labels transcription at enhancers, whereas H3K4me1/K36me3 and H3K4me1/K79me2 tag distinct intronic enhancers. While demonstrating that analyzing restricted genomic regions can disclose the combinatorial language of histone modifications, this study highlights the potential of MS-based proteomics in addressing fundamental questions in epigenetics. Overall design: Total RNA was extracted from 5x10^6 untreated RAW 264.7 cells using RNAeasy kit (Qiagen). Libraries were then prepared using TruSeq RNA sample preparation Kit (Illumina) after depleting ribosomal RNA
Chromatin proteomics reveals novel combinatorial histone modification signatures that mark distinct subpopulations of macrophage enhancers.
Specimen part, Cell line, Treatment, Subject
View SamplesUsing primary human bronchial epithelial cells collected at bronchoscopy, we have perturbed signaling pathways important in regulation of response to tobacco smoke exposure and cancer development: ATM, BCL2, GPX1, NOS2, IKBKB, and SIRT1
SIRT1 pathway dysregulation in the smoke-exposed airway epithelium and lung tumor tissue.
Specimen part
View SamplesIn this study we obtained gene expression profiles of MCFS and parental MCF7 cell lines using Illumina microarrays
In-depth characterization of breast cancer tumor-promoting cell transcriptome by RNA sequencing and microarrays.
Specimen part, Cell line
View SamplesFibroblasts synthesize the extracellular matrix of connective tissue and play an essential role in maintaining tissue integrity. We have previously shown that mouse skin connective tissue, the dermis, is comprised of functionally distinct fibroblast lineages. However, the extent of fibroblast heterogeneity in human skin is unknown. Here, using a combination of spatial transcriptional profiling of human and mouse dermis and single cell transcriptional profiling of human dermal fibroblasts, we show that there are at least four distinct fibroblast populations in adult human skin. We define markers permitting prospective isolation of these cells and show that although marker expression is rapidly lost in culture, different fibroblast subpopulations retain distinct functionality in terms of Wnt signalling, T cell communication and the ability to support human epidermal reconstitution in organotypic culture. Furthermore, while some fibroblast subpopulations are spatially segregated, others are not. These findings have profound implications for normal wound healing and diseases characterized by excessive fibrosis, and suggest that ex vivo expansion or in vivo ablation of specific fibroblast subpopulations may have therapeutic applications. Overall design: Spatial RNA sequencing of human papillary versus reticular dermis for 3 individuals, and single cell RNA sequencing of dermal fibroblasts for a single individual.
Spatial and Single-Cell Transcriptional Profiling Identifies Functionally Distinct Human Dermal Fibroblast Subpopulations.
Specimen part, Subject
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