3,455 results match your criteria: "Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research; Cambridge[Affiliation]"

Glutamine is a critical metabolite for rapidly proliferating cells as it is used for the synthesis of key metabolites necessary for cell growth and proliferation. Glutamine metabolism has been proposed as a therapeutic target in cancer and several chemical inhibitors are in development or in clinical trials. How cells subsist when glutamine is limiting is poorly understood.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Guidelines for establishing a cytometry laboratory.

Cytometry A

February 2024

Flow Cytometry Facility, Babraham Institute, Babraham Research Campus, Cambridge, UK.

The purpose of this document is to provide guidance for establishing and maintaining growth and development of flow cytometry shared resource laboratories. While the best practices offered in this manuscript are not intended to be universal or exhaustive, they do outline key goals that should be prioritized to achieve operational excellence and meet the needs of the scientific community. Additionally, this document provides information on available technologies and software relevant to shared resource laboratories.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The Role of Epigenetics in Accelerated Aging: A Reconsideration of Later-Life Visual Loss After Early Optic Neuropathy.

J Neuroophthalmol

March 2024

Department of Ophthalmology and the Neuro-Ophthalmology Service (JFR), Massachusetts Eye and Ear and the Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; Avedisian and Chobanian School of Medicine (MPS), Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Ophthalmology (MPS, DK, BRK), Harvard Medical School, Schepens Eye Research Institute of Mass Eye & Ear, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Biology (YRL), Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts; and Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research (DAS), Department of Genetics, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.

Background: In 2005, we reported 3 patients with bilateral optic nerve damage early in life. These patients had stable vision for decades but then experienced significant bilateral vision loss with no obvious cause. Our hypothesis, novel at that time, was that the late decline of vision was due to age-related attrition of retinal ganglion cells superimposed on a reduced neuronal population due to the earlier injury.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Apicomplexan parasites use Ca-regulated exocytosis to secrete essential virulence factors from specialized organelles called micronemes. Ca-dependent protein kinases (CDPKs) are required for microneme exocytosis; however, the molecular events that regulate trafficking and fusion of micronemes with the plasma membrane remain unresolved. Here, we combine sub-minute resolution phosphoproteomics and bio-orthogonal labeling of kinase substrates in to identify 163 proteins phosphorylated in a CDPK1-dependent manner.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Bat-borne viruses have attracted considerable research, especially in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic. Although bats can carry multiple zoonotic viruses that are lethal to many mammalian species, they appear to be asymptomatic to viral infection despite the high viral loads contained in their bodies. There are several differences between bats and other mammals.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Live-cell transcriptomic recording can help reveal hidden cellular states that precede phenotypic transformation. Here we demonstrate the use of protein-based encapsulation for preserving samples of cytoplasmic RNAs inside living cells. These molecular time capsules (MTCs) can be induced to create time-stamped transcriptome snapshots, preserve RNAs after cellular transitions, and enable retrospective investigations of gene expression programs that drive distinct developmental trajectories.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Expansions of CAG trinucleotide repeats cause several rare neurodegenerative diseases. The disease-causing repeats are translated in multiple reading frames, without an identifiable initiation codon. The molecular mechanism of this repeat-associated non-AUG (RAN) translation is not known.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A dual sgRNA library design to probe genetic modifiers using genome-wide CRISPRi screens.

BMC Genomics

October 2023

Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, 1200 E. California Ave, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA.

Mapping genetic interactions is essential for determining gene function and defining novel biological pathways. We report a simple to use CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) based platform, compatible with Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting (FACS)-based reporter screens, to query epistatic relationships at scale. This is enabled by a flexible dual-sgRNA library design that allows for the simultaneous delivery and selection of a fixed sgRNA and a second randomized guide, comprised of a genome-wide library, with a single transduction.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Conductive electrospun polymer improves stem cell-derived cardiomyocyte function and maturation.

Biomaterials

November 2023

Shu Chien-Gene Lay Department of Bioengineering, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA; Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA; Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA. Electronic address:

Despite numerous efforts to generate mature human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs), cells often remain immature, electrically isolated, and may not reflect adult biology. Conductive polymers are attractive candidates to facilitate electrical communication between hPSC-CMs, especially at sub-confluent cell densities or diseased cells lacking cell-cell junctions. Here we electrospun conductive polymers to create a conductive fiber mesh and assess if electrical signal propagation is improved in hPSC-CMs seeded on the mesh network.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Simvastatin in Critically Ill Patients with Covid-19.

N Engl J Med

December 2023

From the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand, Wellington (T.E.H., S. McGuinness, A.M.T., C.J.M.), and Middlemore Hospital (T.E.H.), Te Toka Tumai Auckland City Hospital (T.E.H., S. McGuinness, R.L.P., C.J.M.), and the School of Nursing, University of Auckland (R.L.P.), Auckland - all in New Zealand; Berry Consultants, Austin, TX (E.L., L.R.B., M.A.D., M.F., A.M., C.T.S., R.J.L., S.M.B.); Wellcome-Wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine, Queen's University Belfast (M. Shyamsundar, C.M.O., D.F.M.), the Department of Critical Care, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust (M. Shyamsundar, D.F.M.), and the Centre for Public Health, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, and the Department of Health (I.S.Y.), Belfast, Imperial College London (F.A.-B., A.C.G.), the Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre (C.A., D.A.H., L.L., A.J.M., P.R.M., K.M.R.), University College London Hospitals (R.H.), and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (A.C.G.), London, the Institute for Regeneration and Repair (A. Beane) and the Centre for Inflammation Research (R.H., M.S.-H.), University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Bristol, and Bristol Haematology and Oncology Centre, University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Trust, Bristol (C.A.B.), and NHS Blood and Transplant, Oxford (L.J.E.) - all in the United Kingdom; Institut Hospitalo-Universitaire Prometheus, University Paris-Saclay, the Department of Intensive Care, Raymond Poincaré Hospital, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, University Versailles Saint Quentin-University Paris-Saclay, the Laboratory of Infection and Inflammation-Unité 173, School of Medicine Simone Veil, University Versailles Saint Quentin-University Paris-Saclay, INSERM, and Fédération Hospitalo-Universitaire SEPSIS (Saclay and Paris Seine Nord Endeavor to Personalize Interventions for Sepsis) - all in Garches, France (D. Annane); King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences and King Abdullah International Medical Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Y.A.); Nepal Intensive Care Research Foundation, Kathmandu (D. Aryal); Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU), Bangkok, Thailand (D. Aryal, A. Beane); Unity Health Toronto (Z.B., J.C.M., M. Santos), the Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine, University of Toronto, and Toronto General Hospital Research Institute (E.C.G.), Peter Munk Cardiac Centre at University Health Network (P.R.L.), and Keenan Centre for Biomedical Research (J.C.M.), Toronto, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC (F.L.), McGill University Health Centre, Montreal (P.R.L.), the Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver (S. Murthy), the Population Health and Optimal Practices Research Unit, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec-Université Laval Research Center, and the Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec City (A.F.T.), and the University of Manitoba and CancerCare Manitoba, Winnipeg (R.Z.) - all in Canada; Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care (M. Bonten, L.P.G.D.) and the Intensive Care Center (L.P.G.D.), University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, and the European Clinical Research Alliance on Infectious Diseases (M. Bonten), Utrecht, and Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen (F.V.) - all in the Netherlands; the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (F.M.B., S.W.) and the Institute for Infection Disease and Infection Control (S.W.), Jena University Hospital, Friedrich-Schiller University, and Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, Hans Knöll Institute (S.W.) - both in Jena, Germany; the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine (A. Burrell, A.C.C., C.G., A.M.H., Z.K.M., A.D.N., J.C.P., C.J.M., S.A.W.) and the School of Clinical Sciences (A.C.C.), Monash University, Alfred Hospital (A. Burrell, A.D.N.), and Monash Health (A.C.C., Z.K.M.), Melbourne, VIC, the Faculty of Medicine, University of Queensland, and the Intensive Care Unit, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane (P.S.K.), and St. John of God Health Care, Perth, WA (S.A.W.) - all in Australia; the Global Coalition for Adaptive Research, Larkspur (M. Buxton), the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Allergy, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, and the Department of Anesthesia, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco (C.S.C.), and Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance (R.J.L.) - all in California; the Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, and IRCCS Humanitas Research Hospital, Milan (M.C.); National University Hospital Singapore, Singapore (M.E.C.); Dr. Kamakshi Memorial Hospital (D.J.) and Apollo Speciality Hospitals (E.R.) - both in Chennai, India; the University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium (H.G.); National Intensive Care Surveillance-MORU, Colombo, Sri Lanka (R.H.); Ziauddin University, Karachi, Pakistan (M.H.); the University of Pittsburgh (D.T.H., B.J.M., M.D.N., C.W.S., D.C.A.) and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (D.T.H., B.J.M.) - both in Pittsburgh; Jikei University School of Medicine and the University of Tokyo, Tokyo (N.I.), and St. Marianna University School of Medicine, Yokohama Seibu Hospital, Yokohama (H.S.) - all in Japan; University College Dublin Clinical Research Centre, St. Vincent's University Hospital, Dublin (A.D.N.); Universidad de La Sabana and Clínica Universidad de La Sabana - both in Chia, Colombia (L.F.R.); the Division of Clinical and Translational Research, Division of Critical Care, Department of Anesthesiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis (P.S.); and the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston (B.T.T.).

Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of simvastatin in critically ill Covid-19 patients compared to a control group not receiving statins.
  • A total of 2684 patients were analyzed, showing a median of 11 organ support-free days in the simvastatin group versus 7 in the control group, with a high probability indicating simvastatin’s potential superiority.
  • However, the study was halted due to decreasing Covid-19 cases, and while simvastatin had some benefits, it also led to more reported serious adverse effects, such as elevated liver enzymes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Importance: Patients with septic shock undergo adrenergic stress, which affects cardiac, immune, inflammatory, and metabolic pathways. β-Blockade may attenuate the adverse effects of catecholamine exposure and has been associated with reduced mortality.

Objectives: To assess the efficacy and safety of landiolol in patients with tachycardia and established septic shock requiring prolonged (>24 hours) vasopressor support.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Importance: The efficacy of vitamin C for hospitalized patients with COVID-19 is uncertain.

Objective: To determine whether vitamin C improves outcomes for patients with COVID-19.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Two prospectively harmonized randomized clinical trials enrolled critically ill patients receiving organ support in intensive care units (90 sites) and patients who were not critically ill (40 sites) between July 23, 2020, and July 15, 2022, on 4 continents.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The nuclear lamina, a sub-nuclear protein matrix, maintains nuclear structure and genome function. Here, we investigate the role of Arabidopsis lamin analogs CROWDED NUCLEIs during gametophyte and seed development. We observed defects in mutant seeds, including seed abortion and reduced germination rate.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The multifaceted roles of Myb domain-containing proteins in apicomplexan parasites.

Curr Opin Microbiol

December 2023

Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA. Electronic address:

Apicomplexan parasites are a large and diverse clade of protists responsible for significant diseases of humans and animals. Central to the ability of these parasites to colonize their host and evade immune responses is an expanded repertoire of gene-expression programs that requires the coordinated action of complex transcriptional networks. DNA-binding proteins and chromatin regulators are essential orchestrators of apicomplexan gene expression that often act in concert.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Long COVID research: an update from the PHOSP-COVID Scientific Summit.

Lancet Respir Med

November 2023

Institute for Lung Health, NIHR Leicester Biomedical Research Centre, University of Leicester, Leicester LE3 9QP, UK; Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The implications of satellite DNA instability on cellular function and evolution.

Semin Cell Dev Biol

March 2024

Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, MA, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA; Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA. Electronic address:

Abundant tandemly repeated satellite DNA is present in most eukaryotic genomes. Previous limitations including a pervasive view that it was uninteresting junk DNA, combined with challenges in studying it, are starting to dissolve - and recent studies have found important functions for satellite DNAs. The observed rapid evolution and implied instability of satellite DNA now has important significance for their functions and maintenance within the genome.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Insulin acts on the liver via changes in gene expression to maintain glucose and lipid homeostasis. This study aimed to the Forkhead box protein K1 (FOXK1) associated gene regulatory network as a transcriptional regulator of hepatic insulin action and to determine its role versus FoxO1 and possible actions of the insulin receptor at the DNA level.

Methods: Genome-wide analysis of FoxK1 binding were studied by chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing and compared to those for IR and FoxO1.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Three sisters had a rare health condition that caused their uterus to be underdeveloped and made it hard for them to have regular periods, but they still had pregnancies in their fallopian tubes.
  • Researchers studied a specific gene called OSR1 to understand its role in the development of the uterus in both humans and mice.
  • The study showed that the OSR1 gene is crucial for the proper development of the uterus and could explain some cases of infertility related to uterine problems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Complex haploinsufficiency in pluripotent cells yields somatic cells with DNA methylation abnormalities and pluripotency induction defects.

Stem Cell Reports

November 2023

Department of Developmental Biology and Cancer Research, The Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada, The Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem 91120, Israel. Electronic address:

A complete knockout of a single key pluripotency gene may drastically affect embryonic stem cell function and epigenetic reprogramming. In contrast, elimination of only one allele of a single pluripotency gene is mostly considered harmless to the cell. To understand whether complex haploinsufficiency exists in pluripotent cells, we simultaneously eliminated a single allele in different combinations of two pluripotency genes (i.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Many single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) identified by genome-wide association studies exert their effects on disease risk as expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) via allele-specific expression (ASE). While databases for probing eQTLs in tissues from normal individuals exist, one may wish to ascertain eQTLs or ASE in specific tissues or disease-states not characterized in these databases. Here, we present a protocol to assess ASE of two possible target genes (GPNMB and KLHL7) of a known genome-wide association study (GWAS) Parkinson's disease (PD) risk locus in postmortem human brain tissue from PD and neurologically normal individuals.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Researchers used a technique called Perturb-seq to study how disabling certain host factors affects SARS-CoV-2 infection in human lung cells.
  • They discovered that only a small number of these host factors significantly altered the infection process and the body’s immune response.
  • Notably, they identified specific factors, like IκBα and translation factors EIF4E2 and EIF4H, as critical for early stages of the infection, advancing understanding of how the virus interacts with host cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Regulatory architecture of cell identity genes and housekeeping genes.

Trends Cell Biol

December 2023

Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, MA, USA; Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA. Electronic address:

Gene regulation and chromosome architecture are intimately linked. Genes with prominent roles in cell identity are often regulated by clusters of enhancer elements. By contrast, a recent study shows housekeeping genes are often regulated through clustering of promoters.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diverse mechanisms have been described for selective enrichment of biomolecules in membrane-bound organelles, but less is known about mechanisms by which molecules are selectively incorporated into biomolecular assemblies such as condensates that lack surrounding membranes. The chemical environments within condensates may differ from those outside these bodies, and if these differed among various types of condensate, then the different solvation environments would provide a mechanism for selective distribution among these intracellular bodies. Here we use small molecule probes to show that different condensates have distinct chemical solvating properties and that selective partitioning of probes in condensates can be predicted with deep learning approaches.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF