Claudia M. Garcia

Fibroblast growth factor receptor signaling is essential for lens fiber cell differentiation.

The vertebrate lens provides an excellent model to study the mechanisms that regulate terminal differentiation. Although fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) are thought to be important for lens cell differentiation, it is unclear which FGF receptors mediate these processes during different stages of lens development. Deletion of three FGF receptors (Fgfr1-3) early in lens development demonstrated that expression of only a single allele of Fgfr2 or Fgfr3 was sufficient for grossly normal lens development, while mice possessing only a single Fgfr1 allele developed cataracts and microphthalmia. Profound defects were observed in lenses lacking all three Fgfrs. These included lack of fiber cell elongation, abnormal proliferation in prospective lens fiber cells, reduced expression of the cell cycle inhibitors p27(kip1) and p57(kip2), increased apoptosis and aberrant or reduced expression of Prox1, Pax6, c-Maf, E-cadherin and alpha-, beta- and gamma-crystallins. Therefore, while signaling by FGF receptors is essential for lens fiber differentiation, different FGF receptors function redundantly.

Signaling Through FGF Receptor-2 Is Required for Lens Cell Survival and for Withdrawal From the Cell Cycle During Lens Fiber Cell Differentiation

Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) play important roles in many aspects of development, including lens development. The lens is derived from the surface ectoderm and consists of an anterior layer of epithelial cells and elongated, terminally differentiated fiber cells that form the bulk of the tissue. FGF signaling has been implicated in lens induction, proliferation, and differentiation. To address the role of FGFs in lens development, we inactivated FGF receptor‐2 (Fgfr2) using a Cre transgene that is expressed in all prospective lens cells from embryonic day 9.0. Inactivation of Fgfr2 shows that signaling through this receptor is not required for lens induction or for the proliferation of lens epithelial cells. However, Fgfr2 signaling is needed to drive lens fiber cells out of the cell cycle during their terminal differentiation. It also contributes to the normal elongation of primary lens fiber cells and to the survival of lens epithelial cells. Developmental Dynamics 233:516–527, 2005.

The function of FGF signaling in the lens placode

Previous studies suggested that FGF signaling is important for lens formation. However, the times at which FGFs act to promote lens formation, the FGFs that are involved, the cells that secrete them and the mechanisms by which FGF signaling may promote lens formation are not known. We found that transcripts encoding several FGF ligands and the four classical FGF receptors are detectable in the lens-forming ectoderm at the time of lens induction. Conditional deletion of Fgfr1 and Fgfr2 from this tissue resulted in the formation of small lens rudiments that soon degenerated. Lens placodes lacking Fgfr1 and 2 were thinner than in wild-type embryos. Deletion of Fgfr2 increased cell death from the initiation of placode formation and concurrent deletion of Fgfr1 enhanced this phenotype. Fgfr1/2 conditional knockout placode cells expressed lower levels of proteins known to be regulated by FGF receptor signaling, but proteins known to be important for lens formation were present at normal levels in the remaining placode cells, including the transcription factors Pax6, Sox2 and FoxE3 and the lens-preferred protein αA-crystallin. Previous studies identified a genetic interaction between BMP and FGF signaling in lens formation and conditional deletion of Bmpr1a caused increased cell death in the lens placode, resulting in the formation of smaller lenses. In the present study, conditional deletion of both Bmpr1a and Fgfr2 increased cell death beyond that seen in Fgfr2(CKO) placodes and prevented lens formation. These results suggest that the primary role of autocrine or paracrine FGF signaling is to provide essential survival signals to lens placode cells. Because apoptosis was already increased at the onset of placode formation in Fgfr1/2 conditional knockout placode cells, FGF signaling was functionally absent during the period of lens induction by the optic vesicle. Since the expression of proteins required for lens formation was not altered in the knockout placode cells, we can conclude that FGF signaling from the optic vesicle is not required for lens induction.

Loss of NF-κB Control and Repression of Prdx6 Gene Transcription by Reactive Oxygen Species-driven SMAD3-mediated Transforming Growth Factor β Signaling

Activation of transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) in response to increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) leads to pathophysiology of cells/tissues by overmodulation of gene transcription. PRDX6 plays a rheostat role in regulating gene transcription by controlling cellular ROS in maintaining homeostasis; thus, fine tuning of Prdx6 expression is required to optimize ROS levels. Using Prdx6- and Smad3-depleted cells, we show that Prdx6−/− cells bear active NF-κB and Smad3, and repression of Prdx6 transcription in redox-active cells (Prdx6−/−) is due to ROS-induced dominant Smad3-mediated TGFβ signaling. The Prdx6 promoter (−1139 bp) containing repressive Smad3-binding elements and NF-κB sites showed reduced promoter activity in Prdx6−/− cells, and the activity was restored in Smad3−/− cells. Mutation of repressive Smad3-binding elements eliminated the repression of the Prdx6 promoter. Revival of promoter activity by application of TGFβ1 antibody to Prdx6−/− and Smad3−/− cells with increased Prdx6 mRNA and protein conferred resistance to TGFβ- and H2O2-induced insult, demonstrating that repression of Prdx6 transcription is Smad3-dependent. Promoter activity in Smad3−/− or Prdx6−/− cells was moderately increased by disruption of NF-κB sites, suggesting the role of NF-κB in tuning of Prdx6 expression. Findings revealed a mechanism of repression and regulation of PRDX6 expression in cells facing stress or aging and provided clues for antioxidant(s)-based new approaches in preventing ROS-driven deleterious signaling.