Effect of developmental stage of HSC and recipient on transplant outcomes

The first hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) that engraft irradiated adult mice arise in the aorta-gonad-mesonephros (AGM) on embryonic day 11.5 (E11.5). However, at this stage, there is a discrepancy between the apparent frequency of HSCs depicted with imaging and their rarity when measured with limiting dilution transplant. We have attempted to reconcile this difference using neonatal recipients, which are more permissive for embryonic HSC engraftment. We found that embryonic HSCs from E9.5 and E10.5 preferentially engrafted neonates, whereas developmentally mature, definitive HSCs from E14.5 fetal liver or adult bone marrow (BM) more robustly engrafted adults. Neonatal engraftment was enhanced after treating adult BM-derived HSCs with interferon. Adult BM-derived HSCs preferentially homed to the liver in neonatal mice yet showed balanced homing to the liver and spleen in adults. These findings emphasize the functional differences between nascent and mature definitive HSCs

Biomechanical forces promote embryonic haematopoiesis

Biomechanical forces are emerging as critical regulators of embryogenesis, particularly in the developing cardiovascular system. After initiation of the heartbeat in vertebrates, cells lining the ventral aspect of the dorsal aorta, the placental vessels, and the umbilical and vitelline arteries initiate expression of the transcription factor Runx1 (refs 3-5), a master regulator of haematopoiesis, and give rise to haematopoietic cells. It remains unknown whether the biomechanical forces imposed on the vascular wall at this developmental stage act as a determinant of haematopoietic potential. Here, using mouse embryonic stem cells differentiated in vitro, we show that fluid shear stress increases the expression of Runx1 in CD41(+)c-Kit(+) haematopoietic progenitor cells, concomitantly augmenting their haematopoietic colony-forming potential. Moreover, we find that shear stress increases haematopoietic colony-forming potential and expression of haematopoietic markers in the para-aortic splanchnopleura/aorta-gonads-mesonephros of mouse embryos and that abrogation of nitric oxide, a mediator of shear-stress-induced signalling, compromises haematopoietic potential in vitro and in vivo. Collectively, these data reveal a critical role for biomechanical forces in haematopoietic development

Functional screen identifies regulators of murine hematopoietic stem cell repopulation.

Understanding the molecular regulation of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) engraftment is paramount to improving transplant outcomes. To discover novel regulators of HSPC repopulation, we transplanted >1,300 mice with shRNA-transduced HSPCs within 24 h of isolation and transduction to focus on detecting genes regulating repopulation. We identified 17 regulators of HSPC repopulation: Arhgef5, Armcx1, Cadps2, Crispld1, Emcn, Foxa3, Fstl1, Glis2, Gprasp2, Gpr56, Myct1, Nbea, P2ry14, Smarca2, Sox4, Stat4, and Zfp251. Knockdown of each of these genes yielded a loss of function, except in the cases of Armcx1 and Gprasp2, whose loss enhanced hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) repopulation. The discovery of multiple genes regulating vesicular trafficking, cell surface receptor turnover, and secretion of extracellular matrix components suggests active cross talk between HSCs and the niche and that HSCs may actively condition the niche to promote engraftment. We validated that Foxa3 is required for HSC repopulating activity, as Foxa3(-/-) HSC fails to repopulate ablated hosts efficiently, implicating for the first time Foxa genes as regulators of HSPCs. We further show that Foxa3 likely regulates the HSC response to hematologic stress. Each gene discovered here offers a window into the novel processes that regulate stable HSPC engraftment into an ablated host

The transcriptional landscape of hematopoietic stem cell ontogeny

Transcriptome analysis of adult hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and their progeny has revealed mechanisms of blood differentiation and leukemogenesis, but a similar analysis of HSC development is lacking. Here, we acquired the transcriptomes of developing HSCs purified from >2,500 murine embryos and adult mice. We found that embryonic hematopoietic elements clustered into three distinct transcriptional states characteristic of the definitive yolk sac, HSCs undergoing specification, and definitive HSCs. We applied a network-biology-based analysis to reconstruct the gene regulatory networks of sequential stages of HSC development and functionally validated candidate transcriptional regulators of HSC ontogeny by morpholino-mediated knockdown in zebrafish embryos. Moreover, we found that HSCs from in vitro differentiated embryonic stem cells closely resemble definitive HSCs, yet lack a Notch-signaling signature, likely accounting for their defective lymphopoiesis. Our analysis and web resource will enhance efforts to identify regulators of HSC ontogeny and facilitate the engineering of hematopoietic specification

Publisher Correction: Chemotherapy-induced transposable elements activate MDA5 to enhance haematopoietic regeneration.

Funder: RCUK | Medical Research Council (MRC); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000265Funder: Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (Max Planck Society); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/50110000418

Chemotherapy-induced transposable elements activate MDA5 to enhance haematopoietic regeneration.

Funder: RCUK | Medical Research Council (MRC); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000265Funder: Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (Max Planck Society); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100004189Haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are normally quiescent, but have evolved mechanisms to respond to stress. Here, we evaluate haematopoietic regeneration induced by chemotherapy. We detect robust chromatin reorganization followed by increased transcription of transposable elements (TEs) during early recovery. TE transcripts bind to and activate the innate immune receptor melanoma differentiation-associated protein 5 (MDA5) that generates an inflammatory response that is necessary for HSCs to exit quiescence. HSCs that lack MDA5 exhibit an impaired inflammatory response after chemotherapy and retain their quiescence, with consequent better long-term repopulation capacity. We show that the overexpression of ERV and LINE superfamily TE copies in wild-type HSCs, but not in Mda5-/- HSCs, results in their cycling. By contrast, after knockdown of LINE1 family copies, HSCs retain their quiescence. Our results show that TE transcripts act as ligands that activate MDA5 during haematopoietic regeneration, thereby enabling HSCs to mount an inflammatory response necessary for their exit from quiescence

Derivation of Hematopoietic Stem Cells from Murine Embryonic Stem Cells

A stem cell is defined as a cell with the capacity to both self-renew and generate multiple differentiated progeny. Embryonic stem cells (ESC) are derived from the blastocyst of the early embryo and are pluripotent in differentiative ability. Their vast differentiative potential has made them the focus of much research centered on deducing how to coax them to generate clinically useful cell types. The successful derivation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) from mouse ESC has recently been accomplished and can be visualized in this video protocol. HSC, arguably the most clinically exploited cell population, are used to treat a myriad of hematopoietic malignancies and disorders. However, many patients that might benefit from HSC therapy lack access to suitable donors. ESC could provide an alternative source of HSC for these patients. The following protocol establishes a baseline from which ESC-HSC can be studied and inform efforts to isolate HSC from human ESC. In this protocol, ESC are differentiated as embryoid bodies (EBs) for 6 days in commercially available serum pre-screened for optimal hematopoietic differentiation. EBs are then dissociated and infected with retroviral HoxB4. Infected EB-derived cells are plated on OP9 stroma, a bone marrow stromal cell line derived from the calvaria of M-CSF-/- mice, and co-cultured in the presence of hematopoiesis promoting cytokines for ten days. During this co-culture, the infected cells expand greatly, resulting in the generation a heterogeneous pool of 100s of millions of cells. These cells can then be used to rescue and reconstitute lethally irradiated mice

Isolation of hematopoietic stem cells from mouse embryonic stem cells

This unit describes a protocol for the isolation of cells from murine embryonic stem cells with hematopoietic stem cell activity, defined by the ability to reconstitute, long term, multiple lineages of the hematopoietic system of lethally irradiated mice. The protocol subjects hematopoietic progenitors specified in differentiating embryoid bodies to ectopic HoxB4 expression (delivered via retroviral infection), followed by coculture and expansion on OP9 stromal cells in the presence of hematopoietic cytokines for 10 days. The protocol results in the generation of hundreds of millions of cells that can rescue mice from lethal irradiation. Although little is known about the phenotype and frequency of the actual hematopoietic stem cell-like cell within the population of cells generated by this protocol, the protocol establishes a system in which these cells can be further studied and the results ultimately translated to the human system