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Abstract #113010 Published in IGR 24-3
Rare intercellular material transfer as a confound to interpreting inner retinal neuronal transplantation following internal limiting membrane disruption
Zhang KY; Nagalingam A; Mary S; Aguzzi EA; Li W; Chetla N; Smith B; Paulaitis ME; Edwards MM; Quigley HA; Zack DJ; Johnson TVStem cell reports 2023; 18: 2203-2221
Intercellular cytoplasmic material transfer (MT) occurs between transplanted and developing photoreceptors and ambiguates cell origin identification in developmental, transdifferentiation, and transplantation experiments. Whether MT is a photoreceptor-specific phenomenon is unclear. Retinal ganglion cell (RGC) replacement, through transdifferentiation or transplantation, holds potential for restoring vision in optic neuropathies. During careful assessment for MT following human stem cell-derived RGC transplantation into mice, we identified RGC xenografts occasionally giving rise to labeling of donor-derived cytoplasmic, nuclear, and mitochondrial proteins within recipient Müller glia. Critically, nuclear organization is distinct between human and murine retinal neurons, which enables unequivocal discrimination of donor from host cells. MT was greatly facilitated by internal limiting membrane disruption, which also augments retinal engraftment following transplantation. Our findings demonstrate that retinal MT is not unique to photoreceptors and challenge the isolated use of species-specific immunofluorescent markers for xenotransplant identification. Assessment for MT is critical when analyzing neuronal replacement interventions.
Glaucoma Center for Excellence, Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA; Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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