Summary The functional and molecular similarities and distinctions between human and murine astrocytes are poorly understood. Here we report the development of an immunopanning method to acutely purify astrocytes from fetal, juvenile, and adult human brains, and to maintain these cells in serum-free cultures. We found that human astrocytes have similar abilities to murine astrocytes in promoting neuronal survival, inducing functional synapse formation, and engulfing synaptosomes. In contrast to existing observations in mice, we found that mature human astrocytes respond robustly to glutamate. We next performed RNA-sequencing of healthy human astrocytes along with astrocytes from epileptic and tumor foci, and compared these to human neurons, oligodendrocytes, microglia, and endothelial cells. With these profiles, we identified novel human-specific astrocyte genes, and discovered a transcriptome-wide transformation between astrocyte precursor cells and mature post-mitotic astrocytes. These data represent some of the first cell type-specific molecular profiles of the healthy and diseased human brain.

A rare set of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) must undergo a massive expansion to produce mature blood cells. The phenotypic isolation of HSC from mice offers the opportunity to determine directly their proliferation kinetics. We analyzed the proliferation and cell cycle kinetics of longterm self-renewing HSC (LT-HSC) in normal adult mice. At any one time, Ϸ5% of LT-HSC were in S͞G 2 ͞M phases of the cell cycle and another 20% were in G 1 phase. BrdUrd incorporation was used to determine the rate at which different cohorts of HSC entered the cell cycle over time. About 50% of LT-HSC incorporated BrdUrd by 6 days and >90% incorporated BrdUrd by 30 days. By 6 months, 99% of LT-HSC had incorporated BrdUrd. We calculated that approximately 8% of LT-HSC asynchronously entered the cell cycle per day. Nested reverse transcription-PCR analysis revealed cyclin D2 expression in a high proportion of LT-HSC. Although Ϸ75% of LT-HSC are quiescent in G 0 at any one time, all HSC are recruited into cycle regularly such that 99% of LT-HSC divide on average every 57 days.

Purpose MYC-amplified medulloblastomas are highly lethal tumors. BET bromodomain inhibition has recently been shown to suppress MYC-associated transcriptional activity in other cancers. The compound JQ1 inhibits BET bromodomain-containing proteins, including BRD4. Here we investigate BET bromodomain targeting for the treatment of MYC-amplified medulloblastoma. Experimental Design We evaluated the effects of genetic and pharmacological inhibition of BET bromodomains on proliferation, cell cycle, and apoptosis in established and newly generated patient- and GEMM-derived medulloblastoma cell lines and xenografts that harbored amplifications of MYC or MYCN. We also assessed the effect of JQ1 on MYC expression and global MYC-associated transcriptional activity. We assessed in vivo efficacy of JQ1 in orthotopic xenografts established in immunocompromised mice. Results Treatment of MYC-amplified medulloblastoma cells with JQ1 decreased cell viability associated with arrest at G1 and apoptosis. We observed down-regulation of MYC expression and confirmed inhibition of MYC-associated transcriptional targets. Exogenous expression of MYC from a retroviral promoter reduced the effect of JQ1 on cell viability, suggesting that attenuated levels of MYC contribute to the functional effects of JQ1. JQ1 significantly prolonged survival of orthotopic xenograft models of MYC-amplified medulloblastoma (p<0.001). Xenografts harvested from mice after five doses of JQ1 had reduced expression of MYC mRNA and a reduced proliferative index. Conclusion JQ1 suppresses MYC expression and MYC-associated transcriptional activity in medulloblastomas, resulting in an overall decrease in medulloblastoma cell viability. These preclinical findings highlight the promise of BET bromodomain inhibitors as novel agents for MYC-amplified medulloblastoma.