Neural Cell News Volume 12.06 | Feb 14 2018

TOP STORY

Stem Cell Divisions in the Adult Brain Seen for the First Time

Scientists succeeded for the first time in tracking individual stem cells and their neuronal progeny over months within the intact adult brain. This study sheds light on how new neurons are produced throughout life. [Press release from the University of Zurich discussing online prepublication in Science] Press Release | Abstract

(Ranked by impact factor of the journal)

Haploinsufficiency Leads to Neurodegeneration in C9ORF72 ALS/FTD Human Induced Motor Neurons

Using human induced motor neurons, researchers found that repeat-expanded C9ORF72 was haploinsufficient in ALS. They found that C9ORF72 interacted with endosomes and was required for normal vesicle trafficking and lysosomal biogenesis in motor neurons. [Nat Med] Abstract | Full Article | Press Release

miR-182-5p and miR-183-5p Act as GDNF Mimics in Dopaminergic Midbrain Neurons

Using small RNA sequencing, the authors showed that glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) specifically increases the expression of miR-182-5p and miR-183-5p in primary midbrain neurons. Transfection of synthetic miR-182-5p and miR-183-5p mimics lead to increased neurite outgrowth and mediated neuroprotection of dopaminergic neurons in vitro and in vivo, mimicking GDNF effects. [Mol Ther Nucleic Acids] Full Article

A Regulatory Circuitry Between Gria2, miR-409, and miR-495 Is Affected by ALS FUS Mutation in ESC-Derived Motor Neurons

To explore how fused in sarcoma (FUS) mutations impinge on motor neuron-specific RNA-based circuitries, investigators performed transcriptome profiling of small and long RNAs of motor neurons (MNs) derived from mouse embryonic stem cells carrying a FUS-P517L knock-in mutation, which is equivalent to human FUS-P525L, associated with a severe and juvenile-onset form of ALS. [Mol Neurobiol] Full Article

Human Brain Organoid-on-a-Chip to Model Prenatal Nicotine Exposure

Investigators created a new brain organoid-on-a-chip system derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells that allows them to model neurodevelopmental disorders under prenatal nicotine exposure at early stages. [Lab Chip] Abstract | Graphical Abstract

Insulin-Mediated Signaling Facilitates Resistance to PDGFR Inhibition in Proneural hPDGFB-Driven Gliomas

To study the resistance of proneural gliomas that are driven by a platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR)-regulated pathway to targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors, scientists utilized a mouse model of proneural glioma in which mice develop tumors that become resistant to PDGFR inhibition. [Mol Cancer Ther] Abstract

Peroxynitrite Enhances Self-Renewal, Proliferation and Neuronal Differentiation of Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells through Activating HIF-1α and Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling Pathway

Increased neural stem/progenitor cells (NSCs) proliferation was accompanied by peroxynitrite production in the rat brains with one hour of ischemia plus seven days of reperfusion in vivo. Cell sorting experiments revealed that endogenous peroxynitrite level affected the capacity of proliferation and self-renewal in NSCs in vitro. [Free Radic Biol Med] Abstract

The Urokinase Receptor Induces a Mesenchymal Gene Expression Signature in Glioblastoma Cells and Promotes Tumor Cell Survival in Neurospheres

Investigators showed that patient survival correlates inversely with PLAUR mRNA expression in gliomas of all grades, in glioblastomas, and in the subset of glioblastomas that demonstrate the mesenchymal gene expression signature. [Sci Rep] Full Article

An Allogeneic ‘Off the Shelf’ Therapeutic Strategy for Peripheral Nerve Tissue Engineering Using Clinical Grade Human Neural Stem Cells

The effectiveness of using CTX0E03, a conditionally immortalised human neural stem cell line, as a source of allogeneic cells for constructing living artificial nerve repair tissue was tested. CTX0E03 cells were differentiated then combined with collagen to form engineered neural tissue, stable aligned sheets of cellular hydrogel. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Self-Organized Nanostructure Modified Microelectrode for Sensitive Electrochemical Glutamate Detection in Stem Cells-Derived Brain Organoids

The authors developed a convenient method to realize functionalized borosilicate glass capillaries with nanostructured texture as an electrochemical biosensor to detect glutamate release from cerebral organoids generated from human embryonic stem cells that mimic various brain regions. [Biosensors] Full Article

MicroRNA-Based Drugs for Brain Tumors

With a special focus on glioblastoma, the authors provide an up-to-date summary of miRNA biogenesis, the role of miRNA in cancer resistance, and essential tools for modulating miRNA expression, as well as of clinically promising RNAi delivery systems and how they can be adapted for therapy. [Semin Cancer Biol] Abstract

Is Parkinson’s Disease a Neurodevelopmental Disorder and Will Brain Organoids Help Us to Understand It?

Scientists discuss the hypothesis that Parkinson’s disease is actually a neurodevelopmental disorder that is compensated for a long time. [Stem Cells Dev] Abstract

Visit our reviews page to see a complete list of reviews in the neural cell research field.

Sandoz Announces US FDA Approval and Launch of Glatopa^® 40 mg/mL Three Times-a-Week Generic Option for Relapsing Forms of Multiple Sclerosis

Sandoz announced the US FDA approval and launch of Glatopa^® 40 mg/mL. Glatopa 40 mg/mL is FDA-approved as a fully-substitutable, AP-rated generic version of Copaxone^® 40 mg/mL three times-a-week therapy for relapsing forms of MS. [Novartis] Press Release

Boehringer Ingelheim Refocuses PDE9 Inhibition Brain Research on Schizophrenia following Results from Phase II Alzheimer’s Trials

Boehringer Ingelheim announced that their Phase II Alzheimer’s disease (AD) trials with investigational compound BI 409306 had not met their efficacy endpoints and plans for further trials with BI 409306 in AD will therefore not be pursued. [Boehringer Ingelheim] Press Release

FDA Grants Marketing Authorization to Banyan Biomarkers for the First Diagnostic Blood Test for Traumatic Brain Injury

Banyan Biomarkers, Inc. announced that the FDA has granted the De Novo request for the commercialization of Banyan BTITM, an in vitro diagnostic blood test to aid in the evaluation of patients with suspected traumatic brain injury, also known as concussion. [Banyan Biomarkers, Inc. (Business Wire Inc.)] Press Release

NantKwest and Frankfurt University Hospital Announce First in Human Dosing of Off-the-Shelf HER2.taNK (CAR Natural Killer) Cell Therapy in Glioblastoma

NantKwest Inc. announced that the first patient has been dosed in a first-in-human, Phase I clinical study in glioblastoma of HER2.taNK, a novel, natural killer cell-based immuno-oncology therapy using CAR technology in patients. [NantKwest Inc.] Press Release

Texas A&M Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Celltex Therapeutics Enter Agreement for Alzheimer’s Research

Celltex Therapeutics Corporation, and Texas A&M University Health Science Center College of Medicine Institute for Regenerative Medicine announced an intellectual property license acquisition and research agreement. The announcement signals the first year of a multi-year research study investigating potential therapies for Alzheimer’s disease using autologous mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes. [Texas A&M University Health Science Center] Press Release

What are ‘mini-brains’, and how are they being used to study neurological development and disease? Watch Now

Researchers Debate Whether Journals Should Publish Signed Peer Reviews

Scientific journals should start routinely publishing the text of peer reviews for each paper they accept, said attendees at a meeting last week of scientists, academic publishers, and funding organizations. But there was little consensus on whether reviewers should have to publicly sign their critiques, which traditionally are accessible only to editors and authors. [ScienceInsider] Editorial

NIH Stays Flat, Absorbs Three Institutes in President’s 2019 Budget Proposal

Biomedical research funding was one of the budget lines saved from cuts by last-minute adjustments to President Donald Trump’s administration’s 2019 budget proposal. Still, advocates say they had hoped for more. [ScienceInsider] Editorial

Few UK Universities Have Adopted Rules against Impact-Factor Abuse

A survey of British institutions reveals that few have taken concrete steps to stop the much-criticized misuse of research metrics in the evaluation of academics’ work. The results offer an early insight into global efforts to clamp down on such practices. [Nature News] Editorial

NEW Adult Neurogenesis 2018
May 2-4, 2018
Dresden, Germany

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

NEW Multiple Positions – Neuroscience and Stem Cells (Sun Yat-Sen University)

NEW Research Technologist – Neural (STEMCELL Technologies Inc.)

Postdoctoral Position – Pain in Mouse Models of Spinal Cord Injury (Indiana University)

Postdoctoral Position – Spinal Cord Injury (Nanyang Technological University)

PhD/Postdoctoral Research Position – Neuroscience (Max Planck Society)

Postdoctoral Fellowship – Neurodegeneration (Lund University)

Postdoctoral Associate – Cerebral Organoids (Weill Cornell Medicine)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Neural Control of Circulation (The University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center)

Research Assistant – Neurodegenerative Disease (Thomas Jefferson University)

Multiple Faculty Positions – Neuroscience and Neuroengineering (Tsinghua University)

Postdoctoral Position – Brain Injury and Repair (University of Pennsylvania)

Faculty Members – Neuroscience (Mercer University)

Recruit Top Talent: Reach potential candidates by posting your organization’s career opportunities on the Connexon Creative Job Board at no cost.

Have we missed an important article or publication in Neural Cell News? Click here to submit!

Comments or suggestions? Submit your feedback here.