Project description:In order to investigate the population heterogeneity of CAR19TIF, we determined to profile the single cell RNA transcriptional status of CAR19TIF cells derived from spleens of recipient mice at 2-month post cell transfer. Furthermore, we determined to examine potential subsets among the CAR19TIF cells and critical gene expression levels.
Project description:In order to investigate the underlying mechanism, we determined to profile the transcriptional status of CAR19TIF cells and sgZcsh12a CAR T cells derived from spleens of recipient mice at Day-10 post cell transfer and CAR19TIF cells and endogenous CD8 T cells derived from spleens of recipient mice at 3-month post cell transfer.
Project description:Long-term antitumor efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells depends on their functional persistence in vivo. T cells with stem-like properties show better persistence, but factors conferring bona fide stemness to T cells remain to be determined. Here, we demonstrate the induction of CAR T cells into an immortal-like and functional state, termed TIF. The induction of CARTIF cells depends on the repression of two factors, BCOR and ZC3H12A, and requires antigen or CAR tonic signaling. Reprogrammed CARTIF cells possess almost infinite stemness, similar to induced pluripotent stem cells while retaining the functionality of mature T cells, resulting in superior antitumor effects. Following the elimination of target cells, CARTIF cells enter a metabolically dormant state, persisting in vivo with a saturable niche and providing memory protection. TIF represents a novel state of T cells with unprecedented stemness, which confers long-term functional persistence of CAR T cells in vivo and holds broad potential in T cell therapies.
Project description:Constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) agonists, such as TCPOBOP, are known to cause robust hepatocyte proliferation and hepatomegaly in mice along with induction of drug metabolism genes, without any associated liver injury. Yes-associated protein (YAP) is a key transcription regulator that tightly controls organ size including that of liver. Ours and other previous studies suggested increased nuclear localization and activation of YAP after TCPOBOP treatment in mice and potential role of YAP in CAR-driven proliferative response. Here, we investigated a direct role of YAP in CAR-driven hepatomegaly and hepatocyte proliferation using hepatocyte-specific YAP-KO mice. AAV8-TBG-CRE vector was injected to YAP-floxed mice for achieving hepatocyte-specific YAP deletion followed by TCPOBOP treatment. YAP deletion did not alter protein expression of CAR or CAR-driven induction of drug metabolism genes (including Cyp2b10, Cyp2c55 and UGT1a1). However, YAP deletion substantially reduced TCPOBOP-induced hepatocyte proliferation. TCPOBOP-driven cell cycle activation was disrupted in YAP-KO mice due to delayed (and decreased) induction of cyclin D1 and higher expression of p21, resulting in decreased phosphorylation of retinoblastoma (Rb) protein. Further, induction of other cyclins, which are sequentially involved in progression through cell cycle (including cyclin E1, A2 and B1) and important mitotic regulators (such as aurora B kinase and polo-like kinase 1) was remarkably reduced in YAP-KO mice. Microarray analysis revealed that 26% of TCPOBOP‐responsive genes mainly related to proliferation, but not to drug metabolism, were altered by YAP deletion. YAP regulated these proliferation genes via alerting expression of cMyc and FOXM1, two critical transcriptional regulators of CAR-mediated hepatocyte proliferation. Conclusion: Our study revealed an important role of YAP signaling in CAR-driven hepatocyte proliferation; however, CAR-driven induction of drug metabolism genes was independent of YAP. We used microarrays to detail the global programme of gene expression in livers of hepatocyte-specific YAP KO mice following TCPOBOP treatment
Project description:Activation of telomerase often endows cancer cells, but rarely normal somatic cells, with immortality. Especially, fetal lung fibroblasts are known to be hardly immortalized by TERT overexpression. We here established an immortal non-transformed lung fibroblast cell line only by TERT transfection, as well as an immortal transformed cell line by transfection of TERT and SV40 early antigens. Comparing the expression profiles of these cell lines with those of mortal cell strains with elongated lifespan after TERT transfection, 51 genes, including 19 upregulated and 32 downregulated, were explored to be the candidates responsible for regulation of cellular proliferation of lung fibroblasts. These included the genes previously reported to be involved in cellular proliferation, transformation, or self-renewal capacity, and those highly expressed in lung tissues obtained from patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis or hypersensitivity pneumonitis. This set of lung fibrobrast cell lines/strains of identical genetic background with different proliferative capacity, mortal and immortal non-transformed fibroblasts may become useful model cells for research on lung fibroblast growth regulation and the candidate genes explored in this study may provide promising biomarkers or molecular targets of pulmonary fibrosis. Keywords: Cell type comparison