In this study, we have addressed the role of the imprinted long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) Meg3 and its associated miRNA cluster for adult hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) function. Meg3 is highly and specifically expressed in adult HSCs, but not in progenitor or mature cells. HI-STEM PhD student Pia Sommerkamp and her colleagues could show that targeted Meg3-deletion surprisingly does not impair HSC function or hematopoiesis. The effects of Meg3 deficiency were not only analyzed under homeostatic conditions, but also in response to inflammatory signaling and in in vivo serial reconstitution assays. Within the study, the team has shown that loss of Meg3 expression in HSCs in adult mice as well as in the embryonic stage does not affect the hematopoietic system. These results challenge a recent report and suggest that the Meg3 locus only indirectly affects HSC function by modulating the microenvironment or niches of HSCs.

The work was co-supervised by Andreas Trumpp from HI-STEM and Nina Cabezas-Wallscheid from the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and was published in Scientific Reports.

 Further Reading:

  • Sommerkamp, P., Renders, S., Ladel, L., Hotz-Wagenblatt, A., Schönberger, K., Zeisberger, P., Przybylla, A., Sohn, M., Zhou, Y., Klibanski, A., Cabezas-Wallscheid, N.@, & Trumpp, A.@ (2019). The long non-coding RNA Meg3 is dispensable for hematopoietic stem cells. Scientific Reports, 9(1), 2110. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-38605-8

 

In the study, which was led by HI-STEM postdoc Marc Thier, we have succeeded for the first time to directly reprogram human blood cells into a previously unknown type of neural stem cell. These induced stem cells are similar to those that occur during the early embryonic development of the central nervous system. They can be modified and multiplied indefinitely in the culture dish and can represent an important basis for the development of regenerative therapies.

Within the study, the team has succeed for the first time to reprogram mature human cells in such a way that a defined type of induced neural stem cells is produced that can multiply almost indefinitely. The work was a cooperation with stem cell researcher Frank Edenhofer from the University of Innsbruck and neuroscientist Hannah Monyer from DKFZ and appeared in Cell Stem Cell.

Further reading

Marc Christian Thier, Oliver Hommerding, Jasper Panten, Roberta Pinna, Diego García-González, Thomas Berger, Philipp Wörsdörfer, Yassen Assenov, Roberta Scognamiglio, Adriana Przybylla, Paul Kaschutnig, Lisa Becker, Michael D. Milsom, Anna Jauch, Jochen Utikal, Carl Herrmann, Hannah Monyer, Frank Edenhofer und Andreas Trumpp. Cell Stem Cell (2018), DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2018.11.015

 

  1. Prestigious award for Andreas Trumpp
  2. Marieke Essers receives the Prize of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities
  3. International Behr-Symposium on Stem Cells and Cancer
  4. HI STEM researchers show link between stress signaling and chemotherapy resistant metastasis in breast cancer
  5. Andreas Trumpp elected as Board Member of the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR)
  6. HI-STEM Teams Win Gold and Silver at the DKFZ’s Sommerfest Cup!
  7. New Review in Cell Stem Cell: Causes and Consequences of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Heterogeneity
  8. Double sucess for HI-STEM researchers Simon Haas and Simon Raffel
  9. Ten years of successful research on cancer stem cells at HI-STEM – Third funding period announced!
  10. HI-STEM participates in UniStem Day 2018
  11. Marieke Essers receives the Chica and Heinz Schaller Research Award
  12. Regulating Stem Cell Function from Long Distances: HI-STEM Team and Colleagues Describe New Layers of Myc Regulation in Nature

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