Tolerogenic dendritic cells (tol-DCs) offer a promising therapeutic potential for autoimmune diseases. Tol-DCs have been reported to inhibit immunogenic responses, yet little is known about the mechanisms controlling their tolerogenic status, as well as associated specific markers. Here we show that the anti-inflammatory TAM receptor tyrosine kinase MERTK, is highly expressed on clinical grade dexamethasone-induced human tol-DCs and mediates their tolerogenic effect. Neutralization of MERTK in allogenic mixed lymphocyte reactions as well as autologous DC-T cell cultures leads to increased T cell proliferation and IFN-g production. Additionally, we identify a previously unrecognized non-cell autonomous regulatory function of MERTK expressed on DCs. Recombinant Mer-Fc protein, used to mimic MERTK on DCs, suppresses nave and antigen-specific memory T cell activation. This mechanism is mediated by the neutralization of the MERTK agonist Protein S (PROS1) expressed by T cells. We find that MERTK and PROS1 are expressed in human T cells upon TCR activation and drive an autocrine pro-proliferative mechanism. Collectively, these results suggest that MERTK on tol-DCs directly inhibits T cell activation through the competition for PROS1 interaction with MERTK in the T cells. Targeting MERTK may provide an interesting approach to effectively increase or suppress tolerance for the purpose of immunotherapy.
MERTK as negative regulator of human T cell activation.
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View SamplesNew and effective therapeutical options are available for the treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis. One of such treatments is rituximab, and chimeric anti-CD20 antibody that selectively depletes the CD20+ B cell subpopulation.
Identification of candidate genes for rituximab response in rheumatoid arthritis patients by microarray expression profiling in blood cells.
Specimen part, Disease, Disease stage
View SamplesWe sought to find a gene-expression multigene predictor of response to infliximab therapy in Rheumatoid Arthritis patients. Using internal and external cross-validation systems we have built and validated an 8-gene predictor for response to infliximab.
An eight-gene blood expression profile predicts the response to infliximab in rheumatoid arthritis.
Sex, Specimen part, Disease, Disease stage
View SamplesWe performed microarray analyses on RNA from mice with isoproterenol-induced cardiac hypertrophy and mice with exercise-induced physiological hypertrophy and identified 865 and 2,534 genes that were significantly altered in pathological and physiological cardiac hypertrophy models, respectively.
Transcriptional profile of isoproterenol-induced cardiomyopathy and comparison to exercise-induced cardiac hypertrophy and human cardiac failure.
Specimen part
View SamplesTo determine the role of Mbd3/NuRD in lymphopoiesis, gene expression in purified populations of Mbd3-deleted and control lymphoid progenitor cells was analysed using RNA-seq. Overall design: Mbd3-deficient and control lymphoid progenitors were isolated from mouse bone marrow by flow cytometry, including haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), lymphoid-primed multipotent progenitors (LMPPs), all-lymphoid progenitors (ALPs) and B cell-biased lymphoid progenitors (BLPs). RNA-seq was performed on 100 HSCs or 150 cells from the other populuations, using the previously described smartseq2 protocol for RNA-seq of small numbers of cells (Picelli et al. (2014) Nature protocols 9:171).
Mbd3/NuRD controls lymphoid cell fate and inhibits tumorigenesis by repressing a B cell transcriptional program.
Sex, Age, Specimen part, Cell line, Subject
View SamplesProfiling of the transcriptome of FITChigh/FSCdim and FITCdim/FSChigh sub-populations. Three biological replicates were profiled for each cell type. Overall design: Profiling of the transcriptome of FITChigh/FSCdim and FITCdim/FSChigh sub-populations. Three biological replicates were profiled for each cell type.
An autofluorescence-based method for the isolation of highly purified ventricular cardiomyocytes.
Specimen part, Cell line, Subject
View SamplesChanges in nuclear Ca2+ homeostasis activate specific gene expression programs and are central to the acquisition and the plastic storage of memories. DREAM /KChIP proteins form heterotetramers that bind DNA and repress transcription in a Ca2+-dependent manner. Single ablation of one member of the DREAM/KChIP family may result in a mild or the absence of phenotype due to partial gene compensation. To study the function of DREAM/KChIP proteins in the brain, we used transgenic mice expressing a Ca2+-insensitive/CREB-independent dominant active mutant DREAM (daDREAM). We show that daDREAM controls the expression of several activity-dependent transcription factors including Npas4, Nr4a1, Mef2C, JunB and c-Fos, as well as the chromatin modifying enzyme Mbd4 and proteins related to actin polymerization like Arc and gelsolin. Thus, directly or through these targets, expression of daDREAM in the forebrain resulted in a complex phenotype characterized by i) impaired learning and memory, ii) loss of recurrent inhibition and enhanced LTP in the dentate gyrus without affecting Kv4-mediated potassium currents, and iii) modified spine density in DG granule neurons. Our results propose DREAM as a master-switch transcription factor regulating several activity-dependent gene expression programs to control synaptic plasticity, learning and memory.
DREAM controls the on/off switch of specific activity-dependent transcription pathways.
Specimen part
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