Novel pathogenic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to pose an imminent global threat since its initial outbreak in December 2019. A simple in vitro model system using cell lines highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection are critical to facilitate the study of the virus cycle and to discover effective antivirals against the virus. Human lung alveolar A549 cells are regarded as a useful and valuable model for respiratory virus infection. However, SARS-CoV-2 uses the ACE2 as receptor for viral entry and the TMPRSS2 to prime the Spike protein, both of which are negligibly expressed in A549 cells. Here, we report the generation of a robust human lung epithelial cell-based model by transducing ACE2 and TMPRSS2 into A549 cells and show that the ACE2 enriched A549ACE2/TMPRSS2 cells (ACE2plus) and its single-cell-derived subclone (ACE2plusC3) are highly susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. These engineered ACE2plus showed higher ACE2 and TMPRSS2 mRNA expression levels than currently used Calu3 and commercial A549ACE2/TMPRSS2 cells. ACE2 and TMPRSS2 proteins were also highly and ubiquitously expressed in ACE2plusC3 cells. Additionally, antiviral drugs like Camostat mesylate, EIDD-1931, and Remdesivir strongly inhibited SARS-CoV-2 replication. Notably, multinucleated syncytia, a clinical feature commonly observed in severe COVID-19 patients was induced in ACE2plusC3 cells either by virus infection or by overexpressing the Spike proteins of different variants of SARS-CoV-2. Syncytial process was effectively blocked by the furin protease inhibitor, Decanoyl-RVKR-CMK. Taken together, we have developed a robust human A549 lung epithelial cell-based model that can be applied to probe SARS-CoV-2 replication and to facilitate the discovery of SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors.

Chromosome conformation capture (3C) assays are used to map chromatin interactions genome-wide. Chromatin interaction maps provide insights into the spatial organization of chromosomes and the mechanisms by which they fold. Hi-C and Micro-C are widely used 3C protocols that differ in key experimental parameters including cross-linking chemistry and chromatin fragmentation strategy. To understand how the choice of experimental protocol determines the ability to detect and quantify aspects of chromosome folding we have performed a systematic evaluation of 3C experimental parameters. We identified optimal protocol variants for either loop or compartment detection, optimizing fragment size and cross-linking chemistry. We used this knowledge to develop a greatly improved Hi-C protocol (Hi-C 3.0) that can detect both loops and compartments relatively effectively. In addition to providing benchmarked protocols, this work produced ultra-deep chromatin interaction maps using Micro-C, conventional Hi-C and Hi-C 3.0 for key cell lines used by the 4D Nucleome project.

Rationale: COVID-19 is characterized by increased incidence of microthrombosis with hyperactive platelets sporadically containing viral RNA. It is unclear if SARS-CoV-2 directly alters platelet activation or if these changes are a reaction to infection-mediated global inflammatory alterations. Importantly, the direct effect of SARS-CoV-2 on platelets has yet to be studied. Objective: To characterize the direct SARS-CoV-2-platelet interactions using in vitro studies with purified infectious virions and samples from infected patients. Methods and Results: Platelet RNA analyzed by ARTIC v3 sequencing for SARS-CoV-2 showed presence of fragmented viral genome in all COVID-19 patients. Immunofluorescent imaging of platelets from COVID-19 patients confirmed presence of SARS-CoV-2 proteins, while there was no detection of viral RNA by RT-qPCR. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of platelets incubated with purified SARS-CoV-2 virions demonstrated rapid internalization and digestion leading to distinct morphological changes, and resulted in a release of extracellular vesicles. Interactions between SARS-CoV-2 and platelets occurred with or without ACE2 presence as measured by immunofluorescence. TEM showed that SARS-CoV-2 virions became internalized when they were attached to microparticles, bypassing the need for ACE2. Enrichment analysis of platelet-transcriptome from patients with acute COVID-19, compared to those with clinical thrombosis, suggested upregulation of pathways related to virally mediated cell death, specifically necroptosis and apoptosis. Platelets incubated with infectious virus appeared to undergo cell death in 30 min post-incubation as assessed by TEM and platelets from COVID-19 patients showed evidence of increased markers of apoptosis and necroptosis by WB. Immunofluorescence confirmed colocalization of SARS-CoV-2 with phospho-MLKL and Caspase-3 on non-permeabilized platelets in vitro and in COVID-19 platelets. Conclusions:Platelets internalize SARS-CoV-2 virions, directly or attached to microparticles, and viral internalization leads to rapid digestion, programmed cell death and extracellular vesicle release. During COVID-19, platelets mediate a rapid response to SARS-CoV-2 and this response can contribute to dysregulated immunity and thrombosis.

Coronaviruses are a family of RNA viruses that cause acute and chronic diseases of the upper and lower respiratory tract in humans and other animals. SARS-CoV-2 is a recently emerged coronavirus that has led to a global pandemic causing a severe respiratory disease known as COVID-19 with significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. The development of antiviral therapeutics are urgently needed while vaccine programs roll out worldwide. Here we describe a diamidobenzimidazole compound, diABZI-4, that activates STING and is highly effective in limiting SARS-CoV-2 replication in cells and animals. diABZI-4 inhibited SARS-CoV-2 replication in lung epithelial cells. Administration of diABZI-4 intranasally before or even after virus infection conferred complete protection from severe respiratory disease in K18-ACE2-transgenic mice infected with SARS-CoV-2. Intranasal delivery of diABZI-4 induced a rapid short-lived activation of STING, leading to transient proinflammatory cytokine production and lymphocyte activation in the lung associated with inhibition of viral replication. Our study supports the use of diABZI-4 as a host-directed therapy which mobilizes antiviral defenses for the treatment and prevention of COVID-19.

Chromosome conformation capture (3C)-based assays are used to map chromatin interactions genome-wide. Quantitative analyses of chromatin interaction maps can lead to insights into the spatial organization of chromosomes and the mechanisms by which they fold. A number of protocols such as in situ Hi-C and Micro-C are now widely used and these differ in key experimental parameters including cross-linking chemistry and chromatin fragmentation strategy. To understand how the choice of experimental protocol determines the ability to detect and quantify aspects of chromosome folding we have performed a systematic evaluation of experimental parameters of 3C-based protocols. We find that different protocols capture different 3D genome features with different efficiencies. First, the use of cross-linkers such as DSG in addition to formaldehyde improves signal-to-noise allowing detection of thousands of additional loops and strengthens the compartment signal. Second, fragmenting chromatin to the level of nucleosomes using MNase allows detection of more loops. On the other hand, protocols that generate larger multi-kb fragments produce stronger compartmentalization signals. We confirmed our results for multiple cell types and cell cycle stages. We find that cell type-specific quantitative differences in chromosome folding are not detected or underestimated by some protocols. Based on these insights we developed Hi-C 3.0, a single protocol that can be used to both efficiently detect chromatin loops and to quantify compartmentalization. Finally, this study produced ultra-deeply sequenced reference interaction maps using conventional Hi-C, Micro-C and Hi-C 3.0 for commonly used cell lines in the 4D Nucleome Project.

Over the past decade, 3C-related methods have provided remarkable insights into chromosome folding in vivo. To overcome the limited resolution of prior studies, we extend a recently developed Hi-C variant, Micro-C, to map chromosome architecture at nucleosome resolution in human ESCs and fibroblasts. Micro-C robustly captures known features of chromosome folding including compartment organization, topologically associating domains, and interactions between CTCF binding sites. In addition, Micro-C provides a detailed map of nucleosome positions and localizes contact domain boundaries with nucleosomal precision. Compared to Hi-C, Micro-C exhibits an order of magnitude greater dynamic range, allowing the identification of approximately 20,000 additional loops in each cell type. Many newly identified peaks are localized along extrusion stripes and form transitive grids, consistent with their anchors being pause sites impeding cohesin-dependent loop extrusion. Our analyses comprise the highest-resolution maps of chromosome folding in human cells to date, providing a valuable resource for studies of chromosome organization.

Studies in vertebrates have outlined conserved molecular control of definitive endoderm (END) development. However, recent work also shows that key molecular aspects of human END regulation differ even from rodents. Differentiation of human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) to END offers a tractable system to study the molecular basis of normal and defective human-specific END development. Here, we interrogated dynamics in chromatin accessibility during differentiation of ESCs to END, predicting DNA-binding proteins that may drive this cell fate transition. We then combined single-cell RNA-seq with parallel CRISPR perturbations to comprehensively define the loss-of-function phenotype of those factors in END development. Following a few candidates, we revealed distinct impairments in the differentiation trajectories for mediators of TGFbeta signaling and expose a role for the FOXA2 transcription factor in priming human END competence for human foregut and hepatic END specification. Together, this single-cell functional genomics study provides high-resolution insight on human END development.

The 4D Nucleome Network aims to develop and apply approaches to map the structure and dynamics of the human and mouse genomes in space and time with the goal of gaining deeper mechanistic insights into how the nucleus is organized and functions. The project will develop and benchmark experimental and computational approaches for measuring genome conformation and nuclear organization, and investigate how these contribute to gene regulation and other genome functions. Validated experimental technologies will be combined with biophysical approaches to generate quantitative models of spatial genome organization in different biological states, both in cell populations and in single cells.

The spatial organization of the genome and its dynamics contribute to gene expression and cellular function in normal development as well as in disease. Although we are increasingly well equipped to determine a genome's sequence and linear chromatin composition, studying the three-dimensional organization of the genome with high spatial and temporal resolution remains challenging. The 4D Nucleome Network aims to develop and apply approaches to map the structure and dynamics of the human and mouse genomes in space and time with the long term goal of gaining deeper mechanistic understanding of how the nucleus is organized. The project will develop and benchmark experimental and computational approaches for measuring genome conformation and nuclear organization, and investigate how these contribute to gene regulation and other genome functions. Further efforts will be directed at applying validated experimental approaches combined with biophysical modeling to generate integrated maps and quantitative models of spatial genome organization in different biological states, both in cell populations and in single cells.

CRISPR-Cas9 effector systems have wide applications for the stem cell and regenerative medicine field. The ability to dissect the functional gene regulatory networks in pluripotency and potentially in differentiation intermediates of all three germ layers makes this a valuable tool for the stem cell community. Catalytically inactive Cas9 fused to transcriptional/chromatin effector domains allows for silencing or activation of a genomic region of interest. Here, we describe the application of an inducible, RNA-guided, nuclease-deficient (d) Cas9-KRAB system (adapted from Streptococcus pyogenes) to silence target gene expression in human embryonic stem cells, via KRAB repression at the promoter region. This chapter outlines a detailed protocol for generation of a stable human embryonic stem cell line containing both Sp-dCas9-KRAB and sgRNA, followed by inducible expression of Sp-dCas9-KRAB to analyze functional effects of dCas9-KRAB at target loci in human embryonic stem cells.