Mesenchymal Cell News Volume 11.07 | Feb 26 2019

TOP STORY

Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 2α Is a Negative Regulator of Osteoblastogenesis and Bone Mass Accrual

Researchers used mouse genetics to demonstrate that hypoxia-inducible factor-2α (HIF2) was an inhibitor of osteoblastogenesis and bone mass accrual. Moreover, they provide evidence that HIF2 impaired osteoblast differentiation at least in part, by upregulating the transcription factor Sox9. [Bone Res] Full Article

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IN VITRO

Phosphate Graphene as an Intrinsically Osteoinductive Scaffold for Stem Cell-Driven Bone Regeneration

Calcium phosphate graphene intrinsically induced osteogenesis in vitro and in the presence of bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs), could induce ectopic bone formation in vivo. Additionally, a functional graphenic material could be made by noncovalently loading graphene oxide with the growth factor recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2, producing a scaffold that induced ectopic bone formation with or without BMSCs. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA] Abstract

Controlled Nanoscale Topographies for Osteogenic Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Immunofluorescence and quantitative polymerase chain reaction measurements reveal clear dependence of osteogenic differentiation of human MSCs (hMSCs) on the diameter and periodicity of the arrays. Further, the differentiation of hMSCs was found to be dependent on the age of the donor. [ACS Appl Mater Interfaces] Abstract | Graphical Abstract

Abnormal Inhibition of Osteoclastogenesis by Mesenchymal Stem Cells through the miR-4284/CXCL5 Axis in Ankylosing Spondylitis

Ankylosing spondylitis patients MSCs (ASMSCs) or MSCs from healthy donors (HDMSCs) were co-cultured with CD14⁺ monocytes in osteoclast induction medium. The results demonstrated that ASMSCs exhibited a stronger capacity to inhibit osteoclastogenesis than HDMSCs. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

Long Noncoding RNA LINC00707 Sponges miR-370-3p to Promote Osteogenesis of Human Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells through Upregulating WNT2B

While miR-370-3p upregulation led to decreased osteogenic differentiation, LINC00707 overexpression could reverse this suppression, indicating that LINC00707 acts as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-370-3p. Moreover, LINC00707 could act as a ceRNA to upregulate WNT2B via miR-370-3p inhibition. [Stem Cell Res Ther] Full Article

The Effects of Dynamic Compressive Loading on Human Mesenchymal Stem Cell Osteogenesis in the Stiff Layer of a Bilayer Hydrogel

A bilayer hydrogel was fabricated from soft and stiff poly (ethylene glycol) hydrogels. With human MSCs embedded in the stiff layer, osteogenesis was delayed under loading evident by lower OSX and OPN expressions, alkaline phosphatase activity, and collagen content. [J Tissue Eng Regen Med] Abstract

FGF23 and Fetuin-A Interaction and Mesenchymal Osteogenic Transformation

Researchers studied human primary cells and mouse and human cell lines by means of immunostaining, qRT-PCR, enzyme linked immunosorbent assays, chromatin immunoprecipitation, transfection, and a streamlined approach for the fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23)-Fetuin-A interaction called Duolink proximity ligation assay. [Int J Mol Sci] Full Article

IN VIVO

Mmu-miR-185 Depletion Promotes Osteogenic Differentiation and Suppresses Bone Loss in Osteoporosis through the Bgn-Mediated BMP/Smad Pathway

The authors constructed an ovariectomized mouse model to investigate the role of miR-185 during osteoporosis. Micro-computed tomography revealed an increased bone volume in knockout compared to wild-type mice six weeks after surgery, indicating redundant bone formation after miR-185 depletion. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

Priming with Toll-Like Receptor 3 Agonist or Interferon-Gamma Enhances the Therapeutic Effects of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells in a Murine Model of Atopic Dermatitis

Mice were treated with Aspergillus fumigatus extract to induce atopic dermatitis and then subcutaneously injected with non-primed, poly I:C-primed or interferon-γ-primed human Wharton’s jelly-derived MSCs. Clinical symptom scores, transepidermal water loss, histological characteristics and cytokine levels were determined. [Stem Cell Res Ther] Full Article

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Mesenchymal Stem Cell Basic Research and Applications in Dog Medicine

The authors throw some light on dog MSC properties and their potential therapeutic applications. [J Cell Physiol] Abstract

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Pluristem Enters into Collaboration with NASA to Study PLX Therapeutic Benefits in Space Missions

Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. announced a collaboration between the company and NASA’s Ames Research Center to evaluate the potential of Pluristem’s PLX cell therapies in preventing and treating medical conditions caused during space missions. [Pluristem Therapeutics Inc.] Press Release

BrainStorm Announces First Contracted US Clinical Site for Phase II Progressive MS Study

BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics Inc. announced Cleveland Clinic as the first US clinical site contracted for a planned Phase II open-label, multicenter study of repeated intrathecal administration of autologous MSC-NTF cells in participants with progressive Multiple Sclerosis (MS). The Phase II study will enroll progressive MS patients based on 2017 revised McDonald Criteria. [BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics Inc.] Press Release

ThermoGenesis Receives Health Canada Approval of Its PXP System for Automated Processing of Bone Marrow Cells

ThermoGenesis Corp announced that it received Health Canada approval of its PXP^® System for point-of-care harvesting of purified mononuclear cells and platelets from blood or bone marrow. [ThermoGenesis Corp] Press Release

Moldovan Mathematician among Academics Running in General Election

Several researchers, including one mathematician, are running for seats in Moldova’s parliament this month. They hope to depoliticize science, improve education and address high levels of brain drain in the small country of 3.5 million people. [Nature News] Editorial

Open-Access Pioneer Randy Schekman on Plan S and Disrupting Scientific Publishing

Nobel laureate Randy Schekman shook up the publishing industry when he launched the open-access journal eLife in 2012. Armed with millions in funding from three of the world’s largest private biomedical charities — the Wellcome Trust, the Max Planck Society and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute — Schekman designed the journal to compete with publishing powerhouses such as Nature, Science and Cell. [Nature News] Editorial

CRISPR Babies Trial May Have Been Government Funded

Before news broke of a trial to genetically alter human embryos using CRISPR, the leader of the project, He Jiankui, claimed in various documents that the experiment was backed by government funding, STAT reports. [The Scientist] Editorial

NEW 2^nd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT)
April 29-May 2, 2019
Washington DC, United States

Visit our events page to see a complete list of events in the community.

NEW Assistant Professor – Sarcoma or Skeletal Related Malignancies (University of California at Davis)

Tenure Track Professorship – Architectured Biomedical Materials for Tissue Regeneration (Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin)

PhD Scholarship – Biomaterials Based Approach for Stem Cells Differentiation (Technical University of Denmark)

Research Scientist – Stem Cell Biology (MD Anderson Cancer Center)

Postdoctoral Fellow – MSC Research (University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine)

PhD Positions – Cancer Biology (Institut Curie)

Postdoctoral Training Fellow – Cancer Genomics (The Francis Crick Institute)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Stem Cell Biology (City of Hope)

Research Fellow – Stem Cell Biology (Brigham & Women’s Hospital – Harvard Medical School)

Post Doctoral Fellow – Stem Cell Biology (Technion – Israel Institute of Technology)

Assistant Professor – Department of Biological Sciences (Rutgers University Newark)

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