Biomedical subjects

Reinout Stoop

Publications and source records attributed to Reinout Stoop.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Cell adhesion profiling using extracellular matrix protein microarrays.

We have developed a microarray-based system for cell adhesion profiling of large panels of cell-adhesive proteins to increase the throughput of in vitro cell adhesion assays, which are currently primarily performed in multiwell plates. Miniaturizing cell adhesion assays to an array format required the development of protocols for the reproducible microspotting of extracellular matrix (ECM) protein solutions and for the handling of cell suspensions during the assay. We generated ECM protein microarrays with high reproducibility in microspot protein content using nitrocellulose-coated glass microslides, combined with piezoelectric microspotting of protein solutions. Protocols were developed that allowed us to use 5000 cells or fewer on an array of 4 x 4 mm consisting of 64 microspots. Using this microarray system, we identified differences of adhesive properties of three cell lines to 14 different ECM proteins. Furthermore, the sensitivity and accuracy of the assays were increased using microarrays with ranges of ECM protein amounts. This microarray system will be particularly useful for extensive comparative cell adhesion profiling studies when only low amounts of adhesive substrate and cells, such as stem cells or cells from biopsies, are available.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-2 enhances the expression of type II collagen and aggrecan in chondrocytes embedded in alginate beads.

OBJECTIVE: For autologous chondrocyte transplantation (ACT) chondrocytes are expanded in vitro. During expansion these cells may dedifferentiate. This change in phenotype is characterized by a raised expression of type I collagen and a decrease in type II collagen expression. Since high expression of type II collagen is of central importance for the properties of hyaline cartilage, we investigated if the growth factor bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) may modulate the chondrogenic phenotype in monolayer cell cultures and in three-dimensional culture systems. DESIGN: Chondrocytes from articular knee cartilage of 11 individuals (average age: 39.8 years) with no history of joint disease were isolated and seeded either in monolayer cultures or embedded in alginate beads in presence or absence of human recombinant BMP-2 (hr-BMP-2). Then, cells were harvested and analysis of the chondrogenic phenotype was performed using quantitative RT-PCR, immunocytochemistry and ELISA. RESULTS: Addition of BMP-2 to chondrocytes expanded in two-dimensional (2D) cultures during the first subculture (P1) had no effect on mRNA amounts encoding type II collagen and interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta). In contrast, seeding chondrocytes in three-dimensional (3D) alginate cultures raised type II collagen expression significantly and addition of BMP-2 enhanced this effect. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that chondrocytes during expansion for ACT may benefit from BMP-2 activation only when seeded in an appropriate 3D culture system.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Role of the extracellular and cytoplasmic domains of CD44 in the rolling interaction of lymphoid cells with hyaluronan under physiologic flow.

CD44 can function as an adhesion receptor that mediates leukocyte rolling on hyaluronan (HA). To study the contributions of different domains of the standard isoform of CD44 to cell rolling, a CD44-negative mouse T lymphoma AKR1 was transfected with wild type (WT) or mutated cDNA constructs. A parallel flow chamber was used to study the rolling behavior of CD44 transfectants on immobilized HA. For CD44WT transfectants, the fraction of cells that rolled and the rolling velocity was inversely proportional to the amount of cell surface CD44. When the cytoplasmic domain distal to Gly(305) or sequences that serve as binding sites for cytoskeletal linker proteins, were deleted or replaced with foreign sequences, no significant changes in the rolling behavior of mutant cells, compared with the transfectant expressing CD44WT, were observed. Transfectants lacking 64 amino acids of the cytoplasmic tail distal to Cys(295) adhered to HA but showed enhanced rolling at low shear forces. When 83 amino acids from the "non-conserved" membrane-proximal region of the CD44 extracellular domain were deleted, cells adhered firmly to the HA substrate and did not roll at any fluid shear force tested. Unlike wild type cells that exhibited a nearly homogeneous distribution of CD44 on a smooth cell surface, cells expressing the non-conserved region deletion mutant accumulated CD44 in membrane protrusions. Disruption of the actin cytoskeleton with cytochalasin B precluded the formation of membrane protrusions, however, treated cells still adhered firmly to HA and did not roll. We conclude that interaction between the cytoplasmic domain of CD44 and the cytoskeleton is not required for cell rolling on immobilized ligand. The strong effect of deletion of the non-conserved region of the extracellular domain argues for a critical role of this region in CD44-dependent rolling and adhesion interactions with HA under flow.

Animals↗

PubMed2002

Trafficking of CD44-deficient murine lymphocytes under normal and inflammatory conditions.

CD44 has been implicated in hyaluronan (HA)-dependent primary adhesion between leukocytes and endothelium. We studied the trafficking of lymphocytes of CD44-deficient DBA/1 mice under normal conditions, and during chronic and transient forms of inflammation. Animals homozygous for the CD44 mutation (CD44(-/-)) showed no abnormalities in the composition of the lympho-hemopoietic system, but their leukocytes could not recognize HA as an adhesion ligand. T cells from CD44-deficient mice responded normally to immunization with type II collagen or stimulation with a bacterial superantigen. Lymphocytes harvested from naive CD44(-/-) and wild-type (WT) animals showed similar trafficking properties when injected into naive recipients. However, cells from WT and CD44-deficient mice with collagen-induced arthritis showed distinct migration kinetics upon transfer to arthritic recipients. While lymphocytes from CD44(-/-) mice preferentially homed to lymph nodes, their entry into the inflamed synovial joints was delayed as compared with WT cells. Similar differences were observed in the migration kinetics of CD44-deficient and CD44-competent (CD44(+/+)) lymphocytes in bacterial superantigen-induced peritonitis. These results suggest that CD44 plays opposite roles in the regulation of leukocyte traffic to inflammatory sites versus the lymph nodes. CD44-deficient lymphocytes from animals with chronic arthritis, but not from those with transient peritonitis, expressed markedly reduced levels of the lymph node homing receptor, L-selectin. Extreme down-modulation of L-selectin from CD44(-/-) cells in arthritic condition might be a counter-regulatory response, which, by extending lymphocyte transit time in the circulation at the expense of lymph node homing, allows CD44-deficient cells to gain entry to the site of chronic inflammation via secondary adhesion mechanisms.

Animals↗