| 1. |
- Falk, Sven, et al.
(författare)
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Brain area-specific effect of TGF-beta signaling on Wnt-dependent neural stem cell expansion
- 2008
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Ingår i: Cell Stem Cell. - : Elsevier BV. - 1934-5909. ; 2:5, s. 472-483
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Regulating the choice between neural stem cell maintenance versus differentiation determines growth and size of the developing brain. Here we identify TGF-beta signaling as a crucial factor controlling these processes. At early developmental stages, TGF-beta signal activity is localized close to the ventricular surface of the neuroepithelium. In the midbrain, but not in the forebrain, Tgfbr2 ablation results in ectopic expression of Wnt1/beta-catenin and FGF8, activation of Wnt target genes, and increased proliferation and horizontal expansion of neuroepithelial cells due to shortened cell-cycle length and decreased cell-cycle exit. Consistent with this phenotype, self-renewal of mutant neuroepithelial stem cells is enhanced in the presence of FGF and requires Wnt signaling. Moreover, TGF-beta signal activation counteracts Wnt-incluced proliferation of midbrain neuroepithelial cells. Thus, TGF-beta signaling controls the size of a specific brain area, the dorsal midbrain, by antagonizing canonical Wnt signaling and negatively regulating self-renewal of neuroepithelial stem cells.
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| 2. |
- Frutkin, Andrew D., et al.
(författare)
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A critical developmental role for tgfbr2 in myogenic cell lineages is revealed in mice expressing SM22-Cre, not SMMHC-Cre
- 2006
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Ingår i: Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1095-8584 .- 0022-2828. ; 41:4, s. 724-731
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Smooth muscle cell (SMC)-specific deletion of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) signaling would help elucidate the mechanisms through which TGF-beta signaling contributes to vascular development and disease. We attempted to generate mice with SMC-specific deletion of TGF-beta signaling by mating mice with a conditional ("floxed") allele for the type 11 TGF-beta receptor (tgfbr2(flox)) to mice with SMC-targeted expression of Cre recombinase. We bred male mice transgenic for smooth muscle myosin heavy chain (SMMHC)-Cre with females carrying tgfbr2(flox). Surprisingly, SMMHC-Cre rnice recombined tglbr2(flox) at low levels in SMC and at high levels in the testis. Recombination of tgfbr2(flox) in testis correlated with high-level expression of SMMHC-Cre in testis and germline transmission of tgfbr2(null). In contrast, mice expressing Cre from a SM22 alpha promoter (SM22-Cre) efficiently recombined tgfbr2(flox) in vascular and visceral SMC and the heart, but not in testis. Use of the R26R reporter allele confirmed that Cre-mediated recombination in vascular SMC was inefficient for SMMHC-Cre mice and highly efficient for SM22-Cre mice. Breedings that introduced the SM22-Cre allele into tgfbr2(flox) zygotes in order to generate adult mice that are hemizygous for SM22-Cre and homozygous for tgfbr2(flox) and would have conversion of tgfbr2(flox/flox) to tgfbr2(null/null) in SMC-produced no live SM22-Cre : tgfbr2(flox/flox) pups (P < 0.001). We conclude: (1) "SMC-targeted" Cre lines vary significantly in specificity and efficiency of Cre expression; (2) TGF-beta signaling in the subset of cells that express SM22 alpha is required for normal development; (3) generation of adult mice with absent TGF-beta signaling in SMC remains a challenge. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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| 3. |
- Ittner, Lars M, et al.
(författare)
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Compound developmental eye disorders following inactivation of TGFbeta signaling in neural-crest stem cells
- 2005
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Ingår i: Journal of Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1475-4924. ; 4:11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Development of the eye depends partly on the periocular mesenchyme derived from the neural crest (NC), but the fate of NC cells in mammalian eye development and the signals coordinating the formation of ocular structures are poorly understood. RESULTS: Here we reveal distinct NC contributions to both anterior and posterior mesenchymal eye structures and show that TGFbeta signaling in these cells is crucial for normal eye development. In the anterior eye, TGFbeta2 released from the lens is required for the expression of transcription factors Pitx2 and Foxc1 in the NC-derived cornea and in the chamber-angle structures of the eye that control intraocular pressure. TGFbeta enhances Foxc1 and induces Pitx2 expression in cell cultures. As in patients carrying mutations in PITX2 and FOXC1, TGFbeta signal inactivation in NC cells leads to ocular defects characteristic of the human disorder Axenfeld-Rieger's anomaly. In the posterior eye, NC cell-specific inactivation of TGFbeta signaling results in a condition reminiscent of the human disorder persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous. As a secondary effect, retinal patterning is also disturbed in mutant mice. CONCLUSION: In the developing eye the lens acts as a TGFbeta signaling center that controls the development of eye structures derived from the NC. Defective TGFbeta signal transduction interferes with NC-cell differentiation and survival anterior to the lens and with normal tissue morphogenesis and patterning posterior to the lens. The similarity to developmental eye disorders in humans suggests that defective TGFbeta signal modulation in ocular NC derivatives contributes to the pathophysiology of these diseases.
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| 4. |
- Kalis, Martins, et al.
(författare)
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Variants in the FFAR1 Gene Are Associated with Beta Cell Function
- 2007
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Ingår i: PLoS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 2:11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: The FFAR1 receptor is expressed mainly in pancreatic beta cells and is activated by medium to long chain free fatty acids (FFAs), as well as by thiazolidinediones, resulting in elevated Ca(2+) concentrations and promotion of insulin secretion. These properties suggest that FFAR1 could be a mediator of lipotoxicity and a potential candidate gene for Type 2 diabetes (T2D). We therefore investigated whether variations at the FFAR1 locus are associated with T2D and beta cell function. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We re-sequenced the FFAR1 region in 96 subjects (48 healthy and 48 T2D individuals) and found 13 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) 8 of which were not previously described. Two SNPs located in the upstream region of the FFAR1 gene (rs1978013 and rs1978014) were chosen and genotyped in 1929 patients with T2D and 1405 healthy control subjects. We observed an association of rs1978013 and rs1978014 with insulinogenic index in males (p = 0.024) and females (p = 0.032), respectively. After Bonferroni corrections, no association with T2D was found in the case-control material, however a haplotype consisting of the T-G alleles conferred protection against T2D (p = 0.0010). CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Variation in the FFAR1 gene may contribute to impaired beta cell function in T2D.
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| 5. |
- Levéen, Per, et al.
(författare)
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TGF-{beta} type II receptor deficient thymocytes develop normally but demonstrate increased CD8+ proliferation in vivo.
- 2005
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Ingår i: Blood. - : American Society of Hematology. - 1528-0020 .- 0006-4971. ; 106:13, s. 4234-4240
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We have taken advantage of the Cre/lox system to generate a mouse model with inducible deficiency of transforming growth factor β receptor II (TβRII). Using this approach, transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) signaling deficiency can be restricted to the hematopoietic system by bone marrow transplantation. Mice that received transplants with TβRII-/- bone marrow develop a lethal inflammatory disorder closely resembling that of TGF-β1-null mice. Previous in vitro studies have suggested multiple roles for TGF-β in T-cell development, including proliferation, apoptosis, and differentiation. We used our transplantation model to ask whether T-cell development is normal in the absence of TGF-β signaling. The findings show for the first time in vivo and in fetal thymus organ culture (FTOC) that TGF-β is not required for thymocytes to differentiate along the entire pathway of thymic T-cell development, as defined by the expression patterns of CD4, CD8, CD25, and CD44. In contrast to previous investigations, no increase of thymocyte apoptosis was observed. However, TβRII-deficient CD8+ thymocytes displayed a 2-fold increase in proliferation rate, as determined by bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation in vivo. These results reinforce the importance of TGF-β as an immune regulator critical for T-cell function.
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| 6. |
- Malipiero, Ursula, et al.
(författare)
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TGF beta receptor II gene deletion in leucocytes prevents cerebral vasculitis in bacterial meningitis
- 2006
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Ingår i: Brain. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1460-2156 .- 0006-8950. ; 129, s. 2404-2415
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In bacterial meningitis, chemokines lead to recruitment of polymorphonuclear leucocytes (PMN) into the CNS. At the site of infection in the subarachnoid space, PMN release reactive oxygen species, reactive nitrogen intermediates (RNI) and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta). Although these immune factors assist in clearance of bacteria, they also result in neuronal injury associated with meningitis. Transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta) is a potent deactivator of PMN and macrophages since TGF beta suppresses the production of ROI, RNI and IL-1. Here, we report that the deletion of the TGF beta receptor II gene in PMN enhances PMN recruitment into the CNS of mice with Streptococcus pneumoniae meningitis. This was associated with more efficient clearance of bacteria, and almost complete prevention of intracerebral necrotizing vasculitis. Differences in PMN in the CNS of infected control mice and mice lacking TGF beta receptor II were not explained by altered expression of chemokines acting on PMN. Instead, TGF beta was found to impair the expression of L (leucocyte)-selectin on PMN from control mice but not from mice lacking TGF beta receptor II. L-Selectin is known to be essential for PMN recruitment in bacterial meningitis. We conclude that defective TGF beta signalling in PMN is beneficial in bacterial meningitis by ameliorating migration of PMN and bacterial clearance.
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| 7. |
- Wurdak, H, et al.
(författare)
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Inactivation of TGF beta signaling in neural crest stem cells leads to multiple defects reminiscent of DiGeorge syndrome
- 2005
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Ingår i: Genes & Development. - : Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. - 1549-5477 .- 0890-9369. ; 19:5, s. 530-535
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Specific inactivation of TGFbeta signaling in neural crest stem cells (NCSCs) results in cardiovascular defects and thymic, parathyroid, and craniofacial anomalies. All these malformations characterize DiGeorge syndrome, the most common microdeletion syndrome in humans. Consistent with a role of TGFbeta in promoting non-neural lineages in NCSCs, mutant neural crest cells migrate into the pharyngeal apparatus but are unable to acquire non-neural cell fates. Moreover, in neural crest cells, TGFbeta signaling is both sufficient and required for phosphorylation of CrkL, a signal adaptor protein implicated in the development of DiGeorge syndrome. Thus, TGFbeta signal modulation in neural crest differentiation might play a crucial role in the etiology of DiGeorge syndrome.
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