Project description:The comparative characterization of hematopoietic stem cells from healthy stem cell donors and patients with acute myeloid leukemia on a proteome level has the potential to reveal differentially regulated proteins which might be candidates for specific immunotherapy target molecules. Exemplarily, we analyzed the proteome of the cytosolic and the membrane fraction of CD34 and CD123 co-expressing FACS-sorted leukemic progenitors from five patients with acute myeloid leukemia employing mass spectrometry. As a reference, CD34+CD123+ normal hematopoietic progenitor cells from five healthy stem cell donors were analyzed. In this TMT 10-plex labeling based approach 2068 proteins were identified with 256 proteins differentially regulated in one or both cellular compartments. This study demonstrates the feasibility of a mass spectrometry based proteomic approach to detect differentially expressed proteins in two compartment fractions of leukemic stem cells as compared to their healthy stem cell counterparts.
Project description:This is a mathematical model describing the hematopoietic lineages with leukemia lineages, as controlled by end-product negative feedback inhibition. Variables include hematopoietic stem cells, progenitor cells, terminally differentiated HSCs, leukemia stem cells, and terminally differentiated leukemia stem cells.
Project description:The transcription factor PU.1 occupies a central role in controlling myeloid and early B cell development and its correct lineage-specific expression is critical for the differentiation choice of hematopoietic progenitors. However, little is known of how this tissue-specific pattern is established. We previously identified an upstream regulatory cis-element (URE) whose targeted deletion in mice decreases PU.1 expression and causes leukemia. We show here that the URE alone is insufficient to confer physiological PU.1 expression, but requires the cooperation with other, previously unidentified elements. Using a combination of transgenic studies, global chromatin assays and detailed molecular analyses we present evidence that Pu.1 is regulated by a novel mechanism involving cross-talk between different cis-elements together with lineage-restricted autoregulation. In this model, PU.1 regulates its expression in B cells and macrophages by differentially associating with cell-type specific transcription factors at one of its cis-regulatory elements to establish differential activity patterns at other elements.
Project description:The transcription factor PU.1 occupies a central role in controlling myeloid and early B cell development and its correct lineage-specific expression is critical for the differentiation choice of hematopoietic progenitors. However, little is known of how this tissue-specific pattern is established. We previously identified an upstream regulatory cis-element (URE) whose targeted deletion in mice decreases PU.1 expression and causes leukemia. We show here that the URE alone is insufficient to confer physiological PU.1 expression, but requires the cooperation with other, previously unidentified elements. Using a combination of transgenic studies, global chromatin assays and detailed molecular analyses we present evidence that Pu.1 is regulated by a novel mechanism involving cross-talk between different cis-elements together with lineage-restricted autoregulation. In this model, PU.1 regulates its expression in B cells and macrophages by differentially associating with cell-type specific transcription factors at one of its cis-regulatory elements to establish differential activity patterns at other elements. Two DNaseI hypersensitivity datasets; bone marrow derived-macrophages and Splenic CD19+IgM+ B cells were used to study PU.1 regulatory elements
Project description:High-resolution proteomic analysis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) stem cells identified phospholipase C- and Ca++-signaling pathways to be differentially regulated in AML1-ETO (AE) driven leukemia. Phospholipase C gamma 1 (Plcg1) could be identified as a direct target of the AE fusion. Genetic Plcg1 inactivation abrogated disease initiation by AE, reduced intracellular Ca++-release and inhibited AE-driven self-renewal programs. In AE-induced leukemia, Plcg1 deletion significantly reduced disease penetrance, number of leukemia stem cells and abrogated leukemia development in secondary recipient hosts. In human AE-positive leukemic cells inactivation of Plcg1 reduced colony formation and AML development in vivo. In contrast, Plcg1 was dispensable for maintenance of murine and human hematopoietic stem- and progenitor cells (HSPCs). Pharmacologic inhibition of Ca++-signaling downstream of Plcg1 resulted in impaired proliferation and self-renewal capacity in AE-driven AML. Thus, the Plcg1 pathway represents a novel specific vulnerability of AE-driven leukemia and poses an important new therapeutic target.
Project description:The goal of this study is to define miR-125b-2 target genes in the hematopoietic system by genetic alteration of miR-125b expression levels. Here we report the identification of miR-125b-2 targets in the hematopoietic system by repressing miR125b in megakaryoblastic leukemia (AMKL) cell lines and overexpressing miR-125b-2 in hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (CD34+-HSPCs)
Project description:<p>Acute myeloid leukemia is an aggressive clonal malignancy of the bone marrow that is the direct result of sequential acquisition of mutations in a single lineage of cells. In this study, we investigate a model in which this mutational acquisition occurs serially in long-lived self-renewing hematopoietic stem cells eventually resulting in frank acute myeloid leukemia. Coding mutations in multiple AML patients were identified using exome sequencing followed by sanger sequencing validation. The level of these mutations was then assessed in residual hematopoietic stem cells from each patient using targeted deep sequencing. These population-level estimates of mutant allele burden were then validated in single cell assays targeted to the identified mutations. This allowed for determination of the order of acquisition of the mutations that preceded the development of the leukemia. The results of this study identify pre-leukemic hematopoietic stem cell clones that could contribute to patient relapse and outcome.</p>
Project description:Identification of differentially expressed genes in young (3 month old) versus aged (24 month old) mouse hematopoietic stem cells. Comparison of genes differentially expressed in hematopoietic stem cells of young mice with conditional deletion of mTOR within vascular endothelium.