Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Wensen Jiang, Juliane D. Glaeser, Khosrowdad Salehi, Giselle Kaneda, Pranav Mathkar, Anton Wagner, Ritchie Ho, Dmitriy Sheyn
Summary: The study generated cell atlases of human intervertebral discs (IVDs) in both neonatal and adult stages and analyzed their composition, distribution, and function. Comparison of the cell atlases revealed the existence of different cell populations and their developmental trajectories. The findings provide insights into the cellular biology of IVDs and may have implications for the development of novel therapeutic targets for IVD degeneration.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Giovanni Tossetta, Sonia Fantone, Teresa Lorenzi, Andrea Benedetto Galosi, Andrea Sagrati, Mara Fabri, Daniela Marzioni, Manrico Morroni
Summary: The presence of scattered tubular cells (STCs) in human adult macula densa (MD) was demonstrated, suggesting that these cells have expansion, self-renewal and epithelial differentiation abilities, similar to other parts of renal tubules.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence
Sumanta Ray, Snehalika Lall, Anirban Mukhopadhyay, Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay, Alexander Schoenhuth
Summary: This article introduces the use of artificial intelligence and deep learning techniques to screen drug repositories and find therapeutic options against COVID-19. By constructing a comprehensive molecular interaction network and predicting connections between drugs and human proteins, novel host-directed therapy options are established, providing a new approach for fighting the virus.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN MEDICINE
(2022)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Mariona Jove, Natalia Mota-Martorell, Elia Obis, Joaquim Sol, Meritxell Martin-Gari, Isidre Ferrer, Manuel Portero-Otin, Reinald Pamplona
Summary: The human brain is highly susceptible to oxidative stress due to its characteristics, but neurons have evolved various adaptive mechanisms to combat oxidative stress and preserve their functionality.
Article
Neurosciences
David Labib, Zhen Wang, Priya Prakash, Matthew Zimmer, Matthew D. Smith, Paul W. Frazel, Lilianne Barbar, Maria L. Sapar, Peter A. Calabresi, Junmin Peng, Shane A. Liddelow, Valentina Fossati
Summary: The study investigated the surface marker profile and proteome of reactive astrocytes induced by proinflammatory factors and proposed several potential markers for this reactive sub-state. Colocalization of these markers with specific cells in post-mortem samples from Alzheimer's disease patients was observed. Proteomic analysis also identified proteins and pathways linked to potential engagement with peripheral immune cells.
FRONTIERS IN MOLECULAR NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
David McNiel, Charles Hennemeyer, Greg Woodhead, Hugh McGregor
Summary: Management of high-risk surgical patients with cholecystitis is a significant challenge, and traditional treatment options may be limited. Cryoablation has emerged as a promising new option for treating gallbladder disease, with early studies showing good technical and clinical outcomes.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Nina Gram Garmann, Pernille Hansen, Hanne Gram Simonsen, Elisabeth Holm, Eirik Tengesdal, Brechtje Post, Elinor Payne
Summary: This paper investigates a prosodic-phonetic feature in child-directed speech in Norwegian, finding differential behavior of vocalic intrusions in certain phonetic contexts in child-directed versus adult-directed speech. The duration of vocalic intrusions is also longer in child-directed speech, particularly when directed to 2;6-year-olds. The authors suggest that these vocalic intrusions may serve bonding and didactic functions in child-directed speech, with variations based on the child's age.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Takeharu Minamitani, Karin Kiyose, Ryota Otsubo, Toshihiro Ito, Hiroki Akiba, Rika A. Furuta, Tsuyoshi Inoue, Kouhei Tsumoto, Masahiro Satake, Teruhito Yasui
Summary: Researchers isolated TeNT-reactive human antibody clones from peripheral blood, finding that antibodies targeting Hn effectively neutralized TeNT, and combination treatment with Hc-reactive and TeNT mix-reactive antibody clones enhanced the neutralizing effect.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Pere Catala, Nathalie Groen, Jasmin A. Dehnen, Eduardo Soares, Arianne J. H. van Velthoven, Rudy M. M. A. Nuijts, Mor M. Dickman, Vanessa L. S. LaPointe
Summary: The cornea consists of five layers, with different cell types having specific functions in each layer, highlighting the importance of cellular heterogeneity in maintaining corneal homeostasis.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Pediatrics
Jeske Fridrichs, Bart Hamel, Wendy Kelder, Ewoud van den Hoed, Marius C. van den Heuvel, Jan B. F. Hulscher, Peter Olinga
Summary: This study demonstrates the application of precision-cut tissue slices (PCTS) to human bile duct and gallbladder tissue. The PCCDS and PCGS maintained viability for at least 24 hours, making them suitable for research on cholangiopathies, including biliary atresia.
FRONTIERS IN PEDIATRICS
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Hannah S. Sarvasy, Weicong Li, Jaydene Elvin, Paola Escudero
Summary: In many communities, speech to infants and small children has distinct features compared to speech to adults, which can also be observed in speech directed to foreigners. This study examines the vowel acoustics in the Nungon language of Papua New Guinea, specifically in child-directed speech, conversational speech, and monologues directed towards a non-native speaker. The findings show that Nungon child-directed speech lacks vowel hyper-articulation but displays other prosodic traits common to child-directed speech. Furthermore, the vowel patterns in Nungon foreigner-directed speech are significantly different from those in child-directed speech and conversational speech. This study contributes to the understanding of speech variation and its cultural implications in different linguistic communities.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Cell Biology
Nasa Xu, Jianbo Wu, Jose L. Ortiz-Vitali, Yong Li, Radbod Darabi
Summary: Recent advancements in reprogramming somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have allowed for the efficient derivation of skeletal myogenic progenitors from human pluripotent stem cells (ESCs/iPSCs) using a directed differentiation method without the need for gene integration or modification. This method induces mesoderm and subsequently myotomal progenitors, enabling the generation of skeletal myogenic progenitors in a short time frame with high efficiency.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ruediger Klapdor, Shuo Wang, Michael A. Morgan, Katharina Zimmermann, Jens Hachenberg, Hildegard Buening, Thilo Doerk, Peter Hillemanns, Axel Schambach
Summary: Ovarian cancer stem cells with chemoresistance contribute to tumor recurrence, leading to poor survival rates. Targeting CD44 using CAR immunotherapy demonstrates potent cytotoxic activity against CD44-positive ovarian cancer cells. Furthermore, combined treatment of CD44-targeted therapy and cisplatin shows higher anti-tumor activity compared to sequential treatment.
Article
Immunology
Nathalie Vanderheijden, Annelies Stevaert, Jiexiong Xie, Xiaolei Ren, Cyril Barbezange, Sam Noppen, Isabelle Desombere, Bruno Verhasselt, Peter Geldhof, Nick Vereecke, Veerle Stroobants, Dayoung Oh, Merijn Vanhee, Lieve M. J. Naesens, Hans J. Nauwynck
Summary: Broadly protective therapeutic antibodies are urgently needed to combat SARS-CoV-2 variants. Researchers have found that antibodies formed during coronavirus infection can target multiple coronaviruses. These antibodies can bind to both alpha- and betacoronaviruses, but their neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2 is weak. However, they may still play a role in influencing the severity of coronavirus infection and disease through Fc-mediated effector functions.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Pingan Zhu, Yixin Wang, Hin Chu, Liqiu Wang
Summary: The study shows that superhydrophobic surfaces can effectively prevent the attachment of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, significantly reducing viral transmission. The adhesion force between solid and liquid plays a vital role in viral attachment, providing a new approach for developing preventive measures against epidemic spread.
JOURNAL OF COLLOID AND INTERFACE SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Qing-Shuo Zhang, Amita Tiyaboonchai, Sean Nygaard, Kevin Baradar, Angela Major, Niveditha Balaji, Markus Grompe
Summary: Enhancing the efficiency of gene repair by homologous recombination in the liver can be achieved through CRISP/Cas9 incision near the mutation site. Interventions to further improve in vivo hepatocyte gene repair include inducing cell division with thyroid hormone T3 in neonatal mice and investigating the importance of the Fanconi anemia DNA repair pathway in hepatocyte gene repair.
HUMAN GENE THERAPY
(2021)
Article
Cell & Tissue Engineering
Alfredo Rodriguez, Kaiyang Zhang, Anniina Farkkila, Jessica Filiatrault, Chunyu Yang, Martha Velazquez, Elissa Furutani, Devorah C. Goldman, Benilde Garcia de Teresa, Gilda Garza-Mayen, Kelsey McQueen, Larissa A. Sambel, Bertha Molina, Leda Torres, Marisol Gonzalez, Eduardo Vadillo, Rosana Pelayo, William H. Fleming, Markus Grompe, Akiko Shimamura, Sampsa Hautaniemi, Joel Greenberger, Sara Frias, Kalindi Parmar, Alan D. D'Andrea
Summary: The overexpression of MYC in Fanconi anemia (FA) patients leads to dysfunction of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) and increased DNA damage. MYC-high HSPCs exhibit a significant downregulation of cell adhesion genes, facilitating the egress of HSPCs from bone marrow to peripheral blood.
Article
Hematology
Alfredo Rodriguez, Chunyu Yang, Elissa Furutani, Benilde Garcia de Teresa, Martha Velazquez, Jessica Filiatrault, Larissa A. Sambel, Tin Phan, Patricia Flores-Guzman, Silvia Sanchez, Angelica Monsivais Orozco, Hector Mayani, Ozge V. Bolukbasi, Anniina Farkkila, Michael Epperly, Joel Greenberger, Akiko Shimamura, Sara Frias, Markus Grompe, Kalindi Parmar, Alan D. D'Andrea
Summary: Fanconi anemia (FA) is a chromosome instability syndrome with congenital abnormalities, cancer predisposition, and bone marrow failure (BMF). AVID200, a TGF beta 1- and TGF beta 3-specific inhibitor, shows promising effects on FA hematopoiesis, particularly in patients progressing to severe aplastic anemia or myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). AVID200 downregulates NHEJ-related genes and reduces DNA damage in primary FA HSPCs, indicating its potential as a therapeutic approach for improving BMF in FA.
EXPERIMENTAL HEMATOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Allyson J. Merrell, Tao Peng, Jinyang Li, Kathryn Sun, Bin Li, Takeshi Katsuda, Markus Grompe, Kai Tan, Ben Z. Stanger
Summary: Hepatocytes undergo extensive chromatin and transcriptional changes during biliary reprogramming, resulting in altered gene expression profiles including robust induction of biliary genes and weaker repression of hepatocyte genes. Single-cell analysis revealed that Smad4 mutation can significantly increase reprogramming.
Letter
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
T. Matsumoto, L. Wakefield, M. Grompe
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR GASTROENTEROLOGY AND HEPATOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Tomonori Matsumoto, Leslie Wakefield, Alexander Peters, Myron Peto, Paul Spellman, Markus Grompe
Summary: Polyploidy is common in cancer and normal tissues, with polyploid hepatocytes proliferating and reducing ploidy during liver regeneration. Research shows that polyploid hepatocytes easily form liver tumors through frequent ploidy reduction, which is an early step in liver tumorigenesis.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Dhwanil A. Dalwadi, Andrea Calabria, Amita Tiyaboonchai, Jeffrey Posey, Willscott E. Naugler, Eugenio Montini, Markus Grompe
Summary: Research found a high frequency of chromosomal integrations of recombinant adeno-associated viral vectors in liver cells, with most inserted sequences heavily rearranged and accompanied by deletions of host genomic sequences at integration sites. This indicates a certain risk associated with rAAV integration.
Article
Cell Biology
Anne Vonada, Amita Tiyaboonchai, Sean Nygaard, Jeffrey Posey, Alexander Mack Peters, Shelley R. Winn, Alessio Cantore, Luigi Naldini, Cary O. Harding, Markus Grompe
Summary: The study demonstrates that therapeutic modified hepatocytes can be efficiently selected in preclinical models by using mildly hepatotoxic acetaminophen, leading to significant expansion of transgene-bearing hepatocytes and reaching therapeutic thresholds in genetic liver diseases.
SCIENCE TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Cell & Tissue Engineering
Bin Li, Yuhan Wang, Carl Pelz, Josh Moss, Ruth Shemer, Yuval Dor, Yassmine K. Akkari, Pamela S. Canady, Willscott E. Naugler, Susan Orloff, Markus Grompe
Summary: By inhibiting specific pathways, human cirrhotic liver epithelial cells can be expanded in vitro and exhibit high proliferative capacity, with gene expression and DNA methylation analysis showing an intermediate state. Compared to their murine counterparts, human-derived liver cells have limited redifferentiation potential.
STEM CELL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mina Ogawa, Jia-Xin Jiang, Sunny Xia, Donghe Yang, Avrilynn Ding, Onofrio Laselva, Marcela Hernandez, Changyi Cui, Yuichiro Higuchi, Hiroshi Suemizu, Craig Dorrell, Markus Grompe, Christine E. Bear, Shinichiro Ogawa
Summary: The study identifies key pathways regulating cholangiocyte maturation and successfully generates functional cholangiocytes with mature characteristics, enhancing their potential for therapeutic applications in biliary diseases.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Sunghee Chai, Youngjin Kim, Feorillo Galivo, Craig Dorrell, Leslie Wakefield, Jeffrey Posey, Amanda M. Ackermann, Klaus H. Kaestner, Matthias Hebrok, Markus Grompe
Summary: This study successfully achieved specific expression of transgenes in human beta cells by designing recombinant adeno-associated virus vectors. Specific expression was achieved by combining two regulatory elements, a promoter consisting of two INS and miRNA recognition elements. This method reduces nonspecific transgene expression and is of great significance for the treatment of diabetes.
HUMAN GENE THERAPY
(2022)
Article
Hematology
Jessica A. Pollard, Elissa Furutani, Shanshan Liu, Erica Esrick, Laurie E. Cohen, Jacob Bledsoe, Chih-Wei Liu, Kun Lu, Maria Jose Ramirez de Haro, Jordi Sumalles, Maggie Malsch, Ashley Kuniholm, Ashley Galvin, Myriam Armant, Annette S. Kim, Kaitlyn Ballotti, Lisa Moreau, Yu Zhou, Daria Babushok, Farid Boulad, Clint Carroll, Helge Hartung, Amy Hont, Taizo Nakano, Tim Olson, Sei-Gyung Sze, Alexis A. Thompson, Marcin W. Wlodarski, Xuesong Gu, Towia A. Libermann, Alan D'Andrea, Markus Grompe, Edie Weller, Akiko Shimamura
Summary: This study investigated the feasibility and tolerability of metformin treatment in patients with Fanconi anemia (FA). The results showed that metformin is safe and tolerable in nondiabetic patients with FA and may provide therapeutic benefits.
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Takeshi Katsuda, Hector Cure, Jonathan Sussman, Kamen P. Simeonov, Christopher Krapp, Zoltan Arany, Markus Grompe, Ben Z. Stanger
Summary: This study introduces a rapid in vivo multiplexed editing (RIME) method that enables the efficient inactivation of one or more genes in the mouse liver. The method is quick, efficient, and cost-effective, making it a valuable tool for analyzing multiple genes in vivo.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Netanel Loyfer, Judith Magenheim, Ayelet Peretz, Gordon Cann, Joerg Bredno, Agnes Klochendler, Ilana Fox-Fisher, Sapir Shabi-Porat, Merav Hecht, Tsuria Pelet, Joshua Moss, Zeina Drawshy, Hamed Amini, Patriss Moradi, Sudharani Nagaraju, Dvora Bauman, David Shveiky, Shay Porat, Uri Dior, Gurion Rivkin, Omer Or, Nir Hirshoren, Einat Carmon, Alon Pikarsky, Abed Khalaileh, Gideon Zamir, Ronit Grinbaum, Machmud Abu Gazala, Ido Mizrahi, Noam Shussman, Amit Korach, Ori Wald, Uzi Izhar, Eldad Erez, Vladimir Yutkin, Yaacov Samet, Devorah Rotnemer Golinkin, Kirsty L. Spalding, Henrik Druid, Peter Arner, A. M. James Shapiro, Markus Grompe, Alex Aravanis, Oliver Venn, Arash Jamshidi, Ruth Shemer, Yuval Dor, Benjamin Glaser, Tommy Kaplan
Summary: DNA methylation is an important epigenetic mark that regulates gene expression and chromatin organization. This study presents a human methylome atlas based on deep whole-genome bisulfite sequencing, providing a comprehensive analysis of 39 cell types from 205 healthy tissue samples. The atlas reveals tissue-specific methylation patterns and potential biomarkers for liquid biopsies.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Amita Tiyaboonchai, Anne Vonada, Jeffrey Posey, Carl Pelz, Leslie Wakefield, Markus Grompe
Summary: This study uses self-cleaving gRNAs to create drug-selectable gene editing events in specific hepatocyte loci, resulting in expanded gene-edited cells and therapeutic levels of gene expression.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
