記述言語：日本語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

記述言語：日本語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

記述言語：日本語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

記述言語：英語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurological disorder, with impaired brain development caused by mutations in MECP2; however, the underlying mechanism remains elusive. We know from previous work that MeCP2 facilitates the processing of a specific microRNA, miR-199a, by associating with the Drosha complex to regulate neuronal functions. Here, we show that the MeCP2/miR-199a axis regulates neural stem/precursor cell (NS/PC) differentiation. A shift occurs from neuronal to astrocytic differentiation of MeCP2- and miR-199a-deficient NS/PCs due to the upregulation of a miR-199a target, Smad1, a downstream transcription factor of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling. Moreover, miR-199a expression and treatment with BMP inhibitors rectify the differentiation of RTT patient-derived NS/PCs and development of brain organoids, respectively, suggesting that facilitation of BMP signaling accounts for the impaired RTT brain development. Our study illuminates the molecular pathology of RTT and reveals the MeCP2/miR-199a/Smad1 axis as a potential therapeutic target for RTT.

DOI： 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109124

記述言語：英語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating neurologic disorder that often leads to permanent disability, and there is no effective treatment for it. High mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) is a damage-associated molecular protein that triggers sterile inflammation upon injuries. We have previously shown that two administrations of neutralizing monoclonal antibody (mAb) against HMGB1 (immediately after (0 h) and 6 h after) SCI dramatically improves functional recovery after SCI in mice. However, when considering clinical application, 0 h after SCI is not practical. Therefore, in this study, we examined the therapeutic time window of the mAb administration. Injection at 3 h after SCI significantly improved the functional recovery comparably to injection immediately after SCI, while injection at 6 h was less effective, and injection at 9 or 12 h had no therapeutic effect. We also found beneficial effects of injection at 3 h after injury on blood-spinal cord barrier maintenance, inflammatory-related gene expression and preservation of the damaged spinal cord tissue. Taken together, our results suggest that a single administration of anti-HMGB1 mAb within a proper time window could be a novel and potential therapeutic strategy for SCI.

DOI： 10.1016/j.neures.2018.03.004

記述言語：その他   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

DOI： 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2018.11.046

記述言語：その他   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

DOI： 10.1523/jneurosci.2423-17.2018

記述言語：英語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

Human neural precursor cells (hNPCs) derived from pluripotent stem cells display a high propensity for neuronal differentiation, but they require long-term culturing to differentiate efficiently into astrocytes. The mechanisms underlying this biased fate specification of hNPCs remain elusive. Here, we show that hypoxia confers astrocytic differentiation potential on hNPCs through epigenetic gene regulation, and that this was achieved by cooperation between hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha and Notch signaling, accompanied by a reduction of DNA methylation level in the promoter region of a typical astrocyte-specific gene, Glial fibrillary acidic protein. Furthermore, we found that this hypoxic culture condition could be applied to rapid generation of astrocytes from Rett syndrome patient-derived hNPCs, and that these astrocytes impaired neuronal development. Thus, our findings shed further light on the molecular mechanisms regulating hNPC differentiation and provide attractive tools for the development of therapeutic strategies for treating astrocyte-mediated neurological disorders.

DOI： 10.1016/j.stemcr.2017.05.001

記述言語：その他   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

DOI： 10.14800/rd.1456

記述言語：英語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

Targeted DNA demethylation in vivo using dCas9-peptide repeat and scFv-TET1 catalytic domain fusions
Despite the importance of DNA methylation in health and disease, technologies to readily manipulate methylation of specific sequences for functional analysis and therapeutic purposes are lacking. Here we adapt the previously described dCas9-SunTag for efficient, targeted demethylation of specific DNA loci. The original SunTag consists of ten copies of the GCN4 peptide separated by 5-amino-acid linkers. To achieve efficient recruitment of an anti-GCN4 scFv fused to the ten eleven (TET) 1 hydroxylase, which induces demethylation, we changed the linker length to 22 amino acids. The system attains demethylation efficiencies >50% in seven out of nine loci tested. Four of these seven loci showed demethylation of >90%. We demonstrate targeted demethylation of CpGs in regulatory regions and demethylation-dependent 1.7- to 50-fold upregulation of associated genes both in cell culture (embryonic stem cells, cancer cell lines, primary neural precursor cells) and in vivo in mouse fetuses.

DOI： 10.1038/nbt.3658

記述言語：英語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

Proper dendritic elaboration of neurons is critical for the formation of functional circuits during brain development. Defects in dendrite morphogenesis are associated with neuropsychiatric disorders, and microRNAs are emerging as regulators of aspects of neuronal maturation such as axonal and dendritic growth, spine formation, and synaptogenesis. Here, we show that miR-214 plays a pivotal role in the regulation of dendritic development. Overexpression of miR-214 increased dendrite size and complexity, whereas blocking of endogenous miR-214-3p, a mature form of miR-214, inhibited dendritic morphogenesis. We also found that miR-214-3p targets quaking (Qki), which is implicated in psychiatric diseases such as schizophrenia, through conserved target sites located in the 3-untranslated region of Qki mRNA, thereby down-regulating Qki protein levels. Overexpression and knockdown of Qki impaired and enhanced dendritic formation, respectively. Moreover, overexpression of Qki abolished the dendritic growth induced by miR-214 overexpression. Taken together, our findings reveal a crucial role for the miR-214-Qki pathway in the regulation of neuronal dendritic development.

DOI： 10.1074/jbc.M115.705749

記述言語：英語   掲載種別：研究論文（学術雑誌）  

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a neurodevelopmental disorder caused by MECP2 mutations. Although emerging evidence suggests that MeCP2 deficiency is associated with dysregulation of mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), which functions as a hub for various signaling pathways, the mechanism underlying this association and the molecular pathophysiology of RTT remain elusive. We show here that MeCP2 promotes the posttranscriptional processing of particular microRNAs (miRNAs) as a component of the microprocessor Drosha complex. Among the MeCP2-regulated miRNAs, we found that miR-199a positively controls mTOR signaling by targeting inhibitors for mTOR signaling. miR-199a and its targets have opposite effects on mTOR activity, ameliorating and inducing RTT neuronal phenotypes, respectively. Furthermore, genetic deletion of miR-199a- 2 led to a reduction of mTOR activity in the brain and recapitulated numerous RTT phenotypes in mice. Together, these findings establish miR-199a as a critical downstream target of MeCP2 in RTT pathogenesis by linking MeCP2 with mTOR signaling.

DOI： 10.1016/j.celrep.2015.08.028

開催年月日： 2023年3月

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

開催年月日： 2022年7月

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

開催年月日： 2022年6月

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

開催年月日： 2021年6月

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

開催年月日： 2021年6月

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

開催年月日： 2021年6月

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

リポジトリ公開URL： https://hdl.handle.net/2324/7173531

開催年月日： 2021年6月

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

記述言語：日本語  

国名：日本国  

記述言語：日本語