Publications by authors named "Phong D Nguyen"

In contrast to adult mammalian hearts, the adult zebrafish heart efficiently replaces cardiomyocytes lost after injury. Here we reveal shared and species-specific injury response pathways and a correlation between Hmga1, an architectural non-histone protein, and regenerative capacity, as Hmga1 is required and sufficient to induce cardiomyocyte proliferation and required for heart regeneration. In addition, Hmga1 was shown to reactivate developmentally silenced genes, likely through modulation of H3K27me3 levels, poising them for a pro-regenerative gene program.

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The synthesis of medicinally relevant -aryl-substituted 2-aminobenzothiazoles often uses 2-aminothiophenol derivatives, which are not commercially abundant, as starting materials. Herein, we report a method for the annulation of C3-substituted nitroarenes and aryl isothiocyanates towards the synthesis of 2-aminobenzothiazoles. Reactions proceeded in the presence of cobalt ferrite nanoparticles as a catalyst, DABCO as a base, and DMF as a promoter.

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Cardiomyocyte proliferation and dedifferentiation have fueled the field of regenerative cardiology in recent years, whereas the reverse process of redifferentiation remains largely unexplored. Redifferentiation is characterized by the restoration of function lost during dedifferentiation. Previously, we showed that ERBB2-mediated heart regeneration has these two distinct phases: transient dedifferentiation and redifferentiation.

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Zebrafish hearts can regenerate by replacing damaged tissue with new cardiomyocytes. Although the steps leading up to the proliferation of surviving cardiomyocytes have been extensively studied, little is known about the mechanisms that control proliferation and redifferentiation to a mature state. We found that the cardiac dyad, a structure that regulates calcium handling and excitation-contraction coupling, played a key role in the redifferentiation process.

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Recent advances in single-cell sequencing technologies have enabled simultaneous measurement of multiple cellular modalities, but the combined detection of histone post-translational modifications and transcription at single-cell resolution has remained limited. Here, we introduce EpiDamID, an experimental approach to target a diverse set of chromatin types by leveraging the binding specificities of single-chain variable fragment antibodies, engineered chromatin reader domains, and endogenous chromatin-binding proteins. Using these, we render the DamID technology compatible with the genome-wide identification of histone post-translational modifications.

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The fossil record of terrestrialization documents notable shifts in the environmental and physiological tolerances of many animal and plant groups. However, for certain significant components of modern freshwater and terrestrial environments, the transition out of marine settings remains largely unconstrained. Ostracod crustaceans occupy an exceptional range of modern aquatic environments and are invaluable palaeoenvironmental indicators in the fossil record.

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Zebrafish are excellent at regenerating their heart by reinitiating proliferation in pre-existing cardiomyocytes. Studying how zebrafish achieve this holds great potential in developing new strategies to boost mammalian heart regeneration. Nevertheless, the lack of appropriate live-imaging tools for the adult zebrafish heart has limited detailed studies into the dynamics underlying cardiomyocyte proliferation.

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Cardiac regeneration is the outcome of the highly regulated interplay of multiple processes, including the inflammatory response, cardiomyocyte dedifferentiation and proliferation, neovascularization and extracellular matrix turnover. Species-specific traits affect these injury-induced processes, resulting in a wide variety of cardiac regenerative potential between species. Indeed, while mammals are generally considered poor regenerators, certain amphibian and fish species like the zebrafish display robust regenerative capacity post heart injury.

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Skeletal muscle regenerates through the activation of resident stem cells. Termed satellite cells, these normally quiescent cells are induced to proliferate by wound-derived signals. Identifying the source and nature of these cues has been hampered by an inability to visualize the complex cell interactions that occur within the wound.

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Article Synopsis
  • * A study showed that after a heart injury, zebrafish could restore cardiomyocyte numbers within 30 days, but some of the regenerated cells didn’t fully mature and function properly.
  • * Further research revealed that the cardiomyocytes came from existing heart cells and not from other types of heart cells, suggesting that while the quantity of cells is restored, the quality and function of the regenerated heart tissue may not be as effective.
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While the heart regenerates poorly in mammals, efficient heart regeneration occurs in zebrafish. Studies in zebrafish have resulted in a model in which preexisting cardiomyocytes dedifferentiate and reinitiate proliferation to replace the lost myocardium. To identify which processes occur in proliferating cardiomyocytes we have used a single-cell RNA-sequencing approach.

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Background: Despite conserved developmental processes and organization of the vertebrate central nervous system, only some vertebrates including zebrafish can efficiently regenerate neural damage including after spinal cord injury. The mammalian spinal cord shows very limited regeneration and neurogenesis, resulting in permanent life-long functional impairment. Therefore, there is an urgent need to identify the cellular and molecular mechanisms that can drive efficient vertebrate neurogenesis following injury.

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Labelling cells and following their progeny, also known as lineage tracing, has provided important insights into the cellular origins of tissues. Traditional lineage tracing experiments have been limited to following single or small groups of cells with classic techniques such as dye injections and Cre/LoxP labelling of cells of interest. Brainbow is a fluorescent dependent, lineage tracing technique that allows a broader visualization and analysis of multiple cells within a tissue, initially deployed to examine lineages within neural tissues.

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Stem cells are undifferentiated cells that play crucial roles during development, growth and regeneration. Traditionally, these cells have been primarily characterised by histology, cell sorting, cell culture and methods. However, as stem cells interact in a complex environment within specific tissue niches, there has been increasing interest in examining their behaviours, particularly in response to injury.

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Organ growth requires a careful balance between stem cell self-renewal and lineage commitment to ensure proper tissue expansion. The cellular and molecular mechanisms that mediate this balance are unresolved in most organs, including skeletal muscle. Here we identify a long-lived stem cell pool that mediates growth of the zebrafish myotome.

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Understanding muscle stem cell behaviors can potentially provide insights into how these cells act and respond during normal growth and diseased contexts. The zebrafish is an ideal model organism to examine these behaviors in vivo where it would normally be technically challenging in other mammalian models. This chapter will describe the procedures required to successfully conduct live imaging of zebrafish transgenics that has specifically been adapted for skeletal muscle.

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The transition from fins to limbs was an important terrestrial adaptation, but how this crucial evolutionary shift arose developmentally is unknown. Current models focus on the distinct roles of the apical ectodermal ridge (AER) and the signaling molecules that it secretes during limb and fin outgrowth. In contrast to the limb AER, the AER of the fin rapidly transitions into the apical fold and in the process shuts off AER-derived signals that stimulate proliferation of the precursors of the appendicular skeleton.

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Skeletal muscle is an example of a tissue that deploys a self-renewing stem cell, the satellite cell, to effect regeneration. Recent in vitro studies have highlighted a role for asymmetric divisions in renewing rare "immortal" stem cells and generating a clonal population of differentiation-competent myoblasts. However, this model currently lacks in vivo validation.

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Background: Hemodialysis is an increasingly common treatment in Vietnam as the diagnosis of end stage renal disease continues to rise. To provide appropriate hemodialysis treatment for end-stage renal disease patients, we conducted a 1-year cross-sectional study to measure the prevalence of bloodborne infection and factors associated with non-compliant behaviors in hemodialysis patients.

Methods: One hundred forty-two patients were tested for hepatitis B virus (HBV) surface antigen and hepatitis C virus (HCV) core antigen.

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Haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are self-renewing stem cells capable of replenishing all blood lineages. In all vertebrate embryos that have been studied, definitive HSCs are generated initially within the dorsal aorta (DA) of the embryonic vasculature by a series of poorly understood inductive events. Previous studies have identified that signalling relayed from adjacent somites coordinates HSC induction, but the nature of this signal has remained elusive.

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Long-term culture of primary neonatal rat cardiomyocytes is limited by the loss of spontaneous contractile phenotype within weeks in culture. This may be due to loss of contractile cardiomyocytes from the culture or overgrowth of the non-cardiomyocyte population. Using the mitochondria specific fluorescent dye, tetramethylrhodamine methyl ester perchlorate (TMRM), we showed that neonatal rat cardiomyocytes enriched by fluorescence-activated cell sorting can be maintained as contractile cultures for long periods (24-wk culture vs.

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