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Reprogramming LCLs to iPSCs Results in Recovery of Donor-Specific Gene Expression Signature

ABSTRACT: Renewable in vitro cell cultures, such as lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs), have facilitated studies that contributed to our understanding of genetic influence on human traits. However, the degree to which cell lines faithfully maintain differences in donor-specific phenotypes is still debated. We have previously reported that standard cell line maintenance practice results in a loss of donor-specific gene expression signatures in LCLs. An alternative to the LCL model is the induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) system, which carries the potential to model tissue-specific physiology through the use of differentiation protocols. Still, existing LCL banks represent an important source of starting material for iPSC generation, and it is possible that the disruptions in gene regulation associated with long-term LCL maintenance could persist through the reprogramming process. To address this concern, we studied the effect of reprogramming mature LCLs to iPSCs on the ensuing gene expression patterns within and between six unrelated donor individuals. We show that the reprogramming process results in a recovery of donor-specific gene regulatory signatures. Since environmental contributions are unlikely to be a source of individual variation in our system of highly passaged cultured cell lines, our observations suggest that the effect of genotype on gene regulation is more pronounced in the iPSCs than in the LCL precursors. Our observations indicate that iPSCs can be a powerful model system for studies of phenotypic variation across individuals in general, and the genetic association with variation in gene regulation in particular. We further conclude that LCLs are an appropriate starting material for iPSC generation.

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

PROVIDER: GSE64263 | GEO | 2014/12/17

SECONDARY ACCESSION(S): PRJNA270546

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Renewable in vitro cell cultures, such as lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs), have facilitated studies that contributed to our understanding of genetic influence on human traits. However, the degree to which cell lines faithfully maintain differences in donor-specific phenotypes is still debated. We have previously reported that standard cell line maintenance practice results in a loss of donor-specific gene expression signatures in LCLs. An alternative to the LCL model is the induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) system, which carries the potential to model tissue-specific physiology through the use of differentiation protocols. Still, existing LCL banks represent an important source of starting material for iPSC generation, and it is possible that the disruptions in gene regulation associated with long-term LCL maintenance could persist through the reprogramming process. To address this concern, we studied the effect of reprogramming mature LCLs to iPSCs on the ensuing gene expression patterns within and between six unrelated donor individuals. We show that the reprogramming process results in a recovery of donor-specific gene regulatory signatures. Since environmental contributions are unlikely to be a source of individual variation in our system of highly passaged cultured cell lines, our observations suggest that the effect of genotype on gene regulation is more pronounced in the iPSCs than in the LCL precursors. Our observations indicate that iPSCs can be a powerful model system for studies of phenotypic variation across individuals in general, and the genetic association with variation in gene regulation in particular. We further conclude that LCLs are an appropriate starting material for iPSC generation. Whole genome gene expression data was collected for 34 samples including 17 iPSC lines and 17 LCL lines on the Illumina HT-12 v4 Expression BeadChip array platform. Three biological replicates of each individual were included in the study, except for one individual for which only two replicates were obtained.

Project description:Purpose: There exists a rich bio-resource of numerous lymphoblastoid cell line (LCL) repositories generated from a wide array of patients, many of them with extensive genotypic and phenotypic data already generated. We have developed a highly efficient LCL to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) reprogramming method and performed whole genome mRNA and miRNA analysis to understand mechanistic changes that take place at the transcriptome and cellular functional level during reprogramming of LCLs into iPSCs and further differentiation. Methods: Applying our optimized protocol which utilizes episomal plasmids encoding pluripotency transcription factors and mouse p53DD - p53 carboxy-terminal dominant-negative fragment and commercially available reprogramming media, we reprogrammed six LCLs into iPSCs and then differentiated them into neural stem cells (NSC). The LCLs, their reprogrammed iPSCs and differentiated NSC (n=18) were sequenced for mRNA and smallRNA on an illumina HiSeq 2500. Differential gene expression analysis was performed between LCL-iPSC and iPSC-NSC pairs in combination with functional annotations and Ingenuity® Pathway Analysis (IPA). Results: Our LCL reprogrammed iPSCs express the majority of genes and miRNAs known to contribute to stemness in human ESCs. The functional enrichment analysis of the up-regulated genes and activation of human pluripotency pathways in the reprogrammed iPSCs showed that the generated iPSCs have a transcriptional and functional profile very similar to that of human ESCs. The reprogrammed iPSCs also showed the potential to differentiate into cells of all three germ layers. Significantly, the transcriptomic effect of EBV encoded oncoproteins which were very pronounced in LCLs, were significantly inhibited in reprogrammed iPSCs. The transcriptomic and functional enrichment analysis of the NSC differentiated from the reprogrammed iPSCs showed that they share a functional profile of self-renewing NSCs. Conclusions: We have been able to develop a MEF feeder free protocol for efficient and reproducible reprogramming of LCLs into iPSC. In addition our comprehensive analysis of genome wide miRNA and mRNA of LCLs, their reprogrammed iPSC and differentiated NSCs provides important documentation of differentially expressed genes and miRNAs and their functional consequences during LCL to iPSC reprogramming and NSC differentiations that were previously unknown.

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Reprogramming LCLs to iPSCs Results in Recovery of Donor-Specific Gene Expression Signature

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