Cone-like Cells Research Articles

Comparative Analysis of Urso- and Tauroursodeoxycholic Acid Neuroprotective Effects on Retinal Degeneration Models.

Ursodeoxycholic (UDCA) and tauroursodeoxycholic (TUDCA) acids have shown neuroprotective properties in neurodegenerative diseases, but differential effects of the two bile acids have been poorly explored. The aim of this study was to evaluate the neuroprotective effects of UDCA versus TUDCA in a neuroretinal degeneration model and to compare transcriptionally regulated pathways. The WERI-Rb-1 human cone-like cell line and retinal explants were exposed to albumin and TUDCA or UDCA. Viability, cell death, and microglial activation were quantified. Transcriptionally regulated pathways were analyzed after RNA sequencing using the edgeR bioconductor package. Pre-treatment of cone-like cells with UDCA or TUDCA significantly protected cells from albumin toxicity. On retinal explants, either bile acid reduced apoptosis, necroptosis, and microglia activation at 6 h. TUDCA induced the regulation of 463 genes, whilst 31 genes were regulated by UDCA. Only nineteen common genes were regulated by both bile acids, mainly involved in iron control, cell death, oxidative stress, and cell metabolism. As compared to UDCA, TUDCA up-regulated genes involved in endoplasmic reticulum stress pathways and down-regulated genes involved in axonal and neuronal development. Either bile acid protected against albumin-induced cell loss. However, TUDCA regulated substantially more neuroprotective genes than UDCA.

In Situ Gene Therapy via AAV-CRISPR-Cas9-Mediated Targeted Gene Regulation.

Development of efficacious invivo delivery platforms for CRISPR-Cas9-based epigenome engineering will be critical to enable the ability to target human diseases without permanent modification of the genome. Toward this, we utilized split-Cas9 systems to develop a modular adeno-associated viral (AAV) vector platform for CRISPR-Cas9 delivery to enable the full spectrum of targeted in situ gene regulation functionalities, demonstrating robust transcriptional repression (up to 80%) and activation (up to 6-fold) of target genes in cell culture and mice. We also applied our platform for targeted invivo gene-repression-mediated gene therapy for retinitis pigmentosa. Specifically, we engineered targeted repression of Nrl, a master regulator of rod photoreceptor determination, and demonstrated Nrl knockdown mediates in situ reprogramming of rod cells into cone-like cells that are resistant to retinitis pigmentosa-specific mutations, with concomitant prevention of secondary cone loss. Furthermore, we benchmarked our results from Nrl knockdown with those from invivo Nrl knockout via gene editing. Taken together, our AAV-CRISPR-Cas9 platform for invivo epigenome engineering enables a robust approach to target disease in a genomically scarless and potentially reversible manner.

266. In Vivo Rod Photoreceptor Reprogramming Using AAV-Delivered CRISPR/Cas9 Rescues Retinal Degeneration

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is the most common form of inherited retinal dystrophy and the leading cause of inherited blindness, due to mutations in any of the over 60 genes/loci identified so far. The disease is characterized by an initial loss of rod photoreceptors and secondary cone cell death. Since cone photoreceptors are responsible for day time vision and visual acuity, preserving cone functions in RP patients is a priority when developing treatment strategies. NRL is a transcription factor that determines the rod photoreceptor cell fate during retinal development. Acute gene knockout of Nrl in mice was shown to reprogram adult rods into cone-like cells, rendering them resistant to effects of mutations in rod-specific genes and consequently preventing secondary cone loss (Montana CL, et al. PNAS, 2013; 110: 1732-7). With a goal to develop this approach for treatment of RP, we used adeno-associated virus (AAV)-delivered CRISPR/Cas9 for Nrl-knockdown in rod photoreceptors. AAV vectors were constructed to carry a photoreceptor-specific Cas9 nuclease expression cassette or a single-guided RNA (sgRNA) targeting Nrl or eGFP gene. The Cas9 and the sgRNA vectors were co-delivered into mice by subretinal administration. Potency of the AAV-CRISPR/Cas9 system was validated by EGFP knockdown in a mouse line with eGFP-labeled rods. Nrl knockdown was conducted in wild-type C57/Bl6 or Crxp-Nrl, a mouse line with rod-only photoreceptors. Molecular, histological and functional alterations were examined by next generation sequencing, immunoblot analysis, immunofluorescence, electron microscopy, and electroretinography (ERG). Our results showed that eGFP and Nrl were efficiently knocked down following AAV-CRISPR/Cas9 treatment. For Nrl knockdown, almost all insertions and deletions were detected in the targeted Nrl locus, and very few mutations were identified in ten potential off-target loci. A majority of the transduced rods acquired characteristics of cone photoreceptors following Nrl-CRISPR/Cas9 vector treatment, as demonstrated by reduced expression of rod-specific genes and enhanced expression of cone-specific genes, loss of the unique rod chromatin pattern, and diminished rod ERG response. Rescue of retinal degeneration was assessed in three mouse models harboring either recessive or dominant rod-specific mutations. In all three models, the Nrl-CRISPR/Cas9 vector treated eyes maintained significantly better photoreceptor viability and cone function than control eyes, as revealed by remarkably thicker photoreceptor layer, higher cone cell number, greater cone ERG amplitude and better optomotor behavior. In conclusion, AAV-CRISPR-mediated Nrl gene knockdown can efficiently reprogram rods into cone-like photoreceptors and prevent secondary cone death in retinal degeneration, which could be developed into a viable treatment for RP in humans.

Retinal Degeneration Slow (RDS) Glycosylation Plays a Role in Cone Function and in the Regulation of RDS·ROM-1 Protein Complex Formation

The photoreceptor-specific glycoprotein retinal degeneration slow (RDS, also called PRPH2) is necessary for the formation of rod and cone outer segments. Mutations in RDS cause rod and cone-dominant retinal disease, and it is well established that both cell types have different requirements for RDS. However, the molecular mechanisms for this difference remain unclear. Although RDS glycosylation is highly conserved, previous studies have revealed no apparent function for the glycan in rods. In light of the highly conserved nature of RDS glycosylation, we hypothesized that it is important for RDS function in cones and could underlie part of the differential requirement for RDS in the two photoreceptor subtypes. We generated a knockin mouse expressing RDS without the N-glycosylation site (N229S). Normal levels of RDS and the unglycosylated RDS binding partner rod outer segment membrane protein 1 (ROM-1) were found in N229S retinas. However, cone electroretinogram responses were decreased by 40% at 6 months of age. Because cones make up only 3-5% of photoreceptors in the wild-type background, N229S mice were crossed into the nrl(-/-) background (in which all rods are converted to cone-like cells) for biochemical analysis. In N229S/nrl(-/-) retinas, RDS and ROM-1 levels were decreased by ~60% each. These data suggest that glycosylation of RDS is required for RDS function or stability in cones, a difference that may be due to extracellular versus intradiscal localization of the RDS glycan in cones versus rods.

Feedback Induction of a Photoreceptor-specific Isoform of Retinoid-related Orphan Nuclear Receptor β by the Rod Transcription Factor NRL

Vision requires the generation of cone and rod photoreceptors that function in daylight and dim light, respectively. The neural retina leucine zipper factor (NRL) transcription factor critically controls photoreceptor fates as it stimulates rod differentiation and suppresses cone differentiation. However, the controls over NRL induction that balance rod and cone fates remain unclear. We have reported previously that the retinoid-related orphan receptor β gene (Rorb) is required for Nrl expression and other retinal functions. We show that Rorb differentially expresses two isoforms: RORβ2 in photoreceptors and RORβ1 in photoreceptors, progenitor cells, and other cell types. Deletion of RORβ2 or RORβ1 increased the cone:rod ratio ∼2-fold, whereas deletion of both isoforms in Rorb(-/-) mice produced almost exclusively cone-like cells at the expense of rods, suggesting that both isoforms induce Nrl. Electroporation of either RORβ isoform into retinal explants from Rorb(-/-) neonates reactivated Nrl and rod genes but, in Nrl(-/-) explants, failed to reactivate rod genes, indicating that NRL is the effector for both RORβ isoforms in rod differentiation. Unexpectedly, RORβ2 expression was lost in Nrl(-/-) mice. Moreover, NRL activated the RORβ2-specific promoter of Rorb, indicating that NRL activates Rorb, its own inducer gene. We suggest that feedback activation between Nrl and Rorb genes reinforces the commitment to rod differentiation.

Defects in the Outer Limiting Membrane Are Associated with Rosette Development in the Nrl−/− Retina

The neural retinal leucine zipper (Nrl) knockout mouse is a widely used model to study cone photoreceptor development, physiology, and molecular biology in the absence of rods. In the Nrl−/− retina, rods are converted into functional cone-like cells. The Nrl−/− retina is characterized by large undulations of the outer nuclear layer (ONL) commonly known as rosettes. Here we explore the mechanism of rosette development in the Nrl−/− retina. We report that rosettes first appear at postnatal day (P)8, and that the structure of nascent rosettes is morphologically distinct from what is seen in the adult retina. The lumen of these nascent rosettes contains a population of aberrant cells protruding into the subretinal space that induce infolding of the ONL. Morphologically adult rosettes do not contain any cell bodies and are first detected at P15. The cells found in nascent rosettes are photoreceptors in origin but lack inner and outer segments. We show that the adherens junctions between photoreceptors and Müller glia which comprise the retinal outer limiting membrane (OLM) are not uniformly formed in the Nrl−/− retina and thus allow protrusion of a population of developing photoreceptors into the subretinal space where their maturation becomes delayed. These data suggest that the rosettes of the Nrl−/− retina arise due to defects in the OLM and delayed maturation of a subset of photoreceptors, and that rods may play an important role in the proper formation of the OLM.

A rod-dominated visual system in leptocephalus larvae of elopomorph fishes (Elopomorpha: Teleostei)

The nature and distributions of photoreceptor cell types were investigated in the retinas of 12 species (5 families) of elopomorph anguilliform leptocephalus larvae. Anti-opsin immunofluorescence, light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used to assess opsin distribution across the retinas and to associate photoreceptor morphology and opsin content. Retinas of all species were immunoreactive with anti-rhodopsin throughout, while anti-cone opsin immunoreactivity was restricted only to the ventral region of the retina in all specimens. Rod and cone photoreceptors were morphologically indistinguishable at low magnifications; TEM revealed that nearly all photoreceptors had rod-like ultrastructure, with only rare examples of cone-like cells identified in the ventral retina. These results indicate a rhodopsin/rod-dominated retina in leptocephalus larvae of anguilliform eels in the teleost subdivision Elopomorpha, contrasting with the cone-dominated retinas of nearly all other species of teleost larvae. This distinctive developmental pattern shared among elopomorph larvae has important evolutionary and ecological implications, indicating a shared ancestor and/or ecological characteristics that are very different from most other teleost larvae.

Immunocytochemical localization of taurine in the pineal organ and retina of an anadromous fish, Plecoglossus altivelis.

Light and electron microscopic immunolocalization of taurine, a sulfur-containing free amino acid, was investigated in the photoneuroendocrine pineal organ and the retinal photoreceptor and pigment epithelial layer of the ayu Plecoglossus altivelis, an anadromous fish. Intense immunostaining was found in the outer segments of pineal photoreceptors and retinal cone-like cells. Moderate but definite immunostaining was found in the cytoplasmic processes of pineal supporting cells, the outer segments of retinal rod-like cells, and the apical processes of pigment epithelial cells. Although the electron microscopic immunogold labeling was not completely coincident with the results of light microscopic immunostaining, concentrated immunogold particles appeared in the inner segments of photoreceptor cells, the cytoplasmic processes of pineal supporting cells, and the apical processes of pigment epithelial cells. These light and electron microscopic findings in taurine immunolocalization were discussed in relation to the functions of taurine known mainly from retinal physiology. It was suggested that the abundant taurine localization may be involved at least in the protection of photoreceptor outer segments against harmful factors, and in the transportation of nutrients and metabolites. The immunostaining for taurine is useful for the discrimination of different types of photoreceptor cells in the pineal organ and retina of fish.

Immunocytochemical reactivity of rod and cone visual pigments in the sturgeon retina

Microspectrophotometry and immunocytochemistry with several antivisual pigment antibodies were used to study visual cells of the Siberian sturgeon, Acipenser baeri Brandt. The retina contained rods and three morphological types of cones: large cones with oil drops, small cones with oil drops, and cone-like cells without oil drops. Rods and cone-like drop-free cells were found to possess porphyropsin-549, while the large oil drop-bearing cones contained red-sensitive (P613), green-sensitive (P542), and blue-sensitive (P462) visual pigments. The immunocytochemical staining pattern with three antibodies to visual pigment proteins also revealed one visual pigment in rods and three visual pigments in cones. Rods were labeled with all three antibodies, while the majority of large cones (type I), presumably the red-sensitive ones, were negative with the polyclonal serum AO against bovine opsin. A less-frequently occurring large cone type (type II) was stained by all three antibodies including mAb COS-1 specific to middle-to-long-wave visual pigments in birds and mammals, and is thought to be green-sensitive. An even less-frequent large cone type (type III, probably the blue-sensitive one) did not bind COS-1. The small cones with oil droplets showed immunoreactivities similar to either type II or type III cones. The oil drop-free small photoreceptor exhibited a staining pattern identical with that of rods. These results indicate that the immunocytochemical approach can be used to reveal photoreceptor-specific neural connections in the sturgeon retina.