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<p><strong>Purpose:</strong> Microglia are the innate immune cells of the central nervous system. Activated microglia release nitric oxide, glutamate, and superoxide radicals, which are harmful to retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). They may also benefit surviving cells by removing toxic cellular debris or by secretion of neurotrophic factors. The paradoxical role of microglia remains controversial because the nature and time-course of the injury that determines whether microglia acquire a neuroprotective or pro-inflammatory phenotype is unknown. HAPI cells are an immortalized microglial cell line, whose phenotype can be manipulated <em>in vitro</em>. It is my HYPOTHESIS that pharmacological manipulation of microglia to acquire either a pro-inflammatory or pro-survival phenotype will exacerbate neuronal cell death or enhance neuronal survival after injury, respectively.</p> <p><strong>Method:</strong> Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) were used to hyper-stimulate the HAPI cells and minocycline to maintain the HAPI cells in a quiescent state. Prior to the experiments, the HAPI cells were labelled with Wheat Germ Agglutinin conjugated to Texas Red. The HAPI cells were cultured and exposed to minocycline (10 µg/mL for 1 hour) or LPS (1 µg/mL for 24 hours). Sprague-Dawley rats then recieved intraocular (30,000 cells) or tail vein (5 million cells) injections of either the minocycline treated HAPI cells or the LPS treated HAPI cells and an optic nerve crush. Retinas were examined at 4-14 days later and the number of surviving RGCs will be determined by Brn3a labelling of RGCs. BM88 antibody labelling was done to determine the severity of the injury and to determine molecular changes after neuroinflammation.</p> <p><strong>Results: </strong>Injection of untreated HAPI cells resulted in the greater loss of RGCs early after ONC when injected into the vitreous and later after ONC when injected into the tail vein. LPS activated HAPI cells injected into the vitreous resulted in greater RGC loss with and without injury. When injected into the tail vein with ONC there was no loss of RGCs 4 days after ONC but later there was greater loss of RGCs. Minocycline treated HAPI cells injected into the vitreous resulted in greater RGC survival than when untreated HAPI cells were injected. However, when injected into the tail vein with ONC there was greater loss of RGCs. There was also BM88 down regulation after injury and this was more pronounced after HAPI cell injection.</p> <p><strong>Conclusion:</strong> Neuroprotection or cytotoxicity of microglia depends on the type of activation, time course of the injury, and if the microglia act on the axon or cell body of the retinal ganglion cell.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Metastasis is the leading cause of death among cancer patients. The metastatic cascade, during which cancer cells from the primary tumor reach a distant organ and form multiple secondary tumors, consists of a series of events starting with cancer cells invasion through the surrounding tissue of the primary tumor. Invading cells may perform proteolytic degradation of the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM) and directed migration in order to disseminate through the tissue. Both of the mentioned processes are profoundly affected by several parameters originating from the tumor microenvironment (extrinsic) and tumor cells themselves (intrinsic). However, due to the complexity of the invasion process and heterogeneity of the tumor tissue, the exact effect of many of these parameters are yet to be elucidated. ECM proteolysis is widely performed by cancer cells to facilitate the invasion process through the dense and highly cross-linked tumor tissue. It has been shown in vivo that the proteolytic activity of the cancer cells correlates with the cross-linking level of their surrounding ECM. Therefore, the first part of this thesis seeks to understand how ECM cross-linking regulates cancer cells proteolytic activity. This chapter first quantitatively characterizes the correlation between ECM cross-linking and the dynamics of cancer cells proteolytic activity and then identifies ß1-integrin subunit as a master regulator of this process. Once cancer cells degrade their immediate ECM, they directionally migrate through it. Bundles of aligned collagen fibers and gradients of soluble growth factors are two well-known cues of directed migration that are abundantly present in tumor tissues stimulating contact guidance and chemotaxis, respectively. While such cues direct the cells towards a specific direction, they are also known to stimulate cell cycle progression. Moreover, due to the complexity of the tumor tissue, cells may be exposed to both cues simultaneously, and this co-stimulation may happen in the same or different directions. Hence, in the next two chapters of this thesis, the effect of cell cycle progression and contact guidance-chemotaxis dual-cue environments on directional migration of invading cells are assessed. First, we show that cell cycle progression affects contact guidance and not random motility of the cells. Next, we show how exposure of cancer cells to contact guidance-chemotaxis dual-cue environments can improve distinctive aspects of cancer invasion depending on the spatial conformation of the two cues. In this dissertation, we strive to achieve the defined milestones by developing novel mathematical and experimental models of cancer invasion as well as utilizing fluorescent time-lapse microscopy and automated image and signal processing techniques. The results of this study improve our knowledge about the role of the studied extrinsic and intrinsic cues in cancer invasion. / Bioengineering / Accompanied by fourteen .avi files.

Several studies have reported that administration of cannabinoid receptor agonists in inflammatory/autoimmune and CNS injury models resulted in significant attenuation of clinical disease. The beneficial effects correlated with the observed reduction of inflammatory mediators and peripheral immune cell infiltration into the site of inflammation. Previous studies from our laboratories demonstrated that administration of cannabinoid type 2 receptor agonist attenuated disease score and improved recovery in two murine models of neuroinflammation; spinal cord injury (SCI) and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), a murine model of multiple sclerosis. The goal of the current investigation was to evaluate the mechanisms through which administration of selective cannabinoid-2 receptor (CB2R) agonists modify inflammatory responses and help to improve function in SCI and EAE. In SCI, an acute neuroinflammatory disorder, administration of CB2R agonist at 1 h and 24 h following contusion injury to the cord resulted in improved recovery of motor function and bladder function (the ability to spontaneously void) compared to control animals. Evaluation of inflammatory mediators at 48h demonstrated a dramatic reduction in the expression of the chemokines CXCL9, 10, 11 and cytokines IL-23 and its receptor in CB2R agonist-treated cords. There was also a reduction in the expression of toll-like receptors (TLR1, TLR4, TLR6, and TLR7), which correlated with a decreased number of immunoreactive microglia. Interestingly, at seven days post injury, CB2R agonist-treated injured cords showed a significant reduction in both hematopoietic and myeloid cell infiltration. In EAE, a chronic neuroinflammatory disorder, our laboratories demonstrated previously that administration of a CB2R agonist led to lower disease scores and improved recovery. In this study, we observed reduced numbers of infiltrating hematopoietic and myeloid cells into the spinal cord and brain of CB2 agonist-treated mice. This reduction was observed at the peak of disease (day 17) and the effect was maintained at the chronic stage of disease (day 30). Evaluation of molecules associated with cell migration showed decreased levels of the adhesion molecule VCAM-1 and matrix metalloproteinases MMP-2 and 9 at peak of EAE in treated mice. The decrease in VCAM-1 correlates with our previous observation of decreased leukocyte rolling and adhesion to brain microvasculature. However, the reduction in MMP-2/9 expression suggests that CB2R agonists may also affect leukocyte transmigration into the perivascular space and further infiltration into the CNS parenchyma. This process requires both chemokine cues and the gelatinases MMP2/9. Animals deficient in these MMPs show leukocyte accumulation in the perivascular space and are resistant to EAE. There are no reports in the literature on possible CB2R agonist effects on gelatinases in myeloid cells. Although both MMP-2 and -9 are produced by antigen-presenting cells and act on similar substrates, MMP-9 appears to play a crucial role in EAE. Therefore, we decided to examine the effects of CB2 signaling on MMP-9 expression in myeloid cells, focusing on myeloid bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (BMDC). Activation of bone marrow-derived macrophages, dendritic cells, and primary microglia with the cytokine cocktail TNFα, IL-1ß, IL-6, containing PGE2, which mimicked an inflammatory milieu, resulted in expression of high levels of MMP-9. Treatment with CB2R agonists reduced MMP-9 in all three cell types. Since migration of DC to various sites is required for their activation and for the initiation of adaptive immune responses, we evaluated the effects of CB2R agonists on migration. The reduced levels of MMP-9 correlated with reduced migration of DC to the draining lymph nodes in vivo, as well as reduced migration vitro in the matrigel migration assay. The effect on MMP-9 expression was mediated through CB2R, resulting in reduction in cAMP levels, subsequent decrease in ERK activation, and reduced binding of c-Fos and c-Jun to the AP-1 site in the MMP-9 promoter. We postulate that, by dampening production of MMP-9 and subsequent MMP-9-dependent DC migration, cannabinoids contribute to resolve acute inflammation and to reestablish homeostasis. Selective CB2R agonists might be valuable future therapeutic agents for the treatment of chronic inflammatory conditions by targeting activated immune cells including DC. / Physiology

No / Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) enhances cell migration and promotes wound healing in vivo, but the intracellular signaling pathways regulating these processes remain incompletely understood. Here we investigated the involvement of agonist-induced Ca2+ entry and STIM1 and Orai1 proteins in regulating nuclear factor of activated T cell (NFAT) signaling and LPA-induced keratinocyte cell motility. As monitored by Fluo-4 imaging, stimulation with 10 μM LPA in 60 μM Ca2+o evoked Ca2+i transients owing to store release, whereas addition of LPA in physiological 1.2 mM Ca2+o triggered store release coupled to extracellular Ca2+ entry. Store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) was blocked by the SOCE inhibitor diethylstilbestrol (DES), STIM1 silencing using RNA interference (RNAi), and expression of dominant/negative Orai1R91W. LPA induced significant NFAT activation as monitored by nuclear translocation of green fluorescent protein-tagged NFAT2 and a luciferase reporter assay, which was impaired by DES, expression of Orai1R91W, and inhibition of calcineurin using cyclosporin A (CsA). By using chemotactic migration assays, LPA-induced cell motility was significantly impaired by STIM1, CsA, and NFAT2 knockdown using RNAi. These data indicate that in conditions relevant to epidermal wound healing, LPA induces SOCE and NFAT activation through Orai1 channels and promotes cell migration through a calcineurin/NFAT2-dependent pathway.

Yes / Cell migration is a key contributor to wound repair. This study presents findings indicating that the liquid crystal based cell traction force transducer (LCTFT) system can be used in conjunction with a bespoke cell traction force mapping (CTFM) software to monitor cell/surface traction forces from quiescent state in real time. In this study, time-lapse photo microscopy allowed cell induced deformations in liquid crystal coated substrates to be monitored and analyzed. The results indicated that the system could be used to monitor the generation of cell/surface forces in an initially quiescent cell, as it migrated over the culture substrate, via multiple points of contact between the cell and the surface. Future application of this system is the real-time assaying of the pharmacological effects of cytokines on the mechanics of cell migration.

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(生命科学) / 甲第24822号 / 生博第502号 / 新制||生||67(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院生命科学研究科統合生命科学専攻 / (主査)教授 上村 匡, 教授 見学 美根子, 教授 鈴木 淳 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy in Life Sciences / Kyoto University / DGAM

This thesis explores the role of collective cell migration and self-organisation in the development of the embryo and in vitro tissue formation through mathematical and computational approaches. We consider how population heterogeneity, microenvironmental signals and cell-cell interactions facilitate cells to collectively organise and navigate, with the aim to work towards uncovering general rules and principles, rather than delving into the microscopic molecular details. To ensure the biological relevance of our results, we collaborate closely with experimental biologists working on two model systems. First, to understand how neural crest cells obtain directionality, maintain persistence and specialise during their migration, we use computational simulations in parallel with imaging of chick embryos under genetic and surgical perturbations. We show how only a few cells adopting a leader state that enables them to read out chemical signals can lead a population of cells in a follower state over long distances in the embryo. Furthermore, we devise and test an improved mechanism of how cells dynamically switch between leader and follower states in the presence of a chemoattractant gradient. Our computational work guides the choice of new experiments, aids in their interpretation and probes hypotheses in ways the experiments can not. Secondly, to study the self-organisation of mouse skin cells in vitro, we draw on aggregation processes and scaling theory. Dermal and epidermal cells, after being dissociated and mixed, can reconstitute functional (transplantable and hair-growing) skin in culture. Using kinetic aggregation models and scaling analysis we show that the initial clustering of epidermal cells can be described by Smoluchowski coagulation, consistent with the dynamics of the "clustering clusters" universality class. Then, we investigate a potential mechanism for the size-regulation of cell aggregates during the later stages of the skin reconstitution process. Our analysis shows the extent to which this tissue formation follows a single physical process and when the transition to different dynamics occurs, which may be triggered by cellular biochemical changes.

Der Fokus der vorliegenden Arbeit lag auf dem Teilvorgang der Migration epithelialer Zellen auf annähernd physiologischem Matrix-Untergrund. Im Zellkulturmodell wurde die migratorische Aktivität der aus dem humanen Mammakarzinom isolierten, schwach invasiven epithelialen Zelllinie MCF-7 untersucht. Es stellte sich die grundsätzliche Frage, ob eine Wnt-bedingte Invasionssteigerung, welche in vorangegangenen Untersuchungen gezeigt worden war, durch die gesteigerte migratorische Aktivität der Tumorzellen verursacht ist. Es sollten zwei an der Tumorprogression (Wnt5b) bzw. an deren Inhibition (Dkk-2) beteiligte Proteine auf den Invasions-Teilvorgang der Migration hin näher beleuchtet werden. Dazu wurden Untersuchungen in einem modifizierten Tumor-Migrationsassay auf extrazellulärer Matrix (ECM) durchgeführt. In Analogie zu den Vorgängen bei der Wundheilung wurde ein in Anlehnung an die bereits seit langem verwendete Methode des Scratchassays sowie an den etablierten Migrationsassay ein Konfrontationsassay auf ECM konzipiert. Der Einfluss von Wnt5b und Dkk-2 auf die Migration der schwach invasiven, epithelialen Zelllinie MCF-7 wurde schließlich im Migrationsassay sowie im neu etablierten Konfrontationsassay auf ECM näher untersucht. Es wurden dazu Messungen zur Migrationsaktivität der eingesetzten Zellen unter Stimulation mit Wnt5b und Dkk-2 erhoben. Jedoch zeigte sich in beiden Assay-Modellen auf ECM kein signifikanter Einfluss der beiden untersuchten Proteine auf das Migrationsverhalten der MCF-7-Zellen. Diese Ergebnisse demonstrieren, dass die Beobachtungen zum Teilaspekt der Migration nicht automatisch Rückschlüsse auf die Invasion zulassen. Letztere ist ein komplex zusammengesetzter Gesamtvorgang, dessen einzelne Bestandteile es noch weiter zu erforschen gilt.