Inhibitor of differentiation (Id) family helix-loop-helix proteins regulate the proliferation, survival and differentiation of numerous cell types during development, however their function during retinal development has not been analyzed. Using loss-of-function and overexpression assays in zebrafish, I demonstrate that Id2a levels modulate retinoblast cell cycle kinetics and thereby influence neuron and glia formation in the retina. Id2a-deficient retinas possess increased numbers of cells occupying S phase, at the expense of mitotic cells, and kinetic analyses demonstrate that Id2a is required for S-phase progression and/or the transition from S to M phase. Id2a-dependent defects in retinoblast proliferation lead to microphthalmia and to an absence of nearly all differentiated inner and outer nuclear layer cell types. Overexpression of id2a has the opposite effect on retinoblast cell cycle kinetics: id2a-overexpressing retinoblasts progress from S to M phase more rapidly and they undergo mitosis more frequently, which results in macrophthalmia. Mosaic analyses reveal that Id2a function in facilitating both cell cycle progression and neuronal differentiation in the retina is non-cell-autonomous, suggesting that Id2a functions upstream of the extrinsic pathways that regulate retinogenesis. In an effort to identify which extrinsic pathways function downstream of Id2a, I discovered that Id2a function is necessary and sufficient to limit Notch pathway activity during retinogenesis. Id2a-deficient retinae possess elevated levels of Notch pathway component gene expression, while retinae overexpressing id2a possess reduced expression of Notch pathway component genes. Attenuation of Notch signaling activity by DAPT or by morpholino knockdown of Notch1a is sufficient to rescue both the proliferative and differentiation defects in Id2a-deficient retinae. In addition to regulating Notch pathway activity, through an RNA-Seq and differential gene expression analysis of Id2a-deficient retinae, I identified a number of additional intrinsic and extrinsic regulatory pathway components whose expression is regulated by Id2a. These data highlight the integral role played by Id2a in the gene regulatory network governing the transition from retinoblast proliferation to terminal differentiation during vertebrate retinogenesis. / text

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

Levels of retinoic acid (RA), the active metabolite of vitamin A, are tightly regulated throughout vertebrate CNS development by RA synthesising and catabolising enzymes. However, increasing evidence suggests that similar regulatory mechanisms exist in the adult brain to maintain RA at the optimum level. The hippocampus is one of very few regions where neurons continue to be born. Furthermore, the hippocampus is one of the regions in which RA regulates function. RA is synthesised in the region of the hippocampus by the enzyme, retinaldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (RALDH2), expressed in the adjacent meninges. CYP26B1 has been previously shown to be present by in situ hybridisation in the CA4/3 region between the two blades of the dentate gyrus. We hypothesised that a gradient was set up between the source and sink of RA in the adult hippocampus. To test this, we disrupted the balance using exogenous RA and using inhibitors to its catabolising enzymes. A reporter mouse was used to detect RA signalling and significantly more lacZ expression was detected in the infrapyramidal blade (closest to the meninges) compared to the suprapyramidal blade. Furthermore, administration of RA equalised lacZ expression between the two blades. RA is a potent differentiation agent; however, its effects on cell proliferation are less clear. In order to examine the direct effects RA on cell proliferation, an organotypic hippocampal slice culture technique was optimised and it was found that RA inhibits cell proliferation specifically in the dentate gyrus in a dose dependent manner. Taken together, this thesis provides insight for the first time into a parallel regulatory mechanism in the adult hippocampus to the embryo where RA is tightly regulated by its synthesising and catabolising enzymes and this mechanism is involved in the regulation of cell proliferation in the adult dentate gyrus.

During embryonic development, the Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway plays an important role in the growth and patterning of numerous tissues and organs. In the developing retina, Hh signaling regulates the proliferation and differentiation of retinal progenitor cells (RPC) through mechanisms that are not completely understood. The principal downstream mediators of the Hh pathway are the Gli transcription factors (Gli1-3), which regulate the expression of target genes responsible for the effects of the Hh pathway on RPC. The network of genes targeted by this pathway in neural progenitor cells however, remains unknown. The objective of this thesis was to identify and characterize novel targets of Hh/Gli during retinal development. Using a computation approach, 390 genes were identified as having at least one conserved Gli binding motif within the vicinity of the coding sequence between humans and mice. During validation, I demonstrate that 30 of 46 selected targets were modulated in response to Hh pathway activation in either E14.5 and/or P0.5 retinal explants and that the induction of 25 of these were significantly different between the two developmental stages. Included in this list of Hh-modulated genes were Sox8 and Ndp, two highly inducible genes that are direct targets of Gli2. Functionally, I was unable to determine a role for Sox8 during retinal development which could reflect compensation by the closely related Sox9 and Sox10 genes. Ndp on the other hand was found to be sufficient and required for Hh mediated induction in progenitor cell proliferation and cell fate determination. Therefore, in this thesis Hh target genes have been identified which could provide some insight into the mechanisms that are responsible for the cellular outcome of a response to the pathway.

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified up to 30 loci that associate with increased risk of coronary artery disease or myocardial infarction. Here, I tested the function of one locus that changed the amino acid sequence of a mitochondrial matrix protease called paraplegin (SPG7) that performs critical quality assurance functions. Loss-of-function mutations in this protease are associated with hereditary spastic paraplegia. Here, I show that this variant that changes an arginine to a glutamine at position 688 within the protease domain is a gain-of-function. Cells bearing this variant have increased mitochondrial fusion and number, produce higher levels of reactive oxygen species and have increased cellular proliferation. Importantly, when expressed in yeast, the Q688 variant of SPG7 rescues the growth arrest caused by a protease-deficient mutation in AFG3L2. My study identifies a novel functional variant of SPG7 and highlights the need to go beyond the GWAS paradigm.

国立情報学研究所で電子化したコンテンツを使用している。

Zugl.: Aachen, Techn. Hochsch., Diss., 2005.

Tübingen, Univ., Diss., 2005.