| 1. |
- Oksa, L, et al.
(author)
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Arginine Methyltransferase PRMT7 Deregulates Expression of RUNX1 Target Genes in T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia
- 2022
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In: Cancers. - : MDPI AG. - 2072-6694. ; 14:9
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) is an aggressive hematological malignancy with no well-established prognostic biomarkers. We examined the expression of protein arginine methyltransferases across hematological malignancies and discovered high levels of PRMT7 mRNA in T-ALL, particularly in the mature subtypes of T-ALL. The genetic deletion of PRMT7 by CRISPR-Cas9 reduced the colony formation of T-ALL cells and changed arginine monomethylation patterns in protein complexes associated with the RNA and DNA processing and the T-ALL pathogenesis. Among them was RUNX1, whose target gene expression was consequently deregulated. These results suggest that PRMT7 plays an active role in the pathogenesis of T-ALL.
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| 2. |
- Chaney, Aisling M., et al.
(author)
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Prodromal neuroinflammatory, cholinergic and metabolite dysfunction detected by PET and MRS in the TgF344-AD transgenic rat model of AD : a collaborative multi-modal study
- 2021
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In: Theranostics. - : Ivyspring International Publisher. - 1838-7640. ; 11:14, s. 6644-6667
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Mouse models of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are valuable but do not fully recapitulate human AD pathology, such as spontaneous Tau fibril accumulation and neuronal loss, necessitating the development of new AD models. The transgenic (TG) TgF344-AD rat has been reported to develop age-dependent AD features including neuronal loss and neurofibrillary tangles, despite only expressing APP and PSEN1 mutations, suggesting an improved modelling of AD hallmarks. Alterations in neuronal networks as well as learning performance and cognition tasks have been reported in this model, but none have combined a longitudinal, multimodal approach across multiple centres, which mimics the approaches commonly taken in clinical studies. We therefore aimed to further characterise the progression of AD-like pathology and cognition in the TgF344-AD rat from young-adults (6 months (m)) to mid- (12 m) and advanced-stage (18 m, 25 m) of the disease.Methods: TgF344-AD rats and wild-type (WT) littermates were imaged at 6 m, 12 m and 18 m with [18F]DPA-714 (TSPO, neuroinflammation), [18F]Florbetaben (Aβ) and [18F]ASEM (α7-nicotinic acetylcholine receptor) and with magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and with (S)-[18F]THK5117 (Tau) at 15 and 25 m. Behaviour tests were also performed at 6 m, 12 m and 18 m. Immunohistochemistry (CD11b, GFAP, Aβ, NeuN, NeuroChrom) and Tau (S)-[18F]THK5117 autoradiography, immunohistochemistry and Western blot were also performed.Results: [18F]DPA-714 positron emission tomography (PET) showed an increase in neuroinflammation in TG vs wildtype animals from 12 m in the hippocampus (+11%), and at the advanced-stage AD in the hippocampus (+12%), the thalamus (+11%) and frontal cortex (+14%). This finding coincided with strong increases in brain microgliosis (CD11b) and astrogliosis (GFAP) at these time-points as assessed by immunohistochemistry. In vivo [18F]ASEM PET revealed an age-dependent increase uptake in the striatum and pallidum/nucleus basalis of Meynert in WT only, similar to that observed with this tracer in humans, resulting in TG being significantly lower than WT by 18 m. In vivo [18F]Florbetaben PET scanning detected Aβ accumulation at 18 m, and (S)-[18F]THK5117 PET revealed subsequent Tau accumulation at 25m in hippocampal and cortical regions. Aβ plaques were low but detectable by immunohistochemistry from 6 m, increasing further at 12 and 18 m with Tau-positive neurons adjacent to Aβ plaques at 18 m. NeuroChrom (a pan neuronal marker) immunohistochemistry revealed a loss of neuronal staining at the Aβ plaques locations, while NeuN labelling revealed an age-dependent decrease in hippocampal neuron number in both genotypes. Behavioural assessment using the novel object recognition task revealed that both WT & TgF344-AD animals discriminated the novel from familiar object at 3 m and 6 m of age. However, low levels of exploration observed in both genotypes at later time-points resulted in neither genotype successfully completing the task. Deficits in social interaction were only observed at 3 m in the TgF344-AD animals. By in vivo MRS, we showed a decrease in neuronal marker N-acetyl-aspartate in the hippocampus at 18 m (-18% vs age-matched WT, and -31% vs 6 m TG) and increased Taurine in the cortex of TG (+35% vs age-matched WT, and +55% vs 6 m TG).Conclusions: This multi-centre multi-modal study demonstrates, for the first time, alterations in brain metabolites, cholinergic receptors and neuroinflammation in vivo in this model, validated by robust ex vivo approaches. Our data confirm that, unlike mouse models, the TgF344-AD express Tau pathology that can be detected via PET, albeit later than by ex vivo techniques, and is a useful model to assess and longitudinally monitor early neurotransmission dysfunction and neuroinflammation in AD.
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| 3. |
- Kallionpaa, R. A., et al.
(author)
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Mast Cells in Human Cutaneous Neurofibromas: Density, Subtypes, and Association with Clinical Features in Neurofibromatosis 1
- 2022
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In: Dermatology. - : S. Karger AG. - 1018-8665 .- 1421-9832. ; 238:2, s. 329-339
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Cutaneous neurofibromas (cNFs) are hallmarks of neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) and cause the main disease burden in adults with NF1. Mast cells are a known component of cNFs. However, no comprehensive characterization of mast cells in cNFs is available, and their contributions to cNF growth and symptoms such as itch are not known. Methods: We collected 60 cNFs from ten individuals with NF1, studied their mast cell proteinase content, and compared the mast cell numbers to selected clinical features of the tumors and patients. The tumors were immunolabeled for the mast cell markers CD117, tryptase, and chymase, and the percentage of immunopositive cells was determined using computer-assisted methods. Results: The median proportions of positive cells were 5.5% (range 0.1-14.4) for CD117, 4.0% (1.2-7.0) for tryptase, and 5.0% (1.1-15.9) for chymase. The median densities of cells immunopositive for CD117, tryptase, and chymase were 280, 243, and 250 cells/mm(2), respectively. Small tumors, growing tumors, and tumors from patients below the median age of 33 years displayed a high proportion of mast cells. Cells expressing both tryptase and chymase were the predominant mast cell type in cNFs, followed by cells expressing chymase only. Conclusion: The results highlight the abundance of mast cells in cNFs and that their number and subtypes clearly differ from those previously reported in unaffected skin.
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| 4. |
- Koivunen, J., et al.
(author)
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PET amyloid ligand [C-11]PIB uptake shows predominantly striatal increase in variant Alzheimer's disease
- 2008
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In: Brain. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0006-8950 .- 1460-2156. ; 131:Pt 7, s. 1845-1853
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Variant Alzheimers disease (VarAD) with spastic paraparesis and presenile dementia is associated with certain mutations of the presenilin 1 (PS-1) gene, particularly those leading to deletion of exon 9 (PS-1 E9). VarAD is neuropathologically characterized by the presence of unusually large, A42 positive, non-cored cotton wool plaques (CWPs), also devoid of dystrophic neurites. The aim of the present study was to find out whether [C-11]PIB would show increased uptake and serve as an in vivo biomarker of amyloid accumulation in VarAD. A further aim was to assess the correspondence of the [C-11]PIB binding to the amount and type of A deposits in another group of deceased VarAD patients brains. We studied four patients with VarAD and eight healthy controls with PET using [C-11]PIB as tracer. Parametric images were computed by calculating the region-to-cerebellum and region-to-pons ratio in each voxel over 6090 min. Group differences in [C-11]PIB uptake were analysed with automated region-of-interest (ROI) analysis. [C-11]PIB uptake was compared to the immunohistochemically demonstrated deposition of A in the brains of another group of four deceased VarAD patients. Patients with VarAD had significantly higher [C-11] PIB uptake than the control group in the striatum (caudate nucleus and putamen), anterior and posterior cingulate gyrus, occipital cortex and thalamus. In the caudate and putamen [C-11]PIB uptake, expressed as region-to-cerebellum ratio, was on the average 43 greater than the mean of the control group. The increases in the anterior (28) and posterior (27) cingulate gyrus, occipital cortex (21) and thalamus (14) were smaller. All VarAD patients showed this similar topographical pattern of increased [C-11]PIB uptake. The results were essentially similar when the uptake was expressed as region-to-pons ratios. [C-11]PIB imaging shows increased uptake in patients with VarAD especially in the striatum, and it can be used to detect amyloid accumulation in vivo in these patients. The pattern of increased [C-11]PIB uptake is different from that described in sporadic Alzheimers disease and resembles that seen in Alzheimers disease patients with certain presenilin-1 mutations or amyloid precursor protein gene duplication showing predominantly striatal increase in [C-11]PIB uptake.
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| 5. |
- Leinonen, V., et al.
(author)
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S- F-18 THK-5117-PET and C-11 PIB-PET Imaging in Idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus in Relation to Confirmed Amyloid-beta Plaques and Tau in Brain Biopsies
- 2018
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In: Journal of Alzheimers Disease. - : IOS Press. - 1387-2877 .- 1875-8908. ; 64:1, s. 171-179
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Detection of pathological tau aggregates could facilitate clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and monitor drug effects in clinical trials. S-[F-18] THK-5117 could be a potential tracer to detect pathological tau deposits in brain. However, no previous study have correlated S-[F-18] THK-5117 uptake in PET with brain biopsy verified tau pathology in vivo. Objective: Here we aim to evaluate the association between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) AD biomarkers, S-[F-18] THK-5117, and [C-11] PIB PET against tau and amyloid lesions in brain biopsy. Methods: Fourteen patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) with previous shunt surgery including right frontal cortical brain biopsy and CSF A beta(1-42), total tau, and P-tau(181) measures, underwent brain MRI, [C-11] PIB PET, and S-[F-18] THK-5117 PET imaging. Results: Seven patients had amyloid-beta(A beta, 4G8) plaques, two both A beta and phosphorylated tau (P tau, AT8) and one only P tau in biopsy. As expected, increased brain biopsy A beta was well associated with higher [C-11] PIB uptake in PET. However, S-[F-18] THK-5117 uptake did not show any statistically significant correlation with either brain biopsy P tau or CSF P-tau(181) or total tau. Conclusions: S-[F-18] THK-5117 lacked clear association with neuropathologically verified tau pathology in brain biopsy probably, at least partially, due to off-target binding. Further studies with larger samples of patients with different tau tracers are urgently needed. The detection of simultaneous A beta and tau pathology in iNPH is important since that may indicate poorer and especially shorter response for CSF shunt surgery compared with no pathology.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Kallionpaa, Roope A., et al.
(author)
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Characterization of Immune Cell Populations of Cutaneous Neurofibromas in Neurofibromatosis 1
- 2024
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In: LABORATORY INVESTIGATION. - 0023-6837 .- 1530-0307. ; 104:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Cutaneous neurofibromas (cNFs) are characteristic of neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1), yet their immune microenvironment is incompletely known. A total of 61 cNFs from 10 patients with NF1 were immunolabeled for different types of T cells and macrophages, and the cell densities were correlated with clinical characteristics. Eight cNFs and their overlying skin were analyzed for T cell receptor CDR domain sequences, and mass spectrometry of 15 cNFs and the overlying skin was performed to study immune-related processes. Intratumoral T cells were detected in all cNFs. Tumors from individuals younger than the median age of the study participants (33 years), growing tumors, and tumors smaller than the data set median showed increased T cell density. Most samples displayed intratumoral or peritumoral aggregations of CD3-positive cells. T cell receptor sequencing demonstrated that the skin and cNFs host distinct T cell populations, whereas no dominant cNF-specific T cell clones were detected. Unique T cell clones were fewer in cNFs than in skin, and mass spectrometry suggested lower expression of proteins related to T cell-mediated immunity in cNFs than in skin. CD163-positive cells, suggestive of M2 macrophages, were abundant in cNFs. Human cNFs have substantial T cell and macrophage populations that may be tumorspecific.
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