Human intervertebral disc tissue was obtained from patients (average age 51 yrs) undergoing surgery for lumbar interbody fusion (n=3) or lumbar disc herniation (n=1). Cells were isolated by sequential pronase-collagenase digestion [3]. Cells were passaged twice in monolayer and suspended at a density of 2 x 106 cells/ml in 1.2% alginate (low viscosity, Sigma Chemical, St Louis, MO) dissolved in 150 mM NaCl. Alginate beads were formed by dropwise addition of the alginate from a 22 gauge needle into 102 mM CaCl2, followed by 10 minutes of curing, as described previously [13, 27]. Cell-gel beads were incubated in cell culture media consisting of Hams F-12 medium (Gibco BRL, Grand Island, NY), supplemented with 10% FBS (HyClone, Logan, UT), 25 g/ml ascorbic acid (Sigma, St. Louis, MO), 100 U/ml penicillin, 100 g/ml streptomycin, and 1 g/ml Fungizone at 5% CO2 and 37 C.
Osmolarity regulates gene expression in intervertebral disc cells determined by gene array and real-time quantitative RT-PCR.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesExtracellular RNAs (exRNAs) in blood and other biofluids have attracted great interest as potential biomarkers in liquid biopsy applications, as well as for their potential biological functions. Whereas it is well-established that extracellular microRNAs are present in human blood circulation, the degree to which messenger RNAs (mRNA) and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNA) are represented in plasma is less clear. Here we report that mRNA and lncRNA species are present as small fragments in plasma that are not detected by standard small RNA-seq methods, because they lack 5'-phosphorylation or carry 3'-phosphorylation. We developed a modified sequencing protocol (termed "phospho-sRNA-seq") that incorporates upfront RNA treatment with T4 polynucleotide kinase (which also has 3' phosphatase activity) and compared it to a standard small RNA-seq protocol, using as input both a pool of synthetic RNAs with diverse 5' and 3' end chemistries, as well exRNA isolated from human blood plasma. Using a custom, high-stringency pipeline for data analysis we identified mRNA and lncRNA transcriptome fingerprints in plasma, including multiple tissue-specific gene sets. In a longitudinal study of hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) patients, we found different sets corresponding to bone marrow- and liver- enriched genes, which tracked with bone marrow recovery or liver injury, providing proof-of-concept validation of this method as a biomarker approach. By accessing a previously unexplored realm of mRNA and lncRNA fragments in blood plasma, phospho-sRNA-seq opens up a new space for plasma transcriptome-based biomarker development in diverse clinical settings. Overall design: ExRNA-seq libraries were prepared from platelet-poor plasma obtained from serial blood draws collected from two individuals undergoing bone marrow transplantation. A total of 11 samples were collected from each individual, starting prior to chemotherapy/ratiation treatment (approximately 7 days pre-HSCT) the day of transplant, and then weekly up to approximately Day 63.
Phospho-RNA-seq: a modified small RNA-seq method that reveals circulating mRNA and lncRNA fragments as potential biomarkers in human plasma.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesPreparation of exosomes isolated from semen contain a substantial amount of RNA, mostly from 20 to 100 nucleotides in length. We sequenced separately 20-40 and 40-100 nucleotide fractions of RNA from exosomes isolated from semenal fluid from six healthy donors. We found various classes of small non-coding RNA, including mature microRNA and piwi-RNA, as well as abundant Y RNAs and tRNAs present in both full length and fragmented forms. Specific RNAs were consistently present in all donors. For example, fifteen (of ~2,600 known) microRNAs constituted over 80% of mature microRNA in SE. Additionally, tRNA fragments were strongly enriched for 5’-ends of 18-19 or 30-34 nucleotides in length. Overall design: Size-fractionated small RNA profiles from exosomes isolated from the seminal fluid of six healthy donors
Exosomes in human semen carry a distinctive repertoire of small non-coding RNAs with potential regulatory functions.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesMedulloblastoma (MB) is the most common malignant brain tumor in children. Patients whose tumors exhibit overexpression or amplification of the MYC oncogene (c-MYC) usually have an extremely poor prognosis, but there are no animal models of this subtype of the disease. Here we show that cerebellar stem cells expressing Myc and mutant Trp53 (p53) generate aggressive tumors following orthotopic transplantation. These tumors consist of large, pleiomorphic cells and resemble human MYC-driven MB at a molecular level. Notably, antagonists of PI3K/mTOR signaling, but not Hedgehog signaling, inhibit growth of tumor cells. These findings suggest that cerebellar stem cells can give rise to MYC-driven MB, and identify a novel model that can be used to test therapies for this devastating disease.
An animal model of MYC-driven medulloblastoma.
Specimen part
View SamplesINTRODUCTION: CDKN2A (p16) inactivation is common in lung cancer and occurs via homozygous deletions, methylation of promoter region, or point mutations. Although p16 promoter methylation has been linked to KRAS mutation and smoking, the associations between p16 inactivation mechanisms and other common genetic mutations and smoking status are still controversial or unknown. METHODS: We determined all three p16 inactivation mechanisms with the use of multiple methodologies for genomic status, methylation, RNA, and protein expression, and correlated them with EGFR, KRAS, STK11 mutations and smoking status in 40 cell lines and 45 tumor samples of primary non-small-cell lung carcinoma. We also performed meta-analyses to investigate the impact of smoke exposure on p16 inactivation. RESULTS: p16 inactivation was the major mechanism of RB pathway perturbation in non-small-cell lung carcinoma, with homozygous deletion being the most frequent method, followed by methylation and the rarer point mutations. Inactivating mechanisms were tightly correlated with loss of mRNA and protein expression. p16 inactivation occurred at comparable frequencies regardless of mutational status of EGFR, KRAS, and STK11, however, the major inactivation mechanism of p16 varied. p16 methylation was linked to KRAS mutation but was mutually exclusive with EGFR mutation. Cell lines and tumor samples demonstrated similar results. Our meta-analyses confirmed a modest positive association between p16 promoter methylation and smoking. CONCLUSION: Our results confirm that all the inactivation mechanisms are truly associated with loss of gene product and identify specific associations between p16 inactivation mechanisms and other genetic changes and smoking status.
Molecular portraits of epithelial, mesenchymal, and hybrid States in lung adenocarcinoma and their relevance to survival.
Sex, Age, Race
View SamplesWe report molecular characterization of human brown and white adipocytes. We showed that PAZ6 and SW872 cells exhibit classical molecular and phenotypic markers of brown and white adipocytes, respectively. However, SGBS cells presented a versatile phenotype of adipocyte Overall design: Sequencing of three human adipocytes cell lines (SGBS, SW872 and PAZ6) in undifferentiated and differentiated stages.
Comprehensive molecular characterization of human adipocytes reveals a transient brown phenotype.
No sample metadata fields
View SamplesExpression profiling of progenitor cells from human supraclavicular and subcutaneous adipose tissue. Studies in animal models revealed that brown and white adipocytes derive from different progenitor cells. Molecular characteristics of these cells have not been investigated in detail in humans.
Comparative gene array analysis of progenitor cells from human paired deep neck and subcutaneous adipose tissue.
Sex, Age
View SamplesThese samples are part of the ENCODE consortiums proposed time-limited Pilot Study for confirmation of the utility of RNA abundance measurements as a standard reference phenotyping tool.
The accessible chromatin landscape of the human genome.
Cell line
View SamplesPeripheral blood mononuclear cells were collected from SLE patients in an observational study performed at the University of Michigan
Association of the interferon signature metric with serological disease manifestations but not global activity scores in multiple cohorts of patients with SLE.
Disease
View SamplesRNA sequencing was performed on RNA isolated from baseline biopsies from UC patients enrolled in the Phase II EUCALYPTUS study of etrolizumab. Gene expression differences were identified in a subset of anti-TNF naïve patients that achieved clinical remission at 10 weeks in response to etrolizumab. Overall design: Baseline colonic biopsies from UC patients treated with etrolizumab were sequenced by the Illumina HiSeq 2000 Sequencing System.
Association Between Response to Etrolizumab and Expression of Integrin αE and Granzyme A in Colon Biopsies of Patients With Ulcerative Colitis.
No sample metadata fields
View Samples