Generation of an RCVRN-eGFP reporter hiPSC line by CRISPR/Cas9 to monitor photoreceptor cell development and facilitate the cell enrichment for transplantation
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ABSTRACT:
ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens
PROVIDER: GSE196355 | GEO | 2022/04/07
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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Project description:The loss of cone photoreceptor cells, which are critical for optimal daylight vision, have the great impact on vision during retinal degenerations. Retinal differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) sources could provide a renewable source of cone photoreceptors towards developing a cone cell replacement therapy to treat blindness. Demonstration of comparable gene expression profiles between human foetal and stem cell-derived cones at equivalent stages is required to progress the cell transplantation approach into the patient, as it is hypothesised stem cell-derived cones are required to show high levels of developmental recapitulation of the in vivo generated cones. In this study, the AAV2/9.pR2.1.GFP reporter was used to specifically label L/M-opsin cone photoreceptors in human foetal retinal samples, obtained from the MRC-Wellcome Trust Human Developmental Biology Resource, at a range of developmental stages. The L/M-opsin cone population represent the majority cone cell types in the adult human retina and are the only photoreceptors present within the fovea. Using fluorescence activated cell sorting, L/M-opsin GFP+ cones and GFP- retinal populations, alongside total foetal retinal samples containing all retinal cell tytpes, were isolated and processed for bulk RNA sequencing and downstream comparative analysis. Using DESeq2 differential gene expression analyses, statistically significant genes enriched within the GFP+ human foetal LM-opsin cone populations were determined which led to the identification of a cone enriched gene signature of human L/M-opsin cone photoreceptors. The AAV2/9.pR2.1.GFP reporter was applied to hiPSC-derived retinal cultures to isolate and process cone-like cell populations for RNA sequencing using the same strategy developed within the human foetal retina. Applying the cone enriched gene signature to the transcriptome of hiPSC-derived GFP+ samples at equivalent developmental stages revealed some expression similarities in genes found to be enriched within the late foetal L/M-opsin cone photoreceptors. This analysis overall revealed an intermediate stage of cone differentiation was achieved within the hiPSC-derived samples and the comparison to human foetal L/M-opsin gene express profiles suggesting further differentiation of hiPSC-derived sample is required.
2018-04-20 | E-MTAB-6057 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Photoreceptor disorders are collectively known as retinal degeneration (RD), and include retinitis pigmentosa (RP), cone-rod dystrophy and age related macular degeneration (AMD). These disorders are largely genetic in origin; individual mutations in any one of >200 genes cause RD, making mutation specific therapies prohibitively expensive. A better treatment plan, particularly for late stage disease, may involve stem cell transplants into the photoreceptor or ganglion cell layers of the retina. Stem cells from young mouse retinas can be transplanted, and can form photoreceptors in adult retinas. These cells can be grown in tissue culture, but can no longer form photoreceptors. We have used microarrays to investigate differences in gene expression between cultured retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) that have lost photoreceptor potential, postnatal day 1 (pn1) retinas and the postnatal day 5 (pn5) retinas that contain transplantable photoreceptors. We have also compared FACS sorted Rho-eGFP expressing rod photoreceptors from pn5 retinas with Rho-eGFP negative cells from the same retinas. We have identified over 300 genes upregulated in rod photoreceptor development in multiple comparisons, 37 of which have been previously identified as causative of retinal disease when mutated. It is anticipated that this research should bring us closer to growing photoreceptors in culture and therefore better treatments for RD. This dataset is also a resource for those seeking to identify novel retinopathy genes in RD patients. We extracted whole retinas from postnatal day 1 (Pn1) and postnatal day 5 (Pn5) mice, and compared them with cultured RPCs derived from pn5 retinas, using Affymetrix mouse 430A_2 arrays. We also extracted cells from Rho-eGFP Pn5 retinas and FACS sorted them. GFP+ve cells represent immature rod photoreceptors, as they express the Rho-eGFP fusion protein, which is only expressed in rods. GFP-ve cells represent all other retinal neurons. These samples were amplified and compared using Affymetrix mouse 430A_2arrays, by Source Biosciences GMBH, Berlin, Germany. Results from immature rods were then compared with those from other retinal neurons, while results from whole Pn5 retinas were compared with Pn1 retinas (which don't yet express rod specific genes), and RPCs, which are glial precursors. RPCs were also compared with Pn1 retinas. Genes which showed changed expression profiles in at least 3/4 of comparisons were prioritised for further investigation.
2015-01-20 | E-GEOD-59201 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:To define molecular mechanisms underlying rod and cone differentiation, we generated H9 human embryonic stem cell line carrying a GFP reporter that is controlled by the promoter of cone-rod homeobox (CRX) gene, the first known marker of post-mitotic photoreceptor precursors. CRXp-GFP reporter in H9 line replicates endogenous CRX expression when induced to form self-organizing 3-D retina-like tissue. We define temporal transcriptome dynamics of developing photoreceptors during the establishment of cone and rod cell fate. Our studies provide an essential framework for delineating molecules and cellular pathways that guide human photoreceptor development and should assist in chemical screening and cell-based therapies of retinal degeneration.
2015-08-03 | GSE67645 | GEO
Project description:Photoreceptor disorders are collectively known as retinal degeneration (RD), and include retinitis pigmentosa (RP), cone-rod dystrophy and age related macular degeneration (AMD). These disorders are largely genetic in origin; individual mutations in any one of >200 genes cause RD, making mutation specific therapies prohibitively expensive. A better treatment plan, particularly for late stage disease, may involve stem cell transplants into the photoreceptor or ganglion cell layers of the retina. Stem cells from young mouse retinas can be transplanted, and can form photoreceptors in adult retinas. These cells can be grown in tissue culture, but can no longer form photoreceptors. We have used microarrays to investigate differences in gene expression between cultured retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) that have lost photoreceptor potential, postnatal day 1 (pn1) retinas and the postnatal day 5 (pn5) retinas that contain transplantable photoreceptors. We have also compared FACS sorted Rho-eGFP expressing rod photoreceptors from pn5 retinas with Rho-eGFP negative cells from the same retinas. We have identified over 300 genes upregulated in rod photoreceptor development in multiple comparisons, 37 of which have been previously identified as causative of retinal disease when mutated. It is anticipated that this research should bring us closer to growing photoreceptors in culture and therefore better treatments for RD. This dataset is also a resource for those seeking to identify novel retinopathy genes in RD patients.
2015-01-20 | GSE59201 | GEO
Project description:Death of photoreceptors and/or Retinal Pigment Epithelium (RPE) cells is a common cause of age related and inherited retinal dystrophies, thus their replenishment from renewable stem cell sources is a well sought therapeutic goal. Human pluripotent stem cells provide a useful cell source in view of their limitless self-renewal capacity and potential to differentiate into all key retinal cell types either in isolation or as part of three dimensional retinal organoids. Photoreceptor precursors have been isolated from differentiating human pluripotent stem cells either through application of cell surface markers or fluorescent reporter approaches and shown to share a transcriptional profile akin to foetal photoreceptors. In this study we investigated the transcriptional profile of CRX+ photoreceptor precursors derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESC) using single cell RNA sequencing and their engraftment capacity in an animal model of retinitis pigmentosa (C3H/rd1). Single cell RNA seq analysis revealed the presence of dominant cell cluster which displayed the hallmarks of early cone photoreceptor expression. When transplanted subretinally into the C3H/rd1 mice, the Crx positive cells settled next to the inner nuclear layer of host retina, matured into cone photoreceptors and made connections with the inner neurones of the host retina. Cellular transfer between the host retina and donor photoreceptors was investigated and shown to be minimal. Together our data provide valuable molecular insights into the transcriptional profile of human pluripotent stem cells derived CRX+ photoreceptor precursors and indicate their usefulness as a source of transplantable cone photoreceptors.
2019-04-01 | GSE112507 | GEO
Project description:Human cone photoreceptors represent a rare cell population of the human retina and are largely outnumbered by other retinal cell types. Despite their rarity, cone photoreceptors are critical for optimal daylight vision and their loss has the greatest impact on sight during the progression of retinal dystrophies. This is most applicable to the L/M-opsin cone populations which form the largest proportion of cones in the human retina and are the only cone types present within the fovea, which is responsible for fine detailed vision. Better understanding of the early genesis of these cells within the human developing retina, particularly in relation to the expression of genes that could be involved in regulating early events such as cell fate decision, is required. These molecular determinants could be exploited in vitro to generate more cone photoreceptors within human stem cell-derived retinal differentiation culture systems, suitable for use in cell transpantation therapies or disease modelling purposes. Additionally, the nature of this cell population in terms of their gene expression heterogeneity remains to be defined. State of the art technology has now advanced so that mRNA sequencing can be performed on individual cells, which means the transcriptome of rare cell populations such as cone photoreceptor cells can be interrogated without the need for ample material. Using the AAV2/9 pR2.1:GFP reporter, containing a synthetic promoter region previously characterised to drive expression in cone photoreceptors, we label and isolate human foetal L/M-opsin cone photoreceptors within the 15pcw human retinal retina. Isolated GFP+ cells were separated into individual cells using the Fluidigm C1 microfludics system, before RNA extraction and cDNA library preparation was performed. In total, 74 single cells were captured and processed for RNA sequencing; quality control of the data led to the inclusion of 65 individual cells for the downstream analysis. Principal component analysis revealed a very subtle heterogeneity across the cells, with the highest variability observed according to the first principal component (PC1). Differential gene expression analysis correlated to PC1 led to the identification of 503 significantly differentially expressed genes. Notably, some genes increase in expression across the cells when ordered according to PC1 which have previous associations with photoreceptor maturation, whereas other genes associated with developmental processes became downregulated across the cells. This led to the hypothesis that at this single timepoint in the human foetal retina, developing L/M-opsin cone photoreceptors exist at different stages of maturation. Overlapping genes were identified from comparing RNA seq data from 15pcw single cells and population samples at early and late timepoints of pR2.1:GFP+ cells, which showed the same gene expression trend between experiments. This suggests differences in cell maturation at a single timepoint of development could be representative of their true developmental trajectory. This overlapping gene dataset is also highly useful to define new gene that could be involved in cone photoreceptor development.
2018-04-20 | E-MTAB-6058 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Purpose: Avian photoreceptors are a diverse class of neurons, comprised of four single cones, the two members of the double cone, and rods. Many distinctive features of photoreceptor subtypes, including spectral tuning, oil droplet size and pigmentation, synaptic targets and spatial patterning, have been well characterized, but the molecular mechanisms underlying these attributes have not been explored. Furthermore, the signaling events and transcriptional regulators driving the differentiation of these diverse photoreceptors are currently unknown. Methods: To identify genes specifically expressed in distinct chicken (Gallus gallus) photoreceptor subtypes, we developed fluorescent reporters that label photoreceptor subpopulations, isolated these subpopulations using fluorescence-activated cell sorting, subjected them to next-generation sequencing, and conducted differential expression analysis. Results: We identified hundreds of differentially expressed genes from photoreceptor subpopulations labeled with rhodopsin, red opsin, green opsin, and violet opsin reporters. These genes are involved in a variety of processes, including phototransduction, transcriptional regulation, cell adhesion, maintenance of intra- and extra-cellular structure, and metabolism. Of particular note are a variety of differentially expressed transcription factors, which may drive and maintain photoreceptor diversity, and cell adhesion molecules that may mediate spatial patterning of photoreceptors and act to establish retinal circuitry. Conclusions: These analyses provide a framework for future studies that will dissect the role of these various factors in the differentiation of avian photoreceptor subtypes. mRNA expression profiling of 5 pairs of photoreceptor subtypes isolated from chicken retinal explants, 3 replicates per sample
2014-09-01 | E-GEOD-59850 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:The rd1 mouse retina is a well-studied model of retinal degeneration where rod photoreceptors undergo cell death beginning at postnatal day P10 until P21. This period coincides with photoreceptor terminal differentiation in a normal retina. We have used the rd1 retina as a model to investigate early molecular defects in developing rod photoreceptors prior to the onset of degeneration. Using a microarray approach, we performed gene profiling comparing rd1 and wild type retinas at four time points starting at P2, prior to any obvious biochemical or morphological differences, and concluding at P8, prior to the initiation of cell death. We have identified genes that are differentially regulated in the rd1 retina at early time points, which may give insights into developmental defects that precede photoreceptor cell death. This is the first report of PRA1 expression in the retina. Our data support the hypothesis that PRA1 plays an important role in vesicular trafficking between the Golgi and cilia in differentiating and mature rod photoreceptors. Retinal samples were harvested from both rd1/le and wt animals at postnatal days 2, 4, 6, and 8 for microarray. Each sample included 8-14 retinas and experiments were performed in quadruplicate. Ten micrograms of total RNA was used for cDNA systhesis in target molecule production.
2012-11-02 | E-GEOD-41821 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Cone photoreceptors are specialised sensory retinal neurons responsible for photopic vision, colour perception and visual acuity. Retinal degenerative diseases are a heterogeneous group of eye diseases in which the most severe vision loss typically arises from cone photoreceptor dysfunction or degeneration. Establishing a method to purify cone photoreceptors from retinal tissue can accelerate the identification of key molecular determinants that underlie cone photoreceptor development, survival and function. The work herein describes a new method to purify enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP)-labelled cone photoreceptors from adult retina of Tg(3.2TαCP:EGFP) zebrafish. Electropherograms confirmed downstream isolation of high-quality RNA with RNA integrity number (RIN) >7.6 and RNA concentration >5.7 ng/µl obtained from both populations. Reverse Transcriptase-PCR (RT-PCR) confirmed that the EGFP-positive cell populations express known genetic markers of cone photoreceptors that were not expressed in the EGFP-negative cell population. This work is an important step towards the identification of cone photoreceptor-enriched genes, protein and signalling networks responsible for their development, survival and function. In addition, this advancement facilitates the identification of novel candidate genes for inherited human blindness. In order to analyse and sort samples by flow cytometry, values for FSC and SSC were displayed in a logarithmic scale, as this is normally the default starting display. This allowed for the identification of different sub-populations of cells present in the retina, which were mixed with unwanted cell debris and cell fragments. Since there were multiple cell populations, different levels of auto-fluorescence were thus successfully detected. It was therefore important to change the strategy and display side scatter and fluorescence characteristics of control and EGFP samples, which ultimately allowed the identification of the extremely well-defined population of EGFP-cone photoreceptors. This improved sorting process minimised RNA degradation. The purified EGFP+ cone photoreceptors represent ~5% of the original dissociated population, which is consistent with humans, wherein the total number of cones (6 million) in the retina is approximately 20 times the one of rods (120 million) (Williamson and Cummins 1983). This work allows high-quality RNA to be obtained from sorted-adult cone photoreceptors. RNA integrity is assessed via 28S and 18S rRNA (Imbeaud et al 2005), and our electropherogram results demonstrate production of high-quality RNA with two clearly visible ribosomal peaks (28S and 18S) from EGFP-sorted cones. In addition, the RNA Integrity Number (RIN), an algorithm for assigning integrity values to RNA based on 28S to 18S rRNA ratios (Sambrook et al 1989; Imbeaud et al 2005; Schroeder et al 2006), had a value of 7.6, higher than the minimum-required 7.0. RNA yields of 5.7 ng/µl were relatively high and sufficient for downstream profiling. RT-PCR confirmed expression of the cone specific gene gnat2, and promoter fragment TαC, but not the retinal pigment epithelium specific gene rpe65 in flow cytometry-sorted GFP-positive photoreceptors (GFP+ cells). rpe65 was neither present in flow cytometry-sorted GFP-negative cones (GFP- cells) as this gene is only expressed in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). This study therefore permits the identification of cone photoreceptor-enriched genes, protein and signalling networks responsible for their development, survival and function. In addition, this advancement facilitates the identification of novel candidate genes for inherited human blindness.
2017-10-31 | GSE86155 | GEO
Project description:Mutation of rod photoreceptor-enriched transcription factors is a major cause of inherited blindness. We identified the orphan nuclear hormone receptor ERRβ as selectively expressed in rod photoreceptors. Overexpression of ERRβ induces expression of rod-specific genes in retinas of both wildtype and in Nrl-/- mice, which lack rod photoreceptors. Mutation of ERRβ results in dysfunction and degeneration of rods, while inverse agonists of ERRβ trigger rapid rod degeneration, which is rescued by constitutively active mutants of ERRβ. ERRβ coordinates expression of multiple genes that are rate-limiting regulators of ATP generation and consumption in photoreceptors. Furthermore, enhancing ERRβ activity rescues photoreceptor defects that result from loss of the photoreceptor-specific transcription factor Crx. Our findings demonstrate that ERRβ is a critical regulator of rod photoreceptor function and survival, and suggest that ERRβ agonists may be useful in the treatment of certain retinal dystrophies. Affymetrix MOE430 microarrays were used to analyze the expression patterns of P21 mouse retinal tissues. The results were compared across the variable of Genotype, specifically ERRβ knockout versus wildtype.
2010-07-30 | E-GEOD-21944 | biostudies-arrayexpress