Canonical Wnt signaling has been implicated in the regulation of hematopoiesis. By employing a Wnt-reporter mouse, we observed that Wnt signaling is differentially activated during hematopoiesis, suggesting an important regulatory role for specific Wnt signaling levels. To investigate whether canonical Wnt signaling regulates hematopoiesis in a dosage-dependent fashion, we analyzed the effect of different mutations in the Adenomatous polyposis coli gene (Apc), a negative modulator of the canonical Wnt pathway. By combining different targeted hypomorphic alleles and a conditional deletion allele of Apc, a gradient of five different Wnt signaling levels was obtained in vivo. We here show that different, lineage-specific Wnt dosages regulate hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), myeloid precursors, and T lymphoid precursors during hematopoiesis. Differential, lineage-specific optimal Wnt dosages provide a unifying concept that explains the differences reported among inducible gain-of-function approaches, leading to either HSC expansion or depletion of the HSC pool.

The genetic hierarchy that controls myelination of peripheral nerves by Schwann cells includes the POU domain Oct-6/Scip/Tst-1 and the zinc-finger Krox-20/Egr2 transcription factors. These pivotal transcription factors act to control the onset of myelination during development and tissue regeneration in adults following damage. In this report we demonstrate the involvement of a third transcription factor, the POU domain factor Brn-2. We show that Schwann cells express Brn-2 in a developmental profile similar to that of Oct-6 and that Brn-2 gene activation does not depend on Oct-6. Overexpression of Brn-2 in Oct-6-deficient Schwann cells, under control of the Oct-6 Schwann cell enhancer (SCE), results in partial rescue of the developmental delay phenotype, whereas compound disruption of both Brn-2 and Oct-6 results in a much more severe phenotype. Together these data strongly indicate that Brn-2 function largely overlaps with that of Oct-6 in driving the transition from promyelinating to myelinating Schwann cells. The high conduction velocity of nerve fibers is a hallmark of the nervous system of higher vertebrates and depends on structural and molecular specializations that are elaborated during development. These specializations occur through intimate and continued interactions between the neuron and its associated glial cells and result in the elaboration by glial cells of myelin, the important membranous structure that ensheaths and insulates axons (Arroyo and Scherer 2000; Fields and StevensGraham 2002;Mirsky et al. 2002). Two glial cell types produce myelin: the oligodendrocyte in the central nervous system (CNS) and the Schwann cell in the peripheral nervous system (PNS). Although very similarly organized, the molecular composition of CNS and PNS myelin differs significantly, and oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells have adopted different, but overlapping, sets of transcriptional regulators to coordinate myelogenesis (Hudson 2001; Topilko and Meijer 2001). These differences reflect their distinct embryonic origins. Whereas oligodendrocytes originate from the neuroepithelial precursors that line the lumen of the spinal cord and ventricles of the brain, Schwann cells derive mainly from the neural crest, a transient embryonic stem (ES) cell population that generates a wide variety of cell types including sensory and autonomic neurons and melanocytes (Le Douarin and Kalcheim 1999;Richardson 2001). Schwann cell precursors populate the early outgrowing nerve bundles, where they proliferate and segregate individual and groups of fibers until the number of Schwann cells and fibers is eventually matched. During the first few days of postnatal development, many Schwann cells establish a 1:1 relationship with axons, cease to proliferate, and initiate myelin formation such that by the end of the first postnatal week of development, all myelin-competent axons are actively being myelinated. Schwann cells that remain associated with groups of lower-caliber fibers will segregate these fibers in cytoplasmic cuffs without mye...

In somatic cells of female placental mammals, one of the two X chromosomes is transcriptionally silenced to accomplish an equal dose of X-encoded gene products in males and females. Initiation of random X chromosome inactivation (XCI) is thought to be regulated by X-encoded activators and autosomally encoded suppressors controlling Xist. Spreading of Xist RNA leads to silencing of the X chromosome in cis. Here, we demonstrate that the dose dependent X-encoded XCI activator RNF12/RLIM acts in trans and activates Xist. We did not find evidence for RNF12-mediated regulation of XCI through Tsix or the Xist intron 1 region, which are both known to be involved in inhibition of Xist. In addition, we found that Xist intron 1, which contains a pluripotency factor binding site, is not required for suppression of Xist in undifferentiated ES cells. Analysis of female Rnf12−/− knockout ES cells showed that RNF12 is essential for initiation of XCI and is mainly involved in the regulation of Xist. We conclude that RNF12 is an indispensable factor in up-regulation of Xist transcription, thereby leading to initiation of random XCI.

Progress in elucidating the molecular and cellular pathophysiology of neuropsychiatric disorders has been hindered by the limited availability of living human brain tissue. The emergence of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) has offered a unique alternative strategy using patient-derived functional neuronal networks. However, methods for reliably generating iPSC-derived neurons with mature electrophysiological characteristics have been difficult to develop. Here, we report a simplified differentiation protocol that yields electrophysiologically mature iPSC-derived cortical lineage neuronal networks without the need for astrocyte co-culture or specialized media. This protocol generates a consistent 60:40 ratio of neurons and astrocytes that arise from a common forebrain neural progenitor. Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings of 114 neurons derived from three independent iPSC lines confirmed their electrophysiological maturity, including resting membrane potential (−58.2±1.0 mV), capacitance (49.1±2.9 pF), action potential (AP) threshold (−50.9±0.5 mV) and AP amplitude (66.5±1.3 mV). Nearly 100% of neurons were capable of firing APs, of which 79% had sustained trains of mature APs with minimal accommodation (peak AP frequency: 11.9±0.5 Hz) and 74% exhibited spontaneous synaptic activity (amplitude, 16.03±0.82 pA; frequency, 1.09±0.17 Hz). We expect this protocol to be of broad applicability for implementing iPSC-based neuronal network models of neuropsychiatric disorders.

Homologous recombination is a versatile DNA damage repair pathway requiring Rad51 and Rad54. Here we show that a mammalian Rad54 paralog, Rad54B, displays physical and functional interactions with Rad51 and DNA that are similar to those of Rad54. While ablation of Rad54 in mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells leads to a mild reduction in homologous recombination efficiency, the absence of Rad54B has little effect. However, the absence of both Rad54 and Rad54B dramatically reduces homologous recombination efficiency. Furthermore, we show that Rad54B protects ES cells from ionizing radiation and the interstrand DNA cross-linking agent mitomycin C. Interestingly, at the ES cell level the paralogs do not display an additive or synergic interaction with respect to mitomycin C sensitivity, yet animals lacking both Rad54 and Rad54B are dramatically sensitized to mitomycin C compared to either single mutant. This suggests that the paralogs possibly function in a tissue-specific manner. Finally, we show that Rad54, but not Rad54B, is needed for a normal distribution of Rad51 on meiotic chromosomes. Thus, even though the paralogs have similar biochemical properties, genetic analysis in mice uncovered their nonoverlapping roles.DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) are among a plethora of lesions that threaten the integrity of the genome. If not properly processed, DSBs can lead to cell cycle arrest or illegitimate DNA rearrangements such as translocations, inversions, or deletions. These rearrangements can contribute to cell dysfunction, cell death, or carcinogenesis (22). DSBs can arise through the action of exogenous DNA-damaging agents, but they also arise from endogenous sources, such as oxidative DNA damage and as a consequence of DNA replication (10,22). Homologous recombination is a major DNA repair pathway by which DSBs are repaired. Homologous recombination is generally a precise way of resolving DSBs, because it uses homologous sequence, usually provided on the sister chromatid, as a repair template (54).Homologous recombination is a complex process requiring a number of proteins of the RAD52 epistasis group, including Rad51 and Rad54. Rad51 is the key player in this process because it is critical for homology recognition and performs strand exchange between recombining DNA molecules. A pivotal intermediate in these reactions is the Rad51 nucleoprotein filament. This forms when Rad51 polymerizes on singlestranded DNA that results from DNA damage processing (54). Rad54 is an important accessory factor for Rad51 (56). A number of biochemical characteristics of Rad54 have been well defined for different species ranging from yeasts to humans (8,18,24,31,37,38,42,47,48,53,55,59). Rad54 is a doublestranded-DNA-dependent ATPase that can translocate on DNA, thereby affecting DNA topology. Biochemically, Rad54 has been implicated in participation in multiple steps of homologous recombination. It can stabilize the Rad51 nucleoprotein filament in an early stage of recombination (30). At a subsequent stage it can promote chromatin rem...

Stichting ParkinsonFonds, Dorpmans-Wigmans Stichting, Erasmus Medical Center, ZonMw-Memorabel programme, EU Joint Programme Neurodegenerative Disease Research (JPND), Parkinson's UK, Avtal om Läkarutbildning och Forskning (ALF) and Parkinsonfonden (Sweden), Lijf and Leven foundation, and cross-border grant of Alzheimer Netherlands-Ligue Européene Contre la Maladie d'Alzheimer (LECMA).

X chromosome inactivation (XCI) in female placental mammals is a vital mechanism for dosage compensation between X-linked and autosomal genes. XCI starts with activation of Xist and silencing of the negative regulator Tsix, followed by cis spreading of Xist RNA over the future inactive X chromosome (Xi). Here, we show that XCI does not require physical contact between the two X chromosomes (X-pairing) but is regulated by trans-acting diffusible factors. We found that the X-encoded trans-acting and dose-dependent XCI-activator RNF12 acts in concert with the cis-regulatory region containing Jpx, Ftx, and Xpr to activate Xist and to overcome repression by Tsix. RNF12 acts at two subsequent steps; two active copies of Rnf12 drive initiation of XCI, and one copy needs to remain active to maintain XCI toward establishment of the Xi. This two-step mechanism ensures that XCI is very robust and fine-tuned, preventing XCI of both X chromosomes.

The POU domain transcription factor Pou3f1 (Oct6/Scip/Tst1) initiates the transition from ensheathing, promyelinating Schwann cells to myelinating cells. Axonal and other extra-cellular signals regulate Oct6 expression through the Oct6 Schwann cell enhancer (SCE), which is both required and sufficient to drive all aspects of Oct6 expression in Schwann cells. Thus, the Oct6 SCE is pivotal in the gene regulatory network that governs the onset of myelin formation in Schwann cells and provides a link between myelin promoting signalling and activation of a myelin related transcriptional network. In this study we define the relevant cis-acting elements within the SCE and identify the transcription factors that mediate Oct6 regulation. On the basis of phylogenetic comparisons and functional in vivo assays we identify a number of highly conserved core elements within the mouse SCE. We show that core element 1 is absolutely required for full enhancer function and that it contains closely-spaced inverted binding sites for Sox proteins. For the first time in vivo, the dimeric Sox10 binding to this element is shown to be essential for enhancer activity whereas monomeric Sox10 binding is non-functional. As Oct6 and Sox10 synergize to activate the expression of the major myelin-related transcription factor Krox20, we propose that Sox10 dependent activation of Oct6 defines a feed-forward regulatory module that serves to time and amplify the onset of myelination in the peripheral nervous system.