Triboelectric Nanogenerator Accelerates Highly Efficient Nonviral Direct Conversion and In Vivo Reprogramming of Fibroblasts to Functional Neuronal Cells. | LitMetric
Department of Biotechnology, Yonsei University, 50 Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, 120-749, Republic of Korea.
Published: September 2016
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Article Abstract
Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) can be an effective cell reprogramming platform for producing functional neuronal cells for therapeutic applications. Triboelectric stimulation accelerates nonviral direct conversion of functional induced neuronal cells from fibroblasts, increases the conversion efficiency, and induces highly matured neuronal phenotypes with improved electrophysiological functionalities. TENG devices may also be used for biomedical in vivo reprogramming.
Müller cells are the most abundant glial cells in the mammalian retina. Their morphology and metabolism enable them to be in close contact and interact biochemically and physically with almost all retinal cell types, including neurons, pericytes, endothelial cells, and other glial cells, influencing their physiology by releasing bioactive molecules. Studies indicate that Müller glial cells are the primary source of angiogenic growth factor secretion in the neuroretina.
Spinal cord ischemia/reperfusion (IR) injury (SCII) can cause major autonomic, sensory, and motor damage and loss. The upregulation of Nrf2, a primary orchestrator of the oxidative stress response, has beneficial effects in SCII. Here, we aimed to uncover a SCII-related transcription factor that is able to elevate Nrf2 expression.
There is an urgent need for agents that promote health and regeneration of cells and tissues, specifically to treat diseases of the aging nervous system. Age-associated nervous system degeneration and various diseases are driven by many different biochemical stresses, often making it difficult to target any one disease cause. Our laboratory has previously identified DNA aptamers with apparent regenerative properties in murine models of multiple sclerosis by selecting aptamers that bind oligodendrocyte membrane preparations.
Accumulating evidence demonstrates that alpha-synuclein (α-syn) pathology associated with Parkinson's disease (PD) is not limited to the brain, as it also appears in a select number of peripheral tissues including the liver. In this study, we identified a number of PD-associated α-syn post-translational modifications in the livers of (Thy-1)-h[A30P] mice, a mouse model of familial PD expressing human α-syn harboring the A30P mutation driven by a neuron-specific promoter. , we also demonstrate that human hepatocytes induce post-translational modifications following α-syn fibrillar (PFF) treatment.
Background: An excess of exosomes, nanovesicles released from all cells and key regulators of brain plasticity, is an emerging therapeutic target for stress-related mental illnesses. The effects of chronic stress on exosome levels are unknown; even less is known about molecular drivers of exosome levels in the stress response.
Methods: We used our state-of-the-art protocol with 2 complementary strategies to isolate neuronal exosomes from plasma, ventral dentate gyrus, basolateral amygdala, and olfactory bulbs of male mice to determine the effects of chronic restraint stress (CRS) on exosome levels.
