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Journal of the American Heart... Oct 2023The medial layer of the arterial wall is composed mainly of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Under physiological conditions, VSMCs assume a contractile phenotype,... (Review)
Review
The medial layer of the arterial wall is composed mainly of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Under physiological conditions, VSMCs assume a contractile phenotype, and their primary function is to regulate vascular tone. In contrast with terminally differentiated cells, VSMCs possess phenotypic plasticity, capable of transitioning into other cellular phenotypes in response to changes in the vascular environment. Recent research has shown that VSMC phenotypic switching participates in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, where the various types of dedifferentiated VSMCs accumulate in the atherosclerotic lesion and participate in the associated vascular remodeling by secreting extracellular matrix proteins and proteases. This review article discusses the 9 VSMC phenotypes that have been reported in atherosclerotic lesions and classifies them into differentiated VSMCs, intermediately dedifferentiated VSMCs, and dedifferentiated VSMCs. It also provides an overview of several methodologies that have been developed for studying VSMC phenotypic switching and discusses their respective advantages and limitations.
Topics: Humans; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular; Atherosclerosis; Phenotype; Cell Differentiation; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle; Cells, Cultured; Cell Proliferation
PubMed: 37815057
DOI: 10.1161/JAHA.123.031121 -
Heart Failure Reviews Sep 2023The hypertrophic cardiomyopathy phenotype encompasses a heterogeneous spectrum of genetic and acquired diseases characterized by the presence of left ventricular... (Review)
Review
The hypertrophic cardiomyopathy phenotype encompasses a heterogeneous spectrum of genetic and acquired diseases characterized by the presence of left ventricular hypertrophy in the absence of abnormal cardiac loading conditions. This "umbrella diagnosis" includes the "classic" hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), due to sarcomere protein gene mutations, and its phenocopies caused by intra- or extracellular deposits, such as Fabry disease (FD) and cardiac amyloidosis (CA). All these conditions share a wide phenotypic variability which results from the combination of genetic and environmental factors and whose pathogenic mediators are poorly understood so far. Accumulating evidence suggests that inflammation plays a critical role in a broad spectrum of cardiovascular conditions, including cardiomyopathies. Indeed, inflammation can trigger molecular pathways which contribute to cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and dysfunction, extracellular matrix accumulation, and microvascular dysfunction. Growing evidence suggests that systemic inflammation is a possible key pathophysiologic process potentially involved in the pathogenesis of cardiac disease progression, influencing the severity of the phenotype and clinical outcome, including heart failure. In this review, we summarize current knowledge regarding the prevalence, clinical significance, and potential therapeutic implications of inflammation in HCM and two of its most important phenocopies, FD and CA.
Topics: Humans; Cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic; Hypertrophy, Left Ventricular; Cardiomyopathies; Phenotype; Fabry Disease; Inflammation
PubMed: 37115472
DOI: 10.1007/s10741-023-10307-4 -
Emerging Topics in Life Sciences Dec 2023Repeat expansion disorders (REDs) are monogenic diseases caused by a sequence of repetitive DNA expanding above a pathogenic threshold. A common feature of the REDs is a...
Repeat expansion disorders (REDs) are monogenic diseases caused by a sequence of repetitive DNA expanding above a pathogenic threshold. A common feature of the REDs is a strong genotype-phenotype correlation in which a major determinant of age at onset (AAO) and disease progression is the length of the inherited repeat tract. Over a disease-gene carrier's life, the length of the repeat can expand in somatic cells, through the process of somatic expansion which is hypothesised to drive disease progression. Despite being monogenic, individual REDs are phenotypically variable, and exploring what genetic modifying factors drive this phenotypic variability has illuminated key pathogenic mechanisms that are common to this group of diseases. Disease phenotypes are affected by the cognate gene in which the expansion is found, the location of the repeat sequence in coding or non-coding regions and by the presence of repeat sequence interruptions. Human genetic data, mouse models and in vitro models have implicated the disease-modifying effect of DNA repair pathways via the mechanisms of somatic mutation of the repeat tract. As such, developing an understanding of these pathways in the context of expanded repeats could lead to future disease-modifying therapies for REDs.
Topics: Mice; Animals; Humans; Trinucleotide Repeat Expansion; Age of Onset; Genetic Association Studies; Phenotype; Disease Progression
PubMed: 37861103
DOI: 10.1042/ETLS20230015 -
Frontiers in Immunology 2023Macrophages are found to infiltrate and migrate in a large number of Tumor-associated macrophages (TMEs) and other macrophages in the microenvironment of tumors and... (Review)
Review
Macrophages are found to infiltrate and migrate in a large number of Tumor-associated macrophages (TMEs) and other macrophages in the microenvironment of tumors and related diseases, and undergo phenotypic changes in response to a variety of cytokines, mainly including the primary phenotype M2 and the anti-tumor phenotype M1. The Hippo signaling pathway affects the development of cancer and other diseases through various biological processes, such as inhibition of cell growth. In this review, we focus on immune cells within the microenvironment of tumors and other diseases, and the role of the Hippo pathway in tumors on macrophage polarization in the tumor microenvironment (TME) and other diseases.
Topics: Humans; Hippo Signaling Pathway; Macrophages; Neoplasms; Cytokines; Phenotype; Tumor Microenvironment
PubMed: 38090595
DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1279591 -
ELife Sep 2023Experiments on worms suggest that a statistical measure called the G matrix can accurately predict how phenotypes will adapt to a novel environment over multiple...
Experiments on worms suggest that a statistical measure called the G matrix can accurately predict how phenotypes will adapt to a novel environment over multiple generations.
Topics: Phenotype; Biological Evolution; Adaptation, Biological; Animals
PubMed: 37671937
DOI: 10.7554/eLife.91450 -
Proceedings. Biological Sciences Aug 2023Ecological interactions influence evolutionary dynamics by selecting upon fitness variation within species. Antagonistic interactions often promote genetic and species... (Review)
Review
Ecological interactions influence evolutionary dynamics by selecting upon fitness variation within species. Antagonistic interactions often promote genetic and species diversity, despite the inherently suppressive effect they can have on the species experiencing them. A central aim of evolutionary ecology is to understand how diversity is maintained in systems experiencing antagonism. In this review, we address how certain single-celled and dimorphic fungi have evolved allelopathic killer phenotypes that engage in antagonistic interactions. We discuss the evolutionary pathways to the production of lethal toxins, the functions of killer phenotypes and the consequences of competition for toxin producers, their competitors and toxin-encoding endosymbionts. Killer phenotypes are powerful models because many appear to have evolved independently, enabling across-phylogeny comparisons of the origins, functions and consequences of allelopathic antagonism. Killer phenotypes can eliminate host competitors and influence evolutionary dynamics, yet the evolutionary ecology of killer phenotypes remains largely unknown. We discuss what is known and what remains to be ascertained about killer phenotype ecology and evolution, while bringing their model system properties to the reader's attention.
Topics: Phylogeny; Fungi; Models, Biological; Phenotype; Ecology; Biological Evolution
PubMed: 37583325
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.1108 -
Trends in Microbiology Feb 2024Life can be stressful. One way to deal with stress is to simply wait it out. Microbes do this by entering a state of reduced activity and increased resistance commonly... (Review)
Review
Life can be stressful. One way to deal with stress is to simply wait it out. Microbes do this by entering a state of reduced activity and increased resistance commonly called 'dormancy'. But what is dormancy? Different scientific disciplines emphasize distinct traits and phenotypic ranges in defining dormancy for their microbial species and system-specific questions of interest. Here, we propose a unified definition of microbial dormancy, using a broad framework to place earlier discipline-specific definitions in a new context. We then discuss how this new definition and framework may improve our ability to investigate dormancy using multi-omics tools. Finally, we leverage our framework to discuss the diversity of genomic mechanisms for dormancy in an extreme environment that challenges easy definitions - the permafrost.
Topics: Genomics; Phenotype
PubMed: 37689487
DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2023.08.006 -
Cell Reports Oct 2023Following viral infection, the human immune system generates CD8 T cell responses to virus antigens that differ in specificity, abundance, and phenotype. A...
Following viral infection, the human immune system generates CD8 T cell responses to virus antigens that differ in specificity, abundance, and phenotype. A characterization of virus-specific T cell responses allows one to assess infection history and to understand its contribution to protective immunity. Here, we perform in-depth profiling of CD8 T cells binding to CMV-, EBV-, influenza-, and SARS-CoV-2-derived antigens in peripheral blood samples from 114 healthy donors and 55 cancer patients using high-dimensional mass cytometry and single-cell RNA sequencing. We analyze over 500 antigen-specific T cell responses across six different HLA alleles and observed unique phenotypes of T cells specific for antigens from different virus categories. Using machine learning, we extract phenotypic signatures of antigen-specific T cells, predict virus specificity for bulk CD8 T cells, and validate these predictions, suggesting that machine learning can be used to accurately predict antigen specificity from T cell phenotypes.
Topics: Humans; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes; Herpesvirus 4, Human; T-Cell Antigen Receptor Specificity; Antigens, Viral; Phenotype
PubMed: 37837618
DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113250 -
The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology... Aug 2023Kenny-Caffey syndrome (KCS) is a rare hereditary disorder characterized by short stature, hypoparathyroidism, and electrolyte disturbances. KCS1 and KCS2 are caused by...
CONTEXT
Kenny-Caffey syndrome (KCS) is a rare hereditary disorder characterized by short stature, hypoparathyroidism, and electrolyte disturbances. KCS1 and KCS2 are caused by pathogenic variants in TBCE and FAM111A, respectively. Clinically the phenotypes are difficult to distinguish.
OBJECTIVE
The objective was to determine and expand the phenotypic spectrum of KCS1 and KCS2 in order to anticipate complications that may arise in these disorders.
METHODS
We clinically and genetically analyzed 10 KCS2 patients from 7 families. Because we found unusual phenotypes in our cohort, we performed a systematic review of genetically confirmed KCS cases using PubMed and Scopus. Evaluation by 3 researchers led to the inclusion of 26 papers for KCS1 and 16 for KCS2, totaling 205 patients. Data were extracted following the Cochrane guidelines and assessed by 2 independent researchers.
RESULTS
Several patients in our KCS2 cohort presented with intellectual disability (3/10) and chronic kidney disease (6/10), which are not considered common findings in KCS2. Systematic review of all reported KCS cases showed that the phenotypes of KCS1 and KCS2 overlap for postnatal growth retardation (KCS1: 52/52, KCS2: 23/23), low parathyroid hormone levels (121/121, 16/20), electrolyte disturbances (139/139, 24/27), dental abnormalities (47/50, 15/16), ocular abnormalities (57/60, 22/23), and seizures/spasms (103/115, 13/16). Symptoms more prevalent in KCS1 included intellectual disability (74/80, 5/24), whereas in KCS2 bone cortical thickening (1/18, 16/20) and medullary stenosis (7/46, 27/28) were more common.
CONCLUSION
Our case series established chronic kidney disease as a new feature of KCS2. In the literature, we found substantial overlap in the phenotypic spectra of KCS1 and KCS2, but identified intellectual disability and the abnormal bone phenotype as the most distinguishing features.
Topics: Humans; Intellectual Disability; Hyperostosis, Cortical, Congenital; Phenotype; Electrolytes; Hypoparathyroidism
PubMed: 36916904
DOI: 10.1210/clinem/dgad147 -
Gene Nov 2023The TBL1XR1 gene encodes the protein transducin-beta-like 1 receptor1, widely distributed in the pituitary, hypothalamus, white and brown adipose tissue, muscle, and... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
The TBL1XR1 gene encodes the protein transducin-beta-like 1 receptor1, widely distributed in the pituitary, hypothalamus, white and brown adipose tissue, muscle, and liver. Current evidence suggests that heterozygous TBL1XR1 pathogenic variants can lead to a wide spectrum of phenotypes. This study aims to reveal the clinical phenotype and genetic profiles of de novo TBL1XR1 variations and summarize the relevant clinical and genetic features.
METHODS
We analyzed four new cases harboring de novo TBL1XR1 variants and reviewed all reported cases.
RESULTS
All probands suffered from global developmental delay. Moreover, patient 1 exhibited susceptibility to startle, patient 2 had hypovitaminosis D, short stature and hyponatremia, and patients 3 and 4 both presented with ASD (Autism spectrum disorder) and short stature. They all had a de novo TBL1XR1 variant (NM_024665.7), c.1184A > G (p.Tyr395Cys), c.1108G > A (p.Asp370Asn), c.1047 + 1G > C, and c.1097C > T (p.Ser366Phe) respectively. In addition, pooled analysis of 51 cases showed that they had speech impairment (38/39), intellectual developmental disorder (28/28), global developmental delay (42/42), and hypotonia (24/27), and some of them had epilepsy (10/22), ASD (13/25), and developmental regression (4/13).
CONCLUSIONS
We report four new patients with de novo TBL1XR1 variants and provide a comprehensive overview of 47 previously reported individuals with TBL1XR1 variants, enriching the genotypic and phenotypic spectrum of TBL1XR1-related disease. This report further validates the pathogenicity de novo TBL1XR1 variants.
Topics: Humans; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Genotype; Phenotype; Heterozygote; Adipose Tissue, Brown; Repressor Proteins; Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear
PubMed: 37683765
DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2023.147777