Our principal hypotheses are that many as yet unidentified morphogens/growth factors control fetal and adult hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) survival and proliferation, and that genetic modifications of stromal cell lines can enhance their ability to support HSC expansion in culture without undergoing differentiation to lineage-restricted progenitors. We identified several potentially important secreted proteins specifically expressed in AFT024, a mouse fetal liver stromal cell line that maintains HSC stem cell activity: Pleiotrophin; Deltalike; the fibrillin-like protein T16; Cytokine Receptor-like Factor, and three members of the Proliferin gene family, Proliferin- 1; Mrp4, and proliferin- related protein (PRP). Using stable expression of siRNAs to block their production in AFT024 and AFT024 - FIt3L cells we will determine the function of these and other signaling proteins, such as M-CSF, in HSC expansion and differentiation. Using Fc fusion proteins we will determine whether HSCs have receptors for these novel growth/differentiation factors and whether their receptors might provide additional HSC- specific surface markers. Our preliminary data indicates positive effects of added Flt3L and IGF-2 on HSC maintenance and expansion in vitro. Thus, in parallel we will determine whether forced overexpression in AFT024 and AFT024 - Flt3L cells of several proteins including thrombopoietin; Stromal cell - derived factor 1; stem cell factor; IL-6; 3 Wnts; and IGF-2 enhances their ability to support expansion of HSCs in culture. As appropriate knock- out mice selectively missing one or more of these factors will be made and analyzed for HSCs and hematopoiesis. By comparing the ability of other stromal cell lines, including OP-9, MS-5, and S 17, to support maintenance and expansion of fetal liver and adult bone marrow HSCs, together with our existing transcriptional profiling data, we should identify other secreted/ surface proteins that potentially affect HSC expansion or differentiation positively or negatively, and in later years will test their role in HSC biology. Our long- term aim is to engineer a cloned line that supports robust, continuous expansion of fetal liver or bone marrow HSCs in culture. In continued collaboration with Prof. George Daley, we will test the ability of our novel growth factors/morphogens and genetically altered stromal cell lines to support the generation of transplantable HSCs from cultured human and mouse ES cell lines.
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