Project description:Zeb1, a zinc finger E-box binding homeobox epithelial-mesenchymal (EMT) transcription factor, confers properties of ‘stemness’, such as self-renewal, in cancer. Yet little is known about the function of Zeb1 in adult stem cells. Here, we used the hematopoietic system, as a well-established paradigm of stem cell biology, to evaluate Zeb1 mediated regulation of adult stem cells. We employed a conditional genetic approach using the Mx1-Cre system to specifically knockout (KO) Zeb1 in adult hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and their downstream progeny. Acute genetic deletion of Zeb1 led to rapid onset thymic atrophy and apoptosis driven loss of thymocytes and T cells. A profound cell-autonomous self-renewal defect and multi-lineage differentiation block was observed in Zeb1 KO HSCs. Loss of Zeb1 in HSCs activated transcriptional programs of deregulated HSC maintenance and multi-lineage differentiation genes, and of cell polarity, consisting of cytoskeleton, lipid metabolism/lipid membrane and cell adhesion related genes. Notably, Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) expression was prodigiously upregulated in Zeb1 KO HSCs, which correlated with their enhanced cell survival capacity and diminished differentiation in transplantation. Thus, Zeb1 acts as a crucial transcriptional regulator in hematopoiesis, co-ordinating HSC self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation fates, in part, via EpCAM repression.
Project description:Zeb1, a zinc finger E-box binding homeobox epithelial-mesenchymal (EMT) transcription factor, confers properties of ‘stemness’, such as self-renewal, in cancer. Yet little is known about the function of Zeb1 in adult stem cells. Here, we used the hematopoietic system, as a well-established paradigm of stem cell biology, to evaluate Zeb1 mediated regulation of adult stem cells. We employed a conditional genetic approach using the Mx1-Cre system to specifically knockout (KO) Zeb1 in adult hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and their downstream progeny. Acute genetic deletion of Zeb1 led to rapid onset thymic atrophy and apoptosis driven loss of thymocytes and T cells. A profound cell-autonomous self-renewal defect and multi-lineage differentiation block was observed in Zeb1 KO HSCs. Loss of Zeb1 in HSCs activated transcriptional programs of deregulated HSC maintenance and multi-lineage differentiation genes, and of cell polarity, consisting of cytoskeleton, lipid metabolism/lipid membrane and cell adhesion related genes. Notably, Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) expression was prodigiously upregulated in Zeb1 KO HSCs, which correlated with their enhanced cell survival capacity and diminished differentiation in transplantation. Thus, Zeb1 acts as a crucial transcriptional regulator in hematopoiesis, co-ordinating HSC self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation fates, in part, via EpCAM repression.
Project description:Gata2, a zinc finger TF, is essential for the generation and survival of HSCs in the embryo and has been implicated in the pathogenesis of AML, yet the requirement for Gata2 in adult HSCs and LSCs remains unclear. Using a conditional mouse model where Gata2 was deleted specifically in hematopoietic cells, we show that knockout of Gata2 leads to a rapid and complete cell-autonomous loss of adult HSCs. We then performed RNA-seq in sorted HSCs (LSK CD48- CD150+) from control and Gata2+/fl;Vav-iCre+ 8-to-10-week old mice.
