Project description:Measles virus infects serum activated airway epithelial cells and many adenocarcinoma cell lines. A microarray analysis was performed on virus permissive versus non-permissive cells. Membrane protein genes that were upregulated in permissive cells were tested as receptor/entry factors. Membrane protein genes that were upregulated in smooth airway epithelial cells (SAEC) following growth in 10% fetal calf serum that made the cell line permissive to measles virus were identified. Membrane protein genes that were upregulated in adenocarcinoma cells that were permissive to wild type measles virus infection were identified.
Project description:Gene expression profiling of immortalized human mesenchymal stem cells with hTERT/E6/E7 transfected MSCs. hTERT may change gene expression in MSCs. Goal was to determine the gene expressions of immortalized MSCs.
Project description:Through Next Generation Sequencing (mRNA-Seq) of intracellular miRNAs in measles virus-stimulated B and CD4+ T cells isolated from high and low antibody responders to measles vaccination, we identified a set of B cell-specific miRNAs (e.g., miR-151a-5p, miR-223, miR-29, miR-15a-5p, miR-199a-3p, miR-103a, and miR-15a/16 cluster) associated with measles-specific antibody response after vaccination. No CD4+ T cell-specific miRNA expression differences between high and low antibody responders were found. DIANA tool was used for gene/target prediction and pathway enrichment analysis and this yielded several biological processes/pathways, including regulation of adherens junction proteins, Fc-receptor signaling pathway, phosphatidylinositol-mediated signaling pathway, growth factor signaling pathway/pathways, transcriptional regulation, apoptosis and virus-related processes, that were significantly associated with neutralizing antibody titers after measles vaccination. This study demonstrates that miRNA expression directly or indirectly influences humoral immunity to measles vaccination and suggests that B cell-specific miRNAs may potentially serve as predictive biomarkers of vaccine response.
Project description:Analysis of ex vivo isolated lymphatic endothelial cells from the dermis of patients to define type 2 diabetes-induced changes. Results preveal aberrant dermal lymphangiogenesis and provide insight into its role in the pathogenesis of persistent skin inflammation in type 2 diabetes. The ex vivo dLEC transcriptome reveals a dramatic influence of the T2D environment on multiple molecular and cellular processes, mirroring the phenotypic changes seen in T2D affected skin. The positively and negatively correlated dLEC transcripts directly cohere to prolonged inflammatory periods and reduced infectious resistance of patients´ skin. Further, lymphatic vessels might be involved in tissue remodeling processes during T2D induced skin alterations associated with impaired wound healing and altered dermal architecture. Hence, dermal lymphatic vessels might be directly associated with T2D disease promotion.
Project description:We have sequenced miRNA libraries from human embryonic, neural and foetal mesenchymal stem cells. We report that the majority of miRNA genes encode mature isomers that vary in size by one or more bases at the 3’ and/or 5’ end of the miRNA. Northern blotting for individual miRNAs showed that the proportions of isomiRs expressed by a single miRNA gene often differ between cell and tissue types. IsomiRs were readily co-immunoprecipitated with Argonaute proteins in vivo and were active in luciferase assays, indicating that they are functional. Bioinformatics analysis predicts substantial differences in targeting between miRNAs with minor 5’ differences and in support of this we report that a 5’ isomiR-9-1 gained the ability to inhibit the expression of DNMT3B and NCAM2 but lost the ability to inhibit CDH1 in vitro. This result was confirmed by the use of isomiR-specific sponges. Our analysis of the miRGator database indicates that a small percentage of human miRNA genes express isomiRs as the dominant transcript in certain cell types and analysis of miRBase shows that 5’ isomiRs have replaced canonical miRNAs many times during evolution. This strongly indicates that isomiRs are of functional importance and have contributed to the evolution of miRNA genes