Summary The discovery of potent BRAF inhibitors has revolutionized therapy for BRAF-mutant melanoma, yet NRAS-mutant melanoma remains without effective therapy. Since direct pharmacological inhibition of RAS has thus far been unsuccessful, we explored system biology approaches to identify synergistic drug combination(s) that can mimic direct RAS inhibition. Here, leveraging an inducible mouse model of NRAS-mutant melanoma, we show that pharmacological MEK inhibition activates apoptosis but fails to trigger cell cycle arrest, in contrast to complete NRAS extinction in vivo by genetic means. Network modeling pinpointed CDK4 as a key driver of this differential phenotype. Accordingly, combined pharmacological inhibition of MEK and CDK4 in vivo led to significant synergy in therapeutic efficacy. Taken together, our data suggest a gradient model of oncogenic NRAS signaling to the canonical MAPK cascade, where the output is gated, resulting in de-coupling of discrete downstream biological phenotypes in the setting of incomplete inhibition. Such a gated signaling model provides a novel framework to identify non-obvious co-extinction target(s) for combined pharmacological inhibition in NRAS-mutant melanomas.

Heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) are required during muscle regeneration for regulating extracellular signaling pathways. HSPGs interact with growth factors and receptors through heparan sulfate (HS) chains. However, the regulatory mechanisms that control HS sulfation to affect the growth factor-dependent proliferation and differentiation of satellite cells are yet unknown. Here we report the essential functions of extracellular HS 6-O-endosulfatases (Sulfs) during muscle regeneration. We show that quiescent and activated satellite cells differentially express mouse Sulf1 (MSulf1) and MSulf2. MSulfs are not required for the formation of skeletal muscles and satellite cells, but they have redundant, essential roles to promote muscle regeneration, as MSulf double mutant mice exhibit delayed myogenic differentiation and prolonged Pax7 expression after cardiotoxin-induced skeletal muscle injury, while single MSulf knockouts regenerate normally. HS structural analysis demonstrates that Sulfs are regulatory HS-modifying enzymes that control HS 6-O-desulfation of activated satellite cells. Mechanistically, we show that MSulfs repress FGF2 signaling in activated satellite cells, leading us to propose that MSulfs are growth factor signaling sensors to control the proliferation to differentiation switch of satellite cells to initiate differentiation during regeneration. Our results establish Sulfs as essential regulators of HS-dependent growth factor signaling in the adult muscle stem cell niche.

Our study investigates the innervation of the respiratory tract during mouse embryonic development, with a focus on the identification of cell origin and essential developmental signals for the resident, or intrinsic, neurons. Using lineage tracing, we show that these intrinsic neurons are exclusively derived from neural crest cells, and cluster to form ganglia that reside in the dorsal trachea and medial bronchi with diminishing frequency. Comparisons of intrinsic neurogenesis between wild-type, glial cell-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) 2/2 , neurturin 2/2 , and tyrosine kinase receptor Ret 2/2 embryos, in combination with lung organ cultures, identified that Ret signaling, redundantly activated by GDNF family members, is required for intrinsic neurogenesis in the trachea and primary bronchi. In contrast, Ret deficiency exerts no effect on the innervation of the rest of the respiratory tract, suggesting that innervation by neurons whose cell bodies are located outside of the lung (so-called extrinsic neurons) is independent of Ret signaling. Furthermore, although the trachea, the esophagus, and their intrinsic neurons share foregut endoderm and a neural crest cell origin, respectively, the signals required for their intrinsic neurogenesis are divergent. Together, our results not only establish the neural crest lineage of intrinsic neurons in the respiratory tract, but also identify regional differences in the abundance and developmental signals of intrinsic neurons along the respiratory tract and in the esophagus.

Gene therapy is a promising approach in the treatment of inherited and common complex disorders of the retina. Preclinical and clinical studies have validated the use of adeno-associated viral vectors (AAV) as a safe and efficient delivery vehicle for gene transfer. Retinal pigment epithelium and rods-and to a lesser extent, cone photoreceptors-can be efficiently targeted with AAV. Other retinal cell types however are more challenging targets. The aim of this study was to characterize the transduction profile and efficiency of in silico designed, synthetic Anc80 AAVs for retinal gene transfer. Three Anc80 variants were evaluated for retinal targeting in mice and primates following subretinal delivery. In the murine retina Anc80L65 demonstrated high level of retinal pigment epithelium and photoreceptor targeting with comparable cone photoreceptor affinity compared to other AAVs. Remarkably, Anc80L65 enhanced transduction kinetics with visible expression as early as day 1 and steady state mRNA levels at day 3. Inner retinal tropism of Anc80 variants demonstrated distinct transduction patterns of Müller glia, retinal ganglion cells and inner nuclear layer neurons. Finally, murine findings with Anc80L65 qualitatively translated to the Rhesus macaque in terms of cell targets, levels and onset of expression. Our findings support the use of Anc80L65 for therapeutic subretinal gene delivery.