Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Anita Grund, Katharina Till, Klaudia Giehl, Annette Borchers
Summary: PTK7 protein is dynamically localized at cell-cell contact zones of migrating Xenopus NC cells and is required for contact inhibition of locomotion (CIL). The extracellular immunoglobulin domains of Ptk7 are important for its transient accumulation and mediate homophilic binding. Ectopic expression of Ptk7 in non-NC cells can prevent NC cell invasion, indicating a common role of PTK7 in contact inhibition, cell invasion, and tissue integrity.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Developmental Biology
Jason A. Morrison, Rebecca McLennan, Jessica M. Teddy, Allison R. Scott, Jennifer C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Madelaine M. Gogol, Paul M. Kulesa
Summary: By using label-free, unsorted single-cell RNA sequencing, this study identified novel markers of migrating neural crest cells and 266 invasion genes common to all BA1-4 streams. Perturbation analysis of a subset of invasion genes revealed their functional role in regulating neural crest cell behaviors. Comparison with other cell invasion phenomena showed a shared set of 45 genes, some of which demonstrated relevance to human neuroblastoma cell lines exposed to the in vivo chick embryonic neural crest microenvironment.
Review
Biology
Paul M. Kulesa, Jennifer C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Jason A. Morrison, Rebecca McLennan, Mary Cathleen McKinney, Caleb Bailey
Summary: Cell invasion and cell plasticity play crucial roles in human development and cancer metastasis, involving complex cell signaling and interactive behaviors. Researchers have recognized the importance of mathematics in biology and developed a unique mathematical strategy to address these complex biological questions.
BULLETIN OF MATHEMATICAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Leiyu Hao, Yan Liu, Xinqian Yu, Yuerong Zhu, Yichao Zhu
Summary: The study revealed that Daam1 interacts with Fascin to promote pseudopodia formation and cell migration in BrCa by facilitating actin filament assembly. Fascin is upregulated in BrCa tissues and its downregulation affects pseudopodia formation and cell motility. The findings suggest that Daam1 and Fascin play crucial roles in regulating cell motility and invadopodia extension in breast cancer.
CELL PROLIFERATION
(2021)
Article
Biology
Alexander J. Tarashansky, Jacob M. Musser, Margarita Khariton, Pengyang Li, Detlev Arendt, Stephen R. Quake, Bo Wang
Summary: SAMap is a new method that can map cell atlas manifolds across species within phyla, identifying homologous cell types with shared expression programs, even in complex examples where homologous tissues emerge from distinct germ layers.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Cristian L. Marchant, Abdul N. Malmi-Kakkada, Jaime A. Espina, Elias H. Barriga
Summary: Collective cell migration in embryonic tissues is triggered by a mechanosensitive pathway involving Piezo1-mediated microtubule deacetylation, causing cell softening.
Review
Cell & Tissue Engineering
Johanna Diener, Lukas Sommer
Summary: Melanoma is a deadly skin cancer with high metastatic potential, and advances in targeted therapy and immunotherapy have improved treatment. However, drug resistance remains a major obstacle. The progression of melanoma is associated with cellular dedifferentiation and gene regulatory networks, requiring novel approaches to combat stemness characteristics.
STEM CELLS TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Biology
Alexandre P. Thiery, Ailin Leticia Buzzi, Eva Hamrud, Chris Cheshire, Nicholas M. Luscombe, James Briscoe, Andrea Streit
Summary: The vertebrate neural plate border is a transient territory that contains precursors for all ectodermal derivatives. Through single cell RNA sequencing, this study explores the diversity and heterogeneity of cells in the neural plate border and reveals the dynamic expression patterns and fate enrichment of genes previously classified as neural plate border specifiers. Furthermore, the study suggests that individual cells in the neural plate border co-express competing transcriptional programs, indicating their undecided fate.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Aljona Gaiko-Shcherbak, Julian Eschenbruch, Nils M. Kronenberg, Michael Teske, Benjamin Wolters, Ronald Springer, Malte C. Gather, Rudolf Merkel, Bernd Hoffmann, Erik Noetzel
Summary: The study found that disruption of the basement membrane can lead to the transition of benign acini to invasive, while EGFR activation further compromises the barrier function of the basement membrane, promoting cancer cell invasion. Breast acini continuously sense the mechanical properties of the extracellular matrix by forming new cellular protrusions, pushing and pulling on the basement membrane and extracellular matrix.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Developmental Biology
Jennifer C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Jennifer A. Spengler, Connor E. Muolo, Jason A. Morrison, Thomas E. Woolley, Santiago Schnell, Paul M. Kulesa
Summary: Studies suggest that TrkB plays a crucial role in the progression of NB disease, and in vivo data supports TrkB as an important biomarker and target to control NB aggressiveness. The functional relationship between TrkB, cell invasion, and plasticity of human NB cells was studied using a chick embryo transplant model, revealing TrkB as a key factor in regulating cell invasion and NB cell behavior.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Shoichiro Tani, Hiroyuki Okada, Ung-il Chung, Shinsuke Ohba, Hironori Hojo
Summary: Skeletal disorders, such as osteoarthritis and bone fractures, can greatly impact the quality of life for elderly individuals. Regenerative therapies using skeletal cells are a promising treatment option, with two main strategies for cell sources: induced pluripotent stem cells or extraction from skeletal tissues. These cells have the potential for differentiation into various skeletal cell types and offer applications for skeletal regeneration.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Cell & Tissue Engineering
Yajie Gong, Haoyun Duan, Xin Wang, Can Zhao, Wenjing Li, Chunxiao Dong, Zongyi Li, Qingjun Zhou
Summary: Transplantation of hiPSC-derived NCCs can rapidly restore rabbit corneal thickness and clarity, but long-term recovery efficacy may be impaired by factors such as improper maturation, senescence, and endothelial-mesenchymal transition of the transplanted cells.
STEM CELL RESEARCH & THERAPY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Zachary T. Olmsted, Janet L. Paluh
Summary: Researchers have successfully studied the co-development of the central and peripheral nervous systems with trunk mesendoderm in elongating multi-lineage organized (EMLO) gastruloids. They identified NCCs that differentiate to form peripheral neurons integrated with an upstream spinal cord region after day 8.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Andrew O. Rubio, Kyle Summers
Summary: This study found that domesticated animals show higher levels of positive selection on neural crest cell genes compared to closely related wild species. The findings support the importance of these genes in the domestication syndrome.
Article
Cell & Tissue Engineering
Kenyi Saito-Diaz, Jonathan Roy Street, Heidi Ulrichs, Nadja Zeltner
Summary: This study presents a chemically defined differentiation protocol that successfully generates three subtypes of peripheral sensory neurons from human pluripotent stem cells, with methods to enhance the purity of each subtype. The resulting cultures are responsive to stimuli and electrically active, enabling modeling of human neurologic disorders and study of human development.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jennifer C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Santiago Schnell, Thomas Woolley, Jennifer A. Spengler, Jason A. Morrison, Mary C. McKinney, Irina Pushel, Lauren A. Wolfe, Paul M. Kulesa
BIOPHYSICAL CHEMISTRY
(2018)
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Rasa Giniunaite, Rebecca McLennan, Mary C. McKinney, Ruth E. Baker, Paul M. Kulesa, Philip K. Maini
DEVELOPMENTAL DYNAMICS
(2020)
Article
Developmental Biology
Mary Cathleen McKinney, Rebecca McLennan, Rasa Giniunaite, Ruth E. Baker, Philip K. Maini, Hans G. Othmer, Paul M. Kulesa
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2020)
Review
Biology
Paul M. Kulesa, Jennifer C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Jason A. Morrison, Rebecca McLennan, Mary Cathleen McKinney, Caleb Bailey
Summary: Cell invasion and cell plasticity play crucial roles in human development and cancer metastasis, involving complex cell signaling and interactive behaviors. Researchers have recognized the importance of mathematics in biology and developed a unique mathematical strategy to address these complex biological questions.
BULLETIN OF MATHEMATICAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Jennifer Halma, Stephen Pierce, Rebecca McLennan, Todd Bradley, Ryan Fischer
Summary: The roles of NK cells in liver disease and transplantation are still unclear, with contradictory reports and complex mechanisms depending on the model. Differences in NK cell attributes among species make studying primate or rodent transplant models challenging. Insights from NK function and therapy in cancer may be relevant to transplantation, particularly regarding immune checkpoint molecules and their modulation of NK cells in the tumor micro-environment.
CTS-CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Developmental Biology
Jason A. Morrison, Rebecca McLennan, Jessica M. Teddy, Allison R. Scott, Jennifer C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Madelaine M. Gogol, Paul M. Kulesa
Summary: By using label-free, unsorted single-cell RNA sequencing, this study identified novel markers of migrating neural crest cells and 266 invasion genes common to all BA1-4 streams. Perturbation analysis of a subset of invasion genes revealed their functional role in regulating neural crest cell behaviors. Comparison with other cell invasion phenomena showed a shared set of 45 genes, some of which demonstrated relevance to human neuroblastoma cell lines exposed to the in vivo chick embryonic neural crest microenvironment.
Article
Developmental Biology
Jennifer C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Jennifer A. Spengler, Connor E. Muolo, Jason A. Morrison, Thomas E. Woolley, Santiago Schnell, Paul M. Kulesa
Summary: Studies suggest that TrkB plays a crucial role in the progression of NB disease, and in vivo data supports TrkB as an important biomarker and target to control NB aggressiveness. The functional relationship between TrkB, cell invasion, and plasticity of human NB cells was studied using a chick embryo transplant model, revealing TrkB as a key factor in regulating cell invasion and NB cell behavior.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Eric S. Geanes, Cas LeMaster, Elizabeth R. Fraley, Santosh Khanal, Rebecca McLennan, Elin Grundberg, Rangaraj Selvarangan, Todd Bradley
Summary: This study found that individuals who had previous SARS-CoV-2 infection or were vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech BNT162b2 vaccine produced antibody responses that cross-reacted with related betacoronaviruses. A peptide-conjugate vaccine was also designed to induce cross-reactive antibody binding to SARS-CoV-2 and other related coronaviruses. These findings suggest that conserved epitopes of SARS-CoV-2 can elicit cross-reactive immune responses to both related coronaviruses and host bacteria.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Elizabeth R. Fraley, Santosh Khanal, Stephen H. Pierce, Cas A. LeMaster, Rebecca McLennan, Tomi Pastinen, Todd Bradley
Summary: Understanding the B cell response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines is crucial, and this study sequenced the B cell receptor repertoire of individuals vaccinated with the Pfizer mRNA vaccine. The results showed that vaccine-induced IgG clonotypes had specific characteristics, including shorter heavy-chain complementarity determining region 3 (HCDR3) and higher somatic hypermutation (SHM). Shared clonotypes were also identified across individuals, indicating convergent evolution due to the vaccine independent of prior viral exposure.
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Rebecca McLennan, Rasa Giniunaite, Katie Hildebrand, Jessica M. M. Teddy, Jennifer C. C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Lizbeth Bolanos, Ruth E. E. Baker, Philip K. K. Maini, Paul M. M. Kulesa
Summary: Colec12 and Trail are identified as novel factors that regulate the migration of neural crest cells in the vertebrate head, confining cell trajectories and promoting collective migration.
DEVELOPMENTAL DYNAMICS
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Eric S. Geanes, Stacey A. Krepel, Rebecca McLennan, Stephen Pierce, Santosh Khanal, Todd Bradley
Summary: The study shows that bispecific antibodies targeting CD74 and IL4R on the surface of lymphoma cells could provide improved defense against rituximab resistance.
FRONTIERS IN MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Biology
Jennifer C. Kasemeier-Kulesa, Morgan H. Romine, Jason A. Morrison, Caleb M. Bailey, Danny R. Welch, Paul M. Kulesa