It is widely believed that the carcinogenic action of ionizing radiation is due to targeted DNA damage and resulting mutations, but there is also substantial evidence that non-targeted radiation effects alter epithelial phenotype and the stromal microenvironment. Activation of transforming growth factor 1 (TGF) is a non-targeted radiation effect that mediates cell fate decisions following DNA damage and regulates microenvironment composition; it could either suppress or promote cancer. We asked if such non-targeted radiation effects contribute to carcinogenesis by using a novel radiation chimera model. Unirradiated Trp53 null mammary epithelium was transplanted to the mammary stroma, previously divested of endogenous epithelia, of mice previously exposed to a single low (10 -100 cGy) radiation dose. By 300 days, 100% of transplants in irradiated hosts at either 10 or 100 cGy had developed Trp53 null breast carcinomas compared to 54% in unirradiated hosts. Tumor growth rate was also increased by high, but not low, dose host irradiation. In contrast, irradiation of Tgfb1 heterozygote mice prior to transplantation failed to decrease tumor latency, or increase growth rate at any dose. Host irradiation significantly reduced the latency of invasive ductal carcinoma compared to spindle cell carcinoma. However, irradiation of either host genotype significantly increased the frequency of estrogen receptor negative tumors. These data demonstrate two concepts critical to understanding radiation risks. First, non-targeted radiation effects can significantly promote the frequency and alter the features of epithelial cancer. Second, radiation-induced TGF activity is a key mechanism of tumor promotion.
Radiation acts on the microenvironment to affect breast carcinogenesis by distinct mechanisms that decrease cancer latency and affect tumor type.
Age, Specimen part
View SamplesRecurrent somatic mutations in TET2 and in other genes that regulate the epigenetic state have been identified in patients with myeloid malignancies and in other cancers. However, the in vivo effects of Tet2 loss have not been delineated. We report here that Tet2 loss leads to increased stem-cell self-renewal and to progressive stem cell expansion. Consistent with human mutational data, Tet2 loss leads to myeloproliferation in vivo, notable for splenomegaly and monocytic proliferation. In addition, haploinsufficiency for Tet2 confers increased self-renewal and myeloproliferation, suggesting that the monoallelic TET2 mutations found in most TET2-mutant leukemia patients contribute to myeloid transformation. This work demonstrates that absent or reduced Tet2 function leads to enhanced stem cell function in vivo and to myeloid transformation.
Tet2 loss leads to increased hematopoietic stem cell self-renewal and myeloid transformation.
Specimen part
View SamplesEarly life exposure to antibiotics alters the gut microbiome. These alterations lead to changes in metabolic homeostasis and an increase in host adiposity. We used microarrays to identify metabolic genes that may be up- or down-regulated secondary to antibiotic exposure.
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Sex, Specimen part
View SamplesThis is a comparative microarray analysis of 36-65 hybridomas switching at normal low frequencies in vitro vs. selected variants spontaneously switching at 100 fold higher frequencies in vitro.
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View SamplesThe gastrointestinal tract of mammals is inhabited by hundreds of distinct species of commensal microorganisms that exist in a mutualistic relationship with the host. The process by which the commensal microbiota influence the host immune system is poorly understood. We show here that colonization of the small intestine of mice with a single commensal microbe, segmented filamentous bacterium (SFB), is sufficient to induce the appearance of CD4+ T helper cells that produce IL-17 and IL-22 (Th17 cells) in the lamina propria. SFB adhere tightly to the surface of epithelial cells in the terminal ileum of mice with Th17 cells but are absent from mice that have few Th17 cells. Colonization with SFB was correlated with increased expression of genes associated with inflammation, anti-microbial defenses, and tissue repair, and resulted in enhanced resistance to the intestinal pathogen Citrobacter rodentium. Control of Th17 cell differentiation by SFB may thus establish a balance between optimal host defense preparedness and potentially damaging T cell responses. Manipulation of this commensal-regulated pathway may provide new opportunities for enhancing mucosal immunity and treating autoimmune disease.
Induction of intestinal Th17 cells by segmented filamentous bacteria.
Specimen part
View SamplesFollowing neural tube closure at around E9.5, the rhombic lip within the rhombomere 1/isthmus region ("upper rhombic lip") produces a sequence of neuronal lineages that populate the brainstem and cerebellum. The transcription factor Atoh1 (Math1) is required for this specialized neurogenesis, although the genetic programs that delineate the temporal cell fate changes downstream of Atoh1 are not well characterized. We examined the gene expresion changes that take place within Atoh1 lineages
Genes expressed in Atoh1 neuronal lineages arising from the r1/isthmus rhombic lip.
Specimen part
View SamplesUbiquitination is a post-translational mechanism of control of diverse cellular processes. We focus here on the ubiquitin ligase Fbw7, a recently identified hematopoietic tumor suppressor that can target for degradation several important oncogenes including Notch1, c-Myc and cyclin E. We have generated conditional Fbw7 knock-out animals and inactivated the gene in hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) and their differentiated progeny. Deletion of Fbw7 specifically and rapidly affects the HSC compartment in a cell-autonomous manner. Fbw7-/- HSCs show defective maintenance of quiescence, leading to impaired self-renewal and a severe loss of competitive repopulating capacity. Furthermore, Fbw7-/- HSC are unable to colonize the thymus leading to a profound depletion of T cell progenitors. Deletion of Fbw7 in bone marrow stem cells and progenitors leads to the stabilization of c-Myc, a transcription factor previously implicated in HSC self-renewal. On the other hand, neither Notch1 nor cyclin E are stabilized in the bone marrow of Fbw7 deficient mice. Genome-wide transcriptome studies of Fbw7-/- HSC and hematopoietic progenitors indicate that Fbw7 controls, through the regulation of HSC cell cycle entry, the global transcriptional signature that is associated with the quiescent, self-renewing HSC phenotype.
Control of hematopoietic stem cell quiescence by the E3 ubiquitin ligase Fbw7.
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View SamplesThe Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway is a developmentally conserved regulator of stem cell function. Several reports suggested that Hh signaling is an important regulator of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) maintenance and differentiation. Here we test this hypothesis in vivo using both gain- and loss-of-function Hh genetic models. Surprisingly, our studies demonstrate that conditional Smoothened (Smo) deletion or over-activation has no significant effects on adult HSC self-renewal and function. Moreover, they indicate a lack of synergism between the Notch and Hh pathways in HSC function, as RBPJ- and Smo-deficiency do not affect hematopoiesis. In agreement with this notion, detailed genome-wide transcriptome analysis reveals that silencing of Hh signaling does not significantly alter the HSC-specific gene expression signature. Our studies demonstrate that the Hh signaling pathway is dispensable for adult HSC function and suggest that the Hh pathway can be targeted in future clinical trials addressing the effect of Hh inhibition on leukemia-initiating cell maintenance.
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Sex
View SamplesExpression profile for undifferentiated F9 Embryonal Carcinoma cell line
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View Samples