Project description:Orchestrated actions of tissue-specific enhancers and transcription factors (TFs) govern the development of the placenta which is an essential organ to support the growth of the fetus during pregnancy. However, human trophoblast stem cells (TSCs)-specific enhancers, TFs, and the mechanisms by which TFs modulate placental development are poorly understood. Here we investigated enhancers, super-enhancers (SE), SE-associated genes in human TSC using RNA-seq and ChIP-seq to interrogate the roles of SE-TFs in human TSCs.
Project description:Orchestrated actions of tissue-specific enhancers and transcription factors (TFs) govern the development of the placenta which is an essential organ to support the growth of the fetus during pregnancy. However, human trophoblast stem cells (TSCs)-specific enhancers, TFs, and the mechanisms by which TFs modulate placental development are poorly understood. Here we investigated enhancers, super-enhancers (SE), SE-associated genes in human TSC using RNA-seq and ChIP-seq to interrogate the roles of SE-TFs in human TSCs.
Project description:Chromatin organisation of trophoblast stem cells (TSC) were compared with that of embryonic stem cells (ESC). The method enriches Hi-C libraries, to detect promoter interactions at restriction fragment level. We prepared Hi-C libraries from TSC and ESC (serum grown) samples and enriched them with a promoter capture bait system that captures ~22.000 promoters. Promoter interactions were then analysed using the GOTHiC pipeline.
Project description:Treatment resistant epilepsy in tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and some focal cortical dysplasias (FCDs) are associated with dysfunctional mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling. This can upregulate cell growth and proliferation, with increased downstream ribosomal S6 protein phosphorylation (phospho-S6). mTOR inhibitors are used in TSC, the archetypal mTORopathy, to reduce tumor growth or seizure frequency. Preclinical studies in FCD support a potential role in suppressing seizures. This pilot study sought to evaluate the safety of the mTOR inhibitor everolimus in treatment-resistant (failure of > 2 anti-seizure medications) TSC and FCD patients undergoing surgical resection and to assess changes in mTOR signaling and molecular pathways.
Project description:Patients with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) develop hamartomas containing biallelic inactivating mutations in either TSC1 or TSC2, resulting in mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) activation. Hamartomas overgrow epithelial and mesenchymal cells in TSC skin. The pathogenetic mechanisms for these changes had not been investigated, and the existence or location of cells with biallelic mutations (âtwo-hitâ cells) that resulted in mTOR activation was unclear. We compared TSC skin hamartomas (facial angiofibromas and periungual fibromas) to normal-appearing skin of the same patient, and observed more proliferation and mTOR activation in hamartoma epidermis. âTwo-hitâ cells were not detected in the epidermis. Fibroblast-like cells in the dermis, however, exhibited allelic deletion of TSC2, in both touch preparations of fresh tumor samples and cells grown from TSC skin tumors, suggesting that increased epidermal proliferation and mTOR activation were not caused by second-hit mutations in the keratinocytes but by mesenchymal-epithelial interactions. Gene expression arrays, used to identify potential paracrine factors released by mesenchymal cells, revealed more epiregulin mRNA in fibroblast-like angiofibroma and periungual fibroma cells than in fibroblasts from normal-appearing skin of the same patient. Elevation of epiregulin mRNA was confirmed using real-time PCR, and increased amounts of epiregulin protein were demonstrated using immunoprecipitation and ELISA. Epiregulin stimulated keratinocyte proliferation and phosphorylation of ribosomal protein S6 in vitro. These results suggest that hamartomatous TSC skin tumors are induced by paracrine factors released by âtwo-hitâ cells in the dermis, and that proliferation with mTOR activation of the overlying epidermis is an effect of epiregulin. Experiment Overall Design: The study is of case/control design with biological replication. Tumor (case) and normal (control) fibroblast cells were isolated from each of four patients (biological replicates).