Gene knockdown of CENPA reduces sphere forming ability and stemness of glioblastoma initiating cells

CENPA is a centromere-associated variant of histone H3 implicated in numerous malignancies. However, the role of this protein in glioblastoma (GBM) has not been demonstrated. GBM is one of the most aggressive human cancers. GBM initiating cells (GICs), contained within these tumors are deemed to convey characteristics such as invasiveness and resistance to therapy. Therefore, there is a strong rationale for targeting these cells. We investigated the expression of CENPA and other centromeric proteins (CENPs) in GICs, GBM and variety of other cell types and tissues. Bioinformatics analysis identified the gene signature: high_CENP(AEFNM)/low_CENP(BCTQ) whose expression correlated with significantly worse GBM patient survival. Knockdown of CENPA reduced sphere forming ability, proliferation and cell viability of GICs. We also detected significant reduction in the expression of stemness marker SOX2 and the proliferation marker Ki67. These results indicate that CENPA might represent a promising therapeutic target for GBM treatment

Ultrasonic Surgical Aspirate is a Reliable Source for Culturing Glioblastoma Stem Cells

Glioma stem cells (GSCs) are thought to be the source of tumor growth and therapy resistance. To understand the biology of GSCs, and target these tumors therapeutically, we need robust strategies for in vitro expansion of primary GSCs. To date, tumor core biopsies have been the main established source of GSCs. Since these samples are used for diagnostic purposes, the available tissue for cell culture and therapeutic targeting can be limited. In addition, a core biopsy is usually taken from one part of the tumor, thus would be unlikely to represent intra-tumor heterogeneity. To overcome these problems, tissue fragments from all over the tumor can be collected using an ultrasonic aspirator during surgery, thus assembling a “global tumor biopsy”. Usually, this ultrasonic aspirate (UA) sample is considered as biological waste after operations. Here, we show that UA samples offer a large and reliable source of live cells. Similar to core biopsies, UA samples enriched for GSCs that differentiated into neural lineages, showed inter-individual variation of GSC markers, and induced tumors. Molecular profiling showed that UA samples cover tumor heterogeneity better than core biopsies. These results suggest that UA samples can be used to establish large scale cultures for therapeutic applications

Identification and characterization of a new source of adult human neural progenitors

Adult neural progenitor cells (aNPCs) are a potential source for cell based therapy for neurodegenerative diseases and traumatic brain injuries. These cells have been traditionally isolated from hippocampus, subventricular zone and white matter. However, there is still a need for an easily accessible source with better yield to counter the limitations of small surgical samples of previously characterized aNPCs. Here we show that ultrasonic aspirate (UA) samples currently considered as 'biological waste after surgery,' offer a good source for aNPCs. Furthermore, we show that culture conditions dictated the phenotype of cells across patients. The neurosphere-enriched cells were more similar to freshly isolated brain cells, while cells expanded adherently in serum conditions were similar to mesenchymal stem cells. However, cells expanded in these adherent conditions expressed some NPC and glial markers in addition to active canonical Wnt signaling. This suggests a mesenchymal-neuroectodermal hybrid nature of these cells. Finally, we show that UA-NPCs are comparable to those from neurogenic regions. Our findings suggest that UA samples can be used as a source for fresh and in vitro propagated aNPCs that could have various clinical applications

Recruited brain tumor-derived mesenchymal stem cells contribute to brain tumor progression.

The identity of the cells that contribute to brain tumor structure and progression remains unclear. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have recently been isolated from normal mouse brain. Here, we report the infiltration of MSC-like cells into the GL261 murine glioma model. These Brain Tumor derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells (BT-MSCs) are defined with the phenotype (Lin-Sca-1+CD9+CD44+CD166+/-) and have multipotent differentiation capacity. We show that the infiltration of BT-MSCs correlates to tumor progression; furthermore, BT-MSCs increased the proliferation rate of GL261 cells in vitro. For the first time, we report that the majority of GL261 cells expressed mesenchymal phenotype under both adherent and sphere culture conditions in vitro, and that the non-MSC population is non-tumorigenic in vivo. Although the GL261 cell line expressed mesenchymal phenotype markers in vitro, most BT-MSCs are recruited cells from host origin in both wild type GL261 inoculated into GFP-transgenic mice and GL261-GFP cells inoculated into wild type mice. We show the expression of chemokine receptors CXCR4 and CXCR6 on different recruited cell populations. In vivo, the GL261 cells change marker profile, and acquire a phenotype that is more similar to cells growing in sphere culture conditions. Finally, we identify a BT-MSC population in human glioblastoma that is CD44+CD9+CD166+ both in freshly isolated and culture-expanded cells. Our data indicate that cells with MSC-like phenotype infiltrate into the tumor stroma and play an important role in tumor cell growth in vitro and in vivo. Thus we suggest that targeting BT-MSCs could be a possible strategy for treating glioblastoma patients. Stem Cells 2013

Transcriptional Profiling of Adult Neural Stem-Like Cells from the Human Brain

<div><p>There is a great potential for the development of new cell replacement strategies based on adult human neural stem-like cells. However, little is known about the hierarchy of cells and the unique molecular properties of stem- and progenitor cells of the nervous system. Stem cells from the adult human brain can be propagated and expanded <i>in vitro</i> as free floating neurospheres that are capable of self-renewal and differentiation into all three cell types of the central nervous system. Here we report the first global gene expression study of adult human neural stem-like cells originating from five human subventricular zone biopsies (mean age 42, range 33–60). Compared to adult human brain tissue, we identified 1,189 genes that were significantly up- and down-regulated in adult human neural stem-like cells (1% false discovery rate). We found that adult human neural stem-like cells express stem cell markers and have reduced levels of markers that are typical of the mature cells in the nervous system. We report that the genes being highly expressed in adult human neural stem-like cells are associated with developmental processes and the extracellular region of the cell. The calcium signaling pathway and neuroactive ligand-receptor interactions are enriched among the most differentially regulated genes between adult human neural stem-like cells and adult human brain tissue. We confirmed the expression of 10 of the most up-regulated genes in adult human neural stem-like cells in an additional sample set that included adult human neural stem-like cells (n = 6), foetal human neural stem cells (n = 1) and human brain tissues (n = 12). The NGFR, SLITRK6 and KCNS3 receptors were further investigated by immunofluorescence and shown to be heterogeneously expressed in spheres. These receptors could potentially serve as new markers for the identification and characterisation of neural stem- and progenitor cells or as targets for manipulation of cellular fate.</p></div

Targeting PBK/TOPK decreases growth and survival of glioma initiating cells in vitro and attenuates tumor growth in vivo

Background Glioblastomas are invasive therapy resistant brain tumors with extremely poor prognosis. The Glioma initiating cell (GIC) population contributes to therapeutic resistance and tumor recurrence. Targeting GIC-associated gene candidates could significantly impact GBM tumorigenicity. Here, we investigate a protein kinase, PBK/TOPK as a candidate for regulating growth, survival and in vivo tumorigenicity of GICs. Methods PBK is highly upregulated in GICs and GBM tissues as shown by RNA and protein analyses. We knocked down PBK using shRNA vectors and inhibited the function of PBK protein with a pharmacological PBK inhibitor, HITOPK-032. We assessed viability, tumorsphere formation and apoptosis in three patient derived GIC cultures. Results Gene knockdown of PBK led to decreased viability and sphere formation and in one culture an increase in apoptosis. Treatment of cells with inhibitor HITOPK-032 (5 μM and 10 μM) almost completely abolished growth and elicited a large increase in apoptosis in all three cultures. HI-TOPK-032 treatment (5 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg bodyweight) in vivo resulted in diminished growth of experimentally induced subcutaneous GBM tumors in mice. We also carried out multi-culture assays of cell survival to investigate the relative effects on GICs compared with the normal neural stem cells (NSCs) and their differentiated counterparts. Normal NSCs seemed to withstand treatment slightly better than the GICs. Conclusion Our study of identification and functional validation of PBK suggests that this candidate can be a promising molecular target for GBM treatment

ahNSCs cultivated as neurospheres display high viability and express SOX2.

<p>(<b>A</b>) The neurospheres were collected when their size reached a diameter of 70–100 µM. Scalebar 100 µM (<b>B</b>) The fraction of viable cells in neurospheres (green, FDA) was high compared to the fraction of dead cells (red, PI) (<b>C</b>) Neurosphere with SOX2 positive cells (green) and Hoechst stained nuclei (blue). Scalebar 10 µM (<b>D</b>) Single cells from neurosphere cultures with SOX2 positive nuclei (green). (<b>E</b>) Nuclear staining of single cells with Hoechst (blue) (<b>F</b>) Merge of E and F.</p

Results from pathway analysis of genes regulated in ahNSCs (Rank 1%).

<p>Results from pathway analysis of genes regulated in ahNSCs (Rank 1%).</p

Results from gene onthology analysis of genes up-regulated in ahNSCs (Rank 0.1%, 154 genes).

<p>Results from gene onthology analysis of genes up-regulated in ahNSCs (Rank 0.1%, 154 genes).</p