FGF10 and Human Lung Disease Across the Life Spectrum
FRONTIERS IN GENETICS
Authors: Prince, Lawrence S.
Abstract
Lung diseases impact patients across the lifespan, from infants in the first minutes of life through the aged population. Congenital abnormalities of lung structure can cause lung disease at birth or make adults more susceptible to chronic disease. Continuous inhalation of atmospheric components also requires the lung to be resilient to cellular injury. Fibroblast growth factor 10 (FGF10) regulates multiple stages of structural lung morphogenesis, cellular differentiation, and the response to injury. As a driver of lung airway branching morphogenesis, FGF10 signaling defects during development lead to neonatal lung disease. Alternatively, congenital airway abnormalities attributed to FGF10 mutations increase the risk of chronic airway disease in adulthood. FGF10 also maintains progenitor cell populations in the airway and promotes alveolar type 2 cell expansion and differentiation following injury. Here we review the cellular and molecular mechanisms linking FGF10 to multiple lung diseases, from bronchopulmonary dysplasia in extremely preterm neonates, cystic fibrosis in children, and chronic adult lung disorders. Understanding the connections between FGF10 and lung diseases may lead to exciting new therapeutic strategies.
Directed differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells into mature stratified bladder urothelium
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
Authors: Suzuki, Kotaro; Koyanagi-Aoi, Michiyo; Uehara, Keiichiro; Hinata, Nobuyuki; Fujisawa, Masato; Aoi, Takashi
Abstract
For augmentation or reconstruction of urinary bladder after cystectomy, bladder urothelium derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) has recently received focus. However, previous studies have only shown the emergence of cells expressing some urothelial markers among derivatives of hiPSCs, and no report has demonstrated the stratified structure, which is a particularly important attribute of the barrier function of mature bladder urothelium. In present study, we developed a method for the directed differentiation of hiPSCs into mature stratified bladder urothelium. The caudal hindgut, from which the bladder urothelium develops, was predominantly induced via the high-dose administration of CHIR99021 during definitive endoderm induction, and this treatment subsequently increased the expressions of uroplakins. Terminal differentiation, characterized by the increased expression of uroplakins, CK13, and CK20, was induced with the combination of Troglitazone + PD153035. FGF10 enhanced the expression of uroplakins and the stratification of the epithelium, and the transwell culture system further enhanced such stratification. Furthermore, the barrier function of our urothelium was demonstrated by a permeability assay using FITC-dextran. According to an immunohistological analysis, the stratified uroplakin II-positive epithelium was observed in the transwells. This method might be useful in the field of regenerative medicine of the bladder.