Open questions in human lung organoid research

Organoids have become a prominent model system in pulmonary research. The ability to establish organoid cultures directly from patient tissue has expanded the repertoire of physiologically relevant preclinical model systems. In addition to their derivation from adult lung stem/progenitor cells, lung organoids can be derived from fetal tissue or induced pluripotent stem cells to fill a critical gap in modelling pulmonary development in vitro. Recent years have seen important progress in the characterisation and refinement of organoid culture systems. Here, we address several open questions in the field, including how closely organoids recapitulate the tissue of origin, how well organoids recapitulate patient cohorts, and how well organoids capture diversity within a patient. We advocate deeper characterisation of models using single cell technologies, generation of more diverse organoid biobanks and further standardisation of culture media

Developmental mechanisms and adult stem cells for therapeutic lung regeneration.

Chronic degenerative lung diseases are essentially untreatable pathological conditions. By contrast, the healthy lung has numerous mechanisms that allow for rapid repair and restoration of function following minor acute injuries. We discuss the normal endogenous processes of lung development, homeostatic maintenance and repair and consider the research strategies required for the development of methods for human therapeutic lung regeneration

An FGFR1-SPRY2 Signaling Axis Limits Basal Cell Proliferation in the Steady-State Airway Epithelium.

The steady-state airway epithelium has a low rate of stem cell turnover but can nevertheless mount a rapid proliferative response following injury. This suggests a mechanism to restrain proliferation at steady state. One such mechanism has been identified in skeletal muscle in which pro-proliferative FGFR1 signaling is antagonized by SPRY1 to maintain satellite cell quiescence. Surprisingly, we found that deletion of Fgfr1 or Spry2 in basal cells of the adult mouse trachea caused an increase in steady-state proliferation. We show that in airway basal cells, SPRY2 is post-translationally modified in response to FGFR1 signaling. This allows SPRY2 to inhibit intracellular signaling downstream of other receptor tyrosine kinases and restrain basal cell proliferation. An FGFR1-SPRY2 signaling axis has previously been characterized in cell lines in vitro. We now demonstrate an in vivo biological function of this interaction and thus identify an active signaling mechanism that maintains quiescence in the airway epithelium.This study was supported by the Medical Research Council (G0900424 to ER); Wellcome Trust clinical PhD fellowship (JJ). Core grants: Gurdon Institute: Wellcome Trust (092096), Cancer Research UK (C6946/A14492); Stem Cell Initiative: Wellcome Trust/MRC.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Elsevier via https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2016.03.00

Twenty + Futures

In a period of heightened awareness of global threats to orderly and predictable futures for people and planet – recession, climate change, peak oil, loss of biodiversity, terrorism – does this uncertainty impact on how young adults in their twenties think about their futures, particularly partnering and parenting? Exploratory interviews with childless young men and women in their twenties sought to investigate

Lung epithelial tip progenitors integrate glucocorticoid- and STAT3-mediated signals to control progeny fate.

Insufficient alveolar gas exchange capacity is a major contributor to lung disease. During lung development, a population of distal epithelial progenitors first produce bronchiolar-fated and subsequently alveolar-fated progeny. The mechanisms controlling this bronchiolar-to-alveolar developmental transition remain largely unknown. We developed a novel grafting assay to test if lung epithelial progenitors are intrinsically programmed or if alveolar cell identity is determined by environmental factors. These experiments revealed that embryonic lung epithelial identity is extrinsically determined. We show that both glucocorticoid and STAT3 signalling can control the timing of alveolar initiation, but that neither pathway is absolutely required for alveolar fate specification; rather, glucocorticoid receptor and STAT3 work in parallel to promote alveolar differentiation. Thus, developmental acquisition of lung alveolar fate is a robust process controlled by at least two independent extrinsic signalling inputs. Further elucidation of these pathways might provide therapeutic opportunities for restoring alveolar capacity.Medical Research Council (G0900424, ER), the March of Dimes (5-FY11-119, ER), the Wellcome Trust (093029, ER), Newton Trust (14.07h, ER), Wellcome Trust PhD programme for Clinicians (MN), Postdoctoral Fellowship from the Government of the Basque Country (UL), MRC studentship (RVR), British Heart Foundation Studentship (EJB), COST BM1201. Core grants from the Wellcome Trust (092096) and Cancer Research UK (C6946/A14492).This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from the Company of Biologists at http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/dev.134023

MNS1 variant associated with situs inversus and male infertility

Ciliopathy disorders due to abnormalities of motile cilia encompass a range of autosomal recessive conditions typified by chronic otosinopulmonary disease, infertility, situs abnormalities and hydrocephalus. Using a combination of genome-wide SNP mapping and whole exome sequencing (WES), we investigated the genetic cause of a form of situs inversus (SI) and male infertility present in multiple individuals in an extended Amish family, assuming that an autosomal recessive founder variant was responsible. This identified a single shared (2.34 Mb) region of autozygosity on chromosome 15q21.3 as the likely disease locus, in which we identified a single candidate biallelic frameshift variant in MNS1 [NM_018365.2: c.407_410del; p.(Glu136Glyfs*16)]. Genotyping of multiple family members identified randomisation of the laterality defects in other homozygous individuals, with all wild type or MNS1 c.407_410del heterozygous carriers being unaffected, consistent with an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance. This study identifies an MNS1 variant as a cause of laterality defects and male infertility in humans, mirroring findings in Mns1-deficient mice which also display male infertility and randomisation of left-right asymmetry of internal organs, confirming a crucial role for MNS1 in nodal cilia and sperm flagella formation and function.This article is freely available via Open Access. Click on the Publisher URL to access the full-text

A functional genetic toolbox for human tissue-derived organoids.

Funder: Alzheimers Research UK Stem Cell Research CentreHuman organoid systems recapitulate key features of organs offering platforms for modelling developmental biology and disease. Tissue-derived organoids have been widely used to study the impact of extrinsic niche factors on stem cells. However, they are rarely used to study endogenous gene function due to the lack of efficient gene manipulation tools. Previously, we established a human foetal lung organoid system (Nikolić et al., 2017). Here, using this organoid system as an example we have systematically developed and optimised a complete genetic toolbox for use in tissue-derived organoids. This includes 'Organoid Easytag' our efficient workflow for targeting all types of gene loci through CRISPR-mediated homologous recombination followed by flow cytometry for enriching correctly-targeted cells. Our toolbox also incorporates conditional gene knock-down or overexpression using tightly-inducible CRISPR interference and CRISPR activation which is the first efficient application of these techniques to tissue-derived organoids. These tools will facilitate gene perturbation studies in tissue-derived organoids facilitating human disease modelling and providing a functional counterpart to many on-going descriptive studies, such as the Human Cell Atlas Project

Inhibition of β-catenin signalling in dermal fibroblasts enhances hair follicle regeneration during wound healing.

New hair follicles (HFs) do not form in adult mammalian skin unless epidermal Wnt signalling is activated genetically or within large wounds. To understand the postnatal loss of hair forming ability we monitored HF formation at small circular (2 mm) wound sites. At P2, new HFs formed in back skin, but HF formation was markedly decreased by P21. Neonatal tail also formed wound-associated HFs, albeit in smaller numbers. Postnatal loss of HF neogenesis did not correlate with wound closure rate but with a reduction in Lrig1-positive papillary fibroblasts in wounds. Comparative gene expression profiling of back and tail dermis at P1 and dorsal fibroblasts at P2 and P50 showed a correlation between loss of HF formation and decreased expression of genes associated with proliferation and Wnt/β-catenin activity. Between P2 and P50, fibroblast density declined throughout the dermis and clones of fibroblasts became more dispersed. This correlated with a decline in fibroblasts expressing a TOPGFP reporter of Wnt activation. Surprisingly, between P2 and P50 there was no difference in fibroblast proliferation at the wound site but Wnt signalling was highly upregulated in healing dermis of P21 compared with P2 mice. Postnatal β-catenin ablation in fibroblasts promoted HF regeneration in neonatal and adult mouse wounds, whereas β-catenin activation reduced HF regeneration in neonatal wounds. Our data support a model whereby postnatal loss of hair forming ability in wounds reflects elevated dermal Wnt/β-catenin activation in the wound bed, increasing the abundance of fibroblasts that are unable to induce HF formation

Intervention fidelity in a school-based diet and physical activity intervention in the UK:Active for Life Year 5

Active for Life Year 5 (AFLY5) is an educational programme for Year 5 children (aged 9-10) designed to increase children's physical activity, decrease sedentary behaviour and increase fruit and vegetable intake. This paper reports findings from a process evaluation embedded within a randomised controlled trial evaluating the programme's effectiveness. It considers the fidelity of implementation of AFLY5 with a focus on three research questions: 1. To what extent was the intervention delivered as planned? 2. In what ways, if any, did the teachers amend the programme? and 3. What were the reasons for any amendments?Mixed methods were used including data collection via observation of the intervention delivery, questionnaire, teacher's intervention delivery log and semi-structured interviews with teachers and parents. Qualitative data were analysed thematically and quantitative data were summarised using descriptive statistics.Following training, 42 of the 43 intervention school teachers/teaching staff (98%) were confident they could deliver the nutrition and physical activity lessons according to plan. The mean number of lessons taught was 12.3 (s.d. 3.7), equating to 77% of the intervention. Reach was high with 95% of children in intervention schools receiving lessons. A mean of 6.2 (s.d. 2.6) out of 10 homeworks were delivered. Median lesson preparation time was 10 min (IQR 10-20) and 28% of lessons were reported as having been amended. Qualitative findings revealed that those who amended the lessons did so to differentiate for student ability, update them for use with new technologies and to enhance teacher and student engagement. Teachers endorsed the aims of the intervention, but some were frustrated with having to adapt the lesson materials. Teachers also a reported tendency to delegate the physical activity lessons to other staff not trained in the intervention.Fidelity of intervention implementation was good but teachers' enthusiasm for the AFLY5 programme was mixed despite them believing that the messages behind the lessons were important. This may have meant that the intervention messages were not delivered as anticipated and explain why the intervention was found not to be effective.ISRCTN50133740.Rona Campbell, Emma Rawlins, Sian Wells, Ruth R. Kipping, Catherine R. Chittleborough, Tim J. Peters, Debbie A. Lawlor and Russell Jag