1,721,091 research outputs found
Hyaluronan is required for cranial neural crest cells migration and craniofacial development.
No full text
RHAMM mRNA expression in proliferating and migrating cells of the developing central nervous system
No full textExtracellular matrix components can influence cell behaviour by modulating a wide variety of events. In particular, the glycosaminoglycan hyaluronan is involved in many processes of the normal and pathological adult cells and it is essential for embryonic development. Two main HA receptors have been characterized in vertebrate developing embryos: CD44 and RHAMM. These receptors display completely different characteristics apart from their ability to bind hyaluronan. RHAMM is still the most mysterious hyaluronan receptor as it can act as cell surface receptor but it can also be localized in the cytoplasm or in the cell nucleus, displaying both hyaluronan dependent and independent functions. In particular, the role of RHAMM during embryogenesis is still largely unclear. We reported a detailed gene expression analysis of RHAMM during Xenopus laevis development comparing its mRNA distribution with that of the hyaluronan synthases and CD44 genes, in order to provide a first insight into the possible role of RHAMM during vertebrate embryogenesis. Our findings point out that RHAMM mRNA displays a specific distribution in proliferating regions of the developing neural tube and retina where synthesis of hyaluronan is not detected. On the contrary, RHAMM expression correlates with the expression of hyaluronan synthase-1 and hyaluronan-receptor CD44 gene expression in migrating cranial neural crest. These results suggest that during the central nervous system development RHAMM could be involved in cell proliferation and migration processes both in a hyaluronan independent and dependent manner
ItaliaRuolo della Serotonina (5-HT) e dei Recettori Serotoninergici nellaFunzionalità e nello Sviluppo dell’Occhio
No full textThree-dimensional model of glioblastoma by co-culturing tumor stem cells with human brain organoids.
Full text linkEmerging three-dimensional (3D) cultures of glioblastoma are becoming powerful models to study glioblastoma stem cell behavior and the impact of cell-cell and cell-microenvironment interactions on tumor growth and invasion. Here we describe a method for culturing human glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs) in 3D by co-culturing them with pluripotent stem cell-derived brain organoids. This requires multiple coordinated steps, including the generation of cerebral organoids, and the growth and fluorescence tagging of GSCs. We highlight how to recognize optimal organoid generation and how to efficiently mark GSCs, before describing optimized co-culture conditions. We show that GSCs can efficiently integrate into brain organoids and maintain a significant degree of cell fate heterogeneity, paving the way for the analysis of GSC fate behavior and lineage progression. These results establish the 3D culture system as a viable and versatile GBM model for investigating tumor cell biology and GSC heterogeneity.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper
Ectopic Hoxa2 induction after neural crest migration results in homeosis of jaw elements in Xenopus
No full textFUNCTIONAL CHARACTERIZATION OF NOVEL GENES INVOLVED IN BRAIN AGING AND DEVELOPMENT
No full textAdult neurogenesis is the process by which new neural cells are
generated from a small population of multipotent stem cells
located in specific area of the central nervous system (CNS).
The age-related incidence of many CNS diseases coincides with
a reduced adult neurogenic potential. The regenerative capabili-
ty and the amount of adult neural stem cells (aNSC), in fact,
decline with age, contributing to the reduced functionality of the
aged brain. Despite the great interest in age related diseases, in
Italy alone over-65 people will rise to the 18% value of 2010 to
more than 30% in 2050, the molecular factors responsible for
age-dependent decay of neural stem cell function are almost
unknown. We envisage that genes controlling age-dependent
processes act in continuity between development, adulthood and aging. The starting point of our work was a list of brain age-
regulated mRNAs that we have previously obtained by RNA-Seq
and validated by qPCR and
in situ
hybridization.
1
Among them,
we are currently studying the expression profile and the function
of
Mex3A
and
Znf367
genes, codifying respectively for a RNA
binding protein and a transcription factor, in embryonic neuro-
genesis. These genes, of unknown function, are expressed in neu-
roblasts and retinoblasts of Zebrafish and
Xenopus laevis
embryos and in the aNSC of the short-lived fish
Nothobranchius
furzeri
. By means of gene gain and loss of function approaches
in
Xenopus
and Zebrafish embryos, we started to clarify the spe-
cific function of these genes in regulating the maintenance of a
stem phenotype in the developing CNS and in regulating survival
and differentiation of the primary neurons. The same genes will
be tested to verify their function also in neural stem cells of
adult fishes. The identification of genetic mechanisms involved in
embryonic and adult neurogenesis represents the first step in
defining interventions that can increase neurogenesis in the aged
brain and that could lead to improved maintenance and even
repair of neuronal function
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