The N-glycome regulates the endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition
Dionna M. Kasper, Jared Hintzen, Yinyu Wu, Joey J. Ghersi, Hanna K. Mandl, Kevin E. Salinas, William Armero, Zhiheng He, Ying Sheng, Yixuan Xie, Daniel W. Heindel, Eon Joo Park, William C. Sessa, Lara K. Mahal, Carlito B. Lebrilla, Karen K. Hirschi, Stefania Nicoli
Abstract
Sugar code regulates blood stem cells During embryonic development, blood stem cells are derived from vascular endothelial cells that line the walls of developing arteries. The transition from endothelial cells to blood stem cells is highly regulated and restricted to a small portion of endothelial cells during a brief period of time. The mechanisms regulating this transition are also poorly understood. Kasper et al. found that microRNA-223 intrinsically restrains the vascular hematopoietic transition by regulating N-glycan biosynthesis to restrict hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell production and differentiation. Genetics or chemicals could be used to alter the sugar code and change the efficiency of blood production in embryos. Thus, genetically or pharmacologically altering N-glycan biosynthesis in endothelial cells could improve the efficiency of the production of blood stem cells, which could then be used to treat blood diseases such as leukemia. Science , this issue p. 1186