Mesodermal Progenitors Research Articles

Generation of an expandable intermediate mesoderm restricted progenitor cell line from human pluripotent stem cells.

The field of tissue engineering entered a new era with the development of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), which are capable of unlimited expansion whilst retaining the potential to differentiate into all mature cell populations. However, these cells harbor significant risks, including tumor formation upon transplantation. One way to mitigate this risk is to develop expandable progenitor cell populations with restricted differentiation potential. Here, we used a cellular microarray technology to identify a defined and optimized culture condition that supports the derivation and propagation of a cell population with mesodermal properties. This cell population, referred to as intermediate mesodermal progenitor (IMP) cells, is capable of unlimited expansion, lacks tumor formation potential, and, upon appropriate stimulation, readily acquires properties of a sub-population of kidney cells. Interestingly, IMP cells fail to differentiate into other mesodermally-derived tissues, including blood and heart, suggesting that these cells are restricted to an intermediate mesodermal fate.

Abstract 12143: The Identification of Bone Marrow-derived Artery-resident Mesodermal Progenitor Cells and Dynamics in Atherosclerosis

Background: Cellular components and dynamics play a pivotal role in vascular diseases. A recent study identified bone marrow (BM)-derived calcifying progenitor cells. However, the nature of progenitor cells remains elusive. We here investigated the developmental hierarchy of progenitor cells and their dynamics in atherosclerosis. Methods and Results: We harvested cells from BM and artery of C57 mice. In BM, Lin-/CD29+/Sca-1+/PDGFRα- cells showed hematopoietic potential and differentiated into osteoclast (OC)-like cells.They also possessed mesenchymal stem cell property including osteoblastic (OB) differentiation. In contrast, Lin-/CD29+/Sca-1+/PDGFRα+ cells showed only OB potential. In vivo reconstitution assay demonstrated that Sca-1+/PDGFRα- cell was an ancestor of Sca-1+/PDGFRα+ cell, suggesting a mesodermal progenitor cell. Interestingly, BM-derived artery-resident, clonal Sca-1+/PDGFRα- cells maintained bi-potency (OB/OC) but lost hematopoietic nature. When we stimulated or knocked down PDGFRα, there was no alteration in OB or OC differentiation of Sca-1+/PDGFRα- cells and no effect on OB differentiation of Sca-1+/PDGFRα+ cells, indicating PDGFRα as a surface marker but not a functional player. In Apoe-KO mice compared with control, Sca-1+/PDGFRα- cells were less mobilized from BM to peripheral circulation and less infiltrated into atherosclerotic plaque, whereas Sca-1+/PDGFRα+cells were not significantly affected. Multiplex cytokine assay of serum and artery revealed that IL-1β was modestly increased and IL-5 was markedly decreased in atherosclerotic mice. IL-1β decreased the migration of Sca-1+/PDGFRα- cells by 5 folds compared with TNFα, and IL-5 increased the migration as much as TNFα. But the migration of Sca-1+/PDGFRα+ cells was not altered. Conclusion: We demonstrate that Sca-1+/PDGFRα- cell is a mesodermal progenitor cell that possesses both hematopoietic and mesenchymal potentials. The mobilization and infiltration of mesodermal progenitor cells into artery were regulated by atherosclerosis-related Inflammatory and anti-inflammatory humoral factors. These data may have implications for the pathophysiology of atherosclerosis and provide a novel therapeutic target for vascular diseases.

Abstract 19282: Transient Bone Morphogenic Protein Antagonism Directs Differentiation of Ipscs Into the Cardiac Neural Crest and Ckit+ Myocardial Progenitor Lineages

Introduction: The signaling pathways that govern cKit+ cardiac progenitor cell (CPC) differentiation into cardiomyocytes (CMs) are unknown. Some studies suggest an essential role in cardiomyogenesis, others suggest a minimal CPC contribution. We studied if it is a non-permissive cardiac milieu that minimizes the generation of CMs from CPCs. Hypothesis: Transient BMP antagonism directs the generation of cardiomyocytes from CPCs. Methods: We lineage-traced CPCs using a novel dual-recombinase responsive indicator mice (cKitCreERT2;Wnt1::Flpe;RC::Fela) and iPSCs derived from cKitCreERT2;IRG (iPSCKit) mice. Results: Intersectional genetic fate-mapping of cKitCreERT2;Wnt1:: Flpe;RC::Fela embryos supported that cKit marks Wnt1-expressing cardiac neural crest (CNC) progenitors, emerging at ~E9.5 and contributing a limited number of cardiomyocytes (n=3). We lineage-traced CPCs during stage-specific cardiogenic differentiation of iPSCKit. Ascorbate treatment promoted differentiation of iPSCKit-derived embryoid bodies (EBs) into Nkx2.5+ myocardium, 45.5%±6.7% of which co-expressed the Cre-reporter EGFP (n=154 EBs; 12 preps), suggesting that CPCs encompass fully competent cardiomyogenic progenitors. Noggin (or Dorsomorphin), a BMP antagonist transiently expressed in the heart at E7.5-E8.5 but not during CNC invasion, directed the differentiation of iPSCkit-EBs into Mesp1+/Isl1+/Nkx2.5+ cardiac mesoderm progenitors (p≤0.0001). The same signaling pathway subsequently directed EBs into the cKit+/Wnt1+/Pax3+/Mitf-H+/Isl1+/Nkx2.5+ CNC lineage (p≤0.0001), while suppressing the generation of WT1+/Tbx18+ epicardium (p<0.05). Stage-specific induction of Cre-recombination delineated that iPSCkit-derived CPCs encompass Mesp1–/cKit+/Nkx2.5+ CNC progenitors, which contributed EGFP+ CNC derivatives, including Nkx2-5+ cardiomyocytes, to 60.7%±7.3% of spontaneously beating EBs (n=147 EBs; 12 preps). Conclusions: Our data show that CPCkit are fully competent CNC-derived cardiomyogenic progenitors, whose differentiation to cardiomyocytes is minimized by a latent Noggin-mediated signaling pathway. Therapeutically exploiting CPCkit, provides an important strategy for maximizing myocardial regeneration.

A loss-of-function and H2B-Venus transcriptional reporter allele for Gata6 in mice.

BackgroundThe GATA-binding factor 6 (Gata6) gene encodes a zinc finger transcription factor that often functions as a key regulator of lineage specification during development. It is the earliest known marker of the primitive endoderm lineage in the mammalian blastocyst. During gastrulation, GATA6 is expressed in early cardiac mesoderm and definitive endoderm progenitors, and is necessary for development of specific mesoderm and endoderm-derived organs including the heart, liver, and pancreas. Furthermore, reactivation or silencing of the Gata6 locus has been associated with certain types of cancer affecting endodermal organs.ResultsWe have generated a Gata6H2B-Venus knock-in reporter mouse allele for the purpose of labeling GATA6-expressing cells with a bright nuclear-localized fluorescent marker that is suitable for live imaging at single-cell resolution.ConclusionsExpression of the Venus reporter was characterized starting from embryonic stem (ES) cells, through mouse embryos and adult animals. The Venus reporter was not expressed in ES cells, but was activated upon endoderm differentiation. Gata6H2B-Venus/H2B-Venus homozygous embryos did not express GATA6 protein and failed to specify the primitive endoderm in the blastocyst. However, null blastocysts continued to express high levels of Venus in the absence of GATA6 protein, suggesting that early Gata6 transcription is independent of GATA6 protein expression. At early post-implantation stages of embryonic development, there was a strong correlation of Venus with endogenous GATA6 protein in endoderm and mesoderm progenitors, then later in the heart, midgut, and hindgut. However, there were discrepancies in reporter versus endogenous protein expression in certain cells, such as the body wall and endocardium. During organogenesis, detection of Venus in specific organs recapitulated known sites of endogenous GATA6 expression, such as in the lung bud epithelium, liver, pancreas, gall bladder, stomach epithelium, and vascular endothelium. In adults, Venus was observed in the lungs, pancreas, liver, gall bladder, ovaries, uterus, bladder, skin, adrenal glands, small intestine and corpus region of the stomach. Overall, Venus fluorescent protein under regulatory control of the Gata6 locus was expressed at levels that were easily visualized directly and could endure live and time-lapse imaging techniques. Venus is co-expressed with endogenous GATA6 throughout development to adulthood, and should provide an invaluable tool for examining the status of the Gata6 locus during development, as well as its silencing or reactivation in cancer or other disease states.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12861-015-0086-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Neuropilin-2 genomic elements drive cre recombinase expression in primitive blood, vascular and neuronal lineages.

We have established a novel Cre mouse line, using genomic elements encompassing the Nrp2 locus, present within a bacterial artificial chromosome clone. By crossing this Cre driver line to R26R LacZ reporter mice, we have documented the temporal expression and lineage traced tissues in which Cre is expressed. Nrp2-Cre drives expression in primitive blood cells arising from the yolk sac, venous and lymphatic endothelial cells, peripheral sensory ganglia, and the lung bud. This mouse line will provide a new tool to researchers wishing to study the development of various tissues and organs in which this Cre driver is expressed, as well as allow tissue-specific knockout of genes of interest to study protein function. This work also presents the first evidence for expression of Nrp2 protein in a mesodermal progenitor with restricted hematopoietic potential, which will significantly advance the study of primitive erythropoiesis. genesis 53:709-717, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Comparison of Human Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes, Cardiovascular Progenitors, and Bone Marrow Mononuclear Cells for Cardiac Repair

SummaryCardiomyocytes derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESC-CMs) can improve the contractility of injured hearts. We hypothesized that mesodermal cardiovascular progenitors (hESC-CVPs), capable of generating vascular cells in addition to cardiomyocytes, would provide superior repair by contributing to multiple components of myocardium. We performed a head-to-head comparison of hESC-CMs and hESC-CVPs and compared these with the most commonly used clinical cell type, human bone marrow mononuclear cells (hBM-MNCs). In a nude rat model of myocardial infarction, hESC-CMs and hESC-CVPs generated comparable grafts. Both similarly improved systolic function and ventricular dilation. Furthermore, only rare human vessels formed from hESC-CVPs. hBM-MNCs attenuated ventricular dilation and enhanced host vascularization without engrafting long-term or improving contractility. Thus, hESC-CMs and CVPs show similar efficacy for cardiac repair, and both are more efficient than hBM-MNCs. However, hESC-CVPs do not form larger grafts or more significant numbers of human vessels in the infarcted heart.

Hedgehog/Patched-associated rhabdomyosarcoma formation from delta1-expressing mesodermal cells

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is the most common pediatric soft tissue sarcoma. In children, the 2 major RMS subtypes are alveolar and embryonal RMS. Aberrant Hedgehog/Patched1 (Hh/Ptch) signaling is a hallmark of embryonal RMS. We demonstrate that mice carrying a Ptch mutation in mesodermal Delta1-expressing cells develop embryonal-like RMS at a similar rate as mice harboring a Ptch mutation in the germline or the brachury-expressing mesoderm. The tumor incidence decreases dramatically when Ptch is mutated in Myf5- or Pax3-expressing cells. No RMS develop from Myogenin/Mef2c-expressing cells. This suggests that Hh/Ptch-associated RMS are derived from Delta1-positive, Myf5-negative, Myogenin-negative and Pax3-negative mesodermal progenitors that can undergo myogenic differentiation but lack stable lineage commitment. Additional preliminary genetic data and data on mesodermal progenitors further imply an interplay of Hh/Ptch and Delta/Notch signaling activity during RMS initiation. In contrast, Wnt signals supposedly suppress RMS formation because RMS multiplicity decreases after inactivation of the Wnt-inhibitor Wif1. Finally, our results strongly suggest that the tumor-initiating event determines the lineage of RMS origin.

Tbx16 and Msgn1 are required to establish directional cell migration of zebrafish mesodermal progenitors

The epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) is an essential process that occurs repeatedly during embryogenesis whereby stably adherent cells convert to an actively migrating state. While much is known about the factors and events that initiate the EMT, the steps that cells undergo to become directionally migratory are far less well understood. Zebrafish embryos lacking the transcription factors Tbx16/Spadetail and Mesogenin1 (Msgn1) are a valuable system for investigating the EMT. Mesodermal cells in these embryos are unable to perform the EMT necessary to leave the most posterior end of the body (the tailbud) and join the pre-somitic mesoderm, a process that is conserved in all vertebrates. It has previously been very difficult to study this EMT in vertebrates because of the multiple cell types in the tailbud and the morphogenetic changes the whole embryo undergoes. Here, we describe a novel tissue explant system for imaging the mesodermal cell EMT in vivo that allows us to investigate the requirements for cells to acquire migratory properties during the EMT with high spatio-temporal resolution. This method revealed that, despite the inability of tbx16;msgn1-deficient cells to leave the tailbud, actin-based protrusions form surprisingly normally in these cells and they become highly motile. However, tbx16;msgn1-deficient cells have specific cell-autonomous defects in the persistence and anterior direction of migration because the lamellipodia they form are not productive in driving anteriorward migration. Additionally, we show that mesoderm morphogenesis and differentiation are separable and that there is a migratory cue that directs mesodermal cell migration that is independent of Tbx16 and Msgn1. This work defines changes that cells undergo as they complete the EMT and provides new insight into the mechanisms required in vivo for cells to become mesenchymal.

Cytostatic Effect of Repeated Exposure to Simvastatin: A Mechanism for Chronic Myotoxicity Revealed by the Use of Mesodermal Progenitors Derived from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

Statin treatment of hypercholesterolemia can lead to chronic myotoxicity which is, in most cases, alleviated by drug withdrawal. Cellular and molecular mechanisms of this adverse effect have been elusive, in particular because of the lack of in vitro models suitable for long-term exposures. We have taken advantage of the properties of human pluripotent stem cell-derived mesodermal precursors, that can be maintained unaltered in vitro for a long period of time, to develop a model of repeated exposures to simvastatin during more than 2 weeks. This approach unveiled major differences, both in functional and molecular terms, in response to single versus repeated-dose exposures to simvastatin. The main functional effect of the in vitro simvastatin-induced long-term toxicity was a loss of proliferative capacity in the absence of concomitant cell death, revealing that cytostatic effect could be a major contributor to statin-induced myotoxicity. Comparative analysis of molecular modifications induced by simvastatin short-term versus prolonged exposures demonstrated powerful adaptive cell responses, as illustrated by the dramatic decrease in the number of differentially expressed genes, distinct biological pathway enrichments, and distinct patterns of nutrient transporters expressed at the cell surface. This study underlines the potential of derivatives of human pluripotent stem cells for developing new approaches in toxicology, in particular for chronic toxicity testing.

Logics and properties of a genetic regulatory program that drives embryonic muscle development in an echinoderm.

Evolutionary origin of muscle is a central question when discussing mesoderm evolution. Developmental mechanisms underlying somatic muscle development have mostly been studied in vertebrates and fly where multiple signals and hierarchic genetic regulatory cascades selectively specify myoblasts from a pool of naive mesodermal progenitors. However, due to the increased organismic complexity and distant phylogenetic position of the two systems, a general mechanistic understanding of myogenesis is still lacking. In this study, we propose a gene regulatory network (GRN) model that promotes myogenesis in the sea urchin embryo, an early branching deuterostome. A fibroblast growth factor signaling and four Forkhead transcription factors consist the central part of our model and appear to orchestrate the myogenic process. The topological properties of the network reveal dense gene interwiring and a multilevel transcriptional regulation of conserved and novel myogenic genes. Finally, the comparison of the myogenic network architecture among different animal groups highlights the evolutionary plasticity of developmental GRNs.

Abstract 349: Gene Regulatory Modules Regulate Cardiac Lineage Specification Revealed by Single-cell Rna Sequencing

Background: The molecular definition of the differentiation process is of intense interest for cardiovascular developmental biologists. With the advent of single cell technologies, a number of a transcriptomic approaches have been developed to obtain a complete description of gene expression. While single cell RNA sequencing is a significant advance for describing gene expression at the cellular resolution, novel obstacles have emerged such as computational management of dropout events, discovery of the gene regulatory modules responsible for lineage specification and identification of novel lineage markers. Methods: Using Etv2- and Nkx2-5 EYFP transgenic embryos, from which progenitors of hematopoietic, endothelial and cardiac lineages can be isolated with high purity, we performed single cell transcriptome analysis. We developed a Bayesian statistical framework to (1) model the dropout events, (2) reconstruct the lineage specification pathways from mesodermal progenitors to hematopoietic, endothelial and cardiac lineages, (3) discover the core gene regulatory modules that govern lineage specification and (4) predict novel cell surface markers for cardiac components. We developed a structural stochastic variational inference method to efficiently estimate the model parameters for sequencing data with thousands of cells. Results: The analysis of 421 Etv2- and Nkx2-5 EYFP positive cells predicted the core regulatory networks involving transcription factors, signaling molecules and cell surface proteins, where the signaling cascades are significantly correlated the specification of the endothelial, hematopoietic and various cardiac lineages from the mesodermal progenitors. The method also predicted novel cell surface markers for the first and second heart fields. Conclusions: We report the analysis of complete gene expression profiles of mesodermal lineage specification at single cell resolution. We provide the first unified statistical framework to systematically analyze single cell RNA-seq data and quantitatively couple the network analysis and lineage specification. This strategy provides a platform for the identification of regulatory nodes and cascades that govern mesodermal and cardiovascular development.

Abstract 394: Transient Bone Morphogenic Protein Antagonism Directs Differentiation of iPSCs into the Cardiac Neural Crest and cKit+ Myocardial Progenitor Lineages

Introduction: The capability of cKit+ cardiac progenitor cells (CPCs) to participate in cardiomyocyte regeneration remains controversial, despite basic and clinical studies supporting such a role. Hypothesis: A non-permissive cardiac milieu minimizes the generation of cardiomyocytes from CPCs. Methods: We lineage-traced CPCs using novel dual-recombinase responsive indicator mice (cKitCreERT2;Wnt1::Flpe;RC::Fela) and iPSCs derived from cKitCreERT2;IRG (iPSCKit) mice. Results: Intersectional genetic fate-mapping of cKitCreERT2;Wnt1:: Flpe;RC::Fela embryos supported that cKit marks Wnt1-expressing cardiac neural crest (CNC) progenitors, emerging at ~E9.5 and contributing a limited number of cardiomyocytes. To decipher the mechanisms underlying cardiomyocyte differentiation of CPCs, we lineage-traced CPCs during stage-specific cardiogenic differentiation of iPSCKit. Ascorbate treatment promoted differentiation of cKit+ iPSC-derived embryoid bodies (EBs) into Nkx2.5+ myocardium, 45.5%±6.7% of which co-expressed the Cre-reporter EGFP (n=154 EBs; 12 preparations), suggesting that CPCs encompass fully competent cardiomyogenic progenitors. Noggin (or Dorsomorphin), a BMP antagonist transiently expressed in the heart at E7.5-E8.5 but not during CNC invasion, directed the differentiation of iPSCkit-EBs into Mesp1+/Isl1+/Nkx2.5+ cardiac mesoderm progenitors (p≤0.0001). Remarkably, the same signaling pathway subsequently directed EBs into the cKit+/Wnt1+/Pax3+/Mitf-H+/Isl1+/Nkx2.5+ CNC lineage (p≤0.0001), while suppressing the generation of WT1+/Tbx18+ epicardium (p<0.05). Stage-specific induction of Cre-recombination delineated that iPSCkit-derived CPCs encompass Mesp1–/cKit+/Nkx2.5+ CNC progenitors which contributed EGFP+ CNC derivatives, including Nkx2-5+ cardiomyocytes, to 60.7%±7.3% of spontaneously beating EBs (n=147 EBs; 12 preparations). Conclusions: Collectively, our data show that CPCkit are fully competent CNC-derived cardiomyogenic progenitors, whose differentiation to cardiomyocytes is minimized by a latent Noggin-mediated signaling pathway. Therefore exploiting CPCkit therapeutically, provides an important strategy for maximizing myocardial regeneration.

Directed cardiomyogenesis of human pluripotent stem cells by modulating Wnt/β-catenin and BMP signalling with small molecules.

Cardiomyocytes derived from human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) are a potential cell source for regenerative medicine, disease modelling and drug development. However, current approaches for invitro cardiac differentiation of human PSCs are often time-consuming, heavily depend on expensive growth factors and involve the tedious formation of embryonic bodies whose signalling pathways are difficult to precisely modulate due to their complex microenvironments. In the present study, we report a new small molecule-based differentiation approach, which significantly promoted contracting cardiomyocytes in human PSCs in a monolayer format in as little as 7days, in contrast with most traditional differentiation methods that usually take up to 3weeks for cardiomyogenesis. This approach consists in activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signalling at day 0-1 with small molecule CHIR99021 (CH) followed by inhibition of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signalling at day 1-4 with DMH1 [termed as CH(0-1)/DMH1(1-4) treatment], a selective small molecule BMP inhibitor reported by us previously. Our study further demonstrated that the CH(0-1)/DMH1(1-4) treatment significantly promotes cardiac formation via mesoderm and mesoderm-derived cardiac progenitor cells without impacts on either endoderm or ectoderm differentiation of human PSCs. This rapid, efficient and inexpensive small molecule-based cardiomyogenic method may potentially harness the use of human PSCs in regenerative medicine as well as other applications.

Tbx3 Controls Dppa3 Levels and Exit from Pluripotency toward Mesoderm

SummaryTbx3, a member of the T-box family, plays important roles in development, stem cells, nuclear reprogramming, and cancer. Loss of Tbx3 induces differentiation in mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). However, we show that mESCs exist in an alternate stable pluripotent state in the absence of Tbx3. In-depth transcriptome analysis of this mESC state reveals Dppa3 as a direct downstream target of Tbx3. Also, Tbx3 facilitates the cell fate transition from pluripotent cells to mesoderm progenitors by directly repressing Wnt pathway members required for differentiation. Wnt signaling regulates differentiation of mESCs into mesoderm progenitors and helps to maintain a naive pluripotent state. We show that Tbx3, a downstream target of Wnt signaling, fine tunes these divergent roles of Wnt signaling in mESCs. In conclusion, we identify a signaling-TF axis that controls the exit of mESCs from a self-renewing pluripotent state toward mesoderm differentiation.

Brachyury and SMAD signalling collaboratively orchestrate distinct mesoderm and endoderm gene regulatory networks in differentiating human embryonic stem cells.

The transcription factor brachyury (T, BRA) is one of the first markers of gastrulation and lineage specification in vertebrates. Despite its wide use and importance in stem cell and developmental biology, its functional genomic targets in human cells are largely unknown. Here, we use differentiating human embryonic stem cells to study the role of BRA in activin A-induced endoderm and BMP4-induced mesoderm progenitors. We show that BRA has distinct genome-wide binding landscapes in these two cell populations, and that BRA interacts and collaborates with SMAD1 or SMAD2/3 signalling to regulate the expression of its target genes in a cell-specific manner. Importantly, by manipulating the levels of BRA in cells exposed to different signalling environments, we demonstrate that BRA is essential for mesoderm but not for endoderm formation. Together, our data illuminate the function of BRA in the context of human embryonic development and show that the regulatory role of BRA is context dependent. Our study reinforces the importance of analysing the functions of a transcription factor in different cellular and signalling environments.

Lineage tracing of neuromesodermal progenitors reveals novel Wnt-dependent roles in trunk progenitor cell maintenance and differentiation.

In the development of the vertebrate body plan, Wnt3a is thought to promote the formation of paraxial mesodermal progenitors (PMPs) of the trunk region while suppressing neural specification. Recent lineage-tracing experiments have demonstrated that these trunk neural progenitors and PMPs derive from a common multipotent progenitor called the neuromesodermal progenitor (NMP). NMPs are known to reside in the anterior primitive streak (PS) region; however, the extent to which NMPs populate the PS and contribute to the vertebrate body plan, and the precise role that Wnt3a plays in regulating NMP self-renewal and differentiation are unclear. To address this, we used cell-specific markers (Sox2 and T) and tamoxifen-induced Cre recombinase-based lineage tracing to locate putative NMPs in vivo. We provide functional evidence for NMP location primarily in the epithelial PS, and to a lesser degree in the ingressed PS. Lineage-tracing studies in Wnt3a/β-catenin signaling pathway mutants provide genetic evidence that trunk progenitors normally fated to enter the mesodermal germ layer can be redirected towards the neural lineage. These data, combined with previous PS lineage-tracing studies, support a model that epithelial anterior PS cells are Sox2(+)T(+) multipotent NMPs and form the bulk of neural progenitors and PMPs of the posterior trunk region. Finally, we find that Wnt3a/β-catenin signaling directs trunk progenitors towards PMP fates; however, our data also suggest that Wnt3a positively supports a progenitor state for both mesodermal and neural progenitors.

A new heart for a new head in vertebrate cardiopharyngeal evolution.

It has been more than 30 years since the publication of the new head hypothesis, which proposed that the vertebrate head is an evolutionary novelty resulting from the emergence of neural crest and cranial placodes. Neural crest generates the skull and associated connective tissues, whereas placodes produce sensory organs. However, neither crest nor placodes produce head muscles, which are a crucial component of the complex vertebrate head. We discuss emerging evidence for a surprising link between the evolution of head muscles and chambered hearts - both systems arise from a common pool of mesoderm progenitor cells within the cardiopharyngeal field of vertebrate embryos. We consider the origin of this field in non-vertebrate chordates and its evolution in vertebrates.

The C. elegans hypodermis couples progenitor cell quiescence to the dietary state

The nutritional status of an organism can greatly impact the function and behavior of stem and progenitor cells [1]. However, the regulatory circuits that inform these cells about the dietary environment remain to be elucidated. Newly hatched C. elegans larvae (L1s) halt development in "L1 arrest" or "L1 diapause" until ample food is encountered and triggers stem and progenitor cells to exit from quiescence [2]. The insulin/insulin-like growth factor signaling (IIS) pathway plays a key role in this reactivation [3, 4], but its site(s) of action have not been elucidated nor have the nutrient molecule(s) that stimulate the pathway been identified. By tissue-specifically modulating the activity of its components, we demonstrate that the IIS pathway acts in the hypodermis to regulate nutrition-responsive reactivation of neural and mesodermal progenitor cells. We identify ethanol, a likely component of the natural Caenorhabditis habitat, and amino acids as nutrients that synergistically reactivate somatic progenitor cells and upregulate expression of insulin-like genes in starved L1 larvae. The hypodermis likely senses the availability of amino acids because forced activation of the amino-acid-responsive Rag-TORC1 (target of rapamycin complex 1) pathway in this tissue can also release somatic progenitor cell quiescence in the presence of ethanol. Finally, there appears to be crosstalk between the IIS and Rag-TORC1 pathways because constitutive activation of the IIS pathway requires Rag to promote reactivation. This work demonstrates that ethanol and amino acids act as dietary cues via the IIS and Rag-TORC1 pathways in the hypodermis to coordinately control progenitor cell behavior.

Human pericytes isolated from adipose tissue have better differentiation abilities than their mesenchymal stem cell counterparts.

Multi-potent mesenchymal stem/progenitor cells are present in almost all organs and tissues, although their identity remains elusive. Several isolation strategies have been pursued to identify these cells prospectively, leading to the isolation of various cell populations endowed with multi-lineage mesodermal potential. Historically, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were the first cell population to be isolated from the stromal fraction of most connective tissues. These cells are able to differentiate towards various mesodermal lineages and are currently the most studied adult mesodermal progenitors. Recently, the isolation of a subpopulation of microvascular pericytes (PCs) endowed with multi-lineage mesodermal potential has led to the identification of mesenchymal progenitors that reside in a defined anatomical location, namely the wall of small blood vessels. To gain insight into these two related cell populations, we performed a detailed analysis of the mesodermal potential of isogenic human MSCs and PCs isolated from white adipose tissue. Although both cell populations expressed known mesodermal markers at similar levels and displayed a comparable growth rate, PCs differentiated towards osteocytes, adipocytes and myocytes more efficiently than their MSC counterparts, as revealed by both histological and molecular assays. Our results show that microvascular PCs are more prone to mesenchymal differentiation than MSCs and therefore represent a preferable source of human adult mesenchymal progenitors when adipose tissue is used as a cell source.

MiR-24 is required for hematopoietic differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells.

Overexpression of miRNA, miR-24, in mouse hematopoietic progenitors increases monocytic/ granulocytic differentiation and inhibits B cell development. To determine if endogenous miR-24 is required for hematopoiesis, we antagonized miR-24 in mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and performed in vitro differentiations. Suppression of miR-24 resulted in an inability to produce blood and hematopoietic progenitors (HPCs) from ESCs. The phenotype is not a general defect in mesoderm production since we observe production of nascent mesoderm as well as mesoderm derived cardiac muscle and endothelial cells. Results from blast colony forming cell (BL-CFC) assays demonstrate that miR-24 is not required for generation of the hemangioblast, the mesoderm progenitor that gives rise to blood and endothelial cells. However, expression of the transcription factors Runx1 and Scl is greatly reduced, suggesting an impaired ability of the hemangioblast to differentiate. Lastly, we observed that known miR-24 target, Trib3, is upregulated in the miR-24 antagonized embryoid bodies (EBs). Overexpression of Trib3 alone in ESCs was able to decrease HPC production, though not as great as seen with miR-24 knockdown. These results demonstrate an essential role for miR-24 in the hematopoietic differentiation of ESCs. Although many miRNAs have been implicated in regulation of hematopoiesis, this is the first miRNA observed to be required for the specification of mammalian blood progenitors from early mesoderm.