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One of the causes of permanent disability in chronic multiple sclerosis patients is the inability of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) to terminate their maturation program at lesions. To identify key regulators of myelin gene expression acting at the last stages of OPC maturation we developed a drug repositioning strategy based on the mouse immortalized oligodendrocyte (OL) cell line Oli-neu brought to the premyelination stage by stably expressing a key factor regulating the last stages of OL maturation. The Prestwick Chemical Library of 1,200 FDA-approved compound(s) was repositioned at three dosages based on the induction of Myelin Basic Protein (MBP) expression. Drug hits were further validated using dosage-dependent reproducibility tests and biochemical assays. The glucocorticoid class of compounds was the most highly represented and we found that they can be divided in three groups according to their efficacy on MBP up-regulation. Since target identification is crucial before bringing compounds to the clinic, we searched for common targets of the primary screen hits based on their known chemical-target interactomes, and the pathways predicted by top ranking compounds were validated using specific inhibitors. Two of the top ranking compounds, Halcinonide and Clobetasol, act as Smoothened (Smo) agonists to up-regulate myelin gene expression in the Oli-neuM cell line. Further, RxRγ activation is required for MBP expression upon Halcinonide and Clobetasol treatment. These data indicate Clobetasol and Halcinonide as potential promyelinating drugs and also provide a mechanistic understanding of their mode of action in the pathway leading to myelination in OPCs. Furthermore, our classification of glucocorticoids with respect to MBP expression provides important novel insights into their effects in the CNS and a rational criteria for their choice in combinatorial therapies in de-myelinating diseases.
Pubmed ID: 26658258 RIS Download
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Database of known and predicted protein interactions. The interactions include direct (physical) and indirect (functional) associations and are derived from four sources: Genomic Context, High-throughput experiments, (Conserved) Coexpression, and previous knowledge. STRING quantitatively integrates interaction data from these sources for a large number of organisms, and transfers information between these organisms where applicable. The database currently covers 5''214''234 proteins from 1133 organisms. (2013)
View all literature mentionsDatabase to explore known and predicted interactions of chemicals and proteins. It integrates information about interactions from metabolic pathways, crystal structures, binding experiments and drug-target relationships. Inferred information from phenotypic effects, text mining and chemical structure similarity is used to predict relations between chemicals. STITCH further allows exploring the network of chemical relations, also in the context of associated binding proteins. Each proposed interaction can be traced back to the original data sources. The database contains interaction information for over 68,000 different chemicals, including 2200 drugs, and connects them to 1.5 million genes across 373 genomes and their interactions contained in the STRING database.
View all literature mentionsNEURON is a simulation environment for modeling individual neurons and networks of neurons. It provides tools for conveniently building, managing, and using models in a way that is numerically sound and computationally efficient. It is particularly well-suited to problems that are closely linked to experimental data, especially those that involve cells with complex anatomical and biophysical properties. NEURON has benefited from judicious revision and selective enhancement, guided by feedback from the growing number of neuroscientists who have used it to incorporate empirically-based modeling into their research strategies. NEURON's computational engine employs special algorithms that achieve high efficiency by exploiting the structure of the equations that describe neuronal properties. It has functions that are tailored for conveniently controlling simulations, and presenting the results of real neurophysiological problems graphically in ways that are quickly and intuitively grasped. Instead of forcing users to reformulate their conceptual models to fit the requirements of a general purpose simulator, NEURON is designed to let them deal directly with familiar neuroscience concepts. Consequently, users can think in terms of the biophysical properties of membrane and cytoplasm, the branched architecture of neurons, and the effects of synaptic communication between cells. * helps users focus on important biological issues rather than purely computational concerns * has a convenient user interface * has a user-extendable library of biophysical mechanisms * has many enhancements for efficient network modeling * offers customizable initialization and simulation flow control * is widely used in neuroscience research by experimentalists and theoreticians * is well-documented and actively supported * is free, open source, and runs on (almost) everything
View all literature mentionsA research tool company focused on the creation of the largest commercial collection of full-length human cDNAs in a standard expression vector. The availability of the complete human genome sequence and the subsequent development of genome-based tools have enabled the identification of relevant drug targets through system biology approaches. OriGene''s vision is to prepare comprehensive, genome wide research tools and technology platforms to enable scientists to study complete biological pathways, thus enabling a better understanding of disease mechanisms including cancer and stem cell research. OriGene Technologies uses high-throughput, genome wide approach to develop products for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and academic research. Their flagship product is the cDNA clone collection, a searchable gene bank of over 30,000 human full-length TrueClone cDNA collection and over 25,000 TrueORF cDNA clones. From their TrueORF cDNA clones, they have developed the largest offering of full length human proteins expressed in mammalian cells, ideal for functional studies. Their TrueMAB project develops mouse monoclonal antibodies against protein antigens with the goal to develop protein assays for every human protein. They also offer complete molecular biology services from codon optimization, gene synthesis, protein expression and assay development. In addition, they offer unique gene expression products such as TissueScan cancer tissue qPCR arrays and tissue biorepository for biomarker discovery and validation.
View all literature mentionsThe SciCrunch Infrastructure was developed as a cooperative data platform to be used by diverse communities in making data more FAIR.
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