技术资料

Coronary microvascular disease (CMD) and its progression towards major adverse coronary events pose a significant health challenge. Accurate in vitro investigation of CMD requires a robust cell model that faithfully represents the cells within the cardiac microvasculature. Human pluripotent stem cell-derived endothelial cells (hPSC-ECs) offer great potential; however,they are traditionally derived via differentiation protocols that are not readily scalable and are not specified towards the microvasculature. Here,we report the development and comprehensive characterisation of a scalable 3D protocol enabling the generation of phenotypically stable cardiac hPSC-microvascular-like ECs (hPSC-CMVECs) and cardiac pericyte-like cells. These were derived by growing vascular organoids within 3D stirred tank bioreactors and subjecting the emerging 3D hPSC-ECs to high-concentration VEGF-A treatment (3DV). Not only did this promote phenotypic stability of the 3DV hPSC-ECs; single cell-RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) revealed the pronounced expression of cardiac endothelial- and microvascular-associated genes. Further,the generated mural cells attained from the vascular organoid exhibited markers characteristic of cardiac pericytes. Thus,we present a suitable cell model for investigating the cardiac microvasculature as well as the endothelial-dependent and -independent mechanisms of CMD. Moreover,owing to their phenotypic stability,cardiac specificity,and high angiogenic potential,the cells described within would also be well suited for cardiac tissue engineering applications.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10456-024-09929-5. View Publication

Microglia play a pivotal role in neurodegenerative disease pathogenesis,but the mechanisms underlying microglia dysfunction and toxicity remain to be elucidated. To investigate the effect of neurodegenerative disease-linked genes on the intrinsic properties of microglia,we studied microglia-like cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs),termed iMGs,harboring mutations in profilin-1 (PFN1) that are causative for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). ALS-PFN1 iMGs exhibited evidence of lipid dysmetabolism,autophagy dysregulation and deficient phagocytosis,a canonical microglia function. Mutant PFN1 also displayed enhanced binding affinity for PI3P,a critical signaling molecule involved in autophagic and endocytic processing. Our cumulative data implicate a gain-of-toxic function for mutant PFN1 within the autophagic and endo-lysosomal pathways,as administration of rapamycin rescued phagocytic dysfunction in ALS-PFN1 iMGs. These outcomes demonstrate the utility of iMGs for neurodegenerative disease research and implicate microglial vesicular degradation pathways in the pathogenesis of these disorders. Mutations in profilin 1 (PFN1),which modulates actin dynamics,are associated with ALS. Here the authors show that expression of ALS-PFN1 is sufficient to induce deficits in human microglia-like cells,including impaired phagocytosis and lipid metabolism,and that gain-of-function interactions between ALS-PFN1 and PI3P may underlie these deficits. View Publication

Montelukast (MTK) is a drug widely used for treating allergic rhinitis and asthma. However,severe neuropsychiatric adverse events related to MTK have been reported,with limited understanding of the underlying mechanisms. Here we leveraged human forebrain organoids (hFOs) and showed that MTK exposure in hFOs downregulated the expression of genes associated with multiple neuronal functions and neuropsychiatric disorders. The following integrative analysis highlighted adenylate cyclase 1 (ADCY1),a main regulator of the cAMP signaling pathway,as a hub gene mediating the functional effects of MTK exposure. We also showed that MTK exposure resulted in a reduction of cAMP and neuroactivities,and caused neural maturation defects. These cellular phenotypes could be recapitulated by treating hFOs with ST034307,a selective ADCY1 inhibitor,or partially rescued by ADCY1 overexpression in hFOs. Together,this study underscored that MTK exposure caused neuropsychiatric effects through inhibiting the ADCY1-mediated cAMP signaling pathway.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00018-025-05764-z. View Publication

Klotho,a well-known aging suppressor protein,has been implicated in neuroprotection and the regulation of neuronal senescence. While previous studies have demonstrated its anti-aging properties in human brain organoids,its potential to mitigate neurodegenerative processes triggered by ?-amyloid remains underexplored. In this study,we utilised human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) engineered with a doxycycline-inducible system to overexpress KLOTHO and generated 2D cortical neuron cultures from these cells. These neurons were next exposed to pre-aggregated ?-amyloid 1–42 oligomers to model the neurotoxicity associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Our data reveal that upregulation of KLOTHO significantly reduced ?-amyloid-induced neuronal degeneration and apoptosis,as evidenced by decreased cleaved caspase-3 expression and preservation of axonal integrity. Additionally,KLOTHO overexpression prevented the loss of dendritic branching and mitigated reductions in axonal diameter,hallmark features of neurodegenerative pathology. These results highlight Klotho’s protective role against ?-amyloid-induced neurotoxicity in human cortical neurons and suggest that its age-related decline may contribute to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. Our findings underscore the therapeutic potential of Klotho-based interventions in mitigating age-associated neurodegenerative processes.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13041-025-01199-6. View Publication

Characterization and modeling of biological neural networks has emerged as a field driving significant advancements in our understanding of brain function and related pathologies. As of today,pharmacological treatments for neurological disorders remain limited,pushing the exploration of promising alternative approaches such as electroceutics. Recent research in bioelectronics and neuromorphic engineering have fostered the development of the new generation of neuroprostheses for brain repair. However,achieving their full potential necessitates a deeper understanding of biohybrid interaction. In this study,we present a novel real-time,biomimetic,cost-effective and user-friendly neural network capable of real-time emulation for biohybrid experiments. Our system facilitates the investigation and replication of biophysically detailed neural network dynamics while prioritizing cost-efficiency,flexibility and ease of use. We showcase the feasibility of conducting biohybrid experiments using standard biophysical interfaces and a variety of biological cells as well as real-time emulation of diverse network configurations. We envision our system as a crucial step towards the development of neuromorphic-based neuroprostheses for bioelectrical therapeutics,enabling seamless communication with biological networks on a comparable timescale. Its embedded real-time functionality enhances practicality and accessibility,amplifying its potential for real-world applications in biohybrid experiments. Beaubois et al. introduce a real-time biomimetic neural network for biohybrid experiments,providing a tool to study closed-loop applications for neuroscience and neuromorphic-based neuroprostheses. View Publication

Inclusion body myositis (IBM) is an inflammatory myopathy that displays proximal and distal muscle weakness. At the histopathological level,the muscles of IBM patients show inflammatory infiltrates,rimmed vacuoles and mitochondrial changes. The etiology of IBM remains unknown,and there is a lack of validated disease models,biomarkers and effective treatments. To contribute to unveil disease underpins we developed a cell model based on myotubes derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC-myotubes) from IBM patients and compared the molecular phenotype vs. age and sex-paired controls (n?=?3 IBM and 4 CTL). We evaluated protein histological findings and the gene expression profile by mRNA-seq,alongside functional analysis of inflammation,degeneration and mitochondrial function. Briefly,IBM iPSC-myotubes replicated relevant muscle histopathology features of IBM,including aberrant expression of HLA,TDP-43 and COX markers. mRNA seq analysis identified 1007 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) (p-value adj? View Publication

Regulation of gene expression through enhancers is one of the major processes shaping the structure and function of the human brain during development. High-throughput assays have predicted thousands of enhancers involved in neurodevelopment,and confirming their activity through orthogonal functional assays is crucial. Here,we utilized Massively Parallel Reporter Assays (MPRAs) in stem cells and forebrain organoids to evaluate the activity of ~ 7000 gene-linked enhancers previously identified in human fetal tissues and brain organoids. We used a Gaussian mixture model to evaluate the contribution of background noise in the measured activity signal to confirm the activity of ~ 35% of the tested enhancers,with most showing temporal-specific activity,suggesting their evolving role in neurodevelopment. The temporal specificity was further supported by the correlation of activity with gene expression. Our findings provide a valuable gene regulatory resource to the scientific community. View Publication

SUMMARY Resident cardiac macrophages are critical mediators of cardiac function. Despite their known importance to cardiac electrophysiology and tissue maintenance,there are currently no stem-cell-derived models of human engineered cardiac tissues (hECTs) that include resident macrophages. In this study,we made an induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived hECT model with a resident population of macrophages (iM0) to better recapitulate the native myocardium and characterized their impact on tissue function. Macrophage retention within the hECTs was confirmed via immunofluorescence after 28 days of cultivation. The inclusion of iM0s significantly impacted hECT function,increasing contractile force production. A potential mechanism underlying these changes was revealed by the interrogation of calcium signaling,which demonstrated the modulation of ?-adrenergic signaling in +iM0 hECTs. Collectively,these findings demonstrate that macrophages significantly enhance cardiac function in iPSC-derived hECT models,emphasizing the need to further explore their contributions not only in healthy hECT models but also in the contexts of disease and injury. In brief Lock and Graney et al. develop a human engineered cardiac tissue with an incorporated iPSC-derived macrophage population to better mimic the complex cell landscape of the native myocardium. Macrophage inclusion leads to increased contractile function of the tissue,which is attributed to macrophage stimulation of the cardiomyocyte ?-adrenergic signaling pathway. Graphical Abstract View Publication

Huntington disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disease caused by the abnormal expansion of a polyglutamine tract resulting from a mutation in the HTT gene. Oxidative stress has been identified as a significant contributing factor to the development of HD and other neurodegenerative diseases,and targeting anti-oxidative stress has emerged as a potential therapeutic approach. CHCHD2 is a mitochondria-related protein involved in regulating cell migration,anti-oxidative stress,and anti-apoptosis. Although CHCHD2 is highly expressed in HD cells,its specific role in the pathogenesis of HD remains uncertain. We postulate that the up-regulation of CHCHD2 in HD models represents a compensatory protective response against mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress associated with HD. To investigate this hypothesis,we employed HD mouse striatal cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) as models to examine the effects of CHCHD2 overexpression (CHCHD2-OE) or knockdown (CHCHD2-KD) on the HD phenotype. Our findings demonstrate that CHCHD2 is crucial for maintaining cell survival in both HD mouse striatal cells and hiPSCs-derived neurons. Our study demonstrates that CHCHD2 up-regulation in HD serves as a compensatory protective response against oxidative stress,suggesting a potential anti-oxidative strategy for the treatment of HD. View Publication

Spinal motor neurons (MNs) represent a highly vulnerable cellular population,which is affected in fatal neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). In this study,we show that the heterozygous loss of SYT13 is sufficient to trigger a neurodegenerative phenotype resembling those observed in ALS and SMA. SYT13+/? hiPSC-derived MNs displayed a progressive manifestation of typical neurodegenerative hallmarks such as loss of synaptic contacts and accumulation of aberrant aggregates. Moreover,analysis of the SYT13+/? transcriptome revealed a significant impairment in biological mechanisms involved in motoneuron specification and spinal cord differentiation. This transcriptional portrait also strikingly correlated with ALS signatures,displaying a significant convergence toward the expression of pro-apoptotic and pro-inflammatory genes,which are controlled by the transcription factor TP53. Our data show for the first time that the heterozygous loss of a single member of the synaptotagmin family,SYT13,is sufficient to trigger a series of abnormal alterations leading to MN sufferance,thus revealing novel insights into the selective vulnerability of this cell population. View Publication

Sustained smouldering,or low-grade activation,of myeloid cells is a common hallmark of several chronic neurological diseases,including multiple sclerosis1. Distinct metabolic and mitochondrial features guide the activation and the diverse functional states of myeloid cells2. However,how these metabolic features act to perpetuate inflammation of the central nervous system is unclear. Here,using a multiomics approach,we identify a molecular signature that sustains the activation of microglia through mitochondrial complex I activity driving reverse electron transport and the production of reactive oxygen species. Mechanistically,blocking complex I in pro-inflammatory microglia protects the central nervous system against neurotoxic damage and improves functional outcomes in an animal disease model in vivo. Complex I activity in microglia is a potential therapeutic target to foster neuroprotection in chronic inflammatory disorders of the central nervous system3. Blocking mitochondrial complex I in pro-inflammatory microglia protects the central nervous system against neurotoxic damage and improves functional outcomes in vivo in an animal disease model. View Publication

Several differentiation protocols have enabled the generation of intermediate mesoderm (IM)-derived cells from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC). However,the substantial variability between existing protocols for generating IM cells compromises their efficiency,reproducibility,and overall success,potentially hindering the utility of urogenital system organoids. Here,we examined the role of high levels of Nodal signaling and BMP activity,as well as WNT signaling in the specification of IM cells derived from a UCSD167i-99-1 human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) line. We demonstrate that precise modulation of WNT and BMP signaling significantly enhances IM differentiation efficiency. Treatment of hPSC with 3 ?M CHIR99021 induced TBXT+/MIXL1+ mesoderm progenitor (MP) cells after 48 h of differentiation. Further treatment with a combination of 3 ?M CHIR99021 and 4 ng/mL BMP4 resulted in the generation of OSR1+/GATA3+/PAX2+ IM cells within a subsequent 48 h period. Molecular characterization of differentiated cells was confirmed through immunofluorescence staining and RT-qPCR. Hence,this study establishes a consistent and reproducible protocol for differentiating hiPSC into IM cells that faithfully recapitulates the molecular signatures of IM development. This protocol holds promise for improving the success of protocols designed to generate urogenital system organoids in vitro,with potential applications in regenerative medicine,drug discovery,and disease modeling. View Publication