Microchimeric Cells: (Trans-oral) Routes to and Presence in the Host
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Abstract
Thomas Kroneis, Gottfried Schatz Research Center, Division of Cell Biology, Histology and Embryology, Medical University of Graz, Austria
Supervisor: |
PD Dr. Thomas Kroneis |
---|---|
Availability: | This position is available. |
Offered by: |
Medical University of Graz |
Application deadline: | Applications are accepted between August 03, 2022 00:00 and September 20, 2022 23:59 (Europe/Zurich) |
Description
Background:
During pregnancy, some cells manage to traffic from the fetus into the mother and vice versa giving rise to microchimerism (MC) – a phenomenon in which an individual hosts a small number of cells originating from another (genetically different) individual. In humans this microchimeric cells can persist beyond pregnancy thereby founding the basis for a lifelong MC. Microchimeric cells can differentiate into almost any cell type in the host, and implant in almost any tissue type. The consensus is that MC plays a paradoxical role in host health: some studies show benefits, others suggest it may play a role in the development of diseases. MC has been proposed to play a role in maternal wound healing, but may also be associated with pregnancy complications, such as pre-eclampsia and spontaneous abortion, as well as cancer and auto-immune diseases. MC may also play a role in providing immunological protection for the developing fetus, but also has been associated with offspring autoimmune disorders. Both, the routes of the microchimeric cells into the host and the biological meaning in the host are still unclear and lack a theory unifying its paradoxical effects.
We launched a John Templeton Foundation-funded project on microchimerism connecting experts in evolutionary medicine, reproductive immunology, biochermistry, and single-cell analysis to address basic scientific questions in microchimerism research including short-term and long-term fetal and maternal microchimerism with a special focus on immunology.
We recently developed methods unambiguously identifying haplo-identical cells (i.e., maternal and fetal) allowing to assess the frequency of microchimeric cells in host tissues and are currently developing approaches towards spatial histology using in situ techniques to characterize tissues at the single cell level. Combination of these techniques will be a focus in the ongoing projects to identify microchimeric cells, their biological function and their microenvironment.
Hypothesis and Objectives:
Trans-oral route into the host: Maternal cells with stem cell potential transmigrate into the amniotic fluid and are swallowed by the fetus. From the fetal digestive tract, the microchimeric cells transmigrate into fetal tissues. The project tests if (1) maternal cells are present in amniotic fluids and (2) if these cells have stem-cell properties. In addition, the project will (3) screen fetal organs, especially fetal intestine for the presence of maternal cells.
Methodology:
In the project the candidate will use histological (e.g., tissue pre-analytics, sectioning, staining), molecular biology techniques (ddPCR, qPCR, FISH, in situ techniques) and conventional and cell culture (e.g., differentiation assays) to identify and characterize cells.
References:
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