bims-mireme 2021-07-25 papers

Issue of 2021‒07‒25
six papers selected by
Brian Spurlock
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Cell Biol Int. 2021 Jul 21.

Ultrastructural heterogeneity of the mitochondrial population in rat embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells.

Lyubov A Suldina, Anastasiya E Sorokina, Ksenia N Morozova.

Even though rats are popular model animals, the ultrastructure of their pluripotent cells, i.e., embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), remains unexplored, although fine structure of pluripotent stem cells of mice and humans and its changes during differentiation have been investigated well. In the present study, we carried out ultrastructural and morphometric analyses of three lines of rat ESCs and two lines of rat iPSCs. The rat pluripotent stem cells were found to have the main typical morphological features of pluripotent cells: large nuclei of irregular or nearly round shape, scanty cytoplasm with few membrane organelles, and a poorly developed Golgi apparatus and endoplasmic reticulum. The cytoplasm of the rat pluripotent cells contains clusters of glycogen, previously described in human ESCs. To identify possible differences between rat ESCs and iPSCs, we performed a morphometric analysis of cell parameters. The mean area of cells and nuclei, the nuclear/cytoplasmic ratio, distributions of glycogen and diversity of mitochondria showed marked variations among the lines of rat pluripotent stem cells and were more pronounced than variations between rat ESCs and iPSCs as separate types of pluripotent stem cells. We noted morphological heterogeneity of the mitochondrial population in the rat pluripotent stem cells. The cells contained three types of mitochondria differing in the structure of cristae and in matrix density, and our morphometric analysis revealed differences in cristae structure. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Keywords: condensed mitochondria; electron microscopy; glycogen; orthodox mitochondria; rat ESC; rat iPSC

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cbin.11672

Front Cell Dev Biol. 2021 ;9 643444

A Conserved Role for Asrij/OCIAD1 in Progenitor Differentiation and Lineage Specification Through Functional Interaction With the Regulators of Mitochondrial Dynamics.

Arindam Ray, Kajal Kamat, Maneesha S Inamdar.

Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles whose activity is an important determinant of blood stem and progenitor cell state. Mitochondrial morphology is maintained by continuous fission and fusion and affects stem cell proliferation, differentiation, and aging. However, the mechanism by which mitochondrial morphology and dynamics regulate cell differentiation and lineage choice remains incompletely understood. Asrij/OCIAD1 is a conserved protein that governs mitochondrial morphology, energy metabolism and human embryonic stem cell (hESC) differentiation. To investigate the in vivo relevance of these properties, we compared hESC phenotypes with those of Drosophila hematopoiesis, where Asrij is shown to regulate blood progenitor maintenance by conserved mechanisms. In concordance with hESC studies, we found that Drosophila Asrij also localizes to mitochondria of larval blood cells and its depletion from progenitors results in elongated mitochondria. Live imaging of asrij knockdown hemocytes and of OCIAD1 knockout hESCs showed reduced mitochondrial dynamics. Since key regulators of mitochondrial dynamics actively regulate mitochondrial morphology, we hypothesized that mitochondrial fission and fusion may control progenitor maintenance or differentiation in an Asrij-dependent manner. Knockdown of the fission regulator Drp1 in Drosophila lymph gland progenitors specifically suppressed crystal cell differentiation whereas depletion of the fusion regulator Marf (Drosophila Mitofusin) increased the same with concomitant upregulation of Notch signaling. These phenotypes were stronger in anterior progenitors and were exacerbated by Asrij depletion. Asrij is known to suppress Notch signaling and crystal cell differentiation. Our analysis reveals that synergistic interactions of Asrij with Drp1 and Marf have distinct impacts on lymph gland progenitor mitochondrial dynamics and crystal cell differentiation. Taken together, using invertebrate and mammalian model systems we demonstrate a conserved role for Asrij/OCIAD1 in linking mitochondrial dynamics and progenitor differentiation. Our study sets the stage for deciphering how regulators of mitochondrial dynamics may contribute to functional heterogeneity and lineage choice in vertebrate blood progenitors.

Keywords: Asrij; Drosophila lymph gland; Notch signaling; blood lineage choice; blood progenitor differentiation; human embryonic stem cells (hESC); mitochondrial dynamics; progenitor heterogeneity

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2021.643444

Autophagy. 2021 Jul 18. 1-3

SAMM50 is a receptor for basal piecemeal mitophagy and acts with SQSTM1/p62 in OXPHOS-induced mitophagy.

Yakubu Princely Abudu, Stephane Mouilleron, Sharon A Tooze, Trond Lamark, Terje Johansen.

Mitophagy, the clearance of surplus or damaged mitochondria or mitochondrial parts by autophagy, is important for maintenance of cellular homeostasis. Whereas knowledge on programmed and stress-induced mitophagy is increasing, much less is known about mechanisms of basal mitophagy. Recently, we identified SAMM50 (SAMM50 sorting and assembly machinery component) as a receptor for piecemeal degradation of components of the sorting and assembly machinery (SAM) complex and mitochondrial contact site and cristae organizing system (MICOS) complexes. SAMM50 interacts directly with Atg8-family proteins through a canonical LIR motif and with SQSTM1/p62 to mediate basal piecemeal mitophagy. During a metabolic switch to oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), SAMM50 cooperates with SQSTM1 to mediate efficient piecemeal mitophagy.

Keywords: Atg8; MICOS; OXPHOS; SAMM50; SQSTM1; basal; metabolic switch; p62; piecemeal mitophagy

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2021.1953846

Biochem Biophys Rep. 2021 Sep;27 101070

PGC-1α attenuates the oxidative stress-induced impaired osteogenesis and angiogenesis regulation effects of mesenchymal stem cells in the presence of diabetic serum.

Zongxin Shi, Shikun Wang, Jiechao Deng, Zishun Gong.

Oxidative stress is believed to induce dysfunction of the bone remodeling process and be associated with progressive loss of bone mass. The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1α (PGC-1α) is a master controller during mitochondrial biogenesis and the antioxidant response. We postulated that PGC-1α could function as a cyto-protective eﬀector in mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) under oxidative stress conditions. In this study, diabetic serum was firstly used to treat MSCs to induce oxidative damage. The anti-oxidative protective effects of PGC-1α overexpression on MSCs, as well as MSCs' osteogenesis and angiogenic regulation effects were investigated in vitro. Results showed that diabetic conditions induced significantly increase of intracellular oxidative damage and mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) opening activity, decrease of cellular viability, and osteogenic differentiation and pro-angiogenic regulation effects of MSCs. However, the diabetic conditions induced oxidative impair on MSCs were significantly alleviated via PGC-1α overexpression under diabetic conditions. Taken together, this study indicates the anti-oxidative treatment potential of PGC-1α regulation as a promising strategy to promote coupling pro-osteogenesis and pro-angiogenesis effects of MSCs.

Keywords: Angiogenesis; Osteogenesis; Oxidative stress; PGC-1α

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbrep.2021.101070

Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Jul 20. pii: 7730. [Epub ahead of print]22(14):

Modelling Mitochondrial Disease in Human Pluripotent Stem Cells: What Have We Learned?

Cameron L McKnight, Yau Chung Low, David A Elliott, David R Thorburn, Ann E Frazier.

Mitochondrial diseases disrupt cellular energy production and are among the most complex group of inherited genetic disorders. Affecting approximately 1 in 5000 live births, they are both clinically and genetically heterogeneous, and can be highly tissue specific, but most often affect cell types with high energy demands in the brain, heart, and kidneys. There are currently no clinically validated treatment options available, despite several agents showing therapeutic promise. However, modelling these disorders is challenging as many non-human models of mitochondrial disease do not completely recapitulate human phenotypes for known disease genes. Additionally, access to disease-relevant cell or tissue types from patients is often limited. To overcome these difficulties, many groups have turned to human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) to model mitochondrial disease for both nuclear-DNA (nDNA) and mitochondrial-DNA (mtDNA) contexts. Leveraging the capacity of hPSCs to differentiate into clinically relevant cell types, these models permit both detailed investigation of cellular pathomechanisms and validation of promising treatment options. Here we catalogue hPSC models of mitochondrial disease that have been generated to date, summarise approaches and key outcomes of phenotypic profiling using these models, and discuss key criteria to guide future investigations using hPSC models of mitochondrial disease.

Keywords: CRISPR-Cas9; disease modelling; hESC; hPSC; iPSC; mitochondrial disease; mtDNA; stem cell

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22147730

J Fluoresc. 2021 Jul 23.

Simultaneous Visualization of Mitochondria and Lysosome by a Single Cyanine Dye: The Impact of the Donor Group (-NR2) Towards Organelle Selectivity.

Chathura S Abeywickrama, Hannah J Baumann, Yi Pang.

A benzothiazolium-based hemicyanine dye (probe 3) has been synthesized by attaching a morpholine group into a phenyl benzothiazolium skeleton. Probe 3 exhibited interesting photophysical characteristics including red emission (λem ≈600 nm), enhanced Stokes shift (Δλ ≈80 nm) and sensitivity to solvent polarity. Although the probe 3 exhibited almost no emission in aqueous environments (φfl ≈0.002), its fluorescence could be increased by ≈50 fold in organic solvents (φfl ≈0.10), making it possible for live cell imaging under wash-free conditions. Probe 3 exhibited excellent ability to visualize cellular mitochondria and lysosomes simultaneously, as observed from fluorescence confocal microscopy. In addition, probe 3 also exhibited good biocompatibility (calculated LC50 > 20 µM) and high photostability.

Keywords: Cyanine dyes; Fluorescence confocal microscopy; Lysosome; Mitochondria; Simultaneous detection; Wash-free application

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10895-021-02786-1