Laser printing based on laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) is a new biofabrication technique for the arrangement of biological materials or living cells in well-defined patterns. In the current study, skin cell lines (fibroblasts/keratinocytes) and human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSC) were chosen for laser printing experiments due to their high potential in regeneration of human skin and new application possibilities of stem cell therapy. To evaluate the influence of LIFT on the cells, their survival rate, their proliferation and apoptotic activity, and the DNA damages and modifications of their cell surface markers were assessed and statistically evaluated over several days. The cells survived the transfer procedure with a rate of 98%  +/- 1% standard error of the mean (skin cells) and 90%  +/- 10% (hMSC), respectively. All used cell types maintain their ability to proliferate after LIFT. Further, skin cells and hMSC did not show an increase of apoptosis or DNA fragmentation. In addition, the hMSC keep their phenotype as proven by fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) analysis. This study demonstrates LIFT as a suitable technique for unharmed computer-controlled positioning of different cell types and a promising tool for future applications in the ex vivo generation of tissue replacements.

Cardiomyopathy is one of the most common causes of chronic heart failure worldwide. Mutations in the gene encoding nexilin (NEXN) occur in patients with both hypertrophic and dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM); however, little is known about the pathophysiological mechanisms and relevance of NEXN to these disorders. Here, we evaluated the functional role of NEXN using a constitutive Nexn knock-out (KO) mouse model. Heterozygous (Het) mice were inter-crossed to produce wild-type (WT), Het, and homozygous KO mice. At birth, 32, 46, and 22 % of the mice were WT, Het, and KO, respectively, which is close to the expected Mendelian ratio. After postnatal day 6, the survival of the Nexn KO mice decreased dramatically and all of the animals died by day 8. Phenotypic characterizations of the WT and KO mice were performed at postnatal days 1, 2, 4, and 6. At birth, the relative heart weights of the WT and KO mice were similar; however, at day 4, the relative heart weight of the KO group was 2.3-fold higher than of the WT group. In addition, the KO mice developed rapidly progressive cardiomyopathy with left ventricular dilation and wall thinning and decreased cardiac function. At day 6, the KO mice developed a fulminant DCM phenotype characterized by dilated ventricular chambers and systolic dysfunction. At this stage, collagen deposits and some elastin deposits were observed within the left ventricle cavity, which resembles the features of endomyocardial fibroelastosis (EFE). Overall, these results further emphasize the role of NEXN in DCM and suggest a novel role in EFE.

In this small patient cohort, intramyocardial CD 133+ cell injection combined with transmyocardial laser revascularization led to an improvement in clinical symptomatology in all patients and in left ventricular function in 4 out of 5 patients, with an unclear effect on myocardial perfusion. Caution is advised when employing this therapy in patients with severely depressed left ventricular function.

Soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC), a key enzyme of the nitric oxide signaling pathway, is formed as a heterodimer by various isoforms of its α and β subunit. GUCY1A3, encoding the α1 subunit, was identified as a risk gene for coronary artery disease and myocardial infarction, but its specific contribution to atherosclerosis remains unclear. This study sought to decipher the role of Gucy1a3 in atherosclerosis in mice. At age 32 weeks and after 20 weeks of standard or high-fat diet, Gucy1a3(-/-)/Ldlr(-/-) mice exhibited a significant reduction of the atherosclerotic plaque size at the aortic root and the aorta for high-fat diet animals as compared with Ldlr(-/-) control mice. Collagen content in plaques in the aortic root was reduced, suggesting an alteration of smooth muscle cell function. Proliferation and migration were reduced in Gucy1a3(-/-) primary aortic smooth muscle cells (AoSMCs), and proliferation was also reduced in human AoSMCs after inhibition of sGC by 1H-[1,2,4] oxadiazolo [4,3-a] quinoxalin-1-one. Gucy1a3 deficiency in AoSMCs prevents their phenotypic switching, as indicated by the differential expression of marker proteins. The inherited Gucy1a3(-/-) loss exerts an atheroprotective effect. We suggest that sGC activity promotes the phenotypic switching of smooth muscle cells from a contractile to a synthetic state, fostering the formation of atherosclerosis. Preventing this switch by sGC inhibition may provide a novel target in atherosclerotic disease.

High-grade B-cell lymphoma accompanied with MYC and BCL2 and/or BCL6 rearrangements (HGBL-DH/TH) poses a cytogenetically-defined provisional entity among aggressive B-cell lymphomas that is traditionally associated with unfavorable prognosis. To better understand the mutational and molecular landscape of HGBL-DH/TH we here performed whole-exome sequencing and deep panel next-generation-sequencing (NGS) of 47 clinically annotated cases. Oncogenic drivers, mutational signatures and perturbed pathways were compared with data from follicular lymphoma (FL), diffuse large-B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and Burkitt lymphoma (BL). We find an accumulation of oncogenic mutations in NOTCH, IL6/JAK/STAT and NFκB signaling pathways and delineate the mutational relationship within the continuum between FL/DLBCL, HGBL-DH/TH and BL. Further, we provide evidence of a molecular divergence between BCL2 and BCL6 rearranged HGBL-DH. Beyond a significant congruency with the C3/EZB DLBCL cluster in BCL2 rearranged cases on an exome-wide level, we observe an enrichment of the SBS6 mutation signature in BCL6 rearranged cases. Differential gene set enrichment and subsequent network propagation analysis according to cytogenetically defined subgroups revealed an impairment of TP53 and MYC pathway signaling in BCL2 rearranged cases, whereas BCL6 rearranged cases lacked this enrichment, but instead exhibited showed impairment of E2F targets. Intriguingly, HGBL-TH displayed intermediate mutational features in all three aspects. This study elucidates a recurrent pattern of mutational events driving FL into MYC-driven BCL2 rearranged HGBL, unveiling the mutational pathogenesis of this provisional entity. Through this refinement of the molecular taxonomy for aggressive, germinal-center derived B-cell lymphomas, this calls into question the current WHO classification system, especially regarding the status of MYC/BCL6 rearranged HGBL.

Our results show advantages of a metronomic trofosfamide schedule compared to a conventional bolus therapy mainly due to inhibition of angiogenesis. In vitro data show that this mechanism works under normoxic and hypoxic conditions and suggest that this is in part a direct cytotoxic effect on endothelial cells.

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