Project description:Nod2 has been extensively characterized as a bacterial sensor that induces an antimicrobial and inflammatory gene expression program. Therefore, it is unclear why Nod2 mutations that disrupt bacterial recognition are paradoxically among the highest risk factors for Crohn’s disease, which involves an exaggerated immune response directed at intestinal bacteria. Previous studies from our lab have shown that mice deficient in Atg16L1, another Crohns disease susceptibility gene, develop abnormalities in Paneth cells, specialized epithelial cells in the small intestine involved in antimicrobial responses. The goal of our study is to determine whether Nod2 deficiency leads to differences in the transcriptional profile of Paneth cells, ultimately leading to small intestinal inflammation. Small intestinal sections (ileum) of 8 week old WT and Nod2-/- mice were fixed in methacarn and embedded in paraffin. The Leica LMD6000 Laser Microdissection system was used to capture crypt base epithelial cells to enrich for Paneth cells. RNA was extracted from these cells, followed by cDNA synthesis and qPCR to confirm enrichment of Paneth cells using unique markers (a-defensins).
Project description:Analysis of the complex expression of claudin genes and transcription factors during intestinal epithelial cell differentiation across the crypt-to-surface colonic axis. Characterization of the complex expression gradients of transcription factors Hopx, Hnf4a, Klf4 and Tcfl2 and 12 claudin genes. In vitro confirmatory methods identified two pathways that stimulate claudin expression; Hopx/Klf4 activation of Cldn4, 7 and 15, and Tcf7l2/Hnf4a upregulation of Cldn23. Chromatin Immunoprecipitation confirmed a Tcf7l2/Hnf4a/Claudin23 cascade. Hnf4a conditional knockout mice fail to induce Cldn23 during colonocyte differentiation. The distal colon tissue was obtained from 4 male, 10-12 week old, C57BL/6 (WT) mice. The Arcturus Laser Capture Microdissection (LCM) system (Applied Biosystems/Life Technologies) was used to isolate crypt-base and surface cell populations providing two samples per mouse (crypt-base and surface). This resulted in 8 total samples for microarray analysis.
Project description:Crypt hyperplasia is a key feature of celiac disease and various other small intestinal inflammatory conditions. By undertaking mass spectrometry-based tissue proteomics of the gut epithelial crypt zone, we found that active celiac disease is characterized by a strong interferon-γ (IFN-γ) signal. This signal, hallmarked by increased expression of MHC molecules, coincides with a markedly reduced expression of proteins associated with fatty acid metabolism. We observed similar crypt hyperplasia and proteomic alterations in wild-type mice treated with IFN-γ, but not in mice that lack the IFN-γ receptor in gut epithelial cells. IFN-γ is thus a driver of crypt hyperplasia in celiac disease by acting directly on crypt epithelial cells. This dataset contains proteomics analysis of crypt compartment samples isolated by laser capture microdissection small intestinal crypt compartment from C57/Bl6 mice injected i.p. with 0-1-2-4-6 or 9 doses interferon gamma every 8 hour.
Project description:Real-time quantitative PCR analysis of mRNA from the colon of WT, Nod2-/-, Pglyrp3-/-, and Pglyrp3-/-Nod2-/- mice treated with oral DSS
Project description:PURPOSE: To provide a detailed gene expression profile of the normal postnatal mouse cornea. METHODS: Serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE) was performed on postnatal day (PN)9 and adult mouse (6 week) total corneas. The expression of selected genes was analyzed by in situ hybridization. RESULTS: A total of 64,272 PN9 and 62,206 adult tags were sequenced. Mouse corneal transcriptomes are composed of at least 19,544 and 18,509 unique mRNAs, respectively. One third of the unique tags were expressed at both stages, whereas a third was identified exclusively in PN9 or adult corneas. Three hundred thirty-four PN9 and 339 adult tags were enriched more than fivefold over other published nonocular libraries. Abundant transcripts were associated with metabolic functions, redox activities, and barrier integrity. Three members of the Ly-6/uPAR family whose functions are unknown in the cornea constitute more than 1% of the total mRNA. Aquaporin 5, epithelial membrane protein and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) omega-1, and GST alpha-4 mRNAs were preferentially expressed in distinct corneal epithelial layers, providing new markers for stratification. More than 200 tags were differentially expressed, of which 25 mediate transcription. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to providing a detailed profile of expressed genes in the PN9 and mature mouse cornea, the present SAGE data demonstrate dynamic changes in gene expression after eye opening and provide new probes for exploring corneal epithelial cell stratification, development, and function and for exploring the intricate relationship between programmed and environmentally induced gene expression in the cornea. Keywords: other
Project description:Introgressed variants from other species can be an important source of genetic variation because they may arise rapidly, can include multiple mutations on a single haplotype, and have often been pretested by selection in the species of origin. Although introgressed alleles are generally deleterious, several studies have reported introgression as the source of adaptive alleles-including the rodenticide-resistant variant of Vkorc1 that introgressed from Mus spretus into European populations of Mus musculus domesticus. Here, we conducted bidirectional genome scans to characterize introgressed regions into one wild population of M. spretus from Spain and three wild populations of M. m. domesticus from France, Germany, and Iran. Despite the fact that these species show considerable intrinsic postzygotic reproductive isolation, introgression was observed in all individuals, including in the M. musculus reference genome (GRCm38). Mus spretus individuals had a greater proportion of introgression compared with M. m. domesticus, and within M. m. domesticus, the proportion of introgression decreased with geographic distance from the area of sympatry. Introgression was observed on all autosomes for both species, but not on the X-chromosome in M. m. domesticus, consistent with known X-linked hybrid sterility and inviability genes that have been mapped to the M. spretus X-chromosome. Tract lengths were generally short with a few outliers of up to 2.7 Mb. Interestingly, the longest introgressed tracts were in olfactory receptor regions, and introgressed tracts were significantly enriched for olfactory receptor genes in both species, suggesting that introgression may be a source of functional novelty even between species with high barriers to gene flow.
Project description:We collected whole genome testis expression data from hybrid zone mice. We integrated GWAS mapping of testis expression traits and low testis weight to gain insight into the genetic basis of hybrid male sterility.