BioEssays最新文献

{"title":"Germ cell tumors, cell surface markers, and the early search for human pluripotent stem cells.","authors":"Peter W Andrews","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400094","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.202400094","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Many strands of research by different groups, starting from teratocarcinomas in the laboratory mouse, later moving the corresponding human tumors, contributed to the isolation and description of human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs). In this review, I highlight the contributions from my own research, particularly at the Wistar Institute during the 1980s, when with my colleagues we characterized one of the first clonal lines of pluripotent human embryonal carcinoma (EC) cells, the stem cells of teratocarcinomas, and identified key features including cell surface antigen markers that have since found a place in the study and exploitation of human PSC. Much of this research depended upon close teamwork with colleagues, many in other laboratories, who contributed different expertise and experience. It was also often driven by circumstance and chance rather than pursuit of a grand design.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141900930","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pluripotent stem cell-derived organoids: A brief history of curiosity-led discoveries.","authors":"Madeline A Lancaster","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400105","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.202400105","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Organoids are quickly becoming an accepted model for understanding human biology and disease. Pluripotent stem cells (PSC) provide a starting point for many organs and enable modeling of the embryonic development and maturation of such organs. The foundation of PSC-derived organoids can be found in elegant developmental studies demonstrating the remarkable ability of immature cells to undergo histogenesis even when taken out of the embryo context. PSC-organoids are an evolution of earlier methods such as embryoid bodies, taken to a new level with finer control and in some cases going beyond tissue histogenesis to organ-like morphogenesis. But many of the discoveries that led to organoids were not necessarily planned, but rather the result of inquisitive minds with freedom to explore. Protecting such curiosity-led research through flexible funding will be important going forward if we are to see further ground-breaking discoveries.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141888496","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Permeable TAD boundaries and their impact on genome-associated functions","authors":"Li-Hsin Chang,&nbsp;Daan Noordermeer","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400137","DOIUrl":"10.1002/bies.202400137","url":null,"abstract":"<p>TAD boundaries are genomic elements that separate biological processes in neighboring domains by blocking DNA loops that are formed through Cohesin-mediated loop extrusion. Most TAD boundaries consist of arrays of binding sites for the CTCF protein, whose interaction with the Cohesin complex blocks loop extrusion. TAD boundaries are not fully impermeable though and allow a limited amount of inter-TAD loop formation. Based on the reanalysis of Nano-C data, a multicontact Chromosome Conformation Capture assay, we propose a model whereby clustered CTCF binding sites promote the successive stalling of Cohesin and subsequent dissociation from the chromatin. A fraction of Cohesin nonetheless achieves boundary read-through. Due to a constant rate of Cohesin dissociation elsewhere in the genome, the maximum length of inter-TAD loops is restricted though. We speculate that the DNA-encoded organization of stalling sites regulates TAD boundary permeability and discuss implications for enhancer–promoter loop formation and other genomic processes.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/bies.202400137","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141874210","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Actomyosin forces in cell migration: Moving beyond cell body retraction","authors":"Kai Weißenbruch,&nbsp;Roberto Mayor","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400055","DOIUrl":"10.1002/bies.202400055","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In textbook illustrations of migrating cells, actomyosin contractility is typically depicted as the contraction force necessary for cell body retraction. This dogma has been transformed by the molecular clutch model, which acknowledges that actomyosin traction forces also generate and transmit biomechanical signals at the leading edge, enabling cells to sense and shape their migratory path in mechanically complex environments. To fulfill these complementary functions, the actomyosin system assembles a gradient of contractile energy along the front-rear axis of migratory cells. Here, we highlight the hierarchic assembly and self-regulatory network structure of the actomyosin system and explain how the kinetics of different nonmuscle myosin II (NM II) paralogs synergize during contractile force generation. Our aim is to emphasize how protrusion formation, cell adhesion, contraction, and retraction are spatiotemporally integrated during different modes of migration, including chemotaxis and durotaxis. Finally, we hypothesize how different NM II paralogs might tune aspects of migration in vivo, highlighting future research directions.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/bies.202400055","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141874209","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"X centromeric drive may explain the prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome and other conditions","authors":"Tom Moore","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400056","DOIUrl":"10.1002/bies.202400056","url":null,"abstract":"<p>X chromosome centromeric drive may explain the prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome and contribute to oocyte aneuploidy, menopause, and other conditions. The mammalian X chromosome may be vulnerable to meiotic drive because of X inactivation in the female germline. The human X pericentromeric region contains genes potentially involved in meiotic mechanisms, including multiple <i>SPIN1</i> and <i>ZXDC</i> paralogs. This is consistent with a multigenic drive system comprising differential modification of the active and inactive X chromosome centromeres in female primordial germ cells and preferential segregation of the previously inactivated X chromosome centromere to the polar body at meiosis I. The drive mechanism may explain differences in X chromosome regulation in the female germlines of the human and mouse and, based on the functions encoded by the genes in the region, the transmission of X pericentromeric genetic or epigenetic variants to progeny could contribute to preeclampsia, autism, and differences in sexual differentiation.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/bies.202400056","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141787343","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Transposable elements as drivers of dedifferentiation: Connections between enhancers in embryonic stem cells, placenta, and cancer","authors":"Konsta Karttunen,&nbsp;Divyesh Patel,&nbsp;Biswajyoti Sahu","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400059","DOIUrl":"10.1002/bies.202400059","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Transposable elements (TEs) have emerged as important factors in establishing the cell type-specific gene regulatory networks and evolutionary novelty of embryonic and placental development. Recently, studies on the role of TEs and their dysregulation in cancers have shed light on the transcriptional, transpositional, and regulatory activity of TEs, revealing that the activation of developmental transcriptional programs by TEs may have a role in the dedifferentiation of cancer cells to the progenitor-like cell states. This essay reviews the recent evidence of the <i>cis</i>-regulatory TEs (henceforth crTE) in normal development and malignancy as well as the key transcription factors and regulatory pathways that are implicated in both cell states, and presents existing gaps remaining to be studied, limitations of current technologies, and therapeutic possibilities.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/bies.202400059","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141787342","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"“Social Darwinism” revisited","authors":"Dave Speijer","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400180","DOIUrl":"10.1002/bies.202400180","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;I have commented upon inappropriate usage of “Darwinian” or “Darwinism” in public discourse in editorials before, see for example.&lt;sup&gt;[&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;sup&gt;1&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;sup&gt;]&lt;/sup&gt; In such cases, I was upset about using the term in its highly restricted incarnation of the competitive struggle between organisms, as if evolution did not also give rise to, amongst others, symbiosis, cooperation, altruism, and empathy, as described by Darwin himself. Such misuse is partly due to the infamous 19th-century concept of “Social Darwinism”, popularized as “survival of the fittest” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survival_of_the_fittest; accessed July 10, 2024), a catchy, but rather unfortunate way of describing evolutionary theory (given its tautological characteristics in this highly oversimplified rendition). Another problematic aspect: “fit” invokes physical fitness, instead of “leaving more copies in successive future generations” which reflects a more accurate description of our evolutionary understanding.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;However, a much more pernicious and common misunderstanding regarding evolution wreaks havoc in our environments and societies. Evolution can be understood as a multi-level, highly intricate, interplay between two forces: chance and selection. Even evolutionary scientists themselves run the risk of overemphasizing selection, while (unconsciously) downplaying the chance/luck component. Yes, we point to the &lt;i&gt;random&lt;/i&gt; nature of mutations in DNA, but most of us do not sufficiently grasp the overwhelming presence and influence of chance on the make-up of biological (and societal) reality. Because it is so abundant, here are just a few wide-ranging examples. (i) Apart from “simple” mutations, complete gene-duplications can haphazardly occur, with retention opening up avenues of diversifying functions;&lt;sup&gt;[&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;sup&gt;]&lt;/sup&gt; (ii) the vagaries of population dynamics, with bottlenecks allowing retention of slightly detrimental (or unnecessarily complex; see below) characteristics, arbitrarily giving rise to founder effects; (iii) the unpredictable nature of highly complex ecological systems, with “sudden” massive changes stemming from internal or external (e.g., an asteroid impact) causes. As Stephen J. Gould said, play the tape of life again and biology would look completely different;&lt;sup&gt;[&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;sup&gt;3&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;sup&gt;]&lt;/sup&gt; thus “survival of the luckiest” is probably a better description; (iv) because untangling the effects of chance and selection is not easy, it is still unclear whether selection even made a meaningful contribution to elaborate (“extra”) mechanisms such as RNA editing or if these constitute examples of pure “constructive neutral evolution” with complexity just begetting further complexity.&lt;sup&gt;[&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;sup&gt;4, 5&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;sup&gt;]&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;So, why is the relative neglect of chance in our understanding of reality so detrimental to how we interact with nature and each other in society? In","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/bies.202400180","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141787341","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The yin and yang of pioneer transcription factors: Dual roles in repression and activation","authors":"Takeshi Katsuda,&nbsp;Jonathan H. Sussman,&nbsp;Kenneth S. Zaret,&nbsp;Ben Z. Stanger","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400138","DOIUrl":"10.1002/bies.202400138","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Pioneer transcription factors, by virtue of their ability to target nucleosomal DNA in silent chromatin, play crucial roles in eliciting cell fate decisions during development and cellular reprogramming. In addition to their well-established role in chromatin opening to activate gene expression programs, recent studies have demonstrated that pioneer factors have the complementary function of being able to silence the starting cell identity through targeted chromatin repression. Given recent discoveries regarding the repressive aspect of pioneer function, we discuss the basis by which pioneer factors can suppress alternative lineage programs in the context of cell fate control.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/bies.202400138","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141765531","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Childhood B cell leukemia: Intercepting the paths to progression","authors":"Cesar Cobaleda,&nbsp;Carolina Vicente-Dueñas,&nbsp;Kim E. Nichols,&nbsp;Isidro Sanchez-Garcia","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400033","DOIUrl":"10.1002/bies.202400033","url":null,"abstract":"<p>B-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (B-ALL) is the most common pediatric cancer, arising most often in children aged 2–5 years. This distinctive age distribution hints at an association between B-ALL development and disrupted immune system function during a susceptible period during childhood, possibly triggered by early exposure to infection. While cure rates for childhood B-ALL surpass 90% in high-income nations, survivors suffer from diminished quality of life due to the side effects of treatment. Consequently, understanding the origins and evolution of B-ALL, and how to prevent this prevalent childhood cancer, is paramount to alleviate this substantial health burden. This article provides an overview of our current understanding of the etiology of childhood B-ALL and explores how this knowledge can inform preventive strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/bies.202400033","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141765529","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The history and status of dopamine cell therapies for Parkinson's disease.","authors":"Roger A Barker, Anders Björklund, Malin Parmar","doi":"10.1002/bies.202400118","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.202400118","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by the loss of the dopaminergic nigrostriatal pathway which has led to the successful development of drug therapies that replace or stimulate this network pharmacologically. Although these drugs work well in the early stages of the disease, over time they produce side effects along with less consistent clinical benefits to the person with Parkinson's (PwP). As such there has been much interest in repairing this pathway using transplants of dopamine neurons. This work which began 50 years ago this September is still ongoing and has now moved to first in human trials using human pluripotent stem cell-derived dopaminergic neurons. The results of these trials are eagerly awaited although proof of principle data has already come from trials using human fetal midbrain dopamine cell transplants. This data has shown that developing dopamine cells when transplanted in the brain of a PwP can survive long term with clinical benefits lasting decades and with restoration of normal dopaminergic innervation in the grafted striatum. In this article, we discuss the history of this field and how this has now led us to the recent stem cell trials for PwP.</p>","PeriodicalId":9264,"journal":{"name":"BioEssays","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141765530","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}