Project description:Tissue resident macrophages can arise from either embryonic or adult hematopoiesis and play important roles in a wide range of biological processes, such as tissue remodeling during organogenesis, tissue homeostasis in the steady state, tissue repair following injury, and immune response to pathogens. Although the origins and tissue-specific functions of resident macrophages have been extensively studied in many other tissues, they are not well characterized in skeletal muscle. In the present study, we have characterized for the first time the ontogeny of skeletal muscle resident macrophages, showing evidence that they arise from both embryonic hematopoietic progenitors, including yolk sac primitive macrophages and fetal liver monocytes, and adult bone marrow hematopoietic stem cells. Single cell-based transcriptome analysis revealed that skeletal muscle resident macrophages were highly distinctive from resident macrophages in other tissues, expressing a specific set of transcription factors and containing functionally diverse subsets correlating to their origins. They appear more active in maintaining tissue homeostasis and promoting muscle growth and regeneration.
Project description:Gliomas are a major cause of cancer-related death in adolescents and young adults (AYA, ages 15-39 years). Different molecular alterations drive gliomas in children and adults leading to distinct biology and clinical consequences. At the convergence of these age groups - the AYA population – little is known about the implications of pediatric vs adult-type alterations. To address this, we analyzed a population-based cohort of 1456 clinically and molecularly characterized gliomas aged 0-39 years. Potentially targetable pediatric-type alterations were found in 31% of AYA gliomas and conferred superior outcomes compared to adult-type alterations (p<0.01). AYA low-grade gliomas with specific RAS/MAPK alterations exhibited senescent phenotype, tended to arise in different locations and were associated with superior outcome compared with children, suggesting different cellular origins. IDH mutations, BRAF p.V600E and FGFR alterations were associated with risk of malignant transformation for hemispheric tumors with worse outcome with increased age. These observations have significant implications for understanding gliomagenesis. These insights may provide rationale for earlier intervention for certain tumors to disrupt the typical behavior, leading to improved outcome.
Project description:This phase I trial studies the side effects and best dose of pembrolizumab and to see how well it works in treating younger patients with high-grade gliomas (brain tumors that are generally expected to be fast growing and aggressive), diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (brain stem tumors), brain tumors with a high number of genetic mutations, ependymoma or medulloblastoma that have come back (recurrent), progressed, or have not responded to previous treatment (refractory). Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as pembrolizumab, may induce changes in the body’s immune system, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread.
Project description:The transcription factor IRF4 is crucial for the fate determination of pro-inflammatory T helper (Th)17 and the functionally opposing group of immunomodulatory regulatory T (Treg) cells. However, molecular mechanisms of how IRF4 steers diverse transcriptional programs in Th17 and Treg cells are far from being definitive. To unveil IRF4-driven lineage determination, we integrated data derived from affinity-purification and full mass spectrometry-based proteome analysis with chromatin immune precipitation sequencing. This allowed the characterization of subtype-specific molecular programs and the identification of IRF4 interactors in the Th17/Treg context. Our data reveal that IRF4-interacting transcription factors are recruited to IRF composite elements for the regulation of cell type-specific transcriptional programs as exemplarily demonstrated for FLI1, which in cooperation with IRF4 promotes Th17-specific gene expression. Inhibition of FLI1 markedly impaired Th17-differentiation. The present ‘omics’ dataset provides a valuable resource for studying IRF4-mediated gene regulatory programs in pro- and anti-inflammatory immune responses.
Project description:We carried out the analyses of chromosome variations between low-grade and high-grade gliomas in Chinese population. We found out the differences in chromosomes, cytobands, genes, pathways and GO functions. To identify the glioma tissue-specific genomic alterations and compare the genomic variations between low-grade and high-grade gliomas.