Project description:Glucocorticoids regulate hematopoiesis, but how chronic elevation of endogenous glucocorticoid production affects hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) function and immune cell development remains incompletely understood. Using an adrenocortical cell-specific HIF1α (Hypoxia inducible Factor-1α)-deficient mouse model (P2H1Ad.Cortex) resulting in elevated glucocorticoid (GC) levels, we here demonstrate that sustained GC exposure promotes hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) expansion while shifting HSCs toward a more quiescent and metabolically restrained state. Functionally, these HSCs exhibited enhanced regenerative potential, as evidenced by superior donor chimerism in transplantation assays. In addition, we observed a striking increase in myeloid progenitors, as well as in their progeny (monocytes and granulocytes). Conversely, B-cell differentiation in the bone marrow was severely impaired, with a strong block at the pre-pro-B cell stage. To determine whether these phenotypes were driven by glucocorticoid receptor (GR) signaling, we performed transplantation experiments using GR-deficient or WT control bone marrow into P2H1Ad.Cortex or WT littermate recipients. This approach decisively demonstrated that both the increase in myeloid cells and the block in B-cell differentiation were GR-dependent, confirming that GC-GR signaling plays a pivotal role in shaping hematopoiesis. Taken together, our findings clearly suggest a direct role for chronic glucocorticoid exposure in regulating HSC function, lineage differentiation, and stress hematopoiesis. The mouse model of adrenocortical cell-specific HIF1α deficiency provides a valuable tool to study the long-term effects of elevated glucocorticoid levels on hematopoietic regulation and may provide further insight into hematologic disorders associated with chronic therapeutic glucocorticoid administration.
Project description:Ammonia is a toxic by-product of metabolism that causes cellular stress. Although a number of proteins are involved in adaptive stress response, specific factors that counteract ammonia-induced cellular stress and regulate cell metabolism that facilitate survival against toxicity have yet to be identified. We demonstrated that hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) is stabilised and activated by ammonia stress. HIF-1α activated by ammonium chloride compromises ammonia-induced apoptosis. Furthermore, we identified glutamine synthetase (GS) as a key driver of cancer cell proliferation and glutamine-dependent metabolism under ammonia stress in ovarian cancer stem-like cells expressing CD90. Interestingly, activated HIF-1α counteracts glutamine synthetase function in glutamine metabolism by facilitating glycolysis and elevating glucose dependency. Our studies reveal the hitherto unknown functions of HIF-1α in biphasic ammonia stress management in cancer stem-like cells. GS facilitates proliferation and HIF-1α contributes to metabolic remodelling in cellular energy usage resulting in attenuated proliferation but conversely promoting cell survival.
Project description:Background: Intestine epithelial hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) plays a critical role in maintaining gut barrier function. The aim of this study was to determine genetic activation of intestinal HIF-1α ameliorates western diet-induced metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Methods: Male and/or female intestinal epithelial-specific Hif1α overexpression mice (Hif1α LSL/LSL;VilERcre) and wild-type littermates (Hif1α LSL/LSL) were fed with regular chow diet, high fructose (HFr) or high-fat (60% Kcal) high-fructose diet (HFHFr) for 8 weeks. Metabolic phenotypes were profiled. Results: Male Hif1α LSL/LSL;VilERcre mice exhibited markedly improved glucose tolerance compared to Hif1α LSL/LSL mice in response to HFr diet. Eight weeks HFHFr feeding led to obesity in both Hif1α LSL/LSL;VilERcre and Hif1α LSL/LSL mice. However, male Hif1α LSL/LSL;VilERcre mice exhibited markedly attenuated hepatic steatosis along with reduced liver size and liver weight compared to male Hif1α LSL/LSL mice. Moreover, HFHFr-induced systemic inflammatory responses were mitigated in male Hif1α LSL/LSL;VilERcre mice compared to male Hif1α LSL/LSL mice and those responses were not evident in female mice. Ileum RNA-seq analysis revealed that glycolysis/gluconeogenesis was up in male Hif1α LSL/LSL;VilERcre mice accompanied by increased epithelial cell proliferation. Conclusion: Our data provide evidence that genetic activation of intestinal HIF-1α markedly ameliorates western diet-induced MASLD in a sex-dependent manner. The underlying mechanism is likely attributed to HIF-1α activation induced upregulation of glycolysis, which, in turn, leading to enhanced epithelial cell proliferation and augmented gut barrier function.
Project description:Hypoxia can result in tissue dysfunction, metabolic alterations, and structural damage within the pulmonary tissue, thereby impacting lung ventilation and air exchange. The identification of Hypoxia-inducible factor (Hif) 1α as a pivotal mediator in the inflammatory cascade subsequent to hypoxia induction has been established. However, the mechanism remains elusive. To delve deeper into this phenomenon, we have developed a murine model of sustained hypoxia and utilized nanocarriers for the delivery of lentivirus Hif-1α for knockdown purposes. Our findings suggest that under conditions of sustained hypoxia, knockdown of Hif-1α effectively ameliorated SpO2 levels and attenuated lung injury in our murine model. We observed that Hif-1α-mediated Histone Lactylation was evident in the lungs exposed to sustained hypoxia. Through RNA-seq and ChIP-seq profiling, we determined that upregulation of Hif-1α expression in sustained hypoxic lung tissue is essential for inducing lactylation enrichment of inflammatory response genes. Furthermore, knockdown of Hif-1α returned to normal inflammatory cytokines (e.g. TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β). Analysis of plasma metabolites from individuals experiencing restrictive/ obstructive lung disease revealed a significant enrichment of the Warburg effect within the sustained hypoxic group. Thus, our study provides compelling evidence supporting the notion that targeting Hif-1α-mediated histone lactylation may represent a promising therapeutic strategy for managing sustained hypoxia-induced lung injury.
Project description:Hypoxia inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) is a critical transcription factor for the hypoxic response, angiogenesis, normal hematopoietic stem cell regulation, and cancer development. Importantly, HIF-1α is also a key regulator for immune cell activation. In order to determine whether HIF-1α is sufficient for developing MDS phenotypes, we generated blood specific inducible HIF-1α transgenic mice. Using Vav1-Cre/Rosa26-loxP-Stop-loxP (LSL) rtTA driver, stable HIF-1α can be induced in a doxycycline administration dependent manner. After induction, HIF-1α-induced mice developed thrombocytopenia, leukocytopenia, macrocytic anemia, and multi-lineage dysplasia. We also found activation of both innate and adaptive immunity in HIF-1α- induced mice compared to those from control mice. Taken together, these data suggest that HIF-1α is sufficient to trigger a variety of key MDS features
Project description:Hypoxia can result in tissue dysfunction, metabolic alterations, and structural damage within the pulmonary tissue, thereby impacting lung ventilation and air exchange. The identification of Hypoxia-inducible factor (Hif) 1α as a pivotal mediator in the inflammatory cascade subsequent to hypoxia induction has been established. However, the mechanism remains elusive. To delve deeper into this phenomenon, we have developed a murine model of sustained hypoxia and utilized nanocarriers for the delivery of lentivirus Hif-1α for knockdown purposes. Our findings suggest that under conditions of sustained hypoxia, knockdown of Hif-1α effectively ameliorated SpO2 levels and attenuated lung injury in our murine model. We observed that Hif-1α-mediated Histone Lactylation was evident in the lungs exposed to sustained hypoxia. Through RNA-seq and ChIP-seq profiling, we determined that upregulation of Hif-1α expression in sustained hypoxic lung tissue is essential for inducing lactylation enrichment of inflammatory response genes. Furthermore, knockdown of Hif-1α returned to normal inflammatory cytokines (e.g. TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β). Analysis of plasma metabolites from individuals experiencing restrictive/ obstructive lung disease revealed a significant enrichment of the Warburg effect within the sustained hypoxic group. Thus, our study provides compelling evidence supporting the notion that targeting Hif-1α-mediated histone lactylation may represent a promising therapeutic strategy for managing sustained hypoxia-induced lung injury.
Project description:This SuperSeries is composed of the following subset Series: GSE16432: MSI2 regulates hematopoiesis and accelerates leukemogenesis GSE22773: Musashi 2 regulates normal hematopoiesis and accelerates leukemogenesis (LK and MS12-inducible) GSE22774: Musashi 2 regulates normal hematopoiesis and accelerates leukemogenesis (LSK and LK) GSE22775: Musashi 2 regulates normal hematopoiesis and accelerates leukemogenesis (Leukemia cell lines) Refer to individual Series
Project description:Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) is a master regulator of glucose metabolism in cancer cells. Here, we demonstrate that a HIF-1α anti-sense lncRNA, HIFAL, is essential for maintaining and enhancing HIF-1α-mediated transactivation and glycolysis. Mechanistically, HIFAL recruits PHD3 to PKM2 to induce its prolyl hydroxylation and introduces the PKM2/PHD3 complex into the nucleus via binding with hnRNPF to enhance HIF-1α transactivation. Reciprocally, HIF-1α induces HIFAL transcription, which forms a positive feed-forward loop to maintain the transactivation activity of HIF-1α. Clinically, high HIFAL expression is associated with aggressive breast cancer phenotype and poor patient outcome. Furthermore, HIFAL overexpression promotes tumor growth in vivo, while targeting both HIFAL and HIF-1α significantly rescues their effect on cancer growth. Overall, our results indicate a critical regulatory role of HIFAL in HIF-1α-driven transactivation and glycolysis, identifying HIFAL as a therapeutic target for cancer treatment.
Project description:Increased levels of hypoxia and hypoxia inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α) in human sarcomas correlate with tumor progression and radiation resistance. Prolonged anti-angiogenic therapy of tumors can delay tumor growth but may also increase hypoxia and HIF-1α activity. In our recent clinical trial, treatment with the anti-vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) antibody, bevacizumab, followed by a combination of bevacizumab and radiation led to near complete necrosis in nearly half of sarcomas. Gene set enrichment analysis of microarrays from pre-treatment biopsies found the Gene Ontology category “Response to hypoxia” was upregulated in poor responders, and hierarchical clustering based on 140 hypoxia-responsive genes separated poor responders from good responders. The most commonly used chemotherapeutic drug for sarcomas, doxorubicin (Dox), was recently found to block HIF-1α binding to DNA at low metronomic doses. We thus examined Dox treatment in 4 sarcoma cell lines, and found Dox at low concentrations (1-10 uM) blocked HIF-1α induction of VEGF-A by 84-97%, while inhibition of other HIF-1α-target genes including CA9, c-Met and FOXM1 was variable. HT1080 sarcoma xenografts had increased hypoxia and/or HIF-1α activity with increasing tumor size and with anti-VEGF receptor antibody (DC101) treatment. Combining DC101 and metronomic Dox had a synergistic effect in suppressing growth of HT1080 xenografts, primarily via induction of tumor endothelial cell apoptosis. In conclusion, sarcomas respond to increased hypoxia by expressing HIF-1α-target genes which may promote resistance to anti-angiogenic and other therapies. Metronomic Dox can block HIF-1α activation of target genes and works synergistically with anti-VEGF therapy to inhibit sarcomas. Pre-treatment biopsies were collected from 16 human sarcoma. The gene expression analysis was performed using Illumina platform.